US admiral at NATO fired in expanding national security purge
The information was not immediately confirmed by the Pentagon. However, the sources told Reuters that allies had been notified that Chatfield had been removed from her job.
Chatfield, the U.S. military representative to the NATO Military Committee, is one of only a handful of female Navy three-star officers and was the first woman to lead the Naval War College, a job she held until 2023.
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The firing is the latest to rock the Pentagon after Thursday's removal of General Timothy Haugh, the head of the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command. For the Navy, it follows the firing of its top officer, Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the first woman to become Chief of Naval Operations.
President Donald Trump's administration has taken a cool view of NATO, as well as European allies, since taking office in January. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used his first trip to NATO headquarters in February to warn Europe against treating the United States like a 'sucker' by making it responsible for its defense.
It was unclear if any official reason was given for Chatfield's dismissal, or if it was related to any U.S. policy direction on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
One source said the motive may have been related to the Pentagon's crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In a recent Harvard Magazine interview, Chatfield sounded eager for a time when the qualifications of women in the military would not be held in suspicion.
The article cited one example when Chatfield, herself a helicopter pilot, led an MH-60S Sea Hawk expeditionary helicopter squadron in 2005-2006.
'A mid-grade sailor … asked, 'Ma'am, can you fly one of those helicopters?' And I chuckled and said, 'Yes, actually it's a prerequisite for this job!'' she was quoted as saying, adding that at the time she had been wearing her wings that showed she was a naval aviator.
Hegseth has made the elimination of DEI initiatives a priority, arguing they are divisive.
Naval Academy removes hundreds of library books in DEI purge
He has also ended observances of events such as Black History Month and Women's History Month, issuing guidance to the U.S. military that 'efforts to divide the force – to put one group ahead of another – erode camaraderie and threaten mission execution.'
In recent weeks, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General C.Q. Brown, as well as other admirals, generals and security staff have also been dismissed.
Pentagon watchdog to review Hegseth's use of Signal app to convey plans for Houthi strike
Many current and former government officials have said they worry that any national security official could be suspected of disloyalty by Trump's inner circle because of perceived links to those who have fallen out of favor or for having served key roles in the Biden administration.
Uniformed military officials are supposed to be loyal to the U.S. Constitution and independent of any party or political movement.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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