US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has ordered hundreds of US Army generals and admirals to gather next week at a Marine Corps base in Virginia, without giving an official reason, the Washington Post reported Thursday. This unusual summons has caused confusion and concern, especially following the Trump administration’s numerous dismissals of senior military officials this year.
According to more than a dozen people familiar with the matter, the directive was sent to virtually all major US military commanders around the world. It was issued earlier this week as a government shutdown looms, and as Hegseth’s team at the Pentagon announced plans for an extensive consolidation of senior commands.
In a statement released Thursday, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell confirmed that Hegseth “will be addressing his senior military leaders early next week,” without providing further details. Parnell, a senior adviser to the secretary of defense, also said he had “no concerns about The Washington Post reporting on the meeting, scheduled for Tuesday in Quantico, Virginia.”
The United States has approximately 800 generals and admirals deployed domestically and in dozens of countries. According to the newspaper’s sources, Hegseth’s order applies to all officers of the rank of brigadier general or above in command positions, as well as their principal noncommissioned officer advisers.
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