PUTTING CHINA AND NORTH KOREA ON NOTICE: As President Trump prepares for a week of intensive meetings with foreign leaders, he has issued a blunt ultimatum to China to step up and use its influence to bring North Korea to heel. “China will either decide to help us with North Korea, or they won’t. And if they do that will be very good for China, and if they don’t it won’t be good for anyone,” Trump said in interview published in the Financial Times Sunday. Speaking ahead of his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week, Trump said the U.S. will act if China doesn’t. “Well, if China is not going to solve North Korea, we will. That is all I am telling you.” Pressed by the FT interviewer if he thinks he can “solve” it without China’s help, Trump said, “Totally.” That seemed to take the interviewer aback, and prompted the comment, “Mr President, you use a language which is more abrasive than many of your predecessors.” To which Trump replied “I would say. I hope so.” You can read the full transcript here.
On ABC, America’s U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley underscored the president’s strategy to turn up the heat on Xi when the two leaders meet at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate Thursday. Speaking on ABC, Haley said Trump will “no longer take the excuses from China that they’re concerned, too. They need to show us how concerned they are. They need to put pressure on North Korea. The only country that can stop North Korea is China.” And what if it doesn’t? “China has to cooperate,” Haley insisted. “This is now down to do we want to continue to see these ballistic missile attacks from North Korea or does China want to do something about it? And this is all about the fact that they need to have action. And we’re going to continue to put pressure on China to have action. That will be shown in multiple ways.”
CARTER’S SOBERING PERSPECTIVE: The last time the United States seriously considered a preemptive strike on North Korea was in 1994, when President Clinton was presented with options to take out North Korea’s nuclear facility at Yongbyon using cruise missiles and F-117 stealth fighters. This was long before North Korea had nuclear weapons. One of the people at the Pentagon working on the military options was young Ash Carter, who went on the serve as President Obama’s last defense secretary. In his first interview since leaving the Pentagon, Carter said the U.S. still has plans to strike first, if it feels there is an imminent threat. “We have those options. We shouldn’t take them off the table.”
But Carter, speaking on ABC, also made clear it was not an option to be exercised cavalierly, because it could provoke the North into all-out war on the Korean peninsula. “It’s quite possible that they would, as a consequence of that, launch an attempted invasion of South Korea.” And while Carter said he is confident the U.S. and South would prevail in a second Korean War, victory would come at a heavy cost. “I need to caution you,” he told ABC’s Martha Raddatz, “This is a war that would have an intensity of violence associated with it that we haven’t seen since the last Korean War. Seoul is right there on the border of the DMZ, so even though the outcome is certain, it is a very destructive war.”
TRUMP’S BUSY DANCE CARD: The president’s Mar-a-Lago summit with Xi will cap a busy week of meeting with world leaders beginning today with Egypt’s President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi, who was persona non grata under the Obama administration because of concerns about Egypt’s record on human rights. A White House statement on the visit, the first by an Egyptian leader since 2009, praised al-Sissi as someone who has “called for reform and moderation of Islamic discourse, initiated courageous and historic economic reforms, and sought to reestablish Egypt’s regional leadership role.”
On Wednesday, Trump will meet with Jordan’s King Abdullah. The White House says the meeting will focus on a “range of shared interests in the Middle East, including how the United States and Jordan can best defeat ISIS, end the conflict in Syria, and advance peace between Israelis and Palestinians.”
KUSHNER VISITS IRAQ: We awake this morning to the news that senior White House adviser and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner accompanied Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Duford to Iraq on one of his unannounced inspection tours, according to CNN. While the reason for Kushner’s visit was not disclosed, it was presumably to spend some quality time with the president’s top military adviser, and to see first hand how the war against ISIS is going so he can better advise the president.
Good Monday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre), National Security Writer Travis J. Tritten (@travis_tritten) and Senior Editor David Brown (@dave_brown24). Email us here for tips, suggestions, calendar items and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll be sure to add you to our list. And be sure to follow us on Twitter @dailyondefense.
