ESPER PERSUADES NATO: Responding to pressure from the United States, NATO defense ministers have agreed “in principle” to take over more of the training and advising of Iraqi troops, so that the U.S. can begin to draw down its forces in Iraq.
The announcement followed a meeting at NATO headquarters in which U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper called on other nations to step up their efforts in Iraq, so the U.S. can realign its global forces to better counter Russia and China, which it sees as a bigger long-term threat than terrorism.
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“Several allies, or all allies, actually, supported the decision to do more and also to take over some of the activities which is today conducted by the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, speaking to reporters afterward. “The first step is to do more within the existing mandate, within the existing operational plan for our training mission in Iraq.”
NO DETAILS: Stoltenberg could not say how many more troops NATO might send, nor what countries would contribute, noting the agreement was “in principle,” and contingent on consultations with the Iraqi government.
“We are in close consultation with the Iraqi government on the possibility of expanding, scaling up, doing more,” Stoltenberg said. “I have spoken with the Prime Minister several times and we have staff-to-staff talks. And based on the decision today, we will then develop those options further.”
“We will only stay in Iraq as long as we are welcome, because we fully respect the territorial integrity and the sovereignty of Iraq. So the only way for us to be there is based on invitation from the Iraqi government,” he added.
TALIBAN AGREEMENT EXPECTED: Stoltenberg says Esper also briefed the alliance on the current round of talks with the Taliban, which is expected to produce a second try at preliminary agreement aimed at achieving a partial ceasefire and paving the path for peace talks with the Afghan government.
“We welcome any step towards a reduction of violence in Afghanistan and we strongly support the peace process, any initiative to establish an intra-Afghan dialogue,” said Stoltenberg, who said the success of such an agreement would hinge on the Taliban keeping its word.
‘[The] Taliban has to show and demonstrate a real willingness, a real willingness and that they are capable of delivering reduction in violence, and Taliban has also to understand that they will never win on the battlefield, they have to make real compromises around the negotiating table.”
NO IMMINENT WITHDRAWAL: Speaking at the Atlantic Council Tuesday, White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien hinted that an agreement was near, saying “Some good news could be forthcoming,” but also downplayed the idea that the U.S. would reduce its footprint in Afghanistan right away.
“I don’t think there’s any imminent withdrawal from Afghanistan,” O’Brien said, “There will have to be reduction in violence and meaningful inter-Afghan talks.”
LEAVING ONE WAY OR ANOTHER: Esper in several on-the-record interviews has said the U.S. has determined it has several thousand more troops in Afghanistan than it needs to carry out its twin missions of assisting the Afghan military and pursuing terrorist groups, including al Qaeda and and ISIS.
The U.S. has between 12,000 and 13,000 troops, and Esper has said he could reduce the force levels tomorrow if he wanted to. “You’ve heard that 8,600 number out there, that’s one number that we’ve talked about,” he told reporters last month. “ I’m confident we can go to that number and not affect our mission.
In testimony before the Senate this week, retired Gen. Jack Keane, the former Army vice chief of staff, said he believes Esper and Gen. Scott Miller, the U.S. Afghanistan commander, are just waiting for the right time to announce the drawdown.
“General Miller has been working on the force reduction for some time based on his assessment that he had more forces than he needed to meet the mission requirement. And I believe that given the fact that negotiations were taking place, the administration made a logical decision not to unilaterally conduct that reduction and use that as leverage in the negotiations,” Keane said.
“But if there’s not a settlement in those negotiations between the United States and the Taliban, I do think Secretary Esper is right, then we’re likely to announce that reduction anyway because General Miller wants to get on with it. He doesn’t want anybody to be in that country exposed unnecessarily to risk if he doesn’t need them to accomplish the mission.”
Good Thursday 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 Susan Katz Keating (@SKatzKeating). Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. 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: You can hear Defense Secretary Esper explain exactly what he got his fellow NATO ministers to agree to when he briefs reporters at NATO headquarters in Brussels at about 9 a.m. Washington time. The Pentagon plans to stream his news conference live at https://www.defense.gov/Watch/Live
ALSO TODAY: U.S. Northern Commander Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy and U.S. Strategic Commander Adm. Charles Richard testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee on President Trump’s FY 2021 defense budget request. Live streamed at https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/hearings and https://www.defense.gov/Watch
ALSO TODAY ON CAPITOL HILL: It looks like today’s the day the Democrats in the Senate, with the help of a handful of Republicans, will pass a war powers measure drafted by Virginia Democrat Sen. Tim Kaine to limit President Trump’s ability to go to war with Iran.
