| November 24, 2014 |
THE EARLY BIRD BRIEF |
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TODAY'S TOP 5
1. Afghan mission for U.S. to continue under new authorities
(Washington Post) The United States will remain in an armed conflict in Afghanistan - essentially at war - after the end of this year under rules for combat operations the Pentagon requested, and President Obama approved, early this month.
2. Senior GOP Senator: Immigration Order Could Derail Full-Year Pentagon Spending Bill
(Defense News) President Obama's end-run around lawmakers on immigration could derail hopes for a measure that would fund the federal government - including the Pentagon - through September.
3. Iraq's Five Catalysts for Civil War
(Retired Army Lt. Col. James Dickey in the Georgetown Security Studies Review) Revolutions and counter-revolutions embroil Iraq, providing the impetus for rebellion against the central government. While not all of these civil wars are 'hot' at any given time, no one movement has achieved complete victory, nor has any been completely defeated or appeased by Baghdad. Further, the myriad of ethnic and sectarian factions can and do shift between five competing motives for war as they seek to survive and profit in Iraq's 'full-contact' political environment. For peace inIraq all of these competing political impulses must be addressed. Outside entities, which do not recognize the complexity of the interplay between competing desired outcomes, risk perpetuating the unstable and unsustainable status quo.
4. Afghanistan Quietly Lifts Ban on Nighttime Raids
(New York Times) The government of the new Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, has quietly lifted the ban on night raids by special forces troops that his predecessor had imposed.
5. VA secretary: VA can't do this job by itself
(Military Times) Veterans Affairs Secretary Bob McDonald says he understands skepticism that he can reform and rebuild his embattled department.In fact, he welcomes it.
DEFENSE NEWS WITH VAGO MURADIAN
National Security Threats
(Defense News) Robert Work, deputy secretary of defense, discusses the Pentagon's latest offset strategy, which is designed to counter technological advances of US foes.
New Offset Strategy and Industry
(Defense News) Robert Work, deputy secretary of defense, discusses industry and the offset strategy.
DoD Nuclear Review
(Defense News) Robert Work, deputy secretary of defense, discusses how to fund the country's nuclear infrastructure modernization.
Vago's Notebook: Offset Strategy
(Defense News) The Pentagon is on the right track to tackle technological advances by foes, but reform is needed.
CONGRESS
Sen. Corker: White House 'Not Really Ready' on Islamic State Authorization
(Defense News) White House officials "are not really ready" to craft an authorization measure for the Islamic State conflict, says a key senator.
Defense Cuts Stirring Republican Congress Confronting New Budget
(Bloomberg) Military supporters are counting on a new Republican-led Congress to roll back defense-spending cuts required by a 2011 budget agreement. First, they'll have to get past Jeff Sessions and his allies.
New chairmen poised to challenge Obama on national security
(The Hill) Senate Republicans are preparing to use their new majority to press President Obama on a number of national security challenges.
New Benghazi report says security flaws were known, but not why Stevens was there
(McClatchy) A House Intelligence Committee investigation of the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks on U.S. outposts in Benghazi concludes that while the Central intelligence Agency had properly secured its compound in the Libyan city, the State Department knew its security precautions were inadequate at the U.S. Special Mission where U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens died.
GOP senator calls House panel's Benghazi report a 'bunch of garbage'
(Los Angeles Times) Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said that in compiling its report the committee accepted a "complete bunch of garbage" and allowed more finger-pointing within the administration about responsibility for the fatalities at the consulate.
Sen.-elect Thom Tillis to fight to keep Fort Bragg's 440th Airlift Wing
(Fayetteville Observer) Airmen with Fort Bragg's 440th Airlift Wing may have lost an advocate to keep their unit in Fayetteville when U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan lost her seat in November, but Sen.-elect Thom Tillis said he will fight to keep it in place.
