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Defense Policy / Programs
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News Reports

Current Operations

• Turkey Pushes for Role in Afghanistan After US Pullout VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- Turkey is seeking to play a vital role in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of US forces by offering to provide security to Kabul's international airport. But Ankara faces formidable obstacles.
• U.S. Officials Continually Assess Status of Afghanistan Retrograde DoD News 21 Jun 2021 -- U.S. leaders continually assess the progress of the retrograde from Afghanistan and the state of operations in the country and adjust accordingly, Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby said today.
• Taliban Take Key District In Northern Afghanistan, Encircle Provincial Capital RFE/RL Gandhara 21 Jun 2021 -- Taliban fighters overran a key district in Afghanistan's northern province of Kunduz on June 21 and surrounded the provincial capital, police said.
• Afghanistan's Karzai Says International Troops Are Leaving Behind A 'Disaster' RFE/RL Gandhara 21 Jun 2021 -- Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai has sharply criticized the United States and its allies for "failing" in their mission to fight extremism and bring stability to the war-torn country, instead leaving it in "total disgrace and disaster."

Defense Policy / Programs

• LCS, Marines enhance Naval integration while in Okinawa US Navy 21 Jun 2021 -- Rotationally-deployed littoral combat ships (LCS) in the Indo-Pacific continue to integrate with forces across the region as a part of the Naval Expeditionary Force (NEF) and in support of theater littoral warfare.
• DOD Awards $96.1 Million Contract to United Safety Technology, Inc. to Increase Domestic Production Capacity of Nitrile Gloves DoD 21 Jun 2021 -- On June 21, 2021, the Department of Defense (DOD), on behalf of and in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), awarded a $96.1 million contract to United Safety Technology, Inc., to increase domestic production of nitrile gloves.
• COVID-19 Effects Waning Across Defense Department, Pentagon DoD News 21 Jun 2021 -- By Wednesday, the restrictions on Pentagon personnel that were the result of COVID-19 will lift a bit, providing the ability for more personnel to work in the building and for larger numbers of people to gather in one location, the Pentagon press secretary said during a briefing today.
• AFRICOM's Gen. Townsend meets African leaders at exercise African Lion AFRICOM 21 Jun 2021 -- The Commander of U.S. Africa Command, U.S. Army Gen. Stephen Townsend, visited Morocco to attend the closing ceremony of Exercise African Lion 21 and to meet with several African defense leaders June 17-19.
• Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby Holds a Press Briefing DoD 21 Jun 2021
• DOD Budget Request Focused on Innovations for Warfighter, Hicks Says DoD News 21 Jun 2021 -- The fiscal year 2022 budget request reflect the pacing threat from China, as well as threats from Russia, North Korea, Iran, transnational challenges and climate change, to name a few, the deputy defense secretary said.
• U.S. Sixth Fleet announces Sea Breeze 2021 participation US Navy 21 Jun 2021 -- U.S. Sixth Fleet formally announces participation in the upcoming annually held Exercise Sea Breeze 2021 (SB21) cohosted with the Ukrainian Navy, June 21, 2021.
• Caribbean, Central and South American Maritime Partners Gather for PANAMAX 2021Gather for PANAMAX 2021 US Navy 21 Jun 2021 -- Service members from U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet participated in U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) PANAMAX 2021 in Miami, June 11-17.
• USS Laboon Conducts Port Visit in Romania US Navy 21 Jun 2021 -- The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Laboon (DDG 58) conducted a three day port visit in Constanta, Romania, June 18-20, 2021, as part of their mission to conduct presence operations in the Black Sea region and participate in the Romanian-led exercise Sea Shield 2021.
• FAA, Department of the Air Force sign commercial space agreement US Air Force 21 Jun 2021 -- The Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of the Air Force signed an agreement June 15 aimed at eliminating red tape while protecting public safety during commercial space activities at ranges operated by the U.S. Space Force.
• Readout of Deputy Secretary of Defense Dr. Kathleen Hicks Virtual Meeting With U.K. Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Defence David Williams DoD 21 Jun 2021
• Deputy Secretary General discusses the NATO Summit and the future of Alliance NATO 21 Jun 2021 -- NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană addressed the future of NATO in his remarks to the University of Chicago Booth School of Business on Monday (21 June 2021). "In these unpredictable and fast-changing times, we need bold thinking and an innovative mind-set," he told the audience. Describing security threats as complex, including terrorism, cyber-attacks, disruptive technologies, and climate change, the Deputy Secretary General underscored the importance of unity, which Allies reaffirmed at the NATO Summit on 14 June.
• China publishes record of expelling foreign warplanes, 'warns risky US close-in recons' Global Times 21 Jun 2021 -- China recently published the flight record of its fighter jets expelling foreign warplanes from the region seen as the South China Sea in May 2020, which is a move that sent a strong signal to the US, as the latter doubled its risky and provocative close-in reconnaissance attempts on China in the region this year compared to last year, Chinese experts said on Sunday.
• More J-20 fighter jets commissioned to PLA Air Force PLA Daily 21 Jun 2021 -- It was learned from the PLA Air Force on June 18 that a batch of J-20s, new-generation stealth fighter jets independently developed by China, has been recently commissioned to a heroic aviation group of the PLA Air Force.
• EU-INDIA JOINT NAVAL EXERCISE India PIB 21 Jun 2021 -- On 18-19 June 2021, the EU and India conducted a joint naval exercise in the Gulf of Aden.
• Iran's President-elect: Tehran's Ballistic Missile Program 'Nonnegotiable' VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- Iran's new hard-line President-elect, Ebrahim Raisi, said Monday he would not negotiate over limiting Tehran's ballistic missile program or its support for regional militia proxy forces.
• Turkmen Students Ambushed After Exams To Fill Ranks Of Army Conscripts RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- Dozens of graduating students who came to school for their final exams this week in Turkmenistan have been hauled off by military recruiters hunting for mandatory conscripts, according to parents and eyewitnesses.
• Briefing With Acting Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Reeker, Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues Cherrie Daniels, and Special Envoy for Libya Richard Norland On Secretary Blinken's Upcoming Travel to Berlin, Paris, Rome, and Matera US Dept. of State 21 Jun 2021
• Deputy Secretary Sherman's Meeting with Sierra Leonean Foreign Minister Francis US Dept. of State 21 Jun 2021
• Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki, June 21, 2021 The White House 21 Jun 2021
• Department Press Briefing – June 21, 2021 US Dept. of State 21 Jun 2021

