Tammy Duckworth asked the nominee for factual details about the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), including its membership and the U.S.'s relationship with member countries. Hegseth responded that he was unable to name the exact members of ASEAN,

A senator told Hegseth: "I suggest you do a little homework before you prepare for these types of negotiations."

In a heated Senate confirmation hearing for Pete Hegseth, Sen. Tammy Duckworth grilled the proposed defense secretary over the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, asking him if he could name one member and how many countries were in the bloc.

PETE Hegseth - Donald Trump’s choice for defence secretary - was left red-faced at a Senate confirmation hearing when he could not answer basic questions regarding Asean, the South-east Asian grouping of 10 nations.

During his confirmation hearing, Trump’s Defense Secretary nominee couldn’t name a single member of the Southeast Asian bloc.

DESPITE being Asean’s largest foreign investor, the US is expected to put the bloc on the back burner – trade-wise – as the Trump administration makes a return, dashing the group’s hope of being viewed by world superpowers as an economic heavyweight.

Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth, born in Bangkok to a Thai mother and an American father, posed the question to Pete Hegseth.

Can Anwar Ibrahim's diplomatic finesse help Malaysia steer Asean through the storm of rising trade tensions and regional crises? Malaysia takes the helm of Asean at a time of see-sawing threats and opportunities,

Some of President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks struggled to answer basic questions during their Senate confirmation hearings this week. There was litany of obfuscation and waffling across the board,

Hegseth responded at the heated Senate confirmation hearing that he couldn’t tell Duckworth the exact number of ASEAN nations, but that “I know we have allies in South Korea and Japan in AUKUS (a pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the U.S.) with Australia.”