Berkowitz out at DoD Space Policy office

Marc Berkowitz, assistant secretary of war for space policy, testifies during a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee's strategic forces subcommittee in Washington, April 15, 2026. (DoD screenshot)

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon has quietly replaced Marc Berkowitz as space policy czar, with his former deputy Michael Gancio now serving as acting assistant secretary.

Gancio has a background in intelligence, according to his official DoD biography , most recently serving as an advisor to Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who chairs the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

The decision wasn’t formally announced, although two sources said he left the position on Wednesday. As of Thursday, the Defense Department’s website had been updated to reflect the changeover; Berkowitz’s biography now shows he is the “former” assistant secretary, and Gancio’s lists him as the acting.

Berkowitz could not be reached for comment. The Office of the Secretary of Defense did not respond to a request for comment by press time.

However, sources inside and outside of the Pentagon said that Berkowitz — who was confirmed by the Senate in December and officially started at his post in January — resigned.

Government and industry sources have said that Berkowitz, who has had a long space-oriented career in both government and industry, had clashed with his boss, Elbridge Colby, on more than one occasion.

“From what I have been told, Colby doesn’t care about space so it has been frustrating,” one industry consultant with Pentagon ties said.

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2026年4月15日，美国陆军部负责太空政策的助理部长马克·伯科维茨在华盛顿出席众议院军事委员会战略部队小组委员会的听证会。（美国国防部截图）

华盛顿——五角大楼悄然撤换了太空政策沙皇马克·伯科维茨，他的前副手迈克尔·甘西奥现在担任代理助理部长。

根据国防部官方传记，甘西奥拥有情报背景，最近担任参议院情报特别委员会主席、阿肯色州共和党参议员汤姆·科顿的顾问。

虽然官方并未正式宣布这一决定，但有两名消息人士称他已于周三离职。截至周四，国防部网站已更新，反映了这一人事变动；伯科维茨的个人简介显示他是“前”助理部长，而甘西奥的个人简介则显示他是代理助理部长。

记者未能联系到伯科维茨置评。截至发稿时，国防部长办公室尚未回复置评请求。

然而，五角大楼内外的消息人士称，伯科维茨（他于去年 12 月获得参议院确认，并于今年 1 月正式上任）已经辞职。

政府和行业消息人士称，伯科维茨在政府和工业界都拥有长期的航天领域从业经历，他曾多次与他的上司埃尔布里奇·科尔比发生冲突。

一位与五角大楼有联系的行业顾问表示：“据我所知，科尔比对太空并不感兴趣，这令人沮丧。”

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避免厂商锁定，并为传感器和升级留出更多空间是至关重要的考虑因素。