As a war powers resolution, the bill was ensured a vote, and needs only a simple majority to pass. Eight Republicans voted to advance the legislation, though it’s not clear all will vote for it in the end. Here are the eight:
- Susan Collins, Maine
- Rand Paul, Kentucky
- Mike Lee, Utah
- Todd C. Young, Indiana
- Jerry Moran, Kansas
- Lamar Alexander, Tennessee
- Bill Cassidy, Louisiana
- Lisa Murkowski, Alaska
If it passes, it will be a largely symbolic rebuke of President Trump, who is certain to veto it.
TRUMP OVER THE PHILIPPINES: One day after his defense secretary lamented that it was “unfortunate,” that Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was scrapping a military cooperation agreement with the U.S. as he cozies up with China, President Trump said he is not bothered by the end of a decades long alliance.
“We helped the Philippines very much. We helped them defeat ISIS. I get along, actually I have a very good relationship there. But I really don’t mind if they would like to do that, that’s fine. It will save a lot of money,” Trump said yesterday, apparently happy to end the basing of U.S troops in the country and training with the Phillipine military.
“You know, my views are different than other people. I view it as, thank you very much, we will save a lot of money,” he said.
CHARGE OF THE SAF BRIGADE: Esper has said his review of U.S. forces deployed around the world is aimed at “right-sizing,” the force, not necessarily reducing troops levels in far flung missions.
In one of the first decision coming out of that review, Esper is swapping out troops in Africa, sending in one of the Army’s specially-trained Security Force Assistance Brigades (SFAB) in order to reunite currently deployed 101st Airborne soldiers with the rest of their division back home.
“The deployment of the SFAB allows the Army to return elements of an infantry brigade from the 101st Airborne Division back to its home base of Ft. Campbell, KY, allowing it to train and prepare for high intensity conflict operations,” said Chief Pentagon Spokesperson Alyssa Farah in a statement. “This realignment and rightsizing of mission requirements demonstrates the Department’s commitment to implementing the National Defense Strategy and our continuing commitment to our African partners.”
At a briefing by phone for Pentagon reporters, Maj. Gen. Roger Cloutier, commander of the U.S. Army in Africa, said despite the speculation that Esper wants to pull back from Africa, the U.S. is still very engaged on the continent.
“My message to our African partners is, we’re not walking away, we’re still here, we’re the preferred partner of choice,” Clouter said, noting “the number of theater security cooperation events that I am doing in U.S. Army-Africa is up above 300.”
DEFENDING STARS & STRIPES: The Society of Professional Journalists is coming to the the defense of Stars and Stripes, calling a proposed $7 million cut to the budget of the editorially independent newspaper owned and operated by the Pentagon, “a huge disservice to the men and women who serve our country.”
“Stars and Stripes keeps the troops – especially those who are deployed – informed. It is an independent, non-partisan voice on which so many troops depend,” said SPJ National President Patricia Gallagher Newberry, in a statement, calling on Esper to reconsider the cuts.
“Since it was first published during the Civil War, Stars and Stripes has been a balanced and objective source of information for members of the military,” Newberry said. “There is still a place for newspapers in this modern age,” she continued. “This is especially the case for troops who are deployed to areas where internet access is not available or is prohibited.”
The newspaper reported that most of its funding comes from sales, subscriptions and advertising, but it depends on the Defense Department to subsidize about 35%, or $7 million, of its budget for assistance in covering expensive and sometimes dangerous overseas reporting and distribution.
