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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
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News Reports

Current Operations

• Coalition Strikes Continue Against ISIS Targets in Syria, Iraq AFPS 06 Apr 2018 -- Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve and its partners continued to strike Islamic State of Iraq and Syria targets in designated parts of Syria and Iraq between March 30-April 5, conducting nine strikes consisting of 11 engagements, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
• US policy on troops in Syria unchanged: Pentagon Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- The Pentagon says the US military presence in Syria will remain the same for now, days after President Donald Trump said the American troops would leave the country soon.
• Pakistani PM Visits Afghanistan In Bid To Ease Tensions RFE/RL 06 Apr 2018 -- Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi visited the Afghan capital, Kabul, on April 6 for a day-long trip aimed at easing tensions between the neighboring countries.
• Pakistani PM Visits Kabul to Discuss Afghan Peace, Mutual Ties VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi is in Afghanistan for official talks on strained mutual ties and Kabul's initiative of seeking a negotiated end to its war with the Taliban.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Joint Statement by Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen DoD 06 Apr 2018 -- Tonight, National Guard troops are deploying to support border security missions along the U.S. southwest border.
• Readout of Secretary of Defense James N. Mattis meeting with Slovenian Minister of Defense Andreja Katic DoD 06 Apr 2018
• Secretary Mattis Press Topper at the Pentagon With Slovenian Minister of Defense Andreja Katic DoD 06 Apr 2018 -- Presenter: Secretary of Defense James N. Mattis; Slovenian Minister of Defense Andreja Katic
• USS San Diego Visits Puerto Vallarta, Mexico NNS 06 Apr 2018 -- For the first time, the amphibious transport dock ship USS San Diego (LPD 22) arrived in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for a regularly scheduled port visit, April 6.
• Airborne drop tests in progress for potential SOF Ground Mobility Vehicle Army News 06 Apr 2018 -- Testers at the U.S. Army Operational Test Command's (USAOTC) Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate (ABNSOTD) here recently conducted low-velocity airdrops of the Ground Mobility Vehicle 1.1 (GMV 1.1).
• F-35B visits CENTCOM as it prepares to enter theater USMC News 06 Apr 2018 -- MACDILL AFB – The F-35B Lightning II aircraft arrived at U.S. Central Command on MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., April 4, 2018. The purpose of the two-day visit was to inform CENTCOM senior leadership on the capabilities and limitations of the F-35B platform before it enters the CENTCOM area of responsibility.
• Djibouti grounds US military flights, suspends joint drill Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- Djibouti has ordered the grounding of US military flights and put on hold an ongoing air operation off its coast, following a string of aviation accidents this week.
• NATO Secretary General visits US STRATCOM in Nebraska, Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas NATO 06 Apr 2018 -- NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg continued his visit to the United States on Friday (6 April 2018) with stops at key military installations in Nebraska and Texas.
• NATO Secretary General in Texas: Europe and North America stand strong together NATO 06 Apr 2018 -- NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg began a visit to the United States on Thursday (5 April 2018) with a speech at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, where he stressed the importance of North America and Europe standing strong together to face common challenges.
• Chemical-Weapons Watchdog Conducts Inspection In Russia RFE/RL 06 Apr 2018 -- Specialists from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) carried out an inspection at an undisclosed location in Russia last week, the Russian Defense Ministry's official publication has said.
• OPCW Carries Out Inspection in Russia Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has conducted an inspection in Russia, the Defense Ministry has said.
