Up to 34,000 French military posts will be lost over the next six years as the French military tightens its belt. Diarra / Reuters
Grim Economics Shape France’s Military Spending -- New York Times
PARIS — France will effectively freeze its military spending for the next several years, cutting nearly 10 percent of defense jobs while using more money for high-tech equipment, in a bid to maintain its ability to conduct overseas operations like the one in Mali, the government said Monday.
A strategic review, the first since 2008, tries to reconcile France’s weak economic growth and declining budgets with its ability to take unilateral military action, preserve its nuclear deterrent, and improve its intelligence and cybersecurity.
While spending about 1.5 percent of its gross domestic product on defense, France will remain Europe’s No. 2 in military spending behind Britain. Britain is shrinking its armed forces to 82,000, the lowest number since the Battle of Waterloo, while trying to keep its own nuclear deterrent.
Why Is North Korea Cooling It? -- Elise Labott, CNN
After weeks of fiery rhetoric, military saber rattling and threats against the United States and South Korea, North Korea seems downright quiet and willing to dial back the tension.
Fears Kim Jong Un would test a long-range missile have given way to an easing of his daily war threats, and North Korea has produced a list of conditions for dialogue.
In exchange for returning talks, North Korea wants the lifting of U.N. sanctions, the end of the U.S.-South Korea military drills, the withdrawal of U.S. nuclear strike capabilities from the region and a halt on criticism of the North. It also wants a South Korean apology for offending its leadership.
Still, even the subtle shift in tone is an improvement to the war footing Pyongyang was on just weeks ago. So what gives?
Army pilots and crew chiefs prepare a CH-47F Chinook helicopter for flight in Talkeetna, Alaska, April 26, 2013. The pilots and crew chiefs, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 52nd Aviation Regiment, aided the National Park Service by transporting equipment and supplies to the 7,200-foot level of Kahiltna Glacier to set up a base camp for climbers attempting Mount McKinley this summer. The operation also provided altitude training for soldiers assigned to the U.S. Army Alaska Aviation Task Force. U.S. Army photo by John Pennell
We're Not Prepared For China's Deadly Bird Flu -- Scott Gottlieb, Forbes
In Asia, more than 120 people have been sickened, and 23 are dead, from a potent strain of bird flu that has the frightening markings of a potential pandemic strain.
We have grappled with deadly pockets of potent flu outbreaks before. But this one has characteristics that make it different.
There’s a greater risk that this strain could acquire the ability to spread more easily from person to person. If it does, it could have devastating consequences.
1 Pentagon Weapons System That Was On Time and Under Budget -- John Reed, Foreign Policy
The Super Hornet
We're always hearing about Pentagon weapons purchases that go so far over budget it becomes hard for normal people to wrap their heads around the staggering numbers involved. Exhibit A: the Lockheed Martin-made F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), meant to be an "affordable" supersonic stealth fighter that can fly from aircraft carriers or regular airfields and even hover like a helicopter, all while incorporating some of the most advanced spy gear and data-sharing tools ever invented. Needless to say, the program is years behind schedule and has seen its cost balloon to $396 billion, an almost 50-percent increase in cost from when the JSF program was started in 2001 and each jet was estimated to cost only (ha!) $69 million. Today, F-35s are estimated to cost $137 million apiece, according to some estimates. No surprises here: late and over budget is what we've come to expect.
U.S. Army Veteran 'Is Found Living In Vietnam Village 44 YEARS After Being Shot Down And Presumed Dead'... But His Daughters Refuse To Take DNA Tests To Prove His Identity -- Daily Mail
* Sgt. John Hartley Robertson is believed to have died in 1968 over Laos during a special ops mission during the Vietnam War * A new documentary claims to have found him - aged 76 - still living there * This man, who remarried, has never contacted the American wife and two children who have believed him dead for 44 years * Doubts remain over his identity but his sister, who is filmed being reunited with him in the documentary, said she knows it is him
An elderly man found living in south-central Vietnam has claimed to be a U.S. war veteran who was presumed dead after his helicopter was shot down during a special ops mission over Laos in 1968.
But despite the potentially astonishing discovery, the man's two daughters - whom he has never contacted since disappearing - have refused to take a DNA test to prove his identity.
