Hegseth announces a new drone command and cuts to 20% of generals in
'State of the Force' speech
[October 01, 2026]
By KONSTANTIN TOROPIN, BEN FINLEY and MEG KINNARD
QUANTICO, Va. (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced some major
changes to the U.S. military on Wednesday in what he called his “State
of the Force” address, including establishing a new drone command and
cutting 20% of the nation’s generals and admirals.
The Pentagon also will launch an effort to study the future of warfare
that will be led in part by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and former Republican
House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Hegseth said. The Defense Department will
create an Office of Religious Affairs and plans to build a new base for
the first time in 40 years, he added.
Hegseth made the announcements to junior officers and enlisted leaders
at the Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia — the second year in a row
that he has given such an address. But this time, the U.S. military is
seven months into a war with Iran with no clear end in sight, has
captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and killed more than 200
people in strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in Latin America,
among other actions worldwide.
The speech is not a usual fixture among Pentagon leaders. While
Hegseth’s predecessors have regularly addressed troops and top officers,
they have traditionally done so in small or private settings.
The Pentagon chief, however, again led with how he has drastically
retooled the U.S. military by targeting what he calls “woke” culture —
through a rollback of diversity programs, a review of ground combat
units with female troops and a new screening program for “testosterone
deficiency” among male personnel — as well as attacks on the media for
the coverage of the military.
Hegseth announces a new drone-focused warfare command
The Pentagon chief announced the intention to create a new four-star
command to oversee the rollout of autonomous and robotic capabilities in
what he called “the fastest peacetime shift in modern military history.”
He acknowledged that “the pace of war is changing faster than the
process to support it.” Iran commonly uses cheap drones, including those
that have killed U.S. troops during the seven-month war. Hegseth pointed
to Ukraine's pioneering use of drones to combat Russian forces —
something American forces have learned from firsthand.
“Ukraine’s lesson is not that one type of drone wins wars, but rather
the need for a purpose-built system that maximizes the ability to
adapt,” Hegseth said.
However, a U.S. Army unit based in Europe that specialized in drone
warfare was ordered recently to end its efforts and return to being a
traditional infantry battalion.
A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers subsequently asked the Army to
explain the order, given that the world’s battlefields are rapidly
evolving and military tactics increasingly rely on uncrewed systems to
fight.
The plans for a drone command come as the U.S. is in a stalemate with
Iran over control of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital energy shipping
corridor. The war has forced American forces in the region to expend
hundreds of expensive missile interceptors to defend against Iran’s
missile and drone attacks, which have still managed to kill and wound
U.S. troops.
Hegseth repeated claims that the U.S. military has destroyed Iran's
navy, air force and defense systems as well as many of its leaders and
its industrial base. But Tehran has continued intermittently to launch
drone and missile attacks against at U.S. or allied bases, while
maintaining its ability to strike commercial and military ships in the
Strait of Hormuz.
[to top of second column]
|
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth gives a State of the Force address
at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026 in
Quantico, Va. (Alex Wong/Pool Photo via AP)
During his speech, Hegseth touted the Trump administration’s major
investments in the defense industry and push for contractors to
speed up their work to expand the nation’s weapons arsenals. But
experts say U.S. military contractors will need at least three years
to replenish stockpiles of key weapons systems used heavily in the
Iran war.
Hegseth faces questions from lawmakers over cuts to general ranks
Hegseth said he directed the military services to double the 10%
reduction he ordered last spring for roughly 800 flag and general
officer positions, to a 20% decrease to be completed by Jan. 1,
2027.
“I call it accountability and long overdue,” he said.
Some members of Congress have criticized the war and the drawdown of
munitions stockpiles, while calling the latest cuts to the general
ranks a “purge” that will take years to rebuild.
“He’s got some kind of like deep-seated grievance about leadership
in the military,” said Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., a former Navy
combat pilot who has been critical of Hegseth. “He’s purging a
generation of great leaders of the military, and it’s going to take
a generation to recover from it.”
Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota, a member of the Senate
Armed Services Committee, said he wanted to understand Hegseth’s
reasoning.
“If it’s simply a matter of eliminating a very heavy top, there may
be some validity to it, but I want to see it first,” Rounds said.
Musk and Gingrich to lead a study of future warfare
In innovating the next wave of weapons systems, Hegseth announced an
effort to study the future of warfare led by Musk, Gingrich and
Palmer Luckey, co-founder of Anduril Industries.
Hegseth said the work “will be focused on discovering, developing
and fielding the weapons and systems that our children and our
grandchildren will need in their lifetimes.” He pointed to the need
to dominate "any future battlefield, from under the Earth to beyond
the moon.”
This month, the U.S. confirmed for the first time that it had
deployed weapons in space, a remarkable revelation after previous
warnings about countries such as Russia possibly weaponizing a
global frontier long agreed in treaties to be used for only peaceful
purposes.
Among the other announcements was the unveiling of a plan to build a
new military base, with Hegseth inviting all 50 states to compete
for the chance to play host to 15,000 to 25,000 service members. He
also announced a plan to make every military base self-powered.
___
Finley reported from Washington, and Kinnard from Columbia, South
Carolina. Associated Press writer Lisa Mascaro in Washington
contributed to this report.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
