GlobalSecurity.org In the News

October 2003 News

1. Err War: The Army buries its mistakes By Fred Kaplan Slate October 31, 2003 -- Administration officials and their critics agree that better intelligence is needed to deal with the guerrilla war that's escalating daily in Iraq. So the release, late last month, of the "lessons-learned" report (which you can still read on the globalsecurity.org Web site) certainly dealt a shock.
2. Defense Secretary Rumsfeld says US officials are in the process of accelerating the training and deployment of Iraqi security forces National Public Radio (NPR): All Things Considered (9:00 PM ET) October 30, 2003 -- Mr. PATRICK GARRETT (GlobalSecurity): You can speed up training by quite a bit if you simply just want to deputize a handful of individuals, throw a badge on them and tell them to go stand in a particular spot and wait for something to happen. That's fairly easy. The downside, though, is you have individuals who are not going to be as highly trained as you want them to be. So you have to determine where the balance is.
3. Gruesome videotape allegedly shows brutal Fedayeen Saddam punishment CNN.com October 30, 2003 -- The Fedayeen, which at one point numbered between 18,000 and 40,000 troops, were young soldiers recruited from regions loyal to former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, according to globalsecurity.org, a nonpartisan international policy research group.
4. Red Cross trims foreign staff in Iraq after bombing as US losses hit benchmark Agence France Presse October 30, 2003 -- The latest model of the 69.5-tonne tank, the M1A2 SEP, is armed with a 120mm main cannon and is "the most heavily equipped, and heavily armored main battle tank that the US has ever put out in the field," said Patrick Garrett, an analyst with GlobalSecurity.Org, a private research group.
5. Satellite Operators Expect Minimal Impact From Solar Flares By Jeanene aTimberlake Communications Daily October 30, 2003 -- Charles Vick, senior fellow and contract consultant at Globalsecurity.org, said the worst problem solar flares could cause would be a complete shutdown of a satellite: "It could totally disrupt the... electronics themselves... creating a short circuit overload."
6. Videotape Shows Saddam's Men Torturing Iraqis Fox News October 29, 2003 -- The Fedayeen had a total strength reportedly between 18,000 and 40,000 troops, according to GlobalSecurity.org, and was composed of young soldiers recruited from regions loyal to Saddam.
7. M1 Abrams tank disabled by Iraq roadside explosion By Jim Mannion Agence France Presse October 29, 2003 -- It is the most heavily equipped, and heavily armored main battle tank that the US has ever put out in the field, and supposedly can protect those inside fairly well," said Patrick Garrett, an analyst with GlobalSecurity.Org, a private research group.
8. Coalition Aims To Plug Gaps In Security By Gethin Chamberlain The Scotsman October 28, 2003 -- Experts in the field of global terrorism say there is no shortage of organisations willing to take up the fight against the US in Iraq. John Pike, head of the think-tank GlobalSecurity.org, said: "There is a super-abundance of external actors, including Syria, including Iran, including al-Qaeda, who have both the means and the motive to use proxies in Iraq to bedevil America."
9. What Will Make Them Stop? Carrots? Sticks? Inside Bush's diplomatic struggle to persuade Iran and North Korea to give up their nuke programs By Johanna McGeary, with Scott Macleod/Tehran and Massimo Calabresi/Washington With reporting by Matthew Cooper/with Bush, J.F.O. McAllister/London and Andrew Purvis/Vienna Time Magazine November 03, 2003 -- Sources: Globalsecurity.org; Center for Nonproliferation Studies; IAEA; AP
10. ANALYSIS-Hidden foes confuse, torment U.S. in Iraq By Alistair Lyon and Mark Trevelyan Reuters October 28, 2003 -- "There is a super-abundance of external actors, including Syria, including Iran, including al Qaeda, who have both the means and the motive to use proxies in Iraq to bedevil America," said John Pike, head of think-tank GlobalSecurity.org.
