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Current Operations

• National Guard Takes to the Air and Ground in Columbia Disaster Support AFPS 03 Feb 2003 -- National Guard airmen and soldiers joined the grim and painstaking search for debris from the ill-fated space shuttle Columbia soon after it disintegrated over Texas Feb. 1.
• 32 AOG deploys to support GWOT USAFE 03 Feb 2003 -- More than 40 airmen from the 32nd Air Operations Group here left Feb. 2 for the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility to support the global war on terrorism.
• Secretary of Defense Message on the Global War on Terrorism APFS 03 Feb 2003 -- Be assured that the president will not decide to commit forces unless conditions require it, and only as a last resort. Should action be necessary, you will have what you need to carry out the missions assigned
• USS Tarawa crew trains, maintains readiness Seventh Fleet 03 Feb 2003 -- There's a sense of something both important and urgent these days on board USS Tarawa (LHA 1). As the San Diego-based amphibious assault ship steams westward through the Pacific Ocean on a routine six-month deployment to the Arabian Gulf, a sense of urgency can be seen around the ship in various forms.

• AFGHANISTAN: Security concerns remain for NGOs IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- Aid workers are concerned over the security situation in Afghanistan following a series of incidents involving the beating and robbing of staff, attacks on offices and convoys, and fighting in parts of the country.

