DEFENSE MORNING CLIPS
As of 0430 Hours, November 9
OVERVIEW
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for global leaders to “force Russia into genuine peace negotiations,” while Kyiv’s intelligence chief warned of the “serious threat” of “high-precision, very-high speed” Iranian ballistic missiles he predicted would arrive by the end of November, the New York Times reported. Separately, the European Commission announced it will provide Ukraine with $18 billion in loans over one year to help remedy a $3 billion monthly budget shortfall for basic government services, the Wall Street Journal wrote. Also of note, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Dr. Colin Kahl said, “we should expect the Russia-China relationship to deepen” and cautioned that “this thing is edging towards an alliance as opposed to superficial partnership” while noting that Beijing may still have reservations about Moscow, according to Defense News.
TOP STORIES
1. Aerial War Over Ukraine Heats Up as Russia Hammers Cities and Vital Services
New York Times, Nov. 9 (0300), Pg. A6 | Marc Santora, Shashank Bengali and Andrew E. Kramer
As Ukrainian officials celebrate the arrival of more advanced Western air-defense systems and claim growing success at shooting down Russian rockets and drones, they are warning that Moscow is buying new long-range weapons against which Kyiv’s forces have little defense — specifically, ballistic missiles from Iran. With movement on the ground slowing, the battle in the skies above Ukraine is increasingly central to the course of the war, and both sides are looking to their allies for new weapons. In the past month, Moscow’s forces have dramatically stepped up strikes far behind the front lines on cities and vital services like power, heat and water. These are part of a lethal campaign to tear down Ukrainian daily life and morale.
2. EU Aims to Lock In Aid for Kyiv
Wall Street Journal, Nov. 9 (0200), Pg. A10 | Laurence Norman
Amid U.S. pressure to increase support for Ukraine, the European Union is looking to lock in $18 billion in economic support for Kyiv next year in a way that would give Brussels greater power to ensure the money is delivered. With U.S. economic and military assistance for Ukraine far outstripping Europe’s since the Russian invasion on Feb. 24, the EU this year has fallen short of its own financial pledges. Ukraine is facing a budget shortfall of at least 3 billion euros, or $3 billion, a month for basic services.
3. Pentagon: Xi and Putin ‘edging toward an alliance’
Defense News Online, Nov. 8 (1848) | Joe Gould
The Pentagon says Russia and China appear to be “edging toward an alliance” at a time when Western nations are seeking to isolate Moscow over its war on Ukraine. Colin Kahl, the undersecretary of defense for policy, told reporters on Tuesday that “we should expect the Russia-China relationship to deepen.” Nine months ago China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin signed off on their so-called “no limits” strategic partnership just days before Russia invaded Ukraine.
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
4. Senior DOD officials meet with top contractors to discuss defense industrial base
InsideDefense.com, Nov. 8 (1659) | Tony Bertuca
Top Pentagon officials today met with executives from the largest defense companies to discuss issues and challenges related to the defense industrial base. The meeting, led by Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks, included Pentagon acquisition chief Bill LaPlante, Pentagon technology chief Heidi Shyu, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy, Plans and Capabilities Mara Karlin and Deborah Rosenblum, the assistant secretary of defense for nuclear, chemical, and biological defense programs who is performing the duties of assistant secretary of defense for industrial base policy.
5. Ongoing Pentagon push to arm Ukraine will have three-star general leading from Germany
Stars and Stripes Online, Nov. 8 (0632) | John Vandiver
A three-star general will lead a new Army headquarters in Germany that will include about 300 U.S. service members responsible for coordinating security assistance for Ukraine, a senior U.S. military official said this week. On Sunday, The New York Times reported that Lt. Gen. Antonio Aguto Jr., head of the First U.S. Army headquarters at Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois, was regarded as a leading candidate for the new job.
6. Shyu Says Wargames Define R&D Investment
Air and Space Forces Magazine Online, Nov. 8 (N/A) | John A. Tirpak
Wargame results and opportunities to asymmetrically counter adversaries are driving the Pentagon’s investment choices in new technologies, said Heidi Shyu, undersecretary of defense for research and engineering. She also said an unclassified document outlining the science and technologies underpinning the new National Defense Strategy will come out in the spring.
7. Space Policy chief warns against ‘ridiculous’ testing aversion for new missile interceptor
BreakingDefense.com, Nov. 8 (0803) | Theresa Hitchens
Pentagon space policy czar John Plumb recently made clear his intentions to hold the Missile Defense Agency to a rigorous standard of testing for its Next Generation Interceptor — calling past Defense Department allergy to missile testing “ridiculous.”