11. Defiant Bush vows to 'stay the course' By Andrew Buncombe The Independent October 28, 2003 -- John Pike, director of the Washington-based military think-tank GlobalSecurity.org, said: "The dilemma is that they need an Iraqi army that is large enough to keep the peace but not so large that it can decide who is running the country.
12. Uncle Sam keeps SAIC on call for top tasks By Scott Shane The Baltimore Sun October 26, 2003 -- Some observers say contracting inevitably gives private entities such as SAIC subtle influence over policy. "The principle is, government makes the policy and SAIC implements it," says John Pike, who tracks intelligence and defense at GlobalSecurity.org. "But given the complexity of these jobs, it's often difficult to make that distinction."
13. Rumsfeld se convertit à la «lutte idéologique» Le Devoir.com October 25-26, 2003 -- «Rummy veut montrer qu'il fait toujours partie du jeu, qu'il n'est pas idiot et qu'il est conscient de la nécessité, pour le gouvernement américain, d'actualiser en permanence ses priorités», explique John Pike, directeur de l'institut GlobalSecurity.org.
14. Rumsfeld heralds shift to "war of ideas" on terror By Mark Trevelyan Reuters October 24, 2003 -- "We've been in Afghanistan nearly two years now and they're still shooting at us. And there may not have been an al Qaeda connection in Iraq a year ago but there sure is now," said John Pike, head of the GlobalSecurity.org think-tank. "The perception is that the memo was leaked by Rummy and intended to demonstrate he's on the ball, he's not an idiot and he realises they need to continue to update their planning."
15. 1983 Bombing Marked Turning Point In Terror By Brad Smith Tampa Tribune (Florida) October 23, 2003 -- "Every one of these bombings in Baghdad is a flashback to the Beirut bombing," said John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, a Washington think tank. "They've seen this movie, and they know how it ends."
16. Iraqi governing council members Knight Ridder Newspapers October 23, 2003 -- Sources: Knight Ridder, the Middle East, GlobalSecurity.org
17. Coalition troops operating in Iraq Reuters October 23, 2003 -- Sources: Reuters news reports/GlobalSecurity.org
18. Strained Navy experiments with smaller strike groups By James Janega Chicago Tribune October 23, 2003 -- As the demand for naval forces in Afghanistan and Iraq has shown, those drawn-out but foreseeable timetables no longer can be relied on, said John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, a defense policy group.
19. Pakistan, Saudi Arabia in secret nuke pact By Arnaud de Borchgrave The Washington Times October 22, 2003 -- GlobalSecurity.org, a well-connected defense Internet site, found in a recent survey that Saudi Arabia has the infrastructure to exploit such nuclear exports very quickly.
20. Warfare at the speed of light By Ian Hoffman Oakland Tribune October 19, 2003 -- U.S. Special Operations Command wants to load a medium-power laser alongside artillery and miniguns on a future version of the AC-130 gunships that since Vietnam have been a mainstay of special forces attacks on ground targets. The laser's power could blow tires and ignite gas tanks, but wouldn't be lethal for tanks or armored vehicles. "It would be a very long-range, ultra-accurate sniper rifle," suggests John Pike, a weapons expert and director of GlobalSecurity.org.
21. Military coexists with endangered pronghorn on bombing range By Arthur H. Rotstein The Associated Press October 16, 2003 -- ww.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/goldwater.htm
22. In Hawaii, culture and environment force the need for balance By B.J. Reyes The Associated Press October 18, 2003 -- http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/makua.htm
23. U.S. science tested on humans abroad By Julie Bell and Michael Stroh The Baltimore Sun October 17, 2003 -- The globalization of biological and genetic research will provide fertile ground for ethical controversy in the future, according to John E. Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org. One reason is the potential for big money in biotechnology today. "Frankly, compared to most other scientific disciplines it's a heck of a lot more lucrative," Pike said. "You're not going to get rich quick in physics. All the available get-rich-quick schemes in chemistry pretty much played out a century ago."
