Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered a review of military standards, which include physical fitness, body composition and grooming. It is a project that the Pentagon chief had in the works since January, when he said he wanted to change military standards so that the military would remain “lethal and effective.”
“We must remain vigilant in maintaining the standards that enable the men and women of our military to protect the American people and our homeland as the world’s most lethal and effective fighting force,” Hegseth said at the time, “Our adversaries are not growing weaker, and our tasks are not growing less challenging.”
Katherine Kuzminski, director of studies at the Center for a New American Security, told CBS News that there are separate requirements for men and women, as well as people of different ages, to pass the Army’s Combat Fitness Test, which every recruit must take.
To qualify for Special Forces, however, the standards are gender-neutral. “Those standards are uniform across the genders”, Kuzminski said, “and that’s why we’ve only seen a very small number of women going into special operations.”
The Pentagon’s review now could lead to a change in the Army’s combat fitness test so that the requirements are the same for men and women. Currently, the test in question is evaluated according to different standards.
For example, a man between the ages of 17 and 21 must be able to run at least two miles in 22 minutes, while a woman must run the same distance in 23:22. In contrast, the minimum requirement for hand release push-ups is the same for both sexes.
In the face of the recruitment crisis, the services have in recent years “softened” some drug and tattoo policies and provided enlistment bonuses to attract interested prospects while maintaining certain physical and educational standards. However, things now look set to change.
Kuzminski said the overhaul promoted by Hegseth could also cover certain aesthetic aspects of individuals in uniform. This means that the armed forces could ban women from wearing long hair, or men from growing beards, to avoid facial skin problems caused by constant razor use.
Revoking such concessions, insiders say, could further turn people away from the idea of enlisting, at a time when the armed forces are already struggling to find new recruits.