The Rundown
The Atlantic: John Kelly Finally Lets Loose on Trump
Reuters: In wake of impeachment, U.S. senators to visit Ukraine
AP: US troops clash with pro-government group in northeast Syria
Washington Examiner: ‘How to stop it’: Congress asks what the military is doing about white nationalism in its ranks
USNI News: Thornberry Uneasy With Pentagon Shipbuilding Plan, Supports Fully Funding Nuclear Triad
Washington Post: In standoff with Iran, U.S. sailors say the threat level was unlike anything they had seen in years
Inside Defense: Navy Plans To Buy First Columbia-Class Sub For $14.3B Over Three Years
Defense News: Fixing First Four Littoral Combat Ships Not Worth It, U.S. Navy Says
Air Force Magazine: Budget Elicits Confusion Over Fate of U-2
USNI News: U.S. Warns China Will Gain Edge if the Philippines Ends Visiting Forces Agreement
Reuters: Taiwan Says U.S. Flies Bombers Near Island After China’s Drills
Daily Beast: Army Isn’t Investigating Lt. Col. Vindman, Despite Trump’s Tweets
Air Force Magazine: USAF Updates Instruction Allowing Religious Waivers for Beards, Turbans, Hijabs
Military.com: The Marine Corps Must Get Smaller to Get Better, Commandant Says
Washington Post: Michael Flynn’s claims of misconduct are baseless, prosecutors say
Calendar
THURSDAY | FEBRUARY 13
9 a.m. Brussels, Belgium — Day two of NATO Defense ministerial at NATO Headquarters, with U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper holds a press briefing at day two of NATO Defense ministerial at NATO Headquarters. Streamed live at https://www.defense.gov/Watch/Live
9 a.m. — Access Intelligence LLC’s ExchangeMonitor Publications and Forums Nuclear Deterrence Summit, with Alan Shaffer, deputy defense undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment; and Dimitri Kusnezov, deputy energy undersecretary for artificial intelligence. https://www.deterrencesummit.com
9:30 a.m. G50, Dirksen — Senate Armed Services Committee hears testimony from U.S. Northern Commander Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy and U.S. Strategic Commander Adm. Charles Richard on the defense authorization request for Fiscal Year 2021 and the future years defense program. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/hearings
11:40 a.m. 1700 Army Navy Dr., Arl.— Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association luncheon discussion, with Paul Puckett, director of the Army’s Enterprise Cloud Management Office; Army Col. Elizabeth “Liz” Casley, chief of staff at the Army Futures Command’s Network Cross Functional Team; and Anthony Robbins, president of AFCEA Washington, D.C. and vice president for the North America public sector at NVIDIA https://dcevents.afceachapters.org/february2020
12 p.m. 1203 Van Munching Hall, College Park, Md. — University of Maryland’s Center for International and Security Studies forum on “Innovation and Its Discontents: National Models of Military Innovation and the Dual-Use Conundrum,” with Amy Nelson, research fellow at the National Defense University’s Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction. https://cissm.umd.edu/events
FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 14
All Day, Munich, Germany — Defense Secretary Mark Esper attends the 56th Munich Security Conference will take place at Hotel Bayerischer Hof Friday through Saturday. https://securityconference.org/en/msc-2020
12:30 p.m. 14th and F Sts. N.W. — National Press Club newsmaker luncheon address with Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy. https://www.press.org/events/headliners
TUESDAY | FEBRUARY 18
6:30 a.m. 2425 Wilson Blvd., Arl. — Association of the United States Army breakfast with Lt. Gen. Thomas Horlander, military deputy to the assistant secretary of the Army (financial management & comptroller). Register at https://www.ausa.org/events/breakfast-series
THURSDAY | FEBRUARY 20
11:00 a.m. 620 L St. N.W., — Daniel Morgan Graduate School discussion “Just War Reconsidered,” with retired Army Lt. Gen. James Dubik, author of Just War Reconsidered: Strategy, Ethics, and Theory. Register at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/just-war-reconsidered
FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 21
10:00 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. — Center for Strategic and International Studies conversation with the service secretaries, with Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett, acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly, and Kathleen Hicks, director, CSIS International Security Program. https://www.csis.org/events/discussion
WEDNESDAY | MARCH 4
9 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W. — McAleese Defense Programs Conference. Register at [email protected]
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I think President Trump might be the only one that could make that hard choice because there will be a firestorm of anybody talks actually ending this. But if anybody can do it, I think it might be him.”
Retired Army Lt. Col. Daniel Davis, senior fellow and military expert, Defense Priorities, testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee this week about the tough decision to pull U.S. troops out of Afghanistan after more than 18 years of war.