Defense Industry

• Contracts For June 21, 2021

Other Conflicts

• 21 June 2021 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 21 Jun 2021
• Grave violations against children in conflict 'alarmingly high', latest UN report reveals UN News 21 Jun 2021 -- More than 19,300 boys and girls affected by war last year were victims of grave violations such as recruitment or rape, and the COVID-19 pandemic made it difficult for experts to reach them, the UN said in its annual report on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC), published on Monday.
• Somalia, Congo, Afghanistan, Syria Among Most Dangerous for Children in Conflict VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- Somalia, Congo, Afghanistan and Syria top the list of the most dangerous conflict zones for children, the United Nations said Monday, accounting for nearly 60% of all violations among the entries on its annual blacklist of countries where children suffer grave abuses.
• Turkish Operation Increases Conflict Among Kurds in Iraq VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- In recent weeks, Turkey has intensified its military operation against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) bases in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, leading to skirmishes and increased tensions between two significant armed Kurdish groups in the mountainous enclave.
• Day After Reopening, Libyan Coastal Road Closes VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- Arab media are reporting that Libya's coastal highway is closed again, following declarations by the national unity government that the road was now open.
• Slow progress, stubborn cycles of violence, as South Sudan turns 10 UN News 21 Jun 2021 -- South Sudan, the UN's youngest Member State, is marking its tenth anniversary of independence amid languishing political progress and a range of humanitarian challenges, the Secretary-General's Special Representative told Security Council members on Monday.
• Calls for Death Penalty Rise in Response to South Sudan Lakes State Violence VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- The newly appointed governor of South Sudan's Lakes state is facing calls to institute the death penalty for anyone involved in inter-communal fighting, cattle raids or road ambushes, all of which have become rampant in the state.
• Northeast Nigeria Facing Acute, Life-Threatening Hunger VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- The United Nations is urgently appealing for $250 million to provide life-saving food assistance for millions of people in northeast Nigeria, many of whom risk starving to death.

