Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has directed the U.S. military to apply identical physical standards to men and women serving in combat roles.
Hegseth announced the new policy in a memo released Monday. The announcement comes after Hegseth’s repeated statements criticizing what he called “different standards” across certain military jobs.
“We have to have the same standard—male or female—in our combat roles,” Hegseth said in a video posted online as he returned from Japan. “We need the best possible leaders and the highest possible standards, not based at all on your sex.”
According to the memo, each branch of the military must “develop comprehensive plans to distinguish combat arms occupations from non-combat arms occupations” and ensure that new, sex-neutral standards do not allow any current service member to be held to a lower requirement.
The document further explains that entry-level and ongoing physical fitness benchmarks in combat arms must reflect the “operational demands of the occupation.”
Hegseth’s order calls for combat-role troops to be able to endure “prolonged physical exertion” and “perform effectively in austere, hostile environments,” among other rigorous standards.
Service secretaries are instructed to submit their implementation plans within 60 days and to roll out the policy within six months.
The policy shift follows Hegseth’s broader review of military fitness and grooming standards. He has repeatedly pledged to reverse what he considers “woke” initiatives that, in his view, weakened the “warrior ethos.”
In a previous memo, Hegseth described the need for “high, uncompromising, and clear” expectations within the armed forces.
While Hegseth has in the past expressed reservations about women serving in combat, he indicated more recently that women could do so if they meet identical standards.
This latest move is seen as part of the Pentagon’s broader effort to modernize and strengthen military readiness, including a plan to bolster the American command structure in Japan and work closely with key allies in the Indo-Pacific region.
With the new directive, Hegseth has underscored what he calls the “essential” nature of consistent, mission-focused standards across all combat roles, regardless of gender.