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News Reports

Current Operations

• CJTF-OIR Strike Summary Feb. 24 - March 9, 2019 CENTCOM 15 Mar 2019 -- Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve and its partners continue to target and pursue the enduring defeat of Daesh.
• US imposes visa bans on ICC personnel over probe into Afghan war crimes Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says his country will restrict visas for International Criminal Court (ICC) personnel looking into the US military's alleged war crimes in Afghanistan.
• Afghanistan clashes with US over Taliban talks exclusion Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- The United States and Afghanistan have clashed publicly over Washington's decision to exclude Kabul from its ongoing peace talks with the Taliban, a move that a senior Afghan official says is aimed at "delegitimizing" the Afghan government.
• Pakistan PM: Afghan Peace Within Reach VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan said Friday that peace in Afghanistan is "around the corner," citing ongoing negotiations between the United States and Taliban insurgents.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Depot assists National Guard, providing urgent repairs Army News 15 Mar 2019 -- Urgent depot-level repairs needed by the Pennsylvania National Guard 28th Infantry Division warranted Tobyhanna Army Depot make a trip to Ft. Indiantown Gap, Annville, PA during the first week of March.
• US-Korean Navies Work Together During SALVEX Korea 2019 NNS 15 Mar 2019 -- U.S. Navy divers assigned to Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit (MDSU) 1 and Republic of Korea (ROK) Navy diving and salvage experts began Salvage Exercise (SALVEX) Korea 2019.
• USAF B-52 Bomber Reportedly Spotted Flying Near Russia's Borders in Baltic Sea Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- Earlier, the Russian military reported that crews from the Baltic Fleet's air defence formation's S-400 mobile air defence systems had gone on combat duty in the Kaliningrad region amid NATO's continued buildup in the region.
• AMC extends Osprey capabilities US Air Force 15 Mar 2019 -- CV-22 Osprey aircraft, assigned to the 20th Special Operations Squadron, performed Tactical Air-Refueling missions with a KC-10 Extender aircraft March 7-11, over the Southwest region of the U.S.
• Zeroing weapons, increasing defenders' lethality US Air Force 15 Mar 2019 -- The 380th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron participated in firing live rounds for the first time in nearly four years at Al Dhafra Air Base, March 8.
• US to Test Conventional Ground-Launched Missile Amid INF Withdrawal - Pentagon Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The United States is prepared to test a conventional ground-launched missile amid its withdrawal from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, Pentagon spokesperson Lt. Col. Michelle Baldanza told Sputnik on Friday.
• Pentagon Hopes to Test Neutral Particle-Beam Weapon in Next Six Months Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The Pentagon wants to explore the utility of a neutral particle-beam weapon in orbit as a missile defense weapon, according to its 2020 budget proposal. It's just one of many ways the US is rushing to become the first nation to introduce weapons into space.
• Pentagon Establishing New Agency to Oversee US Weaponization of Outer Space Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The Department of Defence (DoD) is creating a new Space Development Agency (SDA) oversee the development of sensors and weapons to counter advances by Russia and China, Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said in a memo published on Thursday.
• Arkansas National Guard unit refines earthquake plan with West Memphis Army News 15 Mar 2019 -- The 61st Civil Support Team (CST), 87th Troop Command, simulated their first ever on-the-ground earthquake response on Wednesday, as part of the Arkansas National Guard's ongoing "New Madrid earthquake" planning.
• NATO Chairman Discusses Alliance's Unique Role for Peace DoD News 15 Mar 2019 -- NATO is the most successful organization of its type in history, and it is adapting to ensure it remains a force for peace in the future, the chairman of NATO's Military Committee said here yesterday.
• S-400 Air Defence Systems Go on Combat Duty in Russia's Westernmost Region Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- Combat crews of Russia's advanced S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems started combat duty in the Kaliningrad region, the Baltic Fleet said in a statement Friday.
• French Carrier Strike Group Joins Operations Against Daesh - US Central Command Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The French Navy's aircraft carrier Charles-de-Gaulle and its strike group have joined the operations of the US-led coalition against the Daesh terror group, the US Central Command said in a statement.
• Turkey's purchase of Russian missile poses threat to NATO Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- US officials have warned Turkey not to purchase Russian-made S-400 missiles, saying it would pose a security threat to members states of the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO).
• Argentine Navy Reveals Cause of San Juan Submarine Wreck - Reports Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- Rear Admiral David Burden, the director general of materiel of the Argentine Navy, said on Thursday that Argentine submarine ARA San Juan, which was discovered last November after missing for a year, had sunk due to an implosion.
• Spain – Assault Amphibious Vehicles DSCA 15 Mar 2019 -- The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to Spain of Assault Amphibious Vehicles and related equipment for an estimated cost of $107 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale on March 14, 2019.
• Poland continues push for permanent U.S. military base People's Daily 15 Mar 2019 -- Poland will continue advocating for a permanent U.S. military base for a further year, Foreign Affairs Minister Jacek Czaputowicz said on Thursday in a foreign policy address.
• Remarks to the Press US Dept. of State 15 Mar 2019 -- Remarks by Michael R. Pompeo, Secretary of State

