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Defense Policy / Programs
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News Reports

Current Operations

• Karzai hails US military withdrawal from Afghanistan, urges Taliban to seek peace VoR 28 May 2014 -- President Hamid Karzai on Wednesday welcomed US plans to pull all troops out of Afghanistan by the end of 2016, and called on Taliban insurgents to seize the opportunity to seek peace, AFP reports.
• Kabul Lawmakers Denounce US Combat Mission Timetable VOA 28 May 2014 -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai has praised the news that the U.S. combat mission in Afghanistan is coming to an end and that all U.S. forces will be out of the country in less than two years.
• Karzai welcomes US 2016 withdrawal plan Iran Press TV 28 May 2014 -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai has welcomed Washington's announcement that it plans to pull out all of its forces from the war-torn country by the end of 2016.
• Taliban condemn US decision to keep troops in Afghanistan by 2016 Iran Press TV 28 May 2014 -- The Taliban on Wednesday condemned US President Barack Obama's decision to keep thousands of troops in Afghanistan beyond 2014.
• Multi-million-pound drug bust for HMS Somerset UK MOD 28 May 2014 -- The Royal Navy has seized an £8.5 million haul of heroin after a raid on a suspect vessel in the northern Arabian Sea.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Remarks by the President at West Point Academy Commencement Ceremony The White House 28 May 2014
• America Must Always Lead on Global Stage, Obama Says AFPS 28 May 2014 -- President Barack Obama addressed the U.S. Military Academy's graduating Class of 2014 today in West Point, New York, emphasizing the importance of American global leadership and the cadets' role in the future of world affairs.
• Obama: US Isolationism Not an Option VOA 28 May 2014 -- U.S. President Barack Obama said that American isolationism is not an option, but not every problem has a military solution, during a speech in which he defined his foreign policy approach.
• VOA Foreign Policy Analysis: Obama Speech Comes at Critical Moment VOA 28 May 2014 -- As President Barack Obama mounted a defense of his foreign policy at West Point on Wednesday, analysts, policy experts and critics warned that the United States risked emboldening tyrants and leaving a vacuum in some regions that could result in more instability.
• Obama warns US must not rush into 'military adventures' VoR 28 May 2014 -- US President Barack Obama mounted a defense of his global leadership Wednesday, rebuking critics who see him as weak but warning that not every global threat justifies a military response from the United States, AFP reports. In a major speech at the West Point military academy, Obama denied US power had ebbed under his watch, after he withdrew troops from Iraq and as he does the same in Afghanistan.
• Obama Announces New Counterterrorism Partnerships Fund AFPS 28 May 2014 -- As U.S. troops move to a train-and-advise mission in Afghanistan, the reduced presence will allow the United States to address emerging threats in North Africa and the Middle East more effectively, President Barack Obama said today in West Point, New York.
• Obama Announces Special Fund For Counterterrorism RFE/RL 28 May 2014 -- In a wide-ranging foreign-policy speech, U.S. President Barack Obama has stressed that the greatest threat to the United States and to the world today comes from terrorism.
• Remarks by Secretary Hagel during a Troop Event at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska DoD 28 May 2014 -- Presenter: Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagele
• Media Availability with Secretary Hagel en route to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska DoD 28 May 2014 -- Presenter: Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel
• Air Force recommends four-star position for Global Strike Command AFNS 28 May 2014 -- Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James and Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III continue to implement improvements to the Air Force's nuclear mission and increase support to the men and women who operate, maintain and support the nation's intercontinental ballistic missile force.
• Pacific Partnership 2014 Kicks Off with Opening Ceremony in Indonesia NNS 28 May 2014 -- Service members from Singapore, New Zealand, Indonesia, and the United States along with members of the humanitarian community attended an opening ceremony hosted by the Indonesian armed forces (TNI) to officially commence Pacific Partnership 2014 in Kupang, Indonesia, May 26.
• US military shuts down HAARP, projects' mystery to remain unsolved VoR 28 May 2014 -- The US Air Force has notified Congress that it intends to shut down the infamous HAARP project, blamed by conspiracy theorists for every global natural disaster from a landslide in 2006 in the Philippines to the 2010 devastating floods in Pakistan and the earthquake in Japan in 2011.
