THUMBING ITS NOSE AT NATO: Last month, the German government announced its goal was to spend 1.5 percent, not the 2 percent it pledged. Germany has Europe’s strongest economy and the fourth-highest defense budget in NATO at about $50 billion, just behind France and the U.K. But because its GDP is so high, about $4 trillion, meeting the 2 percent goal would push its defense spending to $80 billion.

But the point of NATO nations spending money on their own defense is to ensure they have the capability to contribute to the alliance. And Germany does a lot more than other NATO nations, including hosting 35,000 U.S. troops and providing massive training facilities at Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels.

At a news conference in Brussels before he came to Washington to celebrate NATO’s 70th anniversary, Stoltenberg told reporters that burden sharing is not just about money but also about contributions to NATO missions. “Germany is delivering more contributions to NATO missions and operations. They continue to be one of our largest force contributors to our mission in Afghanistan, they lead one of the battlegroups in the Baltics, and they are now responsible for the High Readiness Force of NATO,” he said. “So Germany is contributing to the alliance in many different ways.”

TALIBAN OFFENSIVE BEGINS: In case you are wondering how the peace talks with the Taliban are going, it’s worth noting that the group has announced its annual “spring offensive” has begun. It’s something it does every year.

“The insurgents released a lengthy missive in five languages, including English, saying the fighting would continue while foreign forces remain in Afghanistan,” according to the AP. Today’s announcement instructs the Taliban mujahedeen, or holy warriors, to “launch jihadi operations with sincerity and pure intentions,” strictly abiding by the Taliban command structure, the AP notes. It also urges fighters to avoid civilian casualties.

Good Friday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Kelly Jane Torrance (@kjtorrance). 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 add you to our list. And be sure to follow us on Twitter: @dailyondefense.

HAPPENING TODAY: The Pentagon’s new policy for transgender troops goes into effect today. Under the policy outlined in a memo released last month, service members fall into one of two categories. Transgender troops who were at any time subject to the 2016 policy instituted by former defense secretary Ash Carter may continue to serve without restrictions.

New troops will come under a policy drafted by former defense secretary James Mattis in 2018, which while still facing legal challenges in court is no longer blocked by court injunctions. Under that policy, other current troops and new recruits must meet the same standards as other persons of their biological sex, including uniform and grooming standards.

In other words, men and women who identify as transgender and come under the 2018 policy can dress as they like off duty, but on duty they must conform to the gender they were assigned at birth.

The Pentagon argues this does not constutute a ban on service by transgender persons.

CNO NOMINATED: The Pentagon has announced that Adm. Bill Moran, the vice chief of naval operations, has been nominated by President Trump to be the next chief, succeeding Adm. John Richardson.

Here is how the new Joint Chiefs of Staff is shaping up, with nominations so far:

Chairman: Army Gen. Mark Milley
Vice Chairman: Air Force Gen. John Hyten
Army Chief: Gen. James McConville
Navy Chief: Adm. Bill Moran
Air Force Chief: TBA
Marines Corps Commandant: Lt. Gen. David Berger
National Guard: TBA

RESISTANCE TO THE FORCE: At yesterday’s Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Secretary Shanahan brought along the big guns to help him sell President Trump’s Space Force to a highly skeptical group of lawmakers. Shanahan was flanked by Joint Chiefs chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson, and Air Force Gen. John Hyten, the U.S. nuclear commander and future vice chairman of the joint chiefs (pending confirmation).

It was a very hard sell. Not for the idea that the United States has to step up its game to counter Russia’s and China’s efforts to gain the ability to jam or target American satellites, but for the notion that it requires a whole new service with its own bureaucracy to do it. “I’m having a real hard time understanding why we need this other agency. You’ve got everything at your disposal right now,” said Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. “This doesn’t make any sense to me at all.”

“I understand the threat and I understand our adversaries are moving forward but I don’t understand how adding a box to an organizational chart is going to give us some kind of qualitative military edge,” said Angus King, I-Maine, who questioned why the new U.S. Space Command, a separate combatant command, couldn’t handle what needs to be done. “I think Space Command makes sense. I understand that,” he said. “But to create a new bureaucracy that’s going to cost us half a billion dollars a year, I’ve got to be convinced that there’s some incremental value there.”

“Unless … we’re going to have a large number of actual soldiers in space fighting and they need a different set of skills, this is primarily going to be about technology and acquisitions,” said Tom Cotton, R-Ark. “I think what a lot of us on the committee are trying to figure out is what’s the incremental advantage of having a separate Space Force — like the Marine Corps is to the Navy — within the Air Force, as opposed to say the Air Force having the training and equipping function that the five services have.”

BUT THE THREAT IS VERY REAL: One of the more sobering moments came near the end of the three-hour hearing when Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., began to talk about the classified briefing committee members have had about the growing threat that in the event of a major conflict, China and Russia would be able to cripple the vital functions of every aspect of the U.S. economy by targeting our satellites.

