Page 2 - Us Pentagon

Trump to sign executive order rebranding Pentagon as 'Department of War'

US President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order on Friday to rebrand the Department of Defence as the Department of War, his latest effort to project an image of toughness for America's military. The Republican president can't formally change the name without legislation, which his administration would request from Congress. In the meantime, Trump will authorise the Pentagon to use secondary titles" so the department can go by its original name. The plans were disclosed by a White House official, who requested anonymity ahead of the public announcement, and detailed in a White House fact sheet. The Department of War was created in 1789, the same year that the US Constitution took effect. It was renamed by law in 1947, two years after the end of World War II. Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth posted DEPARTMENT OF WAR on social media after the executive order was initially reported by Fox News. Trump and Hegseth have long talked about changing the name, and Hegseth even create

White House moves forward on plans for a Department of War: Reports

Trump raised the idea of rebranding the Defense Department as the 'Department of War' while speaking with reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, saying it 'just sounded to me better'

Some guard units deployed in Washington now carry firearms: Pentagon

Some National Guard units patrolling the nation's capital at the direction of President Donald Trump have started carrying firearms, an escalation of his military deployment that makes good on a directive issued late last week by his defense secretary. A Defense Department official who was not authorized to speak publicly said some units on certain missions would be armed some with handguns and others with rifles. The spokesperson said that all units with firearms have been trained and are operating under strict rules for use of force. An Associated Press photographer on Sunday saw members of the South Carolina National Guard outside Union Station with holstered handguns. The development in Trump's extraordinary effort to override the law enforcement authority of state and local governments comes as he is considering expanding the deployments to other Democratic-led cities, including Baltimore, Chicago and New York. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP's earlier story follows ...

Trump's 'Golden Dome' still shrouded in mystery, even for its builders

Golden Dome will include existing systems, accelerated development of advanced technology, and ultimately new components such as space-based interceptors, according to Trump

Pentagon confirms Iranian missile struck Qatar air base in Tehran's attack

The Pentagon on Friday acknowledged that an Iranian ballistic missile hit Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar in June during an Iranian attack after President Donald Trump downplayed the assault. The statement from Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell follows The Associated Press publishing satellite images Friday showing damage from the attack. Parnell said the strike did minimal damage to equipment and structures on the base. He added: Al Udeid Air Base remains fully operational and capable of conducting its mission, alongside our Qatari partners, to provide security and stability in the region. Satellite images from Planet Labs PBC show the geodesic dome visible at the Al Udeid Air Base on the morning of June 23, just hours before the attack. The US Air Force's 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, which operates out of the base, announced in 2016 the installation of the $15 million piece of equipment, known as a modernized enterprise terminal. Photos show a satellite dish inside of the dome, known

Italy opens Ukraine rebuilding conference as US defence help in doubt

Italy is hosting the fourth annual conference on rebuilding Ukraine even as Russia escalates its war, inviting political and business leaders to Rome to promote public-private partnerships on defence, mining, energy and other projects as uncertainty grows about the US commitment to Kyiv's defence. Premier Giorgia Meloni and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy were opening the meeting Thursday, which gets under way as Russia accelerated its aerial and ground attacks against Ukraine, firing a record number of drones across 10 regions this week. Italian organisers said 100 official delegations were attending and 40 international organisations and development banks. But there are also 2,000 businesses, civil society and local Ukrainian governments sending representatives to participate in a trade fair, complete with booths, on the grounds of the ministerial-level meeting at Rome's funky new Cloud conference centre in the Fascist-era EUR neighbourhood. The conference will pair ...

US to send more weapons to Ukraine, says Trump days after announcing pause

The Pentagon had earlier suspended deliveries of certain air-defence missiles and artillery shells to Ukraine, following concerns over the dwindling US stockpile

Hope US can complete major pending defence sales to India: Pete Hegseth

The US has expressed hope that it can complete several major pending American defence sales to India, as it stressed that Washington and Delhi are mutually aware of the security concerns in the Indo-Pacific region. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday at the Pentagon and said he had a productive conversation on advancing the India-US defence partnership, building on growing convergences of interests, capabilities and responsibilities. According to the Department of Defence (DoD) news article, Hegseth said the US and India are mutually aware of the security concerns in the region, and both nations have the ability to counter that threat together." Hegseth also touched on US efforts to provide India with the tools needed to counter threats in the Indo-Pacific region, the DoD news said. The United States is very pleased with the successful integration of many US defence items into India's inventory," Hegseth said, according to the DoD

US halts weapon supplies pledged to Ukraine after Pentagon review

The US is halting some shipments of weapons to Ukraine amid concerns that its own stockpiles have declined too much, officials said on Tuesday, a setback for the European country as it tries to fend off escalating attacks from Russia. Certain munitions were previously promised to Ukraine under the previous Biden administration to aid its defences during the more than three-year-old war. The pause reflects a new set of priorities under President Donald Trump and came after Defence Department officials scrutinised current US stockpiles and raised concerns. This decision was made to put America's interests first following a review of our nation's military support and assistance to other countries across the globe, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement. The strength of the United States Armed Forces remains unquestioned -- just ask Iran. That was a reference to Trump recently ordering US missile strikes against nuclear sites in Iran. Pentagon stocks of some weapons

