● Shelby Steele: The Exploitation of Trayvon Martin... ● Protecting You From The UN-Frendly Skies... Prohibited Items Found 3/2 to 3/8... ● Congressional earmarks sometimes used to fund projects near lawmakers' properties... ● Public Law List (112st Congress - 2012)... ● Congress's Phony Insider-Trading Reform... ● Obama denounces Senate vote to block Cordray at consumer watchdog agency... ● Walker signs 'castle doctrine' bill, other measures... ● Holder faces House Republicans over health-care law, ‘Fast and Furious’... ● Postal workers behaving badly!... ● The supercommittee failed because Democrats insisted on $1 trillion in new taxes...
PositiveReform header image 4
When the people fear the government, there is tyranny; When the government fears the people, there is liberty.  ~ Thomas Jefferson

 

Entries Tagged as 'Defense'

Karzai wants U.S. to reduce military operations in Afghanistan

November 14th, 2010 · Deception, Defense, National Security, Non-Transparency, Terrorist Threat, War on Terrorism

By Joshua Partlow Washington Post Foreign Service
Sunday, November 14, 2010; 12:52 AM

KABUL- President Hamid Karzai said on Saturday that the United States must reduce the visibility and intensity of its military operations in Afghanistan and end the increased U.S. Special Operations forces night raids that aggravate Afghans and could exacerbate the Taliban insurgency.

In an interview with The Washington Post, Karzai said that he wanted American troops off the roads and out of Afghan homes and that the long-term presence of so many foreign soldiers would only worsen the war. His comments placed him at odds with U.S. commander Gen. David H. Petraeus, who has made capture-and-kill missions a central component of his counterinsurgency strategy, and who claims the 30,000 new troops have made substantial progress in beating back the insurgency.

“The time has come to reduce military operations,” Karzai said. “The time has come to reduce the presence of, you know, boots in Afghanistan . . . to reduce the intrusiveness into the daily Afghan life.”

Karzai’s comments come as American officials are playing down the importance of July 2011 – the date President Obama set to begin withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan – in favor of a combat mission ending in 2014. The Afghan president has placed himself squarely in favor of a lighter military footprint as the administration reviews the progress of the Afghan war and debate intensifies about the pace of the withdrawal. Karzai says his troops are ready to take more responsibility for their own security.

[View Complete Article →]

Tags:

No Comments

U.S. deploying drones in Yemen to hunt for Al-Qaeda, has yet to fire missiles

November 8th, 2010 · Defense, Homeland Security, National Security, War on Terrorism

By Greg Miller, Greg Jaffe and Karen DeYoung Washington Post Staff Writers
Sunday, November 7, 2010; 12:48 AM

The United States has deployed Predator drones to hunt for al-Qaeda operatives in Yemen for the first time in years but has not fired missiles from the unmanned aircraft because it lacks solid intelligence on the insurgents’ whereabouts, senior U.S. officials said.

The use of the drones is part of a campaign against an al-Qaeda branch that has claimed responsibility for near-miss attacks on U.S. targets that could have had catastrophic results, including the recent plot to place parcels packed with explosives on cargo planes.

U.S. officials said the Predators have been patrolling the skies over Yemen for several months in search of leaders and operatives of the group al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP. After withstanding a flurry of attacks involving Yemeni forces and U.S. cruise missiles earlier this year, AQAP’s leaders “went to ground,” a senior Obama administration official said.

The use of U.S. drones in Yemen underscores the deep U.S. reliance on what has become a signature weapon against al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups.

The deployment also represents an attempt by the Obama administration to reinvigorate a campaign that has gone without a visible U.S. strike for nearly six months. Officials praised Yemeni cooperation and said they have been given wide latitude. Pressed on whether the drones would be free to shoot, a second administration official said, “The only thing that does fall into the ‘no’ category right now is boots on the ground.”

The officials and others spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military and intelligence operations.

Yemeni officials said the United States had not yet pushed for the use of Predator-fired missiles and indicated that they had deep reservations about weapons they said could prove counterproductive.

[View Complete Article →]

Tags:

No Comments

Taliban attacks U.N. compound in western Afghanistan: suicide bombers disguised as women

October 25th, 2010 · Defense, Terrorist Attack, War on Terrorism

By Joshua Partlow Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, October 23, 2010; 4:35 PM

KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN – The Taliban launched a midday assault on the United Nations headquarters in western Afghanistan on Saturday, crashing a car bomb into a compound gate to create an opening for suicide bombers disguised as women, according to U.N. and Afghan officials.

