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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
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News Reports

Current Operations

• Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) Casualty Update 03 Nov 2015 [PDF]
• Military Strikes Continue Against ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq AFPS 03 Nov 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.
• Afghan troops win back southern district from Taliban Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- Afghan forces have regained control of a district in the southern province of Zabul from Taliban following heavy clashes with members of the militant group there.
• Pentagon Found Wasting $43 Million On Afghan Gas Station RFE/RL 03 Nov 2015 -- The United States spent $43 million on a natural gas station in northern Afghanistan that should have cost just $500,000, a Pentagon watchdog reported on November 2.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Carter Discusses Asia-Pacific Issues at Malaysia Meeting AFPS 03 Nov 2015 -- Defense Secretary Ash Carter today met with several counterparts representing nations from across the Asia-Pacific region during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Defense Ministers' Meeting – Plus, held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, according to statements provided by Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook.
• Carter: North Korea 'Up Close, Dangerous' Threat AFPS 03 Nov 2015 -- The United States and South Korea have an 'iron clad' alliance in the face of the 'up close, dangerous' threat of North Korea, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said yesterday in Seoul.
• Readout of Secretary of Defense Ash Carter's Meeting With Thai Minister of Defense Prawit Wongsuwan in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia DoD 03 Nov 2015
• Readout of Secretary of Defense Ash Carter's Meeting With India Minister of Defense Manohar Parrikar in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia DoD 03 Nov 2015
• Readout of Secretary of Defense Ash Carter's Meeting With Singaporean Minister of Defense Ng Eng Hen in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia DoD 03 Nov 2015
• Readout of Secretary of Defense Ash Carter's Meeting With Philippine Secretary of National Defense Voltaire Gazmin in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia DoD 03 Nov 2015
• Readout of Secretary of Defense Ash Carter's Meeting With Japanese Minister of Defense Gen Nakatani in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia DoD 03 Nov 2015
• Readout of Secretary of Defense Ash Carter's Meeting With People's Republic of China's Minister of National Defense, General Chang Wanquan in Kuala Lumpur, Malayasia DoD 03 Nov 2015
• McChord aircrews train for global response in joint exercise AFNS 03 Nov 2015 -- C-17 Globemaster III aircrews from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., joined paratroopers late October to conduct quick reaction force drills in North Carolina for future worldwide crises and contingencies.
• Work Applauds Defense Funding Agreement AFPS 03 Nov 2015 -- The recent budget agreement between Congress and the White House for two-year Defense Department funding will help strike a balance between needs and resources, Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work said yesterday at the 3rd annual Defense One Summit here.
• Navy Lays Keel of Future LCS Billings NNS 03 Nov 2015 -- The U.S. Navy held a keel laying ceremony for the future USS Billings (LCS 15) at Marinette Marine Corporation shipyard, Nov. 2.
• SECNAV Visits USS George Washington NNS 03 Nov 2015 -- Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Ray Mabus visited Sailors aboard USS George Washington (CVN 73), Oct. 30 - Nov. 1, as the ship transited the Strait of Magellan.
