Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• Pompeo Defends Trump's Afghan Peace Plan, Ensuing 'Incredible Progress' VOA 02 Jan 2021 -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Saturday that American soldiers have suffered no deaths in Afghanistan in almost a year, citing the Trump administration's initiative to promote peace in the conflict-torn nation.
• U.S. Africa Command conducts strikes on al-Shabaab compound AFRICOM 02 Jan 2021 -- Editor's note: This release has been updated to include additional assessment.

Defense Policy / Programs

• GOP-led Senate rebukes Trump, backs military spending $740 billion bill Press TV 02 Jan 2021 -- The US Senate overrides President Donald Trump's veto of the defense bill, handing him the first veto defeat of his presidency weeks before leaving office.
• New regulation on military equipment takes effect, to boost PLA modernization Global Times 02 Jan 2021 -- Xi Jinping, chairman of the Central Military Commission, has signed an order to release revised regulations on military equipment. A military expert said this will speed up the People's Liberation Army's task of modernization in terms of military equipment.
• Chinese military releases regulations on officer management People's Daily 02 Jan 2021 -- Approved by Xi Jinping, chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the CMC has released a set of interim regulations on the management of military officers on active service as well as multiple supporting regulations.
• U.S. defense bill with provisions supporting Taiwan becomes law CNA 02 Jan 2021 -- A United States defense policy bill containing sections supportive of Taiwan was passed into law on Friday, as the Senate voted to override the veto of Donald Trump for the first time during his presidency.

Defense Industry

Other Conflicts

• Beijing Vows to Retaliate Against UK Aircraft Carrier's Possible Mission in S. China Sea Sputnik 02 Jan 2021 -- Chinese Defence Ministry spokesman Tan Kefei has warned the Western powers against sending warships to the South China Sea, vowing that Beijing may retaliate.
• Moscow Foundation With Links To Vagner Group Says Four Russians, One Ukrainian Freed In Libya RFE/RL 02 Jan 2021 -- A Moscow-based foundation with links to the Vagner Group, a Russian military contractor force, says three Russians and one Ukrainian national have been freed from captivity in Libya.
• Over 70 civilians killed in militant attacks in Niger Press TV 02 Jan 2021 -- Security sources say at least 70 civilians have been killed in simultaneous attacks on two villages by suspected extremist militants in Niger, near the border zone with Mali.
• Four Killed in Attack on Turkish Construction Site Near Mogadishu VOA 02 Jan 2021 -- At least four people, including a Turkish citizen, were killed and several others were wounded Saturday when a suicide bomber drove a vehicle into a construction site near Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, security officials and witnesses said.
• Truck Drivers Stop Deliveries to Troubled Central African Republic VOA 02 Jan 2021 -- Hundreds of trucks are parked in Cameroon because drivers have stopped shipping goods and humanitarian assistance into the troubled Central African Republic in the face of violence following December 27 general elections.
• Cameroonians Displaced by Crisis Return on New Year VOA 02 Jan 2021 -- Hundreds of Cameroonians displaced by the country's separatist crisis, especially along the Nigerian border, have, with the new year, returned to their communities for the first time since the beginning of the conflict, now in its fourth year. Humanitarian groups, churches and local councils have been giving aid to returnees in need. The returnees tell stories of their mistreatment in the hands of both the military and separatist fighters, but both the troops and separatist deny wrongdoing.