ISLAMIC STATE
Colt M4 Carbines Top U.S. Arms List for Iraqi, Kurdish Forces
(Bloomberg) The Defense Department plans to arm Iraqi and Kurdish forces and Sunni tribesmen with weapons such as Colt M4 Carbines and equip them with trucks, radios and satellite-guidance devices under a $1.62 billion request that President Barack Obama has sent to Congress.
More jihadist training camps identified in Iraq and Syria
(Long War Journal) Four new terrorist training camps in Iraq and Syria, three of them operated by the Islamic State, have been identified by The Long War Journal. The identification of these camps, three in Syria and one in Iraq, brings the total number of jihadist-run camps identified in the two countries to 46.
Pentagon operation name for Islamic State fight inspires criticism
(Los Angeles Times) The branding effort took weeks, involved a classified Pentagon computer system called NICKA, consultations with military officers in Baghdad and Washington, approval by two dozen partner nations, and the endorsement of top Pentagon brass.
Iraqi premier, US look to aid Islamic State battle
(Associated Press) Iraqi forces battling the Islamic State group focused their offensive Sunday on the city of Ramadi, backed by Sunni tribal fighters that the U.S. plans to arm.
Group: Death toll of U.S.-led airstrikes in Syria tops 900
(CNN) In the two months since the United States and coalition allies first launched airstrikes against ISIS targets inside of Syria, the missions have killed more than 900 people, nearly all militants, a monitoring group said Saturday.
Graft Hobbles Iraq's Military in Fighting ISIS
(New York Times) One Iraqi general is known as "chicken guy" because of his reputation for selling his soldiers' poultry provisions. Another is "arak guy," for his habit of enjoying that anis-flavored liquor on the job. A third is named after Iraq's 10,000-dinar bills, "General Deftar," and is infamous for selling officer commissions.
Control of Syrian Oil Fuels War Between Kurds and Islamic State
(Wall Street Journal) Plumes of black smoke billow on the horizon of this border town in northeast Syria, a thumb-shaped corner of the country that pokes into neighboring Turkey and Iraq.
Militant video shows Egyptian armour being overrun
(IHS Jane's 360) The severity of the insurgency facing the Egyptian military in the Sinai Peninsula has been highlighted by a video showing the attack that reportedly killed at least 30 Egyptian soldiers on 24 October.
Gitmo 'Poet' Now Recruiting for Islamic State
(Weekly Standard) An ex-Guantanamo detainee based in northern Pakistan is leading an effort to recruit jihadists for the Islamic State, an al Qaeda offshoot that controls large portions of Iraq and Syria.
AQAP rejects Islamic State's 'caliphate,' blasts group for sowing dissent among jihadists
(Long War Journal) Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), an official branch of al Qaeda, has released a video rejecting the Islamic State's announced caliphate and chastising the group for sowing discord among jihadists.
INDUSTRY
Pentagon, Lockheed Finalize 8th F-35 Lot
(Defense News) The Pentagon Friday announced it has reached a final agreement with Lockheed Martin on the eighth low-rate initial production (LRIP-8) lot of F-35 joint strike fighters.
Boeing Stays In F-16 Upgrade Race
(Aviation Week) Boeing plans to continue competing with Lockheed Martin for F-16 upgrade business despite the cancellation of BAE Systems' contract to modernize Korea's F-16s, according to company officials attending the Defense IQ International Fighter conference here.
A NATO Fighter?
(Defense News) Just imagine it: Airbus teams up with Lockheed Martin or Boeing on a program to build a NATO fighter.
What the Navy's Next Generation Amphibious Ship Could Look Like
(USNI News) Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has revised its plan to use the hull form of the San Antonio-class amphibious warship (LPD-17) as a candidate for the Navy's next generation amphibious warship- LX(R), company officials outlined to USNI News on Tuesday.
With AESA Radar, Eurofighter Strengthens Export Push
(Defense News) Typhoon added its name to the list of fighters able to offer active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar capability last week when the four European partner nations in the program finally put their signature to an £800 million (US $1.25 billion) deal to develop and integrate the sensor.
