• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• Taliban Militants Kill 7 Policemen in Afghanistan's Southern Kandahar Province, Source Says Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- Taliban militants have killed seven policemen after launching an attack on a checkpoint in the southern Kandahar province, a security source said on Friday.
• Kansas Guard expands wildland firefighting capabilities Army News 25 Sep 2020 -- For the third year, the state of Kansas has expanded its capability to respond to wildland fires, thanks to a partnership between the Kansas National Guard and the Kansas Forest Service.
• W.Va. Guard focus shifts to increasing testing capacity Army News 25 Sep 2020 -- This week, the West Virginia National Guard, at the direction of Governor Jim Justice, increased its capabilities to provide COVID-19 testing support around the state by nearly doubling the capacity for testing teams to a total of 15.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Southcom Donates Field Hospital to Jamaica in Support of COVID-19 Response DoD News 25 Sep 2020 -- A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III aircraft transported a large mobile field hospital from Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, to Kingston, Jamaica, to be donated to health care providers and used to support the Caribbean nation's ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sept. 19, 2020.
• Tenn. Guard participates in virtual cybersecurity exercise Army News 25 Sep 2020 -- Tennessee National Guard members participated in a joint cybersecurity training event at Volunteer Training Site – Smyrna, Sept. 12-25.
• Army to build on results from first Project Convergence exercise Army News 25 Sep 2020 -- Amid 100-degree temperatures in Yuma's barren desert, the Army tested the pinnacle of its modernization efforts during Project Convergence demonstrations Monday and Wednesday.
• Navy to Commission Guided Missile Destroyer Delbert D. Black DoD 25 Sep 2020 -- The U.S. Navy will commission the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Delbert D. Black (DDG 119) during a 10 a.m. EDT ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020, in Port Canaveral, Florida.
• Defense Security Cooperation University Hits One-Year Milestone With Great Success DoD News 25 Sep 2020 -- The Defense Security Cooperation Agency opened the Defense Security Cooperation University in September 2019 as part of an effort to professionalize the SC workforce and to serve as the Department of Defense's Center of Excellence for the SC community.
• Already Challenged by Fleet Size Goals, Pentagon Expected to Ask for 530-Ship Navy Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- According to files from an upcoming report, the US Navy is looking at expanding far beyond its already-ambitious goal of 355 ships, with some proposals suggesting a fleet of 530 ships, many of which would be unmanned.
• Carrier Strike Group 12 Units Operate Independently at Sea US Navy 25 Sep 2020 -- Rear Adm. Craig Clapperton, Commander, Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 12 conducted a strike group circulation to visit Sailors assigned to the guided-missile destroyer USS Nitze (DDG 91) and the strike group flagship, aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), during each unit's independent operations in the Atlantic Ocean, Sept. 11-14.
• Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group Concludes Valiant Shield 2020 US Navy 25 Sep 2020 -- The Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group concluded Valiant Shield 2020, Sept. 25, while operating in the Philippine Sea.
• Reserve Sailors Sharpen Skills, Bolster Defenses in Valiant Shield US Navy 25 Sep 2020 -- Joining an estimated 11,000 personnel from each branch of the U.S. military were approximately 25 Navy Reserve Sailors who demonstrated their flexibility and capability during exercise Valiant Shield 2020.
• NATO exercise Dynamic Mariner brings together 7 NATO nations NATO 25 Sep 2020 -- NORTHWOOD, United Kingdom -- Seven NATO Allies are participating in the NATO exercise Dynamic Mariner-20 (DYMR20) off the coast of France.
• Over 3 mln young Chinese register for national conscription: military spokesperson People's Daily 25 Sep 2020 -- China's 2020 military recruitment will be completed by the end of September, with more than 3 million applicants registering for the conscription, a Chinese military spokesman said Thursday.
• AHSP Transfer of Pinaka Weapon System from DRDO to DGQA India PIB 25 Sep 2020 -- An important milestone was achieved today on 25 September 2020 when Authority Holding Sealed Particulars (AHSP) responsibility of Pinaka weapon system was handed over by DRDO to DGQA.
