Military & War News and Discussions

[weatheriscool]

Myanmar leader vows to 'annihilate' opponents of army rule
Source: AP

By JERRY HARMER

BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar’s leader vowed Sunday to intensify action against homegrown militia groups fighting the military-run government, saying the armed forces would “annihilate” them.

Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, speaking at a military parade marking Armed Forces Day, also urged ethnic minorities not to support groups opposed to army rule and ruled out negotiations with them.

The military seized power last year from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. Security forces used lethal force to suppress mass nationwide protests, resulting in the deaths of more than 1,700 civilians, according to a detailed tally compiled by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.

Forced to turn away from peaceful protests, many of those opposed to military rule took up arms, forming hundreds of militia groups called People’s Defense Forces — better known as PDFs. In some parts of the country, they’ve joined forces with well-organized, battle-hardened ethnic armed groups, which have been fighting for greater autonomy for decades.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/race-and-eth ... 5e6e9dbf21

[Yuli Ban]

[weatheriscool]

Lockheed Martin's Defiant helicopter completes first endurance flight
By David Szondy
March 31, 2022
https://newatlas.com/military/defiant-r ... ce-flight/

The Lockheed Martin Sikorsky-Boeing SB>1 Defiant helicopter has completed its first long-endurance flight, with the revolutionary rotorcraft this week flying 700 nautical miles (810 miles or 1,300 km) from West Palm Beach, Florida, to Nashville, Tennessee.

According to Lockheed, the purpose of the first flight of the Defiant outside of Florida was to showcase the aircraft at the US Army Aviation Association of America’s annual summit, which is a yearly meeting to discuss matters concerning military aviation.

During the flight under the control of Sikorsky test pilots Bill Fell and Boeing’s Ed Henderscheid, the Defiant used only 50 percent of its engine power and less than 50 percent of its propulsor torque that drives the aft push propeller. When in full operation, the craft can cruise at speeds of 288 mph (460 km/h), which is considerably faster than conventional helicopters.

[weatheriscool]

Successful interception test adds a new layer to THAAD's missile defense
By David Szondy
March 31, 2022

https://newatlas.com/military/successfu ... e-defense/

In a successful demonstration of a layered missile defense system, Lockheed Martin with the Missile Defense Agency and the US Army have intercepted a tactical ballistic missile target over the White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.

The intercept took place on March 29 and used a Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC)-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptor, integrated with the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) Weapon System. This marks a major advance because the PAC-3 was able to track to its target using the THAAD system instead of the usual Patriot missile fire unit, expanding its capabilities.

At first glance, a missile defense system seems pretty simple. Radar detects an incoming missile, an anti-missile is launched, then it's guided in for the kill. Ideally, the best system is one where every attacking missile is destroyed by an anti-missile at a ratio of one-to-one.

In practice, a missile defense system has to be much more flexible and layered. This means that different missiles are needed to counter different threats, such as short, medium, and long-range missiles or ones that fly at different altitudes. It also needs to provide multiple layers of defense to catch missiles before they reach their target.

[weatheriscool]

300 killed by Mali's army and foreigners, says rights group
Source: AP

By CARLEY PETESCH

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Mali’s army and foreign soldiers suspected to be Russian recently killed an estimated 300 men — some of them suspected Islamic extremist fighters but most civilians — in Moura in central Mali, Human Rights Watch said Tuesday.

It is the worst single atrocity reported in Mali’s 10-year armed conflict against Islamic extremists, according to the rights group which said it interviewed several witnesses about the killings.

Russian fighters are believed to have shot dead most of those killed in Moura in late March, according to witnesses who identified the killers as white soldiers who did not speak French. Several hundred Russian mercenaries have been deployed in Mali to help fight the extremist rebels, the U.S. military confirmed in January.

In the Moura incident, Malian army troops and foreign soldiers in late March rounded up several hundred men and shot dead about 300 of them, burying many in mass graves and burning others, according to Human Rights Watch.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukrai ... 2c4c39e885

[Yuli Ban]

[Nanotechandmorefuture]

You have things like DARPA, the US Air Force Super Soldier program, and much more. It seems Ghost Recon Future Soldier was a view of the future.

[weatheriscool]

Biden Approves Plan to Redeploy Several Hundred Ground Forces Into Somalia
Source: New York Times

WASHINGTON — President Biden has signed an order authorizing the military to once again deploy hundreds of Special Operations forces inside Somalia — largely reversing the decision by President Donald J. Trump to withdraw nearly all 700 ground troops who had been stationed there, according to four officials familiar with the matter. In addition, Mr. Biden has approved a Pentagon request for standing authority to target about a dozen suspected leaders of Al Shabab, the Somali terrorist group that is affiliated with Al Qaeda, three of the officials said.

