REINFORCING THE SHIELD, REASSURING ALLIES: One of America’s most effective anti-missile systems is finally deploying to South Korea, after months of negotiations and delays. The “first elements” of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, system have arrived, and will soon be operational, according to U.S. officials. The hangup had been China, which opposes the deployment, and had threatened South Korea with economic relations if it accepted the advanced system with its long range radars from the U.S. But apparently, North Korea’s latest launch of more than four medium-range missiles was enough to convince South Korea it was worth angering its neighbor to the west. In a statement, U.S. Pacific Commander Adm. Harry Harris said, “Continued provocative actions by North Korea, to include yesterday’s launch of multiple missiles, only confirm the prudence of our alliance decision last year to deploy THAAD to South Korea.” THAAD, built by Lockheed Martin, is designed to intercept and destroy short- and medium-range ballistic missiles inside or outside the atmosphere during their final, or terminal, phase of flight, according to the statement. You can see video of its arrival here.
Bellicose rhetoric continues to spew from North Korean state media, which now claims leader Kim Jong Un personally supervised Monday’s missile salvo, and that it was designed to demonstrate the DPRK’s ability to strike U.S. bases in Japan. Pentagon officials said yesterday that the U.S. could tell from the trajectory of the four missiles that they wouldn’t make it far as Japan, although they did travel about 600 miles in more or less a straight line from North Korea’s west coast, across the northern Korean peninsula, before falling into the Sea of Japan, several hundred miles from Japan’s west coast. And officials said more than four missiles were fired, but an undisclosed number failed.
President Trump and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis both reached out to Japan yesterday to reassure President Shinzo Abe of Washington’s stalwart support. In his phone calls with Defense Minister Tomomi Inada, Mattis called the North Korean missile launches “unacceptable and irresponsible.” Trump also called South Korea’s acting President Hwang Kyo-Ahn.
China responded quickly, saying it will take “necessary measures” to protect itself and warning that the U.S. and South Korea should be prepared to bear the consequences, according to the AP. The U.S. insists THAAD is a strictly defensive system that “poses no threat to other countries in the region.” China objects to its long-range radar, which can see deep into Chinese territory.
THE GRAVEST THREAT: North Korea’s continued defiance of international norms suggests the regime “is quickly emerging as the most imminent threat to U.S. national security and the global order,” according to Alaska Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, Joel Gehrke writes. “My greatest fear is that the American people will, in the near future, wake up to a North Korea that has the ability to fire a nuclear warhead into America’s heartland,” Sullivan said Monday. “When that day comes, we need to ensure that Kim Jong Un knows — without a shred of doubt — that if he launches against our country, not only will he not get through our defenses, but we will massively retaliate.”
$$ FOR SHIPS: The fiscal 2017 defense appropriations bill that the House votes on tomorrow includes almost $900 million more for shipbuilding than the version that passed the House last year. Some of the biggest increases are for the new class of Arleigh Burke guided-missile destroyers, which would get $403.5 million more under the new bill, and the replacement for the amphibious assault ship, which would get $178.5 million more.
But it’s unclear if the spending bill will be successful. Democrats have said they’ll block the defense bill from passing unless other non-defense bills also start moving through Congress, the same fight that derailed the normal budget process last year and left the government operating on a continuing resolution.
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MOSUL SITREP: After more than four months of fighting, Iraqi forces have liberated roughly 75 percent of Mosul, but are still suffering heavy casualties and dealing with thousands of fleeing civilians as they push deeper into the western part of the city, where Islamic State fighters are staging a furious fight to the death. Iraqi forces stormed a government complex in the heart of the city overnight, but then had to retreat in the face of a fierce counterattack, according to the AP.
IRAQ NO LONGER BANNED: Iraqi officials reacted with relief that Trump’s revised executive order on travel no longer lists Iraq as a country with inadequate vetting procedures that could allow terrorists to enter to the United States. In announcing the new rules, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said a State Department review identified multiple security measures the government of Iraq will be implementing preventing those “with criminal or terroristic intent” from reaching the U.S. “Iraq is an important ally in the fight to defeat ISIS, with their brave soldiers fighting in close coordination with America’s men and women in uniform,” Tillerson said. “I want to express my appreciation to Prime Minister al-Abadi of Iraq for his positive engagement and support for implementing these actions.”
