If Mr Hegseth had solely been unable to reply the second query, that may have been a extra forgivable lapse of data. The US is a associate to a number of worldwide groupings, together with ASEAN, the European Union, and the South American MERCOSUR. It could be useful, however not obligatory, for a defence secretary to maintain updated on their issues and membership.
The extra severe flub was Mr Hegseth’s incapacity to call a single ASEAN nation, even international locations with whom the US has a defence alliance that commits it to supply army help in a battle, such because the Philippines and Thailand. Taken collectively, these two unanswered questions undermine earlier claims by Mr Trump’s first administration that ASEAN is the “geographical centre of the Indo-Pacific” for the US.
Was this a gaffe on Mr Hegseth’s half? He was not chosen for the defence secretary place because of his data of world affairs.
By Mr Hegseth’s personal admission, his purpose is to revive “warrior tradition” on the Defence Division as a veteran with “mud on his boots”. Throughout his opening assertion, he didn’t point out China or the Indo-Pacific as soon as, devoting his time to outlining his imaginative and prescient for a extra “deadly” army. Throughout his responses, he additionally mentioned little about how Mr Trump might finish the Russia-Ukraine conflict and handle safety points within the Center East.
