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Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 25 Sep 2008 [PDF]
• MND-N Soldier attacked by SVEST (Baqubah)
• MND-C Soldier killed by roadside bomb near Iskandariyah
• Transcript: DoD News Briefing with Col. McCaffrey and Linda Specht from Baghdad 25 Sep 2008 -- Presenter: Commander, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division-Baghdad Col. Todd McCaffrey and Economic Provincial Reconstruction Team Leader Linda Specht
• Coalition Forces Capture Seven Suspected Terrorists AFPS 25 Sep 2008 -- Coalition forces operating in central and northern Iraq arrested three wanted men and seven additional suspects while targeting al-Qaida in Iraq leadership and improvised explosive device networks yesterday and today, military officials reported.
• NATO Helicopters, Pakistan Troops Exchange Fire at Afghan Border VOA 25 Sep 2008 -- NATO officials in Afghanistan say Pakistani troops have fired on NATO helicopters flying inside Afghanistan
• Pakistani Troops Fire on U.S. Choppers Inside Afghanistan AFPS 25 Sep 2008 -- Pakistani soldiers manning a border checkpoint fired on U.S. helicopters flying in Afghan airspace today, Defense Department officials said.
• Airpower integral to Kajaki Dam turbine delivery AFPN 25 Sep 2008 -- Coalition airpower focused on a critical part of southern Afghanistan from Aug. 28 to Sept. 2 to protect more than 4,000 ground forces and to support the delivery of an electric turbine for the 30-year-old hydroelectric Kajaki Dam in the Helmand Province.
• AFGHANISTAN-PAKISTAN: Bajaur residents flee fighting IRIN 25 Sep 2008 -- As fighting in Pakistan's northern areas intensifies, about 2,800 families from the tribal area of Bajaur are reported to have crossed into neighbouring Afghanistan.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Transcript: DoD News Briefing with Acting Secretary Donley and Gen. Schwartz from the Pentagon 26 Sep 2008 -- Presenter: Acting Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley and Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz
• Contract awarded to build new FORSCOM, USARC headquarters Army News 25 Sep 2008 -- The Savannah District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded a $288,538,000 contract to build the U.S. Army Forces Command and U.S. Army Reserve Command headquarters at Fort Bragg, N.C.
• Kinetic Energy Interceptors Team Completes Successful Rocket Motor Test MDA 25 Sep 2008 -- Lieutenant General Henry “Trey” Obering III, Missile Defense Agency director, announced today the completion of a successful static firing test of the Kinetic Energy Interceptor’s (KEI) second stage rocket motor
• 4th Fleet Commander Testifies Before Congress on Navy's Relief Efforts Navy NewsStand 25 Sep 2008 -- Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (NAVSO) and U.S. 4th Fleet testified before Congress' Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Sept. 23, giving an update on the humanitarian assistance/disaster relief (HA/DR) mission in Haiti.
• New battle gear improves capabilities for combat Airmen AFPN 25 Sep 2008 -- Battlefield Airmen will soon receive a new equipment item that will improve their ability to execute their combat duties.
• USS Mitscher DC Teams Prepare for Joint Warrior Navy NewsStand 25 Sep 2008 -- Sailors aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Mitscher (DDG 57) are using the remaining days of September to hone their skills in damage control as the ship transits the Atlantic Ocean to participate in the Joint Warrior course, a multinational exercise held off the coast of Scotland.
• Brussels must veto Georgia NATO bid - Belgian MPs RIA Novosti 25 Sep 2008 -- Belgium should veto Georgia's bid to join NATO after its attack on breakaway South Ossetia last month, senior Belgian lawmakers said on Thursday.
• Ukraine, Russia to hold new round of talks on Black Sea Fleet RIA Novosti 25 Sep 2008 -- Ukrainian and Russian delegations will hold a new round of discussions on Thursday in Kiev on the role of Russia's Crimean naval base in the Georgia conflict, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.
• Russia may have to pay Ukraine $2 bln for Sevastopol base lease RIA Novosti 25 Sep 2008 -- Russia may have to pay $1.5-2 billion a year to Ukraine for the lease of the Sevastopol naval base, if the Black Sea Fleet stays there after 2017, a Russian expert close to talks said on Thursday.
• Russian president seeks quicker military reform RIA Novosti 25 Sep 2008 -- Russia's president said on Thursday that the modernization of the Armed Forces needed to move faster, with priority being given to new, advanced weaponry and improving the conditions for service personnel.
• Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 25 Sep 2008
• Press Briefing by Dana Perino The White House 25 Sep 2008

