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NDAA HEADS TO TRUMP: Senators, antsy to get out of town, voted on the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act a day earlier than expected and have sent the bill to President Trump. It is almost certain to be signed and will deliver the second installment of a two-year budget deal struck by Congress to rebuild the military. “This NDAA builds on the progress we made earlier this year in the bipartisan budget agreement, which provided for the largest year-on-year increase in funding for American armed forces in 15 years,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said. The actual funding for the policy bill has yet to materialize from Congress. The House passed its 2019 defense appropriations bill this summer, but the Senate is still wrangling over how to bring its bill to the chamber floor. An appropriations bill would determine what ships, aircraft and equipment are bought. But the NDAA authorizes $617 billion for the Pentagon’s base budget and $69 billion for overseas contingency operations. Here is a breakdown of some of that authorized spending in the bill:
TURKEY F-35s: Lawmakers who are angered by Turkey’s imprisonment of U.S. pastor Andrew Brunson added a rebuke to the NATO ally in the NDAA by temporarily halting its purchases of the advanced F-35 fighters. The bill blocks any sales of the jets to Ankara until the Pentagon delivers a report on bilateral military relations and Turkey’s potential purchase of the S-400 air and missile defense system from Russia, which has also raised deep concerns in Washington. The report is due within 90 days of the NDAA being signed into law. COUNTERING MOSCOW: When Trump gets the bill, he will be signing a raft of measures to counter Russia. The NDAA clears the way for the military to pursue a new low-yield nuclear warhead that could be launched from U.S. submarines. It was a key initiative in the Pentagon’s nuclear posture review this year and aims to deter Russia from using its own smaller nukes. The bill also hikes authorized funding for the military deterrence initiative in Europe from $4.6 billion this year to $6.3 billion, which could help boost the U.S. presence in the east near Russia. The NDAA also provides a new sanctions waiver process Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says will wean allies from dependence on Moscow. ZTE DUSTUP: The NDAA also prohibits the government and any contractors from doing business with Chinese telecom ZTE or Huawei Technologies, which many lawmakers see as a national security threat. But Sens. Marco Rubio and Chris Van Hollen took to the Senate floor before the Wednesday vote to decry the lack of further penalties on ZTE. “In the middle of a bill that is supposed to help protect our national security, we now have a big hole. We have a bill hole because by taking out the amendment we had to penalize ZTE the final result creates unnecessary exposure,” Van Hollen said. After ZTE violated North Korea and Iran sanctions, Trump struck a deal with China that the company would simply pay a $1 billion fine and stay in business. The Senate had added a measure into the NDAA re-imposing sanctions and scuttling Trump’s deal. But the measure was nixed from the final bill. Since the Treasury Department was expecting the $1 billion payment, Sen. Jack Reed, the ranking member on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the Rubio and Van Hollen proposal would have forced a $1 billion cut to cover the lost revenue. “That $1 billion offset could only come from military programs subject to our jurisdiction — the end strength of the military, platforms we might acquire — we found it difficult to work our way through that issue,” Reed said. ECSTATIC AT THE RECORD SPEED: The Pentagon issued a statement after the final vote, applauding the passage of the 2019 NDAA “at the swiftest pace in 20 years.” “I am grateful for the strong commitment of members on both sides of the aisle to pass this year’s NDAA in record time. Together, they have demonstrated the deep and abiding bipartisan support our military enjoys,” Mattis said. “It is now our duty to implement these policies responsibly and ensure a culture of performance and accountability.” HONORING McCAIN: This year’s NDAA was named in honor of Sen. John McCain, a longtime defense stalwart in the Senate and Armed Services chairman who is being treated in Arizona for brain cancer. The disease did not stop McCain from working on the bill from afar through his staff, and after the NDAA passed he offered his thoughts. “Serving on the Senate Armed Services Committee has been an incredibly meaningful experience since my first days on Capitol Hill. Among its leaders, I have counted the most cherished of mentors and friends: John Tower, Barry Goldwater, Sam Nunn, John Warner, and Carl Levin,” McCain said in the Wednesday statement. “And in the committee’s work, I have found high purpose in the service of a cause greater than self — the cause of the women and men in uniform who defend America and all she stands for. That is why it has been one of the greatest honors of my tenure in the U.S. Senate to serve as its chairman,” said McCain, whose future in the Senate has remained uncertain since he left Washington in December. Good Thursday 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 add you to our list. And be sure to follow us on Twitter @dailyondefense. |