Defense Policy / Programs

• White House Daily Briefing White House 03 Feb 2003
• DOD OFFERS NATIONALIZATION OF ITS PERSONNEL SECURITY PROGRAM 03 Feb 2003 -- Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Kay Coles James have signed an agreement to transform the process for personnel security investigations. As part of the FY 2004 budget going forward to Congress, DoD will divest its personnel security investigative function and OPM will offer positions to Defense Security Service (DSS) personnel security investigative personnel.
• Bush Asks For $27,400 Million for Fiscal Year '04 Foreign Affairs Washington File 03 Feb 2003 -- President Bush February 3 proposed $27,400 million in spending for foreign operations for the fiscal year beginning October 1 (FY04), an 11.6 percent increase over the amount requested for the current fiscal year.
• New Defense Budget Reflects Anti-Terror, Missile Defense Focus Washington File 03 Feb 2003 -- The Defense Department February 3 unveiled a Fiscal Year 2004 budget totaling $379,898 million that will focus on priorities such as winning the global war on terrorism, fielding initial elements of a missile defense system, and building more ships.
• Pentagon Seeks $380 Billion To Fund Transformation For 21st Century Washington File 03 Feb 2003 -- The Defense Department unveiled what is described as a $379.9 billion "peace time" budget because it will be used exclusively to sustain existing military operations and does not include operations in Afghanistan or any potential operations in Iraq, Under Secretary of Defense and Pentagon Comptroller Dov Zakheim says.
• Transcript: Under Secretary Zakheim Briefs On the 2004 Defense Budget 03 Feb 2003 -- As you can see, our budget top line, as it's so called, total defense budget, is $379.9 billion. That is out of a grand total of nearly 400 billion, but that includes 053, which is a budget function on the Hill that addresses Department of Energy defense-related programs; 054 addressees some other defense-related programs in the Coast Guard, the FBI, the Selective Service. It jumps up because of the Homeland Security Department, which now will also get money for intelligence, and that of course was not in our '03 budget; there was no Homeland Security Department at that point.
• THE ARMY BUDGET FISCAL YEAR 2004 Army Release 03 Feb 2003 -- Today, The Army announced details of its budget for Fiscal Year 2004, which runs from October 1, 2003, through September 30, 2004. The FY04 budget requests $93.9 billion in Total Obligation Authority from the U.S. Congress - $3 billion more than appropriated for this fiscal year.
• 1st crew chiefs fly in Corps' newest helicopter NAVAIR 03 Feb 2003 -- For the first time, the H-1 Upgrades Integrated Test Team had a complete team in the air when the first enlisted aircrew joined test pilots from HX-21 and HMX-1 here for their first flight in a UH-1Y Jan. 25.
• NAVEODTECHDIV Lauded for Warfighter Support NAVSEA 03 Feb 2003 -- A team from Naval Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technology Division (NAVEODTECHDIV) recently returned from Afghanistan where it supported warfighters participating in Operation Enduring Freedom. Capt. Daniel Renwick, NAVEODTECHDIV commanding officer led a team of five civilian employees in Afghanistan where they provided new technology equipment to support military EOD technicians in the continuing war against terrorism.
• NSWC Corona Supports Battle Group Connectivity, Army Training NAVSEA 03 Feb 2003 -- Naval Surface Warfare Center Corona Division recently provided support to the warfighter to keep ships at sea and Army helicopters in the air. Corona Division provided hardware and training to Cruiser Destroyer Group Five for secure Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) capability.
• Officials unveil 2004 budget proposals AFPN 03 Feb 2003 -- The president's fiscal 2004 budget proposal authorizes $380 billion for the Department of Defense to win the global war on terrorism and continue the transformation of the military, senior defense officials announced Jan. 31.
• Zakheim Stresses Transformation in Fiscal 2004 Budget Request AFPS 03 Feb 2003 -- Funding the global war on terrorism, maintaining a quality force and transforming the military to face 21st century threats are at the heart of the president's fiscal 2004 defense budget request.
• F-16 accident report released ACC 03 Feb 2003 -- Air Force investigators determined that pilot error caused the collision of two F-16Cs Oct. 25, 2002, approximately 82 miles southwest of Hill Air Force Base, Utah.
• FISCAL 2004 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE BUDGET RELEASE 03 Feb 2003 -- President George W. Bush today released details of his fiscal year (FY) 2004 Department of Defense (DoD) budget. The budget requests $379.9 billion in discretionary budget authority -- $15.3 billion above FY 2003.
• Transcript: Background Briefing on the Fiscal 2004 Budget Submission 03 Feb 2003 -- This will be a background briefing. Everything you hear here will be attributed to a Senior Defense Official and is embargoed until Monday morning at 9:00 a.m.
• PENTAGON/BUDGET VOA 03 Feb 2003 -- The Bush administration has unveiled a nearly 400-billion-dollar national defense budget for 2004.The administration's long-range planning sees military expenditures rising to more than one-half-trillion dollars by the end of the decade
• Budget Request Funds War on Terror, Transformation AFPS 03 Feb 2003 -- The president's fiscal 2004 defense budget request would fund the ongoing war on terrorism while continuing the transformation of the armed forces to meet the threats of the future.
• NUWC Keyport Provides Emergency Repairs for USS Rodney M. Davis NAVSEA 03 Feb 2003 -- Naval Undersea Warfare Center Keyport Division provided a valuable emergency service over the holidays that helped USS Rodney M. Davis (FFG 60) get underway on schedule. The ship turned in two MK 24 handling dollies to Keyport at the end of November for repair. Keyport quickly met the immediate need by repairing and delivering one of these to the ship and ordered material for the second dolly. Just prior to Christmas, the ship requested a quick repair of the remaining MK 24 handling dolly due to an imminent deployment.
• NSWC Dahlgren Planning New Search and Track Sensor Test Site NAVSEA 03 Feb 2003 -- Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Dahlgren Division broke ground for a new Search And Track Sensor Test Site (STSTS) Laboratory on January 24. The new laboratory will allow Dahlgren Division to conduct systems integration testing of new and updated weapons systems with actual Fleet equipment in a land based environment. With 1,800 square feet of specialized lab space at Dahlgren's Potomac River Test Range, the STSTS will have secure lines, fiber optic links, Command & Control (C2) Center voice communications, and access to NSWC's land area network.
• Former Joint Forces Commander to Head Columbia Panel AFPS 03 Feb 2003 -- Retired Adm. Harold Gehman, the first commander of the U.S. Joint Forces Command, will head the Space Shuttle Mishap Interagency Investigation Board to look into the cause of the Columbia shuttle tragedy.
• Navy Medicine Grieving The Loss Of Two Of Its Own NNS 03 Feb 2003 -- Navy Medicine is mourning the loss of two colleagues, Capt. David Brown and Cmdr. Laurel Blair Salton Clark. Both were aboard the space shuttle Columbia when it broke apart Feb. 1 during its final descent.
• Navy Mourns Loss of Space Shuttle Columbia Crew, 3 of Its Own NNS 03 Feb 2003 -- Space Shuttle Columbia with its crew of seven was lost Feb. 1, during its re-entry to Earth's atmosphere following a mission that began Jan. 16 and included three naval officers.

