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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• Dec. 19 airpower summary: C-130s provide heavy airlift AFPN 20 Dec 2007
• Troops Capture 'Special Groups' Leader, Release Detainees AFPS 20 Dec 2008 -- Coalition forces captured a suspected "special groups" leader during operations yesterday in the northern Baghdad area, military officials reported.
• Normalcy Returns to Baghdad's Outskirts as Attacks Decline AFPS 20 Dec 2008 -- The decrease in violence seen in Baghdad's northern and western outskirts has created a sense of stability and fueled economic activity that Iraqis view as a presage to the return of normalcy, a U.S. commander posted in Iraq told Pentagon reporters today
• Multinational Division Baghdad Transfers Authority AFPS 20 Dec 2008 -- Control of Multinational Division Baghdad changed hands during a ceremony here yesterday.
• Airmen revamp Iraqi police training facility AFPN 20 Dec 2007 -- For Iraqi police to succeed in securing their nation from the hands of insurgents, they need proper training and equipment, and they get help from American servicemembers at the 732nd Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron, Det. 6.
• Flight safety office brings Balad bird strikes down 30 percent AFPN 20 Dec 2007 -- With the help of volunteers from around the base, the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing flight safety office reduced the number of bird strikes on aircraft by 30 percent here in November.
• Bhattacharji: Tackling Afghanistan's Opium Trade with Legalization cfr.org 20 Dec 2007
• Sustained NATO Effort Needed for Long-term Success in Afghanistan Washington File 20 Dec 2007 -- A moderate, stable Afghanistan is crucial to the United States, its NATO allies and the southwest region of Asia.

