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Current Operations

Defense Policy / Programs

• USS Gerald R. Ford Achieves 1000th Aircraft Arrestment, Launch NNS 21 Mar 2020 -- An F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to "Blue Blasters" of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 34, landed aboard USS Gerald R. Ford's (CVN 78) flight deck marking the 1,000th recovery of a fixed wing aircraft using Ford's Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) March 19, 2020 at 5:13 p.m.
• US military says successfully tested hypersonic missile Press TV 21 Mar 2020 -- The US Defense Department says it has successfully tested an unarmed hypersonic missile, a weapon that could potentially overwhelm other missile defense systems.
• North Macedonia's President Signs NATO Accession Document RFE/RL 21 Mar 2020 -- President Stevo Pendarovski of North Macedonia has signed the final accession document for the small Balkan country's entry into NATO.
• North Macedonia's Leader Signs Final NATO Accession Document Sputnik 21 Mar 2020 -- North Macedonian President Stevo Pendarovski has signed the final document for the Balkan country's entry into NATO.
• Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un Guides Artillery Fire Competition between Large Combined Units of KPA on Western Front KCNA 21 Mar 2020 -- Amid the high military morale running through the entire army all out for getting fully combat ready along with firm conviction in sure victory under the extraordinary commanding art and militant encouragement by Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, the sound of another artillery has rocked heaven and earth, as part of the efforts to carry on the revolution in training.
• N Korea fires two projectiles into Sea of Japan: South Korea's military Press TV 21 Mar 2020 -- North Korea has fired two projectiles appearing to be short-range ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, South Korea's military says.
• North Korea Launches More Ballistic Missiles, Even During Pandemic VOA 21 Mar 2020 -- North Korea has test-fired what appear to be two short-range ballistic missiles, South Korea's military said Saturday.

Defense Industry

Other Conflicts

• Russia Registers 4 Ceasefire Violations in Syria Over Past 24 Hours – Defenсe Ministry Sputnik 21 Mar 2020 -- The Russian side of the Russian-Turkish commission monitoring the implementation of the Syrian truce has recorded four ceasefire violations in Syria over the past 24 hours, while the Turkish side has recorded no truce breaches, the Russian Defence Ministry said in its daily bulletin on Saturday.
• UN welcomes response by Libyan parties to calls for humanitarian pause UN News 21 Mar 2020 -- The United Nations on Saturday welcomed the "positive responses" of Libya's Tripoli-based government and the Libyan National Army (LNA) to calls for a pause to stop the fighting, in the hopes that this would allow humanitarian access throughout the crisis-torn country and head off the potential threat of COVID-19.
• THE UNITED STATES CALLS ON LNA TO OBSERVE CESSATION OF HOSTILITIES IN LIBYA US Dept. of State 21 Mar 2020 -- "The United States joins the UN Support Mission in Libya in welcoming the decision of Libyan Prime Minister al-Sarraj to endorse an immediate humanitarian cessation of hostilities to allow local authorities to come together in response to the unprecedented public health challenge posed by COVID-19."

News Reports

• Russian PM Warns Companies Against Firing Employees During Crisis RFE/RL 21 Mar 2020 -- Russia's prime minister has warned companies to keep people employed and pay them their salaries even as they struggle amid a growing economic crisis caused by the coronavirus and the plummet in global oil prices.
• Russia's Rosneft Chief Downplays Rift With Saudis, Seeks Quick Oil-Price Rebound RFE/RL 21 Mar 2020 -- The powerful head of Russia's largest oil company has downplayed the disagreement with Saudi Arabia that led to a dramatic fall in oil prices, and he predicted a quick rebound sometime this year as U.S. shale production is knocked out.
• Trump to Kim Jong Un: We Can Help With Coronavirus VOA 21 Mar 2020 -- President Donald Trump has sent a personal letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, offering U.S. help amid the coronavirus pandemic, the first known contact between the two leaders in months.
• SPA Presidium Releases Decision to Convene SPA Session KCNA 21 Mar 2020 -- The Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) of the DPRK on March 20 released a decision on convening a SPA session.
• SPA Issues Official Notice KCNA 21 Mar 2020 -- The Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on Friday made public an official notice to inform the SPA deputies of convening the 3rd Session of the 14th SPA in Pyongyang on April 10, Juche 109 (2020).
• President Rouhani: Time has come for American people to halt this dark chapter in American history ISNA 21 Mar 2020 -- In a message addressing the people of America, President Hassan Rouhani described countering COVID-19 a global "duty" of all and warned that under a "pandemic" situation, Tehran, Paris, London and Washington are not far apart, and any hostile actor seeking to undermine Iran's health system and restricting the needed financial resources to tackle the crisis, will undermine the fight against the "pandemic" all over the world.
• Trump refuses to suspend Iran sanctions amid coronavirus outbreak Press TV 21 Mar 2020 -- The administration of US President Donald Trump has said it would not suspend sanctions against Iran as the country is battling the deadly coronavirus outbreak.
• US forces reportedly planning to withdraw from two bases in Iraq Press TV 21 Mar 2020 -- US troops are planning to withdraw from two bases in Iraq's northern provinces of Kirkuk and Nineveh, an Iraqi military source says, only a few days after forces from the US-led military coalition purportedly fighting the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group pulled out from a base on the Iraq-Syria border.
• US continues blame game against Iraq, says 'disappointed' over protection of forces Press TV 21 Mar 2020 -- In yet another attempt to divert attention away from Iraq's call for US troop withdrawal, the White House has blamed Baghdad for recent mysterious attacks against occupying coalition forces inside the Arab country.
• Russia, Belarus Discuss Oil Deliveries Amid Pricing Dispute RFE/RL 21 Mar 2020 -- Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has spoken with his Belarusian counterpart, Syarhey Rumas, about oil deliveries as they seek to resolve a three-month price dispute between the two countries.
• Kosovo's Government Approves Partial Lifting Of 100 Percent Tariffs Against Serbia RFE/RL 21 Mar 2020 -- PRISTINA -- The government of Kosovo has approved the decision to partially lift a politically divisive import tariff on goods from Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, at least on a temporary basis.
• Venezuela's PDVSA Oil Terminal in Caribbean Seized Over Payment Dispute Sputnik 21 Mar 2020 -- In 2019, a Curacao oil firm wrapped up a contract with the PDVSA on operating the Venezuelan company's refinery on the Dutch island, which had a capacity for 335,000 barrels per day.