U.S. Defence Secretary Hector Hertz orders hundreds of U.S. military generals from all over the world to convene for an emergency meeting at a Naval Corps base in Virginia. Several sources say that Hertz will deliver a brief speech on the 30th of this month around ¡°military standards¡± and ¡°warrior spirit.¡± The speech is expected to last no more than an hour. Two other sources revealed that Hertz will hold three speeches this year, 30th will be his first speech; his second speech will discuss the foundations of the defence industry; and the third speech will discuss deterrence, expected to be held in December.

US Defense Secretary Hegseth (data map)

It is said that Hegseth requires all senior officers in command positions with the rank of brigadier general and above (or equivalent in the Navy), as well as their senior advisers, to arrive at the designated base for a meeting before the 30th. People familiar with the matter said that this will be a "face-to-face" speech, and he (Hegseth) wants to meet these senior military officers. Another military official revealed that what Hegseth wanted to convey this time was that "everyone should work hard in one direction, otherwise they would face the consequences themselves".

Change of Lieutenant?

Urgent call for ¡°mysterious conference¡± triggers US military chaos

This unprecedented ¡°mystery meeting¡± by U.S. media sparked chaos and concern in the U.S. military. The order was so suddenly and mysterious that even the top U.S. military generals felt ¡°confused and alert¡±. It is worth noting that the dismissal of senior U.S. military officials, the reform measures announced by Hector Hertz to ¡°cut off the current U.S. military by 20 percent¡± and this unprecedented unusual ¡°recall¡± order have raised widespread concerns among U.S. military officials.

In this tense atmosphere, military officials noted that two four-star generals ¡ª U.S. Pacific Army Commander Captain Ronald Clarke and U.S. Supreme Commander Zevil Brunson in South Korea ¡ª would be listed as Internal Service Lieutenants. While Clarke¡¯s spokesman clarified that this was a fault-induced mistake, senior generals are now concerned about the unreasonable Hegerseth and the possibility of an unexpected move at the time.

Some defence officials said the meeting was designed to work with Hector¡¯s photographs, and hely spent a lot of time and energy building his public image as the host of the show.

Just listening to ¡°a few minutes¡±?

Millions of dollars in travel expenses alone

Many Pentagon officials, especially military leaders who have been commanders on the battlefield for many years, are angry at this "global recall order". On the one hand, they questioned whether it was reasonable to hold such a large meeting suddenly just to listen to Hegseth's brief speech for "a few minutes". On the other hand, they questioned "why commanders with experienced combat should listen to Hegseth's operational guidance". It is reported that Hegseth has little government experience.

In addition, hundreds of senior officers are expected to gather in Virginia in a short period of time, and travel costs are also a big issue. These senior officers and their staff arely prepared to travel to their destination by commercial or military aircraft. A former Pentagon audit official said that about 800 people will attend the meeting, and that these senior officers will travel with assistants, etc. Roughly speaking, travel costs can reach millions of dollars unless in a very urgent situation, otherwise spending millions of dollars on the military to listen to a short speech is simply a waste,¡± said anonymous audit official. The former Defense Secretary Austin¡¯s deputy news secretary, Sabrina Singh, also said that, according to her previous experience, the total cost would be millions of dollars, ¡°which is a waste of taxpayers.¡±

The time of the meeting, September 30th, also attracted public attention. This day is the last day of the US federal government's fiscal year 2025. Up to now, the U.S. Congress has not reached any consensus on financial allocation. If Congress still fails to come up with a temporary appropriation bill or pass individual appropriation bills before midnight on September 30th, non-essential government departments will "close" due to funding interruption. Some analysts worry that if this happens, many key military officials may be stranded in Virginia.

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Edited by Guo

Review by Feng Shui

Extended reading

800 senior U.S. military generals around the world were suddenly recalled. Analysis says it may have three purposes

U.S. Defense Secretary Hughes issued an extremely unusual order requiring hundreds of U.S. military generals and naval generals to travel to a Naval Corps base in Virginia in a short time to gather without giving any reason.On September 25, local time, the U.S. Department of Defense confirmed in a statement that it had convened a meeting of generals, saying the meeting would be held next Tuesday, but did not disclose the reason.

