World reacts to the ‘Mother of all Bombs’ strike in Afghanistan

After sending in ground forces to the inspect the results, the Afghan military reports this morning that 36 ISIS-Khorasan fighters were killed and three of four tunnels destroyed. No civilian casualties have been reported. Afghanistan’s ambassador the United States Hamdullah Mohib told CNN the attack took place in an area near the Pakistan border, where U.S. special operations forces, along with Afghan troops had been battling ISIS-Khorasan forces for six weeks. One U.S. soldier was killed in a firefight there last weekend, and the U.S. and Afghan forces were stymied. “Our security forces along with the U.S. special forces couldn’t make any further progress because DAESH [ISIS] had mined the area with IEDs quite heavily, and that resulted in dropping the bomb that would clear the tunnel complex and prevent them from being freely able to move,” Mohib said. The tunnels were being used to allow the ISIS fighters to move freely back and forth across the border. “Having destroyed the tunnel complex and the terrorists that were inside, in there, would now force them to move on surface that would be detectable,” he said.

MOTHER OF ALL MESSAGES: Pundits and commentators were quick to read the first use of the MOAB, (official name: GBU-43/B, Massive Ordnance Air Blast) as the actualization of President Trump’s famous 2015 campaign vow to “bomb the shit out of them.” But Pentagon sources describes the decision to drop the MOAB as simply a “weaponeering choice,” matching the munition to the objective, the “right weapon against the target to achieve the desired effect,” as one senior official put it. While the MOAB was developed in 2003, when the U.S. first went into Iraq, it was never used, mainly because its powerful air blast makes it unsuitable for any target that has civilians nearby. In this case, it was not believed any noncombatants were in or around the tunnels, and there were no villages nearby that might suffer collateral damage.

“This was the right weapon for the right target,” U.S. Afghanistan Commander Gen. John “Mick” Nicholson said in a briefing in Kabul this morning (2:30 pm Afghanistan time), and he said U.S. forces on the ground today confirmed there were no civilian casualties. That press conference is being live-tweeted here.

WHAT WAS THE PRESIDENT TOLD, AND WHEN WAS HE TOLD IT? The other question that bedeviled the cable newsers is whether Trump specifically signed off on dropping the massive bond, or whether he was just informed of the plan by military commanders. Pentagon sources indicated the MOAB was employed under existing authorities, which have always allowed U.S. commanders to launch offensive strikes in the ongoing counterterrorism mission in Afghanistan, dubbed “Freedom’s Sentinel.” Trump seemed to confirm that in his public comments. “Everybody knows exactly what happens. So, what I do is I authorize our military,” Trump said when asked directly if he authorized the strike. “We have given them total authorization and that’s what they’re doing.”

On MSNBC former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said he highly doubted a U.S. commander would use such a high-profile weapons without giving their commander in chief a heads up. “He may have had the authorization to make the decision to use that kind of weapon, but I clearly think they would have informed the president of the United States to make sure that he was aware of it,” Panetta said.

Regardless, Trump was clearly pleased with the message delivered by the MOAB, not just to ISIS, but to the rest of the world, and to the voters who are looking to the president to fulfill his pledge to “obliterate” ISIS. But speaking at the White House, he argued there’s been a “tremendous difference” militarily between the Obama administration and the Trump administration. “If you look at what’s happened over the last eight weeks and compare that to really what’s happened over the last eight years, you’ll see there’s a tremendous difference,” Trump said.

FRIENDLY FIRE IN SYRIA: In what is the worst friendly fire accident so far in the war against ISIS in Syria, 18 members of the Syrian Democratic Forces backed by the U.S. were killed when SDF forces mistakenly called in an airstrike on their own troops.  According to a release from the U.S. military, the partner forces thought they had spotted an ISIS fighting position south of Tabqah, Syria, and sent the coordinates to the coalition requesting air support to take out the position. Afterward they discovered it was in fact a contingent of their troops that was forward deployed. In the wake of the accident, the U.S.-led coalition says it is assessing the cause and “will implement appropriate safeguards to prevent similar incidents in the future.”

