Former Defense Secretary Ashton Carter died Monday night after a “sudden cardiac event,” his family said. He was 68 years old.
He served as Secretary of Defense in the Obama administration from 2015 to 2017.
“[Carter] dedicated his professional life to the national security of the United States and teaching students about international affairs,” his family said. “He was a loving husband, father, mentor and friend. The sudden loss of him will be felt by all who knew him.”
During his time as defense secretary, Carter was behind the campaign to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria. He also directed the department to open all combat positions to women and created the policy that allowed transgender people to join the military and serve openly.
“Although known for his in-depth knowledge of military technology, nuclear weapons and international affairs, Secretary Carter loved nothing more than spending time with the troops, making frequent trips to Iraq and Afghanistan to visit US forces,” he said. his family.
Then-Deputy Secretary of Defense Ash Carter greets the United States Army Brig. General Ron Lewis in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, in 2013.
Carter served in five administrations of Democratic and Republican presidents. He held multiple positions within the Department of Defense, including Assistant Secretary and Under Secretary of Defense for Technology Acquisition and Logistics, in addition to serving as Secretary.
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Carter, a Rhodes scholar and theoretical physicist, served as director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School from 2017 until his death.
“He believed his deepest legacy would be the thousands of students he taught in the hope that they would make the world a better and safer place,” his family said.
In a statement Tuesday, Harvard Kennedy School dean Douglas Elmendorf called the news “devastating” and praised Carter for being an “important leader” at the university.
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“Ash was dedicated to our students: he said a key reason he came back here was his DoD experience of visiting abroad and being greeted with the ‘Hello, Professor Carter’ greeting from his former students, for so I wanted to go back and work with more students and helped raise funds for student scholarships,” Elmendorf said.
“I want to offer my gratitude for his insight and wisdom, his unwavering commitment to trying to improve the world, his belief that the Kennedy School can make a significant difference in the world, his generous spirit toward his students and colleagues, and his warm and funny friendship with me,” Elmendorf continued. “I’ll miss him a lot”.
Carter is survived by his wife, Stephanie, and his children, Ava and Will.
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