By Kelly Geraldine Malone

The Canadian Press

Posted September 1, 2026 12:18 pm

1 min read

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The Pentagon is standing behind a controversial social media post by U.S. Department of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about a Canadian cadet program.

On Monday, Hegseth posted an image from the Cadet Training Centre in Vernon, B.C., showing two young women in uniform with the caption “this is real” alongside a Canadian flag.

🇨🇦 (this is real) pic.twitter.com/Ucx2FNdi1q

— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) September 1, 2026

The post triggered massive backlash online, with some saying it was unfair to target the…

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