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Defense Policy / Programs
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News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 16 Aug 2004 [PDF]
• BLAST KILLS SOLDIER IN NORTHERN BAGHDAD
• THREE SOLDIERS KILLED IN ACTION IN AN NAJAF PROVINCE
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualties

• MNF REMAIN IN DEFENSIVE POSTURE IN NAJAF CENTCOM 16 Aug 2004 -- Multi-National Forces continue to safeguard the citizens of Najaf at the request of the Iraqi Prime Minister. They are assisting Iraqi police with vehicle checkpoints around the city and continue to defend themselves against sporadic attacks by the Muqtada Militia.
• IRAQ WRAP VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- Fierce fighting continues in the Iraqi city of Najaf, hours after leaders meeting in Baghdad agreed to make a last-ditch appeal for peace there. In other news, several hostages are freed in Iraq, and the Iraqi soccer team continues an unexpected winning streak at the Athens Olympics.
• POOL REPORT 2 FROM FPRINT PRESS POOLER AT FOB EAGLE, SADR CITY CENTCOM 16 Aug 2004 -- Recapping from Report 1, I am with the 2nd Batallion, 5th Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Division at Forward Operating Base Eagle, on the eastern edge of Sadr City.
• Fresh Violence In Al-Najaf, Reporters Told To Leave RFE/RL 16 Aug 2004 -- Renewed fighting is being reported in Al-Najaf as Iraqi troops -- backed by U.S. soldiers -- appear to be nearing the city's Imam Ali shrine, a stronghold of militiamen loyal to radical Shi'a cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
• Iraqi Ministers of Defense, State speak to Iraqi troops in historical event Marine Corps News 16 Aug 2004 -- Iraq's Minister of Defense Hazem Sha'alan and a Minister of State Kasim Daoud spoke to members of Iraq's Security Forces during a visit to the base here today.
• GPS-guided cargo chutes touchdown after first combat drop in Iraq USMC News 16 Aug 2004 -- Steering themselves from nearly two miles high to within less than 200 meters of their target, the Marine Corps' two newest skydivers made their first combat zone landing Aug. 9, 2004, near here.