8. Pentagon test bed to ramp up development of hypersonics
C4ISRNET.com, Nov. 8 (1003) | Courtney Albon
The U.S. Department of Defense is working with a diverse industry team to develop a hypersonic capability testing facility to validate and field the high-speed systems on a faster timeline. Led by the Pentagon’s Test Resource Management Center and the Naval Surface Warfare Center’s Crane Division, based in Bloomington, Indiana, the Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonics Test Bed aims to create a new option for defense agencies and universities as they demonstrate and validate hypersonic vehicles, materials and related technology.
9. Abuses by defense contractors ensnare migrant workers
Washington Post, Nov. 9 (0115), Pg. A23 | Katie McQue
Foreign workers for defense contractors on at least four U.S. military bases in the Persian Gulf are trapped in their jobs by abusive employment practices that they say prevent them from returning home or even looking for better work in the region, more than 30 current and former workers said in interviews.
EXECUTIVE/LEGISLATIVE
10. Democrats Appear to Hold Own In Races for Crucial House Seats
New York Times, Nov. 9 (0300), Pg. A1 | Catie Edmondson
Republicans on Tuesday gained ground in their push to take control of the House, although Democrats appeared to be holding their own against hard-right G.O.P. candidates in crucial districts as they grasped to defend their narrow majority. Key races that could determine control of the Senate remained too close to call, but Democrats picked up a critical seat with a victory by Lt. Gov. John Fetterman in Pennsylvania.
11. Blinken team insists Ukraine policy won’t change due to GOP midterm victories
Washington Examiner Online, Nov. 8 (1838) | Joel Gehrke
A potential Republican takeover of Congress will not constrain President Joe Biden’s policy of assistance to Ukraine, according to a senior U.S. diplomat. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s team, like all diplomats, makes a point not to comment on domestic political developments. Yet Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who leads the U.S. mission to the United Nations, couldn’t avoid the repeated questions on Tuesday about how U.S. foreign policy might change as a result of the midterm elections that are expected to give the Republicans a majority in the House and perhaps the Senate.
12. Senate to vote on Pentagon contract adjustments amid inflation
Defense News Online, Nov. 8 (1405) | Bryant Harris and Joe Gould
The Senate is expected to vote on legislation that would authorize the Pentagon to modify fixed-price defense contracts when lawmakers return to Washington next week after the midterm elections. The legislation marks a significant potential victory for defense industry groups that had pushed Congress to authorize economic price adjustments for Pentagon contracts, arguing that doing so is necessary to help companies cope with the impact of inflation and persistent supply chain issues.
EUROPE
13. Biden admin nudge led Ukraine to drop Putin condition for peace talks
Politico Online, Nov. 8 (1401) | Alexander Ward
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s new stance that peace talks with Russia can begin with Vladimir Putin in power was directly due to soft nudging by the Biden administration, according to two people familiar with the situation.
14. Russia Presses Evacuation of Kherson
Wall Street Journal, Nov. 9 (0200), Pg. A7 | Yaroslav Trofimov
Russia stepped up the evacuation of civilian institutions from the occupied Ukrainian city of Kherson, where looting has become widespread and squatters have taken over the abandoned government headquarters, as Ukraine received sophisticated Western air-defense systems that could help it protect its cities.
15. Ukraine asks U.S. for new capabilities in fighting Iranian drones
ABCNews.com, Nov. 8 (0738) | Tom Soufi Burridge, Luis Martinez and Natalya Kushnir
ABC News has obtained a letter sent by a top Ukrainian official to senior members of Congress, asking them to assist Ukraine’s calls for additional air defense systems to counter the attack drones built and supplied by Iran to bolster Russia’s war effort. In the letter, the chairman of the Ukrainian parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, calls on the U.S. to provide Ukraine with highly mobile air defense systems known as C-RAMs, saying they would help protect “important objects, especially crucial power plants.”
16. Ukraine promises not to give up ‘a single centimetre’ to Russia in east
Reuters, Nov. 8 (2346) | Tom Balmforth
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said his forces would not yield “a single centimetre” in battles for the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk while Russian-installed officials said Ukrainian forces were moving into a southern town with tanks. Giving an update on the situation in the southern region of Kherson, the Ukrainian military on Tuesday evening accused Russian troops of more looting and destroy infrastructure. A showdown has been looming for weeks in Kherson city, the only regional capital Russia has captured intact since its invasion.