News Reports

• Analysis: With Key Elections Looming, Russia's Putin Tightens The Screws RFE/RL 02 Jan 2021 -- The waning days of 2020 were rife with portentous activity in Russia.
• "For the people", "by the people" defining feature of China's diplomacy: FM Global Times 02 Jan 2021 -- The principle of for the people and by the people has been a source of strength for the Communist Party of China. It is also the defining feature of China's diplomacy, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.
• China sees 'no limit' in developing strategic ties with Russia in 2021 Press TV 02 Jan 2021 -- China has expressed strong determination to continue strategic ties with Russia in the year ahead, with the Chinese foreign minister saying Beijing sees "no limit" as to how far the cooperation between the two sides can reach.
• China vows 'necessary measures' after US move of delisting telecom firms Global Times 02 Jan 2021 -- China on Saturday vowed to take necessary measures to protect Chinese enterprises' legitimate rights and interests after the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) moved to delist three Chinese telecom companies as per Trump administration's order.
• China's Civil Code takes effect People's Daily 02 Jan 2021 -- China's Civil Code officially takes effect on Friday, replacing the country's previous standalone civil laws.
• 2020 saw most PLA intrusions into Taiwan's ADIZ since 1996: report CNA 02 Jan 2021 -- In 2020, the Chinese military violated Taiwan's Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) more times than in any year since 1996, with the majority observed in the southwest corner of the ADIZ, according to a recent government-funded report.
• China calls Taiwan's offer of talks as 'cheap trick' Press TV 02 Jan 2021 -- China has dismissed a call for talks from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, saying no dialogue can change the reality of Beijing's sovereignty over the self-ruled island.
• China Rejects Taiwan's Proposed Talks as Beijing Blames Taipei for 'Cheap Tricks' Sputnik 02 Jan 2021 -- Beijing views Taiwan as an essential part of Chinese territory that it says will eventually have to reunify with mainland China.
• Foreign presence in region must end: IRGC Cmdr IRNA 02 Jan 2021 -- The commander of the Navy of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said on Saturday that the presence of foreign forces in the region, which is the source of sedition and tension, must come to an end as soon as possible.
• Regional Arab states to hurt most in case of war in region: IRGC commander Press TV 02 Jan 2021 -- A senior commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has warned certain regional Arab countries against the adverse consequences of their cooperation with the United States and the Israeli regime, saying they will sustain the most damage in case of any possible war in the region.
• IRGC chief: Any anti-Iran action to be met with 'reciprocal, decisive' response Press TV 02 Jan 2021 -- The chief commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has warned of a "reciprocal, decisive and strong" response to any action by the enemy against Iran, saying no threats would go unanswered.
• Iran writes to IAEA about 20% fuel production IRNA 02 Jan 2021 -- Iran has sent a letter to its representative office in Vienna, Austria, to be presented to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about the production of 20% fuel, Iran's nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi announced in a TV program here in Tehran.
• Iran ready to start production of 20% fuel: AEOI chief ISNA 02 Jan 2021 -- The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali-Akbar Slahehi announced that the agency is ready to start production of 20% fuel.
• Salehi says awaiting order to resume 20% enrichment 'soon' Press TV 02 Jan 2021 -- Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali Akbar Salehi says the Islamic Republic will soon resume uranium enrichment up to 20 percent.
• Iran Vows 20 Percent Uranium Enrichment 'As Soon As Possible' RFE/RL 02 Jan 2021 -- Iran said on January 2 that it plans to enrich uranium up to 20 percent purity at its underground Fordow nuclear facility "as soon as possible," a level far above limits set by an international nuclear accord.
• Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi, Leader Of Iran's Hard-Liners, Dies At 86 RFE/RL 02 Jan 2021 -- Iranian cleric Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah-Yazdi, considered the spiritual leader of the most fundamentalist hard-line factions, has died in Tehran at the age of 86.
• Kazakhstan Officially Abolishes Death Penalty After Nearly Two-Decade Freeze RFE/RL 02 Jan 2021 -- Kazakhstan has abolished the death penalty, making permanent a nearly two-decade freeze on capital punishment in the Central Asian country, a statement on the presidential website said on January 2.
• Pakistan Arrests Alleged Leader Of Militant Group Blamed For 2008 Mumbai Attacks RFE/RL Gandhara 02 Jan 2021 -- Pakistani authorities have arrested an alleged leader of the militant group that was blamed for the deadly 2008 Mumbai attacks in India.
• Pakistan Vows To Rebuild Hindu Shrine Damaged In Mob Attack RFE/RL Gandhara 02 Jan 2021 -- Pakistan says it will rebuild a century-old Hindu shrine heavily damaged in a mob attack that triggered condemnation from the Muslim-majority country's Hindu community.
• Algerian President Signs Decree to Put Into Force Constitutional Amendments – Reports Sputnik 02 Jan 2021 -- Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune signed a decree to put into force amendments supported by people in a 2020 referendum, the APS news agency reported.