• Dempsey Rejects Notion of Exhausted United States AFPS 28 May 2014 -- The United States is not politically exhausted, "and it would be a mistake to come to that conclusion," Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey said during an interview here today.
• Dempsey Meets With Emirati Leaders in Military Dialogue AFPS 28 May 2014 -- This rich emirate looks like the very model of stability and prosperity, but it is in a dangerous neighborhood and the U.S. chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is visiting to improve the partnership between the two countries.
• Hagel Orders Comprehensive Military Health System Review AFPS 28 May 2014 -- Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has ordered a comprehensive review of the Military Health System.
• Winnefeld Warns of 'Overwhelming Response' to Missile Strikes AFPS 28 May 2014 -- Iran and North Korea, considered by the United States to be the chief nuclear and missile threats to the nation, know they would face "an overwhelming U.S. response to any attack" on the United States or its allies, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today.
• Department of Defense Announces Research Equipment Awards DoD 28 May 2014 -- The Department of Defense announced today that 149 university researchers at 84 academic institutions have been selected to receive research instrumentation awards. The awards will total $39.9 million and will be made under the Defense University Research Instrumentation Program.e
• 7th ESB Marines demonstrate bridging capabilities during Desert Scimitar 14 USMC News 28 May 2014 -- Marines with Bridge Company, 7th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group, chanted the preparatory commands as they lifted and moved parts of a bridge in unison, demonstrating their bridging capability to 1st Marine Expeditionary Force leadership during Exercise Desert Scimitar 2014 aboard Twentynine Palms, Calif., May 16, 2014.
• Disaster Planners Test Capabilities in Indonesia for Pacific Partnership NNS 28 May 2014 -- Service members and community disaster planners from Indonesia and the United States conducted a medical evacuation drill aboard the Kupang Marine Base in support of Pacific Partnership (PP14) 2014, May 27.
• 7th Fleet Medical Team Trains with Indonesia and Malaysia Doctors On board Blue Ridge NNS 28 May 2014 -- U.S. 7th Fleet's medical staff hosted Malaysian and Indonesian military medical teams underway aboard the flag ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) May 22 - 25.
• US Mulls Missile Defense System in South Korea – Report RIA Novosti 28 May 2014 -- Washington is considering plans to deploy an advanced missile defense system in South Korea to counter the threat of North Korean missiles, the Wall Street Journal has reported citing defense officials.
• US looking for suitable site for THAAD in S Korea VoR 28 May 2014 -- The United States is looking for a suitable deployment site for its Theater High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) in South Korea, although no ultimate decision has yet been made, the Wall Street Journal reports citing Pentagon sources.
• French Frigate Joins NATO Forces in Black Sea RIA Novosti 28 May 2014 -- The French navy frigate Surcouf entered the Black Sea on Wednesday, a military diplomatic source told RIA Novosti.
• Few Russian Troops Withdraw From Ukraine Border AFPS 28 May 2014 -- Tens of thousands of Russian troops remain encamped on the Ukrainian border, a Pentagon spokesman said today.
• Russian Naval Aviation Monitoring NATO Warships in Black Sea – Source RIA Novosti 28 May 2014 -- Naval wings of Russia's Black Sea Fleet have resumed training flights over neutral waters of the sea to monitor the activity of NATO warships, a source in the Russian navy's headquarters said Wednesday.
• Kiev resumes call-up for compulsory military service VoR 28 May 2014 -- Kiev has resumed call-up for compulsory military service, planning to draft 1,308 conscripts, the press service of the Kiev administration said Wednesday.
• Dempsey Discusses Iran's Influence on Region AFPS 28 May 2014 -- A diplomatic solution to the problems caused by Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons technology is infinitely preferable to a military operation, but the military option remains available, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here today.
• Iran's missile capability only defensive, not threat: Former US official IRNA 28 May 2014 -- Irans missile capability is defensive and it is not a threat against any other country, Larry Wilkerson chief of staff of former US Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Wednesday.
• Press Gaggle by Press Secretary Jay Carney en route West Point, NY, 5/28/2014 The White House 28 May 2014

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for May 28, 2014
• Russia Lays Down 6th Kilo-Class Sub for Vietnam RIA Novosti 28 May 2014 -- The final Kilo-class Project 636 diesel-electric submarine for the Vietnamese navy under a 2009 contract was laid down Wednesday in St. Petersburg, a defense industry source told RIA Novosti.

