Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• Logistics Agency Lines Out Its Support to Forces in Iraq AFPS 06 Jun 2003 -- "Speed can kill the enemy" were some of Army Gen. Tommy Franks' words of wisdom for his commanders and troops during Operation Iraqi Freedom. And the U.S. forces' lightning thrust to Baghdad with minimal Iraqi resistance and few U.S. and coalition casualties substantiates this saying.

Defense Policy / Programs

• U.S. Troops Slated to Move South From Korean DMZ AFPS 06 Jun 2003 -- U.S. and Republic of Korea officials have agreed to a plan to realign American forces stationed in "The Land of the Morning Calm."
• EDITORIAL: THE U-S AGENDA VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is showing the resolve and foresight to act outside Europe. NATO has agreed to take over leadership in August of the international security force in Afghanistan and is supporting Poland's effort to help bring security to Iraq. And NATO continues to play a major role in the global war against terrorism.
• Stewart welcomes home first two 3ID units Army News Service 06 Jun 2003-- The 3rd Infantry Division Band and a field artillery battalion returned to Fort Stewart to the applause of about 1,200 family members and friends the evening of June 3.
• Bonhomme Richard Departs 5th Fleet, Begins Transit Home Navy Newsstand 06 Jun 2003-- After more than three months in the Arabian Gulf and after launching more than 800 sorties - including 547 combat launches - USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) has chopped out of the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility and is heading home.
• Amphibious Task Force East Returns Navy Newsstand 06 Jun 2003-- Sailors and Marines attached to Amphibious Task Force East (ATF-East) will return to Norfolk June 25 and 26.
• Golden Eagles ready to return to Kaneohe Bay Hawai'i Navy News 06 Jun 2003-- The "Golden Eagles" of Patrol Squadron 9 (VP 9) are nearing the end of a highly successful deployment. After departing MCBH Kaneohe Bay, the day after Thanksgiving, the squadron headed west to Japan, "land of the rising sun." Based at Misawa Air Base in northern Japan and Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, VP-9 has flown over 5,800 hours and 850 missions. Now, six months later, the "Golden Eagles" are preparing for their return to Kaneohe Bay and a much-anticipated reunion with family and friends.
• Conway conveys vision for ESG-1 Hawai'i Navy News 06 Jun 2003-- Rear Adm. Robert T. Conway Jr., Commander, Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 1, can sum up his vision for ESG 1 in one word - transformational.
• VP-4 ready for 2003 deployment Hawai'i Navy News 06 Jun 2003-- Excitement builds in Hanger 104 as Patrol Squadron 4 (VP 4) prepares to embark on a six-month deployment to the Far East. The hanger is cluttered with boxes, pallets, and crates as squadron members pack up their workspaces because "everything must go." In addition walls are being painted and floors waxed to hand over the hangar spaces to the returning patrol squadron, VP-9.
• NAVSEA Launches 'One Shipyard' Communications Initiative NAVSEA News Wire 06 Jun 2003-- The civilian, military and contract employees who work together in maintaining the Navy's ships and submarines are no strangers to hard work. They are behind the scenes toiling in grease and heat, welding, repairing shafts, crawling in nooks and crannies, creating a level of professionalism that compliments the awesome power of the ships they maintain. Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) recently instituted a new communication initiative, "One Shipyard for the Nation," which pays tribute to the work these individuals perform.
• Two Ships to Decommission in August NAVSEA News Wire 06 Jun 2003-- Two Atlantic fleet surface ships, USS Hayler (DD 997) and USS Portland (LSD 37), will be decommissioned this August after successful service to the United States Navy. After 20 years of service, Hayler will return from its final deployment this month to prepare for decommissioning in August. Although an Atlantic Fleet ship, Hayler spent its last deployment in the Pacific performing counter-drug detection and monitoring.
• Indian Head Innovation Enhances Safety of Sparrow Missiles NAVSEA News Wire 06 Jun 2003-- Engineers in Naval Surface Warfare Center Indian Head Division's Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) Division have designed and proven successful an innovative alternative to traditional ultrasonic inspections of Sparrow rocket motors.
