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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
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News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF/OND Casualty Update 18 Apr 2013 [PDF]
• Afghan, Coalition Troops Arrest Taliban Facilitator AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- A combined Afghan and coalition security force detained a Taliban leader and another insurgent in the Panjwai district of Afghanistan’s Kandahar province.
• Afghan Engagement Helps to Reduce Insider Attacks, General Says AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- Rogue Afghan soldiers have killed dozens of International Security Assistance Force service members in insider attacks over the past year.
• Afghanistan handover complete within weeks: Top ISAF cmdr. PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- A high-ranking commander of the US-led International Security Assistance Force has stated that the final phase of security transfer to Afghan control would be announced within the next few weeks.
• Security deteriorating in Afghanistan: ICRC PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- The International Committee of the Red Cross has warned that violence is increasing significantly in Afghanistan as the Taliban are stepping up their spring offensives.
• Bulldogs assist ANSF to secure Wazir Valley Army News 18 Apr 2013 -- U.S. Army soldiers from 1-327th Infantry completed a 5-day mission, titled OQUAAB XI, with their Afghan National Security Forces partners.
• Aviation brigade cases colors for Afghanistan Army News 18 Apr 2013 -- The 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, along with 4 of its subordinate task forces, cased its colors during a deployment ceremony Tuesday at Wheeler-Sack Army Airfield.
• Moondogs return from supporting Afghanistan operations USMC News 18 Apr 2013 -- Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 3 returned to Cherry Point after a seven-month deployment to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.
• 2,200 US military deaths in Afghanistan since 2001 invasion PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- At least 2,200 American soldiers have lost their lives in Afghanistan as a result of the US-led invasion of the Asian country in late 2001, according to latest statics.
• Afghanistan - the world’s most dangerous place for aid workers IRIN 18 Apr 2013 -- Attacks on aid workers in Afghanistan are likely to be as high in 2013 as the worst year on record.
• Advance Headquarters Elements Operating in Jordan AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- Elements of the 1st Armored Division headquarters at Fort Bliss, Texas, are preparing for what’s expected to be a year-long mission in Jordan.
• US plans Syria invasion via Jordan with 20,000 soldiers PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- The US military is deploying more forces to Jordan as part of a plan to dispatch 20,000 more soldiers there in a bid to invade Syria under the pretext of securing the country’s chemical weapon arsenals.
• US terror drones kill 5 in Yemen PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- At least five people have been killed in two strikes carried out by US assassination drones near the Yemeni capital Sana’a.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Joint Communique of the 37th ROK-US Military Committee Meeting DoD 18 Apr 2013
• Dempsey, South Korean Counterpart Reaffirm Alliance AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- The alliance between the United States and South Korea is stronger than ever, the top military officers from both countries said.
• Special Ops Official Discusses Adaptation, Strategy AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- The Defense Department will continue to sculpt innovative, small-footprint, low-cost solutions to achieve defense goals.
• New Command Structure Fortifies Special Operations Partnerships AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- The commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command lauded a new command structure that aligns various NATO and U.S. special operations forces.
• Services Outline Air Combat Assets in Light of Budget Cuts AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- The Air Force told Congress the budget sequester will lead to a marked decrease in force readiness by October.
• Reserve, Guard leaders discuss FY14 budget AFNS 18 Apr 2013 -- The top leaders from Army, Navy, Marine and Air Force Reserve and National Guard were on Capitol Hill here April 17 to provide statements and answer questions regarding their FY14 budget proposals.
• Budget cuts will affect readiness, Army leader says Army News 18 Apr 2013 -- The Army's under secretary said with sequestration in place and deep cuts requested, the Army is concerned about how it can train, equip and sustain Soldiers to be ready when called upon.
• Budget Reductions Limit Science, Tech Development, Official Says AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- The Defense Department’s research and engineering department faces the same challenges the rest of the department does due to limitations caused by sequestration spending cuts.
• AF leaders highlight space program successes, address FY14 budget AFNS 18 Apr 2013 -- Space is in as good a position as it's been in a very long time.
• Comptroller: Civilian Furloughs Still Under Review AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- Defense Department officials are still evaluating whether to furlough more than 700,000 of the department’s civilian employees.
• Guard Teams Help With Crises in Massachusetts, Texas AFPS 18 Apr 2013 -- Texas and Massachusetts National Guard members are continuing to provide support to civil and local authorities in the wake of explosions in Boston and in West, Texas.
