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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• U.S. Customs agents help guards along Iraqi border Army News Service 12 Nov 2003-- The tactics to combat narcotic movement along the American borders are now being taught in Iraq to thwart illegal crossings.
• American Soldiers help increase ranks in Iraqi police corps Army News Service 12 Nov 2003-- The Iraqi police corps recently increased after the graduation of 45 officers from the Al Anbar Security College at Camp Junction City.
• Stryker Brigade lands in Kuwait Army News Service 12 Nov 2003-- For the first time since World War I, the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division has deployed overseas.
• V CORPS' TASK FORCE 1-37 ARMOR RETURNS JAMILLA POWER STATION TO IRAQI CONTROL V Corps Release 12 Nov 2003-- V Corps forces placed more of Iraq's destiny back into the hands of its people when the corps' Task Force 1-37 Armor returned control of the Jamilla Power Station to Iraq's Ministry of Electricity.
• PENTAGON/IRAQ VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- U-S forces in Iraq have killed at least two insurgents suspected of involvement in attacks on coalition forces in Baghdad.
• Terrorists Strike Italian Headquarters in Iraq; More Weapons Seized AFPS 12 Nov 2003 -- At least 22 people were killed today when two vehicles crashed the gate of the Italian military headquarters in Nasiriyah, Iraq, and one exploded.
• PENTAGON/IRAQ-IZATION VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- U-S forces have been in Iraq for less than a year. But already some critics are warning the military's involvement could become another dangerous trap, like Vietnam. Such comparisons are rejected by top defense officials.
• Iraq: At Least 22 Dead In Italian Police Station Blast RFE/RL 12 Nov 2003 -- Italy's Carabinieri (police) say at least 14 Italians and eight Iraqis died in a blast today at an Italian military police base in the southern Iraqi city of Al-Nasiriyah.
• ITALY/IRAQ/BLAST VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- At least 16 Italian soldiers and eight Iraqis are dead in a suicide truck bombing in southern Iraq. Sabina Castelfranco reports from Rome the attack caused some members of Italy's parliament to question the country's role in Iraq, but senior officials say Italy will not be deterred.
• AFGHANISTAN VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Afghanistan's Foreign Minister says the top threat still facing his country is terrorism. But in an interview with VOA during his current visit to Washington, the Afghan official also highlighted the progress made since the fall of of the Taleban, two years ago.
• UN: Terror, Factional Fighting, Drugs Threaten Afghan Political Process RFE/RL 12 Nov 2003 -- A UN Security Council mission says Afghanistan's political process faces continuing threats from terrorism, factional fighting, and the revived opium trade in the country. The mission's leader, German Ambassador Gunter Pleuger, says security issues dominated its discussions with a wide range of officials in Afghanistan last week. The United States has signaled it will expand security to southern and eastern regions, but no widespread expansion of the NATO-led force in Kabul has yet been confirmed.
• Afghanistan: Two Years Later, Taliban's Sudden Withdrawal From Kabul Still Affecting Transition RFE/RL 12 Nov 2003 -- Two years ago, the Taliban regime fled Kabul in the face of U.S. air strikes and military advances on the ground by the anti-Taliban militia fighters of the Northern Alliance. Since then, slow but steady progress has been made on the political transition outlined by the Bonn Agreement. But experts say both politics and security in Afghanistan are still being affected by the events of 13 November 2001.
• AFGHANISTAN VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Afghanistan's Foreign Minister says the top threat still facing his country is terrorism. Bu the visiting Afghan official also highlighted the progress made since the fall of of the Taleban, two years ago.
• AFGHANISTAN ROMANIA VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- A Romanian soldier serving in Afghanistan is dead and another wounded in an attack on their convoy in Kandahar Province.
• AFGHANISTAN: UN restricts staff movements in Kandahar after car bombing IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- The United Nations in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar has told its staff to stay home and banned all street movements in the city until further notice after a car bomb exploded outside the office of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Tuesday.