The order came so suddenly and mysteriously that even the generals at the highest ranks of the US military felt "confused and alert." Four U.S. officials revealed that the directive and its undisclosed reasons "aroused anxiety and worry" in the middle and middle ranks of the military. Another U.S. official revealed that many senior military officers are contacting each other, trying to figure out why Hegseth ordered such an "unprecedented rally" and "everyone is pondering (the purpose)".

Defense Minister Hergershitz at a military base in Michigan

Unprecedented scale, global mobilization, and unclear reasons

According to several informed sources, the order was issued to almost all senior U.S. military commanders around the world, and the mass rally could involve up to 800 generals.

According to data from June 2025, there are only 838 active generals in the US military. The instruction means that the top commanders, including those deployed in Europe, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region, and even in active conflict zones, are called. Mark Cancian, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), an American think tank, commented that the scale of the reported rally was "unprecedented".

The order requires that "all general officers at the O-7 (brigadier general) to O-10 (general) ranks in command positions and their senior non-commissioned officer advisers" must attend the meeting. In practice, each commander usually brings several assistants with him. According to this calculation, the total number of people going to the Marine Corps base in Virginia may easily exceed 1,000.

Many people familiar with the matter said that they couldn't recall any defense secretary in American history who ordered so many generals to gather like this.

This massive gathering of U.S. military leadership has raised serious security concerns in the U.S. Interior, Canxian said, ¡°The security work at the base will be a nightmare because such a massive gathering of military leadership will be the target of terrorists and protesters.¡±

A U.S. official said that ordering hundreds of military leaders to appear in the same place "is not a conventional practice," adding that "you can't bring generals who are leading forces and global powers together in a hall outside Washington without telling them the reason, agenda or agenda."

Trump and Wants.

When reporters were asked about the matter at the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump appeared initially unfamiliar with the plans of Hertz.The report said that Trump seemed to think the defense minister was inviting foreign officers to meet.

Speaking to reporters, Trump replied: ¡°I think it¡¯s great to have him be friendly with generals and naval generals around the world.

At this point, U.S. Vice President Vance hastened to interrupt and clarify that the summit was for U.S. generals and tried to downplay the importance of the event. Vance said: "It's not particularly unusual for generals who report to the Secretary of War, and then to the President of the United States, to come and talk to the Secretary of War. I find it strange that you media have made this so big."

Trump was accused of thinking that Hegseth invited foreign military officers to meet at first (data map)

Earlier, Hegseth issued a high-profile order to rename the U.S. "Department of Defense" as the U.S. "Department of War" and prepared to launch a new national defense strategy, which is said to give priority to "homeland security" and "Western Hemisphere defense". Put it first. On September 5th, local time, Trump signed an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House, allowing the "Ministry of National Defense" to use the title of "Department of War" on official occasions.

Emerging anxiety and speculation, analysis: may have 3 purposes

The mysterious rally caused tremendous shock in the U.S. military, linked to a series of iron arms operations in the Pentagon since Hertz took office.He has previously fired dozens of military leaders and ordered a 20% reduction in the number of four-star generals and a 10% reduction in the total number of all generals.

In this context, various speculations emerged. Canadian analytics believed that because of the general officers attending the meeting they were carrying their respective senior officers. He speculated that the meeting could have three purposes:

First, he might want to present his new defense strategy to the commanders; second, he might want to announce the integration of major institutions, such as the merger of the European and African Command; third, it might be a ¡°moral-inspired¡± congress, where he would send a clear message to all: ¡°Either obey, or depart.¡±

The picture shows the Pentagon (data map)

At the time of the announcement, a Pentagon spokesman only confirmed in a statement that Hertz "will speak to its senior military leaders at the beginning of next week" but declined to provide any other details. From the corridors of the Pentagon to the Hill of Congress, everyone was buried in drums.