Army’s Miscues, Botched Buys May Doom Industrial Base
Posted on
In the difficult years since the 9-11 attacks, the U.S. Army has become proficient at quickly fielding equipment needed by troops at war. From improved night-vision devices to digital radios to up-armored vehicles, the Army’s acquisition community has proven it can be responsive when soldiers’ lives are on the line. But a very different story… Keep reading →
Poll Finds Americans Ready to Cut Defense; Public Ignores DC’s Shadow Play
Posted on
In Washington, the defense budget appears to be the center of the universe. The House Armed Services and Defense Appropriations committees are adding money to the administration’s request (but not very much), and the House is voting today on a bill that would roll back the threat of automatic cuts (a sequester) that could lower… Keep reading →
Sequestration Is More Likely Than You Think
Posted on
Sequestration: it’s a term only Washington could love. Behind the bland euphemism lie dramatic cuts to the U.S. military, shipbuilding and aerospace manufacturing jobs, and in communities across America. Washington politicians insist a half trillion in defense cuts — and the attendant degradation to our national security — is a reasoned belt tightening. In reality,… Keep reading →
Japan Tackles Perils To Building, Selling Its Own Next-Gen Fighter
Posted on
We offer a rare discussion of the Japanese effort to develop a next-generation fighter aircraft. Ryo Hinata-Yamaguchi, a Reservist in the Japanese Self Defense Force and doctoral candidate at the Australian Defense Force Academy, and his co-author Eddie Walsh discuss the hard slog Japan faces as it develops, builds and then tries to sell its… Keep reading →
Cutting Navy While Obama Pivots To Asia Does Not Add Up
Posted on
You know it’s bad when the President’s own national security adviser calls the Secretary of Defense over for a meeting at the White House to explain exactly how the administration is “pivoting” to Asia yet shrinking the Navy and the Air Force. But that’s what happened earlier this year. It is no surprise given the… Keep reading →
America’s Ultimate Weapon In Competition With China: Lawyers
Posted on
For years, American pundits and politicians have asserted that the People’s Republic of China was developing a high-tech shashou jian – sensationalistically translated as “assassin’s mace” – as a secret weapon against the United States. Ironically, though, it is the United States that has been fostering what could be a non-violent shashou jian against Chinese… Keep reading →
Pentagon Budget Secures Major Strategic Win For Lockheed
Posted on
If you are one of those people who believes the various conspiracy theories making the rounds about Lockheed Martin’s excessive influence over government decisions, the Pentagon’s fiscal 2013 budget request probably won’t make you feel any better. Having served as an advisor to Lockheed and many of its competitors for a long time, I don’t… Keep reading →
Get Lost, Law of the Sea Treaty!
Posted on
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 →
Which Pentagon Budget Numbers Are Real? You Decide!
Posted on
When the Pentagon released its budget materials and press releases last Monday, the press dutifully reported the numbers. The Pentagon’s “base” budget for 2013 is to be $525.4 billion, and with $88.5 billion for the war in Afghanistan and elsewhere added, the total comes to $613.9 billion. Indeed, if you plowed through the hundreds of… Keep reading →
Deploy U.S. Diplomats Quietly To Explore Iranian Deal
Posted on
WASHINGTON: With battle lines drawn in the confrontation with Iran, the United States desperately needs an opening, a line of communication. Everyone seems to agree that the crisis over Iran’s nuclear ambitions is fed at least in part by a lack of understanding between the United States and the Islamic Republic, two states which have… Keep reading →