The odds against base closures got a little longer today as a key Senate subcommitee raked Pentagon officials with skeptical questions about the Administration’s request for two more Base Reduction And Closure rounds in 2013 and 2015. Chaired by Missouri Democrat Claire McCaskill, who has publicly vowed to kill any new BRAC proposal, the Senate… Keep reading →

The Navy-Marine Corps team just completed the largest amphibious exercise in more than a decade. But what did people see? What did they recognize in the Bold Alligator exercise and focus upon? Because it is called an amphibious exercise, outsiders who attended the exercise tended to focus upon the amphibious ships themselves, the landing ships,… Keep reading →

When British Prime Minister David Cameron meets with President Obama this week, their discussions about Syria, Afghanistan, and Iran will dominate headlines. Also important, though less high profile, is the two allies’ preparations for NATO‘s May Chicago Summit, which will seek to bolster the alliance’s strained mission in Afghanistan and develop plans to maintain essential… Keep reading →

The Chinese National People’s Congress has announced its new defense budget, offering the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) yet another double-digit increase, with funding up 11.2 percent this time. Officially, this amounts to a $106 billion defense budget, although most observers believe that China’s real defense budget is probably twice that much, if not more. In… Keep reading →

Breaking Defense’s February 29 piece, “Hill Turns Up Heat On White House Over ‘Law Of The Sea’” gives a good presentation of the reasons supporters believe the 1982 Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST) should be ratified, but it doesn’t talk about why the treaty was deep-sixed some 30 years ago — and has remained… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The Air Force leadership is hurting in the wake of another botched acquisition and the continuing Dover Air Force Base burial scandal, and you could see it in the face of Gen. Norton Schwartz this morning. The latest cock-up forced the Air Force to set aside, effective March 2, the $355 million contract for… Keep reading →

CAPITOL HILL: For months now, Pentagon and service officials have said it will need all the help it can get from its international partners, as the department begins its swing from Southwest Asia to the Western Pacific. But that help won’t include outfitting the South Korean air force with a key, U.S.-built radar system. Pacific… Keep reading →

Sen. Grassley presses Panetta on ‘egregious waste and misconduct’ at DoD dug up in Inspector General reports. bit.ly/xZsHKR colinclarkaol

FT. LAUDERDALE: The Army is looking to the international arms market to help alleviate budget pressures back home, a number of service officials said last week. “We have done a lot better” in terms of helping facilitate foreign military sales of Army hardware to allied forces, Kevin Fahey, program executive officer for Army combat support… Keep reading →

CAPITOL HILL: The Army is in the midst of a service-wide review on how it will shift its mountain of metal from Southwest Asia to the Pacific, according to Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno. Army leaders, working with combat commanders, are studying what options exist to store the Army’s stockpiles of prepositioned equipment in… Keep reading →