Report that Hegseth’s dealer tried ‘large funding’ earlier than war ‘solely false’, says Pentagon
The Pentagon has strongly denied a report by the Financial Times (FT) {that a} dealer for Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, had tried to make a “big investment” in defence firms earlier than the US-Israeli assaults on Iran.
Chief Pentagon spokesperson, Sean Parnell, known as the report “entirely false and fabricated” and demanded an “immediate retraction” from the publication.
He wrote on social media:
“This allegation is entirely false and fabricated. Neither Secretary Hegseth nor any of his representatives approached BlackRock about any such investment. This is yet another baseless, dishonest smear designed to mislead the public.
“We demand a direct retraction.
“Secretary Hegseth and the Department of War remain unwavering in their commitment to the highest standards of ethics and strict adherence to all applicable laws and regulations.”
The FT, citing nameless sources, alleges Hegseth’s dealer contacted BlackRock in February about making a multimillion-greenback funding within the asset supervisor’s Defense Industrials Active ETF – however the funding reportedly didn’t undergo.
Hegseth and Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will maintain a media briefing this afternoon.