• UK opens permanent naval base in Bahrain Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- The UK has officially opened a permanent military base in the Persian Gulf country of Bahrain, making a military return to the region after a hiatus that lasted more than four decades.
• UK Opens Persian Gulf Naval Base in Bahrain That Will Accomodate Over 300 Troops Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- The United Kingdom has launched a naval base in Bahrain, which will become a key site for the Royal Navy's activities in the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, the UK Ministry of Defence said in a statement on Thursday.
• 'Unimpressed' by American Patriot missile system, India turns to Russian S-400 Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- India is to finalize a weapons deal to buy Russian-made S-400 missile defense systems reportedly unimpressed by US-made Patriot missile systems' repeated failures.
• US Sanctions Unlikely to Affect Russia-India Talks on S-400 Missile Deliveries Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- New US sanctions against Russia's state arms exporter Rosoboronexport will not affect the negotiations between Russia and India on the supply of S-400 Triumph air defense missile systems to New Delhi, a source close to the S-400 talks told Sputnik on Friday.
• India Floats Multibillion-Dollar Global Tender for 110 Fighter Aircraft Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- Out of the 110 fighter jets, at least 75 percent will comprise single-seaters while the rest will be twin-seaters, according to a request for information floated on Friday. Expert Amit Cowsish says more clarity is needed if the government is to buy both types from a single vendor or multiple vendors.
• Chinese Navy Begins Testing Joint Unmanned-Manned Aviation Operations Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- China's People's Liberation Army-Navy believes that drones flying alongside manned fighter aircraft is the way of the future in naval aviation and has begun flying manned-unmanned aircraft sorties in recognition of that fact, Asia Times reports.
• Israeli Intel Chief Claims He is 100% Sure Iran Hasn't Abandoned Nuke Bomb Plans Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- Israel has repeatedly voiced concerns over Iran's nuclear deal, warning about its grave consequences. Now warnings about a "terrible mistake" have come from Mossad's boss, who calls to change or scrap the plan.
• Pakistan in Talks With Russia on Buying Air Defense Systems – Defense Minister Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- Pakistani Defense Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan has discussed with Sputnik the issues of Moscow-Islamabad cooperation and the purchases of Russian hardware by Pakistan.
• US approves $1.3 bn worth of artillery sale to Saudi Arabia Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- The US administration has given the green light to a $1.3 billion sale of artillery to Saudi Arabia, ignoring reports that its weapons have greatly contributed to a high rate of civilian deaths amid Riyadh's war on Yemen.
• U.S. reasserts support for arms sales to Taiwan amid China threats CNA 06 Apr 2018 -- The United States has reiterated its commitment to arms sales to Taiwan in response to comments by China's ambassador to the U.S. that China's reunification was "unstoppable."
• Turkey Explains Why It Preferred Russia's S-400 Missiles to US Patriots Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- Ankara failed to agree with Washington on the transfer of technology related to the Patriot missile systems, which is why it has signed an agreement to be supplied with Russia's S-400 missiles, according to the Turkish presidential spokesman.
• Qatar introduces national military service for women Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- Qatar's emir has signed off on a law enabling women to do voluntary military service and extending the service for men for as long as one year.
• Italian Navy Helicopter Crashes Into Mediterranean Sea Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- The helicopter of the Italian naval forces, participating in Operation Mare Sicuro ("Calm Sea"), fell into the Mediterranean Sea last night during the exercises, as a result of which one of the five members of the crew died, the press service of the Navy said on Friday.
• Press Briefing by Press Secretary Sarah Sanders The White House 06 Apr 2018

