The Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees issued a bipartisan statement. “Congress has made it clear that there must be consequences for President Erdogan’s misguided S-400 acquisition, a troubling signal of strategic alignment with Putin’s Russia and a threat to the F-35 program. As a result, we urge President Trump to fully implement sanctions as required by law under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act,” said the statement signed by Jim Inhofe, Jack Reed, Jim Risch, and Bob Menendez, the respective chairmen and ranking members of both committees. “Additionally, while all F-35 material deliveries remain indefinitely suspended, we call on the Department of Defense to proceed with the termination of Turkey’s participation in the F-35 program.”

ESPER SAYS STAY TUNED: In a brief exchange with pool reporters, acting Defense Secretary Mark Esper said, “We are aware of Turkey taking delivery of the S-400. Our position regarding the F-35 has not changed.”

Esper said he would be speaking later Friday with his Turkish counterpart, Hulusi Akar. “So there will be more to follow after that conversation,” he told reporters.

THEN, CRICKETS: The planned briefing by Lord and Trachtenberg was postponed and later canceled. There was no statement from the Pentagon, the State Department, or the White House on Turkey’s future with the F-35 program.

President Trump last spoke publicly on the issue at the G20 meeting in Osaka, Japan, in which he blamed President Obama for the problem, claiming Turkey had no choice but to buy Russian missiles because Obama denied Turkey U.S. Patriot missile defenses. In fact, efforts by both the Obama and Trump administrations to sell Patriots to Turkey fell through in a dispute over technology transfer.

As of Monday morning, we are still waiting to hear how the situation will be resolved.

Good Monday 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 Kelly Jane Torrance (@kjtorrance). 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: All quiet on the Pentagon front as Mark Esper prepares for his expedited Senate confirmation hearing, set for 9:30 am tomorrow. As of this morning, Esper is still listed on the Pentagon’s website as acting defense secretary, even though the plan is for him to step aide as soon as his nomination is submitted and for Navy Secretary Richard Spencer to fill in until he gets a final vote in the Senate.

No events are listed on Esper’s public schedule. The indications are that Esper’s nomination will be submitted later today, in order to minimize the time Spencer will have to serve as his replacement.

The Senate Armed Services Committee agreed to waive the usual seven-day waiting period and put his confirmation on the fast track while still fully exercising its “advise and consent” responsibilities.

PARTISAN NDAA PASSES HOUSE: The debate over whether the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act was a partisan document seems settled by the fact it passed the House Friday 220-197 without a single Republican vote.

In contrast to the Senate version, the $733 billion House NDAA is loaded with a wish list of progressive initiatives that appear doomed to be defeated once the bill goes to conference committee, reports the Washington Examiner’s Susan Ferrechio. It also cuts $17 billion from the topline for defense.

“I predict the bill the bill that ends up on the president’s desk is going to look a lot more like the Senate bill than the bill that came out of the House,” House Minority Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana said Friday.

HOW PROGRESSIVE IS THE HOUSE NDAA?: Illinois Democrat Jan Schakowsky, a senior chief deputy whip, released this summary of the bill’s major provisions:

• Includes a blanket prohibition on funding for the President’s wall on the southern border
• Prohibits Department of Defense funds from aiding the President’s child separation policy
• Provides Paid Family and Medical Leave for all government employees
• Denies the President the unilateral authority to go to war in Iran
• Repeals the 2001 Authorization of Use of Military Force war authority
• Aids military families by providing increased resources for housing, childcare, and education
• Requires DOD to help combat climate change
• Stops DOD programs that significantly pollute the environment and provides a significant amount of funding for environmental cleanup
• Accelerates the closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay Cuba
• Increases and aids diversity in the military
• Reduces the size of our nuclear weapons program, and eliminates new low-yield nuclear weapons
• Increases family planning services for military women and provides resources to combat sexual assault
• Increases protections or unionized civilian defense employees
• Requires and audit and increased fiscal responsibility for the Department overall
• Prevents military assistance to groups or forces that are known to commit human rights violations
• Helps hold Russia accountable for its interference in U.S. elections
• Reverses the President’s ban on transgender individuals serving in the armed forces

WAR POWERS SHOWDOWN: The House bill includes a provision that would block new use of military force by the president without explicit permission from Congress, approving an amendment by a vote of 242 to 180 that prevents the president from using a 2001 war authorization to conduct future military action abroad.

