Future Pentagon chief didn’t mention Ukraine at hearings: he was asked what that meant

This war must end, he replied.

US Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth made no mention of the war in Ukraine during his confirmation hearings.

After his opening remarks, Senator Angus King noted that he had made it a priority to work with partners to contain Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific, but made no mention of Ukraine or Russia. He asked if that meant the United States wanted to give up on Ukraine. Hegseth responded:

“This is a political decision at the presidential level. He has made it clear that he would like to see an end to this conflict. We know who the aggressor is. We know who the good guys are. We would like this to be as beneficial as possible for the Ukrainians, but this war must end.”

In response, the senator noted that Chinese leader Xi Jinping is watching the actions of the United States very closely. “If we abandon Ukraine, it will be the strongest signal to Xi Jinping that he can seize Taiwan without significant resistance from the United States,” King added.

Hegseth noted that despite the failure of containment, Ukraine had managed to repel Russia’s attempt to seize it quickly and had also stopped enemy forces from breaking through in the east of the country. The conflict had now turned into a war of attrition.

As reported by The New York Times , during the hearings, Trump’s choice also spoke about the need to rebuild the country’s industrial base. According to him, the United States is learning from the war in Ukraine, so the Pentagon must find ways to quickly introduce new unmanned weapons.

Hegseth also promised to review the allocation of military resources and recommend investments that would help protect American interests and prevent situations like the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in 2014.

Trump promises to end the war

As is known, before the elections the American politician assured that he was capable of agreeing to end the war between Ukraine and Russia in one day . This never happened.

Now he plans to hold a meeting with Kremlin ruler Putin. According to media reports, his plan includes the deployment of a foreign military contingent on the demarcation line.

(C)UNIAN 2025