Despite Contracting Reforms, Pentagon Seen As Unfriendly to Business
(National Defense) Pentagon officials have been emphatic about "lowering the barriers" to potential vendors - especially those on the cutting edge of technology - in order to spur competition in a market dominated by big conglomerates.
Japan Officially Selects Osprey
(Defense News) Japan has officially decided to procure the V-22 Osprey for its military tilt-rotor requirement.
Japan Prepares Designs For Its Next Fighter
(Aviation Week) Flying far is more important than flying fast, Japanese fighter technologists have found in studies aimed at defining their country's next combat aircraft. Looking for ways for their air force to fight outnumbered, researchers are also emphasizing that Japan's next fighter should share targeting data, carry a big internal load of large, high-performance missiles and be able to guide them while retreating.
Turkey May Restart Missile Defense Program
(Defense News) Turkey's procurement bureaucracy is rethinking a multibillion dollar program to build the country's first air and missile defense program, keeping "all options open," including scrapping the existing competition and merging it with a longer-range program with better capabilities.
Lockheed sees buyer for hybrid cargo airship in 2015
(Reuters) Lockheed is the Pentagon's No. 1 supplier, but it is targeting a commercial market for the slow-moving airships that have four hovercraft-like landing pads and can set down on nearly any flat surface, including sand, snow and even water.
China's Anti-Stealth Radar Comes to Fruition
(Defense News) The one great testament to China's anti-access/area denial efforts were weapon and sensor systems on display at the recent China Airshow in Zhuhai.
BAE wins DARPA anti-jamming contract
(C4ISR & Networks) BAE has been awarded a $3.2 million DARPA contract to develop jam-resistant communications.
Thales Board To Select New Chief Executive
(Defense News) Thales will hold a board meeting on Monday to choose a successor to Chairman Jean-Bernard Levy, who is leaving the defense electronics company to take the top job at utility giant Electricite de France (EDF), a company executive said.
Kremlin allies behind sales of crucial RD-180 engine to U.S.
(Japan Times) He has money, media power and the ear of President Vladimir Putin. Such is his influence that some observers have described Yuri Kovalchuk as the Rupert Murdoch of Russia.
Orsi: Finmeccanica Will Bounce Back
(Defense News) Giuseppe Orsi, the former CEO of Finmeccanica who was acquitted last month of offering bribes to Indian officials, says the Italian group was never humbled by the kickback scandal and will bounce back.
Ukraine and Poland continues defence co-operation discussions
(IHS Jane's 360) Ukraine and Poland have held their first military-technical economic co-operation forum; an event that followed discussions in May this year concerning increased defence industrial collaboration between the neighbouring countries.
VETERANS
VA to expand facility access to service dogs
(Military Times) Two years after Congress ordered the Veterans Affairs Department to increase access for service dogs to its facilities, the department is moving to alter its policies.
Bipartisan bill would expand veterans' access to medical marijuana
(The Hill) Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) and Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) introduced legislation to allow Department of Veterans Affairs doctors to make recommendations on patients' use of medical marijuana.
VA's Aggressive Plan for Shedding Its 'Back-to-the-Future' Era Scheduling System
(NextGov) The Department of Veterans Affairs is now taking bids for commercial software to replace a clunky 1980s-era system for scheduling veterans' medical appointments.
Burial delays prompt push for VA oversight in Congress
(Stars & Stripes) A bill aimed at decreasing recent delays in veteran burials by giving Congress new VA oversight got a push forward from lawmakers Thursday.
Last of World War II vets leaving Congress
(Dallas Morning News) With Texan Ralph Hall's defeat and Michigander John Dingell's retirement, Congress is saying goodbye to its last World War II veterans.
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
DoD Shifts Acquisition, Tech Efforts Toward Major Powers
(Defense News) After spending 13 years fighting non-state actors in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria, the US Defense Department is shifting its institutional weight toward developing a new acquisition and technology development strategy that focuses more on major state competitors, the Pentagon's No. 2 told Defense News on Nov. 21.
