The United Kingdom has reaffirmed its commitment to freedom of navigation and safe passage through the Gulf by playing a leading role in a new international maritime security mission, announced today. The mission will see the Royal Navy working alongside the US navy to assure the security of merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. […]

DefenceTalkIraq has promised to guarantee the safety of United States interests from Iran, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Tuesday as he paid a surprise trip to Baghdad where he accused Tehran of planning “imminent” attacks. The top US diplomat’s sudden, unannounced visit marked an effort to shore up Washington’s ties with Baghdad as […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-seeks-assurance-of-security-for-interests-in-iraq-amid-wrangle-with-iran-72303/

DefenceTalkThe US Defense Department announced Monday it would deploy around 320 additional troops to the southern border with Mexico to support immigration officials. The troops, set to deploy until the end of September, will add to around 2,900 active duty military and 2,000 National Guard members currently posted to the border. Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-to-send-320-more-troops-to-us-mexico-border-72285/

DefenceTalkThe United States will send an additional 3,750 troops to its frontier with Mexico, the Pentagon said Sunday, as President Donald Trump doubled down on his call for a wall to boost border security. Soldiers were originally deployed to the border under an order Trump gave before midterm elections in November as “caravans” of migrants […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-sends-3750-more-troops-to-mexico-border-pentagon-72103/

DefenceTalkThe Pentagon said on Monday (Jan 14) it would extend until Sept 30 the deployment of active-duty soldiers and Coast Guard members at the US-Mexico border, while expanding the mission to include surveillance and detection. Lengthening the troops’ mission past a Jan 31 deadline, the Pentagon said it was “transitioning its support at the south-western […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-prolongs-us-troop-deployment-at-mexico-border-72042/

DefenceTalkArab countries are in talks with the United States for a new security agreement to protect the Middle East from “external aggression”, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Sunday. “The aim is to achieve security arrangements in the Middle East that can protect the region from external aggression… and strengthen relations between the United […]https://www.defencetalk.com/arabs-in-talks-with-us-for-security-pact-saudis-say-71967/

DefenceTalkRio de Janeiro state is moving ahead with plans to deploy security cameras and drones to help fight crime, according to its next governor, a far-right politician loyal to president-elect Jair Bolsonaro. A tender to install 30,000 cameras will be launched soon, Wilson Witzel, who takes up the governorship of the southeast Brazilian state in […]https://www.defencetalk.com/cameras-drones-rio-de-janeiro-to-put-electronic-eyes-on-crime-71959/

DefenceTalkNorth Korea still poses a “serious and imminent threat”, Japan said Tuesday in its first annual defence review since an outbreak of diplomacy on the Korean peninsula. Japan’s 2018 defence white paper also took aim at China’s rise as a military power, saying Beijing was sparking “strong security concerns in the region and international community, […]https://www.defencetalk.com/north-korea-still-serious-and-imminent-threat-japan-71822/

DefenceTalkDeployed service members are going to have to ditch their “geolocation devices” in response to a new memo from Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan. This includes physical fitness aids, applications in phones that track locations, and other devices and apps that pinpoint and track the location of individuals. “Effective immediately, Defense Department personnel are […]https://www.defencetalk.com/new-dod-policy-prohibits-gps-enabled-devices-in-deployed-settings-71775/

DefenceTalkThe Defense Department provided to the Congress its semiannual report titled “Enhancing Security and Stability in Afghanistan” on Tuesday. Covering events from Dec. 1 to May 31, the report was submitted in accordance with requirements in Section 1225 of the Fiscal 2015 National Defense Authorization Act as amended by Sections 1231 and 1531 of the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/dod-releases-report-on-enhancing-security-stability-in-afghanistan-71726/