US defence secretary nominee clueless about Asean at confirmation hearing

In embarrassing exchange, Hegseth could not name even one member nation

- Bhagyashree Garekar

It certainly wasn't the toughest question, nor the tensest moment, during the Jan 14 confirmation hearing for incoming US president Donald Trump's nominee for defence secretary.

But an exchange of less than two minutes - centred on Asean, unexpectedly - resulted in embarrassment for Mr Pete Hegseth and fuelled questions about his competence.

From the moment he was picked by Trump, Mr Hegseth has been the subject of media stories documenting his foibles.

The former Fox News weekend anchor, a veteran who served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, was expected to face a tough bench.

Democratic senators had plenty to work with: an alleged sexual assault that Mr Hegseth was once accused of, extramarital affairs, financial mismanagement and a widely reported excessive fondness for liquor.

The 44-year-old graduate of Princeton and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University said in his defence that he was "not a perfect person".

He denied the assault, in which he was not charged, and dismissed other allegations as part of a smear campaign.

Then came Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat of Thai heritage, whose questions plainly flustered him.

A decorated veteran who lost her legs when the Black Hawk helicopter she was flying during the Iraq War was hit by a grenade, she was understandably livid at Mr Hegseth for having opposed deploying women in combat operations in the past.

In the manner of a school teacher addressing a recalcitrant student, she questioned him on his knowledge of the Asia-Pacific region, where the US has deployed multiple aircraft carrier strike groups and 375,000 military and civilian personnel.

"Name one Asean nation that is important to the US," Ms Duckworth demanded, before adding: "And how many nations are in Asean, by the way?"