The Pentagon had opposed including Iraq, the U.S. ally doing the deadliest fighting against ISIS in the ban, and Mattis had also lobbied to make sure that interpreters who worked with the U.S. military and were granted special immigrant visas would also be allowed in. The new order exempts legal permanent residents and existing visa holders from the ban, under which foreign nationals from six countries will be prohibited from entering the U.S. for the next 90 days beginning on March 16, Gabby Morrongiello writes.
The signing of the order, which took place behind closed doors, was announced at a joint appearance by Tillerson, Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, who took no questions from the press. “Today’s executive order will make America more secure and address long overdue concerns about the security of our immigration system,” Kelly told reporters. “Unregulated, unfettered travel is not a universal privilege, especially when our national security is at stake.”
KEEPING ALLIES FROM FIGHTING EACH OTHER: An undisclosed number of U.S. special operations troops have been given a new mission: Stand around looking imposing in order to keep one faction of Kurds backed by Turkey from fighting another group of Kurds backed by the U.S. The Pentagon calls it a “reassurance and deterrence” mission, and it’s a result of the complicated mix of forces now operating in Northern Syria, and amid a dispute between the U.S. and Turkey over who is in control of the city of Manbij, liberated from Islamic State control last year. The U.S. has now positioned its forces and a small number of Stryker armored vehicles on the western outskirts of the city to dissuade any fighters, whether they are backed by Turkey or the Syrian government, from trying to enter the city.
THE SHAME OF THE CORPS: The Marine Corps is reeling in the wake of revelations that some members were circulating nude pictures of fellow female service members on a private Facebook page and on password-protected Google Drive. The Marines involved face possible courts-martial, and officials are promising a full investigation, not just of the posting of salacious photographs, but the derogatory online comments that have come from current and former Marines. “This behavior destroys morale, erodes trust, and degrades the individual. The Marine Corps does not condone this sort of behavior, which undermines our core values,” said a statement issued yesterday.
In a tweet Sunday, Lauren Katzenberg, managing editor of Task and Purpose, noted that the Marines under investigation were getting a lot of sympathy online. “More than 700 comments on T&P FB article on Marines sharing explicit photos of servicewomen. More than 2/3 of them defending the behavior.” In response, Maj. Christian Devine, a Marine Corps spokesman, called the social media comments “quite disgraceful,” adding, “We are trying our best to understand the reckless and callous banter in many online platforms where this discussion is happening.”
Devine wrote in an email, “As a father of a young lady growing-up in today’s digital information environment, I find this type of voyeurism disturbing, and the subsequent justification of it, to be repulsive. People who do this to others, regardless of their proclaimed affiliation to military-culture, are cowards. Their actions are inconsistent with the Marine Corps’ values and teamwork, and it impedes our collective ability to perform our mission and win.
“However, it’s important to note that many of these people (as described in the Tweet) are no longer on active duty, and have become emboldened to defend a rather shallow and perverted perspective. But, rest assured that our leadership is looking deliberately at these behaviors and our culture to determine where we may change for the better.”
McMASTER’S MISSTEP: The Washington Post has obtained a copy of an administrative “light rebuke” issued to national security adviser Lt. Gen. H.R McMaster in 2015, which criticized his handling of a sexual assault case involving two junior officers. The “memorandum of concern” was written by Army Vice Chief Gen. Daniel Allyn, but not placed in McMaster’s file, according to the Post. The document, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, shows Allyn wrote, “I am disappointed with your actions. … As a senior leader in the United States Army, you are expected and required to understand and comply with all laws and regulations.” The action stemmed from a 2013 case in which McMaster allowed two lieutenants to attend the Army’s elite Ranger School while they were under criminal investigation. The Post reports the case was eventually dropped after the Army determined the alleged victim was not credible.