The wife and daughters of Sgt. John Hartley Robertson, a one-time Green Beret, initially agreed to participate in DNA testing, before changing their minds last year, according to a filmmaker behind a new documentary asking whether the man is indeed who he says he is.
Obama talks with chief of staff Denis McDonough and Miguel Rodriguez, director of legislative affairs, in the Oval Office on February 5, 2013. His jacket hangs on a chair, and his legs rest on the Resolute Desk, which was gifted to President Rutherford B. Hayes by Queen Victoria in 1880.
The Lean-Back President -- Vanity Fair
Barack Obama receives ample flak from critics who say that he is too buttoned-up and reserved to thrive in an office that historically has required its fair share of cajoling, socializing, and even arm-twisting. But a thorough examination of the photo archives of White House photographer Pete Souza reveals quite the opposite: Obama can, in fact, be remarkably laid-back. His body language in the Oval Office, the Situation Room, and other top Cabinet-level meetings indicates a man who is ready to let it all hang loose. He’s often in shirtsleeves, with his feet up, and frequently will be the only member of a meeting with a knee on the table. Below, a photographic investigation of the “lean-back” president. Read more ....
Female U.S. Army Deserter Pleads Guilty, Gets 10-Month Prison Term -- Reuters
(Reuters) - An Army private believed to be the first female U.S. soldier to seek refuge in Canada rather than return to duty in Iraq was sentenced to 10 months in prison after pleading guilty to desertion, military officials in Colorado said on Tuesday.
Kimberly Rivera, who said she grew opposed to the war during a three-month tour of duty in Iraq, pleaded guilty at a court-martial proceeding in Fort Carson, Colorado, on Monday and was sentenced immediately.
In addition to the prison time, the 30-year-old private was reduced in rank, ordered to forfeit pay and benefits and received a bad conduct discharge, base spokeswoman Meghan Williams said.
Obama Pledges Inquiry On Benghazi Survivors’ Testimony -- FOX News
President Obama said he is unaware of longstanding efforts by Republican lawmakers to question survivors of the Benghazi attacks but pledged to investigate it.
“I’m not familiar with this notion that anybody has been blocked from testifying,” the president said during a White House news conference on Tuesday. “So what I’ll do is I will find out what exactly you’re referring to.”
Obama’s pledge to find out more came as officials at the State Department pushed back against allegations -- first aired Monday on Fox News -- that career employees at the agency have been threatened if they furnish new information about the Benghazi attacks to members of Congress.
My Comment: The lawyers who are representing these whistle-blowers have already voiced their frustration in getting the proper security clearances to represent their clients. As to what is my take .... I find it incredible that after almost 7 months the survivors of the Benghazi attack have not appeared in Congress to explain what they witnessed that night. It is obvious that some of these survivors want to testify .... what is not obvious is why they have not.
Source: Mastermind Behind Benghazi Attack Identified, But Not Arrested -- FOX News
It’s been seven months since the September 11 Benghazi, Libya attacks and there have been no arrests. The second of a three-part exclusive investigation digging into Benghazi aired on Special Report tonight.
Multiple sources tell Fox News that the United States has identified the mastermind behind the attack, who is still in Libya and walks free. A special operator, whose identity was concealed for safety, watched the events unfold and spoke to Fox News’ Adam Housley. Read more .... My Comment: If these allegations are true .... this is very disturbing. But the White house since the beginning has been obfuscating and stalling any serious inquiry or investigation on this case. To put it bluntly .... they are hiding something.
Obama Moving Toward Sending Lethal Arms To Syrian Rebels, Officials Say -- Washington Post
President Obama is preparing to send lethal weaponry to the Syrian opposition and has taken steps to assert more aggressive U.S. leadership among allies and partners seeking the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad, according to senior administration officials.
The officials emphasized that supplying arms is one of several options under consideration and that political negotiation remains the preferred option. To that end, the administration has launched an effort to convince Russian President Vladimir Putin that the probable use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government — and the more direct outside intervention that could provoke — should lead him to reconsider his support of Assad.
Nightmarish: Unbelievable Footage Of Plane Crash At Baghram Airbase In Afghanistan -- Mediaite
A civilian cargo plane fell out of the sky near Baghram Airbase in Afghanistan on Monday, soon after taking off. According to a statement from coalition forces, all seven people aboard the plane died in the crash. A spokesperson for the Michigan-based National Airlines said that the identities of those in the crash had not yet been released to the public.
