Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told US troops on Wednesday that the Pentagon “will make a calm, orderly, and professional transition to the incoming Trump administration,” CNN reports.

In a message to the force dated November 6, Austin wrote that “as it always has, the US military will stand ready to carry out the policy choices of its next Commander in Chief, and to obey all lawful orders from its civilian chain of command.”

Austin’s memo was sent as the US military grapples with the election of Donald Trump, who has suggested he would be open to using active duty troops for domestic law enforcement and mass deportations.

Austin wrote that the US military will “stand apart” from politics and continue to support and defend the Constitution.

“You are not just any military,” Austin wrote. “You are the United States military —the finest fighting force on Earth—and you will continue to defend our country, our Constitution, and the rights of all of our citizens.”