Kelly, Sinema Announce Selection of ASU for John S. McCain III Irregular Warfare Center of Excellence

Today, U.S. Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ), a 25-year Navy combat veteran and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, alongside Senator Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), announced that Arizona State University has been selected and awarded over $24 million by the Department of Defense (DoD) to establish the John S. McCain III Center for Security Studies in Irregular Warfare Center of Excellence (COE). Through this ASU-led consortium, the COE will leverage a whole-of-society perspective to develop innovative approaches to irregular warfare, a critical area for maintaining U.S. national security amid evolving global threats.  

ASU’s Irregular Warfare Center of Excellence will serve as a focal point for collaboration between the DoD, academic institutions, civilian experts, foreign partners, and allies. It will draw on the expertise of ASU’s nationally ranked research programs, its Center on the Future of War, and its global partnerships. Our adversaries use forms of irregular warfare, such as disinformation campaigns, cybersecurity intrusions, economic coercion, and non-state proxies to disrupt global stability and undermine U.S. interests. The Center will develop innovative strategies to address the complex and non-traditional nature of irregular warfare, which DoD can then incorporate to our military’s advantage. 

This selection follows Kelly’s successful efforts to secure language in the National Defense Authorization Act that directed the DoD to establish the Center, named it after Senator McCain, and authorized additional funding to accelerate its creation. Since the Center’s creation in 2021, Kelly and Sinema have consistently championed its mission, advocating for its establishment in Arizona and pressing the DoD to execute the vision Congress outlined for the Center. 

“The establishment of the McCain Irregular Warfare Center of Excellence at ASU will put Arizona at the forefront of better understanding these challenges to our national security and developing the strategies to overcome them,” said Kelly. “This Center will bring together the brightest minds from across government, academia, and our international partners in a whole-of-society effort that will make our country and our allies safer. Senator McCain knew the importance of this mission, and I’m proud to honor his legacy by putting Arizona at the center of this vital work.” 

“After years of bureaucratic delays, I worked directly with the White House to establish the Irregular Warfare Center at ASU. I’m proud to have cut through the red tape to deliver this important center to the best academic institution in the country,” said Sinema. 

“Arizona State University has been disciplined about developing expertise in this area and we are committed to being of service at the highest level for this important national security assignment,” said ASU President Michael Crow. “Being selected to lead this work is a responsibility that we take very seriously, and we are grateful to the entire Arizona Congressional delegation for its support and confidence in us, and particularly for the leadership of Senators Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema.”