U.S., NORTH KOREA TRADE MISSILES, THREATS: The Pentagon confirmed last night that North Korea’s latest missile launch was a successful test of a rudimentary two-stage intercontinental ballistic missile, one that in theory could travel more than 4,000 miles and could hit Alaska and far western Canada. The U.S. and South Korean response went beyond the usual statements of official condemnation. Last night, while millions of Americans were celebrating Independence Day with fireworks, the U.S. 8th Army had some pyrotechnics of its own designed to send a message to North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, firing precision short-range missiles into the territorial waters of South Korea along the East Coast. The U.S. employed its Army Tactical Missile System with the unambiguous acronym ATACMS, while the South fired its Hyunmoo Missile II. You can watch the video released by the U.S. here.
A U.S. Army statement said the missile system “can be rapidly deployed and engaged,” and has a “deep strike precision capability” that can engage a “full array of time critical targets under all weather conditions.” It said the U.S. response today (Korea time) was aimed at “countering North Korea’s destabilizing and unlawful actions on July 4.” The system is made by Lockheed Martin.
GIFT FOR THE “AMERICAN BASTARDS” North Korea’s state KCNA news agency featured coverage of a smiling Kim inspecting what North Korea calls its Hwasong-14 missile and declaring it a gift for the “American bastards” and urging his nuclear scientists to “frequently send big and small ‘gift packages’ to the Yankees,” according to media reports. Shortly after the launch, President Trump tweeted, “North Korea has just launched another missile. Does this guy have anything better to do with his life?” In a followup tweet Trump added, “Hard to believe that South Korea and Japan will put up with this much longer. Perhaps China will put a heavy move on North Korea and end this nonsense once and for all!”
U.N. HOLDS YET ANOTHER URGENT MEETING: Secretary of State Rex Tillerson issued a statement last night condemning North Korea’s ICBM test “as a new escalation of the threat to the United States, our allies and partners, the region, and the world.” Tillerson called for tougher new sanctions through the U.N. Security Council and warned that any economic or military support of the North would not be tolerated, a veiled threat to China, which maintains ties and has been accused of propping up the regime. “Global action is required to stop a global threat. Any country that hosts North Korean guest workers, provides any economic or military benefits, or fails to fully implement U.N. Security Council resolutions is aiding and abetting a dangerous regime,” Tillerson said. The U.N. Security Council meets in emergency session today,
At the Pentagon, chief spokesperson Dana White also confirmed the test was of a more capable ICBM that demonstrates North Korea continues to pose a threat to the United States and its allies. “We are monitoring and continuing to assess the situation in close coordination with our regional allies and partners,” White said. “We remain prepared to defend ourselves and our allies and to use the full range of capabilities at our disposal against the growing threat from North Korea,” adding the U.S. seeks only the peaceful denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
NON-STARTER: Russia and China are suggesting that North Korea halt missile tests in return for U.S. agreeing not to deploy a missile shield or conduct large-scale military exercises with South Korea. The joint proposal followed a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Moscow. “We’ve agreed to promote our joint initiative, based on Russian step-by-step Korean settlement plan and Chinese ideas to simultaneously freeze North Korean nuclear and missile activities, and U.S. and South Korean joint military drills,” Putin said at a press conference. The approach has two big problems. First, North Korea has shown little regard for agreements to keep international commitments. Second, the U.S. has said repeatedly it must conduct military exercises with the South because it bound by treaty to defend South Korea in an event of an attack by the North. The U.S. has 28,500 American troops stationed on the peninsula.
Good Wednesday 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.
HAPPENING TODAY: Trump is en route to Poland this morning on the first leg of his second international trip, which also will take him to Hamburg, Germany, where he will meet with the Russian and Chinese presidents. North Korea is certain to come up, but Russia also wants to discuss the future of Syria, and Putin is expected to press Trump to return two Russian compounds seized by the Obama administration in retaliation for Russian attempts to influence last year’s U.S. presidential election. The White House provided few details on the first face-to-face meeting between Trump and Putin, while the Kremlin got out in front by saying Putin has shown “remarkable restraint” in not responding to seizure of the compounds and the expulsion of Russian diplomats the U.S. called spies.
