Pentagon chief claims 60-day war clock paused by Iran ceasefire

Yasin Gungor

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told a Senate committee Thursday that a 60-day statutory clock for the war with Iran was paused because of a ceasefire.

“We are in a ceasefire right now, which our understanding, means the 60-day clock pauses or stops,” said Hegseth, though he deferred final legal interpretation to the White House.

His remarks came as Washington faces a looming May 1 deadline under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which requires congressional authorization for sustained military engagement.

Some have questioned whether the ceasefire effectively pauses the 60-day countdown, arguing that troops are no longer engaged in active combat.

But the State Department rejected that interpretation. An agency legal adviser had argued that the temporary truce does not legally terminate the conflict.

The adviser noted that because neither Washington nor Tehran has agreed to a permanent end to hostilities, the pause lacks the “stability” and “permanence” required under international law, hence to stop the legislative clock.

A White House official told Anadolu that the administration remains in discussions with lawmakers on the issue. The official warned against political maneuvering, noting that attempting to usurp the authority of the commander-in-chief would only undermine the US military abroad, “which no elected official should want to do.”