Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks Feb. 24, 2025, during a meeting at the Pentagon. (U.S. Department of Defense)
WASHINGTON — Cybersecurity operations against Russia have not been stopped, the Pentagon confirmed Tuesday as defense officials denied multiple reports that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had halted intelligence gathering against the country.
“TO BE CLEAR: [The defense secretary] has neither canceled nor delayed any cyber operations directed against malicious Russian targets and there has been no stand-down order whatsoever from that priority ... ,” read a Defense Department Rapid Response post on X.
The denial came after The Record, a cybersecurity publication, reported Hegseth had ordered U.S. Cyber Command to stand down from all planning against Russia, including offensive digital actions. The story was followed by The Washington Post and The New York Times that added their own confirmations from unnamed officials.
Hegseth on Monday retweeted to his personal X account a post from a D.C.-based CBS reporter, seemingly confirming cybersecurity operations against Russia were continuing. The report also claimed Hegseth ordered a temporary pause last month on “some provocative offensive actions” against Russia ahead of negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
Separately, President Donald Trump on Monday directed a pause to U.S. assistance to Ukraine as he seeks to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to engage in negotiations to end the war. The move came days after a disastrous Oval Office meeting in which Trump and Vice President JD Vance tore into Zelenskyy for what they perceived as insufficient gratitude for the more than $180 billion in military aid the U.S. has sent to Kyiv since Russia invaded three years ago.
A defense official Tuesday was unable to comment on Hegseth’s posts to his personal X account. Cyber Command directed questions to Hegseth’s office.
“Due to operational security concerns, we do not comment nor discuss cyber intelligence, plans, or operations. There is no greater priority to Secretary Hegseth than the safety of the warfighter in all operations, to include the cyber domain,” said a senior defense official for the command who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Aside from the retweets, Hegseth nor the Defense Department have provided a statement or taken questions on cyber security operations against Russia.
Cyber Command oversees 135 “cyber mission force” teams, or its “action arm,” according to the command’s website.
In the 2023 National Cybersecurity Strategy, the command identified Russia — as well as China, Iran and North Korea — as a malicious actor that is using cyber capabilities aggressively.
“Russia remains a persistent cyber threat as it refines its cyber espionage, attack, influence and disinformation capabilities to coerce sovereign countries, harbor transnational criminal actors, weaking U.S. alliances and partnerships, and subvert the rules-based international system,” the 2023 strategy read.
