TILLERSON TO TACKLE NORTH KOREA: After seemingly being in hiatus for a month, the State Department is back in the game, holding briefings and dispatching the secretary on an important diplomatic mission to Asia to forge a coordinated response to North Korea’s unbridled nuclear ambitions. Acting State Department spokesman Mark Toner, a holdover from the previous administration, said Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will travel to Japan, South Korea and China for five days next week, departing next Wednesday. His primary mission is to discuss strategic coordination to address the advancing nuclear and missile threat from North Korea.
President Trump has said repeatedly he expects China, the only country thought to have any real influence with North Korea, to exert more pressure on its recalcitrant neighbor. And this morning, China’s foreign minister is suggesting that maybe North Korea might be willing to suspend its nuclear and missile activities in exchange for an end to the joint U.S.-South Korea military exercise now underway. The massive war games, involving more that 300,000 U.S. and South Korean forces, always put Pyongyang on edge, because it claims the drills are a thinly disguised rehearsal for an eventual invasion to topple the regime of Kim Jong Un.
The idea seems to be a non-starter because the State Department says it has no intention of rewarding North Korea’s bad behavior, but it does show that China is increasingly concerned about the rising tension on the Korean peninsula and Kim’s increasingly erratic and bellicose behavior. “We’re not rewarding that behavior in any way, shape or form,” Toner said. “They’re increasingly becoming a pariah through this kind of behavior that violates the international norms and international law.”
While Toner said “tougher sanctions” would be the first option explored, he also left the door open to what he called “other means to make that message clear to them.” Tillerson could use his Asia trip to gauge Chinese interest in some sort of military response, Joel Gehrke writes. “I think right now we’re focused on sanctions and implementing those sanctions to the fullest extent possible, but we’re looking at other possibilities as well,” Toner replied when asked if Tillerson intended to discuss military options. “We always are … how we get that message across to them remains to be seen.”
Tillerson’s trip is being announced after North Korea fired a salvo of four medium-range missiles toward Japan’s territorial waters in what North Korea state media described as a drill designed to test how fast the missiles could be fired at U.S. bases in Japan. Tillerson will have to defend the deployment of a missile defense battery in South Korea that China regards as a threat.
FOGGY BOTTOM LINE: Toner also suggested yesterday that Trump’s controversial plan to slash State Department funding by up to 37 percent may not come to pass, Joel Gehrke writes. “I would be cautious to say that that preliminary number that’s floating out there is where we’re going to end up,” Toner told reporters. But he said Tillerson is open to cutting programs, part of a bureaucratic reform that he warned would take place during his first address to State Department staff. Toner is scheduled to hold his second on-camera department press briefing of the Trump administration this afternoon.
TERROR IN KABUL: ISIS is claiming responsibility for a terror attack on a hospital in the heart of Afghanistan’s capital, not far from the U.S. embassy. News agencies report there was an explosion by a suicide bomber, and then attackers who were disguised as medical personnel battled security forces inside the building for several hours. The AP reports at least four people were killed and more than 60 wounded.
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HAPPENING TODAY: Some top brass head to the Hill today for the three (that’s right, three) hearings being held by the House Armed Services Committee and its related subcommittees. Four four-stars testify at 10 a.m. on nuclear deterrence, the Army pleads its readiness case at 2 p.m., and Navy officials talk about what size fleet they need at 3:30 p.m. Plus Rep. Mac Thornberry, the chairman of the panel, is expected to gaggle with reporters in the afternoon.
Because that’s not enough, the House will also vote on the fiscal 2017 defense appropriations bill, though Democrats say it’s still dead in the Senate if lawmakers don’t start moving other non-defense spending bills too. More info on that bill here.
THE COMMANDANT’S MESSAGE: The Marine Corps’ top officer, Commandant Gen. Robert Neller, has posted a stern video on the front page of marines.mil strongly condemning the actions of Marines who spread nude picture of female service members via Facebook and social media. Neller admonished the Marines who he said “selfishly and unprofessionally” acted in a way that is “embarrassing to our Corps, to our families and to the nation.” “When I hear allegations of Marines denigrating their fellow Marines I don’t think such behavior is that of true warriors or warfighters. As warriors we all know that cohesion and trust in a unit and between all Marines is vital to success on the battlefield.” Neller called on victims of any harassment or abuse via social media to report it to their chain of command, chaplain or victim’s legal counsel, and ordered all NCOs to support victims and protect them from retaliation. “The only way we have ever solved any problem our Corps has faced is to confront it head on,” Neller said.
