Military recruiters are now accepting openly gay and lesbian applicants for enlistment in the U.S. armed forces, the Pentagon announced Tuesday, the day its policy banning soldiers with such sexual orientation ended.

The White House also issued a statement hailing the repeal of the controversial Don't Ask Don't Tell (DADT) policy, which requires commanders not to ask the sexual orientation of soldiers and requires gay and lesbian soldiers to keep their orientation secret.

"As of today, patriotic Americans in uniform will no longer have to lie about who they are in order to serve the country they love," said the statement from President Barack Obama, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Mr. Obama signed in December the law repealing the DADT policy, which the U.S. Congress passed into law in 1993. Gay rights groups welcomed the repeal calling it an "a important milestone in the fight against anti-homosexual discrimination.

The groups claimed the repeal will keep the U.S. military the finest in the world. The DADT, which took effect in 1993, resulted in the expulsion of more than 14,500 soldiers from the military as counted by the Service members Legal Defense Network.

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned against mistreatment of gays in the military.

"We have a zero tolerance with regards to harassment," Panetta told a Pentagon briefing, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The Family Research Council called the DADT repeal a "tragic day for America," according to the Los Angeles Times. DADT critics have been arguing that gay and lesbian will disrupt the service and reduce the effectiveness of the military.