• Iran Building Drone and Missile-Carrying, Electronic Warfare Capable Warship, Commander Reveals Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- The Islamic Republic staged large-scale drills in the eastern waters of the Strait of Hormuz, the Makran coast, the Gulf of Oman and the northern Indian Ocean this month amid tensions with Washington. This week, drones from the Revolutionary Guard Corps captured detailed video footage of a US carrier strike group as it entered the Persian Gulf.
• Israel Successfully Tests New Sea-to-Sea Missile System, Army Says Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- Israel's new sea-to-sea missile system, which was developed by the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), has been successfully tested, a press service of the defence forces said on Friday.
• 'Reverse course' towards full nuclear disarmament – UN chief UN News 25 Sep 2020 -- On the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons marked on Saturday, the UN chief has underscored the need to "reverse course and return to a common path to nuclear disarmament".
• Serbian Air Force's MiG-21 Crashes in Country's West Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- Firefighters have arrived at the scene, and police are securing the area in anticipation of the arrival of state investigators.
• Norway Negotiating to Resuscitate Cold War-Era Military Deal With US Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- During the Cold War era, Norway received 300 US fighter jets and 8,000 military vehicles, free of charge. The total amount of US military aid to Norway reached $8.7 billion.
• Venezuela to Cooperate With Russia While Developing Domestic Weapons, Maduro Says Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- Venezuela will continue military cooperation with Russia, China, and Iran despite its plans to develop its own armament systems, President Nicolas Maduro said on Friday.
• Remarks by President Trump After Air Force One Arrival | Joint Base Andrews, MD The White House 25 Sep 2020

Defense Industry

• Contracts For Sept. 25, 2020

Other Conflicts

• 28 September 2020 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 25 Sep 2020
• Eastern Libya's Foreign Minister Urges Foreign Companies to Invest in National Oil Sector Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- Foreign Minister Abdul Hadi al-Huweij of Libya's eastern-based administration has inspected oilfields and ports after the recent resumption of oil production and called on foreign investors to return to the country's oil sector after a month-long hiatus, the foreign ministry said early on Friday.
• Leader Of Kosovo Veterans Group Arrested, To Be Sent To The Hague RFE/RL 25 Sep 2020 -- European Union police have arrested the head of the Kosovo War Veterans Association in Pristina in order to transport him to a war crimes tribunal in the Netherlands to face charges that have not yet been specified.
• Bangladesh: Entire Cox's Bazar Police Force Transferred After Ex-Army Major's Killing Radio Free Asia 25 Sep 2020 -- In a rare move, Bangladesh police have transferred the entire 1,400-strong force out of Cox's Bazar to bring new personnel into the southern border district that hosts about a million Rohingya refugees, officials said Friday.
• How long must we wait for a just solution, Palestinian President Abbas asks world leaders UN News 25 Sep 2020 -- The President of the State of Palestine addressed, via a pre-recorded video, the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, highlighting the suffering of his people and the misery they experience every day "while the world stands by watching."
• Greece Urges Turkey to Resolve Disagreements Through Diplomacy Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in his speech to the 75h United Nations General Assembly called on Turkey to solve the issues between the two countries regarding the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean region at the negotiation table.

News Reports

• Navalny Says Quick Action By Pilots, Paramedics Thwarted 'Plans Of Killers' RFE/RL 25 Sep 2020 -- Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny says he owes his life to the pilots who made an emergency landing when he collapsed on a flight last month, and to paramedics he said had quickly diagnosed poisoning and injected him with atropine.
• Putin Calls For Pact With U.S. To Avoid 'Digital Sphere' Election Confrontations RFE/RL 25 Sep 2020 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for a new deal with the United States to ensure neither country engages in cybermeddling in each other's elections.
• The Week In Russia: The Lonely Lessons Of A Secret Swearing-In RFE/RL 25 Sep 2020 -- Alyaksandr Lukashenka's rushed, hushed-up inauguration ceremony in Belarus may evoke memories for Vladimir Putin, and contain a warning about the future as Russia hurtles toward 2024. Also, a COVID-19 surge, Kremlin contortions over the poisoning of Aleksei Navalny, and a UN speech "rehearsing the defense of a nation in decline."