• Afghan authorities extend voter registration until Friday in some areas - UN UN News Centre 16 Aug 2004 -- As the number of people who have signed up to vote in Afghanistan nears 10 million, the registration drive has been extended until this Friday in the country's south and southeast, the United Nations mission there (UNAMA) has announced.
• Air Force C-130s support Afghan army deployment AFPN 16 Aug 2004 -- U.S. Air Force C-130 Hercules airlifted troops and supplies Aug. 15 and 16 supporting the deployment of several Afghan battalions to respond to factional fighting which started Aug. 14 in the Shindand area of the country.
• Afghanistan: Government Tries To End Battling Between Warlords In West RFE/RL 16 Aug 2004 -- Some 1,500 Afghan government troops are being sent to the western province of Herat in an attempt to end fighting between Governor Ismail Khan's private militia and rival warlords in the area. An advanced team of several hundred troops from the Afghan National Army already has taken control of an air base south of Herat city that was the scene of bloody fighting on 14 August. Meanwhile, there were conflicting reports about continued fighting to the north of Herat today.
• 22nd MEU Afghanistan Recap: Operation RIO BRAVO Marine Corps News 16 Aug 2004 -- Operation RIO BRAVO commenced on May 11, 2004 and saw the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) continue to prosecute its offensive campaign in south-central Afghanistan.
• Afghanistan: NATO, U.S. Will Not Accept Full Responsibility For Fairness Of Election RFE/RL 16 Aug 2004 -- With Afghan presidential elections less than two months away, NATO and the U.S.-led coalition which conducts Operation Enduring Freedom find themselves committed to two conflicting objectives. Both worry about the future of democracy in Afghanistan and insist the elections must be free and fair. Yet, at the same time, neither is willing to take full responsibility for security at the elections. This in turn has forced international organizations to not send observer missions, for fear of the safety of their staff.
• Trial Of Americans Resumes In Kabul RFE/RL 16 Aug 2004 -- Three Americans accused of running a private jail and torturing Afghan citizens reappeared before a Kabul court today.
• VOTERS REGISTRATION SUCCEEDS IN AFGHANISTAN CENTCOM 16 Aug 2004 -- Afghanistan - An estimated nine million Afghans are registered for Afghanistan's historical democratic elections scheduled for October.
• COALITION SUPPORTS NATIONAL GOVERNMENT AND ANA SECURITY EFFORTS CENTCOM 16 Aug 2004 -- In the recent wake of factional fighting in the western region of Herat Province, the U.S.-led Coalition is supporting the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan in its efforts to regain control of the Shindand Airport and restore security and stability to the region.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Fact Sheet: Making America More Secure by Transforming Our Military The Whiteh House 16 Aug 2004 -- President Bush today announced the most comprehensive restructuring of U.S. military forces overseas since the end of the Korean War. By closing bases no longer needed to meet Cold War threats that have ended, this new initiative will bring home many Cold War-era forces while deploying more flexible and rapidly deployable capabilities in strategic locations around the world.
• Remarks by the President to Veterans of Foreign Wars Convention The White House 16 Aug 2004
• Transcript: Defense Department Background Briefing on Global Posture Review 16 Aug 2004 -- Senior Administration Officials
• Bush Announces Global Posture Changes Over Next Decade AFPS 16 Aug 2004 -- The United States will redistribute forces now stationed at overseas locations "where the wars of the last century ended," President Bush announced in Cincinnati today.
• 'Significant Portion' of Troop Shifts to Be Europe-Based Forces AFPS 16 Aug 2004 -- "A significant portion" of U.S. troop moves caused by a reworking of America's global military posture "will come from Europe," a senior Defense Department official said here today.
• BUSH/DEFENSE VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- President Bush says tens-of-thousands of U.S. troops based in Western Europe and Asia will be pulled out and sent to other bases, primarily on American soil. The White House says the move is part of the most comprehensive military reconfiguration in about 50 years.
• U.S.: Bush Announces Major Shift In Military Deployment RFE/RL 16 Aug 2004 -- U.S. forces are straining to cope with missions in both Iraq and Afghanistan as part of the war on terrorism. Yet tens of thousands of troops are deployed in Europe and East Asia, remnants of the U.S. positioning in the Cold War, which ended 15 years ago. Now, President George W. Bush has said he is ready to shift some of these forces back to the United States. Others are expected to have new hosts, reportedly in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. But so far, there are few details on the new deployment.
• Bush Announces Global Posture Changes Over Next Decade NNS 16 Aug 2004 -- The United States will redistribute forces now stationed at overseas locations "where the wars of the last century ended," President George Bush announced in Cincinnati Aug. 16.
• Transcript: Secretary Rumsfeld In Transit Briefing on Global Posturing 16 Aug 2004 -- Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld
• U.S.-Russia: 'Not Enemies, Not Yet Allies' -- Ivanov, Rumsfeld Work At Intensifying Relations RFE/RL 16 Aug 2004 -- Not enemies, but probably not yet allies. That's how Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov characterized relations between Russia and the United States following two days of talks in St. Petersburg with U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Ivanov said the two countries share a common interest in dealing with threats from terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. At the same time, he said Russia is not pleased with the way NATO has arrived on its doorstep via the Baltic republics. Even so, the two ministers agreed on joint naval exercises next month, and had a thorough exchange of views on Iraq and other topics.
• US CARRIER GUAM VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- For more than a year, officials on Guam have been lobbying the Pentagon to base an aircraft carrier on the U.S. territory. As VOA's Kate Pound Dawson reports from our Asia News Center in Hong Kong, that is a big change from the 1980's, when the people of Guam pushed the military to close some of its bases on the island.
• USS Nebraska Departs Kings Bay for West Coast NNS 16 Aug 2004 -- Kings Bay bid a bittersweet farewell to a member of the family Aug. 12, when USS Nebraska (SSBN 739) departed for her new home in Bangor, Wash.

• U.S. To Transform Military in Parallel With Allies Washington File 16 Aug 2004 -- A senior Defense Department official says the United States will transform its military in parallel with its allies around the world with an emphasis on military capabilities, rather than the numbers of troops or weapons stockpiles.
• Stennis Strike Group Wraps Up JASEX with Kitty Hawk NNS 16 Aug 2004 -- The USS John C. Stennis (JCS) (CVN 74) and USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) Carrier Strike Groups (CSG) completed the Joint Air and Sea Exercise 2004 (JASEX 04) Aug. 15 in the Western Pacific.

