Conservatives rallied around Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after he fired back at a criticism from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on social media.

Russia has intensified cyber operations against Ukraine and NATO countries, according to previous U.S. intelligence and private sector reports.

The U.S. Cyber Command is pausing its offensive operations against Russia. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made the decision, which was confirmed Monday by a U.S. official speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive operations.

The defense secretary is said to have halted operations against Russia as part of a reset in ties between Washington and Moscow.

The Pentagon on Tuesday denied reports that Pete Hegseth has ordered US Cyber Command to cease its cyberoffensive against Russia, the Hill reports. "TO BE CLEAR: @SecDef has neither canceled nor delayed any cyber operations directed against malicious Russian targets and there has been no stand-down order whatsoever from that priority,

Multiple U.S. officials tell CBS News that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a directive to U.S. Cyber Command last month to pause planning against Russia, including provocative offensive cyber operations.

The Department of Defense is denying reports Secretary Pete Hegseth halted offensive cyber operations against Russia. “TO BE CLEAR: @SecDef has neither canceled nor delayed any cyber operations directed against malicious Russian targets and there has been no stand-down order whatsoever from that priority,

The problem is not just the Pentagon halting offensive cyber operations against Russia. It's also the series of related steps in the same direction.