Words matter in understanding the nuance of what happens in the fog of war. The U.S. military referred to the mistaken bombing as involving a “misdirected” bomb. The Washington Post in its headline this morning referred to an “errant U.S. strike.” Errant is generally defined as “erring or straying from the proper course.” The weapon did not misfire, or go off course. It accurately, albeit mistakenly, hit the wrong target.

Good Friday 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: The president is in Florida, spending the Easter weekend at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

SLIGHT CHANGE IN TONE: Trump softened his assertion that the United States is ready to “solve the problem” in North Korea on its own Thursday by including American allies in the process. “I have great confidence that China will properly deal with North Korea. If they are unable to do so, the U.S., with its allies, will! U.S.A.,” Trump tweeted. Just two days ago, Trump said it “would be great” if China helped deal with North Korea’s increasing belligerence, but the U.S. was willing to go it alone if need be.

Asked if the big bomb dropped in Afghanistan might also send a message to North Korea, Trump said, “I don’t know if this sends a message. It doesn’t make any difference if it does or not. North Korea is a problem. The problem will be taken care of.” And the president said he still thinks China will come through in the end. “I think China has really been working very hard. I have really gotten to like and respect, as you know, President Xi. He’s a terrific person. We spent a lot of time together in Florida. And he’s a very special man, so we’ll see how it goes. I think he’s going to try very hard,” Trump said.

Sen. Lindsey Graham tweeted “I hope America’s adversaries are watching & now understand there’s a new sheriff in town.”

KOREA ON EDGE: In South Korea, the government is bracing for what it fears may be a sixth nuclear test by Pyongyang any day now, and has issued a stern warning to the North. “If North Korea conducts a strategic provocation such as a nuclear test or an intercontinental ballistic missile launch, there is certain to be powerful punitive measure that will be difficult for the North Korean regime to endure.” The warning came in a statement from South’s Foreign Ministry, according to Reuters.

China also urged that tensions be prevented from reaching an “irreversible and unmanageable stage.” “We call on all parties to refrain from provoking and threatening each other, whether in words or actions, and not let the situation get to an irreversible and unmanageable stage,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters in Beijing.

MATTIS ON NORTH KOREA: “We are working with international partners in order to defuse the situation but the bottom line is North Korea has got to change its behavior, that is an agreed position among the international community nations that are working together on this,” Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said as he was meeting with Turkey’s defense minister at the Pentagon yesterday.

SHOW OF FORCE: A Japan-based combat-ready Air Force wing showed off its aircraft yesterday in what Fox news said was a clear warning to North Korea. The 18th Wing conducted a surprise military exercise at Kadena Air Base in Japan as North Korea is rumored to be nearing a sixth nuclear weapons test. A group of HH-60 Pave Hawks, F-15 Eagles, E-3 Sentries and KC-135 Stratotankers all took part in the exercise, the report said. Photos from the no-notice event, which the Air Force calls an “elephant walk,” showed jets lined up down the entirety of a runway on the base in close formation. You can see video of the exercise here.

NERVOUS OVER TRUMP: More than half of Americans are uneasy about Trump’s ability to handle North Korea and its nuclear program, according to a new CBS poll. The poll showed 56 percent of those polled felt uneasy about Trump’s ability to handle the situation. Conversely, 39 percent of those polled were confident in Trump’s ability to handle the crisis.

Republicans overwhelmingly believe in Trump, with 78 percent trusting him to handle the problem. Independents and Democrats are both mostly uneasy about his ability to handle Kim Jong Un; 56 percent of independents and 85 percent of Democrats described themselves as feeling uneasy about Trump’s diplomatic skills.

NIKKI HALEY UNRESTRAINED: One the most forceful voices for Trump administration foreign policy is America’s ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, who told CNN yesterday that Trump has never tried to rein her in. “I made it clear I didn’t want to be a wallflower or talking head. I’m very passionate by nature and he’s fine with it,” Haley said in a sit-down interview with CNN’s Jamie Gangel. “I would never go rogue because I’m very aware of who I work for,” Haley said. “And what I’ll tell you is, it’s a sign of how this president works. It’s not uncommon for him to pick up the phone and tell me what he feels on an issue. It’s not uncommon for him to say, ‘Make sure you say this, don’t afraid to say this.’ He has given me a lot of leeway to just say what I think and interpret what he thinks.”

