FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Hegseth said Harvard has become a "factory of woke ideology and a breeding ground for anti-American radicals."
The United States Department of Defense has severed its academic ties with Harvard University. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accused the oldest university in the US of becoming a center of “anti-America activism.”
In a video posted on the social network X, Hegseth announced that the Pentagon will end graduate-level military training programs, scholarships and certificates that were developed in collaboration with Harvard.
He said Harvard has become a "factory of woke ideology and a breeding ground for anti-American radicals," which he said is inconsistent with the Department of Defense's focus on "warfighting capability" and "deterrence."
President Donald Trump's administration has previously threatened to cut funding to Harvard, accusing the university of "woke" attitudes and anti-Semitism. The BBC says it has contacted Harvard for an official response.
Last week, President Trump said he was seeking $1 billion (£730 million) in damages from Harvard, after the New York Times reported that his administration had backed away from demanding a $200 million payment during negotiations with the university. Trump accuses Harvard of providing the media with “false information”.
In his statement, Hegseth said he is considering severing ties with other elite universities, but stressed that the primary focus remains on Harvard. He cited the university's long history of cooperation with the U.S. military, which he said dates back to the time of the first U.S. president, George Washington.
“For a long time, this department has sent our best officers to Harvard, in the hope that the university would better understand and appreciate our military class, ” Hegseth said.
"Instead, many of them have returned with globalist and radical ideologies that do not improve combat capability, " he added.
The Pentagon announced that the suspension of academic cooperation will take effect in the fall, giving military personnel currently studying at Harvard time to complete their studies.
Hegseth also said the decision is related to several Harvard research programs that have collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party. According to the New York Times, between 2010 and 2025, Harvard received about $560 million in gifts and contracts from Chinese foundations, private donors and government institutions.
He also accused the university of creating a "campus climate that celebrated Hamas" and of allowing "attacks on Jews," referring to the pro-Palestinian protests that took place at many American universities after the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Hegseth himself completed a Master's in Public Policy at Harvard's Kennedy School in 2013. In 2022, he stated that he had returned his degree in protest against the teaching of critical race theory.
The Trump administration has previously attempted to freeze federal funding for Harvard, remove its tax-exempt status and limit international student enrollment, but some of these measures have been blocked by the courts.
Lini një Përgjigje