• 1-14th FA Soldiers ready to deploy Army News 18 Apr 2013 -- 1st Battalion, 14th Field Artillery deployment ceremony April 11 at Rinehart Fitness Center.
• Air Force Combat Talons fly for last time AFNS 18 Apr 2013 -- The Air Force's last four MC-130E Combat Talon I's spread their wings for a final mission from their home at Duke Field on April 15.
• Techs take on new parachute mission Army News 18 Apr 2013 -- Tobyhanna technicians recently began supporting guided parachute systems used to drop supplies from as high as 25,000 feet, keeping the delivery aircraft well out of range of small arms fire.
• Field artillery training integrates women into combat specialities Army News 18 Apr 2013 -- The first class of female Soldiers joined A Battery, 1st Battalion, 78th Field Artillery, to learn the 13M, Multiple Launch Rocket System Crewmember military occupational specialty -- an MOS that was previously closed to women.
• Going Green: District powers debris-removal vessel with biofuel Army News 18 Apr 2013 -- Mechanics at the district's baseyard in Sausalito, Calif., overhauled the M/V Raccoon in 2011 to allow its engine to run for the first time on a non-petroleum fuel.
• Turnover of Speedboats Enhances Djiboutian Navy Maritime Capabilities AFRICOM 18 Apr 2013 -- The U.S. Department of State has provided the Djiboutian navy with two high-speed aluminum coastal security boats.
• Navy Divers Recover Sunken Patrol Boat NNS 18 Apr 2013 -- U.S. Navy Divers from Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit (MDSU) 2 and contracted salvage personnel successfully raised and returned to shore a sunken patrol boat (PB 502), April 18.
• Residents comment on live-fire ranges, training areas proposed for Tinian, Pagan USMC News 18 Apr 2013 -- Residents on Tinian and Saipan gathered information and submitted comments regarding proposed development of live-fire ranges and training areas.
• NSA Washington Responds to Suspicious Package NNS 18 Apr 2013 -- More than 800 civilian and military personnel safely returned to work after multiple tests of a suspicious package and unknown substance yielded negative results for hazardous material.
• Historical aircraft now on permanent display USMC News 18 Apr 2013 -- Marines moved two historical aircraft from the flight line to their permanent display location on Roosevelt Boulevard near the front gate of the air station April 12.
• Franconia Military Community garrisons in Germany ramp up closure operations Army News 18 Apr 2013 -- Throughout the next 21 months, the Franconia Military Community will need to move mission units and close two garrisons.
• Russia to Get New ICBM Later this Year RIA Novosti 18 Apr 2013 -- The first modernized intercontinental ballistic missile, Yars-M, will enter service with Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces later this year.
• Russia to Stick With An-70 Aircraft Project - Ambassador RIA Novosti 18 Apr 2013 -- Russia will stick with its original agreement with Ukraine to jointly build the Antonov An-70 propfan tactical transport aircraft.
• West Country military thefts cost £280k PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- Stolen equipment from military bases in the West Country over the past two years has cost British taxpayers more than £280,000.
• Taiwan stages beach landing drill in Pingtung CNA 18 Apr 2013 -- Taiwan's military staged a beach landing drill in the southern county of Pingtung as part of the annual Han Kuang military exercises.
• Ukraine's Parliament OKs Foreign Military Drills RIA Novosti 18 Apr 2013 -- The Ukrainian parliament approved a presidential decree allowing foreign troops to participate in a series of international drills in the country later this year.
• Iran unveils new drone, missile systems PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- Iran has unveiled an indigenous stealth unmanned aerial vehicle, two indigenous missile systems and a domestically-built mobile electronic interception system.
• Iran Navy to unveil new destroyer, minesweeping system PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- Iran Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari says the country’s naval forces plan to unveil a new destroyer and a naval minesweeping system in the near future.

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for April 18, 2013

Other Conflicts

• Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, 18 April 2013 United Nations 18 Apr 2013
• Tense Standoff Continues for 60th Year in Korean DMZ VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- The tense situation on the Korean peninsula may be the world’s most urgent security challenge.
• US Expert: N. Korea Needs More Tests for Nuclear Missile VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- North Korea would need to carry out at least one more atomic test in order to develop a nuclear missile, a prominent U.S. scientist said.
• N. Korea to US: No Talks without Removal of Sanctions VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- North Korea is demanding the withdrawal of United Nations sanctions and an end to joint U.S.-South Korean military drills before any talks with Washington can begin.
