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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
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News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF / OND / OEF / OIR / OFS Casualty Update 26 Dec 2017[PDF]

Defense Policy / Programs

• America First? Trump Struggles to Implement Campaign Promises on Military VOA 26 Dec 2017 -- As a presidential candidate, Donald Trump promised a radically different approach to foreign intervention than that of his predecessors.
• Russia has begun forming permanent presence in military bases in Syria: Defense minister Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- Russia's Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu says the country has begun establishing a permanent presence in its two military bases in Syria.
• Russia Starts Forming Permanent Groups in Syria's Tartus, Hmeymim Bases - Shoigu Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- Russia has started forming a permanent group in Syria's Tartus and Hmeymim, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said during a conference call.
• Russia Establishing Permanent Presence At Bases In Syria RFE/RL 26 Dec 2017 -- Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu says Russia has started establishing a permanent presence at its two military bases in Syria -- the Russian naval facility in Tartus and the Russian-run Khmeimim air base near the city of Latakia.
• Russian Navy Gets Brand New Admiral Makarov Frigate Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- Russian Kaliningrad-based Yantar Shipyard has announced that the new Admiral Makarov frigate for the Russian Navy has been commissioned.
• U.K. Navy Escorts Russian Warship In North Sea RFE/RL 26 Dec 2017 -- The United Kingdom's Royal Navy says it has escorted a Russian warship through the North Sea near British territorial waters.
• Turkey to reconstruct Sudan's ancient port city, seeks to exert influence in Africa Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- Sudan says Turkey will reconstruct a ruined Ottoman-era port city on Sudan's Red Sea coast, as Ankara seeks to expand its military and economic ties in the African continent.
• Taiwan speaks out against China military drills Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- Taiwan's military officials claim China's reportedly frequent and growing military drills near the island are an "enormous threat."
• Taiwan Develops 'Asymmetric Warfare Plan' Amid Increased Chinese Drills - Report Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- China has intensified its drills near Taiwan in the wake of the adoption of the US National Defense Authorization Act that lays out the groundwork for future mutual naval visits between Taipei and Washington.
• Japan Eyes Buying More F-35s, and an Aircraft Carrier to Transport Them Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- Japan has reportedly expressed interest in purchasing more Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighters, including F-35B short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) fighters that would be perfect to accompany an aircraft carrier - a type of ship Japan has not possessed since World War II.

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for December 26, 2017

Other Conflicts

• UNICEF official calls 2017 'horrible' for children in Yemen UN News 26 Dec 2017 -- Children in Yemen could not have a worse year than 2017, according to a senior official from the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
• Saudi airstrikes kill, injure over 120 in southwestern Yemen Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- Saudi-led airstrikes have killed or injured over 120 people in a market in the southwestern province of Ta'izz, Yemeni officials say.
• Syrian Air Force warplane goes down in northern Hama, pilot killed Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- The Syrian military said one of its jet fighter aircraft has crashed in the country's west-central province of Hama as Syrian government forces, backed by fighters from allied popular defense groups, continue to make territorial gains in battles against foreign-backed Takfiri militants.
• Syrian 'opposition' dismisses initiative to hold congress in Sochi Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- Forty Syrian "opposition" groups have rejected a Russian initiative for holding a congress with the participation of Syria's conflicting sides in the Black Sea resort of Sochi next month.
• Nusra militants, under increasing battlefield pressure, agree to move to Syria's Idlib, Dara'a Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- Members of the al-Nusra Front militant group have agreed to surrender the southwestern outskirts of Syria's Rif Dimashq Governorate and move to the provinces of Idlib and Dara'a.
• Syrian Army Halts Operation Near Damascus After Terrorists' Defeat - Reports Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- The Syrian government forces have ceased their offensive operation southwest of Damascus after al-Nusra Front (Jabhat Fatah al-Sham terrorist group, banned in Russia) terrorists surrendered and started engaging in talks, Al Mayadeen reported on Tuesday.
• Indian troops kill top fighter, associates in Kashmir Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- New Delhi forces have killed a top fighter along with his associates during a gun battle in Indian-controlled Kashmir.
• Israel accelerates settlement expansion in West Bank Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- Israel has accelerated the construction of settlements in the occupied West Bank despite international condemnation.
• Congo: UN chief welcomes ceasefire between Brazzaville, Reverend Pastor Ntumi UN News 26 Dec 2017 -- United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Tuesday welcomed the signing of a ceasefire between the Government of the Republic of the Congo and a group led by Reverend Pastor Ntumi.
• Congo Watches for Rebels Among South Sudan Refugees VOA 26 Dec 2017 -- Since South Sudan's government captured a rebel base last week in the country's southwest, hundreds of refugees have poured into Democratic Republic of Congo.
• Washington 'Hawks' Attempt to 'Raise Price of Donbass Conflict' - Moscow Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- Ukraine is effectively expelling rather than reintegrating the breakaway Donbass region by terminating social and pension payments and suspending supplies of water and electricity, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigoriy Karasin told Sputnik.

