Former military and officials launch initiative to create separate U.S. Cyber Forces

 

On Monday, a group of former senior civilian and military leaders specializing in digital security announced the launch of a large—scale initiative, the Commission for the Formation of U.S. Cyber Forces. Her goal is to work out in detail exactly how America should create a separate military branch dedicated entirely to cyberspace.

This commission is designed to propose specific ways that Congress and the White House can follow when deciding on the creation of a new structure. According to one of its co—chairs, Josh Stiefel, a former professional staff member of the House Armed Services Committee, the commission plans to complete the bulk of its work before adopting the defense budget for next year, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which will be a key moment for a possible legislative solution.

"Now is the right time, especially with this administration that I left, to do this," Stiefel said in an exclusive interview with Recorded Future News. "I believe that now there is a chance to draw attention to this issue and make real progress." He currently holds the position of Vice president of Government Relations at Second Front, a defense technology and cybersecurity company.

The Commission was created as a result of a partnership between the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Commission on Cyberspace Solarium 2.0. It includes 17 experts representing a wide range of expertise:

- Former top Pentagon and intelligence officials, including Michael Salmeyer, the first head of Pentagon cyber policy to be confirmed by the Senate, and Georges Barnes, who held a second position at the National Security Agency (NSA).

- Retired commanders of cyber forces of all kinds — land, air force, naval and space forces, including Admiral Michael Gilday, former Chief of Naval Operations.

- Experts from the private sector and academia.

The commission is co-led by retired Lieutenant General Ed Cardon, former commander of the Army Cyber Command, along with Stiefel. He emphasizes that the commission's goal is to speed up the decision, because "the threat is growing, technology is developing at breakneck speed, and we cannot sit for four or five years thinking about how to do this."

The initiative comes at a critical moment for U.S. cyber forces:

- President Donald Trump unexpectedly fired the head of the US Cyber Command four months ago, and no replacement has been appointed since.

- The long-awaited reform called Cyber Command 2.0, designed to strengthen the combat readiness and autonomy of the cyber forces, has been sent for revision, and many believe that the project is essentially dead.

- Bipartisan discontent is growing on Capitol Hill over the fact that the existing branches of the armed forces cannot provide Cyber Command with enough trained cyber fighters capable of countering opponents such as China, Russia or Iran.

The situation reached a boiling point last year when Congress included a provision in the defense law obliging the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) to conduct an independent assessment of the feasibility of creating separate Cyber Forces. The results of this study are expected to be ready by the end of 2025.

But the Stiefel and Cardona commission does not want to wait. She strives to stay ahead of academic research and already now propose practical, politically feasible solutions that can be implemented in the NDAA bill.

What are "Cyber Forces"?

The idea is simple but radical: to separate cyber operations from other branches of the armed forces and create a sixth independent military corps — along with the army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Space Forces. Such forces will be:

- Have your own command, budget and career system.

- Specialize exclusively in cyber warfare, infrastructure protection, and offensive operations in the digital space.

- Be able to adapt quickly to new threats without depending on the bureaucracy of other departments.

The Commission has already started its work: it holds hearings, analyzes international experience (for example, cyber structures in Israel, Great Britain and Estonia) and develops models for future organization.

If they succeed in convincing Congress and the White House, 2026 could be the year of the birth of the official US Cyber Forces, a new milestone in the evolution of national defense.