Trump to preside over unusual military gathering in Virginia

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump on Sept 30 will preside over an extraordinary gathering of America’s top generals and admirals from around the world, who were summoned to a Marine base in Virginia without explanation last week.

Mr Trump has said he will use the face-to-face meeting with the US military’s top commanders at the Marine Corps University in Quantico

to tell them “we love them”

. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth is expected to talk about the “warrior ethos”, one of his favourite subjects.

The meeting comes after eight months of blistering changes at the Pentagon since Mr Trump took office, including firing the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the navy’s top admiral, banning books from academy libraries and lethal strikes on suspected drug boats off Venezuela.

That has led to speculation, both within the US military and in the broader American public, that the gathering could go far beyond the morale-boosting exercise described by Mr Trump to include discussions about reductions in senior officers’ ranks and a revamp of US defence priorities.

“It’s anyone’s guess” what will ultimately be discussed, said one US official, speaking on condition of anonymity about the agenda of the gathering.

Military leaders attending the gathering will be under public scrutiny for any reaction to overtly political comments made by Mr Trump, who has often dragged the military into political issues. 

The US military is meant to be apolitical, loyal to the US Constitution and independent of any party or political movement.

The talks will come a day after the announcement of planned National Guard deployments to Chicago, the latest US city where Mr Trump aims to send US troops despite objections from the local authorities. 

He announced plans to send National Guard troops to Portland, Oregon, over the weekend and sent Guard and active-duty Marines to Los Angeles earlier in 2025, despite protests from local officials.

Speaking to Reuters on Sept 28, Mr Trump described the Quantico meeting as an “esprit de corps”.

“I want to tell the generals that we love them, they’re cherished leaders, to be strong, be tough and be smart and be compassionate,” he said in an interview.

Mr Trump’s attendance is likely to overshadow Mr Hegseth, who summoned the commanders from around the world, including those based in distant locations in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

In almost every public speech he gives, Mr Hegseth talks about the “warrior ethos” and the need for the US military to have a warrior mentality – themes he is he expected to return to on Sept 30.

Earlier in September, Mr Trump signed an executive order

to rename the Department of Defence

the “Department of War”, reverting to a title it held until after World War II, when officials sought to emphasise the Pentagon’s role in preventing conflict.

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