Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• Airstrikes Continue Against ISIL in Iraq, Syria AFPS 01 Feb 2015 -- U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Patrol Squadron 40 Returns Home Following Deployment to US 7th Fleet NNS 01 Feb 2015 -- The 'Fighting Marlins' of Patrol Squadron (VP) 40 returned to Naval Air Station (NAS) Whidbey Island, Washington, Jan. 29, following a seven-month deployment to the Pacific in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility.
• 'Russian bomber carried nuclear missile over the Channel' Iran Press TV 01 Feb 2015 -- A Russian bomber reported intercepted flying over the English Channel last week is purported to have carried a nuclear weapon.
• Kuban Military Aviation Base to Get 25 New Yak-130 Training Planes in 2015 Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- The Zhukovsky and Gagarin Air Force Academy in Armavir, Krasnodar is set to receive five new Yakovlev Yak-130 light attack training aircraft this week, with twenty more to be delivered before the year is out, Rossiyskaya Gazeta reports.
• North Korea Stages Exercise Targeting Imaginary US 'Imperialist Carrier' Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- North Korea has successfully staged joint naval and air force drills targeting the US Navy, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
• Iran holds counter-sabotage drills in Fordo N. site ISNA 01 Feb 2015 -- Iran successfully staged series of unannounced counter-sabotage drills in Fordo enrichment site, central Iran, with the aim of dealing with any possible sabotage.
• UK to deploy 'extra troops' to Malvinas Islands Iran Press TV 01 Feb 2015 -- Britain is to deploy 300 extra troops to the Malvinas Islands in the South Atlantic, as the disputed territory reaches its highest state of alert in almost 20 years, a report says.
• Japan Successfully Launches New Spy Satellite Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- Japan successfully completed the launch of a radar reconnaissance satellite on Sunday morning, the Kyodo news agency reports.
• Australia donates two vessels to Philippines Iran Press TV 01 Feb 2015 -- Australia has donated two military vessels to the Philippines, which has been struggling with a shortage of watercraft at times of frequent natural disasters.

Defense Industry

• Russian Arms Maker Cuts the Red Tape to Deliver Cheaper, Better Weapons Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- The Russian military industry is learning to make cheaper, higher-quality weapons systems, Russian business magazine Expert.ru has reported, citing the development of an updated 8-wheeled carrier vehicle for S-300 and S-400 surface-to-air missile systems which is 25 percent cheaper than earlier versions of the truck.

Other Conflicts

• Damascus Explosion Kills 7 Lebanese Shi'ite Pilgrims VOA 01 Feb 2015 -- At least seven Lebanese Shi'ite pilgrims were killed Sunday in Damascus when a bomb exploded on the bus carrying them to holy sites in the Syrian capital.
• Ukraine War Wounded Flood Civilian Hospitals VOA 01 Feb 2015 -- Dozens of injured Ukrainian troops arrive daily at the Central Hospital in the Donetsk region city of Artemivsk, 40 kilometers from the government-controlled town of Debaltseve, which has been under siege from pro-Russian rebels for the past week. The scene there is sometimes chaotic, always stressful and too often somber.
• Ukraine Fighting Continues as Peace Talks Fail Again VOA 01 Feb 2015 -- Authorities in Kyiv say at least 13 Ukrainian soldiers, and seven civilians, have been killed over the past 24 hours in fighting in the eastern part of the country, following the collapse of peace talks aimed at de-escalating the crisis.
• New round of peace talks on Ukraine crisis ends without deal People's Daily 01 Feb 2015 -- The latest round of peace talks on Ukraine crisis on Saturday ended in the Belarusian capital of Minsk without an agreement.
• 40 killed in east Ukraine clashes as Minsk truce talks fail Iran Press TV 01 Feb 2015 -- At least 40 more people have been killed in continued battle between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russia forces as renewed peace talks in Minsk failed to bear fruit.
• Germany, France Call For Immediate Cease-Fire In Eastern Ukraine RFE/RL 01 Feb 2015 -- French President Francois Hollande, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko have called for 'an immediate cease-fire' in eastern Ukraine, a day after the latest peace talks collapsed.
• Ukraine, Germany, France Say Contact Group Meetings Require No Precondition Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- The leaders of Ukraine, Germany and France agreed that the meetings of the Contact Group on Ukrainian reconciliation require no preliminary conditions, the press service of Ukrainian President Petro Peroshenko said Sunday.
• Poroshenko, Merkel, Hollande Disappointed Over Lack of Minsk Talks Progress Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- The leaders of Ukraine, Germany and France expressed disappointment over the lack of progress during Minsk talks on Ukrainian reconciliation, the press service of Ukrainian President Petro Peroshenko said Sunday.
• Ukraine Contact Group Fails to Sign Agreement, DPR, LPR Envoys Say Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- The negotiators of the Contact Group on Ukrainian reconciliation have failed to sign a final document on the results of the talks in Minsk, having only managed to voice their stances, representatives of the self-proclaimed people's republics of Donetsk and Luhansk (DPR and LPR) have announced.
• Ukrainian Armed Forces Preparing New Offensive in Donbas, LPR Envoy Says Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- Kiev forces are preparing a new offensive in the southeast of Ukraine (Donbas), the envoy of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) at the Minsk talks on Ukrainian reconciliation has announced.
• Nigeria military repels Boko Haram's assault in NE Iran Press TV 01 Feb 2015 -- Nigeria's military has managed to repel an assault by Takfiri Boko Haram terrorists on the strategic northeastern city of Maiduguri.
• Chadian military choppers pound Boko Haram in Nigeria Iran Press TV 01 Feb 2015 -- Chadian military helicopters have targeted the positions of Takfiri Boko Haram terrorists in the northeastern Nigerian border town of Gamboru.
• Boko Haram Set Back by International Forces, Violence Continues to Spread Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- Boko Haram's attack on Maiduguri was repelled, as Chad continued airstrikes on the group's positions in Gamboru, AFP reported. Meanwhile, violence in Nigeria spread westwards as blasts in Gombe killed five people and a suicide bombing in Potiskum killed 10.
• Boko Haram Launches New Deadly Attack on Key Nigeria City Maiduguri Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- Boko Haram fighters on Sunday stormed Nigerian Maiduguri, which resulted in a long battle with troops for gaining control over the vitally important Borno state capital, AFP reports.
• Nigerian Military Repels Boko Haram Attack on Key City VOA 01 Feb 2015 -- Nigeria's military said its forces have repelled a second attempt in a week by Boko Haram fighters Sunday to take over the key northeastern city of Maiduguri.
• Several reported killed in Somalia airstrike Iran Press TV 01 Feb 2015 -- Several people have been reported killed in an airstrike apparently targeting a residential home in southern Somalia occupied by al-Shabab militants.