Defense Industry

• First Flight Tests Of BAE SYSTEMS ComBat RWR On F/A-18 Completed BAE Systems 03 Feb 2003 -- The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and BAE Systems have successfully completed the first flight testing of the BAE Systems ComBat Advanced Radar Warning Receiver (RWR) aboard an F/A-18A Hornet Upgraded aircraft.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL United Nations 03 Feb 2003
• U.S. Looks to Progress toward Mideast Peace after Israeli Elections Washington File 03 Feb 2003 -- State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher said with the Israeli elections completed, the United States looks forward to making progress toward peace between Israel and the Palestinians according to a "road map" established by the international community.

• Annan reiterates call for peace in Côte d'Ivoire United Nations 03 Feb 2003 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today condemned violence and once again called on all Ivoirians to work towards making the Linas-Morcoussis Agreement a concrete first step towards peace in Côte d'Ivoire.
• IVORY COAST-UNREST VOA 3 Feb 2003 -- deal to end Ivory Coast's rebel war appears closer to collapse, as thousands of women marched in Abidjan calling for President Laurent Gbagbo to reject the French-mediated agreement
• COTE D'IVOIRE: Protests continue; politician's death blamed on death squads IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- Thousands of women staged a sit-in outside the French Embassy in Abidjan on Monday, in the latest of a series of protests in the Ivorian commercial capital. The aim of Monday's protest and a mammoth demonstration on Saturday that involved hundreds of thousands of people, was to demonstrate opposition to recent agreements concluded in France with a view to resolving a four-month-old conflict.
• CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Humanitarian coordination unit sets up body to help IDPs in Bangui IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- The UN-NGO humanitarian coordination body in the Central African Republic (CAR) has set up a commission to identify all internally displaced persons (IDPs) who have fled war-ravaged parts of the country to Bangui, the capital, according to a local UN official.
• CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Minister says Bangui-Douala road safe IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- Central African Republic (CAR) Transport Minister Andre Kotazo told transporters and other businessmen on Monday that the road linking the capital, Bangui, to the Cameroonian port of Douala was still safe from rebel attack.
• DRC: UN reports "alarming" movements of armed forces in the east IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- The UN Mission (MONUC) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on Saturday reported having received "alarming" information regarding troop movements on the part of the Kinshasa government, the Kigali government, the Kampala government, and various armed factions in eastern DRC, and warned of "imminent" attacks.
• DRC: First commercial cargo barge arrives in Kisangani IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- A commercial cargo barge has arrived in Kisangani in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) from the capital, Kinshasa, the first to do so after four years of suspended river traffic due to war, according to the UN mission in the DRC.
• NIGERIA: Ethnic clashes erupt in southern oil town IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- At least 12 people have been killed and more than 30 houses razed in three days of renewed ethnic violence in Nigeria's southern oil town of Warri, residents said on Monday.
• NIGERIA: Explosion kills at least 40 in Lagos IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- At least 40 people were killed and more than 100 injured in a blast on Sunday in Nigeria's economic capital, Lagos, officials and rescue workers said.
• ANGOLA: Fiscal transparency to top agenda at donor conference, analysts IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- Angolan authorities would have to show a greater commitment to financial transparency at an upcoming international donor conference if it is to succeed in securing the external support needed to kick-start its national reconstruction programme, analysts said on Monday.
• ANGOLA: Demobilised soldiers remain dependent on aid IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- UN officials in Angola have noted that the government's programme for the resettlement of former UNITA combatants is behind schedule, and that tens of thousands of soldiers are expected to be dependent on humanitarian aid for at least another year.