• Retired military man given two years for spying for China CNA 25 Sep 2020 -- A retired Taiwanese military man who was given a suspended sentence after being found guilty of spying for China and attempting to build a spy network in Taiwan has been given a 27-month jail term for the crimes on appeal.
• Over 3 mln young Chinese register for national conscription: military spokesperson People's Daily 25 Sep 2020 -- China's 2020 military recruitment will be completed by the end of September, with more than 3 million applicants registering for the conscription, a Chinese military spokesman said Thursday.
• China Weighs Impact of Chemicals and Electric Cars Radio Free Asia 25 Sep 2020 -- In a rare admission of China's continuing smog problems, a top environmental official has signaled that residents should be ready for a return of "heavy air pollution" in Beijing and the surrounding region this fall.
• Hong Kong Police Ban March in Support of 12 Activists Held by China Radio Free Asia 25 Sep 2020 -- Hong Kong police on Friday turned down an application by march organizers the Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF) to hold a pro-democracy march on Oct. 1, China's National Day, saying there was a risk of violence and widespread transmission of coronavirus.
• Fish Populations Plummet Amid Demand For Swim Bladders For TCM Radio Free Asia 25 Sep 2020 -- Authorities in the democratic island of Taiwan recently arrested a man for smuggling fish parts used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and health foods.
• China's space-tracking ship departs for new monitoring mission in Pacific Ocean PLA Daily 25 Sep 2020 -- Space-tracking ship Yuanwang-5 has departed from a port in east China's Jiangsu Province on Thursday for a maritime monitoring mission in the Pacific Ocean.
• Chinese ship lingering off east coast as Taiwan holds missile tests CNA 25 Sep 2020 -- A Chinese intelligence vessel remains deployed in waters off Taiwan's eastern coast as Taiwan hold missile tests in the area.
• Haiti, Nauru speak up for Taiwan in U.N. debate CNA 25 Sep 2020 -- The leaders of Haiti and Nauru on Thursday thanked Taiwan for its assistance in fighting COVID-19 and voiced general support for Taiwan on the third day of the general debate of the 75th U.N. General Assembly.
• PLA maneuvers in region driven by internal politics: scholars CNA 25 Sep 2020 -- China has been intensifying its military maneuvers in the region, including sending warplanes over the median line of the Taiwan Strait, because of political pressures being faced by the country's leadership, scholars argued Thursday.
• Taiwan's high-profile missile tests no threat to PLA: experts Global Times 25 Sep 2020 -- The island of Taiwan's Hsiung Feng II E supersonic anti-ship missiles and its enhanced Sky Bow III surface-to-air missiles were likely at the center of a reported high-profile missile launch test on Thursday, defense experts said, adding that the weapons pose no real threat to People's Liberation Army's (PLA) ballistic missiles.
• China will do what 'it takes' to halt secession PLA Daily 25 Sep 2020 -- China will do "whatever it takes" to thwart any effort aimed at Taiwan seceding from China, Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, spokesman of the Ministry of National Defense, said on Thursday.
• North Korea's Kim Jong Un Apologizes For Shooting Death of South Korean Official at Sea Radio Free Asia 25 Sep 2020 -- North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un issued a rare apology Friday for the shooting death of a South Korean official found adrift in waters near the countries' disputed border this week, South Korea's security advisor told reporters.
• 'Shouldn't Have Happened': Kim Jong-un 'Greatly Sorry' for Shooting of Missing S Korean National Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- On Thursday, the South Korean Defence Ministry accused North Korea of fatally shooting a missing South Korean civilian and burning his body. Seoul also demanded that Pyongyang "provide an explanation and punish those responsible".
• South Korea Puts Military on 'Full Readiness' After Official is Shot Dead by the North Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- On Thursday, South Korean officials, including President Moon Jae-in, revealed that Pyongyang had shot an employee in the country's fisheries ministry and burned his body. According to the South Korean president's administration, North Korea's supreme leader Kim Jong-un has already apologised for this "unfortunate incident".
