Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• Helicopter Crash Kills 2 NATO Soldiers in Afghanistan VOA 28 May 2012 -- NATO officials said two coalition members were killed in a helicopter crash in eastern Afghanistan Monday.
• U.S. spy aircraft kills 7 in NW Pakistan IRNA 28 May 2012 -- A U.S. drone fired missiles into Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal region early Monday, killing 7 people, tribesmen said.
• U.S. Drone Strike 'Kills 5' in Pakistan RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- At least five suspected militants were killed and four others were injured in a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan's northwest tribal region of North Waziristan in the early hours of Monday, Xinhua said, quoting Pakistani media reports.
• Shadow 'enhanced platoons' meet growing need in Afghanistan Army News 28 May 2012 -- When the Afghan theater commander called on the Army to increase the number of Shadow platoons in theater during the height of the 2011 Operation Enduring Freedom summer campaign, the Army was ready to answer the call.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Anniston Army Depot begins M777 reset program Army News 28 May 2012 -- At the end of April, Anniston Army Depot began a new reset program for M777 medium, towed Howitzers with assistance from BAE Systems.
• USS Nimitz Arrives In San Francisco NNS 28 May 2012 -- The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) arrived in San Francisco May 27 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Golden Gate Bridge.
• Russia to Strengthen Border Security RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- Russia will keep strengthening its border security, replacing outdated protective installations such as barbed wire fences with advanced surveillance and monitoring equipment, Vladimir Streltsov, a deputy head of Russia's Federal Security Service, said in an interview with government daily Rossiiskaya Gazeta.
• Defense Ministry Confirms Trans-Baikal Ammunition Explosion RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- A spokesman for Russia's Eastern Military District has confirmed that there has been an ammunition explosion at the Tsugol range in the Trans-Baikal Region on Monday.
• Borey Submarine Contract Signed - Shipbuilding Corp. RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- Russia's Defense Ministry and United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) have signed a contract for the delivery of five new Borey class (Project 955) strategic nuclear submarines, USC spokesman Alexei Kravchenko said on Monday.
• MOD contract for RAF Hercules fleet sustains 500 UK jobs UK MOD 28 May 2012 -- A new £350m MOD contract to maintain the Royal Air Force's Hercules aircraft will support 500 UK jobs.
• Taiwan aware of new Chinese military airport in Fujian CNA 26 May 2012 -- The Ministry of National Defense said Saturday that it is aware of a new Chinese military airport in the southeastern province of Fujian and will take appropriate measuresto ensure Taiwan's safety.
• Cruise missiles should be fitted on planned warships: lawmaker CNA 28 May 2012 -- The warships that Taiwan plans to build, starting with a prototype in 2014, should be equipped with indigenous cruise missiles, a lawmaker suggested Monday.
• Spratly Island workshops to be held in summer: military CNA 28 May 2012 -- Two academic workshops will be held in a disputed area of the South China Sea this summer, the Ministry of National Defense said Monday.
• Taiwan seeking U.S. response to counterfeit defense parts row CNA 28 May 2012 -- Taiwan is asking the United States to explain why bogus electronic parts, many from China, have found their way into its military equipment, a defense official said Monday, after a U.S. Senate report found the problem to be widespread.
• French Army Seeks Russian Mine Detectors RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- French Army experts have expressed interest in Russian improvised explosive device detection systems, following a recent visit to a Moscow Region training ground, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Col. Sergei Vlasov said on Monday.