Pentagon considers changes to recruitment policies
(The Hill) The Pentagon is working on ways to begin enlisting people with family members who could be living in the country illegally.
Pentagon's suicide reports fall short, watchdog says
(Military Times) The Pentagon's annual analysis of military suicides contains gaps in information that likely hampers the Defense Department's understanding of the complex problem of suicide, the DoD Inspector General found.
Hagel rallies chairmen around defense budget
(The Hill) Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel met quietly with congressional leaders of three defense committees on Thursday as lawmakers prepare the Pentagon's budget for next year.
Rand: Civilian mental health providers don't 'get' the military
(Military Times) A new survey by an influential think tank finds that civilian mental health care specialists sorely lack an understanding of military culture and appropriate treatments for service-related health care needs.
Military families blitz Congress over proposed benefits cuts
(The Hill) Military families and their advocates are blitzing Congress with calls and emails this week, urging them to not cut their housing and healthcare benefits.
DoD: Troops can't use allotments to buy items on credit
(Military Times) Active-duty troops will no longer be able to use allotments - direct payments to specific creditors - to purchase, lease or rent consumer items after Jan. 1, defense officials announced Friday.
Saudi Arabia fetches former 'forever prisoner' from Guantanamo
(Miami Herald) The U.S. military released to Saudi Arabia this week a captive who was held at the U.S. prison camps in Cuba for a dozen years, categorized as a "forever prisoner," but was never charged with a crime.
Higher-paid DoD contractors pay more for child care
(Military Times) Taxpayers no longer subsidize child care for the highest-paid DoD contract employees under a DoD policy change that went into effect this fall.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel interview with Charlie Rose
(PBS) An hour with Chuck Hagel, United States Secretary of Defense.
Are the military's Ebola precautions excessive?
(Military Times) All U.S. troops returning from West Africa are required to spend 21 days in quarantine to make sure they do not bring Ebola back to the U.S. or their military bases overseas.
ARMY
Enlisted soldiers who became officers fight for pension benefits, with senators' help
(Tacoma News Tribune) Washington Sen. Patty Murray and other U.S. senators, troubled by reports of career soldiers poised to lose thousands of dollars a year in retirement pay, are urging the Army to extend their service a little longer so they can leave the military with full pensions.
The End in Their Sights
(Washington Post) To get to a place where the Afghanistan war is something not yet forgotten, drive from civilian America onto this 164-square-mile military base. Pass the armed guards who check for military identification and the four-story Warrior Transition building that houses wounded soldiers, and keep going into one of the base's residential neighborhoods of identical two-story houses.
Jurors in S.A. convict visiting lieutenant colonel of child sex trafficking
(San Antonio Express-News) A federal jury on Friday convicted an Army officer of a charge that he participated in the sex trafficking of a minor by hiring a 15-year-old prostitute in San Antonio.
Post cracks down on skimpy clothes, facial hair
(Army Times) Fort Leonard Wood' Maj. Gen. Leslie Smith, the Missouri post's commanding general, issued new appearance standards in a Nov. 10 policy update.
No prison time for Army Sgt. Barbera for phone threat against reporter's wife
(Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael Barbera, who professed innocence on his social media sites, pleaded guilty Thursday to threatening the wife of a Tribune-Review reporter in a failed attempt to prevent publication of a report about his fatal shootings in March 2007 of two unarmed, deaf Iraqi brothers.
Junior enlisted eligible for West Point nominations
(Army Times) The Army has provided guidance to commanders who want to nominate outstanding junior enlisted soldiers for possible admission to the U.S. Military Academy as cadets, and subsequent commissioning as Army officers.
Firepower: Fort Bragg tests new rocket system
(Fayetteville Observer) Fireballs lit the dark sky over Fort Bragg as artillerymen fired their first live rounds from new rocket system launchers.
Enlisted soldiers wanted for medical school
(Army Times) Applications are being accepted for a special program that provides an academic helping hand to Regular Army enlisted soldiers who want to attend medical school.