The Washington Post interviewed 10 current and former female service members who had had sexually explicit photos shared against their wishes. Most preferred to stay anonymous, but all indicated the problem was more pervasive than just a few bad men. Former Marine Pvt. Kally Wayne told the Post that her ex-boyfriend, a Marine, posted a sex tape they had made in 2013 to a Marines’ Facebook group. When she reported it to Marine officials, they took no action. “I went to his command and they said, ‘Why don’t you not make sex tapes?’ ”
JORDANIAN JUSTICE QUESTIONED: The fathers of three Green Berets killed in Jordan in November say they are convinced the death of their sons was no accident, and they cite as evidence a surveillance tape of the incident at an air base they were shown by the FBI. Two of the Green Berets were “ambushed” by the foreign officer with an M-16 while still in their vehicle at the checkpoint, but the shooter left his guard shack to pursue the third, who had left the vehicle and can be seen in the video raising his hands above his head to show he’s not a threat, his father said.
REACTION TO WIKILEAKS: Sen. John McCain said both Congress and federal intelligence agencies need to make cybersecurity a much higher priority after WikiLeaks released thousands of CIA documents on Tuesday, Susan Crabtree writes. “We’ve got to do a lot more,” the Arizona Republican told reporters Tuesday afternoon. “If [the perpetrators] can hack the CIA, they can hack anybody. My biggest worry is they showed a capability that they can hack into some of our most important secrets, our most important classified material, that’s what bothers me,” he said.
McCAIN BACKS “VETERAN’S CHOICE” McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, appeared before a House committee last night to go to bat for the Veteran’s Choice program, which allows vets who face backlogs at VA hospitals to use private facilities. “Congress must first act quickly to reauthorize the Veterans Choice program, which is set to expire in a few short months,” McCain testified at House Veterans Affairs Committee session. “Have no doubt: If we let this program lapse, millions of veterans will lose their ability to visit a community provider, the VA system will once again become overwhelmed, and veterans will go back to the pre-scandal days of unending wait-times for much-needed care.”
HACKING HEARING: House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes announced that the first hearing on the numerous issues concerning Russia and the presidential election will be held on March 20, Todd Shepherd writes. Nunes noted it was rare for the intelligence committee to hold a meeting such as this in the open, but “because of the seriousness of the accusations involved on all sides of this issue, I want to make sure that we hold as many of these hearings out in public so that the American people” can have direct access to the information.
Additionally, Nunes announced that seven people were being invited — not subpoenaed — and the list was an “initial” one, meaning more people could be invited later. Those invited include FBI Director James Comey; Mike Rogers, director of the National Security Agency; John Brennan, former CIA director; James Clapper, former director of national intelligence; Sally Yates, former acting attorney general; Dmitri Alperovich, co-founder and chief technology officer of CrowdStrike; and Shawn Henry, president of CrowdStrike.
SPOTTED ON THE HILL: Jon Huntsman, the former governor of Utah, was seen in the halls of the Capitol on Tuesday but he wouldn’t address speculation that he could serve as Trump’s ambassador to Russia or deputy secretary of state or even run for the Senate against his home state’s senior statesmen, Sen. Orrin Hatch. Late Tuesday afternoon, Hatch shepherded Huntsman around the Senate, but neither he nor the senator would tell reporters the reason for his visit. Huntsman has been floated as a possible ambassador to Russia, but he wouldn’t confirm whether he was in town to discuss the ambassadorship.
THREE STARS: Not the brewery, the rank. The Senate Armed Services Committee voted yesterday to let national security adviser Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster keep his rank in his new position, a move that still requires approval by the full Senate.
TRUMP’S GITMO TWEET: Shortly after press time yesterday morning, Trump sent out a tweet slamming President Obama for releasing prisoners from Guantanamo Bay that subsequently returned to the battlefield. We reported yesterday that one detainee released in late 2009 was killed in Yemen last week.
