Latest news with #SecDef
Buzz Feed
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Pete Hegseth Video Goes Viral For All Wrong Reasons
A promotional video featuring Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth touting President Donald Trump's new executive order to ' unleash American drone dominance ' is going viral for the way it was filmed. The clip shows the former Fox News personality promising to fulfill Trump's order. He then plucks a memo from a hovering drone as Metallica's ' Enter Sandman ' blares in the background. Unleashing U.S. Military Drone Dominance @DOGE — Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (@SecDef) July 10, 2025 @SecDef / Via Twitter: @SecDef 'This is the future,' Hegseth declares. 'We're in the fight. We're in the fight to win it. And we're never gonna back down.' It's sparked comparisons to mockumentaries. 'Did Christopher Guest or Ricky Gervais direct this Pentagon/Hegseth clip?? If so, I think they nailed it,' one user joked on X (formerly Twitter), where the video has been widely shared. The Fox News host is back for another photo op — George Trump 🇺🇸 (@yesiamreal38) July 10, 2025 @yesiamreal38 Y'all are so performative it's actually wild — Wayne Waldrop (@WayneWaldropW) July 10, 2025 @waynewaldropw Ah yes nothing says national security quite like playing with billion dollar drones like they are high tech toys. Secretary Hegseth unleashing drone dominance sounds less like strategy and more like a Call of Duty livestream. While other nations invest in diplomacy and… — Ankur Pandey (@ankurpandeyIND) July 10, 2025 @ankurpandeyIND Wow that is immensely embarrassing — Ryan Katz-Rosene, PhD (@ryankatzrosene) July 10, 2025 @ryankatzrosene This video hits really hard if you're 12. — Dispropaganda (@Dispropoganda) July 10, 2025 @dispropaganda Trumps cabinet members spend more time in front of the media and cameras than they spend working. They are all on TV or social media constantly. They all want titles and perks but no one wants to work! — Denison Barb (@DenisonBarbs) July 10, 2025 @denisonbarbs — Rangermoonshine (@RangerMoonshine) July 10, 2025 This is so cringe — Ky1e (@Ky1eDriver) July 10, 2025 @ky1edriver
New York Post
03-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Pentagon says Iran nuclear program set back ‘closer to 2 years' after US strikes
US airstrikes on Iran set back the regime's nuclear program between one to two years, but likely 'closer to two,' the Pentagon's top spokesperson said Wednesday. 'Our assessment of the battle damage around Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan remains unchanged,' Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told reporters during a press briefing. 'We believe, and certainly all of the intelligence that we've seen has led us to believe, that those facilities, especially, have been completely obliterated.' US allies share the Department of Defense's internal intelligence assessments of the effectiveness of last month's military operation on Iran's uranium enrichment sites, Parnell noted, including how long the Pentagon expects it will now take the Islamic Republic to build a nuclear weapon. 'We have degraded their program by one to two years, at least,' Parnell said. 'We're thinking probably closer to two years,' he added. The Pentagon believes Iran is now close to two years away from developing a nuclear weapon. @SecDef Last month, President Trump and several top administration officials slammed a leaked preliminary assessment of Operation Midnight Hammer, which reportedly indicated Iran could bring its nuclear program back online in as quickly as one to two months. The classified Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) bomb damage assessment — reported by the New York Times and CNN — estimated that on the high end, Iran could restart uranium enrichment within a year, according to those who viewed the report. Multiple B-2 Spirit stealth bombers dropped 14, 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs on Iranian nuclear sites as part of Operation Midnight Hammer on June 22. Fourteen GBU-57 Massive Ordinance Penetrator bombs were used in the US operation, dubbed 'Midnight Hammer.' USAF / SWNS The attack was complemented by a barrage of dozens of Tomahawk cruise missiles fired by a US submarine. Trump ordered the airstrike after intelligence pointed to Iran getting close to developing a nuclear weapon and after more than a week of back-and-forth strikes between Tehran and Israel. Trump told Fox News' 'Sunday Morning Futures' that the attack 'meant the end to [Iran's] nuclear ambitions, at least for a period of time.'