News Reports

• Japan Outraged At Beheading Of IS Hostage RFE/RL 01 Feb 2015 -- Japan has reacted with defiance to a video that purportedly shows the beheading of journalist Kenji Goto by the Islamic State (IS) extremist group.
• Jordan Vows 'All Efforts' to Secure Pilot's Release VOA 01 Feb 2015 -- Jordan's King Abdullah II said his country is doing everything it can to rescue the captured Jordanian fighter pilot being held by the Islamic State group.
• Russia buys record amount of gold Iran Press TV 01 Feb 2015 -- Central Bank of Russia spent over USD6 billions on gold purchases last year in an attempt to shift away from a dependency on the dollar.
• From West To Far East, Russians Spending More To Buy Less Food RFE/RL 01 Feb 2015 -- It's been a tumultuous season for Russians, who first saw their food options dwindle back in August 2014, when President Vladimir Putin imposed a ban on Western food imports in response to EU and U.S. sanctions over Moscow's interference in Ukraine.
• Iran's President Strikes Back After Critics Berate 5+1 Nuclear Negotiations Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has responded to hardliners who are critical of the government's negotiations on its nuclear program with Western powers; the President hopes to have the country's economic sanctions lifted after a 12-year standoff over its nuclear activities.
• Senior official stresses military's role in diplomacy People's Daily 01 Feb 2015 -- Fan Changlong, vice chairman of China's Central Military Commission, has stressed the role of the military in the country's overall diplomatic drive.
• Protesters Return to Hong Kong Streets VOA 01 Feb 2015 -- Thousands of pro-democracy protesters returned to the streets of Hong Kong for the first mass demonstration since they shut down parts of the city late last year, demanding full democracy in the former British colony.
• Number of Bird Flu Cases in China's Guangdong Province Reaches 30 Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- Two more cases of bird flu have been reported to authorities in China's Guangdong province, placing have taken the number of infected people in the region at 30, Xinhua reports.
• Russian Proton-M Rocket Successfully Sends British Satellite Into Space Sputnik 01 Feb 2015 -- Russian carrier rocket Proton-M carrying the UK telecommunications satellite Inmarsat 5F-2 was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome, a Russian Federal Space Agency spokesperson told RIA Novosti on Sunday.
• DPRK Foreign Ministry Spokesman Refutes Senior U.S. Diplomat's Remarks on Dialogue with DPRK KCNA 01 Feb 2015 -- The spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of the DPRK gave the following answer to a question put by KCNA Sunday as regards the fact that the U.S. is working hard to shift the blame for the failure to hold dialogue with the DPRK onto the latter: