ANOTHER ATTEMPT AT AN AGREEMENT: Secretary of State John Kerry meets again today with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in an attempt to resuscitate the moribund Syrian cease-fire. Kerry says the U.S. makes no apology for “going the extra mile” to try to ease the suffering of the Syrian people. “The United States will continue to pursue every avenue of progress that we can, because it is the only way to stop the killing, it’s the only way to ease the suffering, and it’s the only way to make possible the restoration of a united Syria,” Kerry said in New York.
In the wake of the bombing of the UN humanitarian aid convoy Monday, lawmakers again renewed their call for a no-fly zone to protect Syrian civilians. At what may likely be Ash Carter’s last appearance as defense secretary before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Carter parried the questions, while suggesting what Kerry was trying to accomplish through diplomacy was a de facto no-fly zone. “It’s not called that,” Carter said, “but Secretary Kerry’s trying to get a stand down of the Syrian and Russian air force.” Pressed on why the U.S. can’t just impose an air exclusion zone, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford made a stark assertion: “For us to control all of the airspace in Syria it would require us to go to war against Syria and Russia. That’s a pretty fundamental decision that certainly I’m not going make.” Challenged immediately by Sen. John McCain, Dunford insisted he didn’t get to finish his thought. “I do not mean to say that imposing a no-fly zone requires to go to war.” Hmm… what was he saying? Dunford also underscored the fault lines between the State Department and the Pentagon on possible future joint airstrikes with the Russians, making clear no matter what Kerry has agreed to, the U.S. military has no intention of sharing intelligence with the Russians.
THE PLOT THICKENS: Dunford also said he wasn’t 100 percent sure it was the Russians and not the Syrians who bombed the UN aid convoy, given there were aircraft from both countries in the vicinity when the bombing took plane. NPR interviewed an eyewitness who said he saw helicopters drop two bombs before the Russian bombers arrived.
DO YOU AGREE WITH ME?: The hearing was full of attempts by various senators to get Carter or Dunford to go on record opposing administration policy about everything from the Senate version of the Pentagon budget to payments to Iran. Mostly the two avoided the traps, often by claiming they were out of the loop or professing ignorance of key details, but Sen. Kelly Ayotte managed to get Dunford to admit sending money to Iran was not a good thing. “On principle, I would prefer that we not provide additional resources to Iran,” Dunford said after earlier saying “I describe their major export as malign influence.” But when Sen. Thom Tillis would not stop trying to get Dunford to endorse the Senate version of the budget, McCain cut him off with a mild rebuke. “Senator, we do not ask the uniformed military for their opinion on issues that are political in nature.”
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SAUDI BILL COULD SURVIVE VETO: President Obama intends to veto a bipartisan bill allowing families of 9/11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia in federal court Friday, the end of a 10-work day period that presidents have to veto legislation before it becomes law, according to a White House spokesman. Susan Crabtree writes that White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Thursday that Obama has used the intervening days since the measure reached his desk to make his case against it to lawmakers before vetoing it. But the bill passes unanimously by voice vote in both chambers, so this could end up as the first successful veto override in Obama’s two terms.
CR-ITICS: Congress is moving forward a continuing resolution, but two Republican veterans say that it’s difficult to support because of the tough situation it puts commanders in when budgets are uncertain. “It’s no training, no ammunition, you can’t send troops to school, you can’t do training exercises because the funding is uncertain, and what happens is the longer you have these types of delays where your spending is not certain past a certain point … it really throws a monkey wrench into the military,” Rep. Steve Russell said at a Heritage Foundation event. “It’s hard to convey sometimes to our colleagues the impact of that.”
Amid those tight budgets, Rep. Adam Smith, ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, said that recapitalizing the nuclear triad is not the right priority. “We need a nuclear deterrent, there’s no question about that. But the level, size and cost of the nuclear deterrent, I think it doesn’t warrant the threats that we face,” he said at the Stimson Center. A much smaller number of warheads will still let enemies know “don’t screw with us or we will obliterate you,” Smith said.
IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN UPDATES: The Pentagon has two remote via Skype briefings set for today on the operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Both will be streamed live on www.defense.gov. First up, Army Gen. John Nicholson, commander, Resolute Support and U.S. Forces Afghanistan at 11:30 a.m. There’s a glimmer of progress In Afghanistan, with the New York Times reporting that the Afghan government has signed a draft peace deal with a small insurgent faction. Then at 1 p.m. it’s Air Force Col. John Dorrian’s turn. He’s the spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve, the campaign against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
GOOD NEWS AND BAD NEWS: Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said yesterday that the administration has seen no evidence that Iran’s financial support for terrorism has grown since the U.S. gave it $1.7 billion this year, Joseph Lawler writes. But Lew also acknowledged that he wasn’t aware if there was any way to trace how Iran uses the cash. Republicans pressed him on whether the U.S. recorded the serial numbers on the bills that were shipped to Iran, but Lew said he did not know. So … yay?