News Reports

• National Intelligence University Joins the Office of the Director of National Intelligence Director of National Intelligence 21 Jun 2021 -- The National Intelligence University (NIU) officially transitioned from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) on June 20, 2021.
• Armenia's Parliamentary Elections US Dept. of State 21 Jun 2021 -- "The United States congratulates the people of Armenia on their June 20 parliamentary elections."
• Pashinian's Surprising Landslide Victory Defies Armenian Opinion Polls RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian's party has defied opinion polls ahead of Armenia's June 20 snap elections in a landslide victory that gives it a parliamentary majority.
• Russian Man Charged With Spying For Ukraine Transferred To Moscow RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- A Russian national detained in April in Ukraine's Russia-annexed Crimean Peninsula on espionage charges has been transferred to Moscow.
• Germany Arrests Russian University Researcher On Suspicion Of Espionage RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- Germany's authorities say they have arrested a Russian citizen accused of passing sensitive information from a German university to Moscow in return for cash.
• Five Charged in Scheme to Export Thermal Imaging Scopes and Night Vision Goggles to Russia, in Violation of Arms Export Control Act US Dept. of Justice 22 Jun 2021 -- A federal grand jury in Los Angeles unsealed an indictment Thursday that accuses five defendants of conspiring to unlawfully export defense articles to Russia. Specifically, the defendants allegedly exported thermal imaging riflescopes and night-vision goggles without a license, in violation of the Arms Export Control Act.
• Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian's Regular Press Conference on June 21, 2021 PRC MofA 21 Jun 2021
• 'No Money, No News': Asset Freeze, Arrests Signal End for Hong Kong's Pro-Democracy Paper VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- Hong Kong's last pro-democracy newspaper appeared one step nearer to closing Monday, as Apple Daily announced it was airing its last nightly news show and dozens of staff resigned.
• Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Newspaper May Stop Publication This Week VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- The parent company of Hong Kong pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily will decide this week whether to shut down the publication.
• Hong Kong to contribute to national financial development in different areas: HKSAR chief executive People's Daily 21 Jun 2021 -- Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Carrie Lam said on Sunday that in the country's financial development, Hong Kong will play a key role in promoting renminbi (RMB) internationalization, diversified financing, fund management, risk management and green development.
• Thousands Watch Last Online TV News From Hong Kong's Apple Daily Radio Free Asia 21 Jun 2021 -- Thousands of people tuned in to watch the last online TV news broadcast by Hong Kong's Apple Daily newspaper on Monday, as its owners warned the paper would likely shut down entirely by next weekend.
• Muslim Rights Group Demands Hilton Stop Building Hotel on Site of Demolished Mosque in China's Xinjiang Radio Free Asia 21 Jun 2021 -- The largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy group in the United States has called on the Hilton hospitality company to halt the construction of a hotel on the site of a destroyed Uyghur mosque in northwestern China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).
• Bachelet Seeks Xinjiang Visit This Year Amid 'Serious Rights Violations' RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet has said she hoped she would be able to visit China's northwestern region of Xinjiang this year and be given "meaningful access," amid what she called continued "reports of serious human rights violations" there.
• Xi stresses drawing strength from CPC history to forge ahead People's Daily 21 Jun 2021 -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on Friday stressed bearing in mind the course of the Party's struggles, shouldering the historic mission and drawing strength from the Party's history to forge ahead.
• Taiwan's Hong Kong office to continue with single officer CNA 21 Jun 2021 -- Taiwan's representative office in Hong Kong will continue to operate even though most Taiwanese posted at the office have been forced home due to visa issues, the chief of Taiwan's top agency handling relations with China said Monday.
• Grain-Short North Korea Forces Housewives to 'Volunteer' for Farm Work Radio Free Asia 21 Jun 2021 -- North Korea is forcing nearly 14,000 housewives to move to rural areas to toil on farms as part of a project to boost food output after a bad harvest, South Korean media reported.
• Letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate on the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to North Korea The White House 21 Jun 2021
• Notice on the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to North Korea The White House 21 Jun 2021
• Raisi to US: Return to JCPOA and carry out your commitments IRNA 21 Jun 2021 -- Iran's President-elect Ebrahim Raisi on Monday said the US should return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and carry out all its commitments to the international nuclear deal.
• Sanctions to be over soon: President IRNA 21 Jun 2021 -- President Hassan Rouhani said on Monday that US sanctions on Iran which were wrong in the first place would be removed soon and foreign investment would pour into the country.
• Next round of Vienna talks likely to be last: Spokesman IRNA 21 Jun 2021 -- The spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry said on Monday that it is not unlikely that the next round of talks in Vienna would be the last one.
• Remaining part of way not easy: Araghchi IRNA 21 Jun 2021 -- Iran's top negotiator in Vienna talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal said that negotiations have gone a long way, but the remaining part of the road was not easy to pass.
• Iran's new government to pursue broad, balanced interaction in foreign policy: President-elect Raisi ISNA 21 Jun 2021 -- Iran's President-elect Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi stressed that his government will pursue broad and balanced interaction in foreign policy.
• Iran's position won't change even after transition of government: Araghchi ISNA 21 Jun 2021 -- Iranian deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs and the head of Iran's negotiating team in nuclear talks Abbas Araghchi stressed that the negotiations are closer to a deal than ever.
• Araghchi calls on JCPOA parties to adopt necessary measures seriously, realistically, resolutely ISNA 21 Jun 2021 -- At the close of the sixth round of talks in the Austrian capital, Vienna, aimed at reviving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a meeting of the JCPOA Joint Commission was held chaired by Deputy Secretary General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Enrique Mora.
• Three major challenges Iranian president-elect faces People's Daily 21 Jun 2021 -- The Iranian Interior Ministry on Saturday announced Ebrahim Raisi as the winner of the country's 13th presidential election.
• Iran's President-Elect In Favor Of Nuclear Discussion But Shuns Talking To Biden RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- Iran's President-elect Ebrahim Raisi says he backs discussions to revive the 2015 deal regulating its nuclear sector but draws the line at holding direct talks with U.S. President Joe Biden.
• Iran talks show positive signal, say officials People's Daily 21 Jun 2021 -- Talks on restoring the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), showed positive signal of finalizing the agreement and finding solutions to the Iranian nuclear issue, officials said on Sunday.
• Talks to revive Iran nuclear agreement "closer to a deal": EU official People's Daily 21 Jun 2021 -- Talks to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), are "closer to a deal," said a European Union (EU) official on Sunday after the latest meeting that wrapped up the previous six rounds of negotiations.
• Iran's Nuclear Plant Shuts Down Over 'Technical Fault' RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- Iran's atomic energy body says the country's sole nuclear power plant has been temporarily shut down over a "technical fault."
• Foreign Secretary announces further sanctions on companies linked to Myanmar's military regime UK FCDO 21 Jun 2021 -- Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab announced new sanctions against the Myanmar Timber Enterprise, Myanmar Pearl Enterprise and the State Administration Council.
• More Than a Dozen Civilians Believed Killed by Myanmar's Military in Weekend Bloodshed Radio Free Asia 21 Jun 2021 -- Security forces loyal to Myanmar's military regime are believed to have killed at least 13 civilians over the weekend, including four members of the same family, a young man delivering invitations to his wedding, and two people returning home from a soccer game.
• EU Imposes New Sanctions on Myanmar VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- The European Union announced Monday a fresh round of sanctions against Myanmar military officials, the third since the junta seized power in a February coup.
