Washington:

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin returned to work at the Pentagon on Monday after being hospitalized for complications from cancer treatment, a condition he did not initially disclose to the president and Congress, the Pentagon said.

Austin was scheduled to meet with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Monday for bilateral talks. Austin’s return comes a day after a deadly attack on U.S. forces in the Middle East.

“Austin returned to work at the Pentagon today. The Secretary has been performing his duties from home since being discharged from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on January 15, 2024,” the Department of Defense said in a statement.

The 70-year-old career soldier initially underwent minor surgery to treat prostate cancer on December 22 and went home the next day, but was readmitted to the hospital on January 1 due to complications including nausea and severe pain.

The White House was not informed of Austin’s hospitalization until January 4, Congress was not informed until the next day, and Biden was not informed of the cancer diagnosis until January 9.

Austin made his first public appearance since being hospitalized last week, speaking via video link from his residence at the opening of a Ukraine aid conference.

After Austin went to Walter Reed Hospital for a follow-up appointment on Friday, two doctors said Austin was likely to make a “full recovery” and that his prognosis was “very good.”

Republican lawmakers have called for Austin to be fired, but President Joe Biden, while expressing regret for the Pentagon chief’s lapse in judgment, said he still had confidence in the defense secretary.

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