Army awaits German approval for Ebola monitoring facility
(Stars & Stripes) The U.S. Army's monitoring facility in Germany is ready to receive personnel returning from the Pentagon's Ebola mission in Africa, but it's not clear when - or if - the complex will open for business.
NAVY
Sub Jefferson City leaves Guam for new homeport
(Navy Times) After five months tied up in Guam, the attack submarine Jefferson City departed Nov. 15, bound for repairs in Pearl Harbor, its new home port, Navy officials confirmed.
Admiral denies role in counterfeiting casino chips
(Associated Press) An admiral linked by Navy investigators to counterfeit casino chips denied Sunday that he played any role in making them.
Fleet boss: 'Painful' budget cuts threaten push for shorter cruises
(Navy Times) A second round of sequestration cuts set for fiscal 2016 could unravel the Navy's plan to cap deployments at seven months, the fleet's top officer warned, as the service is on the path to cut deployments and boost training.
Should Navy captain advance?
(San Diego Union-Tribune) The Navy ship captain partially blamed for the September 2013 accident that killed two Coronado-based helicopter pilots is in line for another, even bigger, at-sea command.
4-star talks LCS, new deployment plan and more
(Navy Times) In his two years leading the fleet, Adm. Bill Gortney grappled with the budget cuts that canceled deployments, fast-tracked the fleet's new flame-resistant coveralls and developed a new deployment plan that's had a shaky start.
47 Seconds From Hell: A Challenge To Navy Doctrine
(Breaking Defense) Someone shoots a cruise missile at you. How far away would you like to stop it: over 200 miles out or less than 35?
Advancement list released early
(Navy Times) The chief of naval personnel officially released the fall petty officer advancement list Friday to command leadership, allowing notification of sailors to start days earlier than had been planned.
Seabees' morale high despite long Ebola quarantine, congressman says
(McClatchy) There were no hugs or handshakes just in case Ebola germs lurked, but Rep. Steven Palazzo found 15 Navy Seabees from Mississippi in "good spirits" Friday as they waited out a 21-day isolation period at Virginia's Langley Air Force Base after a seven-week stint building treatment facilities in disease-ravaged Liberia.
Line and staff officer promotions announced
(Navy Times) The Navy has announced active-duty promotions to captain, commander, lieutenant commander, lieutenant and chief warrant officer in the line and staff corps.
Mids get their career assignments
(Baltimore Sun) The senior midshipmen of the Naval Academy's 19th Company piled into their wardroom in Bancroft Hall on Thursday, cramming four or five abreast on brown couches. After nearly four years of study, they were about to learn whether they would get their dream jobs.
Navy issues call for tax-help volunteers
(Navy Times) The Navy is looking for a few good beancounters to help shipmates do their taxes next calendar year - and save them from tax preparation fees.
AIR FORCE
Leaders monitor burnout among intel analysts
(Air Force Times) The airmen who walk the halls of the 480th Intelligence, Reconnaissance and Surveillance Wing headquarters are among the 6,000 airmen around the globe committed to fighting a new type of war where the margin between victory and defeat lies in massive amounts of information.
New Leader Tasked With Upping Profile Of Air University
(Defense News) On Nov. 10, military officials, civic leaders and community notables from around Montgomery, Alabama, gathered to watch Lt. Gen. Steven Kwast take command of Air University, the center of education for the world's largest Air Force. Although it's a scene oft-repeated throughout the service whenever one commander leaves and another takes over, this handover may represent more than just a change on the masthead. If Kwast succeeds, it could represent a turning point in how the service relates to Air University, or AU, a crucial part of the Air Force often regarded as a backwater by the Beltway crowd.
Retreats at Mildenhall focus on the family
(Air Force Times) On the final day of the weekend retreat near Royal Air Force Mildenhall in England, the Watts family - Laura, her master sergeant husband and their three children who range from ages 2 to 15 - brainstormed the values and priorities they held dearest and wrote them down.