Defense Policy / Programs

• CONGRESS DEFENSE VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- The U-S Senate is nearing final approval of a 400 billion dollar budget for the Defense Department. President Bush is expected to sign the measure into law.
• BUSH / NATO VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- President Bush has awarded America's highest civilian honor to outgoing NATO Secretary General George Robertson. The Medal of Freedom was presented at a ceremony at the White House.
• First joint EU-NATO crisis management exercise IRNA 12 Nov 20003 -- The European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) will conduct their first ever joint crisis management exercise, called CME/CMX 03, from 19 to 25 November 2003.
• Samuel B. Roberts Claims Another Victory in the War Against Drugs Navy Newsstand 12 Nov 2003-- The guided-missile frigate USS Samuel B Roberts (FFG 58), commanded by Cmdr. Michael A Hall, recently got her second drug bust in as many weeks, seizing nearly 2 metric tons of cocaine while patrolling in the Eastern Pacific.
• USS Ronald Reagan Makes Maiden Port Visit in Honor of Veterans' Day Navy Newsstand 12 Nov 2003-- USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) celebrated its maiden port visit in honor of Veterans' Day, making its first port of call in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. The Navy's newest, most modern-Nimitz class aircraft carrier will be in port for a four-day visit from Nov. 11-14.
• Squadron brings fuel to the fight through seamless operations USAFE News 12 Nov 2003-- When something is moved, stored, distributed, deployed or received on base, the 39th Logistics Readiness Squadron is involved.
• The Continuing Threat of Weapons of Mass Destruction by John R. Bolton, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security US Dept. of State 12 Nov 2003 -- "It is a real pleasure to have the opportunity to be here at the American Spectator dinner to discuss the steps the Bush Administration is taking to keep our country and our friends and allies safe from the threat of weapons of mass destruction. Without question, today's greatest threat to international peace and stability comes from rogue states and terrorist groups that are unrestrained in their choice of weapon and undeterred by conventional means."

Defense Industry

• BAE SYSTEMS And Boeing Sign Tanker MOU BAE Systems 12 Nov 2003 -- BAE Systems and Boeing have signed a collaboration agreement for the design, development, supply, and support of air-to-air refuelling tanker aircraft based on the Boeing 767 aircraft platform, helping to secure significant numbers of high-value jobs and skills in the UK.
• Lockheed Martin Delivers Second Round of Advanced Computer Modules for the Joint Strike Fighter Program Lockheed Martin 12 Nov 2003 -- Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] delivered the second group of advanced Integrated Core Processor (ICP) modules for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter under a $300 million System Development and Demonstration (SDD) contract. The on-time delivery marks another milestone leading up to the delivery of the final ICP configuration in 2004.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICES OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL AND THE SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT United Nations 12 Nov 2003
• West African insecurity problems need regional solutions, UN says UN News Centre 12 Nov 2003 -- Movement of combatants and weapons across borders makes insecurity a major problem that needs a regional solution in West Africa, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan's envoy for the region said today.

• ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his Palestinian counterpart, Ahmed Qureia, are exploring new ways to reach a cease-fire and re-start peace talks. The moves come as the Palestinian legislature approved Mr. Qureia's new Cabinet.
• BORDERS: ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS BARRIER VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Over the past year, a new dimension has been added to the decades-long Middle East conflict -- an Israeli attempt to physically separate itself from the Palestinians. Israel began building a barrier -- part barbed wire fence, part concrete wall and much of it is located on Palestinian land. Israel says it is needed for security. The Palestinians call it a land grab. (In this report in our series on boundary disputes around the world,)

