Derrick Anderson, assistant secretary of war for
special operations and low-intensity conflict, closed out the Special
Operations Forces Week 2026 convention in Tampa, Florida, today with a
keynote speech that focused on underscoring the SOF community's recent
successes, as well as articulating his vision for its future.
Anderson began his remarks by highlighting the sheer numbers of the
event. With roughly 700 vendors, representatives from more than 70
countries and approximately 30,000 attendees, the four-day event was the
largest to date.
"This event is our community's biggest event of the year, but it's
more than just a gathering. It provides a rare opportunity for the
entire SOF community to come together in one place to share insights,
evaluate technologies, align around emerging challenges, shape programs
and connect special operators with solutions," he said.
Noting that the U.S. military's SOF component comprises just 3% of
the joint force and a single-digit percentage of the War Department's
budget, Anderson highlighted the SOF community's recent successes in
real-world, tactical engagements over the past few months.
He noted that Operation Absolute Resolve, the successful Jan. 3 joint
force mission to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, took place
during Anderson's first week on the job.
"Our operators executed one of — if not the — most complex
jointly-integrated operations in U.S. history. Watching the coordination
of the special operations forces and the triad of SOF, cyber and space
in action should make us all very proud," he said.
He next mentioned Operation Southern Spear, the ongoing U.S. military
campaign launched in the Western Hemisphere that uses a heavy
deployment of naval warships and autonomous robotic systems to combat
drug cartels, disrupt illicit maritime trafficking and target designated
narco-terrorist organizations.
"Our country has demonstrated American strength in our hemisphere in
line with the national defense strategy. These SOF-supported maritime
interdiction operations have taken the fight to the narco-terrorists
[by] deterring these malign actors and their illicit activities, and
sending a clear, unambiguous message that America will do what's
necessary to protect our citizens," Anderson told the audience.
He also mentioned SOF's involvement in Operation Epic Fury, the
ongoing military campaign against Iran. Specifically, Anderson
referenced SOF's successful Easter weekend recovery of two downed
airmen.
"I got to witness the heroic rescue of the downed pilots in April.
Faced with the no-fail mission deep within enemy territory, our people
showed their greatness, executing with breathtaking skill, courage and
precision and recovering the aircrew in just under 48 hours from when
the mission began," Anderson said.
Following his recap of recent SOF missions and some remarks about
changes in the structure of the SOF enterprise, he then pivoted toward
SOF's future.
"My vision for the SOF enterprise is simple: to create asymmetric
advantages and multidomain effects to ensure the joint force wins
decisively across the spectrum of conflict. These efforts are undertaken
on behalf of the nation, support the priorities laid out in the
National Defense Strategy and align with the president's vision of
advancing peace through strength," Anderson said.
To achieve that, he said his department will prioritize five areas, partnership: people, policies, pioneerings and prudence.
Speaking about people, Anderson said that everything SOF does is
built on a foundation of exceptional individuals selected for their
merit, judgment, adaptability, resilience, and ability to solve complex
problems.
"The success of any mission hinges on the quality, training and the
well-being of the people who make up our force. That means we must be
committed to recruiting, training and retaining a total force of soft
talent, and to match this with our actions," he said.
Regarding policies, Anderson said the SOF enterprise needs to have
the right policies in place to unleash the full potential of its people
and their pioneering capabilities. At the same time, he wants to
establish or strengthen policies that increase speed and lethality, and
revise or remove policies that act as obstacles.
"In a rapidly changing world, bureaucracy can be as much of a threat
as our adversaries, and it's not always the big things that can impact
our operators, enablers and their families the most — it's the small
impediments and frustrations that add up," Anderson said.
In terms of pioneering, he said that SOF has a reputation for
capability development and innovation, and that operators need the right
tools for the job, scalable at speed.
"We can serve as the departmentwide leader in developing and
validating the required advanced capabilities. In doing so more rapidly,
we can demonstrate synchronization across the stove-piped bureaucratic
functions that contribute to the traditional pitfalls associated with
technology transformation," Anderson said.
"If we do that, SOF will innovate at the speed of relevance and continue to pioneer the joint force," he added.
As for partnerships, Anderson said that the SOF enterprise must
continue strengthening relationships with international partners, as
well as with joint interagency, intergovernmental, multinational and
commercial partners.
"By strengthening these partnerships, we amplify our effectiveness
and create a unified front to address shared threats," he said.
Anderson described the final of the five priorities, prudence, as the
need for SOF to be wise stewards of its allocated resources.
"One thing we cannot forget is that we are entrusted with the
nation's resources and with that comes a profound responsibility," he
said.
Anderson wrapped up his remarks by thanking those who enable SOF to sustain its mission.
"Thank you for the work that you do and the commitment to ensuring
SOF remains resourced and ready ... to meet today's mission while
transforming for tomorrow's challenges," he said.
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