Since Mr. Biden took office, airstrikes have largely been limited to those meant to defend partner forces facing an immediate threat. Together, the decisions by Mr. Biden, described by the officials on the condition of anonymity, will revive an open-ended American counterterrorism operation that has amounted to a slow-burn war through three administrations. The move stands in contrast to his decision last year to pull American forces from Afghanistan, saying that “it is time to end the forever war.” Mr. Biden signed off on the proposal by Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III in early May, officials said.

In a statement, Adrienne Watson, the National Security Council spokeswoman, acknowledged the move, saying it would enable “a more effective fight against Al Shabab.”“The decision to reintroduce a persistent presence was made to maximize the safety and effectiveness of our forces and enable them to provide more efficient support to our partners,” she said.Ms. Watson did not indicate the number of troops the military would deploy. But two people familiar with the matter said the figure would be capped at around 450.

That will replace a system in which the U.S. troops training and advising Somali and African Union forces have made short stays since Mr. Trump issued what Ms. Watson described as a “precipitous decision to withdraw.” The Biden administration’s strategy in Somalia is to try to reduce the threat from Al Shabab by suppressing its ability to plot and carry out complicated operations, a senior administration official said. Those include a deadly attack on an American air base at Manda Bay, Kenya, in January 2020.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/16/us/p ... malia.html

[funkervogt]

Add-on kits are being developed that let people equip their civilian drones to drop small bombs.

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/n ... ial-drones

This is only the beginning. This technology can be developed to frightening levels of sophistication and cost-effectiveness. Cheap, autonomous drones paired with cheap, advanced smart weapons (like a 3 lb smart bomb that can steer itself towards targets and has a multi-mode detonation system [impact, delayed impact, air burst]) could be devastating.

[weatheriscool]

Xi Jinping announces plans to allow Chinese military to undertake 'special military operations'
Source: Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Analysts say China's leader Xi Jinping has set the legal basis for an expansion of the Chinese military's role in other countries, just weeks after Beijing signed a security pact with the Solomon Islands.

With little published detail, Mr Xi's government declared he'd signed off on a set of new trial outlines that allow for Chinese "armed forces operations" that are not war.

Chairman Xi, as he is widely known in China in reference to his position as Chairman of the Central Military Commission, signed off on 59 articles, according to state media, but they weren't published.

Instead, government reports say they set a legal basis within China for the People's Liberation Army to "safeguard China's national sovereignty, security and development interests", according to an article in the Communist Party's media Global Times.

Read more: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-14/ ... /101152154

[weatheriscool]

Senate OKs enhanced benefits for vets exposed to burn pits
Source: AP

By KEVIN FREKING

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate on Thursday approved a sweeping expansion of health care and disability benefits for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans in response to concerns about their exposure to toxic burn pits.

Passage of the bill by a vote of 84-14 sets a course that could help millions who served after Sept. 11, 2001, and caps years of advocacy work by veterans groups and others who liken burn pits to the Agent Orange herbicide that Vietnam era veterans were exposed to in Southeast Asia.

The bill is projected to increase federal spending by about $283 billion over 10 years and does not include offsetting spending cuts or tax increases to help pay for it. The House in March approved similar legislation that would have cost more than $320 billion over 10 years.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said after Senate passage that the House would “move swiftly” to take up the legislation and send it to President Joe Biden to be signed into law. Biden has encouraged the effort. In a statement after the vote, Biden said the bill “makes good on our sacred obligation to care for veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors.” He urged the House to act quickly “so I can sign it into law right away.”

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/afghanistan- ... d1c5aaf187

[weatheriscool]

China says it successfully intercepted a missile in flight
Source: AP

BEIJING (AP) — China says it has successfully intercepted a missile in flight, in a test of an anti-ballistic missile system that could improve its defenses as it presses its territorial claims.

A brief statement from the Defense Ministry late Sunday gave no details, but said the test was purely defensive in nature and was not aimed at any foreign nations.

Missiles are a major component of China’s defense and are the backbone of its space program, which has launched astronauts and components to the nation’s orbiting space station.

The missile interception test comes as China has been escalating threats against the self-governing island of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own territory to be annexed by military force if necessary. A conflict over Taiwan would likely bring in the U.S., which is the island’s main source of weaponry and is legally bound to regard threats to it as a matter of “grave concern.”

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/politics-tai ... 5e6a3a429a

[caltrek]

I didn’t even read the whole article posted below on a count of I am not trying to become an expert in military technology. Still, I know there are a lot of you out there that are fascinated with the subject. Information is information, and can result in constructive outcomes

Robots, Marines and the Ultimate Battle with Bureaucracy
by Hope Hodge Seck
June 23, 2022

Introduction:

(Politico) n July 2008, a year before President Barack Obama surged 33,000 ground troops into Afghanistan, a Marine Corps officer at Camp Pendleton, California, sent an urgent memo up his chain of command acknowledging an embarrassing truth: Marines, famous for their marksmanship flair, weren’t very good at hitting their targets in a war zone.