MORE IRANIAN PROVOCATIONS: The Pentagon says Iran continues to harass U.S. and other ships in international waters. The latest incidents involved Iranian fast boats operating dangerously close to a U.S. Navy surveillance ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday and Saturday. Spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis said the Iranian boats “came within distances and acted in ways that we considered unsafe and or unprofessional.” In both cases, it required ships that were in the company of the tracking ship USNS Invincible to change course “to avoid getting into a further unsafe situation,” Davis said.
Meanwhile, a key Senate Republican said Monday Iran’s test of two ballistic missiles over the weekend require a firm response from the U.S. “These provocative tests are just the latest example of Iran’s dangerous actions that demand a coordinated, multi-faceted response from the United States,” said Foreign Relations Chairman Sen. Bob Corker. Reports said the tests could help Iran target U.S. Navy ships in the Persian Gulf.
RUSSIAN BOASTS: Russian military officials and analysts are bragging about the development of a nuclear weapon “immune to any missile defense” shield, Joel Gehrke reports. The new heavy intercontinental ballistic missile is designed to replace a weapons system NATO dubbed the SS-18 Satan, which was slated to be phased out under the terms of an arms control treaty that President George H.W. Bush’s administration signed with the fading Soviet Union. With Russia looking to emerge once again as a great power, state-run media offered a preview of a new ICBM called the SS-X-30, which carries at least 15 nuclear warheads each.
“We have no intention of being the first to deliver a nuclear strike,” Viktor Yesin, a military adviser to Russia’s strategic missile force commander, told TASS news agency. “We will be able to launch them while enemy missiles are still on the way. We are building Voronezh-class missile attack warning radars along the borders capable of identifying any approaching missiles. Hypothetical enemies are aware of that. The SS-X-30 will guarantee our security.”
NOT JUST CHINA: While freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea are the ones that make headlines, the Pentagon announced on Monday that it conducted these types of operations to challenge territorial claims it sees as illegitimate with 22 countries in fiscal 2016, including several allies such as Italy, India, South Korea and Japan.
DEALING WITH GITMO RECIDIVISTS: What to do about detainees released from Guantánamo who return to the battlefield? Kill them is the Pentagon’s answer. Officials yesterday confirmed that a former detainee who spent seven years at Gitmo was killed in a U.S. airstrike in Yemen last week. The March 2 strike killed at least two members of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, including Yasir al-Silmi, who was captured shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, and was among the first detainees released by President Obama in 2009.
WAITING FOR SOME EVIDENCE: If it wasn’t clear this weekend that Trump’s claim that Obama ordered the wiretapping of his offices based on less than solid information, it became clearer Monday morning when Trump’s surrogates appeared on the morning shows.
On ABC, deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said she wasn’t sure if Trump has called the FBI directly about his weekend claim that his phone was tapped, which seemed to originate with a Breitbart story. And while the FBI has reportedly said that Trump’s phone was never tapped, she indicated that the White House has not heard that directly from the FBI. “I don’t know that he has got a firm denial from the FBI,” she said.
White House counselor Kellyanne Conway said Trump may have access to information backing up his claim. Conway said on Fox News Monday that, as president, Trump has access to information that others don’t, and that might be a reason he decided to tweet accusations at Obama for wiretaps at Trump Tower.
Among members of Congress, Rep. Trey Gowdy said Monday that he has not seen any evidence that the Obama administration wiretapped Trump Tower, but that Trump will have access to any documents on the matter because wiretapping creates a paper trail. “No, sir,” Gowdy told Fox News’ Bill Hemmer when asked if he has seen evidence to back up Trump’s accusation. “I don’t think the FBI is the Obama team and I don’t think the men and women who are career prosecutors at DOJ belong to any team other than a blindfolded woman holding a set of scales.”
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican who serves as chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said on Fox News Congress will take a “hard look” at Trump’s claims. “[Rep.] Devin Nunes and the House Intelligence Committee will take the lead on this, but we’re going to play a role, the oversight committee,” Chaffetz said. “I’m going to go into it eyes wide open.”
RUSSIA PROBE: The Senate Intelligence Committee will be able to review the raw intelligence relevant to its investigation into Trump’s campaign and the Russian government this week. Delaware Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat, said on CNN the committee’s investigation will be ramping up in the coming days.
“This week the Senate Intelligence Committee is getting access to the raw intelligence that’s relevant to this Russia investigation,” he said. “The big issue here, the issue I think President Trump is trying to distract us from, is whether or not there was collusion between the Trump campaign and [Russia during] our last presidential election.”
DIFFERENT INVESTIGATION: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is demanding an investigation into whether the Trump administration is trying to block a probe into potential Russian collaboration with his campaign, Susan Ferrechio writes. Schumer sent a letter to Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Horowitz. “I write today to urge you to begin an immediate investigation into whether there has been any political interference with an ongoing Department of Justice investigation related to President Trump’s campaign, transition, and administration’s contacts with the Russian Federation and attempts of Russia to interfere with the 2016 United States election,” Schumer wrote to Horowitz.
THE RUNDOWN
Defense One: Iraq Agreed to Share More Information With US to Avoid Travel Ban
Task and Purpose: Winchester Will Supply Ammo For The Army’s New Service Pistol
UPI: Rheinmetall making ammunition for U.S. Air Force F-35s
Defense News: Air Mobility Command head calls for more survivable tanker fleet
Military.com: Air Force Works to Track ISIS Drones to the Source
Reuters: Yemen’s al Qaeda leader says U.S. refused to trade ‘blind sheikh’ for hostage
Marine Corps Times: Marines’ nude photo scandal could lead to significant jail time
Washington Post: Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep to star in new Pentagon Papers film ‘The Post’
Calendar
TUESDAY | MARCH 7
9:45 a.m. 529 14th St. NW. The families of three Green Berets killed in Jordan in November are joined by members of Congress to talk about their search for information on the fatal attack. Press.org
12 noon. 1800 M St. NW, Suite 800 South Tower. Foundation for Defense of Democracies forum: “After the Islamic State: Consequences and Beneficiaries,” a conversation with Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, Thomas Joscelyn, Robin Simcox and Mike Giglio, moderated by Nancy Youssef.
1:30 p.m. Pentagon River Entrance. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis welcomes Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman to the Pentagon.
2:30 p.m. Hart 219. The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence holds a closed hearing. intelligence.senate.gov
WEDNESDAY | MARCH 8
10 a.m. Rayburn 2118. The vice chiefs of the military services testify about nuclear deterrence requirements. armedservices.house.gov
2 p.m. Rayburn 2212. The House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee hosts a panel of Army officials to testify on the service’s readiness. armedservices.house.gov
2:30 p.m. Senate Visitor’s Center 217. Members of the Defense Science Board testify about cybersecurity in a closed hearing. armed-services.senate.gov
2:30 p.m. Russell 222. Retired Gen. C. Robert Kehler, the former leader of U.S. Strategic Command, testifies about the global nuclear weapons environment. armed-services.senate.gov
3:30 p.m. Rayburn 2118. Navy and think tank officials testify on the service’s fleet assessment. armedservices.house.gov
THURSDAY | MARCH 9
9:30 a.m. Hart 216. Gens. Joseph Votel and Thomas Waldhauser, the leaders of U.S. Central Command and Africa Command, respectively, testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee. armed-services.senate.gov
9:30 a.m. Capitol H-140. The House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee holds its members’ day. appropriations.house.gov
11 a.m. Dirksen 419. Think tank experts testify about challenges facing the U.S. in Yemen. foreign.senate.gov
2:00 p.m. Hart 219. The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence holds a closed hearing. intelligence.senate.gov
2:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. The Center for Strategic and International Studies hosts a launch event for the new book, NATO and the North Atlantic: Revitalizing Collective Defense. csis.org
3:30 p.m. Rayburn 2118. Three members of the Defense Science Board testify on nuclear deterrence. armedservices.house.gov
FRIDAY | MARCH 10
9 a.m. Rayburn 2118. The House Armed Services Committee hosts a hearing about sequestration’s impact on Marine Corps readiness. armedservices.house.gov
TUESDAY | MARCH 14
11 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Sharon Weinberger of the Woodrow Wilson Institute discusses her new book on DARPA, The Imagineers of War. wilsoncenter.org