17. Sweden’s Leader Courts Turkey’s Support for NATO Membership
Associated Press, Nov. 8 (1128) | Suzan Fraser
Sweden still has “many steps to take” to win Turkey’s approval for its NATO membership bid, a top Turkish official said Tuesday as Sweden’s new prime minister visited Ankara in hopes of eliminating the hurdle to his country joining the military alliance. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson held talks with Turkish parliament Speaker Mustafa Sentop on Tuesday before being welcomed with an official ceremony at Erdogan’s presidential palace, where two were scheduled to discuss Sweden’s NATO membership.
RUSSIA
18. US and Russia agree to hold talks on nuclear treaty for first time since Ukraine war began
CNN.com, Nov. 8 (1724) | Kylie Atwood and Michael Conte
The US and Russia have agreed to hold talks on the single existing nuclear treaty between the two countries in the near future, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Tuesday. The New START treaty limits all deployed intercontinental-range nuclear weapons by Russia and the US. The treaty – the only one left regulating the two largest nuclear arsenals in the world – was extended by five years in February 2021 during the first weeks of Joe Biden’s presidency.
19. Russia flew €140m in cash and captured Western weapons to Iran in return for deadly drones, source claims
Sky News Online, Nov. 8 (1927) | Deborah Haynes
Russia flew €140m in cash and a selection of captured UK and US weapons to Iran in return for dozens of deadly drones for its war in Ukraine, a security source has claimed. The source alleged that a further drone deal worth €200m (£174m) had been agreed between Tehran and Moscow in the past few days.
20. Putin’s Elite Tremble as Hardliners Call for ‘Stalinist’ Steps
Bloomberg News, Nov. 8 (1309) | Not Attributed
The rise of outspoken hardliners in the Kremlin is alarming insiders fearful the Russian president will heed their calls for even more confrontation abroad and sweeping repression at home. Senior business executives and government officials have watched with growing worry as players they once considered marginal like Yevgeny Prigozhin, known for his Wagner mercenary company and recruiting of prison inmates to fight in Ukraine, have become the public forces behind Vladimir Putin’s push to step up his increasingly all-encompassing war effort.
INDO-PACIFIC
21. Seoul: North Korea fires ballistic missile toward sea
Associated Press, Nov. 9 (0313) | Kim Tong-Hyung and Hyung-Jin Kim
North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile toward its eastern sea on Wednesday, extending a recent barrage of weapons demonstrations including what it described as simulated attacks on South Korean and U.S. targets last week. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile was launched from the western town of Sukchon, north of the capital, Pyongyang, and flew across the country toward waters off the North’s eastern coast.
22. U.S. monitoring North Korea’s covert operation to supply artillery shells to Russia — Pentagon
Yonhap News Agency (South Korea), Nov. 8 (1408) | Byun Duk-kun
The United States is closely watching the suspected delivery of North Korean artillery shells to Russia, a Pentagon spokesman said Tuesday after Pyongyang dismissed U.S. reports that it may be covertly supplying arms to Russia for use in Ukraine. Defense department spokesman, Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, however, declined to comment when asked if the shipments have been received by Russia.
23. Treasury Chief Janet Yellen Heads to India as U.S. Seeks to Deepen Ties
Wall Street Journal Online, Nov. 8 (0800) | Andrew Duehren
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s trip to India this week will be the latest attempt by the Biden administration to look past the emerging power’s longstanding ties to Russia and deepen a relationship that it hopes will serve as a counterweight to China. The U.S. has shifted its approach to India since the invasion of Ukraine began, at first calling out its ties to Russia and warning the country against massively increasing its purchases of cheap Russian oil. Now, the Biden administration is encouraging India to purchase Russian oil under a price determined by the U.S. and its allies, while more broadly tolerating the country’s relationship with Russia, analysts and administration officials say.
24. Australia to Block Former Military Pilots Flying for China
Associated Press, Nov. 9 (0103) | Rod McGuirk
Australia’s defense minister said on Wednesday he had told the nation’s military to review secrecy safeguards in response to concerns that Beijing was recruiting pilots to train the Chinese People’s Liberation Army. Defense Minister Richard Marles ordered the review after asking the Defense Department last month to investigate reports that China had approached former Australian military personnel to become trainers.
CHINA
25. U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry Rekindles Contact With China at COP27
Wall Street Journal Online, Nov. 8 (2050) | Chao Deng
U.S. climate envoy John Kerry said on Tuesday that he spoke with his Chinese counterpart during the COP27 United Nations climate conference, rekindling contact between countries that are pivotal in the global effort to limit greenhouse gas emissions.
26. Secure at Home, Xi Looks To Show Strength Abroad
Wall Street Journal, Nov. 9 (0200), Pg. A13 | Austin Ramzy
Xi Jinping emerged from a Communist Party congress with more power than any Chinese leader in a generation. Now, he is turning his focus to shoring up foreign ties as he steels the country for heightened competition with the U.S. “China wants to show the U.S. that isolation of China will not work; efforts to move value chains and supply chains from China will not work,” said Cheng Li, director of the Brookings Institution’s China Center. “This is a political message to people both in China and outside China.”
