Special operations commanders issue warning about US enemies' 'impressive' tech advancements

America is falling behind its adversaries when it comes to technological advancement, commanders of special operations forces told the House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday. 

Rear Adm. Milton Sands III, Maj. Gen. Peter Huntley, Lt. Gen. Jonathan Braga and Lt. Gen. Michael Conley all voiced concerns about special ops being bogged down by bureaucracy when it comes to making critical technological upgrades. 

Maj. Gen. Huntley, who leads the Marine Forces Special Operations Command, told lawmakers on Capitol Hill that modernization is "moving very fast" across the globe, but America’s ability to keep up with the pace is troublesome. 

As an example, Maj. Gen. Huntley spoke of the impact artificial intelligence has had on U.S. forces’ ability to "sense the enemy before they sense us," an advantage America has enjoyed for decades.

Special ops commanders speak at a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Feb. 26, 2025. (House Armed Services Committee YouTube)

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Rear Adm. Sands also issued a warning about the ability to "rapidly" get U.S. troops the equipment they need "to survive" the modern battlefield.

"… our priority is getting equipment that's required for the modern battlefield rapidly into the hands of our operators, and the reason is because they need it to survive," Rear Adm. Sands told lawmakers

Lt. Gen. Braga, commander of Army Special Operations Command, expressed similar concerns about how systems in place are impacting modernization.

"Our people are great at innovating, they have fantastic ideas," Lt. Gen. Braga told the lawmakers. He added, however, that the challenges with funding and bureaucratic processes that can make simple modifications take months or years. However, he suggested that streamlining funding and oversight processes could be possible solutions to these issues. 

House Armed Services Committee holds its hearing on "The Role of Special Operations in Great Power Competition" on Feb. 26, 2025. (House Armed Services Committee YouTube)

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Commander of Air Force Special Operations Command Lt. Gen. Conley joined the other military leaders, saying that his troops are "phenomenal at taking lessons learned and turning them into actionable things," but they "run into harder procurement challenges" when trying to scale those things.

Lt. Gen. Conley also said air fleet modifications take too long and are "pricey," putting the U.S. in a "constant loop of trying to catch up with the enemy threat." Additionally, he warned that America’s adversaries "continue to improve every day," while the U.S. "can’t keep up with the threat because our it takes us a long time to modify."

A general view of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 28, 2013.  (REUTERS/Jason Reed)

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The military leaders also mentioned the threats posed by non-state actors, with Maj. Gen. Huntley noting that they are rapidly upgrading when it comes to technological capabilities.

"What they bring to the tactical fight is, frankly, pretty impressive," Maj. Gen. Huntley said, adding that the forces "know what we have to do," but the "critical" challenge is getting those capabilities into the hands of troops.