Though the footage is timestamped for February 1, 2013, but several sources authenticate that the video is from Monday’s crash.
A spokesperson for the Taliban claimed responsibility for the crash, but U.S. military personnel have shut down those claims as entirely false.
As Combat Role Eases, Aircraft Crashes Are Biggest Killer Of U.S. Troops In Afghanistan -- McClatchy News
KABUL, Afghanistan — With the combat roles of U.S. troops in Afghanistan tapering off, aircraft accidents emerged as the biggest killer of U.S. troops here during the first four months of the year. Since Jan. 1, 13 service members have been killed in five crashes.U.S. troop deaths remain at their lowest levels here in recent years. The number so far this year, 33 through Tuesday, is the lowest at this point since 2008.
After air accidents, the next biggest cause of death was improvised bombs, which claimed at least eight service members. Four died from causes unrelated to combat.
In all, 42 members of the international coalition have been killed in Afghanistan this year, including three of unknown nationalities, whose deaths in an explosion in southern Afghanistan were announced Tuesday night.
Pentagon Paying China — Yes, China — To Carry Data -- Danger Room
The Pentagon is so starved for bandwidth that it’s paying a Chinese satellite firm to help it communicate and share data.
U.S. troops operating on the African continent are now using the recently-launched Apstar-7 satellite to keep in touch and share information. And the $10 million, one-year deal lease — publicly unveiled late last week during an ordinarily-sleepy Capitol Hill subcommittee hearing — has put American politicians and policy-makers in bit of a bind. Over the last several years, the U.S. government has publicly and loudly expressed its concern that too much sensitive American data passes through Chinese electronics — and that those electronics could be sieves for Beijing’s intelligence services. But the Pentagon says it has no other choice than to use the Chinese satellite. The need for bandwidth is that great, and no other satellite firm provides the continent-wide coverage that the military requires.
Comment #1: This was unthinkable 20 years ago .... but today .... everyone just shrugs their shoulders. Comment #2: The above video of the launch of the Chinese satellite in question is super-cool to watch.
Obama 'Red Line' On Syrian Chemical Weapons Gets A Bit Grayer -- Howard LaFranchi, Christian Science Monitor
President Obama has said Syria's use of chemical weapons would be a 'red line.' Evidence is mounting, but Obama's desire for an international response throws prospects for action into doubt.
President Obama on Tuesday appeared to rule out any unilateral US intervention in Syria no matter what the ongoing investigation of chemical weapons use there reveals – a position that conforms to Mr. Obama’s strong preference for collective action in the international arena, but one that could also lower the prospects for intervention.
Speaking at a White House press conference, the president said that not the US alone but the “international community” as well has to be confident in the evidence that the regime of President Bashar al-Assad used chemical weapons before action can be taken.
Hezbollah Is Helping Assad Fight Syria Uprising, Says Hassan Nasrallah -- The Guardian
Leader of Lebanese group hints that Russia and Iran would intervene militarily, declaring that Syria has 'real friends' in region
Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, has confirmed for the first time that members of the powerful Lebanese Shia organisation are helping President Bashar al-Assad fight the uprising against his rule – and will stand by him.
Nasrallah – a close ally of Assad – also hinted that Russia and Iran, Syria's principal supporters, would intervene militarily to prevent his defeat.
Obama Vows New Push To Close Guantanamo Detention Camp -- Reuters
(Reuters) - President Barack Obama vowed on Tuesday to make a new push to close the Guantanamo detention center, where about 100 inmates are on hunger strike, saying it was damaging to U.S. interests to keep holding prisoners there in legal limbo.
Human rights groups have long been critical of the 12-year-old camp for foreign terrorism suspects, and their concern has intensified in recent weeks. Some of those on hunger strike are being force-fed at the camp at the U.S. Naval Base in Cuba.
Obama, who repeatedly vowed to close the camp, which now holds 166 detainees, when he was campaigning for a first term and when he first took office in 2009, said he would re-engage with lawmakers to find a way to shut the facility and make good on an unkept promise.
