TODAY’S TOP 5
1. Troops prefer cash over in-kind benefits
(Military Times) Proposals to front-load military compensation with more cash now rather than back-loading it with deferred, in-kind benefits later on are gaining traction with the commission tasked with recommending reforms to the current system.
2. Troops left to fend for themselves after Army was warned of flaws in rifle
(Washington Times) Army Senior Warrant Officer Russton B. Kramer, a 20-year Green Beret, has learned that if you want to improve your chances to survive, it’s best to personally make modifications to the Army’s primary rifle — the M4 carbine.
3. Pentagon Budget Stuck in Last Century as Warfare Changes
(Gopal Ratnam in Bloomberg) The Obama administration foresees 21st century wars fought with fewer boots on the ground and more drones in the air, while the Pentagon continues buying weapons from the last century.
4. Lawsuit brings to light secrecy statements required by KBR
(Washington Post) One of the nation’s largest government contractors requires employees seeking to report fraud to sign internal confidentiality statements barring them from speaking to anyone about their allegations, including government investigators and prosecutors, according to a complaint filed Wednesday and corporate documents obtained by The Washington Post.
5. Hagel orders shakeup of MIA accounting mission
(Associated Press) Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is ordering a shakeup of agencies responsible for accounting for tens of thousands of Americans missing in action from foreign wars, a mission heavily criticized as wasteful and fragmented.
EUROPE
Hagel not able to engage Ukrainian counterpart
(USA Today) Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has not spoken to his Ukrainian counterpart since troops there fired automatic weapons on civilians, Rear Adm. John Kirby, Hagel's spokesman, said Thursday.
Negotiators reach deal to end Ukraine crisis
(Washington Post) A deal designed to end Ukraine’s long-running crisis was reached Friday after all-night negotiations that included European and Russian mediators, the office of President Viktor Yanukovych announced.
E.U. Imposes Sanctions Despite Russian Criticism
(New York Times) Brushing aside Russian criticism, the European Union agreed on Thursday to go ahead with sanctions that include travel bans and asset freezes imposed on those deemed responsible for the fatal escalation of violence in Ukraine.
Russia to Establish Arctic Military Command
(The Diplomat) Russia will establish a new strategic military command in the Arctic by the end of the year, according to local news reports.
France wasted EUR200 million on Anglo-French carrier studies
(IHS Jane's 360) The French Court of Auditors (Cour des Comptes) has revealed that France spent EUR214 million (USD274 million) on its studies for a potential common Anglo-French aircraft carrier program, which was eventually abandoned.
INDUSTRY
AUSA: Army, Industry Still Defining Infantry Carrier of the Future
(Defense News) Despite being canceled in 2009 by then-Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, bits and pieces of the US Army’s $20 billion Future Combat Systems (FCS) program keep hanging around.
Following SAIC split, John Jumper to depart
(Washington Post) John P. Jumper became chief executive of SAIC in early 2012, taking over a storied contractor that was facing a host of problems, from declining sales to a scandal surrounding a New York City contract that resulted in the removal of three company executives.
Germany Cuts Order for Eurofighter Jets
(Defense News) Germany’s defense ministry is planning to reduce its order for Eurofighter jets from 180 to 143, according to media reports on Thursday.
Australia to Buy Boeing Maritime Patrol Aircraft
(Wall Street Journal) Australia said it would buy eight Boeing Co. BA +0.91% -built P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, but denied the 4 billion Australian dollar (US$3.6 billion) purchase was aimed at countering China's growing naval strength in the region.
BAE: US Business Down, Saudi Deals Strengthen Outlook
(Defense News) BAE Systems is forecasting a significant near-term decline in its US defense and security businesses but has been able to point to sizable deals with Saudi Arabia to help underpin its international order book in 2013, according to results released here Thursday.
U.S. Defense Trade With India Evolves
(Aviation Week) In the international race to court export weapons to India, the U.S. lags compared with longtime trading partners Russia and Israel.
CONGRESS
McCain: Obama the 'most naive president'
(The Hill) Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Thursday called President Obama “the most naïve president in history” because of his foreign policy tactics.
Bipartisan legislative group wants to change VA funding
(USA Today) A quiet backdrop to Washington's government shutdown last October was the anxiety rippling through 3.9 million disabled veterans who rely on government compensation for wounds and injuries, their advocates say.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand gets second shot at military sex-assault bill
(Washington Times) Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand will get her second shot to strip military commanders of their ability to decide whether to convene a trial in sex-assault cases as the Senate prepares to return to the issue next month.
