![Pentagon moving to mandate COVID-19 vaccine for U.S. troops](https://cbsnews2.cbsistatic.com/hub/i/r/2021/08/23/c2e63120-ed90-459a-a251-5153cb6d4e81/thumbnail/1200x630/4280f52464cba71ff90cb95d1ec461a8/gettyimages-1232572548.jpg)
Pentagon moving to mandate COVID-19 vaccine for U.S. troops
CBSN
The Defense Department announced Monday that it will move to make the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine mandatory for all U.S. service members, now that the vaccine has received the full approval of the Food and Drug Administration.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a memo to the force this month that he would mandate the vaccine for the 1.3 million service members, either upon FDA approval or by mid-September with a waiver from President Biden. Vaccines have been voluntary for troops while they're under emergency use authorization. Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby told reporters Monday that updated guidance and a timeline for when troops should be vaccinated will be provided in the coming days.![](/newspic/picid-6252001-20250214202746.jpg)
Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a high-stakes meeting at this year's Munich Security conference to discuss the Trump administration's efforts to end the war in Ukraine. Vance said the U.S. seeks a "durable" peace, while Zelenskyy expressed the desire for extensive discussions to prepare for any end to the conflict.
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Washington — The Trump administration on Thursday intensified its sweeping efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce, the nation's largest employer, by ordering agencies to lay off nearly all probationary employees who hadn't yet gained civil service protection - potentially affecting hundreds of thousands of workers.
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It was Labor Day weekend 2003 when Matt Scribner, a local horse farrier and trainer who also competes in long-distance horse races, was on his usual ride in a remote part of the Sierra Nevada foothills — just a few miles northeast of Auburn, California —when he noticed a freshly dug hole along the trail that piqued his curiosity.