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for April 06, 2018

Other Conflicts

• 6 April 2018 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 06 Apr 2018
• Vietnam's Fishing 'Militia' to Defend Maritime Claims Against China VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- Vietnam is quietly fostering a state-supported fishing boat militia to hold off China at sea even as the two sides talk formally about easing their sovereignty dispute, according to experts who follow the issue.
• Syrian forces push deeper into Douma Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- Syrian government forces have advanced deeper into Douma, the last stronghold of militants in Eastern Ghouta on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, state TV says.
• Assad's Fate Should Be Decided by Syrian People - Turkish Foreign Ministry Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- Whatever Ankara's attitude toward the Syrian government of President Bashar Assad is, it is up to the the Syrian people to decide on its future fate, an official of the Turkish Foreign Ministry said on Friday.
• Syrian Forces Reportedly Enter Douma Farms Area in Eastern Ghouta Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- Earlier in the day, a security service source told Sputnik the Syrian Air Force helicopters had dropped leaflets on the town of Douma in the Damascus suburban area of Eastern Ghouta, calling on the civilians to return to their normal lives in the area.
• Israeli forces kill 8 more Palestinians Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- Israeli forces have shot dead eight Palestinians, including a child, at the Gaza border, raising the death toll to over two dozen in Israel's brutal crackdown on the week-long protests demanding the right to return to homeland.
• UN Warns Against Excessive Force by Israel, Palestinians in Gaza Protests Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- Violent protests by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip prompted a warning against the use of excessive force and a call for peaceful demonstration in what has become a weekly challenge to a barrier that separates Israel from the Hamas-ruled territory, United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters on Friday.
• UN Accuses Israel of Excessive Use of Force in Gaza VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- The United Nations human rights office is echoing a recent call by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for an independent investigation into Israel's use of force against Palestinians who staged protests in Gaza on March 30. The call came Friday as Israeli troops again clashed with Palestinians staging "right of return" border protests.
• Palestinians Hold 2nd Mass Protest on Gaza Border VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- At least one Palestinian has been killed and 40 wounded in clashes along the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip. The violence follows the killing of 19 Palestinians by Israeli forces during violent demonstrations in the same area a week ago.
• On Rwandan genocide anniversary, UN leaders ask: Can world muster the will to prevent new atrocities? UN News 06 Apr 2018 -- As the world officially remembers the genocidal murder of 800,000 Rwandans in 1994, United Nations leaders warn that ethnic cleansing and mass atrocities continue to blight humanity and call for sharper action to prevent such wholesale violations.
• UN strongly condemns latest deadly attack peacekeepers in northern Mali UN News 06 Apr 2018 -- Late Friday night the United Nations Security Council condemned "in the strongest terms" an attack earlier in the day on a vehicle of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) that killed a Nigerien peacekeeper in Gao.
• UN condemns attack that kills two 'blue helmets' in Mali UN News 06 Apr 2018 -- United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and the Security Council have strongly condemned an attack on UN peacekeepers in Mali and underscored that such attacks may amount to war crimes under international law.

