US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter ordered ordered military officials on Monday to make the necessary steps to legally enable transgender persons to enter military service without fear of repercussions.

USA Today reported that military officials will conduct a six month study on the possible impact of having transgender soldiers among the troops.

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A number of high ranking military officials have unofficially said that letting transgender people in the service should be put on hold until members of the U.S. military are psychologically ready to accept them, according to sources who do not want to be identified.

Homosexuals are now allowed to serve and females can be assigned to almost all kinds of combat duties in all branches of the U.S. military.

American military experts believe that more than 15,000 U.S. soldiers are transgenders. In early 2015, Carter admitted that the he is "open" to the idea of having transgender soldiers in the military as long as they can deliver what is required of them.

Currently, American transgender soldiers are not allowed to identify themselves as such since they will be forced out of the service if they do. The Pentagon considers transgender people medically unfit to become soldiers.

The defense secretary described the current ban preventing transgender persons from entering military service as "outdated," according to AP.

A number of political leaders have voiced their support for permitting transgenders to enter the military. Democrat Senator Adam Smith said that the initiative will make every one know that gender is not a measure of one's ability to fight for his country, ABC reported.

The most famous American transgender who has served in the U.S. military is Chelsea Manning. As a soldier back then, he was known as Bradley Manning.

Ironically, she is now serving a 35-year imprisonment sentence due to her involvement in the release of massive secret information to WikiLeaks. She is currently incarcerated in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

During an interview with the media, she confessed that being a transgender has haunted her.

Tagschelsea manning, gender dysphoria, US Military Transgender, Transgender Military Policy, Military Transgender Ban