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News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF / OND / OEF / OIR / OFS Casualty Update 27 Jul 2018 [PDF]

Defense Policy / Programs

• U.S. Receives Fallen Service Members' Remains From North Korea AFPS 27 Jul 2018 -- The United Nations Command with support from U.S. Forces Korea today repatriated 55 cases of remains of fallen U.S. service members returned by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, also known as North Korea, according to a news release.
• Communications Key in Solving International Disputes, Mattis Says AFPS 27 Jul 2018 -- Reopening communications at the top line between the United States and nations such as Russia is essential in solving disagreements, Defense Secretary James N. Mattis told Pentagon reporters today.
• Texas Army National Guard Soldiers shine in HIMARS training, despite 'the fog of war' Army News 27 Jul 2018 -- "I'm feeling kind of hazy," said the rifle-wielding Soldier in the dark.
• Readout of Secretary of Defense James N. Mattis' Meeting with Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi DoD 27 Jul 2018
• Media Availability by Secretary Mattis DoD 27 Jul 2018 -- Presenter: Secretary of Defense James N. Mattis
• Press Gaggle at the Pentagon with Secretary of Defense Mattis DoD 27 Jul 2018 -- Presenter: Secretary of Defense James N. Mattis
• Iwo Jima, 26th MEU Depart Malaga NNS 27 Jul 2018 -- The Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) and components of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) departed Malaga, Spain, July 24, following a scheduled port visit.
• Red Hill: Fueling RIMPAC and Ensuring Global Strategic Alliances NNS 27 Jul 2018 -- The Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility has issued over 19 million gallons of fuel to U.S. and foreign ships and aircraft participating in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise.
• Spaced Out: Trump's Space Force Left Out of Congress' 2019 Defense Budget Bill Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- US President Donald Trump might have said he was creating a Space Force in June, but it's Congress' job to actually do that, and the defense spending bill the US Congress agreed to on Monday doesn't even include the term "space force," much less allocate money for it.
• U.S. House Passes Bill Allowing Waivers Of Russian Military Sanctions RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- The U.S. House of Representatives has approved legislation allowing the president to waive penalties against countries that purchase weapons from sanctioned Russian defense companies if they are seeking closer ties with Washington.
• Moscow: Military Confrontation in Space May Be As Dangerous as Nuclear Arms Race Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- According to a statement published by the Russian Foreign Ministry on Friday, Moscow prioritized peaceful exploration and use of outer space.
• New Nuclear Triad: A Look Into the Future of Russia's Strategic Defenses Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- Earlier this month, Russia's Strategic Missile Forces announced that the branch's rearmament with new nuclear delivery systems and their carriers would be completed by the mid-to-late 2020s. Sputnik explores what exactly such rearmament entails.
• South Korea scrambles warplane to intercept Chinese jets: Seoul Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- South Korea says it scrambled warplanes to intercept a Chinese military aircraft which allegedly entered the South's air defense territory.
• After Delivery From Russia, China Ready to Test S-400 Air Defense System Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- Russia has delivered all the necessary components to China for its first S-400 Triumf missile air defense system regiment, and Beijing does not plan to waste in any time in testing the new interceptor-based systems, according to reports.
• North Korea appoints Ri Myong Su as new military chief Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- North Korea has appointed a new military chief of staff as part of Pyongyang's leadership shake-up.
• India to Acquire Spares of Grounded Foreign Jets to Revive Its Jaguar Fleet Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- Under the $3 billion revamp plan, the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), which is responsible for the modernization of six squadrons, nearly 20 percent of the current IAF fighter fleet, will receive grounded Jaguars from France, Oman, and the UK by the end of 2018.
• UAE says wants 'bigger military role' in Middle East Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- A United Arab Emirate minister has claimed that his country can take on a bigger military role in the region, saying it can no longer rely on Western allies like the United States and Britain for its security.
• South Africa's deadly involvement in Saudi war on Yemen expanding: Report Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- South Africa's arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have grown since the start of the Saudi-led aggression against Yemen, expanding from basic weaponry to sophisticated battle hardware.