News Reports

• US Raises Stakes with Tough Sanctions on Russian Oligarchs VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- The White House has announced sanctions against 38 Russian individuals and companies, saying the United States is standing up to ongoing "malign activity" by the Russian government against Western democracies and around the world.
• Treasury Designates Russian Oligarchs, Officials, and Entities in Response to Worldwide Malign Activity US Treasury 06 Apr 2018 -- The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), in consultation with the Department of State, today designated seven Russian oligarchs and 12 companies they own or control, 17 senior Russian government officials, and a state-owned Russian weapons trading company and its subsidiary, a Russian bank.
• US Sanctions Russian Oligarchs VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- The Trump administration on Friday announced wide-ranging sanctions against 38 Russian individuals and companies, part of what senior administration officials billed as a response "to address Russia's pattern of malign activities" around the world.
• US imposes sanctions on 24 Russian individuals, 12 firms Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- The United States has imposed fresh sanctions on Russian individuals and companies over a range of activities, including Moscow's alleged meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.
• U.S. Targets Russian Tycoons, Security Chiefs In New Round Of Sanctions RFE/RL 06 Apr 2018 -- The United States imposed new financial and travel sanctions against more than two dozen members of Russia's political and business elite thought to have close connections to President Vladimir Putin, the latest U.S. effort to punish Moscow for "malign activity around the globe."
• 'Person A' In His Own Words: On The Record With Shadowy Operative In Russia Probe RFE/RL 06 Apr 2018 -- Person A loves good wine and craft beer, frequents Kyiv's finest restaurants, speaks impeccable Russian, English, and Swedish, and may be a linchpin in the sprawling U.S. criminal investigation into Russia's efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election.
• Ex-spy Sergei Skripal out of critical condition: hospital Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, 66, who the UK says was probably poisoned by Russians, has come out of critical care.
• UK playing with fire in Russian double-agent case: UN envoy Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- Russia has warned Britain that it "will be sorry" for falsely accusing Moscow of carrying out a chemical attack against a former double-agent.
• Ex-Spy Skripal 'Improving Rapidly' After Nerve-Agent Poisoning RFE/RL 06 Apr 2018 -- Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal is no longer in critical condition and is "improving rapidly" just over one month after being exposed to a potent nerve agent, hospital staff in England say.
• Sergei Skripal Out of Critical Condition, Responding to Treatment - Hospital Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- A Salisbury Hospital official has confirmed that the ex-spy, who was poisoned in a chemical attack in southern England last month, is recovering.
• Turkey Slams U.S. Iran Sanctions Case As 'Legal Scandal' RFE/RL 06 Apr 2018 -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's spokesman has condemned a recommendation by U.S. prosecutors that a Turkish Halkbank executive get 20 years in prison for helping Iran evade U.S. sanctions.
• Sessions Announces 'Zero-Tolerance' on Illegal US Entry After Surge in Crossings Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- US Attorney General Jeff Sessions told all US Attorney offices along the southwest border of a new "zero-tolerance" policy for those entering the US after the Department of Homeland Security reported a 203 percent rise in illegal border crossings during the month of March, the Department of Justice said in a press release.
• Impeached South Korean President Sentenced to 24 Years in Prison VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- Impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye has been convicted and sentenced to more than two decades in prison for abuse of power, coercion and bribery, at the conclusion of her criminal trial related to the corruption scandal that forced her from office.
• China ready to fight back US trade war 'at any cost' Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- China says it is ready to fight "at any cost" in a worsening trade dispute with the United States, shortly after US President Donald Trump threatened to slap tariffs on an additional $100 billion in Chinese goods.
• US-China Trade War Escalates After Trump Threat of More Tariffs VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- The trade war rhetoric between the United States and China escalated Friday with President Donald threatening tariffs on an additional $100 billion worth of Chinese goods and Beijing warning it will fight the United States "at any cost."
• US-China Cabinet-Level Talks in Limbo Amid Trade Dispute VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- The fate of Cabinet-level economic talks between the United States and China is unclear amid escalated trade disputes and recent tariff retaliation measures announced by both countries.
• Lula ordered to turn himself in within 24 hours Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- Brazil's former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been given an ultimatum to turn himself in to the authorities within 24 hours to start serving a 12-year prison sentence on charges of accepting bribes.
• Saudi Crown Prince Issues Ultimatum for Thaw With Israel Sputnik 06 Apr 2018 -- Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has made it clear that diplomatic relations between Riyadh and Israel can only be established after the resolution of the Palestinian issue.
• Malaysia PM dissolves parl., is accused of 'dirty tricks' Press TV 06 Apr 2018 -- Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak has announced the dissolution of parliament, with critics accusing his government of playing "dirty tricks."
• PM Orban Looks Set For Another Term Ahead Of Hungarian Elections RFE/RL 06 Apr 2018 -- Viktor Orban, Hungary's right-wing prime minister, appears set to serve a third consecutive term as a result of the country's upcoming general election, although polls indicate a closer contest than 2010 and 2014.
• Russia, China Denounce U.S. Efforts To Change Iran Deal, World Trade Rules RFE/RL 06 Apr 2018 -- The foreign ministers of Russia and China have jointly denounced what they described as efforts by the United States to unilaterally change negotiated treaties ranging from the Iran nuclear deal to the global-warming pact and world trade rules.
• Nearly 800 Venezuelans arriving in Brazil each day, many seeking asylum, UN refugee agency says UN News 06 Apr 2018 -- The United Nations refugee agency is scaling up its assistance to the rapidly growing number of Venezuelans arriving in Brazil, with daily arrivals averaging 800 in recent days amid the worsening political and socio-economic situation in their country.
• Former S. African President Zuma Appears in Court on Corruption Charges VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- Former South African President Jacob Zuma appeared in court Friday to face corruption charges. The appearance was brief but significant, coming just under two months after his resignation.
• El-Sissi Re-Election Raises Questions About Future of Egypt's Opposition VOA 06 Apr 2018 -- Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi's re-election victory raises questions about the country's resurgent authoritarianism – and the future of the beleaguered opposition.