Secretary of State for Defense (Aquitayne)
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| Aquitayne Secretary of State for Defense | |
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| Ministry of Defense | |
| Style | Defense Secretary (informal) The Right Honourable (within Aquitayne and the UK) |
| Type | Minister of the Crown |
| Status | Secretary of State |
| Member of | |
| Reports to | The Prime Minister |
| Seat | Telora |
| Nominator | The Prime Minister |
| Appointer | The Monarch (on the advice of the Prime Minister) |
| Term length | At His Majesty's pleasure |
| Precursor | Minister of War (1741-1964) |
| Formation | 5 August 1964 |
| Salary | $205,000 per annum (2024) (including $100,000 MP salary) |
| This article is part of a series on |
| Politics of Aquitayne |
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The Secretary of State for Defense, also known as the Defense Secretary, is a Secretary of State in the Government of Aquitayne, with responsibility over the Ministry of Defense. As a senior minister, the incumbent is also a member of the Cabinet and Privy Council and is considered a Great Office of State.
The post of secretary of state for defense was established in 1964 during a major governmental restructuring, replacing the previous position of Minister of War, which had been in place for over 200 years. The title of the position was viewed as too harsh for the modern era.
The current secretary of state for defense is Augustus Reich, who was appointed on 18 February 2019 by Prime Minister Richard Larrow after the resignation of Cai Neilson.
Responsibilities
The Defense Secretary's responsibilities include:
- Strategic military and defense operations. The incumbent is a member of the National Security Council, and Second Chair of the [[Defense Council (Aquitayne)}Defense Council]], to which the Monarch sits as Chair and retains final command of the Armed Forces.
- Oversight of Defense Intelligence
- Relations with international partners, in coordination with the Foreign Office, though retaining almost sole-discretion when working with members of TARP
- Defense policy, nuclear deterrence, resourcing and planning
- Communications on Defense
History
Establishment of Office
The Ministry of Defense was unofficially established in 1741 at the onset of the Aquitaynian War of Independence. Its predecessor, the War Council, had been disbanded after the War of the White Rose and the Exponential Empire taking over all government functions in Aquitayne.