The attack was a startling reminder of the Taliban’s readiness to strike at the symbols of foreign presence in Afghanistan, in this case a heavily fortified facility in the relatively peaceful city of Herat, near the Iranian border. Although two Afghan policemen were injured, the attack largely failed, as U.N. guards and Afghan security forces were able to kill the insurgents. No U.N. personnel were hurt.

A thinned-out weekend staff was manning the U.N. offices when the attackers launched rocket-propelled grenades at the compound just before noon and rammed a car bomb into the back gate, U.S. and Afghan officials said. At least three other insurgents, each hiding a suicide vest under a burqa, the head-to-toe cloak worn by many Afghan women, managed to get through the gate before being killed by either guards or police, the officials said.

“This is quite significant,” one U.N. official said. “There was no such direct attack here, as far as I know, for a long time.”

[View Complete Article →]

Tags: ··

No Comments

Despite successful U.S. attacks on Taliban leaders in Afghanistan’s northwest, insurgency remains in control

October 25th, 2010 · Deception, Defense, Democrats, Federal Spending, Foreign Policy, Government Control, Homeland Security, National Security, Non-Transparency, Obama's Scheme, Selling Out the US, Tax Dollars, Terrorism from Within, Terrorist Threat, Treason, War on Terrorism

By Joshua Partlow Washington Post Foreign Service
Sunday, October 24, 2010; 1:34 AM

MAQUR, AFGHANISTAN – October has been a calamitous month for the Taliban guerrillas waging war from sandy mountains and pistachio forests in this corner of northwestern Afghanistan.

The first to die was their leader, Mullah Ismail, hunted down and killled by U.S. Special Operations troops. Next came the heir apparent, Mullah Jamaluddin, even before he could take over as Taliban “shadow” governor. Within a week, several other top commanders were dead, a new governor had been captured and the most powerful among the remaining insurgents had lit out for the Turkmenistan border – all casualties of the secretive, midnight work of American commandos.

And yet what has happened here in Badghis province also shows how large a gap remains between killing commanders and dismantling an insurgency. Nearly half of the province remains under insurgent control, an Afghan intelligence official estimated. A new Taliban governor has already been dispatched to the province, Afghan officials say, even though NATO portrayed Mullah Ismail’s killing as a “huge blow” that would “significantly reduce Taliban influence throughout the region.”

“Fighting in Afghanistan is like hitting coals with a stick, it just spreads to other places,” said Delbar Jan Arman, who as provincial governor is trying to stave off the Taliban advances. “It will continue.”

The barrage launched against the Taliban by Special Operations forces here in recent weeks is part of a broader American effort that is clearly succeeding. As other U.S. goals in Afghanistan have faltered – reforming the government, winning hearts and minds – Gen. David H. Petraeus and his new troops have so far succeeded at killing their enemies. American officials have held up the example of the onslaught against the Taliban leadership as a clear sign of progress, a development sure to factor into President Obama’s December review of the Afghan campaign.

[View Complete Article →]

Tags: ·········

No Comments

U.S.-led Afghan reconstruction projects to end because of security dispute

October 22nd, 2010 · Defense, Foreign Policy

By Rajiv Chandrasekaran Washington Post Foreign Service
Friday, October 22, 2010; 12:43 AM

KABUL – U.S.-funded development firms are beginning to shut down massive reconstruction projects because the Afghan government has refused to rescind a ban on their use of private security guards, according to U.S. officials and aid workers here.

The decision to start shuttering the projects, collectively worth hundreds of millions of dollars, could have far-reaching effects on the U.S.-led military campaign against the Taliban, disrupting a central component of the strategy to counter the insurgency at a critical moment in the war. Programs to assist Afghan farmers and improve local government, which are vital to the overall U.S. effort to stabilize the volatile southern and eastern parts of the country, are among those that will be affected, the officials said.

The consequences of the ban on development firms employing private guards “will be catastrophic,” said one U.S. official involved in the issue. “If these projects grind to a halt, we might as well go home. They are essential to the counterinsurgency strategy.”