NDTV
02-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
"Reserve Right To Pre-Emptive Strike": Rajnath Singh Briefs US On Op Sindoor
New Delhi: India 'reserves the right to a pre-emptive strike' to defend itself against cross-border terror attacks launched from Pakistan, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told his United States counterpart, Pete Hegseth, during their 20-minute phone call this week, sources said Wednesday morning. The remarks - he also underlined Pak's record as a 'safe haven for terrorists' - have been seen as a strong message after President Donald Trump invited Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir to the White House for lunch, and a top American general called for more engagement with Islamabad. Mr Singh also said India's actions during the 100-hour armed conflict with Pakistan in May - i.e., Operation Sindoor, the military response to the Pahalgam terror attack - were 'measured, non-escalatory, proportionate, and focused', while Pak's response included targeting civilian centres. "Pak's track record of cross-border terrorism is well known globally... it has become a safe haven for internationally-banned terrorists (and) India's actions during Op Sindoor were non-escalatory, proportionate, and focused on disabling terrorist infrastructure," Mr Singh said. Glad to speak with the US @SecDef Mr. @PeteHegseth today. Excellent discussion to review the ongoing and new initiatives to further deepen India-US defence partnership and strengthen cooperation in capacity building. Conveyed my deep appreciation for the unwavering support… — Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) July 1, 2025 India said Rajnath Singh also 'appreciated the unwavering support extended by the US to India for its fight against terrorism' and discussed 'long-term cooperation in the defence sector'. The two governments also agreed to build on a 'critical and mutually beneficial partnership'. This was the third telephonic conversation since January, when Mr Hegseth was appointed. 'India Has Right To...': What Jaishankar Said Mr Singh's 'India has the right...' message to Mr Hegseth echoes what External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said this week while meeting counterparts from the US, Japan, and Australia. "The world must display zero tolerance. Victims and perpetrators must never be equated. India has every right to defend its people against terrorism, and we will exercise that right," he said. READ | "When Terrorism Is Supported By State Against...": Jaishankar At UN Mr Singh's and Mr Jaishankar's comments, in turn, echo forceful comments by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Mr Trump in their phone call last month. The unequivocal messaging has been seen as part of efforts to make it clear to the world that India will no longer respond to terrorist attacks but instead will take a proactive role in protecting itself. 'Terror Dossier' On Pak's Cross-Border Role India has frequently accused Pakistan of sheltering, funding, and training terrorist groups launching attacks on its soil; after the Pahalgam attack sources told NDTV a dossier had been prepared to highlight intel about Islamabad's links to terror attacks in Russia, England, and other countries. READ | Pak 'One Of World's Most Dangerous, Terror Trail In Moscow, London' This was shared with diplomats from friendly and partner nations, and the government sent cross-party delegations to these countries after Op Sindoor, to highlight India's new 'doctrine on terrorism'. The increasingly assertive anti-terrorism stance was highlighted again last week after India refused to sign a joint statement at a meetinf of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation chaired by China. Sources said the statement skipped any mention of the Pahalgam terror attack but mentioned incidents in Pak's Balochistan province instead and tacitly blamed India for those incidents.
