As U.S. military leaders prepare for Virginia meeting, agenda comes into focus

WASHINGTON — U.S. military leaders deployed around the world have started to prepare to travel to Virginia for a meeting with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth next week, which some officials on Friday billed as a gathering focused on the “warrior ethos.”

Hegseth has summoned U.S. generals and admirals from around the world to a meeting in Quantico, Virginia, on Tuesday, a rare gathering of the country’s military leadership in one location.

While two U.S. officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the event would focus on Hegseth discussing the need to adhere to a “warrior ethos” throughout the military, others said the roughly one-hour-long event could touch on other areas.

A third official said that given how many senior officials would be in one location, it was likely that substantive issues, like the administration’s new national defense strategy and the expected shrinking of the senior-most ranks in the military, could be discussed — even if they were not officially on the agenda.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some surprise during the event,” the official said. “We are not letting our guard down.”

Officials told Reuters that the event is expected to take place at the Marine Corps University in Quantico, Virginia. Some of the senior-most officials, who are provided U.S. military aircraft for official travel, are expected to fly into Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.

The U.S. has troops around the world, including in distant locations like South Korea, Japan and across the Middle East — which are commanded by two-, three- and four-star generals and admirals.

In almost every public speech he gives, Hegseth talks about the “warrior ethos” and the need for the U.S. military to have a warrior mentality.

Earlier this month, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to rename the Department of Defense as the “Department of War,” reverting to a title it held until after World War Two when officials sought to emphasize the Pentagon’s role in preventing conflict.

Hegseth, a former Fox News host, has moved with stunning speed to reshape the department, firing top generals and admirals as he seeks to implement Trump’s national security agenda and root out diversity initiatives he calls discriminatory.