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Military Families Are Using Food Stamps More Than Ever
(Defense One) Military families used food stamps to purchase supplies at Defense Department grocery stores in fiscal 2013 more than in any other year, according to the Defense Commissary Agency.
Panel: Scant evidence 'resiliency' programs really work
(Military Times) The military has invested millions of dollars in programs to prevent combat-related psychological disorders, but there is little evidence they are effective, an influential scientific panel has concluded.
Battle Over Wireless Spectrum Pits Military Needs Against Economic Interests
(National Defense Magazine) The U.S. military has spent decades and billions of dollars modernizing its information systems in preparation for a "network centric" age of warfare. But the Pentagon now faces an acute shortage of wireless spectrum, and will either have to curtail its appetite for data or will have to increasingly share portions of the electromagnetic spectrum with civilian users.
Wage hike's impact on DoD far from clear
(Military Times) Military officials and industry representatives will know more in the coming months about how the Feb. 12 executive order signed by President Obama will affect installations, troops and families.
Commissaries taking part in Hot Pocket recall
(Stars and Stripes) The Defense Commissary Agency is taking part in a recall on some Nestlé Hot Pocket flavors due to a contaminated beef source used in the products.
ARMY
US Army Cancels Vehicle Programs, Moving to Buy Ships
(Defense News) The US Army is planning to buy new transport ships to replace dozens of its decades-old fleet of watercraft.
The Twix bar, the forklift, and the fired Iowan
(Des Moines Register) It’s a familiar tableau: an overpriced vending-machine candy bar dangles on a spiral hook, tantalizingly out of reach and refusing to drop.
AUSA Winter 2014: Army to seek new medium truck family in mid-2020s
(IHS Jane's 360) The US Army is considering buying a new group of medium tactical vehicles in about 10 years and would seek additional commonality in the fleet.
Army in Europe plans to shed hundreds of local nationals
(Stars and Stripes) U.S. Army Europe and Installation Management Command-Europe announced force structure changes Thursday that will reduce the service’s local national workforce by 579 positions.
JBLM deserter who lied about combat service sentenced to one year in jail
(The News Tribune; Tacoma, Wash.) An Army deserter’s nearly 10-year run from Fort Lewis ended this week when Kevin Shakely of Sacramento pleaded guilty to abandoning his military post and lying about his service in combat in a recent TV interview.
Army May Expand Network Integration Evaluation Exercises
(National Defense Magazine) In order to get the technologies it will need by 2025, the Army needs a bigger exercise with broader troop participation than the current Network Integration Evaluation, said the commander in charge of forming doctrine for the service.
NAVY
Drugs on Maersk ship where 2 former SEALs died
(Associated Press) Drugs were in the room where two former Navy SEALs were found dead aboard the Maersk Alabama, a ship that was the focus of a 2009 hijacking dramatized in the movie "Captain Phillips," a company spokesman said Thursday.
Bataan's deployment champ offers cruise, career tips
(Navy Times) Lt. Cmdr. Steven Carpenter has crossed the equator more times than King Neptune himself.
Super Hornet Tests New Infrared Air to Air Targeting Sensor
(U.S. Naval Institute) The U.S. Navy has test flown a Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet equipped with a new Lockheed Martin-built Infrared Search and Track (IRST) sensor pod for the first time. The test flight took place on Feb. 11 at Edwards AFB, Calif.
AIR FORCE
USAF Defends Need for New Long-Range Bomber
(Defense News) The Air Force needs its new long-range strike bomber, even if it can’t give details.
Cyber: The safest job in the Air Force?
(Air Force Times) The cyber training pipeline has doubled in three years, big bonuses are offered to some related specialties and U.S. Cyber Command’s budget doubled to $447 million in 2014, in stark contrast to the looming threat of retiring entire fleets of aircraft and involuntarily separating thousands of airmen.
Welsh Lays Out Air Staff Reorganization
(Defense News) The Air Force is reorganizing how the Air Staff handles operations, the service’s top officer announced Thursday.
The End of the New ICBM
(Defense One) Last week, at a conference full of advocates for modernizing the United States’ nuclear triad, something big happened: the idea of developing a new, nuclear-armed, ground-based long-range missile fell off the table.
