Hegseth on countering China: 'We've been sort of asleep at the wheel'
"The communist Chinese want to control politicians," Hegseth said on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures With Maria Bartiromo." "They're building infrastructure projects. They want to surveil. They want to take that canal. President Trump says, not on our watch, and we're fighting back."
The United States, Hegseth said, had been "asleep at the wheel." No longer.
The Defense Department last week touted several key victories Hegseth extracted in Panama, including agreeing on a joint declaration that will allow U.S. warships and auxiliary ships to proceed "first and free" along the canal. The two countries also signed an agreement on cooperative security activities.
"The Chinese didn't like what happened in Panama this week, not at all, because this is a return of U.S. leadership, peace through strength and the course was charted by President Trump," Hegseth said.
Hegseth's tune on Panama is decidedly different from the rhetoric employed by Trump following his November election victory. Trump himself has floated plans to take the canal, refusing to rule out military force. The United States had ceded the canal to Panama following agreements negotiated by President Jimmy Carter in 1977.
Hegseth on Sunday touted the exit Panama announced in February from China's Belt and Road Initiative as evidence that the two countries are working together.
"We're getting to the point where Panama and the U.S. are shoulder to shoulder saying, 'Get out China,'" Hegseth said.
Hegseth also praised Trump's push for a diplomatic solution with Iran over its nuclear program, but left the door open to more ominous moves from the Defense Department absent an agreement.
Special envoy Steve Witkoff spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday, the first known direct contact between the U.S. and Iran since Trump's return to office. But Trump has predicted that if the two sides are unable to agree on a nuclear program deal, "Iran is going to be in great danger."
"I can tell you that President Trump is dead serious on this issue. He's dead serious that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon," Hegseth said. "He's said that for 20 years. He's been consistent, that is clear. He's dead serious that he wants it done at the negotiating table. He wants it done peacefully, and that's why he's going straight to these talks."
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