“122 vicious prisoners, released by the Obama Administration from Gitmo, have returned to the battlefield. Just another terrible decision!” Trump tweeted. But actually most of the “recidivists” were released by President George W. Bush, not Obama. According to a report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, 113 of the 122 former detainees who returned to fight the United States were released by Bush. The report, published in July 2016, showed that the other nine were released by Obama, who released 161 prisoners in total. During yesterday’s press briefing, spokesman Sean Spicer sought to clarify Trump’s claim: “Obviously the president meant in totality the number that had been released on the battlefield — that have been released from Gitmo … since individuals have been released. So that is, that is correct.”
THE RUNDOWN
Roll Call: Senate Budget Rule Could Hamper GOP Push On Defense, Taxes
Politico: Trump plan pays for immigration crackdown with cuts to coastal, air security
New York Times: Top Generals Hold Talks To Head Off Syria Clashes
Defense One: Pick Up the Pace on Missile Defense
War on the Rocks: Penny wise, pound foolish: Trump’s misguided views of European defense spending
UPI: U.S. Air Force F-16s to receive weapon systems update
Reuters: Russia Expands Military Transport Fleet To Move Troops Long Distances
Wall Street Journal: Islamic State Plotted to Attack Saudi Royals During Malaysia Visit
Military.com: Top Trump Security Adviser Faces Questions in Rare Hearing
Bloomberg: Trump Said To Pick Former UN Spokesman Grenell For NATO Post
Air Force Times: Pooping in space: An Air Force colonel’s genius solution
Calendar
WEDNESDAY | MARCH 8
10 a.m. Rayburn 2118. The vice chiefs of the military services testify about nuclear deterrence requirements. armedservices.house.gov
10 a.m. Rayburn 2362-A. Top enlisted leaders of the military services testify about quality of life in the military to House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies. appropriations.house.gov
2 p.m. Rayburn 2212. The House Armed Services readiness subcommittee holds a panel of Army officials to testify on the service’s readiness. armedservices.house.gov
2:30 p.m. Senate Visitor’s Center 217. Members of the Defense Science Board testify about cybersecurity in a closed hearing. armed-services.senate.gov
2:30 p.m. Russell 222. Retired Gen. C. Robert Kehler, the former leader of U.S. Strategic Command, testifies about the global nuclear weapons environment. armed-services.senate.gov
3:30 p.m. Rayburn 2118. Navy and think tank officials testify on the service’s fleet assessment. armedservices.house.gov
THURSDAY | MARCH 9
9:30 a.m. Hart 216. Gens. Joseph Votel and Thomas Waldhauser, the leaders of U.S. Central Command and Africa Command, respectively, testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee. armed-services.senate.gov
9:30 a.m. Capitol H-140. The House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee holds its members’ day. appropriations.house.gov
11 a.m. Dirksen 419. Think tank experts testify about challenges facing the U.S. in Yemen. foreign.senate.gov
2:00 p.m. Hart 219. The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence holds a closed hearing. intelligence.senate.gov
2:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. The Center for Strategic and International Studies hosts a launch event for the new book, NATO and the North Atlantic: Revitalizing Collective Defense. csis.org
3:30 p.m. Rayburn 2118. Three members of the Defense Science Board testify on nuclear deterrence. armedservices.house.gov
FRIDAY | MARCH 10
9 a.m. Rayburn 2118. The House Armed Services Committee holds a hearing about sequestration’s impact on Marine Corps readiness. armedservices.house.gov
TUESDAY | MARCH 14
11 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Sharon Weinberger of the Woodrow Wilson Institute discusses her new book on DARPA, The Imagineers of War. wilsoncenter.org
WEDNESDAY | MARCH 15
9 a.m. 1030 15th St. NW. Rep. Seth Moulton and Rep. Brad Wenstrup talk about America’s place in the world and foreign policy strategy. atlanticcouncil.org
9 a.m. 1789 Massachusetts Ave. A panel discusses the defense budget and emergency war spending. aei.org
3:30 p.m. Russell 232-A. A panel of experts testifies on all arms warfare in the 21st century. armed-services.senate.gov