Another U.S. official said the ban would affect about $1.5 billion in ongoing reconstruction work. More than 20,000 Afghans will lose jobs in road-building and energy projects alone, the official said.

The prohibition, which was enacted by President Hamid Karzai, has emerged as the latest flashpoint in the oft-strained U.S.-Afghan relationship, raising new questions about his willingness to cooperate with the international community and potentially complicating crucial year-end assessments of the war effort by the White House and NATO.

The ban, which goes into effect Dec. 17, affects all development firms and non-governmental organizations, including those funded by other countries and the United Nations. It also applies to private contractors who guard supply convoys for the military bearing food, fuel and other essential supplies, as well as to international banks and other private entities whose services support reconstruction work.

[View Complete Article →]

Tags: ·

No Comments

Pentagon plans $60 billion weapons sale to Saudi Arabia

October 21st, 2010 · Defense, Foreign Policy, Homeland Security, National Security, Technology, War on Terrorism

By Dana Hedgpeth Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, October 21, 2010; 12:58 AM

The Defense Department has notified Congress that it wants to sell $60 billion worth of advanced aircraft and weapons to Saudi Arabia. The proposed sale, which includes helicopters, fighter jets, radar equipment and satellite-guided bombs, would be the largest arms deal to another country in U.S. history if the sale goes through and all purchases are made.

Congress has 30 days to review the sale before the Pentagon and the weapons makers go into more detailed contract discussions with Saudi Arabia. Congress is expected to review the deal when it is back in session after the elections.

The arms package includes 84 new F-15 fighter jets and upgrades to 70 more F-15s that the Saudis already have, as well as three types of helicopters: 70 Apaches, 72 Black Hawks and 36 Little Birds. Saudi Arabia would also get versions of a satellite-guided “smart bomb” system, plus anti-ship and anti-radar missiles.

The deal could be completed over five to 10 years, depending on production schedules and training needed.

Defense industry analysts said the weapons sale is key to U.S. efforts to boost support among Arab allies and counter any threats from Iran. The deal is also seen as a boon for U.S. defense companies as the Pentagon tightens its budget in ways that could curb contracting opportunities.

Boeing makes the F-15, the Apaches, the Little Birds and some of the other equipment. Raytheon makes some of the anti-radar missiles.

[View Complete Article →]

Tags: ·

No Comments

Story of B-53 ‘bunker buster’ is a lesson in managing nuclear weapons

October 19th, 2010 · Accountability, Deception, Defense, Federal Spending, Greed, National Security, Terrorism from Within

By Walter Pincus Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, October 18, 2010; 10:33 PM

Outside of the nuclear weapons communities, little notice was paid last week to the announcement that authorization had finally come through to begin dismantling the last of the minivan-size B-53s, the most powerful thermonuclear bombs ever deployed in the active U.S. stockpile.

A terror weapon if there ever was one, the 10,000-pound B-53 was designed to deliver an explosion of nine megatons. That is the equivalent of 9 million pounds of TNT, or 600 times the power of the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima.

Believe it or not, the last 50 B-53s were not retired from the active stockpile until 1997, and even then some were held as a “hedge” in case a new threat emerged.

The two nuclear bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, termed military targets at the time, immediately killed more than 200,000 people and resulted in the deaths within five years of an additional 100,000. They won the war against Japan and none has been used since.

Why did the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s need to build more than 300 B-53s? And why were as many as 50 kept through the late 1990s, while the U.S government built and deployed thousands of other nuclear weapons with less powerful warheads?

What did war planners have in mind? It’s a tale that should have lessons for today as the Obama administration considers spending more than $180 billion over the next decade modernizing the nation’s nuclear stockpile and replacing the intercontinental ballistic missiles, strategic submarines and aircraft that would deliver them.

There are steps being taken to win Republican votes for a treaty with Russia designed to reduce nuclear weapons. The lesson: Don’t build more weapons than you need or could use.

[View Complete Article →]

Tags: ······

No Comments

U.S. says Chinese businesses and banks are bypassing U.N. sanctions against Iran

October 18th, 2010 · Defense, Foreign Policy, National Security

By John Pomfret  Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, October 18, 2010; 1:58 AM

The Obama administration has concluded that Chinese firms are helping Iran to improve its missile technology and develop nuclear weapons, and has asked China to stop such activity, a senior U.S. official said.