Jaishankar discusses bilateral partnership with US State Secy Marco Rubio

Jaishankar shared on X that it was a pleasure meeting Marco Rubio on the sidelines of QFFM, they discussed India-US bilateral partership and shared views on regional and global developments

US not seeking war with Iran after striking three nuclear sites: Pentagon

Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Sunday that America does not seek war with Iran in the aftermath of a surprise attack overnight on three of that country's nuclear sites. The mission, called Operation Midnight Hammer, involved decoys and deception, and met with no Iranian resistance, Hegseth and Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a Pentagon news conference. This mission was not and has not been about regime change, Hegseth added. Caine said the goal of the operation destroying nuclear sites in Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan had been achieved. Final battle damage will take some time, but initial battle damage assessments indicate that all three sites sustained extremely severe damage and destruction, Caine said.

Closure of Strait of Hormuz will hit Iranians hardest: Ex-Pentagon official

Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important oil chokepoints located between Oman and Iran, connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea

OpenAI wins $200 mn contract with Pentagon to pilot AI for defence tasks

OpenAI will work with the Defense Department to come up with ways that AI can help with administrative tasks, such as getting health care for US military members and helping prevent cyberattacks

'Beijing top US threat': China preparing for war, warns Pentagon chief

Hegseth believes US President Donald Trump's "peace through strength" strategy is the appropriate response, and that the stagnating US defence industrial base must be revitalised

Pentagon mulls scrapping Aukus submarine deal with Australia, Britain

The review will study whether the deal, signed by President Joe Biden's team in 2021, is "aligned with the President's America First agenda," the Pentagon said

Pete Hegseth imposes fresh restrictions on reporter access to Pentagon

Hegseth said he was imposing the restrictions to protect classified national intelligence information, or CNSI

Pentagon chief Hegseth imposes sweeping press restrictions amid leak fears

Bedeviled by leaks to the media during his short tenure, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a series of restrictions on the press late Friday that include banning reporters from entering wide swaths of the Pentagon without a government escort areas where the press has had access in past administrations as it covers the activities of the world's most powerful military. Newly restricted areas include his office and those of his top aides and all of the different locations across the mammoth building where the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and Space Force maintain press offices. The media will also be barred from offices of the Pentagon's senior military leadership, including Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen Dan Caine, without Hegseth's approval and an escort from his aides. The staff of the Joint Chiefs has traditionally maintained a good relationship with the press. Hegseth, the former Fox News Channel personality, issued his order via a posting on X late on a Friday afternoon ...

Hotline between military, Washington air traffic controllers down for 3 yrs

A hotline between military and civilian air traffic controllers in Washington, D.C., that hasn't worked for more than three years may have contributed to another near miss shortly after the US Army resumed flying helicopters in the area for the first time since January's deadly midair collision between a passenger jet and a Black Hawk helicopter, Sen. Ted Cruz said at a hearing Wednesday. The Federal Aviation Administration official in charge of air traffic controllers, Frank McIntosh, confirmed the agency didn't even know the hotline hadn't been working since March 2022 until after the latest near miss. He said civilian controllers still have other means of communicating with their military counterparts through landlines. Still, the FAA insists the hotline be fixed before helicopter flights resume around Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Defence department officials didn't immediately respond to questions Wednesday about the near miss earlier this month and the steps it is

Pentagon orders removal of books on diversity, anti-racism, gender issues

The Pentagon has ordered all military leaders and commands to pull and review all of their library books that address diversity, anti-racism or gender issues by May 21, according to a memo issued to the force on Friday. It is the broadest and most detailed directive so far on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's campaign to rid the military of diversity and equity programmes, policies and instructional materials. And it follows similar efforts to remove hundreds of books from the libraries at the military academies. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the memo, which was signed Friday by Timothy Dill, who is performing the duties of the defence undersecretary for personnel. Educational materials at the libraries promoting divisive concepts and gender ideology are incompatible with the Department's core mission, the memo states, adding that department leaders must promptly identify books that are not compatible with that mission and sequester them by May 21. By then, the memo says,

Pentagon orders removal of up to 1,000 transgender troops from military

The Pentagon will immediately begin moving as many as 1,000 openly identifying transgender service members out of the military and give others 30 days to self-identify, under a new directive issued Thursday. Buoyed by Tuesday's Supreme Court decision allowing the Trump administration to enforce a ban on transgender individuals in the military, the Defence Department will then begin going through medical records to identify others who haven't come forward. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who issued the latest memo, made his views clear after the court's decision. "No More Trans @ DoD," Hegseth wrote in a post on X. Earlier in the day, before the court acted, Hegseth was more blunt, telling a conference that his department is leaving wokeness and weakness behind. "No more pronouns," he told a special operations forces conference in Tampa. Department officials have said it's difficult to determine exactly how many transgender service members there are, but medical records will show th