Air Force reservist apparently settles firing lawsuit against U.S. Steel
(Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) Sgt. Rebecca Jackanic, 33, of Coraopolis sued the company in July under state and federal laws that protect reservists' jobs while they're deployed. She said the company fired her while she was training to become a flight engineer for the 911th Airlift Wing in Moon.
Del. National Guard member stole $103,800
(News Journal; Wilmington, Del.) Authorities have quietly prosecuted a Delaware Air National Guard sergeant and given him probation for stealing more than $100,000 in a double-dipping scam involving disability payments that might involve another member, The News Journal has learned.
MARINE CORPS
Corps' aviation plan calls for armed Ospreys
(Marine Corps Times) The Marine Corps' most unique aircraft is going to get a bigger punch.
Women Sweat The Test To Show Marines They're Combat-Ready
(National Public Radio) Sgt. Kristy Rodriguez is sprinting on a treadmill. She's wearing dark green shorts, a matching T-shirt, and white sneakers. The pace keeps getting faster.
Pendleton business course preps transitioning Marines
(Marine Corps Times) Leaving the Corps for the corporate world might be as unfamiliar as moving to Mars. The military's strict hierarchy and protocols are gone. The emphasis isn't on accomplishing the mission, but on costs and revenues. It's not something Marines are used to.
Marine Corps Finds It Tough To Shut Down Sexist Facebook Groups
(National Public Radio) For veterans like Katherine Keleher, Facebook can be a nightmare.
Virtual reality, 3-D modeling help design new gear at Quantico
(Marine Corps Times) Developers at Quantico will be able to project realistic images of new equipment as they build it, print 3-D parts on demand, and tour vehicle prototypes in a virtual reality room, thanks to a new 2,700-square foot modeling and simulation facility that opened its doors this month.
After Loss, Marine's Parents 'Gained 20-Something Other Sons'
(National Public Radio) Lance Cpl. Brian Parrello was the only member of his platoon who didn't make it home from Iraq. They were patrolling near the Haditha dam when Brian was killed by an IED, at the age of 19.
New bonus rules for Marines who speak foreign languages
(Marine Corps Times) The way Marines earn extra cash through foreign language proficiency bonuses has changed to reflect Defense Department-wide revisions - and while it will lead to extra money for some, others will lose a bit.
Study links contaminated water to adverse birth outcomes
(Jacksonville Daily News) Pregnant women exposed to contaminated drinking water aboard Camp Lejeune might have experienced adverse birth outcomes, according to documents released this week.
Blindfolded Marines learn to clear firearm malfunctions
(Marine Corps Times) Members of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit are getting ready for combat - blindfolded. The exercise, which may seem odd to the outside observer, has a real combat application.
New sergeant major takes over at Parris Island
(Island Packet) Sgt. Maj. Angela Maness officially took over as new sergeant major at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island on Friday, according to a news release.
Statue honoring iconic Fallujah photo unveiled at Pendleton
(Marine Corps Times) A Gold Star dad brought the iconic "Hell House" image from the Battle of Fallujah to life by casting a new bronze statue that now sits outside the site where some of the Marine Corps' most severely wounded warriors receive their care.
Noise from F-35B comparable to F/A-18s, new study says
(Island Packet) The new F-35B fighters flying over Beaufort might not sound like their older counterparts, but they are no louder, according to data released last month by the F-35's Joint Program Office.
Marine Corps weighs eliminating vehicle decals
(Marine Corps Times) Marine Corps officials are developing plans to eliminate the vehicle decals required to access bases and air stations.
COAST GUARD
Coast Guardsman convicted of lewd act with minor
(Honolulu Star-Advertiser) A Coast Guard aviation mechanic in Hawaii was sentenced to five years in a military brig and given a dishonorable discharge Thursday for threatening and committing a lewd act on a minor in 2013.
Coast Guard's Little Creek mascot works like a dog
(Virginian-Pilot) The office of Blake Kilbourne, a master chief petty officer at Coast Guard Station Little Creek, looks a lot like most: desk, chair, computer, plaques on the walls.