• Marines make for safe payday Marine Corps News 06 Jun 2003-- Saddam Hussein may no longer rule Iraq but the First Marine Expeditionary Force is working hard to make sure everyone has plenty of Saddams in their pocket.
• Marine Wing Support Squadron 274: Corp's top fuelers Marine Corps News 06 Jun 2003-- The Marines of Marine Wing Support Squadron 274 have been named the best refueling squadron in the Marine Corps by the American Petroleum Institute.
• 6th ESB Marines, sailors head home Marine Corps News 06 Jun 2003-- Reservists with the Corps' second largest battalion here began their long journey home late May. The departure of the unit's advanced party May 20 marked the beginning of a redeployment that will return the reserve battalion's ten companies and roughly 1,700 Marines and sailors to twelve locations through out the United States by late June. Deployed for the first time as a complete battalion, 6th ESB pulled together units, literally, from sea to shining sea, including reserve sites in Wilmington, Del.; Portland, Ore.; Green Bay, Wis.; and Tucson, Ariz.
• CJTF-HOA Yemen Visit Marine Corps News 06 Jun 2003-- Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) Commander Brig. Gen. Mastin M. Robeson concluded his first official trip outside of Djibouti Thursday as commander of the counter-terrorism coalition task force, visiting Yemen to discuss ongoing activities between Yemeni and CJTF-HOA forces in the Global War on Terrorism.
• 2nd MEB supports president's visit to Egypt, Jordan Marine Corps News 06 Jun 2003-- For the past two days, Marines from the 2d Marine Expeditionary Brigade and Sailors aboard the KEARSARGE have been on stand by--stand by to support the President of the United States.
• HMM-165 renews operational status in support of OIF Marine Corps News 06 Jun 2003-- After supporting aviation operations in Iraq since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Marines and Sailors of Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 165 have moved from a forward aviation operating base in Iraq to the USS Boxer and then to the desert of Kuwait - all within the last two weeks.
• Flights resume at Tuzla airport AFPN 06 Jun 2003-- The first civilian flight into Tuzla International Airport here since late 2001 landed June 4.
• CGC Harriet Lane Returns Home After Patrol, Nets over 2 Tons of Cocaine USCG Release 06 Jun 2003-- The Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane returns home Saturday, June 7 at 1 p.m. from a 61-day patrol in support of maritime homeland security, counter-drug operations and alien migrant interdiction in the Florida Straits and Caribbean Sea.
• ROEBUCK BACK FROM THE GULF Royal Navy News 06 Jun 2003-- Devonport based coastal survey ship HMS Roebuck returns to Devonport on Monday 9 June after an extended deployment to the Gulf during which the ship played a pivotal role before and during operations against Iraq.

Defense Industry

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL AND THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT United Nations 06 Jun 2003
• MIDEAST PEACE / U-S VOA 06 jun 2003 -- With the summit behind them, Israel, the Palestinian Authority and the U-S administration are getting down to the business of implementing the so-called "road map." Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas already is facing a challenge from the radical Islamist group Hamas. The challenge for the Bush administration will be to keep Israeli and Palestinian leaders focused on fulfilling their commitments.
• UNRWA / PALESTINIANS VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- The United Nations has launched an urgent appeal for food, shelter and medical care for Palestinian refugees in Gaza and the West Bank. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency says Middle East peace efforts will not succeed if the international community ignores the suffering of the Palestinian refugees.
• ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas are expected to meet again in the coming week to assess progress made in implementing the road map to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But Mr. Abbas's efforts to end violence may have been thrown in jeopardy following a statement from a Palestinian militant group.