• State Department Noon Briefing, August 16 Washington File 16 Aug 2004 -- Venezuela, Georgia, North Korea, Japan, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria
• White House Daily Briefing, August 16 Washington File 16 Aug 2004 -- White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan briefed reporters on Air Force One the morning of August 16 as they accompanied President Bush on a trip to Cincinnati, Ohio.

Defense Industry

• U.S. Navy Awards BAE SYSTEMS $41.9 Million P-3 Digital Autopilot System Contract BAE Systems 16 Aug 2004 -- The U.S. Navy has awarded BAE Systems a $41.9 million contract for the purchase of Digital Autopilot Systems (DAS) that will be used to upgrade 120 of its P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft.
• BAE SYSTEMS Completes Acquisiton Of Practical Imagineering BAE Systems 16 Aug 2004 -- ROCKVILLE, Md. -- BAE Systems North America today completed its acquisition of Reston, Virginia- based Practical Imagineering, Inc. The results of the $8.3 million cash transaction will complement BAE Systems technology capabilities in information operations.
• General Dynamics Awarded Potential $750 Million Contract for Joint Biological Point Detection Systems General Dynamics 16 Aug 2004 -- General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), has been awarded a $25 million delivery order as part of a firm-fixed-price contract by the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., for the production of Joint Biological Point Detection Systems (JBPDS). The contract has a potential value of up to $750 million for up to 1,089 systems through 2009 if all options are exercised.
• Lockheed Martin Awarded $85 Million for Future Combat Systems Sensor Development Lockheed Martin 16 Aug 2004 -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) has been selected as the winner of two system design and demonstration programs to develop ground sensors for the U.S. Army’s Future Combat Systems (FCS) program. The awards are worth approximately $85.2 million over 50 months. A third contract, for a medium-range electro-optical/infrared sensor, is in negotiations.
• Raytheon Network Centric Systems Nets Three FCS Sensor Awards; Value Approaches $223 Million Raytheon 16 Aug 2004 -- Raytheon Company's (NYSE: RTN) Network Centric Systems (NCS) will develop three new ground sensors to equip U.S. Army Future Combat Systems (FCS) vehicles with advanced capabilities to protect troops and platforms, increase mission success and support network- enabled warfare.
• Raytheon, the FCS Ground Sensor Integrator, Announces Contract Awards for $308 Million in Ground Sensor Development Sub-Contracts Raytheon 16 Aug 2004 -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), the Ground Sensor Integrator (GSI) for the U.S. Army Future Combat Systems (FCS) program, has concluded initial negotiations with the companies selected to fill ground sensor development requirements on five of the six previously announced decisions. Each company has been authorized to proceed under limited funding.
• Lockheed Martin Announces Diversified Team For Aerial Common Sensor Program Lockheed Martin 16 Aug 2004 -- Lockheed Martin today announced that a broad base of companies will assist it in the development of Aerial Common Sensor (ACS), the U.S. Army’s next generation manned airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance system. The program’s six-year $879 million system development and demonstration (SD&D) phase will produce more than 800 new, high-quality jobs in the United States.
• ATK Delivers First Minuteman III Motor Set Ahead of Schedule ATK 16 Aug 2004 -- ATK (NYSE: ATK) has delivered the first ship set of second and third stage rocket motors for the Minuteman III Propulsion Replacement Program (PRP) more than two weeks ahead of schedule. The ship set, targeted for delivery by July 9, was delivered to ICBM prime contractor Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) on June 23.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL United Nations 16 Aug 2004
• BURUNDI: Security Council calls for probe of massacre IRIN 16 Aug 2004 -- The UN Security Council has called for a probe into the massacre on Friday of hundreds of Congolese refugees at a camp in Burundi. An estimated 160 refugees were killed and 100 injured at Gatumba, nine kilometres west of the Burundian capital, Bujumbura, on the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo.
• SUDAN: Darfur still living in fear as first AU troops arrive IRIN 16 Aug 2004 -- The situation in the troubled Darfur region of western Sudan remained tense as the first batch of an African Union (AU) force, consisting of 154 Rwandan troops, arrived to protect an AU observer mission, relief workers said.
• GREAT LAKES: Rwanda threatens action in DRC over Burundi massacre IRIN 16 Aug 2004 -- The government of Rwanda has threatened to intervene again in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to disarm Hutu rebels based in eastern Congo, according to a statement issued on Sunday.
• In wake of refugee massacre, Burundi agrees to UN request to set up secure camp UN News Centre 16 Aug 2004 -- As chilling new details emerged about the gruesome massacre of some 150 Congolese civilians at a refugee camp in Burundi on Friday, the United Nations refugee agency today reported that the country's Government has agreed to authorize a secure camp away from the border for newly arrived refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
• Sudan re-opens camp to aid workers one day after UN appeal for access UN News Centre 16 Aug 2004 -- The Sudanese authorities today re-opened the Kalma camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in South Darfur to humanitarian workers - a day after the senior United Nations envoy to the country had called for access to the area.
• SUDAN/RWANDA VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- Tension between Sudan and Rwanda is rising over the role a contingent of Rwandan troops is expected to play in the troubled Darfur region of western Sudan.
• ISRAEL/PALESTINIANS VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- Israeli helicopter gunships fired four missiles at targets in the Gaza Strip on Monday, killing two Palestinians who, the army said, were preparing to fire rockets into Israel.
• GEORGIA/SOUTH OSSETIA VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- Officials in the former Soviet republic of Georgia say two of their peacekeepers have been killed in the breakaway region of South Ossetia, threatening a cease-fire agreed last weekend. The violence is the latest in a series of outbreaks that have severely strained relations with Russia.
• BURUNDI/POLITICS ANALYSIS VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- The recent attack on a refugee camp in Burundi that left about 150 Congolese Tutsis dead has heightened regional tensions, with Burundi closing its border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. A South African-based analyst says the massacre will make it even more difficult for Tutsi and Hutu political parties in Burundi to reach a power-sharing agreement that would end the country's long-running civil war.
• Georgia Warns South Ossetia Over Risk Of War RFE/RL 16 Aug 2004 -- Georgia today warned its separatist region of South Ossetia over violations of a cease-fire agreement, saying any attempt at dragging its troops into large-scale military operations would meet an adequate response.