AFGHANISTAN/PAKISTAN
Hour's Drive Outside Kabul, Taliban Reign
(New York Times) The explosion ripped through the floor of the Humvee, tearing a hole in the armored vehicle and injuring the district governor. The crack of Taliban gunfire followed.
NATO says 2 service members killed in Afghanistan
(Associated Press) NATO says that two of its service members have been killed in an attack in eastern Afghanistan.
Afghan military welcomes expanded U.S. combat role as Taliban threat intensifies
(Washington Post) The 18 Afghan soldiers were trapped in a mountainous outpost about 50 miles south of the capital, running out of ammunition. Taliban insurgents had surrounded them. There was only one way out: the Americans.
Suicide Bomber Kills Dozens At Afghan Volleyball Tournament
(Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) Afghan officials say a suicide bomber has killed at least 50 people and injured about 60 others at a volleyball tournament in the country's eastern province of Paktika.
MIDDLE EAST
Thousands of Iraq Chemical Weapons Destroyed in Open Air, Watchdog Says
(New York Times) The United States recovered thousands of old chemical weapons in Iraq from 2004 to 2009 and destroyed almost all of them in secret and via open-air detonation, according to a written summary of its activities prepared by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the international body that monitors implementation of the global chemical weapons treaty.
Internal Study: Israeli Deterrence Needs Overhaul
(Defense News) Israeli deterrence is due for a wholesale overhaul, from basic theory and language to practical matters of intelligence targeting and operational planning up to the way the military fights and advises government leaders.
Israeli officer charged in shooting death of Palestinian teen
(McClatchy) An Israeli border policeman was charged with manslaughter on Sunday in the fatal shooting of a Palestinian teenager during a protest in the West Bank, a rare case in which a member of the security forces has been prosecuted for killing a Palestinian.
Former Commander: Israel Made 'Strategic Mistake'
(Defense News) Israel's latest Gaza operation illustrates the strategic consequences of crossing that Clausewitzian-inspired line of culminating deterrence, where tactical actions aimed at containing escalation ended up dragging it into an unwanted war of attrition.
Yemen Ends Mutiny Inside Elite Paramilitary Unit
(Associated Press) The Yemeni government has ended a mutiny by officers suspected to be loyalists of the country's ousted leader against the top commander of an elite paramilitary unit.
es and Europe on Thursday to help the Libyan army in its fight against Islamist militants now to save the country from requiring intervention on the scale of Iraq and Syria.
EUROPE
U.S. troops to remain in Baltics, Poland next year
(Reuters) The United States will keep troops in Poland and the Baltic states for at least the next year as tensions with Russia remain, the commander of U.S. land forces in Europe said on Sunday.
Special Ops medical team trains Ukrainian soldiers
(Air Force Times) About a dozen medical specialists from Special Operations Command Europe deployed earlier this week to Western Ukraine to coach Ukrainian soldiers on basic battlefield medical procedures, European Command officials announced Friday.
US delivers anti-mortar radars to Ukraine: Pentagon
(Agence France-Presse) The US military has delivered three radars to Ukraine designed to detect incoming mortar fire, the Pentagon said Friday, amid appeals from Kiev for Washington to send weapons to help fight pro-Russian rebels.
Russia flies first radar- and avionics-upgraded Tu-160 bomber
(IHS Jane's 360) The first upgraded Tupolev Tu-160 'Blackjack' strategic bomber aircraft made its maiden flight on 16 November, Russian state media has announced.
Finland feeling vulnerable amid Russian provocations
(Washington Post) Wedged hard against Russia's northwestern border, peaceable Finland has long gone out of its way to avoid prodding the nuclear-armed bear next door.
ASIA-PACIFIC
China building airstrip-capable island on Fiery Cross Reef
(IHS Jane's 360) China is building an island at least 3,000 m long on Fiery Cross Reef that could be the site for its first airstrip in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.