Defense Industry

• Contracts for March 15, 2019

Other Conflicts

• 15 March 2019 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 15 Mar 2019
• US sends bombers near Chinese islands in disputed waters for second time this month Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- The US has flown a pair of nuclear-capable bombers over the South China Sea for the second time this month despite Beijing's calls on Washington to respect its sovereignty in the strategic disputed waterway.
• Disabled Victims Are Syrian War's Most Vulnerable VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- Sham al-Akhras, 10, has only known war since the Syrian civil war started in March 2011, when she was an infant. If the brutal conflict is physically and emotionally distressing for regular Syrians, it is all the more so for al-Akhras, who has to live with her disability under the harsh conditions of a refugee camp in northern Syria's Idlib.
• Arab League must re-evaluate Syria membership suspension: Ambassador Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdel Karim Ali says his country must return to the Arab League, calling on the 22-member regional organization to reconsider "its wrong decision to suspend Syria's membership."
• Hundreds Of IS Members, Families Surrender In Final Syrian Enclave RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- Hundreds of Islamic State (IS) militants and family members surrendered as U.S.-backed Syrian rebel forces moved closer to crushing the militants in their final sliver of territory in the eastern part of the country.
• Iraqi Security Forces working hard to deny Daesh transition CENTCOM 15 Mar 2019 -- Anbar Operations Command conducted a series of air assault operations and major clearances targeting known Daesh locations in Anbar province, Iraq, Feb. 26 – March 2, 2019.
• India, Myanmar Wipe Out Insurgent Camps Near Vital Connectivity Project - Media Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The joint operation against Arakan Army insurgent camps in Myanmar's Kachin area was mainly aimed at protecting the vital Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project that aims to connect India's northeast to East Asia through a deepwater port at Sittwe, the capital of Myanmar's restive Rakhine state.
• Palestinian Resistance warns Zionist of continuing attacks in Palestinian territories IRNA 15 Mar 2019 -- The spokesman for the Palestinian Resistance Committees in response to the severe attacks by the Zionist regime jets on the Gaza Strip, emphasized that resistance groups in the case of the continuation of the Zionist attacks, in a coordinated response, target the occupied Palestine.
• US rights report shows Washington's hostility towards Palestinians: Foreign ministry Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- The Palestinian Foreign Ministry has strongly condemned the United States over its decision to drop the term Israeli-occupied in describing the Golan Heights and Palestinian territories in its latest annual human rights report, stating that the measure is tantamount to Washington's hostility towards Palestinians.
• Hamas Vows to 'Take Measures' Against Perpetrators of Tel Aviv Rocket Fire Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The statement follows Israel Defence Force spokesman Avichay Adraee stating that Israeli troops attacked around 100 targets in the Gaza Strip on Friday morning in response to the 14 March shelling of Tel Aviv from Palestinian territory.
• Israel Attacked About 100 Targets in Gaza Strip After Tel Aviv's Shelling – Army Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The Israeli troops attacked around 100 targets in the Gaza Strip early on Friday in response to the shelling of Jerusalem from the Palestinian territory, spokesman for the Israel Defense Force Avichay Adraee said.
• IDF Pounds Gaza in Response to Recent Attack Toward Tel Aviv Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The Israeli military said early on Friday that it had launched strikes against "terror sites" in the Gaza Strip.
• U.S., EU Impose New Sanctions On Russia Over Ukraine RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- The United States, together with the European Union and Canada, imposed new sanctions on March 15 on more than a dozen Russian officials and businesses in response to the country's "continued aggression in Ukraine."
• US, Canada Expand Anti-Russia Sanctions Over Ukraine Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The last expansion of anti-Russia sanctions by the US occurred in January 2018, when 21 individuals and 12 entities were added to the sanctions list.
• Treasury Sanctions Russia over Continued Aggression in Ukraine US Treasury 15 Mar 2019 -- Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated six Russian individuals and eight entities in response to Russia's continued and ongoing aggression in Ukraine. Today's action targets individuals and entities playing a role in Russia's unjustified attacks on Ukrainian naval vessels in the Kerch Strait, the purported annexation of Crimea, and backing of illegitimate separatist government elections in eastern Ukraine.
• Foreign Secretary statement on international sanctions in response to Russian aggression in the Black Sea UK FCO 15 Mar 2019 -- The Foreign Secretary welcomes action taken by the EU, Australia, Canada and the US
• Residents Of Two Kyrgyz Villages Evacuated After Deadly Border Clashes RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- Kyrgyz authorities have evacuated residents of two villages near a disputed section of its border with Tajikistan following deadly clashes in the area.
• S. Sudan Rebels Urge Pressure on Kiir to Fund Peace Implementation VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- South Sudan's main rebel group is calling on President Salva Kiir to provide funds to implement last year's peace agreement and is demanding that Sudan and Uganda apply pressure on Kiir to cough up the money.

