(Washington) « C’était une erreur ». Le secrétaire à la Défense des États-Unis, Lloyd Austin, s’est excusé jeudi d’avoir gardé le secret sur son cancer de la prostate et son hospitalisation, une affaire qui a provoqué un tollé dans le pays.
En pleine année électorale et alors que les États-Unis, première puissance militaire mondiale, suivent de près deux conflits majeurs en Ukraine et dans la bande de Gaza, M. Austin a été opéré et deux fois hospitalisé en décembre et en janvier sans que le président Joe Biden n’en sache rien.
« Je veux être très clair […] : I did not handle this properly,” the secretary said at a press conference.
“I should have informed the president of my cancer diagnosis. I should have told my team and the American people as well and I take full responsibility for that. I apologize to my colleagues and to the American people,” he added.
“It was a mistake” not to have said this in particular to President Biden, he admitted.
But “I want to make it very clear that there was no power vacuum and (there was) no risk to the command and control of the department,” he stressed.
Mr. Austin was widely criticized after it was revealed that he was recently hospitalized and that his health problem was kept secret, contrary to current protocols.
Joe Biden himself was not informed of the cancer diagnosis for weeks, according to the White House.
“Someone discreet”
The affair caused astonishment even in the Democratic camp and sparked calls from Republicans for Mr. Austin’s resignation.
The latter ruled out this option. President Biden said he remains confident in his defense secretary, while regretting a lack of communication.
Mr. Austin said he had apologized “directly” to Mr. Biden and that Mr. Biden had responded “with grace.”
The controversy over his health problems also comes at a time when American forces in Iraq and Syria are regularly targeted by attacks by fighters supported by Iran according to Washington. One killed three American soldiers last weekend.
The Defense Secretary further claimed that he had “missed the opportunity to send a message on an important public health issue.”
“One in eight American men will develop prostate cancer. One in six black men will be affected,” said Mr. Austin, himself an African-American. “So I have a clear message for other men, especially older ones. Do your health checks.”
Lloyd Austin also denied having established a “culture of secrecy”.
It was more of a “privacy” issue, he said.
When he was told he had cancer, “it was a blow to the heart. And frankly, my first instinct was to keep it a secret. I’m not telling you anything by saying that I’m a fairly discreet person,” he told the press.
The secretary finally wanted to be reassuring about his convalescence.
“I’m recovering well but as you can see, I’m still recovering,” he told reporters, commenting on his somewhat stiff gait. “I still have some pain in my leg,” he added, adding that he was doing physiotherapy.