HOUSTON - In a rare public split within the Republican Party on foreign policy, Veteran GOP Senator Mitch McConnell slammed US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Wednesday over the Trump administration's approach to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

"It seems to me pretty obvious that America's reputation is on the line," McConnell said when opening a Senate budget hearing. He is the former Senate majority leader and now leads the Appropriations Committee's defense subcommittee in the US Senate.

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"We don't want a headline at the end of this conflict that says Russia wins and America loses," McConnell told Hegseth during the hearing.

When McConnell asked who was the aggressor, Hegseth replied, "Russia is the aggressor."

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But when asked which side he wants to win, Hegseth, arguing for an "America First" approach, only said that US President Donald Trump is committed to peace.

"Vladimir Putin knows that President Trump is strong," Hegseth said. "He knows his word means something, and as a result, a negotiated peace in Ukraine makes America look strong, makes us look like we understand the state of the world."

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In comparison, McConnell said US allies are "wondering whether we're in the middle of brokering what appears to be allowing the Russians to define victory. I think victory is defined by the people who have to live there -- the Ukrainians."

Veteran Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump ally, also challenged Hegseth during the hearing.

McConnell is one of three Republican senators who opposed Hegseth's confirmation in January.