WATCH: McConnell warns Hegseth that U.S. can’t be seen as ‘allowing the Russians to define victory’

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was pressed for details Wednesday on how President Donald Trump intended to defend democratic allies abroad, especially when it came to helping Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.

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Hegseth told Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, that the proposed Defense Department budget reflects the president’s desire to have other international partners step up as America looks to other threats, such as in the Indo-Pacific region.

READ MORE: Zelenskyy asks Western allies to boost air defense deliveries as Hegseth skips Ukraine meeting

Trump “has set the standard that America can’t be everywhere all the time for everybody. And if you’re a European country, you cannot freeload off of the United States in perpetuity,” he said. “You are our allies and our friends, and we will stand with you, but you need to stand up in times of peace and in times of war. And this budget reflects that it’s long overdue.”

McConnell asked Hegseth who he believed the aggressor to be in the war.

“Um, Russia’s the aggressor,” Hegseth replied.

“Which side do you want to win?” McConnell replied.

“As we’ve said time and time again, this president is committed to peace in that conflict. Ultimately peace serves our national interests, and we think the interest of both parties, even if that outcome will not be preferable to many in this room and many in our country,” Hegseth said.

McConnell expressed concern about how allies would view U.S. actions.

“Everybody seems to be moving in the right direction, and then they look at us. And wonder whether we’re in the midst of brokering what appears to be allowing the Russians to define victory,” McConnell said. “I think victory is defined by the people that have to live there, Ukrainians. And I don’t think they’re going to ever conclude that victory means basically, adopting the Russian views on all this.”

In the first of several hearings Hegseth is expected to join this week, the Defense secretary strongly defended President Donald Trump’s militarized response to the protests over federal immigration raids in Los Angeles and other U.S. cities. He told lawmakers Tuesday that the some 4,000 National Guard troops and hundreds of Marines activated by the president are expected to stay in Los Angeles for 60 days. The mobilization will also cost the Defense Department roughly $134 million, said Bryn Woollacott MacDonnell, Hegseth’s acting comptroller.

Congressional lawmakers, especially Democrats, are demanding that Hegseth provide more details around its Fiscal Year 2026 budget, which lays out how the department will put resources toward addressing multiple threats at home and abroad.