News Reports

• Development Bank Recognizes Guaido-Chosen Representative VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- The Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) has officially recognized the Venezuelan representative designated by opposition leader Juan Guaido, the first multilateral institution to take such an action.
• Venezuelan Opposition Leader: Russia, China Do Not Back Maduro VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- Venezuela's opposition leader said at a rally Thursday in capital Caracas that Russia and China do not back President Nicolas Maduro.
• Briefing With Special Representative for Venezuela Elliott Abrams US Dept. of State 15 Mar 2019 -- Special Briefing by Elliott Abrams, U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela
• Venezuelan Minister Blames US for 'Terrorist Act' Targeting Oil Plant Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The accusations come after a fire broke out at the Petro San Felix heavy oil processing plant in eastern Venezuela on Wednesday. There were no reports of casualties.
• Trump Vetoes Border Emergency Rebuke Passed by US Lawmakers Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- Marking a first during his presidency, US President Donald Trump signed his first-ever veto on Friday, rejecting a congressional resolution to overturn his decision to declare a national emergency at the US-Mexico border.
• Trump vetoes bill that would block his border emergency Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- US President Donald Trump has vetoed a congressional resolution aimed at terminating his emergency declaration over a border wall.
• Trump Issues Veto to Protect Emergency Wall Funding VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- U.S. President Donald Trump has issued the first veto of his presidency, overriding a congressional measure and protecting his national security declaration to fund a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.
• President Donald J. Trump Stands by His Declaration of a National Emergency on Our Southern Border The White House 15 Mar 2019
• Text of a Letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate The White House 15 Mar 2019
• Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova, Moscow, March 15, 2019 Russia Ministry of Foreign Affairs 15 Mar 2019
• The Week In Russia: Blue Balloons, Blood Feuds, And A Trial In Chechnya RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- The Kremlin shrugs at the top Chechen legislator's "blood feud" threat against a blogger, while a top human rights activist in Chechnya faces a verdict in a drug-possession trial denounced as a "tragic farce." There was a touch of farce in Moscow, too, where activists said police classified blue balloons held by protesters at a 15,000-strong rally for Internet freedom as "pilotless flying vehicles" and detained the demonstrators handing them out.
• Former Defense Intelligence Officer Pleads Guilty to Attempted Espionage US Dept. of Justice 15 Mar 2019 -- Ron Rockwell Hansen, 58, a resident of Syracuse, Utah, and a former Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) officer, pleaded guilty today in the District of Utah in connection with his attempted transmission of national defense information to the People's Republic of China. Sentencing is set for Sept. 24, 2019.
• Tropical Cyclone Idai affects 1.5 million across Mozambique and Malawi, as UN ramps up response UN News 15 Mar 2019 -- A major aid operation is under way in Mozambique and Malawi to help victims of Tropical Cyclone Idai, which has reached the densely-populated Mozambican port city of Beira, after registering maximum wind speeds of nearly 200 kilometres per hour, UN agencies said on Friday.
• North Korea rethinks talks with US, missile launch moratorium: official Global Times 15 Mar 2019 -- North Korea is considering whether to continue talks with the US and maintain a moratorium on missile launches and nuclear tests given the US has not changed its attitude, said a North Korean official.
• North Korea considering pulling out of talks unless US takes steps Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- A senior North Korean official says Pyongyang is considering suspending talks on denuclearization with the United States and resuming its nuclear and missile tests.
• US officials offered Iranian engineer cash to take down Tehran's power grid: Report Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- Middle East commentator and analyst Sharmine Narwani, a former senior associate at Oxford University, has claimed that an Iranian-American engineer was offered money by US officials to conduct a sabotage mission targeting the power grid of Tehran, Iran's capital city.
• China will not let economy slide out of proper range: Li Global Times 15 Mar 2019 -- Facing new downward pressures on economic growth, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Friday assured the public that the Chinese government is determined to implement large scale tax and fee cuts and live on a tight budget to let enterprises benefit.