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HAPPENING TODAY: “The Army in Cyberspace” is the theme for the Association of the United States Army’s Institute for Land Warfare’s “Hot Topic Symposium,” a day-long event that aims to examine how the Army will innovate, lead and win in the cyber domain. Among the speakers: Lt. Gen. Stephen Fogarty, Army Cyber Command, and Lt. Gen. Bruce Crawford, chief information officer/G-6. The live stream of the symposium begins at 7 a.m. IRAN’S GULF THREAT: U.S. officials claim that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard forces are preparing to stage a major naval exercise in the Persian Gulf, a move that could be designed show off their capability of closing the Strait of Hormuz, CNN reported. “We are aware of the increase in Iranian naval operations within the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, and Gulf of Oman. We are monitoring it closely, and will continue to work with our partners to ensure freedom of navigation and free flow of commerce in international waterways,” said Capt. William Urban, chief spokesman for U.S. Central Command, in a statement. The U.S. estimates that Iran has gathered more than 100 boats to participate in the exercises, along with hundreds of Iranian troops and some Iranian air and ground assets. The exercise could start in the next day. WORLD READY TO ACT: Last week, Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon he was well aware of Iran’s threat to close the Strait of Hormuz. “They’ve done that previously in years past. They saw the international community, dozens of nations of the international community put their naval forces in for exercises to clear the straits.” Mattis said the U.S. and its allies are ready to do that again to keep energy supplies flowing through the strategic chokepoint. “Clearly, this would be an attack on international shipping, and it would have, obviously, an international response to reopen the shipping lanes with whatever that took.” ISRAEL’S ALSO WATCHING: Israel is ready should Iran try to interfere with shipping on the other side of the Arabian peninsula, in the narrow waterway that connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday. “If Iran tries to block the Straits of Bab al-Mandab, it will find itself facing an international coalition determined to prevent it from doing so, and this coalition will also include the State of Israel and all its arms,” Netanyahu told an audience of graduating naval officers, per Haaretz. US-TURKEY RELATIONS CONTINUE TO SOUR: Trump has made good on his threat to punish Turkey over the dispute involving pastor Brunson, who was released from prison but still held under house arrest, after Trump believed he had struck a deal for his release with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Yesterday, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on two senior members of the Turkish government. “President Trump has made it abundantly clear that the United States expects Turkey to release him immediately,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement. Brunson was arrested in 2016 and accused of being part of the failed coup attempt against Erdogan, and attempting to convert Kurds to Christianity. “We’ve seen no evidence that Pastor Brunson has done anything wrong, and we believe he is a victim of unfair and unjust detention by the government of Turkey,” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters yesterday. She said both Turkey’s minister of justice and minister of interior played leading roles in the detention of Brunson. “As a result, any property, or interest in property, of both ministers within U.S. jurisdiction is blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.” TURKEY DEFIANT: In response, Turkey has called the sanctions disrespectful and illegal, and is vowing to retaliate, evidence that relations between Trump and Erdogan have sunk to a new low. “We strongly protest the sanctions announced by the U.S. Treasury Department,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement, according to the Hurriyet Daily News. “This aggressive stance that does not serve any interest will be retaliated in the same, without delay.” THANKS AGAIN, KIM: As the U.S. military begins the methodical process of confirming whether the remains turned over by North Korea this week are in fact Americans missing in the Korean War, Trump has fired off a thank you tweet to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. “Thank you to Chairman Kim Jong Un for keeping your word & starting the process of sending home the remains of our great and beloved missing fallen! I am not at all surprised that you took this kind action. Also, thank you for your nice letter – l look forward to seeing you soon!” Trump tweeted around midnight last night. POMPEO IN ASIA: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is half a world away visiting Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. Pompeo will “meet with senior officials; participate in ASEAN-centered ministerial meetings; and discuss advancing our shared security and bilateral trade and investment goals,” according to the State Department. It turns out North Korea is one of the 27 members of the ASEAN Regional Forum in Singapore, so Pompeo may also do some negotiation on the sidelines with his North Korean counterpart or other members of the delegation. “They’ll be in the room, and there will certainly be discussions about denuclearization of North Korea, as there traditionally are at these gatherings,” a