Obama to visit India in January
(McClatchy) President Barack Obama will travel to India in January at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the White House said.
Excavation begins in Okinawa field where barrels previously found
(Stars & Stripes) Workers began excavation Friday on an additional 66 spots at the Okinawa City soccer field where barrels containing toxic herbicides were found last year.
AFRICA
Somali Islamists execute 28 non-Muslims on Kenyan bus
(Reuters) The Somali Islamist militant group al Shabaab said it had staged an attack in Kenya on Saturday in which gunmen ordered non-Muslims off a bus and shot 28 dead, while sparing Muslim passengers.
Freed Somalia Towns Feel Besieged
(Wall Street Journal) Women slip into this southern town in the middle of the night with sacks of rice for sale-a lifeline for residents and a move that demonstrates the continued threat from surrounding Islamist militants.
Tunisia Vote for Leader Likely to Go to a Runoff
(New York Times) Tunisians turned out in steady, orderly lines on Sunday to vote in their first free and democratic presidential election, voicing confidence that they were turning the page on the often-fractious transition after the revolution of 2011.
War against Ebola in West Africa remains a tough fight
(USA Today) A snapshot of the Ebola epidemic raging across West Africa shows a wildfire of infections only slightly contained.
COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS
Stopping an Awakening in Iraq before it can start
(David Ignatius in The Washington Post) A centerpiece of President Obama's strategy for defeating the Islamic State is mobilizing tribal fighters to join the Iraqi military in retaking Anbar province and others dominated by Sunnis. But new research shows that the jihadists have been working since 2009 to gut the very Sunni tribal leadership on which Obama's rollback depends - making the U.S. campaign much more difficult.
ISIL Is The Symptom, Syria's al-Assad Is The Disease
(James Kitfield in Breaking Defense) The enemy of my enemy is....who exactly? That is the question U.S. Central Command planners confronted recently when they targeted the Khorasan Group, a hardcore Al Qaeda cell in Syria suspected of planning terrorist attacks against the United States and Europe. Not surprisingly, the U.S. strikes also killed fighters from the Al-Nusra Front, Al Qaeda's official Syrian affiliate who were playing host to the Khorasan cell.
Column: The More Things Change ...
(John T. Bennett in Defense News) "I am very confident that the Armed Services Committee, under the leadership of John McCain next year, that we're going to make some corrections [to] sequestration." - Retiring SASC member Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga.
America's 500th Drone Strike
(Micah Zenko in the Council on Foreign Relations) The most consistent and era-defining tactic of America's post-9/11 counterterrorism strategies has been the targeted killing of suspected terrorists and militants outside of defined battlefields.
How the United States can counter the ambitions of Russia and China
(Ely Ratner and Thomas Wright in The Washington Post) The unraveling of the Middle East under the weight of the Sunni-Shiite rivalry and the rise of the Islamic State is enough of a national security challenge to keep the United States busy for a decade or more. But with more and more American advisers on the ground in Iraq - and a steady stream of videotaped atrocities on the Internet - there is a risk that Washington will once again revert to a foreign policy focused disproportionately on that region.
Suicide Bombers and T-72s: Using Mission Orders to Defeat the Hybrid Threat
(Christopher Baldwin and Jeffrey Baldwin in Small Wars Journal) In the summer and fall of 2014 fighters of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and Russian sponsored Ukrainian separatists offered an unmistakable demonstration to the United States and its allies of the danger posed by hybrid threats. The West once again confronted the deadly combination of guerrilla tactics, conventional military operations, and organized crime.
Turkey And The United States: Death By A Thousand Slights
(Steven A. Cook in the Council on Foreign Relations) The relationship between the United States and Turkey has hit the skids. The controversy over Kobani has revealed deep fissures and deep mistrust between Washington and Ankara.
American Witnesses of the Nazi Rise to Power
(Cicero Magazine) Andrew Nagorski, author of 'Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power'', describes what lessons that period of history holds for totalitarianism today.
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