NY Rep. Elise Stefanik says female Green Beret candidate poised to graduate in July
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A female U.S. Army soldier is expected to graduate from the Special Forces Qualification Course next month, which would make her the first woman to join the elite Green Berets, according to a lawmaker.
“The graduation of the first female U.S. Army Green Beret is an important and hard-earned milestone,” Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. -- who serves on the House Armed Services Committee -- said in a statement.
Military.com, which first reported on the soldier’s tentative graduation date, confirmed that she has successfully passed the intense 53-week Qualification Course and will graduate on July 9.
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The Qualification Course encompasses “six phases and includes training in small-unit operations, advanced Special Forces tactics, language training and unconventional warfare,” according to the military news outlet.
“This achievement is a testament to this soldier’s individual strength, courage and commitment, and also an important institutional milestone for U.S. Special Operations Command as it embraces the cultural change that will continue to make it the most successful and elite Special Operations Force in the world,” Stefanik said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The female soldier reportedly solidified her graduation by passing a three-week exercise known as the "Robin Sage," which is a North Carolina-based field exercise that puts candidates into a simulated guerrilla warfare scenario.
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Soldiers have to rely on previous training, analysis and relationship building with “friendly foreign forces” in order to survive the task.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}However, the female soldier, whose identity has been protected by the Special Operations Command, is not a Green Beret until making it to the July 9 graduation ceremony.
“It is truly an honor to congratulate this newest Army Special Forces soldier for her accomplishment,” Stefanik said. “I hope she is the first woman of many to wear the illustrious Green Beret.”
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Army Special Forces remains one of the still only-male military sectors after former Defense Secretary Ashton Carter officially permitted women to join all sectors of the military, including direct combat roles, in 2015.
The Special Operations Command could not immediately be reached for comment.