27. Zhuhai Airshow display reveals info on China’s J-20, J-16 inventory
Defense News Online, Nov. 8 (1021) | Mike Yeo
China has at least 200 stealthy J-20 fighters and more than 240 J-16 multirole strike aircraft in service, based on an analysis of construction numbers painted on the jets by a Chinese military aviation expert.
MIDDLE EAST
28. Strikes in Syria Hit Fuel Convoy From Iraq
Associated Press, Nov. 9 (0403) | Qassim Abdul-Zahra and Bassem Mroue
Late night airstrikes in eastern Syria along the border with Iraq targeted Iran-backed militiamen, inflicting casualties, Syrian opposition activists said Wednesday. According to two paramilitary officers in Iraq, some of those killed in the attack were Iranian nationals. It was not immediately clear who was behind the strikes. The U.S. military, which along with Israel has carried out such strikes in the past, said it was not behind them and had no involvement in the al-Qaim attack. The Israeli army refused to comment on the incident.
AMERICAS
29. Former Army helicopter pilot sentenced for spying for China
Military Times Online, Nov. 8 (1100) | Rachel Nostrant
A former U.S. Army helicopter pilot with more than 20 years of military service and additional years as a defense contractor was sentenced Nov. 7 for acting as an agent of China, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California. Shapour Moinian, 67, was sentenced to 20 months in federal prison for acting as an agent of a foreign government and for making materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or representations on security clearance forms signed as part of his defense contracting position. He was facing a maximum of 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty June 23.
AIR FORCE
30. More Than 100 C-130s Are Down, Likely Because Mechanics Scratched Their Propellers, Air Force Says
DefenseOne.com, Nov. 8 (1629) | Marcus Weisgerber
A maintenance procedure used by Air Force mechanics to document inspections likely damaged hundreds of C-130 propeller blades over a decade, according to service officials. Maintenance technicians examining the propeller blades for cracks or other damage scratched permanent marks on each blade to document the inspection had taken place.
ARMY
31. Army Sees Its Future in Pacific Training Grounds
Honolulu Star-Advertiser Online, Nov. 8 (2309) | Kevin Knodell
“I’m not entirely sure what ‘it’ is, but this ain’t it, ” quipped a member of the U.S. Army’s Oahu-based 25th Infantry Division as he and his fellow soldiers marched up the road at the Pohakuloa Training Area on the Big Island last week. The training is part of — the U.S. Army Pacific’s new Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center, a series of ranges and training the service is hosting in Hawaii and Alaska—as well as annually in rotating countries across the region.
32. The Army’s Distributed Command Posts of the Future Will Need More than Videochats
DefenseOne.com, Nov. 8 (2228) | Lauren C. Williams
A recent Army exercise out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord sought largely to test ways to distribute command and control—to, say, replace big command posts with small cloud-connected teams scattered around the Pacific region. But what the I Corps’ IT team discovered was just how much of the service’s vision of future warfare will depend on turning a morass of data into well-structured bundles.
33. Army Special Ops Is Changing Psyops Training to Reflect Ukraine War
DefenseOne.com, Nov. 8 (2039) | Elizabeth Howe
U.S. Army special operators have taken note of how quickly information operations have moved in Ukraine’s 8-month-old battle to eject Russian invaders, the leader of Army Special Operations Command told the Modern Warfare Week conference here on Tuesday.
NOTABLE COMMENTARY
34. Taiwan is on the front lines of China’s worldwide cyberwar
Washington Post, Nov. 8 (0115), Pg. A31 | Josh Rogin
Beijing is deploying cyber campaigns in many countries but nowhere as intensively as in Taiwan. After House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) visited Taiwan in August, the Chinese government took its tactics to a new level. Beijing coordinated conventional retaliatory measures, such as missile tests, mock bombing runs and military exercises that mimicked a blockade, with a cyberwarfare and disinformation campaign meant to disrupt Taiwan’s democracy and undermine its people’s grasp on reality.
35. As war rages in Ukraine, the world is realigning
Washington Post, Nov. 9 (0115), Pg. A29 | David Ignatius
As conflict rages in the heart of Europe, the world is dividing more sharply into East and West. The United States’ partnerships are stronger, but so is the intensity of the adversarial camp. North Korea and Iran are supplying weapons to an embattled Russia, according to the White House. Swing states such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey are trying to hedge their bets between the battling superpowers.