Kyodo News Service – $6.5B Navy arms deal to Taiwan near complete
The U.S. Navy and Lockheed Martin Corp. reached agreement this week on a $1.3 billion deal to refurbish a dozen P-3C antisubmarine aircraft for sale to Taiwan, the “last step” forward in a major arms deal stalled since 2007.
Virginian Pilot – Sailors tell how they captured suspected pirates
After months of patrolling the busy shipping lanes that crisscross the region, and weeks of hunting for pirates aiming to hijack merchant ships for ransom, the crew of the USS Mahan knew this was no exercise…
Wired – Sweden Builds World’s First Stealth Ships
The country that gave us Volvos, Saabs and ABBA has developed what it claims is the world’s first fully operational stealth ship that is essentially invisible to radar.
Virginian Pilot – Precision, support are key for pilots aboard the Roosevelt
For pilots aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, the heightening conflict in Afghanistan has meant a busy, intense deployment since the ship left Norfolk in September for the Arabian Sea.
Los Angeles Times – Navy’s plan to deploy dolphins roils waters
The Navy wants to use dolphins and sea lions to protect a Puget Sound submarine fleet, as the mammals do in Georgia. But opponents say the waters off Washington state are too cold for the animals.
BBC – Nuclear subs collide in Atlantic
The ballistic missile submarines HMS Vanguard and Le Triomphant were badly damaged in a crash in the mid-Atlantic in heavy seas earlier this month.
New York Times – French and British Submarines Collide
The Times – French sub unaware it rammed Royal Navy vessel in mid-Atlantic nuclear crash
The Guardian – ‘Pashtunistan’ holds key to Obama mission
The mountainous borderlands where Afghanistan meets Pakistan have been described as a Grand Central Station for Islamic terrorists, a place where militants come and go and the Taliban trains its fighters. Now Barack Obama has made solving the ‘Af-Pak’ question a top priority. But could the battle to tame the Pashtun heartland become his Vietnam?
Daily Telegraph – War in Afghanistan ‘could be lost by summer’
The war against the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan will be lost by the end of the summer without dramatic changes in counter-insurgency strategy, according to John Nagl.
New York Times – The Coming Swarm
John Arquilla on how we should be combatting terrorism today – fighting swarms with swarms.
Associated Press – Nuclear warships in Japan continue to touch a sensitive nerve
As Masahiko Goto sees it, the USS George Washington is not a ship. It’s a floating nuclear disaster waiting to happen near one of the world’s biggest cities. The recent deployment of the huge aircraft carrier to a port just south of Tokyo has been welcomed by brass bands, an open-house crowd of 30,000 and promises of greater security for Japan and northeast Asia. But to determined opponents like Goto, it all boils down to two nuclear reactors and one big question. Are they safe?
Washington Post – The war in Iraq isn’t over. The main events may not even have happened yet.
Tom Ricks provides the postscript to his new book entitled “Gamble.”
New York Times Magazine – The Saharan Conundrum
Terrorism experts feared that North Africa would be the next Afghanistan: a haven, and a launching pad, for Al Qaeda. Why hasn’t it turned out that way?
Defense Technology International – Leopold I Leaves for Lebanon
The Belgian frigate Leopold I will be the flagship of the UN Interim Force In Lebanon Maritime Task Force (UNIFIL MTF) between 1 March and 31 May. The Leopold I will leave the Belgian port of Zeebrugge on 16 February to relieve the French frigate De Grasse, the current flagship of the UNIFIL MTF.
Straits Times – SAF joins anti-piracy patrol
The Republic of Singapore Navy will join international efforts to tackle piracy and protect ships that sail through the Gulf of Aden.
Associated Press – Russia sending more ships, scientists to Arctic
Russia will modernize its icebreaker fleet and station more researchers in the Arctic as part of its push to stake its claim to the vast resources of the disputed polar region, a presidential envoy said Thursday.
Wall Street Journal – Satellites Destroyed in Orbital Collision
A commercial satellite owned by a U.S. company was destroyed in a collision with a defunct Russian spy satellite in what NASA said was the first in-orbit spacecraft collision, raising new concerns about the dangers of space debris.
Virginian Pilot – Norfolk-based cruiser captures seven suspected pirates
The Norfolk-based cruiser USS Vella Gulf apprehended seven men suspected of staging a pirate attack on a merchant ship on Wednesday in the Gulf of Aden, marking the Navy’s first successful interdiction since the establishment of a new anti-piracy force last month.
BBC – Taking on Somalia’s pirates
Somali pirates are poised for renewed attacks on shipping off the coast of Somalia, according to the Royal Navy’s Cdr Gerry Northwood, the head of operations for the EU’s anti-piracy taskforce, codenamed Operation Atalanta.
The Space Review – Ike’s gambit: The development and operations of the KH-7 and KH-8 spy satellites
The Space Review – Ike’s gambit: The KH-8 reconnaissance satellite
While there are considerable details now available about one of the earliest US spy satellite programs, CORONA, far less is known about another early program, GAMBIT.
Washington Post – A Military Tactician’s Political Strategy
The second excerpt from Tom Ricks’ new book on the surge entitled “The Gamble:”
In defending the troop increase, General Petraeus paved the way for a “long war.”
RIA Novosti – Russian frigate returns home after anti-piracy duty off Somalia
The Russian missile frigate Neustrashimy, which took part in the anti-pirate operations in the Gulf of Aden, returned to its home port of Baltiysk.
Washington Post – The Dissenter Who Changed the War
The first excerpt from Tom Ricks’ new book on the surge in Iraq, entitled “The Gamble:”
As the No. 2 commander in Iraq, Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno challenged the military establishment, pressing for the case for a “surge” of U.S. troops and a long-term strategy to guide them.
Foreign Affairs – The Great Crash, 2008: A Geopolitical Setback for the West
The financial crisis has called into serious question the credibility of western governments and may precipitate an eastward shift of power.
Daily Telegraph – Harrier dispute between Navy and RAF chiefs sees Army ‘marriage counsellor’ called in
The Defence Secretary John Hutton has been forced to call in an Army general to act as a “marriage counsellor” to resolve a bitter dispute between the heads of the Royal Navy and RAF over the future of the Harrier jump jet.
Associated Press – US Navy watches as Somali pirates nab $3.2 million
As U.S. Navy ships looked on, Somali pirates sped away Thursday with $3.2 million in ransom after releasing an arms-laden Ukrainian freighter — ending a four-month standoff that focused world attention on piracy off Somalia’s lawless coast.
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