• EDITORIAL: ADVANCING THE ROAD MAP VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- In Egypt and Jordan, President George W. Bush met with Arab leaders, and with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and the new Palestinian Prime Minister, Mahmoud Abbas. Mr. Bush described his vision for the Middle East
• EDITORIAL: ISRAELIS, PALESTINIANS SEEK PEACE VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- At a meeting in Jordan, the prime ministers of Israel and the Palestinian Authority pledged to work toward the goal of a new state, Palestine, living side by side with Israel in peace and security. Also participating in the meeting were President George W. Bush and Jordan's King Abdullah.

• LIBERIA / FIGHTING VOA 06 jun 2003 -- Liberian rebels are calling on their fighters to stop a renewed offensive on the capital Monrovia while peace talks to end a four-year civil war get under way in Ghana.
• LIBERIA / FIGHTING VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- Fierce fighting has broken out on the outskirts of Liberia's capital, Monrovia. The fighting comes as peace talks are under way between the Liberian government and rebels.
• LIBERIA: IDPs flee camps as rebels advance into Monrovia IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Liberian rebels surged into the western outskirts of the capital Monrovia on Friday after heavy fighting overnight which sent thousands of displaced people fleeing in heavy rain into the city centre.
• BURUNDI-TANZANIA: Team decries insecurity in refugee camps IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- An assessment team that toured Burundian refugee camps in western Tanzania in late May has recommended that communal markets around the camps be reopened to stem the rising insecurity.
• BURUNDI: Rebel leaders set conditions for cantonment IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Two leaders of rebel factions said on Friday that they must first assess a cantonment area near Bujumbura, the capital Burundi, before their troops could be assembled, a spokesman for one of the factions told IRIN on Friday.
• French troops land in DR of Congo to help restore stability in Bunia - UN UN News Centre 06 Jun 2003 -- The first unit of French troops from the United Nations-authorized multinational force landed in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) today in a bid to help restore stability to the war-torn town of Bunia, the United Nations Organization Mission in the country (MONUC) said.
• U-N / CONGO VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, says continuing fighting is preventing aid workers from reaching between four and five-million people in the Ituri region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. UNICEF says it hopes it will be possible to reach these people once U-N peacekeepers establish themselves in the area.
• DRC: Advance unit of French troops arrive in Bunia IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- An advance unit of French soldiers arrived in Bunia, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on Friday, to prepare for the arrival of an estimated 1,400 multinational peace enforcement troops, the French news agency AFP reported.
• DRC: Report calls for greater action to curb conflict diamonds IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Partnership Africa Canada (PAC), a Canadian NGO, has criticised what it terms a "lack of follow-up" on a 2002 UN report on diamond exploitation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
• DRC: International monitors decry delay in set-up of transitional institutions IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- A team of international observers of the transitional process in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has criticised delays in the establishment of a government of national unity and recommended that the process be put back on track.
• DRC: Interview with Jean-Marie Guehenno, UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations. IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- The UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Marie Guehenno, concluded on 31 May in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a regional tour that also included visits to eastern and northeastern DRC, Uganda, Rwanda, and South Africa, in advance of the deployment of a multinational emergency intervention force authorised by the UN Security Council for the troubled northeastern DRC city of Bunia. In this interview with IRIN, Guehenno provided details about what this multinational force would look like. He also emphasised the importance he placed on having Congolese and regional leaders actively involved in restoring peace to the Great Lakes region.
• DRC-UGANDA: Congolese refugees settling in Ugandan camps - UNHCR IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Congolese refugees who crossed into Uganda's Bundibugyo District to escape the latest wave of killing in Ituri District, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), were being settled in officially designated camps, an official of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told IRIN on Friday.
• COTE D'IVOIRE: Bangladeshi named to head UN military mission IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has appointed a Bangladeshi army officer, Brig-Gen Abdul Hafiz, to head the initial 26-strong United Nations military observer contingent in the new UN Mission in Cote d'Ivoire (MINUCI).
• COTE D'IVOIRE: West African peacekeepers seek funding to increase strength IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is looking to western donors for nearly US $40 million to double or even triple the size of its 1,200-strong peace-keeping force in Cote d'Ivoire, diplomatic sources said on Friday.
• CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Regional troops disarm 187 former rebels IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Troops of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central African States (CEMAC) have disarmed and cantoned 187 former rebels loyal to the current Central African Republic (CAR) leader, Francois Bozize, the force's spokesman said on Thursday.
• TAJIKISTAN: UN peace-building mission extended IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- As proposed by the Tajik government and recommended by the UN secretary-general, the UN Security Council has extended the mandate of the United Nation's Tajikistan Office of Peace-Building (UNTOP) by a year until 1 June 2004.
• SOMALIA: EC condemns violations of ceasefire IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- The EC delegation in Kenya has condemned violations of the cessation of hostilities agreement signed by the parties at the ongoing Somali peace talks in Kenya.
• UN, Cambodia sign agreement to prosecute former Khmer Rouge leaders UN News Centre 06 Jun 2003 -- The United Nations today signed a landmark agreement with Cambodia to set up special courts to try the aging former leaders of the Khmer Rouge.
• Chechnya: At Least 11 Killed In Explosion In Grozny RFE/L 06 Jun 2003 -- Officials say at least 11 people were killed in an explosion at an apartment building in the Chechen capital Grozny today.
• PHILIPPINES FARGO VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- The top U-S military commander in the Asia-Pacific region wrapped up a three-day visit to the Philippines Friday, announcing progress in the region's war against terrorism. But despite recent arrests, a Philippine terrorist group still poses a significant threat.
• ANGOLA: Refugees can tune in for repatriation information IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Angolan refugees planning to return home from southern African countries will be able to receive information on the repatriation process and conditions back home from special weekly radio bulletins.
• SRI LANKA DONORS VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is in Japan for an international donor's meeting to help rebuild Sri Lanka. And U-S officials are urging the Tamil Tiger rebels not to boycott the Tokyo conference.
• GUINEA: Government welcomes indictment of Taylor IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- The government of Guinea has said it fully supports the indictment of Liberian President Charles Taylor for war crimes by the UN-backed Special Court in Sierra Leone.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 06 Jun 2003 -- NATO says Mediterranean patrols deter terrorism, illegal immigration / Slovak govt votes to send army engineers to Iraq / Iraqi arrested after toxic-tainted letters sent to prime minister and US, British and Saudi embassies /U.S. seeks new defense agreements with key allies
• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 06 Jun 2003 -- EU should reassure Washington over common defense plans: Prodi / EU Foreign Policy chief Solana visits Serbia -Montenegro / Germany extends troops presence in Kosovo / U.S will seek extension of deal to exempt American peacekeepers from prosecution by International Criminal Court

• U-S / BURMA VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- The United States is adding more members of Burma's military government to its visa blacklist, in an effort to build pressure on authorities in Rangoon to release detained democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. State Department officials Friday held out the prospect of further sanctions, if the junta does not return to a dialogue with the opposition.
• U.S. Lawmakers Urge Pressure on Burmese Junta to Respect Rights Washington File 06 Jun 2003 -- Several U.S. lawmakers condemned the May 30 attack on Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi and other Burmese democracy activists and called for international pressure on the military regime in Burma to improve their human rights record.
• Myanmar: Annan again calls for release of detained democracy leaders UN News Centre 06 Jun 2003 -- With his special envoy arriving in Myanmar today, United Nation Secretary-General Kofi Annan, for the second time this week, called for the immediate release of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and several other leaders of the National League for Democracy (NLD) detained with her.
• UN mission to Central Africa seeks to bolster cooperation with region's countries UN News Centre 06 Jun 2003 -- A senior United Nations official is set to lead a two-week inter-agency evaluation mission to Central Africa this weekend as part of the Security Council's efforts to help strengthen cooperation between the UN system and countries in the region.
• U.S.: Trip Seen To Have Helped Bush In Mideast, Russia, But Not In Europe RFE/L 06 Jun 2003 -- U.S. President George W. Bush has returned to the White House after his busiest foreign trip yet -- an eight-day journey to Europe, Russia, and the Middle East that focused on the frayed trans-Atlantic relationship and Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.