News Reports

• VENEZUELA/VIOLENCE VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- Tensions remain high in Venezuela after Sunday's recall referendum in which President Hugo Chavez claimed victory. An opposition rally to protest the outcome was disrupted by gunfire Monday, leaving one person dead and four wounded.
• U-S/VENEZUELA REACT VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- Here in Washington, U.S. officials say there was no evident pattern of fraud in voting that has apparently allowed Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to remain in office. But they say that in the interest of transparency, opposition charges of irregularities in the recall election should be fully investigated.
• VENEZUELA/OBSERVERS VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- International observers from the Organization of American States and the U.S.-based Carter Center have confirmed the Venezuelan Electoral Council's election results in which President Hugo Chavez emerged as the clear winner. Nonetheless, opposition leaders are claiming fraud and threatening protests.
• U-S / VENEZUELA REACT VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- The United States is withholding judgment on the contested results of the recall referendum for Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The State Department says allegations of fraud by Chavez opponents should be fully investigated.
• CHAVEZ/VICTORY VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- The Venezuelan Electoral Council says President Hugo Chavez apparently has won the special recall election through which opponents hoped to unseat him. With 94 percent of the vote counted, more than 58 percent of voters opposed the recall. U.S. officials say they are pleased with the large voter turnout, but are withholding comment on the outcome, pending an official announcement of the results.President Chavez used a victory speech to reach out to the opposition.
• CHAVEZ/VICTORY VOA 16 Aug 2004 -- The Venezuelan Electoral Council has announced that President Hugo Chavez has won the special recall election through which opponents hoped to unseat him. With 94 percent of the vote counted, more than 58 percent of voters opposed the recall. President Chavez used a victory speech to reach out to the opposition.

• Boeing to Design Guidance Parachute Technology for Mars Missions Boeing 16 Aug 2004 -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] has won a $1.5 million, three-year NASA Mars Technology Development contract to develop guidance parachute technology for future Mars missions.