Master sgt. accused in alleged 1995 rape of basic trainee
(Air Force Times) The Air Force charged a master sergeant with raping three people, including a former recruit in 1995 while he was a military training instructor.
KC-46A Tanker Gets New Name: Pegasus
(Defense News) The Air Force’s next-generation tanker has a new name, the service’s chief of staff announced Thursday.
MARINE CORPS
Plot thickens after Marine Corps commandant's interview with NPR
(Marine Corps Times) Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Jim Amos is refuting the claim, made under oath by a fellow general, that he wanted troops “crushed” for making an inappropriate video in Afghanistan. But questions remain as to which general is correct in his recollection of events, and to what extent the service’s senior officer was involved in the disciplinary and administrative action ultimately taken against these men.
Gear in, gear out: Marines on retrograde mission pack it up and ship it out
(Stars and Stripes) Forklifts, weapons, radios, tactical vehicles. Containers, trailers, air conditioners, generators. If the Marines brought it to Afghanistan, they need to get it out of Afghanistan, and it’s R4OG’s job to get it done.
Marine and his bomb dog reunite
(Houston Chronicle) For a moment, Ivy the black Lab looked confused. She'd never been to Hobby Airport before, and it seemed as if strangers were surging toward her.
No shooting charge added in Beaufort Marine's death
(The Island Packet; Beaufort, S.C.) A man believed to have shot and killed a Beaufort Marine who attempted to rob him was indicted Thursday on marijuana charges related to the case, however, no new charges were added, according to the 14th Circuit Solicitor's Office.
VETERANS
Experts: Data lacking on long-term IED effects
(Military Times) Troops injured by bomb blasts — who absorb the full brunt of a shock wave, are hit by flying debris or even exposed to bomb-making chemicals — are at higher risk for developing long-term health problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder, persistent headaches and some skin conditions, a panel of top scientists says.
Military Update: VA, Congress shrug as sleep apnea claims 'surge'
(Tom Philpott in Stars and Stripes) Last June the VA Advisory Committee on Disability Compensation privately recommended to Allison A. Hickey, under secretary for benefits, that the Department of Veterans Affairs consider four steps to address a “recent surge” in VA compensation awards for sleep apnea.
Study: Soil dust suspected in illnesses among Iraq vets
(Military Times) A long-term study has found that 14 percent of deployed troops reported chronic respiratory symptoms such as cough, bronchitis, shortness of breath and asthma, compared with 10 percent who did not deploy. The results suggest specific exposures, rather than long exposures, may play a role — particularly among ground troops who deployed to the desert environment of the Persian Gulf.
Restaurant refuses to seat Marine veteran because of his service-dog-in-training
(Marine Corps Times) A Marine Corps veteran says he was told to leave a Texas restaurant because he brought his dog in training to be certified as his service animal.
AFRICA
Blast, gunfire heard near presidential palace in Somali capital
(Reuters) A loud explosion was heard near the center of the Somali capital Mogadishu on Friday, followed by prolonged heavy bursts of gunfire, a Reuters witness said.
Libya’s troubled elections
(Al-Monitor) Slightly more than a million Libyans went to some 3,800 polling stations Feb. 20 to elect 58 members of a constitutional assembly, or “committee of sixty” as it is called locally, which will draft the country’s first constitution since 1951. Voters chose from among 559 candidates purposely without political party representation, to help guarantee the independence of the elected body.
Libyan military plane crashes in Tunisia, 11 killed: officials
(Reuters) A Libyan military plane carrying medical patients crashed early on Friday near Tunisia's capital, killing all 11 crew and passengers on board after an engine failure, Tunisian authorities said.
Nigeria's Boko Haram crisis: Bama attack mars victory claims
(BBC) Suicide bombers are believed to have taken part in a major attack on the northern Nigerian border town of Bama, the army has said.
AFGHANISTAN/PAKISTAN
Afghanistan to probe the execution of Pakistani forces in Afghan soil
(Khaama Press) The government of Afghanistan said Thursday that the Pakistani claims regarding the death of 23 Pakistan Frontier Corps (FC) personnel inside the Afghan territory cannot be confirmed.
NATO head: Afghan security pact after elections
(Associated Press) NATO's secretary general said Thursday he believes Afghan President Hamid Karzai will not sign a long-stalled security pact with the United States allowing American troops to remain in Afghanistan after the end of 2014, leaving the task to whomever emerges as his successor after April elections.
