Trump taps Kim Jong-un defender Pete Hegseth as Pentagon chief

President-elect Donald Trump has appointed Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense, known for his 'America First' stance. Trump also announced new leadership for the Department of Government Efficiency, including Elon Musk.

Pete Hegseth, the nominee for U.S. Secretary of Defense, is shown with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump at the White House in 2017, in a screen capture of Hegseth's Facebook. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

As South Korea keenly watches the next U.S. administration take shape, President-elect Donald Trump tapped Pete Hegseth, a Fox News host and veteran, as secretary of defense for an upcoming second term on Tuesday.

Known for his support of the "America First" agenda, Hegseth has previously advocated for the withdrawal of U.S. troops and diplomatic engagement with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

“Pete has spent his entire life as a Warrior for the Troops and for the Country. Pete is tough, smart and a true believer in 'America First,'” Trump wrote in a statement posted on Truth Social on Tuesday. “With Pete at the helm, America’s enemies are on notice – Our Military will be Great Again, and America will Never Back Down.”

Hegseth, who has hosted Fox News — one of Trump’s favored networks — for eight years, previously served in the U.S. Army in Afghanistan, Iraq and at the detention center in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

Axios called the choice of Hegseth for defense secretary "a surprise," diverging from Trump’s other national security picks, describing him as a TV personality and military veteran who "favors a noninterventionist approach."

The New York Times called Hegseth's nomination "outside the norm for a traditional defense secretary," describing him as a "dedicated supporter of Trump during his first term," having backed policies like the withdrawal of U.S. troops abroad and defended the president's interactions with the North Korean leader.

In the lead-up to the first North Korea-U.S. summit in Singapore in 2018, Hegseth defended Kim on Fox News, describing him as “the guy who wants to meet with [former NBA star] Dennis Rodman and loves NBA basketball.” He added that Kim “probably doesn’t love being the guy that has to murder his people all day long” and suggested the North Korean leader “wants a picture with the American president.” The remarks sparked controversy, with critics calling the assessment misguided.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is interviewed by "Fox & Friends" co-host Pete Hegseth at the White House in Washington on April 6, 2017. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Hegseth will join a foreign policy and national security team that includes other Trump loyalists, such as Florida Rep. Mike Waltz, tapped as national security advisor earlier Wednesday, and former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, returning as CIA Director. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is reportedly the leading candidate for secretary of state.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, right, jumps on stage as he joins US President-elect Donald Trump during a campaign rally at site of his first assassination attempt in Pennsylvania on Oct. 5. [AFP/YONHAP]

Trump also named Tesla CEO Elon Musk the head of a newly established Department of Government Efficiency. Vivek Ramaswamy, a businessperson and former GOP primary competitor, will work with Musk to lead this department. Trump described the co-led division as part of a broader effort to streamline the federal government and reduce waste "with an eye on efficiency.

“Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies — essential to the ‘Save America’ movement,” Trump said in a separate statement on Truth Social. Musk added that the new department would “send shockwaves through the system,” aimed at anyone involved in government waste, which he noted “is a lot of people.”

Trump has teased the creation of a department focused on efficiency since his campaign trail, recently pledging at a New York Economic Club event in September to establish a commission that would audit the federal government and recommend major reforms.

BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]