US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (ABC)
EA on WION: Mr Trump, The UN Still Matters
I joined India’s WION on Saturday to analyze why Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth summoned more than 800 US generals and admirals from around the world to an “emergency” meeting in Virginia next Tuesday.
I explain Hegseth’s “political stunt” with his “warrior ethos” speech, a tough guy posture both for Donald Trump and for a Defense Secretary who never saw combat and never had a command or operational position in the military.
And I consider the more dangerous significance. Hegseth is demanding a personal pledge of loyalty to himself and Trump from America’s commanders, as the Administration purges US defense forces in the guise of taking on a “woke” military.
The military’s loyalty is to the nation. It’s not to Donald Trump or Hegseth in an Administration which is verging on the authoritarian.
Asked if this is similar to the Third Reich’s summoning of generals in 1935 to demand a personal oath to Adolf Hitler, I reply:
Donald Trump isn’t the Führer. Pete Hegseth isn’t Hermann Göring, at least not yet.
Germany did purge the military in the 1930s. So did the Soviet Union. But in strictly American terms, Trump and Hegseth see this as “you have to pledge your loyalty to us”.
Watch from 2:56:
US Secretary of War calls rare emergency meeting of US military.
Speculation rife over the agenda of the meeting.@Mohammed11Saleh joined by @ScottLucas_EA, International Affairs Expert, for perspective. pic.twitter.com/0lPskCYV1O
— WION (@WIONews) September 27, 2025
US Military Technology Protected Israel from Iran’s Attacks: https://nationalinterest.org/feature/the-us-airstrike-ends-the-iran-israel-war-before-it-begins
“In financial terms, Iran won the war, as the joint US-Israeli interception operation cost hundreds of millions of dollars per day.”
Hegseth Pushes Drone Dominance Amid Pentagon Upheaval: https://evrimagaci.org/gpt/hegseth-pushes-drone-dominance-amid-pentagon-upheaval-492126?srsltid=AfmBOooHHFKYIZyXF80pyoTirC2yAhtnUYj9JkoIQi-NVaC5Eps9h6nd
Drone warfare has been a feature of the Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Iran conflicts. Donald Trump wants the U.S to produce cheap drones like Iran has designed and built: https://www.firstpost.com/world/they-are-fast-and-deadly-trump-praises-iranian-drones-slams-high-us-defence-costs-ws-d-13889328.html
Comparing Iran’s drone production costs of $35,000 to $40,000 with US manufacturers’ quotes of $41 million for similar technology, Trump said, “I asked one of the companies I want a lot of drones… and in the case of Iran, they make a good drone. And it makes them for 35-40 thousand dollars. So I say to this company, I wanna see… they came in 2 weeks later with a drone that cost 41 million. I said that’s not what I’m talking about.” Donald Trump also called the Iranian drones “very good too and fast and deadly”.
Hey Scott Lucas. You need to be fact checked. Pete has had a command position and experienced combat. I still think he’s incredibly unqualified however you need to get the facts correct.
J.
Thanks for this. I erred — the extent of the “command position” is debatable, but Hegseth was deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A good summary:
“Hegseth was not a front-line leader of combat troops under sustained fire. He did not command an infantry company in protracted combat or lead exhausted soldiers through night patrols and firefights.
He served honorably — but his service is not what he markets. What he sells is the image of the modern American warrior as loud, aggressive, and built for Instagram, not endurance or humility.”
https://medium.com/the-political-prism/what-pete-hegseth-doesnt-get-about-combat-f879777ecbee
S.
[Editor’s Note: Perhaps needless to say, there is no evidence that Hegseth’s “emergency” summoning of generals and admirals is about Iranian and Israeli weapons.
But kudos to the commenter to try and wrap his pro-regime cheerleading, in the face of Iran’s defeat in June and the imminent “snapback” sanctions, in this story.]
The meeting will discuss America’s weaponry needs in the aftermath of the Israel-Iran conflict.
We know that Trump was impressed both by Iran’s land-based conventional ballistic missiles and Israel’s air-launched ballistic missiles. The United States has neither – only nuclear-tipped warheads like the Trident II. The US Navy has been crying out for conventional warheads even if it means an enemy could mistake them for a nuke. Trump was also impressed by the drones used in the conflict, especially the cheap but effective Iranian models like the Shahed series: https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/world/trump-praises-iran-s-missile-strikes-on-israel-they-hit-hard-destroyed-a-lot-of-buildings-during-the-conflict-watch-video-2025-06-25-996256
Another concern is the failure of the AEGIS system used by the USN to intercept missiles which were depleted at an “alarming rate” with more interceptors being fired than ballistic missiles targeted by them: https://www.businessinsider.com/us-warships-fire-top-missile-interceptors-alarming-rate-admiral-says-2025-6
Satellite images show construction under way at Iran nuclear sites hit in strikes:https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cy8rp4357g0t
“Satellite images captured by Maxar of the Fordo enrichment complex on 23 September show that six craters, which were previously spotted following US strikes, have now been covered.”
After U.S. Strikes, Iran Increases Work at Mysterious Underground Site: https://www.kurdistan24.net/en/story/865872
“Following U.S. and Israeli strikes on its nuclear facilities in June, Iran has increased construction at a mysterious, deeply buried underground site known as “Pickaxe Mountain,” The Washington Post reported. The work suggests Tehran may be cautiously rebuilding and hardening its nuclear program.”
Who won the Israel-Iran war? https://harici.com.tr/en/who-won-the-israel-iran-war-retired-rear-admiral-alaettin-sevim-speaks-to-harici/
“In conclusion, I assess that Israel gained an advantage through the damage it inflicted on Iran’s infrastructure and nuclear capacity, but that Iran won by not losing the war. I believe that Iran’s capacity to respond to Israel—its capacity for reaction—was underestimated, and it was a mistake not to consider that it could retaliate for such a long period, even if with long-range missiles. For this reason, in my opinion, Iran is considered a winner for not having lost this war.”