STORM THE HILL: Defense hawks on Capitol Hill have been ringing an alarm over the possibility of a continuing budget resolution and it is about to get even louder Wednesday. The military service chiefs are set to testify to the House Armed Services Committee about just how much damage another stopgap budget measure would do. The assessment will no doubt be exceedingly grim. The Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps have already told the House privately that some war operations could suffer, aircraft will be grounded and ships will not sail. The Air Force said the effect of another continuing resolution when the current one expires April 28 would be similar to sequestration in 2013 — a hit the service is still digging out from. The Defense Department along with Congress’ two armed services chairmen, Rep. Mac Thornberry and Sen. John McCain, are urging lawmakers to pass a new appropriations bill for funding through September and are pulling out all the stops as the clock runs down.
HAPPENING TODAY: The Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space Exposition gets underday today at the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center, at National Harbor, Maryland. Among the highlights today:
8:45 a.m. Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Glenn Walters and Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. William Moran provide a sea services update.
10:30 a.m. Vice Adm. Paul Grosklags, commander, Naval Air Systems Command, Vice Adm. Sandra Stosz, deputy commandant for Mission Support, Vice Adm. Thomas Moore, commander, Naval Sea Systems Command, and Rear Adm. Christian Becker, commander, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, participate in a panel on interoperability and distributed operations.
2 p.m. Vice Adm. Philip Cullom, deputy chief of naval operations for Fleet Readiness and Logistics, Marine Lt. Gen. Robert Walsh, commanding general, Marine Corps Combat Development Command, Rear Adm. David Hahn, chief of naval research, and director of Innovation, Technology Requirements, Test and Evaluation, and Rear Adm. Joseph Vojvodich, assistant commandant for acquisition & chief acquisition officer participate in a panel on innovation for operational excellence.
The event runs through Wednesday, and you can see the full schedule here.
ISIS LEADER HIT: The Islamic State’s second-in-command, Ayad al-Jumaili, was killed on Saturday, Iraq State TV reported, citing military intelligence officials. Al-Jumaili is believed to be the top deputy to Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. State TV announced Jumaili’s death in an onscreen news flash, but gave no further details on how he was killed, according to Reuters.
AWAITING THE VIDEO: The Pentagon has promised to declassify and release U.S. drone video that shows ISIS fighters herding civilians at gunpoint into buildings in Mosul, Iraq, where they are more likely to be killed in airstrikes. The video is said to include evidence that at least one civilian was gunned down by ISIS for failing to comply. The video could be released as soon as today. The Pentagon says the tactic is designed to inflame world opinion against the U.S. by dramatically increasing the number of civilian casualties resulting from the U.S.-led bombing campaign.
SLOW-ROLLING TURKEY: The U.S. continues to say publicly that it’s working to find a role for Turkey in the soon-to-begin offensive to retake the ISIS stronghold in Raqqa, Syria. But privately Pentagon officials are dismissive of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s offer to send Turkish troops to help liberate the city. U.S. commanders are disinclined to change the plan, which calls for a coalition of local fighters, including Syrian Arabs and Kurds, to conduct the offensive with air and ground support from the U.S.-led coalition. Turkey is incensed that elements of the Kurdish YPG militia, which it considers an enemy, are part of the liberation forces. Privately, Pentagon officials say the truth is that even if the U.S. wanted to use the Turkish military, the recent experience of Turkish troops fighting in northern Syria show they are not up to the task.
PUTIN AND TRUMP TO MEET? Russian President Vladimir Putin Sunday extended an invitation to meet with Trump through a spokesman who emphasized the need to build a relationship between the two nations. Putin adviser Dmitry Peskov said on ABC’s “This Week” that the two presidents should “meet each other and exchange views” in order to build a relationship between the two nations. He said this just moments after Haley said on the same show that she doesn’t trust Putin and that “there’s no love” in the relationship between the U.S. and Russia. “I think that Russia is very aware that they are on notice when it comes to certain issues,” Haley said. “They get that we’re getting our strength back, that we’re getting our voice back, and that we’re starting to lead again.”
