BREAKING THIS MORNING: Militants fired rockets near Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, today, hours after Defense Secretary Jim Mattis landed on a surprise visit to the country. Mattis and the official party had already left the area when the attack occurred. Both the Taliban and ISIS-Khorasan, the Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan, claimed responsibility for the attack, according to SITE Intelligence Group. No casualties have been reported.
Mattis later met with President Ashraf Ghani, and was joined by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and U.S. Gen. John Nicholson, head of the NATO force in that country, and Kay Bailey Hutchison, U.S. ambassador to NATO, CNN reports.
“A lot is riding on this of course as we look toward how do we put an end to this fighting and the threat of terrorism to the Afghan people, to the international community and how do we put this into a path of political reconciliation,” Mattis said. “We are here to set the military and security conditions for that but recognize ultimately the responsibility for the Afghan leadership under your direction.” Ghani referred to Mattis’ and Stoltenberg’s joint presence as an “unprecedented” sign of unity, according to NATO.
Mattis arrives in the country amid plans to send more than 3,000 U.S. troops as part of President Trump’s new strategy there. Mattis spent the past two days in India where he met with leaders to shore up partnerships there. Trump singled out India during his major Afghanistan speech, saying the country must continue to aid development efforts in Afghanistan.
MORE MONEY FOR MISSILE DEFENSE: The nation’s top military officer head to the Senate yesterday to be reappointed to a second term as Joint Chiefs chairman. But Gen. Joseph Dunford’s hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee also provided a comprehensive briefing on all the major issues facing the Defense Department, from funding to North Korea to the issue of transgender service members.
Dunford said the Trump administration is seeking an additional hike in the 2018 budget for ballistic missile defense, including additional radar, Terminal High Altitude Area Defense systems by Lockheed Martin and Patriot systems by Raytheon. “We did an immediate kind of supplemental … for ballistic missile defense, I think it was maybe the first or second week of August to make sure it was in time for the budget cycle,” Dunford said.
The Trump administration also supports a proposal in the Senate’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act, which was sponsored by Sen. Dan Sullivan, that provides $657 million for up to 28 additional ground-based interceptors — about 20 of those at Fort Greely, Alaska — and development of new space-based sensors. “I think what you have outlined in the NDAA combined with the supplemental the administration has put together will meet the immediate needs,” Dunford told Sullivan. “But of course we need a long-term strategic approach and buying the same capabilities that we have today into the future is not going to be the solution.” The Defense Department is expected to complete its overarching Ballistic Missile Defense Review and submit a plan to Trump by the end of the year. The NDAA, which was approved by the Senate, next heads to conference with the House.
AIR FORCE ONE ISSUE: Trump once criticized the costs of designing new Air Force One as being “out of control” and the Air Force announced last month it had instead decided to buy and retrofit two Boeing 747-8 aircraft. The purchases presumably reaped a savings (the service has declined to release the price tag) but Dunford said the fact that neither aircraft will be capable of in-flight refueling could be an issue. “It will certainly be a limiting factor and we will have to plan accordingly,” Dunford told the Senate. The White House, not the Air Force, made the decision to forgo the fueling capability in an effort to save money, he said. The need for aerial refueling of Air Force One is rare but Trump or future presidents could be forced to find a safe place to land for fuel in the event of a national emergency. Sen. Tom Cotton called the purchase decision strange. “I think we might have to revisit that decision here on Capitol Hill,” Cotton said.
DUNFORD BACKS TRANS TROOPS: Dunford became the latest military official to show he is not fully on board with Trump’s effort to end the Obama administration’s policy of open transgender service. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who is co-sponsoring a bill with Sen. John McCain and others to block the new Trump policy, asked if Dunford would promise transgender troops will not be kicked out of the military based solely on their gender identity. “Senator, I will promise that that will be my advice,” said Dunford, who is Trump’s top military adviser. “I believe any individual who meets the physical and mental standards and is worldwide deployable and is currently serving should be afforded the opportunity to continue to serve.” The Palm Center, a transgender rights group, applauded Dunford’s statement and said Trump should listen to his military adviser. Dunford “could not have been clearer when asked his views about transgender military service,” Director Aaron Belkin said in a statement after the hearing.
Trump has ordered Mattis to end transgender surgeries by March, discard plans to recruit transgender troops next year, and craft a plan to deal with those currently serving by February. Earlier this month, Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer told the Washington Examiner he was ready to give similar advice as Dunford, if asked by Mattis. “My personal input would be, one, I truly do believe any patriot that wants to serve and meets the present day requirements that we have should be able to come serve in an environment of dignity and respect,” he said.
ASSUME NORTH KOREA CAN HIT THE U.S.: Dunford said we should assume the worst about North Korea: That it can already hit the United States with a nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile. “Frankly I think we should assume today that North Korea has that capability and has a will to use that capability,” he said. There are still doubts and unknowns about the regime’s ability to create a reliable ICBM and overcome challenges such as re-entering the atmosphere and stabilizing the long-range missiles. But Dunford said they are on a fast track to solving those engineering issues, despite U.S. diplomatic efforts, and senior military leadership now believes that could happen by late 2018. “Whether it is three months, or six months, or 18 months, it is soon,” he said.
