The Secretary of Defense, Pete Heghseth, ordered that a large number of general and admiral officers meet next Tuesday at the Marina de Quantico, Virginia, according to five US officials. Two of them told ABC News that they do not know what this meeting caused potentially hundreds of the highest leaders of the US army.
It is very rare to hold such a large meeting of general officers in the United States and abroad at one place and includes the Secretary of Defense.
War Secretary Pete Hegesh attends an Oval office meeting between the president of the United States, Donald Trump, and Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House, on September 25, 2025 in Washington.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
The unusual meeting will also take place months after Hegseth ordered a 20% reduction in the number of officers of the four -star rank, in addition to the 15 upper military officers who have eliminated from his positions, including General Charles “CQ” Brown, Jr., the then president of the Joint Personnel Chiefs, and the ADM. Lisa Franchetti, the Admiral of the Navy.
“The Secretary of War will go to his senior military leaders earlier next week,” said Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell in a statement.
Parnell used the informal title of Hegseth, which came from the executive order of President Donald Trump that renamed the Department of Defense of the Department of War earlier this month. The change of formal name of the department would require Congress to act.
In general, there are 838 total general and admiral officers in active duty, 446 of them are the highest ranges of two stars, three stars and four stars, according to the latest statistics of the June Pentagon.
It was not clear to officials if all general and flag officers in the US army were being invited to attend this meeting or if it would only apply to a segment of those high -ranking officers.
The Washington Post was the first to inform The news of the next week.
It is not unusual for a Secretary of Defense to meet with superior military officers in the Pentagon or those on national trips and abroad. Twice a year, the higher officers in charge of the US combatant commands meet in the Pentagon to meet with the secretary.
However, the size and scope of the meeting that makes the next week’s meeting a security concern for planners. The meeting has also led to speculation among officials on whether it has something to do with Hegseth movements to reduce the number of officers served as generals or admirals.
In May, Hegseth signed a memorandum that directed a “minimum” reduction of 20% in the number of four -star admirals in the active service force.
He also requested at least a 20% reduction in general officers in the National Guard, as well as at least a 10% reduction in general and flag officers affiliated with combatant commands.
In a video that accompanies the memorandum, Hegseth described him as a “less general policy.” In the memorandum, Hegseth said that the order was necessary to “promote innovation and operational excellence, without experience due to unnecessary bureaucratic layers that hinder its growth and effectiveness.”
“A critical step in this process is to eliminate the structure of redundant force to optimize and rationalize leadership by reducing excess general positions and flag officers,” he wrote.