• A view from the ground: the land component of Trident Juncture 2015 NATO 03 Nov 2015 -- The capabilities of NATO's land forces are being put to the test during Exercise Trident Juncture 2015: the largest military exercise of the Alliance in more than a decade. Land forces from 16 NATO Allies are participating in the exercise together with air, maritime and special operations forces to improve their readiness and ability to work together across a wide range of capabilities.
• Russia Set to Scrap 17 Outdated Topol Missile Launchers by 2017 Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- The Russian state space corporation Roscosmos is planning to dismantle a total of 17 outdated Topol mobile missile launchers by the end of 2016.
• Russia's Eastern Military District Receives Iskander-M Missile Systems Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- A missile unit in Russia's Southern Military District located in the East Siberian Republic of Buryatia received Iskander-M (NATO reporting name SS-26 Stone) tactical missile systems, the Defense Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.
• Russia to Create New Space Launches Using Satan Ballistic Missiles by 2017 Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- The creation of new space launches using converted ballistic missiles, including the Satan, will be accomplished by 2017, a deputy director of a Rostech subsidiary said Tuesday.
• PLA official tells US not to spoil relations with China People's Daily 03 Nov 2015 -- Yi Xiaoguang, deputy chief of the general staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, on Monday urged the US "not to do things that undermine the big picture of the China-US relationship" when he addressed the recent US navy entry into waters close to a Chinese island in the South China Sea.
• China starts mine-sweeping mission along Sino-Vietnam border People's Daily 03 Nov 2015 -- Chinese soldiers began their third landmine-sweeping mission along the Sino-Vietnam border on Tuesday, covering 30 townships in six counties in southwest China's Yunnan Province.
• British Lawmakers Will Not Support Extension of Syria Airstrikes VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- A key committee in Britain's parliament issued a report Tuesday saying lawmakers will not support expanding airstrikes into Syria unless Prime Minister David Cameron's government answers a number of questions about the legal, political and military risks.
• Poroshenko Signs Bill Allowing Foreigners to Serve in Ukrainian Army Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed a bill into law allowing foreigners to serve on a contract basis in the country's armed forces, the Ukrainian Parliament reported on its official website Tuesday.
• Joint complex weapons agreement with France as UK and French relations deepen UK MOD 03 Nov 2015 -- Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has today unveiled a new agreement with France that will help pave the way for the next generations of missiles.
• UK-French defence cooperation reaffirmed on fifth anniversary of Lancaster House Agreement UK MOD 03 Nov 2015 -- On the fifth anniversary of the Lancaster House Agreement, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon and French Minister for Defence Monsieur Le Drian reaffirm the defence relationship between their countries.
• Japan Donates 2 More Patrol Boats to Vietnam Amid S. China Sea Tensions VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- Japan has delivered to Vietnam another two ships that will be refurbished into patrol boats in disputed waters of the South China Sea.
• Background Briefing On Secretary Kerry's Central Asia Trip US Dept. of State 03 Nov 2015 -- Senior State Department Official
• Press Briefing by Press Secretary Josh Earnest, 11/3/2015 The White House 03 Nov 2015
• November 3, 2015 - U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 03 Nov 2015