OPTIONS ON NORTH KOREA: During a joint press conference with Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy yesterday, Trump said he’s prepared for a military option against North Korea.
“We’re totally prepared for the second option; not a preferred option. But if we take that option, it will be devastating — I can tell you that — devastating for North Korea. That’s called the military option. If we have to take it, we will. He’s acting very badly. He’s saying things that should never, ever be said. And we’re replying to those things, but it’s a reply. It’s not an original statement; it’s a reply.
“You had various administrations, many administrations which left me a mess. But I’ll fix the mess. So we’ll see what happens with North Korea.”
In India, Mattis stressed that diplomacy is the preferred way to go. “The effort to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula is one that has been diplomatically led and with an increased emphasis here as the DPRK — as North Korea’s provocations have become more pronounced. We continue to maintain the diplomatically led effort in the United Nations. You have seen unanimous United Nations Security Council resolutions passed that have increased the pressure — economic pressure and diplomatic pressure on the North.
“At the same time we maintain the capability to deter North Korea’s most dangerous threats, but also to back up our diplomats in a manner that keeps this as long as possible in the diplomatic realm — this effort in the diplomatic realm. And that is our goal, to solve this diplomatically. And I believe that President Trump has been very clear on this issue.”
Good Wednesday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense. Jamie is off this week, but don’t worry, National Security Writer Travis J. Tritten (@travis_tritten) and Senior Editor David Brown (@dave_brown24) have you covered. 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: Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson and Gen. Lori Robinson, the head of U.S. Northern Command, will each headline the Women in Defense National Conference with keynote speeches today. Wilson, who speaks at 4 p.m., has been banging the drum for a bigger, better funded Air Force after years of constrained budgets, pilot shortages and aging equipment have hobbled the force. Robinson has a keynote at 10 a.m. Her command has been closely involved with recent hurricane relief. The two military leaders will be joined at the conference by defense industry leaders Leda Chong, senior vice president at Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., and Sharon Dunbar, vice president at General Dynamics Mission Systems. You can see the full agenda here.
HUNTSMAN SAILS THROUGH: Trump’s nominee to be U.S. ambassador to Russia won enthusiastic approval from a key Senate panel yesterday, which moves him one step closer to Senate confirmation.
Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, a Republican who served under former President Barack Obama as ambassador to China before running for president in 2012, was unanimously approved Tuesday by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He received effusive praise even from Senate Democrats, despite the ever-present potential for controversy related to Trump’s policies or attitude toward Russia.
NORTH KOREA REACHED OUT TO THINK TANKS: Officials with the North Korean government have been reaching out to American analysts and experts with Republican ties in hope of meeting with them to learn more about Trump and his strategy, according to a report.
Representatives from the North Korean government have reached out to Bruce Klingner, an expert on North Korea at The Heritage Foundation, and Douglas Paal, an expert on Asia who served on the National Security Council under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, as well as other experts with Republican ties, according to the Washington Post.
North Korean intermediaries contacted Klingner to invite him to Pyongyang for meetings, and reached out to Paal for assistance in setting up talks between North Korean officials and Americans with Republican connections. Both Klingner and Paal, who now works at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, declined the invitations. Pyongyang has sent seven similar invitations to organizations that have hosted talks in the past.
MEMED BY TRUMP: The widow of Pat Tillman is urging Trump to stop exploiting the death of her husband, an NFL player who gave up his Arizona Cardinals contract to serve as an Army Ranger after the Sept. 11 terror attacks. Marie Tillman released a statement to CNN on Monday night calling for unity, after Trump retweeted praise of Pat Tillman to call for a boycott of the NFL as players kneel during the national anthem in protest.
Meanwhile, retired Marine staff sergeant and double amputee John Jones told Talking Points Memo said he wasn’t thrilled about being dragged into the middle of the argument.
“I went over there and I fought for the rights and freedoms of everybody to do whatever they wanted to do in a lawful manner,” Jones said. “So if the NFL as a whole wants to protest the flag and protest America, then so be it, that’s your right.
“Keep it peaceful, keep it respectful and I don’t care what you do,” he added.
THE RUNDOWN
Defense News: US backs Boeing in Bombardier spat, damaging hopes for F-18 to Canada
Roll Call: Why it looks like the Senate’s debating the defense bill again
New York Times: Iraq orders Kurdistan to surrender its airports
Washington Post: Clinton pressed Trump to deploy hospital ship Comfort to Puerto Rico. Now it’s preparing to go.
Wall Street Journal: Could North Korea actually shoot down U.S. bombers off its coast?
Military Times: U.S. lawmakers balk at arms sales to Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Nigeria
Politico: Corker to retire after 2018
USA Today: North Korea has taken provocative actions for decades, but this time could trigger war
Defense One: The future the U.S. military is constructing a giant, armed nervous system
USNI News: Navy accepts delivery of Littoral Combat Ship Little Rock
Stars and Stripes: Military increasing flights into Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands; bringing satellite phones
Reuters: Trump: military option for North Korea not preferred, but would be ‘devastating’
Foreign Policy: Russia’s hybrid warriors got the White House. Now they’re coming for America’s town halls.
Calendar
WEDNESDAY | SEPT. 27
8 a.m. 2799 Jefferson Davis Hwy. Integrated Air and Missile Defense Conference with Brig. Gen. Tim Lawson, deputy commanding general for U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command. airmissiledefenseevent.iqpc.com
8:15 a.m. 1127 Connecticut Ave. NW. 2017 Women in Defense National Conference with Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson; Gen. Lori Robinson, head of U.S. Northern Command; Leda Chong, senior vice president at Gulfstream Aerospace Corp.; and Sharon Dunbar, vice president at General Dynamics Mission Systems. womenindefense.net
9 a.m. 1789 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Europe’s pressure points. aei.org
10 a.m. Dirksen 342. Full committee hearing on threats to the homeland. hsgac.senate.gov
10 a.m. Rayburn 2172. Joint subcommittee hearing on the president’s Fiscal Year 2018 budget request for Afghanistan and Pakistan. foreignaffairs.house.gov
2:30 p.m. Rayburn 2212. Hearing on the strategy for modernizing the Army’s tactical network with Lt. Gen. Bruce Crawford, Army deputy chief of staff; Maj. Gen. James Mingus, director of the Mission Command Center of Excellence at the Army Combined Arms Center; and Gary Martin, program executive officer for Army Control and Communications-Tactical. armedservices.house.gov
2:15 p.m. Dirksen 419. Hearing on the nominations of Richard Duke Buchan III to be ambassador to Spain, Richard Grenell to be ambassador to Germany, and Edward T. McMullen, Jr. to be ambassador to Liechtenstein. foreign.senate.gov
2:30 p.m. Rayburn 2172. Burma’s brutal campaign against the Rohingya. foreignaffairs.house.gov
4:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Debate on the future of the INF treaty. csis.org
THURSDAY | SEPT. 28
8 a.m. 2799 Jefferson Davis Hwy. Integrated Air and Missile Defense Conference with Rear Adm. Jon Hill, deputy director of the Missile Defense Agency. airmissiledefenseevent.iqpc.com
9 a.m. House Visitor Center 210. Full committee hearing on document production. intelligence.house.gov
10 a.m. Rayburn 2172. Committee markup of eight bills. foreignaffairs.house.gov
10 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. Assessing the defense industrial base with Jerry McGinn, acting deputy assistant secretary of defense. heritage.org
FRIDAY | SEPT. 29
8 a.m. 2799 Jefferson Davis Hwy. Integrated Air and Missile Defense Conference with Brig. Gen. Sean Gainey, commanding general of the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command. airmissiledefenseevent.iqpc.com
9 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Global hotspots and security challenges: A conversation with Sen. Joni Ernst. csis.org
10 a.m. 1030 15th St. NW. What the new Russia sanctions law does and how to make it work. atlanticcouncil.org
12:30 p.m. 1777 F St. NW. A conversation with Sen. Jack Reed. cfr.org
2 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Strengthening the federal government’s cyber defenses with Rep. Will Hurd and Jeanette Manfra, assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security. csis.org
3 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. A panel discussion with veterans and experts on Ken Burns‘ “The Vietnam War.” csis.org
MONDAY | OCT. 2
10 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Public opinion on “America First” with Rep. Mike Gallagher. wilsoncenter.org
6 p.m. 1777 F St. NW. Realism and democracy: American foreign policy after the Arab Spring. cfr.org
TUESDAY | OCT. 3
9:30 a.m. Dirksen 342. Nomination of John M. Mitnick to be general counsel for the Department of Homeland Security. hsgac.senate.gov
10 a.m. Capitol Visitor Center. Issue brief launch on Ukraine’s internally displaced persons holding a key to peace with Rep. Marcy Kaptur. atlanticcouncil.org
10 a.m. House Visitor Center 210. Examining the Department of Homeland Security’s cybersecurity mission. homeland.house.gov
2 p.m. Rayburn 2212. Securing the peace after the fall of the Islamic State with Ryan Crocker, former ambassador to Iraq. armedservices.house.gov
WEDNESDAY | OCT. 4
10 a.m. 1000 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Countering violent extremism in the Trump era. cato.org
10 a.m. 1211 Connecticut Ave. NW. Protecting children in armed conflict with Virginia Gamba, special representative of the United Nations secretary-general for children and armed conflict. stimson.org
12:30 p.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. The space race and the origins of the space age with Robert Curbeam, vice president, of Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems. wilsoncenter.org
3 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Escalation and deterrence in the second space age. csis.org