24. U.S. missile defense unit mobilizing in Springs By John Diedrich The Gazette October 17, 2003 -- Critics such as John Pike disagree. Pike, director of Globalsecurity.org, a defense think-tank, said missile defense technology "has been known to work on occasion." The military showed it is "physically possible," not that it can work in a realistic attack scenario, he said.
25. Feds Want All-Seeing Eye in Sky >By Noah Shachtman Wired News October 17, 2003 -- "Continuous coverage of everything in the air or on the ground is a solution in search of a problem," said John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org. "There's an awful lot of time looking at nothing," he said.
26. Manned Chinese space flight seen as first in series By Rich Tuttle Aerospace Daily October 16, 2003 -- Charles P. Vick of GlobalSecurity.org said China's manned space program has been funded at $2.2-2.3 billion since about 1993, and that the money will pay for the first docking of two manned Shenzou spacecraft, probably in late 2005.
27. US Doubles Raytheon Iraq Pact Military Also Extends Time Frame For Storing, Destroying Weapons By Ross Kerber The Boston Globe October 16, 2003 -- "It seems to be part of a larger pattern in which the ISR is going to be in business for a while," said John Pike, director of globalsecurity.org, a Washington research group, of the Iraq Survey Group.
28. Space race today is mostly about weapons research By Elizabeth Sullivan Plain Dealer (Cleveland, Ohio) October 16, 2003 -- "One of the things that has changed in this administration is that they have changed the standard of proof in intelligence estimates," says longtime national security analyst John Pike of the watchdog group GlobalSecurity.org. "If you think the intelligence on Iraqi WMD is thin, you should look at the stuff on the Chinese," he added.
29. China's manned mission set to fuel nationalism Canberra Times (Australia) October 15, 2003 -- Charles Vick, a space analyst for Globalsecurity.org, said China's program would force the US to face issues it has managed to avoid since the Cold War. "The potential introduction of a Third World space effort ... does represent a major national security threat," he said.
30. Oregon depot: A legacy of damage and an uncertain future By Gillian Flaccus The Associated Press October 15, 2003 -- http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/facility/umatilla.htm
31. Cina hledi k nebi, ceka na tchajkonauta By Lucie Beranova HN.IHNED.CZ October 15, 2003 -- "Vesmirny program Ciny zapada mezi ostatni cile, k nimz speje v oblasti spickove technologie - vytvoreni treti generace mobilni telefonicke site, vyvoj softwaru a pocitacovych cipu," uvadi server Globalsecurity.org.
32. China prepares to welcome first space hero By Will Knight and David Chandler NewScientist.com October 15, 2003 -- Charles Vick, of GlobalSecurity.org, says China's future plans, which include developing an inhabitable space station and robotic missions to the Moon and Mars, could unsettle some international observers. "This represents a considerable threat to the Western leadership of space exploration and development," he told New Scientist. "The next US administration is going to have to approach this."
33. China launches manned rocket By Gady A. Epstein The Baltimore Sun October 15, 2003 -- Mao's chief aim, analysts say, was to put up satellites for military purposes, or, as John Pike, director of Globalsecurity.org, said, "so that he would know where to aim his nuclear missiles."
34. Bush's Golden Vision By Roger Trilling The Village Voice October 15 - 21, 2003 -- "A hundred-fifty billion dollars is a large amount of money with no incumbent claimant," observed John Pike, of globalsecurity.org, a nonpartisan think tank for defense. "It's new money, up for grabs, and the campaign effects are a given. Such a large sum serves to consolidate the existing distribution of power in Washington, where one party is in control, and there's an uncompetitive electoral system in Congress. So this will further undermine the pretense that we live in a functional democracy-meaning, you can look forward to another round of redistricting after the next election!"
