Report: US veterans work for foreign governments

More than 500 retired US military personnel — from enlisted men to scores of generals and admirals — have worked as contractors and consultants for foreign governments, including Australia and Persian Gulf countries since 2015, The Washington Post reported Wednesday.

Former US admirals and senior US Navy leaders are working as paid, confidential advisers to the Australian government to help acquire top-secret nuclear submarine technology from the US and the UK, according to a Post investigation. They have received consulting deals from the government worth more than $10 million combined.

Some retired US admirals have worked for the Australian government as paid advisers while simultaneously consulting for the US Navy. One retired US admiral was hired by the government of Australia to serve as its deputy secretary of defense and to oversee its submarine program, the Post reported.

Retired military personnel have worked as civilian contractors for monarchies in upgrading their militaries, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Post said. Over the past seven years, 280 retired US service members have worked as military contractors and consultants for the UAE, more than any other country, according to the Post.

Retired Marine General Jim Mattis served as a military adviser to the UAE before becoming secretary of Defense for President Donald Trump, the Post said. A spokesman for Mattis said but accepted no compensation for his work.

Mattis applied for federal permission to work with the Emiratis again when he resigned as defense secretary and gave a speech in Abu Dhabi. Documents show he was supposed to receive an honorarium from the UAE, the Post said, but a Mattis spokesman said he accepted only reimbursement for travel expenses.

Foreign governments pay salary and benefit packages reaching six, and sometimes seven, figures for the retired military personnel. Retired generals and admirals command the most money, but former enlisted personnel can also collect foreign pay on top of their US military pensions, the Post said.

Retired military personnel seeking foreign work must first obtain approval from their branch of the armed forces and the State Department. The Post found the requests are largely rubber-stamped: Of more than 500 submitted since 2015, about 95 percent were granted. There is no criminal penalty for violating the law and enforcement is almost nonexistent, the Post said.

The Post sued the armed forces and the State Department under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain the records on foreign jobs sought by military personnel, including the type of work, compensation, and countries involved. The Post said it has obtained more than 4,000 pages of documents, including case files for about 450 retired soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines.

The government had resisted releasing the records arguing that disclosure wasn't in the public interest and violated the privacy of military personnel, the Post said. After a two-year legal battle, US District Judge Amit P. Mehta ruled in September that the government's arguments were "unconvincing".

"The public has a right to know if high-ranking military leaders are taking advantage of their stations — or might be perceived to be doing so — to create employment opportunities with foreign governments in retirement," Mehta wrote.