A U.S. Department of Defense lawyer apologized Wednesday for his broadcast comments suggesting that corporations boycott law firms that represent detainees at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility.

In a letter to The Washington Post, Charles Cully Stimson, deputy assistant secretary of defense for detainee affairs, said the comments, made in a Jan. 11 radio interview, “do not reflect my core beliefs.” Stimson said “our justice system requires vigorous representation,” citing his own his experience in the Navy JAG Corps defending unpopular clients.