In combat, troops needed to neutralize a moving enemy, Maj. Eric Dougherty noted. But the Corps, using static target practice that hadn’t changed much since the Revolutionary War, had “no systems or ranges” that could prepare them for the task. He pleaded for resources and, in particular, a way to teach Marines to hit a target that moved unpredictably and as fast as a man could run.

“Failure to respond to this need will mean the continued degrading of critical marksmanship skills required to succeed in an asymmetric environment,” he wrote.

It took a few years, but in June 2011, a new military training tool rolled onto a firing range at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. It was a fleet of autonomous robotic targets that were human-sized and mounted on moving platforms, made by an Australian company called Marathon and available for evaluation through a Pentagon testing program. (Dougherty’s memo about the Marines’ struggles eventually made its way to a Marathon source, who provided it to POLITICO.) The beige humanoid torsos looked a bit crude with their pasted-on paper faces and costume clothes, and their Segway bases struggled at times to navigate grassy and uneven terrain. But the shooters — an array of elite Marine weapons specialists, SEALs and Army special operators — were astonished. When the targets started moving, they started missing, despite their expert marksmanship badges. Engaging these machines felt different, too. When the robots lurched toward them, cortisol levels spiked and even seasoned fighters were left shaky and on edge.

Read more here: https://www.politico.com/news/magazine ... 00041091

[Nanotechandmorefuture]

I didn’t even read the whole article posted below on a count of I am not trying to become an expert in military technology. Still, I know there are a lot of you out there that are fascinated with the subject. Information is information, and can result in constructive outcomes

Robots, Marines and the Ultimate Battle with Bureaucracy
by Hope Hodge Seck
June 23, 2022

Introduction:

(Politico) n July 2008, a year before President Barack Obama surged 33,000 ground troops into Afghanistan, a Marine Corps officer at Camp Pendleton, California, sent an urgent memo up his chain of command acknowledging an embarrassing truth: Marines, famous for their marksmanship flair, weren’t very good at hitting their targets in a war zone.

In combat, troops needed to neutralize a moving enemy, Maj. Eric Dougherty noted. But the Corps, using static target practice that hadn’t changed much since the Revolutionary War, had “no systems or ranges” that could prepare them for the task. He pleaded for resources and, in particular, a way to teach Marines to hit a target that moved unpredictably and as fast as a man could run.

“Failure to respond to this need will mean the continued degrading of critical marksmanship skills required to succeed in an asymmetric environment,” he wrote.

It took a few years, but in June 2011, a new military training tool rolled onto a firing range at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. It was a fleet of autonomous robotic targets that were human-sized and mounted on moving platforms, made by an Australian company called Marathon and available for evaluation through a Pentagon testing program. (Dougherty’s memo about the Marines’ struggles eventually made its way to a Marathon source, who provided it to POLITICO.) The beige humanoid torsos looked a bit crude with their pasted-on paper faces and costume clothes, and their Segway bases struggled at times to navigate grassy and uneven terrain. But the shooters — an array of elite Marine weapons specialists, SEALs and Army special operators — were astonished. When the targets started moving, they started missing, despite their expert marksmanship badges. Engaging these machines felt different, too. When the robots lurched toward them, cortisol levels spiked and even seasoned fighters were left shaky and on edge.

Read more here: https://www.politico.com/news/magazine ... 00041091

All in preparation for the eventual all out war somewhere where men and women will fight. I foolishly used to get upset for years why they dropped the standards for men in the infantry to make it easier for women for years. What a waste of time on my part. I should have been paying attention to the focus on some sort of 'Great War' in the future as seen in films in these past 20 years such as Tomorrow War and more. The trimming down of non essential gear and units along with a differ focus also says something is up.

Whatever it is when even the poorest branch of service that is the Marine Corps is going to get high tech training like this for everyone you know something big is going to go down in the future. Word online is that they are going to issue silencers to all Marines regardless of position in infantry, maybe even non infantry, so if they dropped the standards for even that it is more of a reason to be aware.

[Time_Traveller]

Sudan’s military strikes disputed region bordering Ethiopia

29 Jun 2022

Sudan’s armed forces fired heavy artillery during clashes in the disputed eastern region of al-Fashaqa bordering Ethiopia, an Ethiopian official said, the latest salvo in a long-running feud over their shared border.

Sudan was able to capture Jabal Kala al-Laban, an area near the contested border, on Tuesday following an artillery barrage and an air raid, according to an anonymous Sudanese military source speaking to Reuters news agency.

On Monday, Ethiopia denied Sudan’s accusation that its army had captured and executed seven Sudanese soldiers and a civilian, instead blaming the killings on a local fighter group.

