US Secretary of Defense defends operations in Iran and Venezuela

O u.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth today defended the United States military operations in Iran and Venezuela, facing an initiative in Congress that intends to trigger a process to remove it.

“ If they want to challenge what we did in the ‘Epic Fury’ or ‘Rough Rider’ operations, or in the capture of Nicolás Maduro, they are contesting the troops and what they have accomplished, which is historic,” Hegseth told journalists.

The Secretary of Defense announced that he will hold a press conference on Tuesday, the first in more than 180 days, to address the threat of destitution he faces in Congress.

The parliamentary initiative is being promoted by Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, despite opposition from the Republican Party leadership in the House of Representatives.

The proposal arises in a context of growing opposition to Hegseth's performance, particularly due to the war against Iran, which several Republicans hold responsible for the heavy defeat of the party in the mid-term elections on November 3.

The Secretary of Defense defended President Donald Trump's decision to start the war, classifying it as a demonstration of political determination.

“ It was a courageous decision by the President and, as he clearly explains, we cannot allow radical Islamists to have a nuclear bomb,” Hegseth said.

The ruler considered that Washington faced a choice between not intervening or using the military force to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

“ The choice was not to act and hope that the problem would disappear, or make a courageous decision, as the President did with operation ‘Midnight Hammer’ and as we did with ‘Epic Fury’,” he said.

Hegseth referred, respectively, to the operation against Iranian nuclear installations and to the wider US military offensive against Iran.

The public defense of the war arises after the mid-term elections have revealed a strong opposition from US voters to military intervention.

According to a poll by the Associated Press (AP Voter Poll), conducted with more than 100,000 voters, about six out of 10 considered that the United States took the “wrong decision” by triggering military action against Iran.

However, the study indicates that the conflict was not the main concern of most voters in choosing representatives for Congress.

Only about a third of the respondents considered the war in Iran a “crutial” factor in determining their vote.

The proportion was below the recorded cost of living and government corruption, issues considered decisive by approximately half of voters.

The November 3 elections resulted in the loss of Republican control of the two chambers of Congress, which will have Democratic majorities as of January.