• EUROPE CONSENSUS VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- The committee that is drafting a new constitution for the European Union appears to have reached what its chairman calls a basis for a consensus on how to reform the 15-nation bloc's institutions before it expands to 25 members next year. The Convention on the Future of Europe, as it is called, is scheduled to present its final draft to E-U heads of state and government in two weeks.
• ZIMBABWE PROTESTS VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- Zimbabwe's opposition leader was arrested Friday at his home and taken to Harare's central police station. A police spokesman says Movement for Democratic Change President Morgan Tsvangirai will be charged with treason. The arrest came at the end of a week of protests called by the opposition. But the M-D-C leader says there will be more demonstrations.
• EU: Poland Heads Into Referendum With Chorus Of Encouragement RFE/L 06 Jun 2003 -- This weekend Poland holds a crucial referendum on whether to join the European Union. Opinion polls indicate a big majority of Poles favor joining the union, but authorities fear not enough voters will turn out to validate the referendum. However, an array of world leaders, including Pope John Paul II, have beseeched Poles to vote "yes." Can Poland resist such blandishments?
• POLAND / REFERENDUM VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- Polish voters are set to vote in a referendum Saturday and Sunday on whether to join the European Union. There are concerns that a low turnout could make the crucial ballot invalid.
• CAMBODIA / U-N / GENOCIDE VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- The United Nations and Cambodia have signed an agreement to set up a genocide court to try members of Cambodia's former Khmer Rouge regime. The agreement ends nearly six years of often bitter wrangling between the two sides
• BEIJING FALUN GONG VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- China has jailed 180 members of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement for spreading rumors about Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome.
• BURMA / RAZALI VOA 06 Jun 2003 -- The United Nations special envoy to Burma, Razali Ismail, has arrived in Rangoon in a bid to obtain the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who was detained last Friday along with top leaders of her party. The visit comes as the U-S government says there is evidence that the clash that led to the detentions was an ambush by pro-government elements.
• CENTRAL ASIA: Weekly news wrap IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Press freedom in Central Asia was again under the spotlight this week in two of the five former Soviet Republics. Reporters Without Borders on Tuesday voiced their concern over judicial harassment of the Kazakh opposition newspaper SolDat and its editor Ermurat Bapi after the newspaper was ordered to pay some US $350,000 for alleged tax evasion.
• RWANDA-UGANDA: Kampala relocates former Rwandan minister IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Uganda has relocated a former Rwandan defence minister to Geneva, Switzerland, the government-owned newspaper, The New Vision, reported on Friday.
• ZIMBABWE: Opposition leader arrested IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was arrested and charged with treason on Friday as the security forces clamped down on the last day of a week-long protest campaign against the government of President Robert Mugabe.
• SWAZILAND: Interview with head of Constitutional Drafting Committee IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- Prince David Dlamini, older brother of King Mswati III, was recalled from a diplomatic post as Swaziland's envoy to Northern Europe in 2001 to head the Constitutional Drafting Committee (CDC). In his first press interview since completing the draft constitution, Prince David told IRIN he was gratified by the response the document had received thus far from local and international groups.
• SWAZILAND: Special report on the draft constitution IRIN 06 Jun 2003 -- The draft of Swaziland's first home-grown constitution has tried to balance the concerns of a royal establishment keen to retain power, and local and international demands for political reform. The much-delayed constitutional project was initiated by King Mswati III, over the objections of pro-democracy groups who wanted a "people-driven" constitution.
• Launch Set for Boeing-Built Thuraya-2 Mobile Communications Satellite Boeing 06 Jun 2003 -- Thuraya-2, the second satellite built by Boeing [NYSE:BA] for Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, is set to launch on Tuesday, June 10. The satellite will be lifted into orbit by Sea Launch Company, LLC aboard a Zenit-3SL rocket from the Odyssey Launch Platform positioned on the equator in the Pacific Ocean. The 44-minute launch window opens at 6:56 a.m. PDT (13:56:00 GMT).