Sudanese government sources said Sudan had filed a formal complaint with the United Nations Security Council over the killings.

Sudan’s army fired long-distance artillery from Monday morning until Tuesday afternoon, but nobody was injured, said Assefa Ashege, a senior security official in Ethiopia’s Amhara region.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/6/2 ... g-ethiopia

[Time_Traveller]

Latvia to reinstate compulsory military service as Russia tensions rise

Wed 6 Jul 2022

Latvia is to reinstate compulsory military service amid growing tension with Russia in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

“The current military system of Latvia has reached its limit. Meanwhile, we have no reason to think that Russia will change its behaviour,” the Latvian defence minister, Artis Pabriks, told reporters on Tuesday.

Latvia had scrapped mandatory service a few years after joining the Nato military alliance. Since 2007, the EU member’s military has consisted of career soldiers along with national guard volunteers who serve in the infantry part-time at weekends.

The country of fewer than 2 million people, which borders Belarus and Russia, has only 7,500 active-duty soldiers and national guard members, backed by 1,500 Nato troops.

Pabriks said the mandatory military service requirement would apply only to men and would come into effect next year, with several options available.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/ ... sions-rise

[caltrek]

Lee, Pocan File Amendment to Slash $100 Billion From US Military Budget
by Jake Johnson
July 7, 2022

Introduction:

(Common Dreams) Reps. Barbara Lee and Mark Pocan led a group of House Democrats this week in filing amendments that would slash current U.S. military spending by $100 billion and reverse recent efforts to add more money to President Joe Biden's historically high Pentagon budget request for the coming fiscal year.

The proposed amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2023 were introduced days after lawmakers on the House and Senate Armed Services Committees—both controlled by Democrats—voted to pile $37 billion and $45 billion, respectively, onto Biden's March request for $813 billion in military spending.

One of more than 1,000 amendments filed for the House version of the NDAA, the Lee-Pocan proposal to cut $100 billion from the current U.S. military spending topline of $782 billion points to a recent Congressional Budget Office study outlining several ways in which Congress could reasonably slice $1 trillion—or 14%—from the Pentagon budget over the next decade.

Lee and Pocan, the co-chairs of the Defense Spending Reduction Caucus, have repeatedly attempted to rein in U.S. military spending in recent years, but their efforts have been blocked by Republicans and members of their own party—some of whom are financed by weapons makers.

Last month, the pair introduced legislation that would take $100 billion from the U.S. military budget and redirect the funds to pressing domestic needs such as housing and healthcare.

Read more here: https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022 ... -budget

[Time_Traveller]

Ukraine war forcing China to rethink ‘how and when’ it may invade Taiwan, CIA chief says

Thu 21 Jul 2022 03.56 BST

Russia’s experience in Ukraine is affecting China’s calculations on how and when it may decide to invade Taiwan, the head of the CIA said on Wednesday.

Appearing at the Aspen Security Forum, Central Intelligence Agency director Bill Burns played down speculation that Chinese president Xi Jinping could move on Taiwan after a key Communist party meeting later this year.

“The risks of that become higher, it seems to us, the further into this decade that you get,” Burns said, adding: “I wouldn’t underestimate President Xi’s determination to assert China’s control” over self-ruling Taiwan.

Burns said that China was “unsettled” when looking at Russia’s five-month-old war in Ukraine, which he characterised as a “strategic failure” for president Vladimir Putin as he had hoped to topple the Kyiv government within a week.

“Our sense is that it probably affects less the question of whether the Chinese leadership might choose some years down the road to use force to control Taiwan, but how and when they would do it,” Burns said.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/ ... chief-says

[weatheriscool]

Milley: China more aggressive, dangerous to US, allies
Source: AP

By LOLITA C. BALDOR

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — The Chinese military has become significantly more aggressive and dangerous over the past five years, the top U.S. military officer said during a trip to the Indo-Pacific that included a stop Sunday in Indonesia.

Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the number of intercepts by Chinese aircraft and ships in the Pacific region with U.S. and other partner forces has increased significantly over that time, and the number of unsafe interactions has risen by similar proportions.

“The message is the Chinese military, in the air and at sea, have become significantly more and noticeably more aggressive in this particular region,” said Milley, who recently asked his staff to compile details about interactions between China and the U.S. and others in the region.

His comments came as the U.S. redoubles its efforts to strengthen its relationships with Pacific nations as a counterbalance to China, which is trying to expand its presence and influence in the region. The Biden administration considers China its “pacing threat” and America’s primary long-term security challenge.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/nato-china-i ... 175a984c91

[Xyls]

China showing it's true colours. Economic engagement with China since 1972 has been a massive mistake. This is why companies should not be able to outsource business/manufacturing to undemocratic states.