An amendment that would also specifically curb Trump’s ability to authorize a military strike on Iran passed on a bipartisan vote of 251-to-170, with 27 Republicans voting for it along with all but 7 Democrats.

“We can’t let Trump and his warmongering cabinet drag us into another costly and destabilizing war in the Middle East,” said Barbara Lee of California, who sponsored the war authorization amendment.

‘VERY MISGUIDED’: Appearing on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Morning Futures, House Foreign Affairs Committee lead Republican Michael McCaul of Texas called the votes “very misguided.”

“I think it is a very dangerous, reckless policy by the Democrats to repeal the 2001 AUMF [Authorization for the Use of Military Force] with no replacement to it,” he told host Maria Bartiromo.

“In fact, every indication I have seen is he doesn’t want to go to war with Iran,” McCaul said. “That’s why he didn’t respond back militarily after they shot down a U.S. military asset. He’s trying to use a diplomatic route here. So, these are all … I think very misguided.”

“I’m all for arguing about updating the 2001 AUMF after 9/11, but this would … illegalize all global counterterrorism operations in the world that we’re conducting,” he added. “And then they want to repeal the 2002 [AUMF] with Iraq. And, of course, we know ISIS is still a threat in Iraq.”

ISIS WARNING: The latest “sitrep” from the Institute for the Study of War doubles down on its warning that ISIS is posed for a comeback in Iraq and Syria.

“The ISIS campaign in Iraq and Syria has demonstrated to ostensibly liberated communities that they are not safe, perpetuating conditions of fear and distrust that will make it increasingly difficult to establish durable and legitimate security and political structures across Iraq and Syria. ISIS’s next resurgence could be faster and even more devastating than 2014,” the group warned in its June report.

THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN: The Pentagon on Friday quietly released its latest congressionally mandated report on the war in Afghanistan, which puts a decidedly upbeat spin on how things are going in the wake of a number of deadly Taliban attacks and another U.S. soldier killed in combat.

The report credits U.S. Forces-Afghanistan commander Gen. Scott Miller with making changes in counter-terrorsim that have “restored the Coalition’s tactical initiative and put heavy pressure on the Taliban” and said the Afghan military “continued to improve its ability to fight the insurgents.”

Also of note was the ongoing effort by Zalmay Khalilzad, the special representative for Afghanistan reconciliation, aimed at achieving a peace agreement “that safeguards the U.S. homeland and could lead to a reduction in the number of U.S. forces deployed in Afghanistan.”

AFGHANISTAN KIA: The Pentagon has identified the soldier killed in Afghanistan Saturday as Sgt. Maj. James G. “Ryan” Sartor, 40, of Teague, Texas. Sartor died from wounds sustained from enemy small arms fire during combat operations. Sartor, a Green Beret who had served several combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Carson, Colorado.

His death is the 11th U.S. military fatality this year, including one death listed as “non-combat” by the Pentagon. In 2018, 14 U.S. troops died in Afghanistan.

The Rundown

AP: Leadership Vacuum In National Defense Positions Is Making Congress Queasy

Bloomberg: Warren Says Pentagon Pick Esper Must ‘Clear Any Ethics Cloud’

Reuters: Iran Ready To Talk If U.S. Lifts Sanctions, Pompeo Skeptical

Wall Street Journal: U.K., Iran Try to Calm Crisis

Reuters: After Taiwan Buys Arms, China Holds Military Drills On Southeast Coast

Military.com: Military Discipline In The Social Media Age: How The New Top Marine Plans To Lead

Air Force Magazine: Judge Denies Oracle’s Complaint in DOD Cloud Case

Washington Examiner: British ambassador who resigned called Christopher Steele ‘absolutely’ legit, leaked cables show

Military Times: Here’s An Updated Map Of Military Sites Where DoD Found Cancer-Causing Chemicals In The Drinking Water

Calendar

MONDAY | JULY 15

11 a.m. 14th and F Streets N.W. The Turkish Heritage Organization hosts a discussion, “U.S.-Turkey Relations: Marking 3 years since the July 15 coup attempt in Turkey.” Speakers: Former Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky., co-founder of the Congressional Caucus on U.S.-Turkey Relations; retired Turkish Gen. Ergin Saygun, former deputy chief of the Turkish General Staff; and Mark Hall, producer of the documentary Killing Ed. www.eventbrite.com