Hindustan Times
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Rajnath appreciates US for backing India's fight against terror
NEW DELHI: Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday conveyed India's appreciation to the US for its unwavering support to New Delhi in its fight against terrorism in the backdrop of Operation Sindoor, in a telephonic conversation with his American counterpart Pete Hegseth. Rajnath appreciates US for backing India's fight against terror This was their first conversation after India launched Operation Sindoor against Pakistan, New Delhi's direct military response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror strike. Singh also told Hegseth that India reserves the right to respond to cross-border terrorism. 'Glad to speak with the US @SecDef Mr. @PeteHegseth today. Excellent discussion to review the ongoing and new initiatives to further deepen India-US defence partnership and strengthen cooperation in capacity building. Conveyed my deep appreciation for the unwavering support extended by the US to India in its fight against terrorism. Looking forward to meeting him at an early date,' Singh wrote on X after the conversation. Speaking on Operation Sindoor, Singh said India reserves the right to respond to and defend against terrorism and pre-empt as well as deter any further cross-border attacks, people aware of the matter said on condition of anonymity. He also told Hegseth that India's actions during the four-day clash were measured, non-escalatory, proportionate and focused on disabling terrorist infrastructure, the people added. The two leaders had last spoken on May 1 when Singh told Hegseth that the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed had exposed Pakistan as a rogue state that is destabilising the region and the world can no longer turn a blind eye to terrorism. India launched Operation Sindoor in the early hours of May 7 and struck terror and military installations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) following the Pahalgam terror strike. It triggered a four-day military confrontation with Pakistan involving fighter jets, missiles, drones, long-range weapons and heavy artillery before the two sides reached an understanding on stopping all military action on May 10. The two leaders also discussed a wide canvas of issues ranging from long-term cooperation in the defence sector, including training and military exchanges, to expanding the industry collaboration, the defence ministry said on Tuesday. 'They agreed to further build upon the momentum of this critical and mutually beneficial partnership across all its pillars such as interoperability, integration of defence industrial supply chains, logistics sharing, increased joint military exercises and cooperation with other like-minded partners,' it said. Hegseth invited Singh to the US for talks to take the bilateral defence partnership forward. Between the launch of the operation in the early hours of May 7 and the ceasefire on May 10 evening, Indian forces bombed nine terror camps in Pakistan and PoK and killed at least 100 terrorists. The Indian Air Force (IAF) struck two terror sites at Markaz Subhanallah in Bahawalpur and Markaz Taiba near Muridke, both in Pakistan's Punjab province, while the army hit targets at seven places, including Mehmoona Joya in Sialkot, Sawai Nala and Syed Na Bilal in Muzaffarabad, Gulpur and Abbas in Kotli, Barnala in Bhimber, and Sarjal. On May 9-10, the IAF struck military targets in Rafiqui, Murid, Chaklala, Rahim Yar Khan, Sukkur, Chunian, Pasrur, Sialkot, Skardu, Sargodha, Jacobabad, Bholari and Malir Cantt in Karachi. Later it emerged that India's targeting of locations within Pakistan during the May 7-10 clash was more extensive than was previously known, with a Pakistani document acknowledging that Indian drones had struck locations ranging from Peshawar in the northwest to Hyderabad in the south. The graphics in the May 18 Pakistani document detailing India's drone strikes on May 8, 9 and 10 listed seven locations --- Peshawar in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, Attock, Bahawalnagar, Gujrat and Jhang in Punjab province, and Chhor and Hyderabad in Sindh province --- that were not acknowledged as targets by Indian officials at any briefings held during or after the hostilities. Pakistan's Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos, which was mounted in response to Operation Sindoor, 'folded in eight hours' on May 10 belying Islamabad's ambitious target of bringing India to its knees in 48 hours, chief of defence staff General Anil Chauhan said on June 3.
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First Post
02-07-2025
- Politics
- First Post
India reserves right to deter cross-border terrorism: Rajnath to US
Rajnath Singh told US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday that India reserves the right to defend itself against terrorism and prevent future cross-border attacks from Pakistan, as both leaders discussed ways to deepen defence ties between the two countries. read more Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday that India has the right to defend itself against terrorism and to act pre-emptively to stop any future cross-border attacks from Pakistan. His comments come just days after US President Donald Trump praised Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir during his visit to the White House. 'The Defence Minister appreciated the unwavering support extended by the US to India in its fight against terrorism,' the defence ministry said in a statement. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Glad to speak with the US @SecDef Mr. @PeteHegseth today. Excellent discussion to review the ongoing and new initiatives to further deepen India-US defence partnership and strengthen cooperation in capacity building. Conveyed my deep appreciation for the unwavering support… — Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) July 1, 2025 This was the third phone conversation between Singh and Hegseth since Hegseth assumed office in President Trump's second term. Singh said India's actions against threats from Pakistan have been measured, non-escalatory, and focused on disabling terrorist infrastructure. During their call, the two leaders discussed strengthening long-term defence cooperation, including military training, joint exercises, and expanding defence industry collaboration. They agreed to deepen cooperation across areas such as interoperability, supply chain integration, logistics sharing, and working with other like-minded partners. Singh also praised Hegseth's leadership, which he said has advanced defence ties between India and the US. Additionally, Singh urged the US to speed up deliveries of GE F404 engines for India's LCA Tejas fighter jets and Apache helicopters.