My Comment: I mentioned at the beginning of his first term (January 2009) that President Obama's vow to close Guanatanmo prison in 100 days was not realistic .... and I will say the same thing again today. The problem with many of these inmates is that while some can probably be repatriated to their country of origin .... many cannot. The inmates that cannot be released are simply too dangerous .... but because of how they were captured and interrogated .... doubts that they can be convicted in a standard U.S. court of law are legitimate .... the evidence will probably be thrown out.
I have always said that the best way to handle these detainees is through a military court .... but this White House has made it abundantly clear that this is not their preferred option. Hence .... we are now in that no-mans land of legal limbo .... and dangerous inmates who are now realizing that they are not going to be released.
Survey: Some public support for US military action in Syria -- The Hill
There is more public support than opposition for U.S. military action in Syria if the reports of chemical weapons are confirmed, according to a new poll from Pew Research.
The survey found 45 percent of respondents supported military action against Syria, while 31 percent were opposed. Nearly a quarter of respondents, 23 percent, did not have an opinion or did not know.
President Obama has warned that the used of chemical weapons by Syrian President Bashar Assad would be a “game changer,” although Obama has proceeded cautiously after the White House said there was some evidence a chemical attack occurred.
WNU Editor: The PEW poll results are here. What's my take on these poll results .... I am actually surprised. After Iraq and Afghanistan you would think that the American public would be overwhelmingly hostile to any foreign military intervention in the Middle East ..... especially on the scale of Syria. Apparently not .... even though no one has made the case politically on why the U.S. should intervene.
U.S. Kicks Syria Chemical Weapons Can Down The Road -- Charles P. Blair, Special To CNN
Syria’s civil war is the first to engulf a country armed with weapons of mass destruction. Understandably, the unfolding cataclysm precipitated by that country’s collapse has prompted new levels of uncertainty and risk.
But where exactly does the Obama administration stand on managing the various threats posed by Syria’s chemical weapons?
An April 25 letter from the White House to members of Congress included the Obama administration’s seventh notice threatening unspecified but “significant” action if the al-Assad regime crossed the “red line” on chemical weapons activity.
But by remaining mute on what specifically constitutes a chemical weapon in the context of its “red line,” and by characterizing the mounting evidence of chemical weapons use by Syrian military forces as requiring “credible and corroborating facts” validated by the United Nations, the administration clearly wants to avoid (or at least delay as long as possible) substantive action against the regime. Yet there are obvious risks to this “wait and see” approach.
My Comment: Getting involved in the Syrian conflict .... without sending in ground troops .... will still involve thousands of soldiers .... naval and air force resources that are already stretched .... tens of billions of dollars .... a national and international political push for support .... laying the groundwork and marshal;ling the massive resources that will be needed for the post-Assad era .... and more important for President Obama .... a dramatic shift away from his own national agenda.
President Obama is not only kicking the "can down the road" .... he is trying his best to kick the "can OFF the road".
Obama: Need All Facts on Syria Chemical Weapons -- Voice of America
U.S. President Barack Obama says he needs more facts on chemical weapons use in Syria before ordering any American response.
Speaking to reporters at the White House Tuesday, Obama said the United States has evidence that chemical weapons were used inside Syria, but does not know who used them or how they were used. He said until that "chain of custody" is established, the U.S. would not rush to judgment.
Last week, the White House told lawmakers it believes "with varying degrees of confidence" that the government of President Bashar al-Assad has used a small quantity of sarin gas, a chemical weapon, in Syria’s civil war.
In Rare Public Q-and-A With Reporters, Obama Denies Knowing Benghazi Terror-Attack Survivors Have Been Forbidden From Talking To Congress -- Daily Mail
* At least four career officials have hired lawyers as they prepare to share sensitive information with Congress * Would-be State Department whistle-blowers claim harassment, intimidation * Obama: I'm not familiar with this notion that anybody's been blocked from testifying'
President Barack Obama said during a rare public session answering reporters' questions that he was unaware of any efforts to prevent survivors of the 2012 Benghazi, Libya terror attack from testifying before Congress about what they experienced.
'I'm not familiar with this notion that anybody's been blocked from testifying,' the president said Tuesday in response to a question from Fox News Channel correspondent Ed Henry.
'They’ve hired an attorney,' Henry told Obama, 'because they're saying that they've been blocked from coming forward.'
'What I'll do,' the president offered, 'is I will find out what exactly you're referring to.'