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for July 27, 2018

Other Conflicts

• 27 July 2018 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 27 Jul 2018
• Houthis warn Saudi coalition not safe from Yemeni missiles Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- Yemen's Houthi Ansarullah movement - which has joined hands with the country's army against a Saudi-led alliance of adversaries - says capital cities of the coalition will be "no longer safe" from missiles fired in retaliation for attacks on Yemen.
• Yemen's Hudaydah goes through another day of airstrikes Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- The military coalition led by the Saudi regime has conducted heavy airstrikes on the Yemeni city of Hudaydah, which has become a flash point where cluster bombs earlier dropped by the coalition warplanes killed one person and injured three others.
• Kurdish delegation in Damascus for peace talks Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- An alliance of Kurdish and Arab militants in Syria has sent a delegation to the Syrian capital for talks with Syrian government officials.
• Syrian Army Preparing Operation to Liberate Idlib Province – Military Source Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- On Thursday, Syrian President Bashar Assad estimated that Idlib province was now home to "tens of thousands of terrorists" and said that the region was among the priority areas for the Syrian military's operations.
• 'Warehouses emptying' amid growing humanitarian needs in south-west Syria UN News 27 Jul 2018 -- More than 180,000 people are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance in south-west Syria after weeks of escalating hostilities that have restricted aid access to the area, the UN said on Friday.
• The 'used and abused' children of Syria must learn what 'peace' really means, Security Council hears UN News 27 Jul 2018 -- More than 7,000 children have lost their lives or been maimed as a result of the brutal conflict in Syria, a senior United Nations official told the UN Security Council on Friday, stressing that they had been abused by the warring parties for far too long.
• Tens of Thousands Displaced in Southern Syria in Urgent Need of Aid VOA 27 Jul 2018 -- The United Nations says nearly 200,000 people displaced by five weeks of fighting in southern Syria are in need of humanitarian assistance, but access to them is severely limited.
• Kurdish-Backed SDC Holds Talks With Syrian Government VOA 27 Jul 2018 -- A delegation of the Kurdish-backed Syrian Democratic Council (SDC) and U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forced (SDF) is in Syria for talks with Syrian government officials, an alliance official said on Friday.
• Indian Gov't Source: Chinese Transgressions Continue in Sikkim Even After Doklam Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- The Sikkim sector of the Indo-China border, which lies in India's northeast, is considered "settled" according to the 1890 border agreement that defined the boundary between Sikkim and Tibet.
• Rohingya Refugees Reject Bangladesh Plan to Move to Remote Island VOA 27 Jul 2018 -- Rohingya refugees say they will not accept a plan proposed by Bangladesh to relocate to a remote island, for fear it is unsafe.
• UN chief welcomes new law giving extra autonomy to Muslims in Southern Philippines UN News 27 Jul 2018 -- The UN Secretary-General on Friday welcomed a new law which grants extra autonomy to Muslim communities living in the Southern Philippines, describing it as a "landmark achievement on the road to lasting peace".
• Historic Autonomy Deal for Philippine Muslims Takes Aim at 50 Years of Strife VOA 27 Jul 2018 -- A landmark local autonomy law passed this week in the Philippine capital, Manila, gives restive Muslim Filipinos a new sense of hope for resolving a half-century-old conflict over self-rule that has killed 120,000 people and attracted the terrorist group Islamic State.

