Pete Hegseth, Trump's pick for US defence secretary, wants to bring back 'warrior culture'
The man Donald Trump wants as his Secretary of Defence has told US senators he wants to "bring warrior culture back" to the country's military.
Pete Hegseth also vowed to focus on what he called "real deterrence" rather than "reputational deterrence" when dealing with threats and to work with allies to deter aggression from China in the Indo-Pacific region.
During a four-hour hearing at the US Armed Services Committee, the decorated veteran and former Fox News host said: "When President Trump chose me for this position, the primary charge he gave me was – to bring the warrior culture back to the Department of Defence."
"He, like me, wants a Pentagon laser-focused on warfighting, lethality, meritocracy, standards, and readiness.
"That's it. That is my job."
When asked what he thinks the main challenges of the job will be, Mr Hegseth said: "I would immediately be challenged to posture our military and the Pentagon to deter further deterioration of the situations in Ukraine, Israel, Syria, and other instability around the world.
"Simultaneously, if confirmed, I would immediately address the test from the Chinese Communist Party and tackle head-on any areas that may cause the Chinese Communist Party to perceive an opportunity for aggression.
"If confirmed, during my tenure as Secretary of Defence, I would prioritise emerging from this dangerous security environment as a lethal, modern fighting force that is positioned to deter future conflict, defend the homeland, and protect American interests."
The 44-year-old also declined to rule out firing the chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff General CQ Brown, following comments in his latest book where he questioned if the officer has the job because of his race.
"Every single senior officer will be reviewed based on meritocracy, standards, lethality and commitment to lawful orders they will be given," Mr Hegseth said.
When asked about previous women in combat roles, the Iraq and Afghanistan war veteran softened his stance after previously commenting that women should be kept away from the frontline.
He said that women should continue to serve as long as an internal review finds they are meeting the same benchmarks as men.
"Every service member, regardless of gender, who can meet objective occupational and readiness standards for a career field should have the opportunity to compete for jobs in that field," Mr Hegseth said.
"In those ground combat roles, what is true is that the weight of the ruck on your back doesn't change, the weight of the 155 round that you have to carry doesn't change, the weight of the 240 Bravo machine gun you might have to carry doesn't change.
"And so, whether it's a man or a woman, they have to meet the same high standards.
"In any place where those things have been eroded or in courses criteria have been changed to meet quotas –racial quotas or gender quotas – that is putting a focus on something other than readiness standards, meritocracy and lethality.
"So that's the kind of review I'm talking about, not whether women have access to ground combat."
This has been the policy within the US military since 2016.
The committee could vote on Mr Hegseth's nomination as soon as Monday, the day of Donald Trump's inauguration.
If he is successful, it will be considered by the full Senate.
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