Defense Policy / Programs

• DoD News Briefing with Gen. Corley and Gail Wilensky from the Pentagon Briefing Room, Arlington, Va 20 Dec 2007 -- Presenter: Vice Chief of Staff, Headquarters, U.S. Air Force, Task Force Co-Chair Gen. John D.W. Corley, and Elected Member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies and its Governing Council, Task Force Co-Chair Gail R. Wilensky, Ph.D.
• Findings and Recommendations of Task Force on the Future of Military Healthcare Released 20 Dec 2007 -- Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England today received the findings and recommendations from the 14-member task force on the future of military healthcare.
• Detainee Transfer Announced 20 Dec 2007 -- The Department of Defense announced today the transfer of three detainees from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to the United Kingdom
• Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates' Holiday Message 20 Dec 2007
• Army to Tap Troops Not Yet Deployed AFPS 20 Dec 2008 -- The Army's assignments branch is reaching out to soldiers who have not deployed to combat in an effort to take some of the strain off of those who have deployed more than once.
• Fort Bragg Set to Get More Soldiers AFPS 20 Dec 2008 -- Fort Bragg will receive about 1,400 more soldiers as part of the Army's "Grow the Army" stationing plan, base officials announced yesterday.
• Bush, Gates Comment on Partial War Funding Approved by Congress AFPS 20 Dec 2008 -- President Bush and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today thanked Congress for approving emergency defense spending yesterday, but both men said more money is needed to prosecute the war on terror and other defense operations.
• Task Force Shares Military Health Care Recommendations AFPS 20 Dec 2008 -- A Congressionally-appointed group of military and health care experts today released its findings after a year-long diagnosis of the military's health care system.
• Gates Reflects on Highlights, Challenges of First Year in Office AFPS 20 Dec 2008 -- One year into the job, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today he's pleased by the turnaround in Iraq and particularly proud of his role in speeding up the timetable for getting mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles to deployed troops and setting into motion major changes in how the military treats its wounded troops.
• CNIC Meets With Regional, Base Commanders Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- Naval District Washington and Naval Support Activity Washington (NSAW) hosted Commander, Navy Installations Command's (CNIC) Commanding Officers Board of Directors (COBOD) meeting Dec. 12-14, at the Washington Navy Yard.
• NMCB 11 Learns Key Through COMMEX Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- A group of Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 11 were pulled from their normal jobs and tasks for a three-day Communications Exercise (COMMEX) Dec. 3-5, learning the fundamentals of "the key" to deployment, field exercise and more.
• Former Navy Acquisitions 'Czar' Rallies Grads with Lessons Learned Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- Dr. Delores Etter, who until last month was assistant secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition, rallied one of the largest Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) classes in recent memory in her keynote address at commencement exercises, Dec. 14.
• First P-8A Poseidon Begins Production Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- The U.S. Navy and its Poseidon industry team marked the beginning of the P-8A production at a ceremony hosted by Spirit AeroSystems Wichita, Kan., facility, Dec. 11.
• Cooking Oil will Soon Power Guantanamo Trucks and Buses Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- century ago, Henry Ford ran his first car on ethyl alcohol and Rudolf Diesel fired his single piston engine on peanut oil.
• Navy Modernizes Amphibious Ships and Hovercraft Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- Invisible to approximately 5,000 people witnessing the USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19) commissioning ceremony, Dec. 15, a newly modernized landing craft air cushion (LCAC) 39 sat certified and ready for transport within the well deck of the Navy's newest amphibious ship.
• Maulers Make Final Homecoming Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- The "Maulers" of Sea Control Squadron (VS) 32 ended their final deployment aboard USS Enterprise (CVN 65) by returning to Naval Air Station (NAS) Jacksonville, Fla., Dec. 15.
• U.S. Navy, Uruguay Plan 2008 Maritime Operations Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- Representatives from the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard met with a delegation from Armada Nacional de Uruguay (Uruguayan Navy) Dec. 18-19 for the U.S. Navy and Uruguayan Operational Naval Committee Conference (ONC Uruguay).
• Second Fleet Commander Welcomes Enterprise Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- Vice Adm. Marty Chanik, commander, U.S. 2nd Fleet, visited USS Enterprise (CVN 65) as the ship returned to Naval Station Norfolk after a very successful five-month deployment to the 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility.
• Maldivian Quick Reaction Force Commander Visits USS Cleveland Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- Brig. Gen. Moosa Ali Jaleel, Maldives National Defense Force's (MNDF) Quick Reaction Force (QRF) commanding general, visited the amphibious transport dock USS Cleveland (LPD 7), Dec. 18 during a joint training exercise with the MDNF.
• USS Cleveland Hosts Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives, Robert Blake Jr., visited the amphibious transport dock USS Cleveland (LPD 7), Dec. 17, during a training exercise with the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF).
• Navy Invests in Protecting Marine Mammals Navy NewsStand 20 Dec 2008 -- No injuries to marine mammals have been attributed to sonar use since the Navy began taking additional steps to minimize harm to such animals, a Navy official said Dec. 19.
• New eye exam technology improves productivity AFPN 20 Dec 2007 -- Air Force Materiel Command officials provided the 72nd Medical Group here with an early Christmas present, a new piece of optometry equipment that is saving the Air Force lost man-hours.
• Getting behavioral health treatment easier with Tricare AFPN 20 Dec 2007 -- Tricare officials want its non-active duty beneficiaries to know that if they need help, there is no reason to hesitate.
• Cooperative effort nets C-130 wing for hands-on training AFPN 20 Dec 2007 -- Robins Air Force Base units joined forces recently to help officials of the 373rd Training Squadron Field Training Detachment here obtain a C-130 Hercules wing so students of the school could have hands-on training.
• CSAF announces selectees for new senior officer program AFPN 20 Dec 2007 -- Seven senior officers were recently selected to be part of a new program directed by Chief of the Staff of the Air Force Gen. T. Michael Moseley.
• US Congress ties budget for war to withdrawal timetable IRNA 20 Dec 2007 -- The House of Representatives approved another dlrs 70 billion for war trying hard to tie the budget to a timetable to end the war in Iraq.
• Russian commander says strategic bomber patrols to continue RIA Novosti 20 Dec 2007 -- There are no technical obstacles to the continuation of long-distance patrols by Russian strategic bombers, the commander of the Air Force's strategic aviation said on Thursday.