News Reports

• Cohen says president knew of Trump Tower meeting with Russians Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- Donald Trump's former personal attorney Michael Cohen says the US president knew in advance about an infamous June 2016 meeting in Trump Tower during which Russians offered to provide comprising information about Hillary Clinton, his Democratic rival in the presidential election.
• Trump's Ex-Lawyer Says Trump Approved Aides' Meeting With Russians RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- U.S. media report that President Donald Trump's former lawyer has said the president knew in advance about a June 2016 meeting between his aides and a Russian delegation that offered to help Trump's election campaign by sharing damaging information about rival candidate Hillary Clinton.
• U.S. House Speaker Nixes Move To Remove Official Overseeing Russia Probe RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan has rejected a move by fellow Republicans to impeach the No. 2 Justice Department official who oversees the special counsel investigating Russia's role in the 2016 presidential election.
• U.S. Senator Says Russia Tried To Hack Her Network RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- A U.S. senator has accused Russian hackers of trying unsuccessfully to infiltrate her Senate computer network, in what could be the first publicly known attempt at meddling in the 2018 elections.
• On The Eve Of His Trial, A Deeper Look Into How Paul Manafort Elected Ukraine's President RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- Paul Manafort didn't think very much of Viktor Yanukovych. The longtime U.S. political consultant and lobbyist voiced serious misgivings in 2005 when he was brought on by several Ukrainian oligarchs to rehabilitate Yanukovych after his loss the previous year to Viktor Yushchenko, amid mass protests known as the Orange Revolution.
• Russia's Putin urges 'right conditions' for meeting with Trump Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin says he has invited his American counterpart Donald Trump to Moscow for talks on a range of issues but that all conditions needed to be right for such a meeting to take place.
• Putin Says He's Invited Trump To Moscow For 'Important' Talks RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said on July 27 that he has invited U.S. President Donald Trump to Moscow and that both he and Trump were ready for further summits.
• Nephew Of Chechen Leader Kadyrov Becomes Grozny's New Mayor RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- A nephew of Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Russia's North Caucasus region of Chechnya, has been appointed by local legislators as Grozny's mayor.
• UN Urges Full-Fledged Probe Into Allegations of Secret CIA Prison in Lithuania Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- In 2016, Lithuania told the European Court of Human Rights that the country wasn't harboring a secret US Central Intelligence Agency prison where terrorist suspects were allegedly detained.
• Ecuador President Says Assange Must Eventually Leave London Embassy Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- The Intercept earlier cited a source close to the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry and the president's office as saying that Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno was involved in talks with the UK and was close to finalizing an agreement to hand over the WikiLeaks' founder to the British government within the next several weeks.
• Ecuador president: Assange will need to leave embassy Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- Ecuador's President Lenin Moreno says Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who has taken refuge at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London since 2012, will eventually need to leave.
• Trump Thanks North Korea for Return of US War Remains VOA 27 Jul 2018 -- U.S. President Donald Trump extended a word of gratitude to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un Friday for returning to U.S. authorities what are believed to be the remains of 55 U.S. service members who were killed in the Korean War more than six decades ago.
• Trump Thanks Kim for 'Keeping His Word,' Returning Remains of US Service Members Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- US President Donald Trump said in a press briefing on Friday that he wanted to thank North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for fulfilling his promise and returning the remains of some US service members who were killed in Korea.
• Pyongyang 'Frustrated' Over Delay in Peace Treaty Signing to End Korean War Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- South and North Korea have been legally at war since the Korean War of 1950-1953, as neither party has signed a peace treaty. The 1953 Korean armistice agreement, however, provided for the suspension of open hostilities and a fixed demarcation line with a buffer zone.
• US Bottom Line on North Korea, Iran: Complete Denuclearization VOA 27 Jul 2018 -- Iran will likely have to agree to complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization in any future deal with the United States, just like North Korea, a top diplomatic official signaled Friday.
• IRGC chief plays down threats of military action against Iran Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- Chief commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Major General Mohammad Ali Ja'fari says Iran does not take military threats against it seriously, because a war on the country would have huge costs for its enemies.
• Mattis dismisses report of US military action against Iran as 'fiction' Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- US Defense Secretary James Mattis has dismissed a news report that the United States is preparing military action against Iran, describing it as "fiction."
• Revolutionary Guard Chief: US Threats 'Hollow', Tehran 'Has Power to Respond' Sputnik 27 Jul 2018 -- The Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps commander's remarks come amid rising tensions between Tehran and Washington over the US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, and increasingly hostile relations between Iran and Israel over Syria.
• Ayatollah Sistani calls for quick formation of new Iraqi govt. Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- Iraq's senior Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani has urged the formation of a new government as soon as possible in the wake of protests against alleged government corruption and poor public services in southern cities.
• Pakistan Election Results Show Khan's Party Wins, But Needs Coalition RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- Official results from Pakistan's legislative elections show opposition leader Imran Khan's Tehrik-e Insaf (PTI) party winning the vote and taking at least 115 of the 272 directly elected seats in the National Assembly.
• Pakistan Election US Dept. of State 27 Jul 2018 -- The United States takes note of yesterday's election results in Pakistan. The United States commends the courage of the Pakistani people, including many women, who turned out to vote and showed resolve to determine their country's future.
• UN 'committed to continue to support' Pakistan's Electoral Commission in wake of general election UN News 27 Jul 2018 -- The United Nations Secretary-General has congratulated the people of Pakistan for "exercising their constitutional right to vote" on Wednesday, thereby reaffirming "their commitment to a democratic Pakistan."
• Signs show Saudi economy headed for troubled waters Press TV 27 Jul 2018 -- Speculations are rising that an ambitious plan for economic reforms attributed to the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman may not progress as desired due to a range of "unprecedented" issues – most importantly a lack of adequate national and international investments.
• More U.S. senators criticize China's bullying of airlines CNA 27 Jul 2018 -- A dozen more United States senators criticized on Thursday Beijing's demand that 44 international airlines label Taiwan as part of China on their websites and warned that there were more offensives to come.
• China's pressuring will only make Taiwan stronger: Premier Lai CNA 27 Jul 2018 -- China's pressuring of Taiwan is not conducive to cross-Taiwan Strait relations and will only make Taiwan stronger and more united, Premier Lai Ching-te (賴清德) said Friday.
• Turkish-US Tensions Deepen Over Detained American Pastor VOA 27 Jul 2018 -- A senior U.S. official said Washington is confident a detained American pastor in Turkey will be free soon, as tensions deepen between the two countries.
• China, Uganda pledge to deepen bilateral cooperation People's Daily 27 Jul 2018 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping said here on Thursday that China is ready to deepen friendly and mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields with Uganda in an all-round way.
• CSTO Chief Charged With Overthrowing Armenia's Constitutional Order RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- The Armenian chief of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) has been charged with overthrowing Armenia's constitutional order amid a probe into Yerevan's 2008 postelection crackdown that brought Serzh Sarkisian into power for a decade as president.
• Armenian Ex-President Kocharian Taken Into Custody Over 2008 Crackdown RFE/RL 27 Jul 2018 -- Former President Robert Kocharian has been taken into custody by Armenian authorities after being charged a day earlier in connection with the deadly breakup of opposition protests following the disputed presidential election in 2008.
• Cambodia: Before crucial vote on Sunday, UN chief calls for 'pluralistic political process' UN News 27 Jul 2018 -- As Cambodians prepare to vote in general elections on Sunday, the United Nations Secretary-General issued a statement on Friday calling for "an inclusive and pluralistic political process" saying that it "remains essential for safeguarding the progress made by Cambodia in consolidating peace."
• Former Rebel Leader's Return Could Upend DRC Election VOA 27 Jul 2018 -- The re-emergence of a former rebel leader convicted of war crimes could make the Democratic Republic of the Congo's upcoming presidential election even more volatile.