DON’T RELY ON RUSSIA AND CHINA: The chairwoman of the Senate Armed Services Strategic Forces subcommittee, Sen. Deb Fischer, warned that the United States should be clear-headed about Russia and China when it comes to North Korea’s “quickly advancing” missile program. “We should have no illusions that they will solve this problem for us,” said Fischer, whose panel handles nuclear proliferation. But she urged the U.S. to ratchet up pressure on all three following the North’s ICBM test.
THE 300: The commander of Iraqi forces in Mosul tells the AP that the Islamic State is down to about 300 fighters in a tiny section of the old city. But this is not the Battle of Thermopylae and ISIS is not the Spartans. Iraqi president Haider al-Abadi has already declared an end to the ISIS caliphate, even as block-by-block street fighting continues to finish the job. The Iraqi forces are proceeding carefully due to the threat of ISIS suicide bombers dressed as women who have been mixing with fleeing citizens. Maj. Gen. Joseph Martin, who is ground commander for U.S. forces in Iraq, told NPR this morning that the battle is in “the final stages.”
RUSSIAN PEACEKEEPERS TO SYRIA: Meanwhile in Syria, Russia says it could begin deploying military police to security zones in Syria after boundaries are finalized in two to three weeks, the country’s TASS news service reported yesterday. A Russian envoy called the police “monitors and defense ministry representatives” who will go to de-escalation zones in the western part of the country including Homs and Idlib. The zones and security operations were being brokered this week by Russia, Iran and Turkey during talks in Kazakhstan. “Depending on the readiness of documents on security zones, I think concrete actions on deployment of forces could be taken within two or three weeks,” the envoy said.
It was another sign that after years of horrific bloodshed and tragedy, the conflict in Syria may be winding to a conclusion and players in the war are increasingly focusing on the aftermath. In central and eastern Syria, U.S.-backed coalition forces penetrated the city of Raqqa in recent days and appeared closer than ever to toppling the Islamic State group and clearing the de facto capital of its Islamic caliphate.
MCCAIN LEADS DELEGATION TO KABUL: Since 9/11, Sen. John McCain has made a habit of visiting troops serving overseas on the Fourth of July, and yesterday he arrived at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan with a bipartisan group of senators, which included Lindsey Graham, Elizabeth Warren, Sheldon Whitehouse and David Perdue.
McCain took the opportunity to preside over a troop promotion and enlistment ceremony, but also to point out the lack of a Trump administration strategic plan for Afghanistan, something he has sharply criticized the president and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis for in Washington. Mattis says he will be submitting a new strategy for the president’s approval this month, along with his recommendations for sending additional U.S. and NATO military trainers. At a press conference in Kabul, Graham also pointed out the need for a larger diplomatic presence, and called “unnerving” the failure of the Trump administration to appoint someone “to manage this portfolio” as well as fill many of the vacant positions in the State Department, according to the New York Times. “All of us realize that it’s more than just dropping bombs that will win in Afghanistan,” Graham said. “Secretary Tillerson needs to come to Afghanistan quickly.”
QATAR NOT BUCKLING: The government of Qatar has formally responded to a list of demands from four Arab nations led by Saudi Arabia, but there no sign Qatar will capitulate in the face of an economic blockade imposed by the countries. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates said in a joint statement they would respond “in a timely manner,” according to the AP. They are set to meet today in Cairo. The countries have issued a list of 13 demands that include shutting down Al-Jazeera news network and expelling Turkish military forces based in the country. Qatar calls that an affront to its sovereignty.
BALTIC GHOST: One of the options Trump has in dealing with North Korea is a stepped-up cyber attack to cripple it military systems. Cyber warfare is increasingly a part of routine military exercises, and U.S. European Command announced one such exercise today. “Baltic Ghost” was described as a “a series of cyber defense workshops” that involved participants from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania partnered with U.S. National Guard troops Maryland, Michigan and Pennsylvania. “The primary objective of Baltic Ghost 2017 is to test cooperation between the three Baltic States and the United States in the event of an escalating cyber incident, the solution of which requires internationally coordinated joint action,” a statement said.
