Pete Hegseth: The U.S. Army Is Going Into Wartime Mode

• 9.11.2025, 1:10

The head of the Pentagon compared the world situation to 1939.

The Pentagon warns of growing global challenges and the need to strengthen defense capabilities. Department head Pete Hegseth compared the current world situation to 1939 and urged the defense industry to work faster.

Speaking at the National War College in Washington on Nov. 7, the Pentagon chief stressed that the world has entered a phase of growing tensions and rival powers are strengthening their military capabilities, writes National Defense.

"Enemies are uniting, threats are growing. You feel it, I feel it," the official said.

The secretary said if the United States wants to avoid direct involvement in future conflicts, it must actively strengthen its defense capabilities now. Hegseth warned that U.S. competitors are accelerating the development of new weapons and military technologies.

"They are acting rapidly. They are creating new capabilities at a speed that should sober every American," the Pentagon chief stressed.

Separately, he addressed US defense contractors, saying that the current procurement system is outdated and hinders the timely production of weapons, and demanded that military companies speed up production, National Defense wrote.

Hegset said the US is putting the Pentagon and its industry "into war mode."