TRUMP’S ACCUSATIONS: Trump insists he was right all along regarding his much-derided tweet alleging that he was being wiretapped by the Obama administration. “My last tweet, you know the one that you are talking about perhaps, was the one about being in quotes, wiretapped, meaning surveilled. Guess what, it is turning out to be true,” Trump said in the interview with the Financial Times. Trump is likely referring to information viewed at the White House by House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, which Nunes said indicated that Trump’s associates, and possibly Trump himself, may have been caught up incidentally in surveillance conducted against foreigners. But in a news conference March 24, in which he first revealed the new information, Nunes said unequivocally, “I’ve been very clear on this for many, many weeks now, there was no wiretapping of Trump Tower. That didn’t happen.”
SCHIFF’S VISIT: Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he didn’t see anything at the White House on Friday that changes his mind about Nunes’ decision to deviate from “normal review procedures,” Daniel Chaitin writes. In a statement, the California Democrat said he and his staff director reviewed what they were told was “precisely the same materials that were provided to the chairman over a week ago.” Schiff said he cannot discuss publicly the content of the documents, but noted that if the White House had any concern about them, they “should have been shared with the full committees in the first place as a part of our ordinary oversight responsibilities.”
TROOPS TO POLAND: Secretary of State Rex Tillerson touted the imminent deployment of a “U.S.-enhanced” battalion of NATO forces to Poland during his first visit to an alliance ministerial on Friday, Joel Gehrke reports. “The NATO alliance is also fundamental to countering both non-violent, but at times violent, Russian agitation and Russian aggression,” Tillerson said Friday. “These are not just words. Tomorrow, a U.S. enhanced, forward presence battalion will be deployed in Poland.” The group consists of about 1,300 soldiers, mostly from the U.S. Army’s 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment. The battle group also includes another 300 troops from the U.K. and Romania.
VIETNAM TIES: Trump told Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang on Friday that he wants to expand cooperation with the Southeast Asian nation on trade and regional issues, John Siciliano writes. Trump made the overture in a letter to Quang one week before he meets with Xi Jinping, according to the Vietnamese government’s website. Trump’s letter affirmed “his wishes to promote cooperation on economics, trade, regional and international issues,” according to a statement.
MCFARLAND TO A FAR LAND? The White House’s deputy national security adviser has been offered a job as ambassador in Singapore, John Siciliano writes. K.T. McFarland, a former Fox News analyst, was brought on to the White House National Security Council by ousted national security adviser Mike Flynn. Now it seems McFarland could also be leaving Trump’s national security team, CNN reported on Saturday. McFarland’s role at the White House has been uncertain since Flynn left.
THOSE FUNNY RUSSKIES: Need some election interference? The Russian Foreign Ministry is ready to help — or so it says on April Fools’ Day, the Associated Press reported. On Saturday, the ministry posted on its Facebook page an audio file of the purported new automated telephone switchboard message for Russian embassies. “To arrange a call from a Russian diplomat to your political opponent, press 1,” the recording begins, in Russian and English. Press 2 “to use the services of Russian hackers,” and 3 “to request election interference.”
THE RUNDOWN
Washington Post: China’s leader to bring ‘tweetable’ pledges, experts say
Yonhap News Agency: Lawmakers Call For South Korea’s Nuclear Armament In Case Of Another North Korean Nuke Test
CNN: Russia condemns US over ‘absurd’ response to Mosul civilian deaths
CNN: McConnell: Government shutdown won’t happen this month
Breakingdefense.com: Inside Boeing’s F-18 Pitch To White House; Fewer F-35Cs Means Shorter Fight
Military.com: Taliban say they will focus on vulnerable provinces in 2017
New York Times: Cambodia appeals to Trump to forgive war-era debt
New York Times: At least 9 civilians killed as coalition strikes Taliban arsenal, officials say
Reuters: U.S.-backed forces repel Islamic State attack near Syrian dam
Washington Post: In Trump’s Russia controversy, John McCain sees ‘echoes of the Cold War’