• Joint Statement on Belarus US Dept. of State 21 Jun 2021 -- The text of the following statement was released by the Governments of the United States of America, Canada and the United Kingdom, and the European External Action Service.
• Holding the Lukashenka Regime and Its Enablers to Account US Dept. of State 21 Jun 2021 -- "The United States has taken action against dozens of Belarusian individuals and entities in response to last month's forced diversion of a commercial Ryanair flight between two European Union member states and the politically motivated arrest of journalist Raman Pratasevich and Sofiya Sapega."
• Treasury and International Partners Condemn Ongoing Human Rights Abuses and Erosion of Democracy in Belarus US Treasury 21 Jun 2021 -- Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated 16 individuals and five entities pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13405 in response to the Lukashenka regime's escalating violence and repression, including its reckless forced diversion of a commercial Ryanair flight and arrest of journalist Raman Pratasevich (Pratasevich) and his companion, Sofia Sapega (Sapega).
• Western Allies Slap Fresh Sanctions On Belarus RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- The United States, the European Union, Britain, and Canada have slapped a fresh round of coordinated sanctions on Belarus in response to the regime of Alyaksandr Lukashenka's mounting repression against the political opposition and the free media.
• EU Announces More Sanctions on Belarus VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- European Union foreign ministers announced Monday a fresh raft of sanctions against the Belarusian government, this time targeting 86 officials and state-owned entities. The United States followed with sanctions of its own, with Britain expected to announce new measures in the next few days.
• EU Agrees On Fresh Sanctions For Dozens Of Belarus Officials Including Lukashenka Family Members RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- European Union foreign ministers have approved a fresh set of sanctions against scores of officials and entities in Belarus including family members of authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka.
• UK imposes sanctions on Belarus following forced landing of Ryanair flight UK FCDO 21 Jun 2021 -- The UK, in parallel with the US, Canada and EU, has imposed sanctions against 11 individuals and 2 entities from the Belarusian regime.
• France's Far-Right Suffers Setback in Regional Vote VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- Europe's surging far-right has suffered setbacks recently — in Germany's eastern state of Saxony, where Chancellor Angela Merckel's ruling conservatives prevailed, and in France, where the National Rally party did not do as well as expected in the first round of regional elections Sunday.
• Ukrainian Tycoon's Lawyer Says Allegations Against His Client Are 'Wrong' RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- Ukraine's controversial tycoon Dmytro Firtash has denied the allegations behind Kyiv's move to impose sanctions on him for selling titanium products that the Ukrainian government believes end up being used by Russian military enterprises.
• Vietnam Holds Almost 300 Prisoners of Conscience, 79 Arrested Last Year: Report Radio Free Asia 21 Jun 2021 -- Vietnam is holding at least 288 prisoners of conscience in the country's prisons and jails, with at least 79 arrested during the year through May, a report released this week by a California-based rights group says.
• British Embassy Denies Reported Agreement With Belgrade Against Russian Influence RFE/RL 21 Jun 2021 -- The British Embassy in Belgrade has denied a report saying it had signed an agreement with the Serbian Defense Ministry on preventing Russia's influence in the Balkan country.
• Bachelet: Poverty, Inequality, Injustice Eroding Human Rights Worldwide VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- U.N. human rights chief Michele Bachelet has issued a stark warning that rising poverty, inequality, injustice and the erosion of democratic values were gravely setting back the cause of human rights around the world. Bachelet addressed delegates at the opening of the U.N. Human Rights Council's three-week session.
• Spanish PM Announces Pardons for 9 Catalonian Separatists VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Monday he will pardon nine imprisoned Catalan separatists charged with sedition over their roles in a 2017 referendum on Catalan independence.
• Ethiopian Polls Extended as Crowds Wait to Vote VOA 21 Jun 2021 -- When the polls were supposed to close Monday in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, election workers said turnout was better than expected, and voting had been conducted safely.