Ash Carter Joins Facebook to Connect With Troops

— -- Look who's joined Facebook.

Catching the social media wave, Ash Carter has become the first defense secretary to join Facebook.

"To personally communicate with our nearly three million service members and civilians on social media," the Pentagon said today in a statement.

Like most Facebook users on the road, Carter wanted to share a bit of his travels with his Facebook friends.

Currently in Singapore for a meeting of Asian defense ministers, Carter's first post was about his flight aboard a Marine MV-22 Osprey over the Strait of Malacca. He shared a photo of his shaking hands with a Marine crew member during the flight.

It didn't take long for the prime minister of Singapore to welcome him to Facebook with another social media institution, a selfie.

Carter might still be getting used to social media etiquette because hours after the posting he had not yet "liked" Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's photo post.

The Pentagon statement said Carter's joining Facebook is "just one more way as secretary of defense he can better communicate with service members and their families and help the Pentagon think 'outside the five sided box' to drive change."

Carter's recent visit to Facebook headquarters, where he met with Facebook employees who are veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, "drove home for Secretary Carter the impact social media can have on connecting our troops to the American people and improving connections among the forces," the Pentagon said.

"While no Secretary of Defense is able to meet with every service member personally, Facebook will help Secretary Carter reach service members and their families in a way that hasn't been possible before," the Pentagon added.