US warns its citizens against travel to Afghanistan
(Khaama Press) The US Department of State has warned its citizens against travel to Afghanistan, saying the security threat to all U.S. citizens in Afghanistan remains critical.
Pakistan protests FC soldiers’ killing in Afghanistan
(Dawn.com) Pakistan Thursday conveyed its strong protest and serious concern to the Afghanistan government on what the country claimed brutal murder of its 23 paramilitary personnel inside the Afghan territory.
MIDDLE EAST
U.S., allies agree on standards for which opposition groups in Syria will receive aid
(Washington Post) The United States and its principal European and Arab allies have agreed on a unified way of providing Syrian rebel groups with aid, classifying them into those who should receive arms supplies and other assistance, those who are ineligible because of clear extremist ties, and those whose eligibility requires further discussion, according to U.S. and allied officials.
Obama Administration Stiffs Chemical Survivors on New Claim
(The Daily Beast) On Jan. 13 in the Syrian city of Daraya, five people were killed and more than 20 injured after being exposed to a mysterious gas. Syrian activists, including some witnesses on the ground, believe that the attack is evidence the Syrian government is still using chemical weapons against its own people—months after that regime pledged to destroy its nerve gas arsenal.
Syria brokering local cease-fires as U.S.-backed talks falter
(Washington Post) As U.S.-backed peace talks crumble, the Syrian government has forged ahead with brokering small-scale cease-fires in the suburbs of the capital in an attempt to show that it is capable of reconciliation without outside interference.
Turkey's Erdogan Seeks Broader Intelligence Agency Powers
(Wall Street Journal) Turkey's government submitted a draft law designed to give sweeping additional powers to its intelligence services, its latest move to expand executive control over key institutions ahead of pivotal elections.
Iran's most sensitive uranium stockpile falls after nuclear deal
(Reuters) The size of Iran's most contested uranium stockpile has declined significantly for the first time in four years following a landmark nuclear deal with world powers in November, the U.N. atomic watchdog reported on Thursday.
ASIA-PACIFIC
Philippines Near Pact to Increase U.S. Troops, Aquino Says
(Bloomberg) The Philippines is “very close” to completing an agreement to boost the number of U.S. troops allowed into the country at a time of growing tension over territorial disputes with China, President Benigno Aquino said.
Japan May Review Probe on WWII Sex Slavery
(Associated Press) Japan's government said Thursday it may re-examine a 20-year-old study that led to a landmark apology over forced prostitution during World War II, in a sign it is leaning toward a denial that officials were involved in organizing sex slavery.
Okinawa lawmakers grill governor over Futenma relocation approval
(Stars and Stripes) Okinawa lawmakers grilled Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima on Friday over his recent approval of the Marine Corps Air Station Futenma relocation despite lingering concerns within his own administration over environmental damage.
COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS
North America's Shared Future
(Retired Army Gen. David Petraeus and Robert Zoellick in Foreign Affairs) This week, U.S. President Barack Obama will travel to Mexico, where he will meet with his North American counterparts, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Mexican President Enrique Peña-Nieto. The summit points to a great strategic opportunity: 20 years after the North American Free Trade Agreement entered into force, all three countries have the chance to forge a new forward-looking agenda for North American competitiveness and integration and thereby increase the economic growth and global influence of each.
Op-Ed: Not Your Grandfather's Insurgency — Criminal, Spiritual, and Plutocratic
(Dr. Robert J. Bunker for the Strategic Studies Institute) The U.S. Army is facing both ongoing and projected austere economic times with deep troop and budget cuts. As a result, a concomitant rise in soul searching over the Army’s “strategic Landpower” contribution to national defense is increasingly evident. This is a natural and expected occurrence for a Service that has been in the spotlight for over a decade in ground campaigns—albeit very much anti-insurgent focused—in Iraq and Afghanistan that, respectively, has and is coming to an end.
You Can’t Beat Climate Change With Weather Guns
(Patrick Tucker in Defense One) John Kerry gave a speech in Jakarta, Indonesia, last weekend where he referred to climate change as “perhaps the world’s most fearsome weapon of mass destruction.” Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Navy Admiral Samuel Locklear, the head of U.S. Pacific Command, have made similar statements. Yet the most recent research shows that the human output of carbon dioxide, a leading cause of climate change, is only getting worse, increasing the probability that mean global temperatures will rise by the end of this century, perhaps by as much as 4.5 degrees Celsius, which would be disastrous.
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