• Iran Reacts Harshly To Saudi King's Speech at UN Radio Farda 25 Sep 2020 -- Iran's permanent representative to the United Nations and its spokesman for the Foreign Ministry joined voices to dismiss Saudi Arabia King Salman bin Abdulaziz's recent accusations against Iran as a "blame game" aimed at "diverting world attention away from Riyadh's dark record of supporting terrorism."
• RSF Warns Against Iranian Military Dominating Domestic Internet Radio Farda 25 Sep 2020 -- Reporters Without Borders called on Iran on Thursday to halt discussions on an "anti-liberty" parliamentary motion that would restrict social media.
• Iran Steel Production Increases Despite US Sanctions Radio Farda 25 Sep 2020 -- In its latest monthly report, the World Steel Association (WSA) says that Iran's crude steel production in the first eight months of 2020 grew by more than eleven percent to 18.6 million tons.
• Kremlin Slams EU For Refusing To Recognize Lukashenka, Opposition Calls For More Protests RFE/RL 25 Sep 2020 -- Russia has criticized a decision by the European Union to not recognize Alyaksandr Lukashenka as the legitimate president of Belarus as an opposition leader called for renewed mass protests after Lukashenka held a secretive inauguration this week following a disputed election.
• Europe's Refusal to Recognise Lukashenko Goes Against International Law, Kremlin Says Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- The refusal of European countries to recognise Alexander Lukashenko as the president of Belarus is against the international law, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday.
• Belarus must release opposition leader Maria Kalesnikava, stress independent rights experts UN News 25 Sep 2020 -- A group of UN independent human rights experts have called on Belarus to release prominent opposition leader Maria Kalesnikava, voicing serious concern over targeting and persecution of opposition politicians by the State.
• Stabbing Near Former Charlie Hebdo Office In Paris, Suspect Believed To Be Pakistani RFE/RL 25 Sep 2020 -- A stabbing that left two people injured in Paris near the former offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo -- the scene of a 2015 massacre that killed 12 people -- is being treated as a terror attack, the French interior minister said.
• COVID-19 a litmus test of global unity, Thai Prime Minister tells world leaders UN News 25 Sep 2020 -- The COVID-19 pandemic is a "litmus test" of the faith in multilateralism and unity among nations, the Prime Minister of Thailand told world leaders gathered virtually at the UN General Assembly, urging every country to renew their trust in international cooperation.
• Human rights, multilateralism and battling COVID-19, top focus of European Union UN News 25 Sep 2020 -- The European Union has been at the forefront of international cooperation to defeat "the same common enemy", COVID-19, the President of the European Council, told the UN General Assembly on Friday.
• Italy calls for reinvigorated multilateral system to combat 'invisible enemy', COVID-19 UN News 25 Sep 2020 -- Today the world is faced with "an invisible enemy" that has upended lives, suffocated the world economy and limited freedoms, the Prime Minster of Italy told the United Nations on Friday.
• CNRP Leader Sam Rainsy Vows Again to Return to Cambodia, Confront Hun Sen Radio Free Asia 25 Sep 2020 -- Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy vowed anew on Friday to return from five years of exile in France to press for democratic reforms in the Southeast Asian country, saying that an "economic crisis" has made it necessary to make a second attempt to go back after an abortive homecoming in November.
• President For Life? Turkmen Leader Signs Mysterious Constitutional Changes Into Law RFE/RL 25 Sep 2020 -- Turkmenistan's authoritarian leader, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, has signed into law constitutional changes, the details of which remain largely unknown.
• Mali's Former Defence Minister Sworn In as Interim President Sputnik 25 Sep 2020 -- Former Malian Defence Minister Ba N'Daou on Friday took the oath as interim president for an 18-month transitional period before members of the country's Constitutional Court in the capital of Bamako.
• Progress on Sudan political transition, but challenges remain, Security Council hears UN News 25 Sep 2020 -- Political developments in Sudan continue to move along a positive trajectory, while planning for a UN mission to assist the transitional government is progressing, the UN Security Council heard on Friday.