12 p.m. 1030 15th Street N.W. Atlantic Council discussion on “After Sistani and Khamenei: Looming Successions Will Shape the Middle East.” Speakers: Mohammad Tabaar, associate professor at Texas A&M University’s Bush School of Government and Public Service; Mohsen Milani, executive director of the University of South Florida’s Center for Strategic and Diplomatic Studies; Abbas Kadhim, director of the Atlantic Council Iraq Initiative; and Barbara Slavin, director of the Atlantic Council Future of Iran Initiative. www.atlanticcouncil.org/events

3 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Avenue N.W. Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion on “Prospects for U.S.-Russia Relations: A Perspective from Moscow.” Speakers: Dmitry Suslov, deputy director of the Higher School of Economics Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs, and Jeffrey Mankoff, deputy director and senior fellow at the CSIS Russia and Eurasia Program. www.csis.org/events

TUESDAY | JULY 16

9:30 a.m. G-50 Dirksen. Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing on the nomination of Mark Esper to be defense secretary. www.armed-services.senate.gov

12:15 p.m. 740 15th Street N.W. New America and Airwars discussion on “Reporting on Civilian Casualties in the War Against ISIS.” Speakers: Chris Woods, executive director of Airwars; Alexa O’Brien, author of News in Brief; Greg Jaffe, national security correspondent at the Washington Post; Azmat Khan, fellow at New America; and Peter Bergen, vice president of New America. www.newamerica.org

2:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion on “The Importance of the Pacific for New Zealand and U.S. Foreign Policy,” with New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, and Michael Green, senior vice president for Asia and Japan at CSIS. www.csis.org/events

6 p.m. 1825 R Street N.W. Women’s Foreign Policy Group discussion on “The U.S and Iran: Threats, Demands and Escalation.” Speakers: Narges Bajoghli, Johns Hopkins University; Shireen Hunter, Georgetown University; Barbara Slavin, director of the Atlantic Council’s Future of Iran Initiative; and Suzanne Kianpour, foreign affairs and political journalist at BBC. www.wfpg.org/upcoming-events

WEDNESDAY | JULY 17

8 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W. Woodrow Wilson Center’s Polar Institute two-day symposium on “The Impacts of an Ice-Diminishing Arctic on Naval and Maritime Operations.” Speakers include: Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska; Sen. Angus King, I-Maine; Coast Guard Vice Commandant Adm. Charles Ray; Assistant Commerce Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere Tim Gallaudet; and Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette. www.wilsoncenter.org/event

11:30 a.m. 2799 Richmond Hwy. Greater Washington Chapter of the Surface Navy Association discussion with Rear Adm. Gene Black, director of Surface Warfare Division. navysnaevents.org/

2 p.m. Webinar on “Impacts of Climate Change on U.S. National Security, sponsored by the American Security Project and the Environmental Defense Fund, with retired Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Stephen Cheney, CEO of ASP, and Elgie Holstein, senior strategic planning director at EDF. Webinar can be viewed here: www.americansecurityproject.org/event/webinar.

3:30 p.m. 1630 Crescent Pl. N.W. The Meridian International Center holds an invitation-only discussion with House Foreign Affairs ranking member Michael McCaul, R-Texas, on national and global security, as well as U.S. foreign relations.

THURSDAY | JULY 18

8 a.m. 300 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W. Day Two of the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Polar Institute symposium on “The Impacts of an Ice-Diminishing Arctic on Naval and Maritime Operations.” Speakers: Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas Bussiere, commander of the Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command; Coast Guard Deputy Commandant for Operations Vice Adm. Daniel Abel; and Rear Adm. John Okon, commander of naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. www.wilsoncenter.org/event

9 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Avenue N.W. Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion on “The Future of U.S. Counterterrorism Strategy,” with Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va.; Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla.; and Seth Jones, director of the CSIS Transnational Threats Project. www.csis.org

2 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion on “King of Battle: The Future of Long-Range Precision Fires,” with Col. John Rafferty, director of Army Futures Command’s Long-Range Precision Fires Cross Functional Team; and Thomas Karako, senior fellow at CSIS. www.csis.org