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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday doubled down on his assertion that he did not share classified plans to strike Houthi targets in a Signal group chat of Trump administration officials that was inadvertently shared with a journalist, who he claimed “has never seen a war plan.” In a combative post to the social platform X, Hegseth lambasted The Atlantic’s editor in chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, for publishing the Signal group chat messages, in which the Pentagon chief relayed details about airstrikes in Yemen earlier this month that an initial article on the matter did not contain, including the specific timeline...

Former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman and retired Gen. Mark Milley has called former President Trump “a total fascist” and believes he is the most dangerous person to the U.S., according to excerpts from the forthcoming Bob Woodward book. “He is the most dangerous person ever. I had suspicions when I talked to you about his mental decline and so forth, but now I realize he’s a total fascist. He is now the most dangerous person to this country,” Milley told Woodward for the book War, which was previewed by The Guardian. “A fascist to the core.” Milley, who was...

The Biden administration is considering giving Ukraine cluster munitions, a U.S. official confirmed Friday. NBC News first reported that Washington was leaning toward providing dual purpose improved conventional munitions (DPICMs) to Kyiv, with an announcement that could come as early as July. A U.S. official told The Hill that “no decision has yet been made but, the U.S. is considering DPICMs for the Ukrainians.” Designed during the Cold War-era, DPICMs are surface-to-surface warheads designed to explode and send multiple small munitions over a wide area to cause maximum damage. Since last year, Ukraine has asked the United States for the...

The Biden administration is arming Ukraine with weapons that can do serious damage to Russian forces, and, unlike early in the war, U.S. officials don’t appear worried about Moscow’s reaction. In the past several months, Washington has detailed tranches of new drones, harder-hitting missiles and deadly rocket systems as part of billions of dollars pledged to the former Soviet country. The clear support is a far cry from the early days of the war, when the U.S. government seemed hesitant to list exactly what was being sent into Ukraine so as not to tip off or draw the ire of...

The U.S. military "absolutely" could defend Taiwan from a potential Chinese attack if asked to do so, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley said Wednesday. Speaking at the Aspen Security Forum, Milley said he did not expect China to attempt to seize the self-governing island in the next 24 months, but should it happen, U.S. forces “absolutely have the capability” to defend Taipei, “no question about that.” He also allowed that Beijing is “clearly and unambiguously building the capability to provide those options to the national leadership if they so choose at some point in the future.”

Fort Hood commander loses position following string of deadly incidents BY ELLEN MITCHELL - 09/01/20 05:40 PM EDT Fort Hood commander loses position following string of deadly incidents Army leadership on Tuesday removed the commander of Fort Hood from his role and barred him from a planned position at another Texas base following multiple high-profile deaths under his tenure. Maj. Gen. Scott Efflandt, who had been set to take over as commander for the 1st Armored Division at Fort Bliss, will instead remain at Fort Hood to serve as deputy commanding general for support. “The Army will announce the name...

The Navy will not reinstate the fired commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier following an investigation of leadership’s handling of a coronavirus outbreak onboard in March.

A leaked Pentagon memo on Tuesday revealed that top Defense Department officials have been planning for the possibility that the military could be dealing with a “globally-persistent” coronavirus pandemic well into 2021. The memo, obtained by Task and Purpose, also warns of the “real possibility” that a vaccine for COVID-19 won’t be available until “at least the summer of 2021.” “We have a long path ahead, with the real possibility of a resurgence of COVID-19. Therefore, we must now re-focus our attention on resuming critical missions, increasing levels of activity, and making necessary preparations should a significant resurgence of COVID-19...

Armed Services Committee member Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) on Monday called for the panel to hold a hearing to investigate U.S. strategy in the 18-year Afghanistan War following a damning report that senior U.S. officials knowingly lied to the public for years about the country's progress in the conflict. “We all read today, the striking reporting by The Washington Post, suggesting that administration officials, potentially including military officials, have misled the American public about the war in Afghanistan. I am writing to request hearings to address these deeply concerning revelations about the Afghan war,” Gillibrand wrote in a letter to...