35. Harpoon missile story said politically motivated By Erik Schechter The Jerusalem Post October 14, 2003 -- John Pike, a defense analyst for GlobalSecurity.org, noted that the Tomahawk cruise missile has only a 51.82 centimeter (20.4 inch) diameter but can carry a 200-kiloton warhead that could incinerate hundreds of thousands of people. "I can see the Harpoon, which has a 13.5 inch 34.29 cm. diameter, carrying a 10-20 kiloton warhead that could burn down a large town," he said.
36. China ready for history-making human spaceflight By Stephen Clark Spaceflight Now October 14, 2003 - Much of the fanfare surrounding the manned spaceflight project is purely propaganda, says Charles Vick, a space analyst with Globalsecurity.org. "This also implies that the manned program serves as both a propaganda platform to say that China is a world power but also serves the purpose of regime leadership legitimization to say to the Chinese people that look what we have achieved under their communist party leadership,"
37. China Ready for Human Spaceflight By William J. Broad The New York Times October 13, 2003 -- "Even a short flight should cross the United States six or seven times," said Charles P. Vick, an expert on the Chinese space program at GlobalSecurity.org, a research group based in Alexandria, Va.
38. US warns airlines over bombs in cushions and toys Agence France Presse October 14, 2003 -- "Everything is realistic at this point," said Patrick Garrett of the GlobalSecurity.org consultancy. "Al-Qaeda is today able to plan anything."
39. Attacks Kill 3 More Americans; Arrests Made In Suicide Blast Orlando Sentinel (Florida) October 14, 2003 -- SOURCES: GlobalSecurity.org, The Associated Press
40. 3rd World Sets Sights on Space By Peter Pae Los Angeles Times October 14, 2003 -- any of the space programs are actually about building spy satellites to peek in on neighbors, said John Pike, director of the think thank Globalsecurity.org. Many of the countries jumping into space are embroiled in touchy regional conflicts, and a presence in space is considered key to national security. India, for instance, is focused on developing reconnaissance satellites, Pike said, because "they've got to worry about Pakistan and China."
41. Vilseck unit in Kirkuk finds need for both warfighting, rebuilding By Steve Liewer Stars and Stripes October 14, 2003 -- Kirkuk is about 180 miles north of Baghdad, sitting atop a sea of oil with proven reserves of at least 10 billion barrels a day, according to the Web site globalsecurity.org.
42. CNN NEWSNIGHT AARON BROWN 22:00 CNN October 13, 2003 -- CHARLES VICK, GLOBAL SECURITY: What seems to be 40 years behind in technology can really come up and fool you very quickly. Immediately it is not a direct threat that cannot be dealt with by our capabilities and certainly our military predominance in space.
43. E l'America si chiede chi comanda davvero By Gianni Riotta Corriere della Sera October 13, 2003 -- Gli esperti militari di Globalsecurity.org assicurano «Condi è al comando», ma il ministro della Difesa Donald Rumsfeld, che opera nel labirinto di Washington da quando la Rice era al liceo, rilascia un'intervista al Financial Times e ne mina subito l'incarico. Ieri incalza il Washington Post: la Rice ha fallito, la sua frusta non doma i leoni della politica.
44. Furniture-Market Security Tricky, But Police 'Have It Down' By Eric Collins News & Record (Greensboro, NC) October 13, 2003 -- Security managers across the country struggle with how much security is enough in a post-Sept. 11 environment, said John Pike, director of Globalsecurity.org, a nonprofit defense policy group in Washington. "It's just very difficult to figure out how much attention to devote to this," he said. "You can't worry about everything. You cannot publicly disclose everything you are doing. The challenge they have had is striking a balance between demonstrating to the public that they have the situation in hand versus providing the terrorists with a road map of the easiest place to attack."
45. Stryker brigades face key test in Iraq By William ColeThe Honolulu Advertiser October 13, 2003 -- "It (the Iraq deployment) is going to be watched very closely because the whole Stryker interim brigade combat team business has been very high profile within the Army and controversial," said John Pike, a defense analyst with Virginia-based GlobalSecurity.org. "There's just an awful lot riding on it."
