When talking about nuclear policies and programs, defense leaders often emphasize that “the Cold War is over.” But given a chance to explain what is strategically different and how policies and programs need to be changed, they duck and cover. Take, for example, a recent congressional hearing on the B61 nuclear bomb. The Defense and… Keep reading →

There’s not much to say from the comfort of Washington about troops celebrating on the front lines around the world. They’re in Afghanistan battling the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and the Haqqani network, like the young man pictured in our top photo. They’re in the Philippines flying Ospreys, treating kids for wounds and getting food to… Keep reading →

UPDATED: US Flies B-52 Bombers Through Chinese Zone; Japanese & South Koreans Follow; VP Biden To Ask Beijing For “Clarity” On Their Intentions China escalated tensions with Japan literally sky-high last weekend. After years of shadowboxing at sea around the Senkaku Islands, China’s Ministry of Defense announced a new “Air Defense Identification Zone” with authority… Keep reading →

The American military-industrial complex used to lead the world in high technology. Now it struggles to keep up with private-sector breakthroughs in computing and other commercial technologies, from iPhones to 3D printing, that any adversary can buy to use against us. Even in military-unique technologies like precision-guided missiles and electronic warfare, experts in and out of… Keep reading →

Coalition operations are becoming a norm for democracies. Effective coalition operations are built on solid military planning, exercises, and training, as well as on shared experiences. A key example of such collaborative efforts is the Trilateral Strategic Initiative, established in October 2010 by the Air Force chiefs of staff of the US, France and the… Keep reading →

CAPITOL HILL: We’ve had nearly two years of hearings about how hard the automatic budget cuts called sequestration would hit the Department of Defense. Yesterday, we saw something new. For the first time, the uniformed chiefs of all four services publicly told Congress that they have big problems with their civilian bosses’ plan to cope… Keep reading →

PORTSMOUTH, VA: This is a Navy town, just minutes from the massive Atlantic Fleet base at Norfolk. But when Navy and Marine Corps leaders convened here yesterday for their annual conference on expeditionary warfare, traditionally a Navy-Marine affair, they reached out to the other services in unprecedented ways. Message No. 1: After 12 years of… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: I live in a pretty old house and the doors stick sometimes. In summer they expand because of the fabulous DC humidity. Then there’s the whole settling thing, when the house sinks, the door frame warps and the door sticks. So when I heard the blast doors at Air Force ICBM silos were sticking… Keep reading →

  PENTAGON: A second senior nuclear commander in a week has been relieved of his post today. Maj. Gen. Michael Carey, deputy commander of the 20th Air Force, was fired after “a loss of trust and confidence in his leadership and judgment,” the Air Force said in a statement. Carey is the deputy commander responsible for… Keep reading →

The latest victim of the federal government shutdown is a crucial player in the space and intelligence world, the Aerospace Corporation, which has had to cut back the work of 60 percent of its 3,500 employees. “The Aerospace Corporation started implementing a partial work shutdown on Oct. 3, after the Air Force’s Space and Missile… Keep reading →