Pentagon chief announces more military leadership firings coming

​​​​​​​By Yasin Gungor

ISTANBUL (AA) - US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told hundreds of top officers on Tuesday that he has already fired numerous senior commanders for perpetuating the wrong cultural priorities and indicated that more military leadership changes are coming.

“We have been and will continue to be judicious but also expeditious … more leadership changes will be made,” Hegseth told an unusual gathering of more than 800 generals and admirals at Marine Corps Base Quantico in the state of Virginia.

Hegseth said his rationale is straightforward. "It's nearly impossible to change a culture with the same people who helped create or even benefited from that culture," he said. "An entire generation of generals and admirals were told that they must parrot the insane fallacy that 'our diversity is our strength.'”

He criticized military leaders for focusing on diversity and climate issues rather than combat readiness.

"No more climate change worship, no more division, distraction or gender delusions, no more debris," he said.

He accused politicians of forcing the military to focus on "the wrong things" and said leaders were promoted "based on their race, based on gender quotas, based on historic so-called firsts."

Hegseth said with the moves, the Pentagon is “clearing out the debris, removing the distractions, clearing the way for leaders to be leaders.”

The Pentagon chief also warned servicemen who did not conform to the new order, saying: "If the words I'm speaking today are making your heart sink, then you should ... resign.”