46. Astronauts Arrive at China Launch Site Voice of America 13 OCt 2003 -- "This is probably going to have a much bigger impact inside China as an expression of national resolve and national pride, than it will in the outside world," said John Pike, director of the Washington-based Global Security. "I think that most of the rest of the world is going to shrug it off as being a political stunt that the Soviets and the Americans did four decades ago."
47. US wary of a 'space Pearl Harbour' By Ray Cheung South China Morning Post October 13, 2003 -- "The US space hawks are using this communist China threat to get more money for their programmes. They believe you can never have too much superiority," said John Pike, a space analyst and director of Globalsecurity.org, a Washington-based think-tank.
48. World Watches As China Plans Launch By Gwyneth K. Shaw Orlando Sentinel (Florida) October 13, 2003 -- John Pike, a space-policy expert and director of the think tank GlobalSecurity.org, said American space technology remains far superior to what the Chinese have so far been able to develop, even with the space-shuttle fleet grounded in the wake of the Feb. 1 loss of the shuttle Columbia. "We may be in a race, but the Chinese have about four decades of catching up to do before they're even in the same lap we're in," Pike said. "We're leading in the Firecracker 500, and the Chinese are out running some demolition derby on a dirt track."
49. Analysts: Defense contractors pose security worries By Matthew Hay Brown Orlando Sentinel (Florida) October 12, 2003 -- "It seems like this guy tried three different ways to get in, and just kept trying doors that were locked until he found one that was unlocked," said Tim Brown, an analyst with GlobalSecurity.org. "Red flags should have gone off when he showed up."
50. War and its piece By Bruce Nichols The Dallas Morning News October 12, 2003 -- Tons of hardware from the first Iraq war, in 1991, has piled up in "boneyards" in Kuwait, and no one has salvaged it, said John Pike of GlobalSecurity.org, a Virginia-based think tank specializing in military issues. If you could make money at it, "somebody would have done it," he said.
51. China set to launch a manned spacecraft By Mark Carreau Houston Chronicle October 11, 2003 -- "This is very much a propaganda mission," said Charles Vick, who monitors space policy developments for GlobalSecurity.org, a think tank in Alexandria, Va. "It in effect says to the rest of the world, `We are a world power, period, end of discussion.' "
52. China counts down to great leap forward in space By Juliana Liu Reuters October 10, 2003 -- Charles Vick, a space analyst for Globalsecurity.org, said China's programme would force the United States to face issues it has managed to avoid since the Cold War. "The potential introduction of a Third World space effort...does represent a major national security threat," he said.
53. Bush backs sanctions against Syria: Damascus has failed to fight terrorism, Washington says By Paul Basken Bloomberg News, with files from Reuters October 09, 2003 -- An analyst with Globalsecurity .org, a private military research institution in Washington, said satellite photos of Israel's target in Syria prior to the bombing showed no clear evidence of terrorist activity. (...) The area appears to be a tourist destination, and the camp's location alongside a highway makes it an unlikely location for secretive activities, said the analyst, Tim Brown.
54. Agency Web Site Touts Ball Game as Missile Defense Model By Joe Fiorill Global Security Newswire October 07, 2003 -- GlobalSecurity.org Director John Pike said the simple game illustrates that the United States has been spending far too much on less cost-effective missile defense activities.
55. Hawaii, Guam unlikely for JFK By Gregory Piatt Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville, FL) October 7, 2003 -- The Kennedy, however, still might not spend the rest of its life based at Mayport Naval Station, said Patrick Garrett, an analyst with Global Security, a Washington-based defense think tank.
56. Jacksonville bases will lose ships, planes By Gregory Piatt Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville, FL) October 07, 2003 -- The Super Hornet is expected to be introduced in the Atlantic Fleet beginning in 2004, and there will be 10 active squadrons and one training squadron operating on the East Coast by 2010, according to globalsecurity.org. Each squadron will consist of 12 or 14 aircraft and the training squadron will have 32 planes.