senior State Department official said at a background briefing for reporters. RECALLING AN OLD MISTAKE: In urging reporters to responsibly report the news, Sanders yesterday reached back two decades to find an example of one case when journalists compromised national security by revealing too much about “sources and methods.” “The media routinely reports on classified information and government secrets that put lives in danger and risk valuable national security tools,” Sanders said at the daily White House press briefing. “One of the worst cases was the reporting on the U.S. ability to listen to Osama bin Laden’s satellite phone in the late ’90s. Because of that reporting, he stopped using that phone and the country lost valuable intelligence.” I was one of the reporters who covered the August 1998 cruise missile attack that targeted bin Laden in an al Qaeda training camp in a mountainous region of Afghanistan. Apparently warned by Pakistan, bin Laden left hours before the missiles landed, destroying some tents and killing a few goats. Embarrassed Clinton administration officials, in an attempt to counter the media narrative that the strike was based on flawed intelligence, revealed to some reporters that they knew bin Laden was at the hideout because they were tracking his satellite phone. Several news organizations reported the detail, including a prominent mention on ABC’s “World News Tonight.” It was not the first time bin Laden’s use of a satellite phone was reported — in 1996 Taliban officials told Time magazine he used the device to communicate with jihadis around the world — but afterword U.S. intelligence officials bitterly complained that bin Laden suddenly stopped using the phone after the 1998 reports, and his movements became much harder to track. WILL WHITE BRIEF? As of our early morning publication time, there was no word on whether Dana White, the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson, will conduct her “regular” Thursday briefing, which is supposedly scheduled for noon on normal Thursdays. White last faced reporters in the Pentagon Briefing Room in May. SPACE FORCE PATCHES: Bloomberg asked eight designers for their vision of what the Space Force logo should look like. See their ideas here. COATS PRAISES BISHOP: Director of National intelligence Dan Coats is praising the selection of agency veteran Vaughn Bishop to serve as the next deputy director of central intelligence as “an outstanding selection.” “Vaughn’s numerous career accomplishments as an intelligence officer are well-known within ODNI, CIA and the USIC and it is a pleasure to welcome him back into government service after his retirement in 2011,” Coats said in a statement. “We look forward to working with him and benefiting from his knowledge, experience and contributions as a senior leader within the CIA and the wider community.” THE RUNDOWN Defense One: Pentagon Delays Space Force Report Breaking Defense: Hyten: Space Force Report In ‘Next Few Weeks’ After Shanahan Cancels Meet Defense One: Opposition to a Space Force Simmers in the Senate Breaking Defense: North Korean Denuclearization Potentially Moving In ‘Positive Direction’: Gen. Hyten Fox News: Pence hails ‘tangible progress’ with North Korea as remains of presumed Korean War dead arrive in Hawaii Defense News: US Air Force may replace 3 types of aircraft with a single platform AP: Senators privately reassure European allies on NATO support Task and Purpose: That Time The Russian Military Stole A Bunch Of US Marine Corps Humvees Army Times: Vietnam vet killed by police after fighting off naked intruder who attacked his grandson Defense Tech: STRATCOM Chief Will ‘Die Trying or Kill Somebody’ to Get New Helo New York Times: Taliban Surge Routs ISIS in Northern Afghanistan DoD Buzz: Trump’s Border Wall Could Derail Funding for New Coast Guard Icebreaker |
CalendarTHURSDAY | AUG. 2 7 a.m. 2425 Wilson Blvd. Institute of Land Warfare Army Cyber + Networks Hot Topic Symposium. Lt. Gen. Stephen Fogarty, commanding general, U.S. Army Cyber Command, speaks at 8:10 a.m. while Lt. Gen. Bruce Crawford, chief information officer/G-6, provides the keynote address at 8:30 a.m Ausa.org 8 a.m. 2401 M St. NW. Defense Writers Group Breakfast with Gen. Carlton Everhart, Commander of Air Force Air Mobility Command. FRIDAY | AUG. 3 1 p.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Living With Genocide: Four Years After ISIS Attacked. hudson.org 6:45 a.m. 1250 South Hayes St. Special Topic Breakfast with Kevin Tokarski, Associate Administrator for Strategic Sealift, Maritime Administration. navyleague.org MONDAY | AUG. 6 Noon. Rayburn 2168. Disentangling from Syria. defensepriorities.org TUESDAY | AUG. 7 10:30 a.m. 1030 15th St. NW. A Conversation with UK Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson. atlanticcouncil.org WEDNESDAY | AUG. 8 10:30 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. U.S. Arms Transfer Policy and Shaping the Way Ahead with Ambassador Tina Kaidanow, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs. csis.org 5:30 p.m. 800 17th St. NW. 2018 HORIZONS Scholarship Celebration. womenindefense.net
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ADVERTISEMENT: NDIA invites you to attend the Army Science and Technology Symposium and Showcase August twenty first through twenty third at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in DC. Register today at http://www.ndia.org/ArmyScience |
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