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for November 03, 2015
• Russia Continues to Play Leading Role in International Arms Trade Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- Russia remains the second largest arms exporter in the world that constantly manages to discover new markets, Swiss newspaper Finanz und Wirtschaft wrote.

Other Conflicts

• 3 November 2015 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 03 Nov 2015
• South China Sea Dispute Sinks ASEAN Joint Statement VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- A meeting of ASEAN defense ministers Wednesday in Malaysia did not include the signing of any joint statement, after China lobbied to block any mention of the contentious South China Sea.
• Admiral: US Will Operate 'Whenever', 'Wherever' in S. China Sea VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- A senior U.S. military official said the United States will continue to fly, sail and operate whenever and wherever international law allows, including the South China Sea. The remarks, by U.S. Pacific Command Commander (PACOM) Admiral Harry Harris, follows a media report that the U.S. Navy plans to conduct regular patrols near contested islands claimed by China.
• China censures US for 'disharmonious atmosphere' in South China Sea Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- A top Chinese military commander has expressed regret that the United States has created a "disharmonious atmosphere" in the South China Sea.
• US to continue testing waters around China islands: Top admiral Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- The United States will continue to patrol the waters surrounding China's man-made islands in the disputed South China Sea, the head of the US Pacific Command said in Beijing.
• US Defense Secretary Urges China to Stop Militarization of South China Sea Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- China and other countries must end their quest to take control over islands in the South China Sea.
• US, Japan Determined to Conduct Maritime Operations in South China Sea Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and Japanese Minister of Defense Gen Nakatani confirmed during a meeting in Kuala Lumpur their countries' intentions to carry out maritime operations in the Asia-Pacific region, the US Defense Department said in a press release on Tuesday.
• US Military Presence in South China Sea 'Blatant Provocation' - Beijing Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- Washington's military activities in the South China Sea is a 'blatant provocation,' and China will respond to any violation of its sovereignty and national interests, the country's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.
• Yemen's curse: civil war, bombs, and now floods IRIN 03 Nov 2015 -- The last thing Yemenis needed in the middle of their long and bitter civil war was a natural disaster. But now the most powerful storm in decades, Cyclone Chapala, has struck the ill-equipped nation, flooding an al-Qaeda-controlled port and much of surrounding Hadhramaut Province.
• Saudi jets mistakenly bomb allied forces in Yemen Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- Saudi warplanes have caused dozens of casualties by mistakenly targeting the Riyadh-allied militants who fight on the side of fugitive former Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi in west-central Yemen.
• YPG Forces Fight to Halt IS Advance Near Key Militant Stronghold VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- The northern Syrian city of Raqqa is a major stronghold of the Islamic State and is among the places the Obama administration has included in its plan to take back territory from the extremist group, which is also known as ISIS. Local Kurdish forces known as the YPG are putting up a fight against the ISIS militants near Raqqa.
• Iran rejects foreign military buildup in Syria Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- A senior Iranian official has reiterated Tehran's opposition to military intervention in Syria, saying that would further complicate the tumultuous situation in the conflict-stricken Arab country.
• No transitional period in Syria: Deputy FM Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad has expressed his country's opposition to the idea of a 'transitional period' in Syria.
• Russia Claims Cooperation With Opposition On Syria Air Strikes RFE/RL 03 Nov 2015 -- Russia's military claims it has carried out air strikes against 'terrorist positions' in Syria, for the first time, based on information obtained from moderate Syrian opposition fighters who are battling President Bashar al-Assad's regime as well as Islamic State (IS) militants and Al-Qaeda fighters.
• Russian Jets Destroyed Over 2,000 Terrorist Targets Since September 30 Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- The Russian Aerospace Forces have carried out 1,631 sorties and destroyed 2,084 ISIL and Nusra Front targets in Syria since the start of the anti-terrorist air campaign in the country on September 30, the Russian General Staff said Tuesday.
• Damascus Opposes Transitional Period, Says Intra-Syria Dialogue Needed Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- Damascus opposes a transitional period in Syria, considering an intra-Syrian nationwide dialogue expansion as the only way to settle the crisis in war-torn country, Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said Tuesday.
• Russian Warplanes Use Bunker Buster Bombs in Airstrikes in Syria Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- The Russian Aerospace Forces used two BETAB-500 bunker buster bombs in Tuesday's airstrikes against ISIL targets in Syria, a spokesman for the Aerospace Forces in Syria said.
• Russia: Keeping Syria's Assad in Power Not Crucial VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- The Kremlin is one of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's strongest supporters, but a Russian spokeswoman said Moscow's policy does not depend, as a matter of principle, on Assad remaining in power.
• Lebanese law forces Syrian refugees underground IRIN 02 Nov 2015 -- Ibrahim waited outside the legal clinic with his most valuable belongings – Syrian ID, passport, a document proving his status as a UN-registered refugee and a notarised pledge promising not to work in Lebanon – all in a crumpled shopping bag.
• 3 PKK militants killed in southeast Turkey clashes Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- Three members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militant group have been killed in clashes with Turkish security forces in the volatile southeastern part of the country.
• Former Somali Intelligence Director Questions Troops' Capabilities VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- Many people, including Somalia's former director of national intelligence Ahmed Moallim Fiqi, are questioning the capacity of the Somali government to prevent incidents like this week's deadly attack by al-Shabab militants at a popular Mogadishu hotel.

