Middle East and North Africa

Welcome back to Foreign Policy’s Situation Report, where John has embarked on a well-deserved post-UNGA vacation, and Rishi is treating the first day of October as close enough to Halloween to start putting up his spooky decorations.

Alright, here’s what’s on tap for the day: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gives a consequential speech, major AI companies sign a new accord with U.S. President Donald Trump, and FP interviews Trump’s U.N. Ambassador Mike Waltz.

Welcome back to Foreign Policy’s Situation Report, where John has embarked on a well-deserved post-UNGA vacation, and Rishi is treating the first day of October as close enough to Halloween to start putting up his spooky decorations.

Alright, here’s what’s on tap for the day: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gives a consequential speech, major AI companies sign a new accord with U.S. President Donald Trump, and FP interviews Trump’s U.N. Ambassador Mike Waltz.

As we’ve highlighted in multiple past editions of this newsletter, Hegseth has overseen one of the most dramatic reshapings of the U.S. military in its history—from goals and remit to personnel and culture, right down to what the department calls itself.

On Wednesday, the defense secretary used his annual “State of the Force” speech in Quantico, Virginia, to tout what he’s done so far and lay out what he’s planning next. Hegseth unveiled several new initiatives aimed at “reviving the warrior ethos, rebuilding our military, and reestablishing deterrence.”

Here’s what you need to know:

Autonomy and technology. Hegseth announced a new combatant command focused on the military’s adoption of autonomous weapons. Known as Autonomous Warfare Command, or Autowarcom, the new command’s goal will be to “scale autonomous and robotic capabilities” across the military in what Hegseth said will be “the fastest peacetime shift in modern military history.”

Hegseth also introduced an initiative called Project Meridian that aims to study the future of warfare. That project will be overseen by Emil Michael, the Defense Department’s chief technology officer, and co-led by Elon Musk, defense tech company Anduril’s founder Palmer Luckey, and former U.S. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, whom Hegseth described as “three of our nation’s best minds.” The project has 120 days to submit its findings and recommendations to Hegseth’s office.

The military will also establish a new office within 30 days to ensure that U.S. military bases develop their own infrastructure, Hegseth said, including independent energy supplies in case of disruption to civilian electricity grids and self-sufficient supply........

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