• LIBERIA: UN police chief outlines plans to revive Liberian force IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- Mark Kroeker, the commander of a United Nations police force charged with totally revamping Liberia's discredited law enforcement agencies, said on Wednesday he would conduct a comprehensive assessment of the country's policing needs before deciding how to proceed.
• LIBERIA: Relief activities resume in Buchanan after shoot-out IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- Relief agencies resumed plying the road to Liberia's second city Buchanan on Wednesday after a shootout between former government fighters and rebels on Tuesday forced them to suspend activities for 24 hours.
• LIBERIA: UN says no amnesty for war crimes after 8 October IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- The deputy head of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) said on Wednesday that he had warned the country's warring factions that violations of the August peace agreement would not be tolerated and there would be no amnesty for war crimes committed after 8 October.
• PRESS CONFERENCE BY GEORGIA SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE United Nations 12 Nov 2003
• UN rights experts deeply concerned by secret detentions in Nepal UN News Centre 12 Nov 2003 -- Three United Nations human rights experts said today they were deeply concerned by reports that dozens of people are being secretly detained in Nepal.
• U-N/COLOMBIA TORTURE VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- The Colombian Commission of Jurists and other human rights organizations says widespread and systematic torture is being committed by both government and rebel forces in Colombia.
• SRI LANKA TALKS VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Talks between Sri Lanka's feuding prime minister and president have ended without solving the country's political crisis, which is threatening peace talks with Tamil rebels. But as V-O-A's Patricia Nunan reports, the two sides are agreeing meet again next week.
• SUDAN: UNHCR prepares for return of refugees IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Ruud Lubbers, on a visit to Sudan, said on Tuesday his agency was making plans for the return of hundreds of thousands of Sudanese refugees, should a peace agreement be signed as expected before the end of this year. The agency warned that the operation would be one of the "most challenging" of recent times.
• ETHIOPIA: Government appeals for mine-clearance funding IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- Ethiopia appealed on Wednesday for more help to overcome the potentially lethal effects of its estimated 2 million landmines. The Ethiopian Mine Action Office (EMAO) is seeking US $19 million over the next three years to combat the threat.
• BURUNDI: Fighting displaces 12,000 civilians in Bujumbura Rural IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- Some 12,000 civilians have fled their homes in Burundi's western province of Bujumbura Rural following the latest fighting between the army and fighters loyal to rebel leader Agathon Rwasa, Governor Ignace Ntawembarira told IRIN on Wednesday.
• COTE D'IVOIRE: Rebels hint at secession after failure of Accra summit IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- Rebels occupying the north of Cote d'Ivoire sent out mixed signals on Wednesday about how they intended to proceed following the failure of a West African summit to achieve a breakthrough in the country's deadlocked peace process.
• Great Lakes: IRIN interview with OCHA chief Jan Egeland IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- On 2 September 2003, Jan Egeland of Norway began work as UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, succeeding Kenzo Oshima.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 12 Nov 2003 -- EU and NATO to hold first joint exercise / Sweden and Finland oppose EU vanguard defence group / Europe seen at risk if NATO fails in Afghanistan / Afghanistan beset by warlords, terrorism, and massive drug trafficking, Security Council says / Let Saddam's foes fight insurgents says Iraq minister / NATO to destroy large weapons quantity in Bosnia
• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 12 Nov 2003 -- Gen. Jones: U.S. seeking to change its global basing as part of larger transformation efforts / Defense Minister Struck, Bundeswehr Chief of Staff highlight NRF's significance / NATO's Parliamentary Assembly agrees to boost Alliance's role in Iraq / Italians killed in Iraq bombing
• PRESS BRIEFING BY SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON HUMAN RIGHTS IN MYANMAR United Nations 12 Nov 2003
• U-N/BURMA ROADMAP VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- The U-N's human rights envoy to Burma says the country's proposed road map to democracy can't move forward because the government has no plans to release political prisoners or lift restrictions on freedom of expression.
• RUSSIA - INDIA VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee are calling for a rapid return of Iraq's sovereignty, as well as continued efforts in the fight against global terrorism. The statements are in a joint declaration the two leaders issued after meeting in Moscow. mil-031112-35e6b541.htm">BURMA / REGIONAL SUMMIT VOA 12 Nov 2003 --The leaders of Burma, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia are holding a summit in Burma during which they will adopt a new economic strategy for their region.
• GUINEA: Conte faces virtually no opposition in presidential election IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- Guinea's ailing president, Lansana Conte will be virtually unchallenged when he goes to the polls on 21 December to seek a new seven-year term.