National Interest: “Nuclear” Battleships: The U.S. Navy Almost Built a Super Weapon Like No Other
Military Times: Karen Pence emerges as the Trump administration’s liaison to military women
Calendar
MONDAY | APRIL 3
8:45 a.m. Gaylord National Convention Center. The Navy League’s three-day Sea-Air-Space Exposition gets underway. seaairspace.org
10 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. N.E. Experts gather to discuss the many issues surrounding U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. heritage.org
5:30 p.m. Gaylord National Hotel. The way forward for Navy cybersecurity, a discussion with Rear Adm. Christian “Boris” Becker, Vice Adm. Michael Gilday and Vice Adm. Jan Tighe. defenseone.com
TUESDAY | APRIL 4
9:30 a.m. Dirksen G50. Gen. John Hyten, head of U.S. Strategic Command, testifies about the programs under his command. armed-services.senate.gov
9 a.m. 1030 15th St. N.W., 12th Floor. A forum on the progress, opportunities and challenges in Ukraine. Speakers include Sens. Rob Portman and Amy Klobuchar. atlanticcouncil.org
10 a.m. Capitol Visitors Center room 210. A hearing on how to degrade and dismantle drug cartels that are threatening the United States. homeland.house.gov
10 a.m. Rayburn 2118. Michele Flournoy, chief executive officer at the Center for a New American Security, as well as John J. Hamre, CEO and president of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Dov Zakheim, a senior CSIS adviser, testify about reforming the Defense Department. armedservices.house.gov
10:15 a.m. Dirksen 419. David O’Sullivan, head of delegation for the European Union mission to the U.S., testifies about the EU as an ally against Russian aggression. foreign.senate.gov
12:15 p.m. 1211 Connecticut Ave. N.W. Ambassador Richard Olson examines the U.S. strategy and policy options in Afghanistan. stimson.org
6:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. A conversation with Rep. Martha McSally about border security, threats and the global war against terrorism. csis.org
WEDNESDAY | APRIL 5
9 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. An in-depth discussion about foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria and the threats they pose. csis.org
10 a.m. Rayburn 2118. Military service chiefs Air Force Gen. David Goldfein, Army Gen. Mark Milley, Marine Commandant Robert Neller and Adm. John Richardson testify about the potential damage of a continuing budget resolution. armedservices.house.gov
10:30 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. The launch of a report and a discussion on the prospects for defense acquisition in the Trump administration. csis.org
Noon. Willard Intercontinental Hotel. A panel discussion with Michèle Flournoy about women in national security. cnas.org
1 p.m. 1211 Connecticut Ave. N.W. Experts gather to discuss the policy options for dealing with the imminent threat of North Korea. stimson.org
2 p.m. Rayburn 2212. Deputy Marine commandants Lt. Gen. Ronald Bailey, Lt. Gen. Michael Dana, Lt. Gen. Jon Davis testify on the current state of the Marine Corps. armedservices.house.gov
2 p.m. Rayburn 2172. A hearing on challenges to democracy in Turkey. foreignaffairs.house.gov
2 p.m. Rayburn 2154. A hearing to assess the Iran nuclear deal. oversight.house.gov
THURSDAY | APRIL 6
9 a.m. 1775 Massachusetts Ave. N.W. Sen. Chris Coons discusses whether we are headed for a crisis with Russia. brookings.edu
9 a.m. Rayburn 2212. An evaluation of the defense contract auditing process by Anita Bales, director of the Defense Contract Audit Agency, David Berteau, president and CEO of the Professional Services Council, John Panetta, national secretary of Financial Executives International, and James Thomas, assistant vice president for the National Defense Industrial Association. armedservices.house.gov
9:15 a.m. 1777 F St. N.W. Sen. Ben Cardin discusses anti-corruption in U.S. foreign policy under the Trump administration. cfr.org
9:30 a.m. Dirksen G50. Adm. Kurt Tidd of U.S. Southern Command and Gen. Lori Robinson of U.S. Northern Command testify about the status of their responsibilities. armed-services.senate.gov
Noon. 1030 15th St. N.W. Vice Adm. Andreas Krause, chief of the German navy, and Rear Adm. Ulrich Reineke, chief of the German navy’s planning division, discuss the future of that nation’s fleet in a new European security environment. atlanticcouncil.org
Noon. 1777 F St. N.W. A conversation with Sen. John McCain. cfr.org
1:15 p.m. 1777 F St. N.W. A panel on fighting corruption through U.S. foreign policy, what has worked and what has not. cfr.org