Other Conflicts

• 28 May 2014 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 28 May 2014
• Syrian army repels militant attack in Idlib Province Iran Press TV 28 May 2014 -- Fierce clashes have erupted in Syria's Idlib Province as government forces repel an attack by foreign-backed militants.
• Russia to Offer $327Mln in Free Financial Aid to Syria RIA Novosti 28 May 2014 -- Russia has pledged Syria financial aid worth 240 million euro (around 327 million dollars) this year to help run social programs, Russia's Kommersant newspaper cited a high-ranking official in Moscow.
• Vietnam Says China Attacked 4 Ships in Disputed Waters VOA 28 May 2014 -- Vietnam says China has attacked four of its ships near a controversial oil rig in the South China Sea, injuring three law enforcement officers.
• Libya: Rogue ex-general resumes air strikes on jihadists amid worsening crisis VoR 28 May 2014 -- Forces of the rogue ex-Libyan general Khalifa Haftar carried out air strikes on a jihadist camp on the outskirts of Benghazi on Wednesday, while gunmen attacked an interior ministry team in Tripoli tasked with protecting the outgoing government, AFP reports.
• Shortages, clan rivalries weaken Somalia's new army IRIN 28 May 2014 -- Acting governor of Baidoa and Sector 3 commander of the Somali National Army (SNA) Brig-Gen Ibrahim Yaro breaks into a broad grin, bordering on a chuckle, when asked whether his forces have any of their own helicopters.
• Hardship for third-country nationals fleeing CAR IRIN 28 May 2014 -- While thousands of Central Africa Republic (CAR) refugees have settled in villages in neighbouring Cameroon after fleeing violence, many third-country nationals with whom they escaped are still stranded in border areas, surviving on occasional aid and frustrated by unfulfilled repatriation pledges.
• Concern over camp-closure threat in North Kivu IRIN 28 May 2014 -- A warning by authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that they are considering measures to compel internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the northeastern province of North Kivu to return to their homes, and might close a number of camps in Goma, has alarmed the humanitarian community.
• Lebanon's fractured city of Tripoli starts to rebuild after tentative peace IRIN 28 May 2014 -- Jebel Mohsen has seldom been so quiet. On a Saturday in this district of Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli, the only sound is that of shovels and pickaxes. At a demarcation line separating Jebel Mohsen from rival neighbourhood Bab al-Tabbaneh, young people are removing the stains of a 30-year conflict.
• South Sudan capital faces worsening cholera outbreak IRIN 28 May 2014 -- Health officials are warning that a cholera outbreak in South Sudan's capital, Juba, which has left 23 people dead and forced more than 670 others to seek treatment, could be getting worse. Laboratory tests have confirmed that at least one person living in a Juba displacement camp has contracted cholera and there are fears the disease could spread rapidly within the crowded site.
• News Backgrounder – On Erroneous Assertions About The Leahy Law And The Search For The Missing Nigerian Schoolgirls The main impediment to U.S. efforts to support Nigeria’s broader response to Boko Haram is not the Leahy Laws, but gross violations of human rights perpetrated by Nigerian forces.

