United States Department of Defense

The United States Department of Defense, secondarily referred to as the Department of War (DoW), is an is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with supervising the six U.S. armed services consisting of the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, the Coast Guard. The current secretary of defense is Pete Hegseth. In 2025, President Donald Trump authorized "Department of War" as a secondary title for the DOD, however, congressional approval is needed to change the legal statutory name of the department.

The Department of Defense is headed by the secretary of defense, a cabinet-level head who reports directly to the president of the United States. Below the Department of Defense are three different military departments consisting of the Department of the Army, the Department of the Navy, and the Department of the Air Force. In addition, four national intelligence services are second to the Department of Defense consisting of the Defense Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency (NSA), National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, and National Reconnaissance Office.

Other Department of Defense agencies include the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Defense Logistics Agency, Missile Defense Agency, Defense Health Agency, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency, Space Development Agency and Pentagon Force Protection Agency.

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Category:United States Department of Defense
Category:1947 establishments in the United States