Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- March 27, 2012

Obama Vows To Pursue Further Nuclear Cuts With Russia -- Reuters

* Obama says U.S. has "more nuclear weapons than we need"
* Will raise arms control issue with Putin in May
* China's Hu "taking North Korea issue very seriously"
* Obama says time is running out for Iran (Adds detail)

SEOUL, March 26 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama vowed on Monday to pursue further nuclear arms cuts with Russia, urged China to follow suit and issued stern warnings to North Korea and Iran in their nuclear standoffs with the West.

Acknowledging the United States has more warheads than necessary, Obama held out the prospect of new reductions in the U.S. arsenal as he sought to rally world leaders for additional concrete steps against the threat of nuclear terrorism.

Read more ....

MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE NEWS BRIEFS

UK Might Stick With the F-35C -- Defense Tech

Asia Is Undergoing The Fastest Military Buildup On The Planet -- Business Insider

Russia gets a modern army -- Russia & India Report

Japan to Deploy Patriot Missiles in Tokyo -- Defense News

NATO Tells Russia Not to ‘Waste Money’ on Anti-Shield Deployment -- Defpro News

Denmark To Urge Closer Security Cooperation -- Defense News

Yemen's Air Force Is In Disarray -- Aviation Week

Howarth in India to discuss Typhoon deal -- Defence Management

Former Turkish army chief rejects terrorism charges, says he won’t defend himself in court -- Washington Post/AP

Seoul still bristles over Cheonan sinking -- UPI

US and Australia in talks on base for drone flights over the Indian Ocean -- Herald Sun

Australia, U.S. may expand military ties -- UPI

U.S. Air Force May Reopen Light Attack Contest -- Defense Tech

Dream about the U.S. long range bomber -- Eric Palmer

Construction Delay Is Good News, Bad News Story For New Boomer -- Aol Defense

B-2 bombers at Whiteman AFB get $2 billion update -- McClatchy News

Fighters, Missiles For Countering Stealth -- Aviation Week

Boeing KC-46 tanker may be delayed -GAO report -- Reuters

KC-46 Tanker Aircraft: Acquisition Plans Have Good Features but Contain Schedule Risk -- Defpro

New Navy Rail Gun Fires 50 Miles With No Propellant: Latest Tests Use Smaller Guns -- Aol

Has the ‘Cyber Pearl Harbor’ already happened? -- DoD Buzz

China Does Nothing to Stop Counterfeit Defense Parts; Findings 'Should Outrage Every American' -- Aol Defense

The Politics of Fleet Constitution -- Information Dissemination

Military academies hold first gay pride events, half-year after end of ‘don’t ask’ -- Washington Post/AP

Military Historians Will Applaud Medvedev -- Alexander Golts, Moscow Times

Obama’s Slip Won’t Let Russia Veto Europe Missile Defense -- Bloomberg Editorial

Incredible story of the Falklands War hospital that treated victims from both side of conflict -- Mirror

Betty Oderwald helps save a memory in stone of a 200-year-old forgotten US war -- Christian Science Monitor

A WWII romance rekindled -- Philly.com/AP

Rachel Maddow: It Shouldn’t Be So Easy to Start Wars -- Danger Room

Military’s Internet Scrub of Robert Bales Data Was a Futile Whitewash Bid -- Winston Ross, The Daily Beast

World Leaders Voice Their Fears Of Nuclear Terrorism

World Leaders: Nuclear Terrorism A 'Grave Threat' -- BBC

World leaders have called for closer co-operation to tackle the threat of nuclear terrorism at a summit on nuclear security in Seoul.

A communique at the end of the summit reiterated a joint call to secure "vulnerable nuclear material".

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said nuclear terrorism remained a "grave threat", while US President Barack Obama said action was key.

The meeting was dominated by North Korea's plan to launch a rocket.

Read more ....

