
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin attends a welcome ceremony before an annual security meeting with South Korean Defence Minister Shin Won-sik at the Defence Ministry in Seoul, South Korea on November 13, 2023. JUNG YEON-JE/Pool via REUTERS
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was hospitalized in Washington on Sunday for treatment of 鈥渟ymptoms suggesting an emergent bladder issue,鈥 a Pentagon spokesperson said.
Austin, 70, later transferred the duties of his office to Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks, Pentagon Press Secretary Major General Pat Ryder said in a statement.
搁贰础顿:听White House, Pentagon to review Austin鈥檚 lack of disclosure on hospital stay
Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers criticized Austin last month for failing to disclose a cancer diagnosis and subsequent hospitalizations in December and January, including to President Joe Biden. He apologized during a televised news briefing.
He is scheduled to testify before Congress on Feb. 29 about the situation.
The incident triggered a political uproar. Some prominent Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, called for Austin to be removed from his job. Austin is a retired four-star general who led forces in Iraq and is America鈥檚 first Black defense secretary.
Biden, a Democrat, has said he has confidence in Austin despite what the president agreed was a lapse in judgment.
Austin is scheduled to travel to Brussels for a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group on Wednesday. It was not clear if his hospitalization would affect those travel plans.