• N.Korea Sets Out Terms for Talks RIA Novosti 17 Apr 2013 -- Pyongyang has set out a list of conditions for dialogue with the United States and the South Korea.
• North Korea sets conditions for talks amid tensions PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- North Korea has called on the United States and South Korea to immediately halt their military drills while demanding the withdrawal of UN sanctions as conditions for dialogue to diffuse tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
• DPRK NDC Policy Department Issues Statement KCNA 18 Apr 2013 -- The Policy Department of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK released the following statement.
• NDC Policy Department Clarifies Stand over U.S., S. Korea's Call for Dialogue KCNA 18 Apr 2013 -- The Policy Department of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK released a statement.
• DPRK's Principled Stand on Inter-Korean Dialogue Remains Unchanged: CPRK Spokesman KCNA 18 Apr 2013 -- There will be neither dialogue nor improved relations between the north and the south as long as south Korea persists in such hostile acts.
• Confrontation and Dialogue, War and Peace Cannot Go Together: KCNA Commentary KCNA 18 Apr 2013 -- High-ranking U.S. officials are vying with each other to talk about dialogue.
• US Official, Senator Clash Over Arming Syrian Rebels VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- America's top intelligence official and a senior Republican lawmaker clashed over the wisdom and effectiveness of providing U.S. military assistance to Syrian rebels.
• Russia Worried About Syria After Assad – US Intel Chief RIA Novosti 18 Apr 2013 -- Russia has refused to join Western calls for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down because it fears what would follow Assad.
• Assad Warns of Syrian Conflict Spreading ‘Beyond Borders’ RIA Novosti 18 Apr 2013 -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has warned the West that it will pay a price for supporting terrorists.
• UN Sees 'Humanitarian Catastrophe' in Syria VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- The heads of four United Nations departments dealing with humanitarian matters warned that the people of Syria are suffering and paying for the failure of a divided international community.
• Syria: with aid efforts dramatically hobbled, UN officials call on Council to act UN News Centre 18 Apr 2013 -- Humanitarian organizations are facing enormous and dramatically growing constraints in aiding millions of Syrians.
• Promised aid funding for Syria reaches half-way point IRIN 18 Apr 2013 -- UN officials are lauding as a “big achievement” today’s announcement that Kuwait has officially allocated $300 million promised for humanitarian aid in Syria.
• African states to send 2,000 troops to Central African Republic PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- African leaders have decided to send an additional 2,000 soldiers to the Central African Republic (CAR) in an attempt to restore order to the coup-hit country.
• France Says 1,800 Mauritania Troops Headed to Mali VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Mauritania will send 1,800 troops to Mali as part of a planned U.N. force to keep the peace in the West African nation.
• Briefing: Negotiating aid delivery in Mali’s conflict zones IRIN 18 Apr 2013 -- Aid agencies managed to work in northern Mali throughout its occupation by Islamist militants in 2012.
• Cattle Raid Police Unit Graduates in South Sudan VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- A squad of 29 specialist police officers, known as the Livestock Patrol Unit, graduated in the capital of Jonglei state after two months of training in how to respond to cattle raids.
• Amnesty Urges International Action in Nuba Hills VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Civilians are bearing the brunt of the conflict in the Nuba Hills in Sudan, and the international community is doing nothing to stop the bloodshed and destruction.
• Darfur: head of joint UN-African mission renews call for humanitarian access UN News Centre 18 Apr 2013 -- The head of the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur urged the Government to ensure humanitarian access to two villages in East Darfur State.
• Iraq Failing Security Test Ahead Of Vote RFE/RL 18 Apr 2013 -- If postwar Iraq's first major elections are the barometer of its ability to maintain security on its own, the government appears to be failing the test.
• Iraq Faces Big Challenges in 1st Election Without US Troops VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- A surge in violence in Iraq is highlighting the security challenges facing the country as it prepares to hold its first election without foreign troop support on Saturday.
• At Least 22 Dead in Baghdad Bomb Blast VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Police in the Iraqi capital say at least 22 people were killed and dozens more wounded, when a suicide bomber detonated explosives inside a Baghdad cafe.
• UN welcomes Germany’s offer to resettle residents of Iraq’s Camp Hurriya UN News Centre 18 Apr 2013 -- The top United Nations officials in Iraq welcomed a generous offer by Germany of humanitarian admission for approximately 100 residents from Camp Hurriya.
