Ash Carter, a former defence secretary who allowed women to serve in combat roles and lifted a prohibition on transgender persons joining the military, passed away at the age of 68.
Ash Carter dies: Cause of death revealed
According to a statement released by his family on Tuesday, Carter passed away on Monday night in Boston following a heart attack.
Carter was a nuclear expert, three-time Pentagon executive, budget expert, and professor who spent 35 years working as a defence civilian in the building. He was known for his defence thinking and strategy.
At Carter’s retirement celebration in 2017, Gen. Martin Dempsey, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that Carter’s emphasis on the less glamorous aspects of his job, such as personnel management, had made him renowned as the “most important, least known individual in Washington.”
Despite not having prior military experience, Carter learned the workings of the Defense Department, a skill set that enabled him to subtly influence significant change, notably in regard to who was permitted to wear a uniform.