During a visit to Beijing last month, a delegation led by Robert J. Einhorn, the State Department’s special adviser for nonproliferation and arms control, handed a “significant list” of companies and banks to their Chinese counterparts, according to the senior U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue in U.S.-Chinese relations. The official said the Obama administration thinks that the companies are violating U.N. sanctions, but that China did not authorize their activities.

The Obama administration faces a balancing act in pressing Beijing to stop the deals and limit Chinese investments in Iran’s energy industry. U.S. officials say they need to preserve their ability to work with China on issues ranging from the value of its currency to the stability of North Korea. But the administration also wants to make progress in efforts to dissuade Iran from building a nuclear weapon and to convince other powerful states that China is not receiving lenient treatment because of its energy needs.

“My government will investigate the issues raised by the U.S. side,” said Wang Baodong, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy.

Einhorn’s trip is part of a worldwide effort by the Obama administration to persuade countries to push Iran to enter into negotiations over its nuclear program, which the Islamic Republic says is peaceful. The Obama administration has cobbled together a growing network of countries and companies that have announced measures to cut investments in Iran.

China’s involvement in Iran’s energy sector and the role that some of its companies are believed to be playing in Tehran’s military modernization could disrupt U.S.-Chinese relations. In a recent meetings on Capitol Hill, China’s outgoing deputy chief of mission, Xie Feng, was told that “if he ever wanted to see Congress united, Democrats and Republicans, it would be on the issue of China’s interaction with Iran,” one participant said, speaking on condition of anonymity to disclose a private discussion.

[View Complete Article →]

Tags: ··

No Comments

Can the Pentagon keep classified information safe?

October 7th, 2010 · Accountability, Defense, Homeland Security, National Security

The Pentagon agency responsible for making sure contractors are properly handling classified information is having a tough time doing its job.

The Defense Security Service (DSS) has had “recurring” troubles overseeing contractors, according to a November 2009 survey of agency employees. The Project on Government Oversight (POGO), a contracting watchdog group, got its hands on an internal agency e-mail, dated Sept. 16, that has employees saying they’re concerned about a “lack of resources” at DSS to “accomplish the mission.”

According to a source at DSS with whom POGO officials said they talked, the problems at DSS include having a lack of trained and experienced personnel who are “on-the-ground examining what systems contractors have in place to protect classified information.”

DSS is said to now be conducting a follow-up survey that asks employees, among other things, questions about having enough pens, paper clips and working copy machines. A source inside the agency has told POGO that the greater concern is not the agency’s office supplies but the lack of trained personnel.

With the government using more private contractors to help it do everything from run missile systems, maintain classified databases and analyze intelligence information on terrorist networks, POGO says the DSS report is worrisome.

“As the government’s secrets are increasingly placed in the hands of private companies we need to ensure that these companies can protect our nation’s crown jewels,” said Nick Schwellenbach, POGO’s director of investigations.

[View Complete Article →]

Tags: ···

No Comments

Taliban in high-level talks with Karzai government, sources say

October 6th, 2010 · Defense, Homeland Security, National Security, Terrorist Threat, War on Terrorism

By Karen DeYoung, Peter Finn and Craig Whitlock – Wednesday, October 6, 2010; 10:36 AM

Taliban representatives and the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai have begun secret, high-level talks over a negotiated end to the war, according to Afghan and Arab sources.

The talks follow inconclusive meetings, hosted by Saudi Arabia, that ended more than a year ago. While emphasizing the preliminary nature of the current discussions, the sources said that for the first time they believe that Taliban representatives are fully authorized to speak for the Quetta Shura, the Afghan Taliban organization based in Pakistan, and its leader, Mohammad Omar.

“They are very, very serious about finding a way out,” one source close to the talks said of the Taliban.

Although Omar’s representatives have long publicly insisted that negotiations were impossible until all foreign troops withdraw, a position seemingly buoyed by the Taliban’s resilience on the battlefield, sources said the Quetta Shura has begun to talk about a comprehensive agreement that would include participation of some Taliban figures in the government and the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops on an agreed timeline.

The leadership knows “that they are going to be sidelined,” the source said. “They know that more radical elements are being promoted within their rank and file outside their control. . . . All these things are making them absolutely sure that, regardless of [their success in] the war, they are not in a winning position.”

[View Complete Article →]

Tags: ···

No Comments