• Iraqi forces close in on Saddam's former deputy PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- Iraqi security forces are closing in on Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, the most senior member of the inner circle of former dictator Saddam Hussein.
• Analysts See Chance for Peace in New PKK Overture VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Turkey and the rebel Kurdistan Worker's Party, or PKK, are in the early stages of what could become negotiations to end nearly three decades of bloody struggle.
• China Tells Japan to Cool Tensions in East China Sea VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- China is accusing Japan of increasing tensions over a groups of disputed islands.
• EU Presses Serbia, Kosovo for Historic Accord VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- The European Union summoned Serbia and Kosovo back to Brussels, pressing for an historic accord to settle relations between the Balkan foes and open the door to membership talks with Belgrade.
• EU-Mediated Talks To Resume Between Serbia, Kosovo RFE/RL 18 Apr 2013 -- Kosovo's government says EU-brokered talks with Serbia will resume in Brussels on April 19 in a last-ditch effort to reach an agreement on normalizing ties.

News Reports

• Kerry Calls for Patience on Iran Sanctions VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Secretary of State John Kerry asked U.S. senators pressing for tougher sanctions over Iran's nuclear ambitions to be patient.
• Bombings, Intimidation Mar Run-up to Pakistan Elections VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Next month, Pakistan holds its first election in five years and campaign-related violence is already having an impact.
• Pakistani Court Orders Arrest Of Musharraf RFE/RL 18 Apr 2013 -- A court in Pakistan has asked the police chief of the capital Islamabad to explain how the country's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf evaded arrest orders.
• Pakistan Court Orders Musharraf's Arrest VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Pakistan’s former military ruler Pervez Musharraf fled a courtroom in Islamabad after judges revoked bail in a case relating to his actions while in power.
• Court orders arrest of former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- A court in Pakistan has ordered the arrest of the country’s former President Pervez Musharraf for dismissing judges.
• Pakistani court orders Musharraf's arrest IRNA 18 Apr 2013 -- A court in Pakistan ordered arrest of former president Pervez Musharraf for detaining senior judges when he imposed emergency rule in 2007.
• Pakistan’s interim gov’t says cannot initiate high treason case against Musharraf IRNA 18 Apr 2013 -- Pakistan’s interim government told top the court it cannot initiate high treason case against former president Pervez Musharraf, as it has only a mandate to hold elections.
• Israeli Visit Another Sign of Thaw With Turkey VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- An Israeli delegation will visit Turkey for the first time in three years next week in another sign of thawing relations.
• Tunisian Salafists Storm Female Student Hostel VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Hardline Islamists threw stones and bottles at young women in a student hostel in Tunis to stop them staging a performance of dance and music.
• Mugabe Makes Plea for Peaceful Elections in Zimbabwe VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has made a plea for peace in the upcoming elections.
• Kerry hints US won't recognize new Venezuelan govertment PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- US Secretary of State John Kerry has hinted Washington’s refusal to recognize the newly elected Venezuelan government.
• Venezuela’s chief justice rejects appeal for vote recount PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- Venezuela's Supreme Court has ruled out a recount of the country's disputed presidential vote, saying there is no legal basis for the opposition's push for a vote-by-vote recount.
• In visit to Guinea, UN envoy works for calm and dialogue ahead of elections UN News Centre 18 Apr 2013 -- The United Nations envoy for West Africa met with a range of Guinean stakeholders to explore ways to resume inclusive political dialogue.
• Tear Gas Disperses Guinean Opposition March VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Guinean security forces fired tear gas Thursday to disperse an opposition march in the capital, Conakry.
• Son of Former Senegal President Jailed VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Karim Wade, the son of Senegal's ex-president and a former government minister, has been formally charged with illicit enrichment.
• Police Search Offices of Russian PM's Pet Project VOA 18 Apr 2013 -- Russian police searched the Moscow offices of the Skolkovo Foundation, a high-tech project promoted by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev as an answer to Silicon Valley.
• Probe Ends Into Politkovskaya Murder Suspects RFE/RL 18 Apr 2013 -- Russian investigators have completed their work gathering evidence against the five suspects in the 2006 killing of independent journalist Anna Politkovskaya.
• Italy fails in two rounds to elect new president PressTV 18 Apr 2013 -- Italian lawmakers have failed to elect a new president during the first two rounds of voting, as tensions grow among center-left politicians.