• Highlights of Premier Li's news conference People's Daily 15 Mar 2019 -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met the press on Friday at the Great Hall of the People after the conclusion of the annual session of the National People's Congress, the national legislature.
• China rejects U.S. accusations on human rights People's Daily 15 Mar 2019 -- China on Thursday said that it firmly opposed a United States human rights report making unfounded accusations against China, urging the U.S. to stop interfering in China's internal affairs.
• Chinese ministers respond to key issues at the Two Sessions People's Daily 15 Mar 2019 -- Chinese ministers have responded to a number of key issues during interviews at the sessions of the country's top legislature and political advisory body.
• China's national legislature concludes annual session Global Times 15 Mar 2019 -- The second session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) lowered the curtain Friday.
• Free Flow of Ideas Absent in China's 'Two Sessions,' Observers Say VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- China's "two sessions" – the annual meetings of the national legislature and the top political advisory body – wrapped up their two week long discussion Friday, leaving little reason for observers to believe major policy issues had been thoroughly debated.
• New Zealand In Shock After 49 Killed in 'Terror Attack' On Mosques RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- New Zealand is in mourning after 49 people were killed and more than 20 wounded at two mosques in Christchurch in a March 15 attack that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called one of the country's "darkest days."
• Christchurch Attacks: Suspect Took Inspiration From Former Yugoslavia's Ethnically Fueled Wars RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- A 17-minute headcam video of one of the Christchurch, New Zealand, mosque attacks on March 15 opens with an eerie scene of a man identifying himself as Brenton Tarrant driving to the Al Noor Mosque, where at least 41 people were gunned down.
• Christchurch Attacks: Why Are The Names Of A Georgian King And A Ukrainian Extremist Written On The Guns? RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- Investigators piecing together the motivations of the suspected gunman behind New Zealand's worst terrorist attack are poring over the 87-page hate-filled manifesto he published, and the memes, cultural references in his online rantings, and musical allusions contained in the video he took of the deadly incident.
• Belarus Criticizes Russian Ambassador's Statements On Minsk-Moscow Ties RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- Belarusian Foreign Ministry spokesman Anatol Hlaz has criticized Russian envoy to Minsk Mikhail Babich's recent public statements about the two countries integration, calling them "artificial and juggled figures."
• US Senators Request Probe of Trump Office's Nuclear Talks With Saudi Arabia Sputnik 15 Mar 2019 -- The Government Accountability Office (GAO) should investigate the Trump administration's negotiations with Saudi Arabia over a civil nuclear agreement that may possibly violate federal law, US Senators Bob Menendez and Marco Rubio said in a letter to Comptroller General Gene Dodaro.
• Russia's Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft docks to ISS People's Daily 15 Mar 2019 -- The Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft carrying three crew members successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday, Russia's space corporation Roscosmos said.
• Taiwan blocks Chinese website over security concerns CNA 15 Mar 2019 -- Taiwan's National Communications Commission (NCC) said Friday it has blocked a Chinese website promoting Beijing's "31 Measures," which are aimed at attracting more Taiwanese to work, study, live or start businesses in China.
• As Key Vote Nears in Turkey, Unemployment Adds to Erdogan's Woes VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- Turkey's unemployment rate has hit a near-10-year high, bringing more bad economic news for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of critical local elections.
• Brussels Will Agree to Brexit Delay, With Conditions VOA 15 Mar 2019 -- European Union leaders are warning that their Brexit patience is wearing thin and, with just two weeks to go before Britain is scheduled to leave the EU, they're poised to grant more time for the country to do so – but likely with tough conditions attached.
• More ruling party officials ditching Algeria's Bouteflika Press TV 15 Mar 2019 -- A senior leader of Algeria's ruling FLN Party says President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is "history now," in another sign that the party is potentially embracing the cause of the recent widespread protests against the long-time president.
• Armenian Court Extends Detention Of Ex-President Kocharian RFE/RL 15 Mar 2019 -- A court in Yerevan on Friday has extended by two months the pretrial detention of Robert Kocharian, a lawyer for the former Armenian president said after the court session on March 15.