MATTIS REMEMBERS: The legendary Marine commander and current defense secretary spoke at the Marine Barracks evening parade last week, and told this story:
“I once hosted here, I think it was 12 years ago, this day as a matter of fact – a parade for John Glenn, Col. John Glenn. And I was floored by it. My boss, Rudy DeLeon who is here tonight, the deputy secretary of defense, when I worked for him, had introduced us. John Glenn and I were standing over in the shadows, after the guests were seated, getting ready to do our thing. John Glenn was reminiscing about how he had been a Marine for 23 years. Think about it. He was a Marine fighter pilot in World War II and in Korea, an ace. The first American to orbit the Earth. A senator. And he said, ‘You know 23 years wasn’t nearly long enough.’ I recalled his wingman in Korea was baseball legend Ted Williams. Ted Williams was once asked by Sports Illustrated, years after he retired, which team that he had been with was the best team ever. He said, ‘Oh that easy, the U.S. Marine Corps.’ That’s from Ted Williams.”
THE RUNDOWN
CNN: What North Korea wants and why
The Cipher Brief: Moon Receives “Frosty” Reception in First Meeting with Trump
AP: In Syria’s Raqqa, Old City wall a testament to glorious days
Wall Street Journal: Islamic State’s ‘Capital’ Is Breached
Reuters: Pressure builds on Trump at home over pledge for closer Moscow ties
New York Times: For Iran, Qatar crisis is a welcome distraction
Washington Post: Marine unit in Syria using highly advanced artillery ammunition, video shows
Military.com: Coast Guard to update fleet with new cutters
The Interpreter: China’s New Warship And The Strategic Challenge To America
USA Today: Trump is going to Poland and not everyone is happy about it
AP: Afghan Official: US Drone Strike Kills 4 ISIS Militants
Roll Call: Armed Services panels diverge on space, troop levels
War on the Rocks: Wonder and worry in an age of distraction: Notes on American exceptionalism for my young friends
Calendar
FRIDAY | JULY 7
9 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. The fight against corruption in Colombia with the country’s Inspector General Fernando Carrillo Flórez and Comptroller General Edgardo Maya Villazón. wilsoncenter.org
1 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Global leaders forum with The Rt Hon Sir Michael Fallon MP, Secretary of State for Defense of the United Kingdom. csis.org
MONDAY | JULY 10
9:30 a.m. Senate Visitor Center 203/02. A panel discussion on the future of air superiority with Air Force Brig. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, Col. Tom Coglitore and Jeff Saling of Air Superiority 2030. mitchellaerospacepower.org
10 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. Security and economic development: Silk Road and the Caspian. heritage.org
TUESDAY | JULY 11
8 a.m. 2101 Wilson Blvd. Procurement division meeting. ndia.org
9 a.m. 1030 15th St. NW. Russia’s Zapad 17 exercise and its implications for NATO and the United States. atlanticcouncil.org
10 a.m. Dirksen 342. Nominations of David J. Glawe to be undersecretary for intelligence and analysis at the Department of Homeland Security, and David P. Pekoske to be assistant secretary of the Transportation Security Administration. hsgac.senate.gov
10 a.m. 1775 Massachusetts Ave. NW. A blueprint for maximizing the impact of U.S. foreign aid. brookings.edu
11 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. The U.S.-Tunisia strategic partnership and its importance to regional stability with Sen. John McCain and Youssef Chahed, Tunisia chief of government. heritage.org
WEDNESDAY | JULY 12
9 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Post-conflict peacebuilding: Key issues, challenges, lessons learned and best practices. wilsoncenter.org
9:30 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. The war on ISIS and the forgotten need for congressional authorization with Sens. Tim Kaine and Jeff Flake. wilsoncenter.org