More News On World Leaders Voicing Their Concerns On Nuclear Terrorism

World Leaders Vow to Secure Loose Nuclear Material by 2014 -- Bloomberg
US, China, SKorea urge nations to lock down nukes -- AP
Summit seeks to deter nuclear-armed terrorism -- AP
Summit aims to guard against nightmare of terrorists getting nukes from unsecured countries -- Washington Post/AP
Nuclear terror threat: Summit urges more co-operation -- Euronews
World Leaders to Continue Efforts to Prevent Nuclear Terrorism -- Voice of America
China, South Korea and US warn about nuclear terrorism -- Christian Science Monitor
Moscow urges real nuclear security -- RT
Obama Says ‘Bad Actors’ Trying to Get Nuclear Material -- Bloomberg
Obama warns North Korea, Iran on nuclear weapons -- CNN
Obama warns leaders on nuclear threat -- The Australian
World Leaders to Strengthen Nuclear Security: Statement Text -- Bloomberg Businessweek

The Arab And Afghan Exodus To Europe Continues

Italian policemen stand guard as migrants wait to leave the Italian island of Lampedusa after thousands fled to the island

The Arab Exodus: Two Million People Fled Into Europe Because Of The Spring Rebellions -- Daily Mail

Asylum seekers from Arab Spring countries and West African nations suffering civil strife surged into Europe last year new figures have revealed.

The Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank, said almost two million people have left their homes over the last year as a result of the impact of the Arab Spring across North Africa and the Middle East.

Europe's largest group of migrants for a third consecutive year was from Afghanistan.

Read more ....

My Comment: I expect the Afghanistan refugee flood to continue .... if not accelerating as U.S./UN forces prepare to leave that country.

The Plan To Bomb Argentina During The Falklands War Disclosed For The First Time

Midnight runs: The Vulcan bombers were prepared to fly just 300ft over Argentina to destroy runways using bombs with a 1,000lbs payload. Daily Mail

How The RAF Drew Op Plans To Attack Argentina Over The Falklands In 1982 -- The Telegraph

RAF bomber crews trained to attack mainland Argentina to flatten its airfields in retaliation for any attempt to retake the Falkland Islands, it can be disclosed for the first time.

Vulcan bombers, designed for nuclear raids on Russia, trained night and day in Scotland and Canada for a low level attack hundreds of miles deep into Argentine sovereign territory, a new book has shown.

The news is likely to further strain the poor relations between Britain and Argentina that have been at their lowest since in the Falklands War in the lead up to the 30th anniversary of the invasion.

The plans were drawn up by Air Commodore Simon Baldwin, who was the wing commander in charge of the last remaining Vulcan squadron in 1982.

Read more ....

Update: RAF bomber crews 'trained to attack airfields deep inside Argentina in daring night-raids' to prevent new Falklands attack -- Daily Mail

My Comment: Thank God they did not need to go through with the mission.

Traumatic Brain Injury -- A U.S. Department Of Defense Special Report

Editor: The U.S. Department of Defense has put together a comprehensive analysis and report on 'Traumatic Brain Injury'. For those who believe that they have suffered a traumatic brain injury, this is a must read for you. The link to this special report is here.

Colombia Continues To Attack FARC Guerrilla Positions

Photo: Juan Manuel Santos says there will be no let up in operations against the Farc. BBC

Colombian Forces Kill 35 Guerrillas, President Says -- CNN

Bogota, Colombia (CNN) -- Colombian forces killed 35 leftist guerrillas in an offensive Monday, authorities said, striking the group for the second time in as many weeks.

Three other rebels from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia were captured in the early morning operation in the central Colombian department of Meta, President Juan Manuel Santos said.

Colombian Defense Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon told CNN affiliate Caracol TV that the operation was continuing Monday.

Read more ....

More News On Colombian Military Strikes Against FARC

Colombia says 36 FARC rebels killed in air raid -- AP
Colombian troops kill 35 rebels in new blow to FARC -- Reuters
Colombia forces 'kill 35 Farc rebels' in Meta -- BBC
Colombian commandos killed 35 rebels -- The Australian
Colombia army kills 32 rebels in new offensive -- AFP
Colombian Armed Forces Kill 36 Rebels -- Latin American Herald Tribune

The Growing U.S. - Australia Military Alliance

The Washington Post. By Laris Karklis/The Washington Post.

U.S., Australia To Broaden Military Ties Amid Pentagon Pivot To SE Asia -- Washington Post

The United States and Australia are planning a major expansion of military ties, including possible drone flights from a coral atoll in the Indian Ocean and increased U.S. naval access to Australian ports, as the Pentagon looks to shift its forces closer to Southeast Asia, officials from both countries said.

The moves, which are under discussion but have drawn strong interest from both sides, would come on top of an agreement announced by President Obama and Prime Minister Julia Gillard in November to deploy up to 2,500 U.S. Marines to Darwin, on Australia’s northern coast.

Read more ....

My Comment: This force composition is insignificant when compared to the military forces that are present in Asia today. If anything .... this is just a symbolic move on the part of the U.S. to have a token presence in the region.