News Reports

• UNHCR: Not Enough Progress Made to Eradicate Statelessness VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- The U.N. refugee agency said a global 10-year campaign launched one year ago to end statelessness is making progress, but not enough.
• Leader: Fighting big powers a rational move based on Iranians' past experiences IRNA 03 Nov 2015 -- Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said fighting world hegemonic powers is a rational move supported by concrete facts which is based on the past experiences of the Iranian nation.
• US, Iran's main enemy: Ayatollah Khamenei ISNA 03 Nov 2015 -- Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said the United States is the main enemy of Iran.
• Iran's Ayatollah: 'Death to America' Refers to US Policies VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- Iran's supreme leader said the slogan 'Death to America' is not aimed at the American people, but rather American policies, in comments reported on his official website Tuesday.
• Iraq: UN health agency mobilizes immunization campaign to help control cholera outbreak UN News 03 Nov 2015 -- The World Health Organization (WHO) has mobilized 510,000 dozes of oral cholera vaccine (OCV) to be administered to an estimated 250,000 displaced persons in Iraq, in an effort to curtail the cholera outbreak which is now feared to be spreading to neighbouring countries.
• Iraq's Ahmad Chalabi: Contentious 'Wheeler-Dealer' Behind U.S.-Led Invasion RFE/RL 03 Nov 2015 -- A man once groomed by the United States as a possible successor to Saddam Hussein in a postwar Iraq, Ahmad Chalabi will be remembered as a polarizing figure who played high-stakes politics but never managed to reach the top of his country's sectarian-driven political landscape.
• Ahmad Chalabi, Key Proponent of Iraq War, Dies at 71 VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- Iraqi Shi'ite politician Ahmad Chalabi, a key proponent of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, died Tuesay at the age of 71. Iraqi media say he suffered a heart attack at his home in Baghdad.
• Deputy FM condoles with Iraqi gov't on demise of Ahmad Chalabi IRNA 03 Nov 2015 -- Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab-African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian ion Tuesday condoled the Iraqi government and nation on the demise of Renowned Iraqi politician and parliamentarian Ahmad Chalabi.
• Iraqi politician Ahmad Chalabi dies at 71 Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- Ahmad Chalabi, a veteran Iraqi politician who frequented the country's political scene in senior posts in the 2000s, has died of a heart attack in the capital, Baghdad, at the age of 71.
• Turkish Election Outcome May Aid Fight Against IS, Analysts Say VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- Some analysts say Sunday's landslide election victory for Turkey's ruling party could help in the regional fight against Islamic State militants.
• Turkish police arrest 44 Gulen supporters across country Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- Turkey has reportedly arrested dozens of people, including senior officials and police officers, in an operation targeting supporters of the US-based Turkish opposition cleric Muhammed Fethullah Gulen across the country.
• Turkish Media Report 35 Arrests in Raids Linked to Erdogan Critic VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- Authorities in Turkey detained 35 people Tuesday in an operation targeting supporters of a cleric accused of trying to topple President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, local media said.
• Russian Oil Output Hits Post-Soviet High, Bests Saudi Arabia RFE/RL 03 Nov 2015 -- Russian oil production rose to a post-Soviet record of 10.78 million barrels a day last month, besting Saudi Arabia's output of 10.1 million and contributing to a renewed slump in oil prices.
• US Satellite Detects Flash At Time of Russian Plane Disaster VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- A U.S. military satellite detected a heat flash at the time a Russian jetliner crashed over the Sinai Peninsula last weekend, authorities said Tuesday, but the cause of the accident remains a mystery.
• Satellite Image Suggests Internal Explosion Downed Russian Plane RFE/RL 03 Nov 2015 -- U.S. satellite images suggest that an explosion downed a Russian passenger jet over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula on October 31, casting doubt on the theory that the airliner was struck by a missile.
• China unveils proposals for formulating nation's five-year plan People's Daily 03 Nov 2015 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping said Tuesday that the country's annual growth rate should be no less than 6.5 percent in the next five years to realize the goal to double 2010 GDP and per capita income by 2020.
• China to prosecute ex-head of Xinjiang border guards for suspected graft Press TV 03 Nov 2015 -- Beijing says it will prosecute the former head of the border army regiment in China's mainly Muslim northwestern region of Xinjiang for suspected graft.
• Space Station's 15th Year Is Testament To Global Cooperation RFE/RL 03 Nov 2015 -- The International Space Station marked its 15th year carrying astronauts around the Earth on November 2, a new milestone for the orbiting lab that some say deserves a Nobel Peace Prize.
• Russian Space Agency Signs Contracts for 31 Commercial Launches in 2015 Sputnik 03 Nov 2015 -- The Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) signed contracts for 31 commercial space launches in 2015, the agency's head Igor Komarov said Tuesday.
• Myanmar Struggles to Finalize Voter Lists for Sunday Polls VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- Election officials in Myanmar are still struggling to finalize the nationwide voter list as the nation heads to the polls on Sunday.
• Uganda's Opposition Fails to Find Consensus Presidential Candidate VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- Nomination of presidential candidates for Uganda's 2016 general elections begins Tuesday. President Yoweri Museveni, who has ruled Uganda for 30 years, will be nominated by the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) for another term.
• Five Questions: The Arrest Of Ukrainian Oligarch Hennadiy Korban RFE/RL 03 Nov 2015 -- The arrest of a close associate of one of Ukraine's most powerful oligarchs has pundits and the public wondering whether President Petro Poroshenko is finally cracking down on corruption or merely trying to silence political opponents.
• US Offers Counterbalance to Russia for Central Asia VOA 03 Nov 2015 -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is wrapping up the first trip by a top U.S. diplomat to all five Central Asian countries in what Russian analysts say underscores the counterbalance played by Washington in the region.