57. US dollar-diplomacy may have paid off in Turkey vote by Adam Entous Reuters October 07, 2003 - ''We're not arguing virtue. We're just haggling over price,'' said John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, a nonprofit defense policy group.
58. White House defends its role in rebuilding Boston Globe October 07, 2003 - John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, a Virginia-based think tank that specializes in military issues, said the move to form a group to oversee day-to-day decisions is a good one. "They're coming to grips with this being a high visibility, long-term issue that they need some sort of structure to deal with," Pike said.
59. Streamlining Iraq new goal of White House Arizona Republic October 07, 2003 - John Pike is director of GlobalSecurity.org, a Virginia-based think tank that specializes in military issues. He said that the move to form a group to oversee day-to-day decisions is a good one.
60. Fame, Infame, All the Same by George Smith The Register October 07, 2003 - George Smith is a Senior Fellow at GlobalSecurity.org, a defense affairs think tank and public information group. He also edits the Crypt Newsletter and has written extensively on viruses, the genesis of techno-legends and the impact of both on society.
61. For this space race, the X factor is money The big challenge: 'It's rocket science' The Seattle Times October 05, 2003 - Bah, humbug, says John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, a defense- and space-policy consulting group in Alexandria, Va.
62. Polish troops south of Baghdad find four French-made surface to air missiles By STEVEN R. HURST Associated Press October 04, 2003 - The Web site GlobalSecurity.org says the Roland weapon system is intended for anti-aircraft defense of armored and mechanized the units to counter aircraft flying to nearly at 1 1/2 times the speed of sound or hovering helicopters.
63. Governor, first lady host fiesta for Guam military personnel By Steve Limtiaco Pacific Daily News October 04, 2003 - According to the Globalsecurity.org Web site, Camp Zama is located about 25 miles southwest of central Tokyo.
64. Report underlines scale of intelligence failure The Guardian October 03, 2003 - John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, agreed with the Kay assessment that there was intent, though not much was happening on the nuclear front. He added that nuclear material was easy to conceal: "The material to make one bomb a year would fit inside a grocery store."
65. CHINA GOES BOLDLY WHERE TWO COUNTRIES HAVE GONE BEFORE By JULIE CHAO Cox News Service October 02, 2003 - Although China has been launching satellites for more than 30 years, the manned space program was started partly as a reaction to the advanced U.S. military technology displayed in the 1991 Gulf War, according to Charles Vick, a consultant for globalsecurity.org and an expert on the Chinese and Russian space programs.
66. Navy has fewest ships since before World War I By James W. Crawley San Diego Union-Tribune October 02, 2003 - GlobalSecurity.org defense analyst John Pike said America's enemies have shrunk from Cold War days. With no monolithic enemy like the Soviet Union, the Pentagon has trouble proving its need for a huge maritime force, he said.
67. RED FLAGS ON GITMO SPY SUSPECT by MAKI BECKER NY Daily News October 02, 2003 -- "I would think they would have done a background investigation," said Tim Brown, a senior fellow at Globalsecurity.org, a Washington-area research group.
68. 3rd arrest intensifies spy worries by Matthew Hay Brown Orlando Sentinel October 01, 2003 -- "It's starting to look like there's been a major penetration at Guantánamo," said Tim Brown, an analyst at GlobalSecurity.org, an Arlington, Va., think tank.
69. Bush gets first taste of scandal, Thrust ... , ... & parry by Robert Hillman and Michelle Mittelstadt Dallas Morning News October 01, 2003 -- "It's just other pawn on the game board in this larger pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey game about whether there was sufficient intelligence to justify war with Iraq," said John Pike of GlobalSecurity.org, a Washington-area think tank that examines intelligence and defense policy.