News Reports

• Celebrity-Laden Action Group Officially Nominates Putin As Candidate For Russian Presidency RFE/RL 26 Dec 2017 -- The All-Russia People's Front (ONF), an action group consisting of politicians, celebrities and other well-known Russians, has officially nominated Vladimir Putin as an independent candidate in next year's presidential election.
• South Korea to establish team to monitor North Korea's nuclear activity Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- South Korea's Defense Ministry has decided to form a special team to monitor North Korea's nuclear activities as fears grow over a potential nuclear confrontation in the region.
• Russia's Lavrov warns US over aggressive North Korea rhetoric Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned the US against its "aggressive rhetoric" towards North Korea.
• US sanctions two North Koreans over missile program Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- The United States has sanctioned two senior North Korean officials over the country's ballistic missile program.
• North Korea censures 'fabrication' of new UN sanctions Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- North Korea has denounced the latest round of sanctions approved by the UN against Pyongyang, saying the punitive measures are another example of "state-sponsored terrorism" committed by the United States.
• Lavrov 'United In Opinion' With Tillerson On North Korea But Differs On Resolving Crisis RFE/RL 26 Dec 2017 -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says he is "united in opinion" with his U.S. counterpart Rex Tillerson on the issue of North Korea but that they differ on how to resolve the crisis over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program.
• North Korean Defector Has Anthrax Antibodies in Bloodstream - Report Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- A North Korean soldier who defected to South Korea in 2017 was found to have anthrax antibodies in his bloodstream, according to a Tuesday report from Channel A news.
• Treasury Sanctions Senior North Korean Officials Involved in Weapons Development US Treasury 26 Dec 2017 -- The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today sanctioned two individuals in response to North Korea's ongoing development of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their means of delivery in continued violation of United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs).
• North Korea calls on US to prove ransomware claim Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- North Korea has called on the US to provide evidence on its claim that Pyongyang was behind a massive cyber attack earlier this year.
• North Korea plans to launch satellite: South Press TV 26 Dec 2017 -- A South Korean government source says North Korea plans to launch a new satellite, as Pyongyang stresses its right to a peaceful space program.
• North Korea Has Created New Satellite - Reports Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- The previous launch of the Kwangmyongsong-4 artificial satellite with the help of the Kwanmyonson launch vehicle from the Sohee cosmodrome in the province of Pyongan-Pukto took place on February 7, 2016.
• In Search of Space: Sweden Hopeful to Get Big on Small Satellite Market Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- Sweden's only space base, located in the country's northernmost area, is preparing for a massive government investment of SEK 500 million ($60 million) poised to usher Esrange into the global satellite market.
• China Successfully Launches Rocket With Remote Sensing Satellites Sputnik 26 Dec 2017 -- The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation has announced the successful launch of a rocket with Earth remote sensing satellites.
• Despite Summons, Saakashvili Refuses To Be Questioned RFE/RL 26 Dec 2017 -- Mikheil Saakashvili, the leader of Ukraine's Movement of New Forces party and former president of Georgia, has reportedly refused to appear for questioning at the Main Directorate of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), despite being summoned for an appearance there on December 26.