• RWANDA: Rights groups decry French asylum given to genocide suspect IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- Human rights groups have protested against France's decision to grant asylum to a man sought by the Rwandan government for allegedly being a Category One genocide suspect.
• ETHIOPIA: African leaders stress challenge of peace IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- South African President Thabo Mbeki on Monday urged African leaders to use their influence to resolve the crisis in Iraq.
• SOMALIA: Peace talks stalled IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- The Somali peace conference underway in the Kenyan town of Eldoret is said to have stalled for lack of a quorum by the regional technical committee which is piloting the proceedings, a source close to the talks told IRIN on Monday.
• UGANDA: Agencies appeal for emergency aid IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- The Ugandan government and humanitarian agencies have appealed to donors for emergency food relief to help up to a million people who are threatened with food shortages in the war-affected northern part of the country.
• LIBERIA: Humanitarian envoy visits transit centres IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- The UN Humanitarian Envoy for the Cote d'Ivoire Crisis, Carolyn McAskie, on Monday concluded a three-day visit to Liberia, during which she visited new transit centres for thousands of people who fled fighting in neighbouring Cote d'Ivoire.
• East Africa: UNHCR's position on Rwandan "refugees" IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) will not provide assistance or international protection to Rwandans moving from Tanzania to Uganda, an official of the agency told IRIN on Monday.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 03 Feb 2003
• SHAPE News Summary Analysis SHAPE 03 Feb 2003
• BUSH/BAHRAIN VOA 03 Feb 2003 -- President Bush discussed Iraq Monday night at the White House with the King of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa
• Powell Expresses Condolences to Astronaut Survivors Washington File 03 Feb 2003 -- In a brief appearance before reporters February 3, Secretary of State Colin Powell expressed his sadness at the loss of the seven astronauts on board the space shuttle Columbia. The spacecraft was destroyed as it reentered Earth's atmosphere on February 1 in an accident still under investigation.
• Powell Expresses Condolences to Astronaut Survivors Washington File 03 Feb 2003 -- The crew that perished when the space shuttle Columbia broke apart February 1 minutes before the end of its 16-day mission included six U.S. astronauts - one of them born in India - and Israel's first astronaut - together representing different cultures and different countries of the planet they had soared above.
• OSCE / KYRGYZSTAN VOA 03 Feb 2003 -- Kyrgyzstan President Askar Akayev won huge support in a constitutional referendum on Sunday, but some foreign analysts say the vote was flawed
• ZIMBABWE TRIAL VOA 03 Feb 2003 -- Zimbabwe's main opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, is on trial for allegedly plotting to assassinate President Robert Mugabe, a charge the opposition leader denies. Outside the court, two journalists were arrested, diplomats were manhandled, and there was pandemonium in the streets before the trial finally began
• AFRICA SUMMIT VOA 03 Feb 2003 -- African heads of state and representatives from 35-countries have begun a two-day summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to strengthen the role of the African Union
• ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN SENTENCE VOA 02 Feb 2003 -- An Israeli military court has sentenced a Palestinian to 27-years in jail for planning terrorist attacks on behalf of Osama bin-Laden's al-Qaida network
• ISRAEL / POLITICS VOA 03 Feb 2003 -- The leader of Israel's Labor Party has rejected an invitation from Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to join him in a new coalition government. The political rivals met earlier to discuss the issue
• ZIMBABWE: Tsvangirai treason trial starts with scuffles and arrests IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- The first day of the treason trial of Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai was marked by scuffles outside the court and an urgent court application by his legal team to have the public and the press admitted.
• ETHIOPIA: Feature - Critical time for AU summit IRIN 03 Feb 2003 -- The first ever African Union (AU) summit, which opens on Monday, comes at a critical time. While African leaders try to resolve key sticking points hampering the six-month old organisation, crises rage in countries such as Ivory Coast, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).