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for December 20, 2007
• BAE SYSTEMS COMPLETES TWO TESTS FIRINGS OF ADVANCED PRECISION KILL WEAPON SYSTEM FROM ARMY HELICOPTER BAE Systems 20 Dec 2008 -- Two BAE Systems-built Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) guided rockets were successfully test-fired from a U.S. Army Kiowa Warrior helicopter on Dec. 13.
• CACI Rejects Baseless Amendment to Iraq Detainee Lawsuit CACI 20 Dec 2008 -- CACI International Inc (NYSE:CAI) announced today that it is responding vigorously to amendments to a malicious and unfounded lawsuit filed more than three and one-half years ago by the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR).
• General Dynamics Awarded $258 Million for Improved Abrams SEP Reset General Dynamics 20 Dec 2008 -- The U.S. TACOM Lifecycle Management Command has awarded General Dynamics Land Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), $257.8 million for the material to reset 180 Abrams tanks under the Abrams Improved SEP Reset (ISR) program.
• General Dynamics Awarded $43 Million to Continue Producing Advanced Mission Computers for Navy F-18 Aircraft General Dynamics 20 Dec 2008 -- The U.S. Navy's Naval Air Systems Command has awarded General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems a $43 million contract modification to continue producing advanced mission computers for new and currently operational F-18 aircraft
• Fourth Country Sides With Lockheed Martin in Acceptance of the Generic "Paveway" Term Lockheed Martin 20 Dec 2008 -- Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] was recently issued a decision from the Korean Intellectual Property Office confirming the company's claim that the term "paveway" is a generic term for a laser guided bomb
• LOCKHEED MARTIN RECEIVES $849 MILLION CONTRACT FOR TRIDENT II D5 MISSILE Lockheed Martin 20 Dec 2008 -- The U.S. Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) a contract valued at $849 million for fiscal year 2008 production and deployed system support for the Trident II D5 Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) program.
• ATK Propulsion and Composite Technologies Support Successful Launch of GPS Satellite ATK 20 Dec 2007 -- Alliant Techsystems (NYSE: ATK) propulsion and composite technologies supported today's successful launch of the United Launch Alliance's Delta II rocket carrying the U.S. Air Force's fifth modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) navigation satellite built by Lockheed Martin.
• MODERNIZED GPS SATELLITE BUILT BY LOCKHEED MARTIN SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED FROM CAPE CANAVERAL Lockheed Martin 20 Dec 2007 -- A U.S. Air Force modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellite, designed and built by Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT], was launched successfully today from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta II launch vehicle.
• NEW PAYLOAD WITH GPS DEMONSTRATION SIGNAL DELIVERED AHEAD OF SCHEDULE TO LOCKHEED MARTIN Lockheed Martin 20 Dec 2007 -- Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] announced today that its navigation payload provider, ITT Corporation, has delivered a new demonstration payload for a modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellite to Lockheed Martin's facilities in Valley Forge, Pa. for integration on the spacecraft and final system-level testing in preparation for launch next year.
• Royal Netherlands Navy Selects Thales's integrated mast Thales 20 Dec 2007 -- On 20 December 2007, the Netherlands' Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) and Thales Nederland signed a 125 million Euro contract for the development and supply of four Integrated Masts. The Integrated Masts will be installed on the four Ocean Patrol Vessels that are being built for the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN). The first ship is scheduled to be handed over to the RNLN at the end of 2010.

Other Conflicts

• NEPAL: NGO helps children traumatised by conflict IRIN 20 Dec 2008 -- Many children in Nepal have mental disorders caused by the decade-long conflict between Maoists and government forces, according to the Centre for Victims of Torture (CVICT), a local non-governmental organisation (NGO).
• NIGER: Army, rebels commit abuses against civilians, rights groups say IRIN 20 Dec 2008 -- The Nigerien army and rebels in the country have yet to formally respond to charges by rights groups that both sides are committing abuses against civilians.
• Israel against proposed Mideast conference in Moscow RIA Novosti 20 Dec 2008 -- Israel is against a Russian proposal to hold a Middle East peace conference in the coming months as a follow up to a summit hosted by the U.S. in November, the Haaretz newspaper reported on Thursday.
• Sri Lankan army claims to kill 24 LTTE cadres IRNA 20 Dec 2007 -- Twenty-four cadres of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) were killed in separate encounters in Jaffna, Mannar and Vavuniya districts Wednesday, claimed Sri Lankan military.
• Kosovo: Security Council Offers Little Suspense On Kosovo RFE/RL 20 Dec 2007 -- The UN Security Council's final session of the year on Kosovo has concluded without agreement and, judging by the comments of Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica and Kosovar President Fatmir Sejdiu, Belgrade and Pristina remain as far apart as ever.

News Reports

• For Schengen Outsiders, A New Isolation RFE/RL 20 Dec 2007 -- A woman stands in a bustling train station in this Belarusian border town, laden with parcels. Fresh from a short jaunt to Poland, she recounts the highlights of a successful shopping run.