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for September 25, 2008
• First A400M flight delayed EADS 25 Sep 2008 -- The first flight of the A400M until now planned before the end of 2008 will be postponed, because of the unavailability of the propulsion system.
• General Dynamics Awarded $26 Million Contract to Support Switzerland's F/A-18 Hornet Fleet General Dynamics 25 Sep 2008 -- General Dynamics Information Technology, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), was awarded a contract to provide program management services for the Swiss government’s F/A-18 Hornet fighter fleet.
• L-3 Presents First Joint Cargo Aircraft to U.S. Army and Air Force L-3 Communications 25 Sep 2008 -- L-3 Communications (NYSE: LLL), prime contractor for the U.S. Army and Air Force Joint Cargo Aircraft (JCA) program, announced today that it has presented the first C-27J JCA to the joint program office on schedule and on budget.
• Northrop Grumman Receives $120 Million Order to Supply LITENING Gen 4 Targeting Sensor Systems Northrop Grumman 25 Sep 2008 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) has received a $120 million contract order for delivery of LITENING Gen 4 targeting and sensor systems and related equipment to support the Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve Command and the U.S. Marine Corps.
• Orbital Successfully Launches Minotaur II Target Launch Vehicle In Support of Near-Field Infrared Experiment Orbital Sciences Corp. 25 Sep 2008 -- Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) announced today that its Minotaur II+ rocket was successfully launched for the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) in support of the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) Near-Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE).
• Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne Successfully Completes Hot-Fire Tests on New RS-68A Rocket Engine Pratt & Whitney 25 Sep 2008 -- Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, a United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) company, has begun a series of hot-fire tests on the new RS-68A rocket engine, designed to power heavier payloads than currently possible on the Delta IV Heavy launch vehicle.
• Pratt & Whitney Awarded Production Contract for F135 Propulsion Systems Pratt & Whitney 25 Sep 2008 -- Pratt & Whitney was awarded a production contract worth up to $491 million (including options) for F135 propulsion systems to power the F-35 Lightning II.
• SAIC Awarded $49 Million Contract by U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory - Directed Energy Directorate SAIC 25 Sep 2008 -- Science Applications International Corporation (NYSE: SAI) today announced it has been awarded a prime contract from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Directed Energy Directorate, High Power Microwave (HPM) Division, to support high energy research and applications.
• Russia to lend Venezuela $1 bln to buy Russian arms - source RIA Novosti 25 Sep 2008 -- Russia will provide Venezuela with a $1 billion loan to buy Russian weapons, a Kremlin source said Thursday.

Other Conflicts

• ISRAEL-OPT: Quartet “failing” the Palestinians IRIN 25 Sep 2008 -- The international community has failed to fulfil any of the goals it set itself regarding the Middle East peace process and has therefore made little progress in improving the lives and humanitarian situation of Palestinians, aid agencies said in a report on 25 September
• Backgrounder: Shining Path, Tupac Amaru (Peru, leftists) cfr.org 25 Sep 2008 -- The two main Peruvian rebel groups, both leftist, are the Maoist group Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso) and the Cuban-inspired Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (Movimiento Revolucionario Tupac Amaru).
• NIGERIA: Government unprepared for returnee influx IRIN 25 Sep 2008 -- The Nigerian government has announced it is unprepared for the tens of thousands of returnees who have fled the southern Bakassi province over the past month, and is calling on the UN to help it handle the unexpected return.
• SRI LANKA: Looted UN items returned, aid work to restart IRIN 25 Sep 2008 -- Equipment and supplies looted from the UN offices in Kilinochchi, the northern Sri Lankan town under the control of the Tamil Tigers, have been returned, UN officials in the capital Colombo confirmed.
• DRC: NGO opts out after attack on staff IRIN 25 Sep 2008 -- An international NGO has suspended its activities following attacks on its workers in Ituri District, Orientale Province, in north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a senior official said.
• Russia gathers evidence for int. trials on S.Ossetia war crimes RIA Novosti 25 Sep 2008 -- Russia now has enough evidence to try in international courts those people guilty of war crimes during Georgia's assault on South Ossetia in August, the country's top investigation body said on Thursday.
• Russia-S.Ossetia border controls may cease to exist - Putin RIA Novosti 25 Sep 2008 -- Border controls between Russia and South Ossetia could cease to exist under provisions included in a recently- signed bilateral friendship and cooperation agreement, the Russian premier said on Thursday.
• Bush Impressed by Lebanese Reconciliation Talks VOA 25 Sep 2008 -- U.S. President George Bush says he is impressed by efforts by Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to reconcile the country's rival factions
• India, Pakistan Pledge More Peace Talks VOA 25 Sep 2008 -- India's prime minister and Pakistan's president have agreed to a new round of peace talks before the end of the year

News Reports

• Speculation Swirls After Kadyrov Rival Is Slain In Russian Capital RFE/RL 25 Sep 2008 -- One day after a member of a powerful Chechen clan was shot to death in central Moscow, speculation was rife as to who killed Ruslan Yamadayev.
• Turkmen Opposition Leader Offers Different Version Of Ashgabat Shoot-Out RFE/RL 25 Sep 2008 -- On the night of September 12-13, there were numerous witness reports from the Turkmen capital of gunfire, and talk of many dead in a battle between police and an armed group.
• US, Russia To Continue Cooperation on Iran, North Korea, Despite Georgia Dispute VOA 25 Sep 2008 -- Senior U.S. and Russian officials say the two powers will continue cooperation on ending the Iranian and North Korean nuclear programs despite their bitter disagreement over Russian intervention in Georgia
• Bhutan's Road to Democracy cfr.org 25 Sep 2008 -- In March 2008, Bhutan held its first parliamentary elections (BBC), shifting away from a century-old absolute monarchy
• In U.S., Russia's Top Diplomat Tries To Combat Fears RFE/RL 25 Sep 2008 -- Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov used an eagerly awaited appearance at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York on September 24 to spell out Russian foreign policy in the wake of the Georgian crisis.