“I sort of feel like the most important facts for us — and the American people understand — are the facts that haven’t been said today. And the reason why they haven’t been said is that they are largely classified,” Blumenthal said. “And the reason that’s important is that the American people have no idea — really, no idea — about the immensity of the threat in space.”

“Our adversaries know what they are doing. We know what they are doing. They know we know what they are doing. But the American people have no idea.”

3RD SUMMIT ‘COULD HAPPEN’: At his White House meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in yesterday, President Trump floated the idea of a third nuclear summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

“It could happen. A third summit could happen. And it’s step by step. It’s not a fast process. I never said it would be. It’s step by step,” Trump said. “I enjoy the summits. I enjoy being with the chairman. I think it’s been very productive, and it really is, it’s step by step.”

“I’ve been telling you that for a long time. If it goes fast, it’s not going to be the proper deal,” he added while also indicating he might be open to making some “smaller deals,” to break the ice.

“I’d have to see what the deal is. There are various smaller deals that maybe could happen. Things could happen,” Trump said. “But at this moment we’re talking about the big deal. The big deal is we have to get rid of the nuclear weapons.”

MISSILE DEFENSES TO EUROPE: U.S. European Command has announced the United States will deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to Romania this summer in support of NATO.

“The THAAD, from the 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, will integrate into the existing NATO BMD architecture,” said a news release yesterday. While deployed, THAAD will support the ongoing Aegis Ashore Romania mission and be under the operational control of NATO’s Allied Air Command.

The deployment comes as maintenance and upgrades are performed in the Aegis Ashore system. “The scheduled update to Aegis Ashore Romania is part of regular updates taking place on all U.S. Aegis systems,” said EUCOM. “The update will not add any offensive capabilities to the Aegis Ashore Missile Defense System.”

MOSUL THE MOVIE: A former CIA counterterrorism officer who subsequently studied filmmaking at NYU is out with a documentary that premieres today in New York, titled simply Mosul. It’s the debut effort of Daniel Gabriel, who documents the 2016 battle to liberate Mosul from the brutal grip of ISIS by Iraqis who have to overcome sectarian divides to succeed.

You can see an extended trailer for the film here: mosul-film.com.

The Rundown

Washington Examiner: The ‘building that speaks’ goes silent

Washington Examiner: John Bolton ridicules Kirsten Gillibrand’s talk of ‘tactile nuclear weapons’

Reuters: Kim Jong Un Consolidates Power As North Korea Shuffles Leadership

Washington Examiner: Lawmakers welcome news of Julian Assange’s arrest

Military Times: U.S., Filipino, and Aussie Forces Conduct Premier Military Exercise But Don’t Mention China

Wall Street Journal: Sudan’s Dictator Omar Al-Bashir Ousted As North Africa Rocked By Upheaval

Air Force Magazine: STRATCOM to Hand Missile Warning, Defense Responsibilities to SPACECOM

Wall Street Journal: Pentagon Moves Forward with JEDI Contract Despite Ethics Issues

Air Force Magazine: USAF Refocusing on Electronic Warfare After Years of Counterinsurgency Operations

Wall Street Journal: Opinion: The Threat of Nuclear War Is Still With Us, by George P. Shultz, William J. Perry, and Sam Nunn

U.S. Naval Institute Blog: Mothball the Truman

Calendar

FRIDAY | APRIL 12

7:30 a.m. 1700 Army Navy Dr., Arlington. The Washington, D.C., chapter of the National Defense Industrial Association holds a discussion on “Presentation of the FY2020 Department of Defense Budget.” Speakers: Carolyn Gleason, deputy for budget in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller; Tom Simoes, director of the Navy Investment and Development Division; and Marine Corps Assistant Deputy Commandant for Programs and Resources Edward Gardiner.

9:30 a.m. 1501 Lee Highway. The Air Force Association’s Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies holds a discussion on “Fielding Tomorrow’s Air Force Faster, Smarter.” Speaker: Assistant Air Force Secretary for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Will Roper.

10 a.m. Pentagon River Entrance. Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan welcomes Germany’s defense minister, Ursula von der Leyen, to the Pentagon.

10 a.m. 485 Russell. The Middle East Policy Council holds a briefing on “The Future of U.S. Engagement in the Middle East.” Speakers: Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Joan Polaschik; Geoffrey Kemp, senior director of regional security programs at the Center for the National Interest; and Daniel Benaim, senior fellow at the Center for American Progress.

WEDNESDAY | APRIL 17

8 a.m. 2201 G St N.W. Defense Writers Group breakfast with Gen. Timothy Ray, commander of Air Force Global Strike Command and Air Forces Strategic – Air, U.S. Strategic Command. Crain Center Duques Hall, The George Washington School of Business. nationalsecuritymedia.gwu.edu