RIYADH: The US Department of Defense awarded three contracts worth $1 billion to Verizon Public Sector to provide technical support and network modernization services to the Pentagon, the National Capital Region and Fort Belvoir. Under the first deal valued at $515.3 million, Verizon will partner with the Defense Department to transition the entire Pentagon military and civilian population from copper-based telephony to advanced internet protocol-based services, providing a converged-enterprise environment for the Pentagon’s voice and data services. Through a separate task order worth almost $433 million, Verizon will deliver core voice, transport, internet, and professional services to over 370 locations throughout the National Capital Region. Under the third deal valued at $18.3 million, Verizon will provide communications technology infrastructure including core voice, transport, internet and managed services at Fort Belvoir. “The US Department of Defense is at the forefront of technology modernization, and we are proud that Verizon has been selected to grow our existing partnership and continue to serve as its digital transformation partner,” said Maggie Hallbach, senior vice president, Public Sector at Verizon.