Defense Industry

Other Conflicts

• Lavrov, Hague Agree To Raise Pressure On Damascus RFE/RL 28 May 2012 -- British Foreign Secretary William Hague and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov say they have agreed to increase pressure on Syria's government for the withdrawal of army tanks and artillery from residential neighborhoods across Syria.
• UN Security Council Condemns Syria Massacre RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- The United Nations Security Council condemned on Monday a massacre of dozens of Syrian civilians, including children, in the country's western village of Houla.
• Russia Says Assad Forces, Rebels to Blame for Syria Massacre RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- Both government forces and rebels were responsible for this weekend’s massacre in the Syrian town of Houla, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday.
• Joint UN-Arab League envoy arrives in Syria at 'critical' moment in crisis UN News Centre 28 May 2012 -- The Joint Special Envoy of the United Nations and the League of Arab States arrived in the Syrian capital on Monday at what he called a 'critical' moment in the crisis, just days after the massacre of men, women and children that has sparked widespread condemnation.
• Envoy Kofi Annan in Syria Amid More Violence VOA 28 May 2012 -- International peace envoy Kofi Annan is in Syria to salvage a peace plan that he admits is not being comprehensively implemented, as rights activists report a government assault on the central city of Hama that killed at least 34 people.
• SRI LANKA: Former Tiger fighters battle for a normal life IRIN 28 May 2012 -- Three years after Sri Lanka's 26-year civil war ended, thousands of former fighters of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) face an uphill battle in re-establishing themselves, despite government efforts to rehabilitate them.
• Sudan Ready to Withdraw Troops from Disputed Area RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir is ready to pull troops from the disputed, Abyei, border area with South Sudan, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said on Sunday at a press briefing.
• UN Awaits Access to Displaced Somalis in Afgoye VOA 28 May 2012 -- The U.N. humanitarian affairs office says it is still waiting for African Union and Somali forces to say which parts of the Afgoye corridor aid groups can access to help more than 400,000 internally displaced Somalis. AU and Somali government forces seized control of the corridor from militants last week.

News Reports

• Iran Arrests Spy Near Ahmadinejad's Helicopter IRNA 28 May 2012 -- Iranian security forces have arrested a man on suspicion of spying for an Arab state's intelligence agency, the Fars news agency reported on Monday.
• Powerful 'Flame' Computer Virus Hits Iran, Mideast RFE/RL 28 May 2012 -- Experts say they have discovered a complex virus, dubbed "Flame" or "Skywiper," which is infecting and stealing information from computers in Iran and the Middle East.
• Soltanieh: IAEA report proves peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear activities IRNA 26 May 2012 -- Iran's Permanent Representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency Ali Asghar Soltanieh said on Saturday Amano's new report proves peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear activities.
• Larijani elected provisional Majlis speaker IRNA 28 May 2012 -- Members of the 9th Majlis on Monday elected former Parliament speaker Ali Larijani as provisional speaker of the new Majlis.
• China calls for flexibility in Iran-G5+1 nuclear talks IRNA 28 May 2012 -- China on Monday called for flexibility in nuclear talks between Iran and Group 5+1 scheduled to be held in Moscow from June 18-19.
• Russia, Britain support continuation of Iran-G5+1 nuclear talks IRNA 28 May 2012 -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his British counterpart William Hague on Monday welcomed the continuation of Iran-G5+1 nuclear talks in Moscow.
• Muslim Brotherhood, Mubarak's Last Premier To Meet In Egypt Runoff RFE/RL 28 May 2012 -- Egypt's electoral commission says a presidential runoff next month will pit the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate, Mohamed Mursi, against Ahmed Shafiq, ousted President Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister.
• Egypt Election Commission Confirms Shafiq, Mursi in Runoff RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- Egypt's Supreme Presidential Election Commission has confirmed that former prime minister Ahmed Shafiq and Muslim Brotherhood representative Mohammed Mursi will compete in a presidential runoff vote on June 16-17, commission head Farouk Sultan said on Monday.
• Islamist, Oldliner Confirmed for Egypt's Presidential Run-off VOA 28 May 2012 -- Egyptian election officials on Monday confirmed presidential vote results setting up a polarizing run-off between the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood's candidate and one with strong ties to the rule of former President Hosni Mubarak.
• Pakistani Doctor's Family Says Trial A Sham RFE/RL 28 May 2012 -- The brother of a Pakistani doctor jailed for helping U.S. intelligence track down Osama bin Laden has called on the head of Pakistan's supreme court to intervene to allow an appeal by his brother.
• ETA Leader Arrested in France RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- French police have arrested the military leader of Basque separatist group ETA, Oroitz Gurruchaga Gogorza, in the French town of Cauna, the Spanish Interior Ministry said on Monday.
• Russia Blasts McFaul for Statements at Meeting with Students RIA Novosti 28 May 2012 -- Russia's Foreign Ministry on Monday criticized U.S. Ambassador Michael McFaul for statements he made at a meeting with students of the Higher School of Economics in Moscow a few days earlier.