US defense chief visits Guantanamo Bay

WASHINGTON

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth traveled Tuesday to Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB), Cuba.

"Arrived at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay on the front lines of the war against America’s southern border," said Hegseth.

The protection of the US’ sovereign territory is the Pentagon's mission and the department moved "swiftly" to implement the executive orders of President Donald Trump on border security, he added.

During his first trip to NSGB since his January confirmation, Hegseth met service members who are "directly supporting the apprehension and deportation of dangerous illegal aliens."

Last month, Trump ordered the construction of a detention camp at Guantanamo Bay to hold up to 30,000 of the "worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people."

The White House has since begun flying undocumented migrants -- labeled as a "high threat" and "criminals" -- to the detention center in Cuba as part of Trump’s mass deportation plan.