News Reports

• Security Council told of 'dramatic increase' in deadly fighting in eastern Ukraine UN News Centre 28 May 2014 -- In the Security Council's first meeting on Ukraine since the presidential election there, United Nations political chief Jeffrey Feltman said violence in the country's east has dramatically increased and reiterated Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's call on President-elect Petro Poroshenko to steer the country away from instability.
• UN Welcomes Ukraine Election; Calls for Calm; Dialogue VOA 28 May 2014 -- U.N. Security Council members have overwhelmingly praised Sunday's election in Ukraine, and urged an end to violence and the restoration of calm and national dialogue.
• Ukraine, Russia Leaders to Attend D-Day Ceremonies VOA 28 May 2014 -- Ukraine's president-elect Petro Poroshenko will attend the 70th anniversary of the World War II D-Day landings in Normandy, his office said on Wednesday.
• Draft law on imposing state of emergency in Donetsk and Lugansk registered in Verkhovna Rada VoR 28 May 2014 -- A draft law has been registered in the Verkhovna Rada on introducing a state of emergency in Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The draft law was put forward by MP Nikolai Rudkovsky. Earlier on Wednesday,the State Aviation Administration of Ukraine has indefinitely extended the restrictions imposed on flights to Sergey Prokofyev International Airport in Donetsk on May 26 in connection with a force operation, says Denis Antonyuk, spokesman for the Ukrainian State Aviation Administration.
• Ukraine's Poroshenko vows to crush unrest in east Iran Press TV 28 May 2014 -- Ukraine's president-elect, Petro Poroshenko, has promised to quickly crush pro-Russia activists in the country's eastern region.
• Uneasy Calm Reported In Donetsk After Bloody Battle RFE/RL 28 May 2014 -- An uneasy calm appears to have returned to the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, one day after dozens of pro-Russian separatist fighters were reported killed in fighting with government forces.
• EU Backs New Ukrainian Leadership RFE/RL 28 May 2014 -- European Union leaders praised Ukraine's presidential election and vowed to support the country's new leader as he assumes power in a country struggling with a flailing economy, pro-Russian separatists in the east, and ongoing pressure from Moscow.
• Kiev Admits $2.2Bln Gas Debt to Gazprom – Russian Energy Minister RIA Novosti 28 May 2014 -- Ukraine has recognized its $2.2 billion debt to Russia for natural gas deliveries prior to April 1, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said Wednesday.
• At Least 10 Injured in Gunfire in Ukraine's Slaviansk – Reports RIA Novosti 28 May 2014 -- At least ten civilians were wounded Wednesday in an army attack on Ukraine's southeastern city of Slaviansk, as pro-regime troops continued their "anti-terror operation" (ATO) with machine gun and heavy weapons fire.
• Kiev Must Immediately Halt Violence as Election Finishes – Lavrov RIA Novosti 28 May 2014 -- Ukraine must immediately move to stop violence and launch nationwide dialogue following last Sunday's presidential vote in the country, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told journalists Wednesday after talks with his Argentinian counterpart in Moscow.
• Despite Ukraine Crisis, Russia Pursues Eurasian Integration Dream RFE/RL 28 May 2014 -- At the May 29 summit of Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan in Astana, the three are expected to sign a treaty to transform their tripartite customs union into a Eurasian Economic Union (EES) by January 2015.
• Snowden: I Was 'Trained as a Spy' VOA 28 May 2014 -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says fugitive intelligence leaker Edward Snowden should 'man up' and return to the United States to face espionage charges.
• Kerry demands Snowden toughen up, face justice in US VoR 28 May 2014 -- US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday that fugitive intelligence leaker Edward Snowden should 'man up' and return to the United States to face justice for revealing the country's security secrets.
• Thailand Seeks to More Effectively Squelch Online Comments VOA 28 May 2014 -- Less than a week after the country's military carried out a coup, Thailand's government announced plans to allow it to more quickly censor content on the Internet.
• Iran lines up satellite launches next year IRNA 28 May 2014 -- Three Iranian remote-sensing satellites of Zafar, Tolou and AutSat are slated for launch using Simorgh Launcher in the coming year (to start March 21, 2015), deputy head of Iran Space Agency said on Wednesday. The satellites are designed to gather data from the environment and forecast natural disasters.
• Iran to launch 3 remote sensing satellites: Official Iran Press TV 28 May 2014 -- An Iranian aerospace official says the country plans to launch three indigenously designed and manufactured monitoring satellites into orbit in the next Iranian calendar year (starts March 21, 2015).