WIKILEAKS BACK ON THE ENEMIES LIST: CIA Director Mike Pompeo dubbed WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and his colleagues “demons” who can expect to become the target of a sharp crackdown from the United States. “I’m confident this administration will pursue them with great vigor,” Pompeo said Thursday at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“It’s time to call out WikiLeaks for what it really is: a non-state, hostile intelligence service, often abetted by state actors like Russia,” Pompeo said. “Their mission: personal self-aggrandizement through the destruction of Western values. They do not care about the causes of the people they claim to represent. If they did, they would focus instead on autocratic regimes in this world that actually suppress free speech and dissent. Instead, they choose to exploit the legitimate secrets of democratic governments, which has — so far — proven to be a much safer approach than provoking a tyrant.”

WELL OK, THEN: Syrian President Bashar Assad denied using chemical weapons on his own people last week, and in an interview Thursday called reports of an attack a “fabrication.” “We don’t make any attack,” he said. “We don’t have any chemical weapons, we give up our arsenal three years ago. Even if we had them we wouldn’t use them, and we have never used our chemical arsenal in our history.”

The interview was done with the AFP wire service, which had to agree to stringent approval authority from the Syrian government in order to get the interview. American reports suggested the interview was highly edited.

THE RUNDOWN

Washington Post: Jordan says guard who killed three U.S. soldiers did not follow rules of engagement

USA Today: Analysis: Afghanistan strike may boost Trump, send message to North Korea

Roll Call: To save millions, military grounds planes worth billions

Reuters: As Trump seeks defense-spending boost, watchdogs cite faulty Pentagon accounting

Defense One: Small business advocate hauls Pentagon into court

Defense News: Frustrated Selva to Congress: Give us a budget

Associated Press: Japan PM: North Korea may be capable of sarin-loaded missiles

Daily Beast: With Assad’s air force floundering, Russian bombers go on the attack

War on the Rocks: The Libyan mess will get worse if outside powers don’t cooperate

UPI Security News: Russia developing next-gen strategic bomber prototype

Defense News: Trump considers military push in Yemen war. US lawmakers push back

Wall Street Journal: U.S. sanctions brother of Iranian military commander

Calendar

MONDAY | APRIL 17

10 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave, NW. Sergey Denisentsev, a senior research fellow at the Center for the Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, discusses Russia’s arms exports. csis.org

TUESDAY | APRIL 18

7 a.m. 7525 Colshire Drive. The beginning of a three-day annual summit on systems engineering cyber-resilient and secure weapon systems. ndia.org

7 a.m. 300 5th Ave. SW. The National Defense Industrial Association kicks off its three-day science and engineering technology conference. ndia.org

6:30 p.m. 529 14th St. NW. A premiere screening of Danger Close film and Q&A with war reporter Alex Quade. press.org

WEDNESDAY | APRIL 19

5 p.m. 1000 Massachusetts Ave. NW. How scholars can affect Trump’s foreign policy with Steven Weber, director of Bridging the Gap; Matt Kroenig, associate professor at Georgetown University; Ryan Evans, editor-in-chief of War on the Rocks; Mira Rapp Hooper, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security; and Sameer Lalwani, a senior associate at the Stimson Center. cato.org

9 a.m. 1211 Connecticut Ave. NW. The difficult road toward stabilizing Iraq and the Gulf region. stimson.org

THURSDAY | APRIL 20

9:30 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave, NW. Italian Prime Minister H.E. Paolo Gentiloni discusses security in the Mediterranean as a cornerstone of global stability and the common engagement of Italy and the United States. csis.org

10 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. Experts discuss next steps in dealing with the South China Sea, a regional flashpoint. heritage.org

3 p.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. The provincialism and internationalism of an America First policy in U.S. foreign relations. wilsoncenter.org

FRIDAY | APRIL 21

11 a.m. 1775 Massachusetts Ave. NW. The growing cyber threat and how the United States can prepare. brookings.edu