U.S. Intelligence Chief Orders Review Of Boston Marathon Case -- NBC
The nation's top intelligence official has ordered a review of the Boston Marathon bombing case amid questions about whether the U.S. should have known one of the suspects posed a threat.
Retired Gen. James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, has asked the inspector general who oversees the intelligence community to take a broad look at various agencies' handling of information they received long before the bombing.
“Based on what I've seen so far, the FBI performed its duties, Department of Homeland Security did what it was supposed to be doing, but this is hard stuff,'' President Obama said at a Tuesday news conference.
North Korea Halts Missile Launch Preparations -- Asahi Shimbun
North Korea has stopped work on preparing for the launch of a medium-range Musudan ballistic missile, according to government sources in Japan, the United States and South Korea.
Although the U.S. military has also temporarily eased back from being on high alert, the three nations will continue to keep a wary eye on Pyongyang as it is deemed likely that it will continue with its provocative actions in the medium to long term.
The sources said that from about April 20, intelligence units have been unable to intercept radio signals that North Korea had been transmitting on a test basis in preparing for a missile launch. The signals include telemetry signals transmitted by the Musudan missiles to ground bases that would track its course, as well as radar waves used for communications control within the ground base.
My Comment: If true .... this is a surprising development. Is it because of China? Internal North Korean politics? Technical problems? Your guess is as good as mine .... but I am not going to read too much into this (for now). On the ground .... North Korea is still going to launch their large-scale air and land exercises.
USS Freedom Breaks Down, But Not Going Down -- The E-Ring/Foreign Policy
Stand down, Twitterverse, the littoral combat ship USS Freedom isn't going down, flooding, or even leaking, really. But she's not going anywhere, either.
Ten days after arriving in Singapore for her maiden deployment, the Freedom is dead in the water, awaiting repairs to her propulsion system, according to Navy officials at Pacific Fleet in Hawaii.
A tweet on Monday caused a bit of alarm when it suggested the Freedom was taking on water.
"Over the weekend USS Freedom started taking in seawater, port side," wrote Raymond Pritchett, author of the maritime-focused blog Information Dissemination, known widely online as "Galrahn."
CIA And MI6 Ghost Money May Fuel Afghan Corruption, Say Diplomats -- The Guardian
Failure of peace initiatives raises questions over whether British eagerness for political settlement may have been exploited
The CIA and MI6 have regularly given large cash payments to Hamid Karzai's office with the aim of maintaining access to the Afghan leader and his top allies and officials, but the attempt to buy influence has largely failed and may have backfired, former diplomats and policy analysts say.
The Guardian understands that the payments by British intelligence were on a smaller scale than the CIA's handouts, reported in the New York Times to have been in the tens of millions, and much of the British money has gone towards attempts to finance peace initiatives, which have so far proved abortive.
Officials: Seven Died In US Cargo Plane Crash In Afghanistan -- NBC
KABUL, Afghanistan -- Seven people were killed when a U.S.-run civilian cargo plane crashed shortly after takeoff at Bagram Airfield outside of Kabul, officials said on Tuesday.
A spokesman for NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) added that the cause of Monday's crash was unknown, but dismissed Taliban claims of responsibility, saying there were no reports of "enemy activity" around the base.
ISAF did not release details on the nationalities of those killed, referring questions to National Air Cargo, the company running the flight.
White House Press Secretary Carney Says More Work Needed To Verify Syria Chemical Use -- Bloomberg
President Barack Obama’s spokesman said “much more” work needs to be done to verify intelligence assessments that Syria’s regime used chemical weapons against the opposition in that country’s civil war.
The U.S. needs to investigate whether there is direct evidence that Bashar al-Assad’s regime used the poison sarin in its fight against rebels, White House press secretary Jay Carney said today at a White House briefing.
WASHINGTON: What homemade roadside bombs could do to Army and Marine ground vehicles was the ugly surprise of the last decade. What sophisticated long-range missiles could do to Navy aircraft carriers could be the ugly surprise of the next. "I think it would almost follow like the night to the day," Rep. Randy Forbes told me in a recent interview. "The last decade... we asked a disproportionate sacrifice from the Army and Marine Corps," he went on. "The next decade's going to be the decade of seapower and projection forces, [and] some of those ugly surprises we see bits and pieces of already."