Either way, the House last night attempted to make sure it never happened again, by passing legislation to prohibit the U.S. from ever making cash payments to Iran again, Pete Kasperowicz reports. And while the White House has said Obama would veto the bill, 16 Democrats joined with Republicans to pass the measure, 254-163.
WHAT’S THE OPPOSITE OF A STAMP OF APPROVAL? Whatever that is, this is it. Seventy five former ambassadors signed a letter condemning Trump and saying they’ll vote for Clinton instead, Gabby Morrongiello writes. “None of us will vote for Donald J. Trump,” declared the signatories, all of whom simultaneously endorsed the Democratic presidential ticket. “Very simply, this election is different from any election we can recall. One of the candidates — Donald J. Trump — is entirely unqualified to serve as president and commander in chief.”
RUMMY, THAT YOUNG WHIPPER-SNAPPER: Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Thursday that he’s not surprised that President George H.W. Bush plans to vote for Hillary Clinton in November, Al Weaver writes. “No,” Rumsfeld said on MSNBC when asked if he was surprised by the decision. “He’s up in years.”
Bush is 92. Rumsfeld is 84.
NUKEY MCMELTFACE: We all know the process for protesting contract awards, but is there anything similar for the names of programs? Because, while Raider is great and all, some of the 4,600+ ideas submitted by airmen to name the B-21 long range strike-bomber deserve a second look, like Trumpnator, Princess Sparklepony and YouThinkWeWastedMoneyontheF35, hahahahahaha!!!
THE RUNDOWN
Breaking Defense: Bell Unveils V-247 Vigilant Tiltrotor Drone
Defense News: State Department Clears $1.9B Sale of KC-46A Tankers to Japan
UPI: U.S. Navy’s Zumwalt destroyer sidelined after engineering casualty
Breaking Defense: New ICBMs Could Cost Way Above $85B: CAPE’S Morin
UPI: Northrop delivers sonar upgrade kits to U.S. Navy
Marine Corps Times: Marine AV-8 Harrier crashes off Okinawa; pilot ejects safely
Military.com: House Panel: $1 Trillion Needed to Reboot Military
Military Times: After 15 years of war, America’s military has about had it with ‘nation building’
Associated Press: Kerry admits diplomacy at impasse as Syrian truce collapses
New York Times: Obama Puts Syria at Arm’s Length as Carnage Drags On
Defense One: EXCLUSIVE: ISIS ‘Will Fight to the Death’ for Mosul, Says Top Peshmerga General
Wall Street Journal: Islamic State Driven From Strategic Town of Shirqat, Iraqi Military Says
USNI News: Experts Advocate Harder Stance Against Illegal Claims In South China Sea
Calendar
FRIDAY | SEPTEMBER 23
9:30 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Industry representatives from Boeing, Bell Helicopter and Rockwell Collins speak at an event about the Pentagon’s future vertical lift program. csis.org
12 p.m. 1030 15th St. NW. The Atlantic Council hosts an event analyzing Iran’s conventional missile program. atlanticcouncil.org
4:30 p.m. Livestream. Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks about U.S.-Iran relations and nuclear security. cfr.org
MONDAY | SEPTEMBER 26
10 a.m. 1211 Connecticut Ave. NW. Stimson hosts a public symposium on the global security challenges for the U.S.-Japan alliance and partnership. stimson.org
TUESDAY | SEPTEMBER 27
10 a.m. Dirksen 342. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson testifies about threats to the homeland 15 years after 9/11. hsgac.senate.gov
Noon. 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. Think tank experts discuss NATO’s collective defense 100 days from the Warsaw Summit this year. heritage.org
2 p.m. Rayburn 2200. The House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation and Trade marks up a bill requiring a report on whether the IRGC is a terrorist group. foreignaffairs.house.gov
3:30 p.m. Rayburn 2118. The House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee holds a hearing titled “National security space: 21st century challenges, 20th century organization.” armedservices.house.gov
WEDNESDAY | SEPTEMBER 28
10 a.m. Dirksen 419. State Department officials testify on the response to North Korea. foreign.senate.gov
2 p.m. Rayburn 2212. Officials from the military’s labs testify about innovation through science and engineering for military operations. armedservices.house.gov
2:30 p.m. 1030 15th St. NW. The Atlantic Council hosts an event on countering violent extremism in Bangladesh. atlanticcouncil.org
THURSDAY | SEPTEMBER 29
9:30 a.m. 1030 15th St. NW. Former NATO secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen speaks about America’s role in the world. atlanticcouncil.org
2:15 p.m. Dirksen 419. Antony Blinken, the deputy secretary of state, testifies on the regional impacts of the crisis in Syria. foreign.senate.gov
3:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Analysts will talk about redefining the U.S. agenda for nuclear disarmament. csis.org
FRIDAY | SEPTEMBER 30
Noon. Suite 700, 1 Dupont Circle, NW. The Aspen Institute hosts a book talk with author Rosa Brooks regarding How Everything Became War and the Military Became Everything: Tales from the Pentagon. aspeninstitute.org
