Revealed: The Islamic State's Two Most Powerful Weapons

Kumar Ramakrishna

May 20, 2015 

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The ominous shadow of the notorious Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) looms over Southeast Asia and Australia, judging from the scores of recent arrests throughout the region.

In order to neutralize ISIS, it is important to understand what we are confronting. Synthesizing various analyses of the entity appears to provide the following composite picture: ISIS seeks to create a geographically demarcated Islamic political entity that is potentially expansionist. The leadership of the organization is hierarchical and comprises a curious mix of hardline Islamic fundamentalists combined with genuine strategic and operational nous provided by disaffected and radicalized former Baathists of Saddam Hussein’s decimated military.

The core fundamentalist theology of ISIS emphasizes a deity that is punitive, keen on preserving religious purity above else. Consequently outsiders—Muslims who disagree with them; Shia, Christians and other minority groups and their religious symbols—can be disposed of as they are regarded as filth to be cleansed, not parties to a negotiable dispute.

Is Iraq's Military Hopelessly Incompetent?

Daniel R. DePetris

May 21, 2015 

http://nationalinterest.org/feature/iraqs-military-hopelessly-incompetent-12936?page=show

What ISIL’s capture of Ramadi tells us about the Iraqi Security Forces.

In the see-saw, roller-coaster battle for the future of Iraq, the recapture of Tikrit from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on April 2 was the Iraqi Government’s most dramatic accomplishment throughout the coalition’s nine-month campaign against the extremist organization. Tikrit, universally known as former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s hometown, was a city under the control and administration of ISIL ever since the group made its initial push across northern Iraq in June and July 2014. But it also happens to be a city that lies along the main route to Mosul, ISIL’s major stronghold in Iraq and the country’s second biggest city after Baghdad. Retaking Mosul and expelling ISIL militants from the city would have been exceedingly difficult without first capturing Tikrit, an area roughly three hours south of Mosul. The Iraqi security forces, with vital assistance from U.S.-led air strikes and support from Shia militia units under the Popular Mobilization Units/Forces (PMUs), managed to liberate Tikrit after about a month.

The Islamic State

Authors: Zachary Laub, Online Writer/Editor, and Jonathan Masters, Deputy Editor

May 18, 2015

http://www.cfr.org/iraq/islamic-state/p14811 

Introduction 

The self-proclaimed Islamic State is a militant movement that has conquered territory in western Iraq and eastern Syria, where it has made a bid to establish a state in territories that encompass some six and a half million residents. Though spawned by al-Qaeda’s Iraq franchise, it split with Osama bin Laden’s organization and evolved to not just employ terrorist and insurgent tactics, but the more conventional ones of an organized militia.

In June 2014, after seizing territories in Iraq’s Sunni heartland, including the cities of Mosul and Tikrit, the Islamic State proclaimed itself a caliphate, claiming exclusive political and theological authority over the world’s Muslims. Its state-building project, however, has been characterized more by extreme violence than institution building. Beheadings of Western hostages and other provocative acts, circulated by well-produced videos and social media, spurred calls in the United States and Europe for military intervention, while mass violence against local civilians, justified by references to theProphet Mohammed’s early followers, has been a tool for cementing territorial control. Widely publicized battlefield successes have attracted thousands of foreign recruits, a particular concern of Western intelligence.

Fall of Ramadi raises new questions about U.S. strategy in Iraq

By Karen DeYoung and Missy Ryan 

May 19 

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Speaker of the House John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) is demanding that President Obama develop a new strategy for dealing with Islamic State militants after the group’s takeover of the city Ramadi in Iraq. (Reuters)

The fall of Ramadi to the Islamic State has raised new questions about the Obama administration’s Iraq strategy, including its efforts to resurrect Iraqi security forces and the focus of U.S. and Iraqi attention on retaking the city of Mosul by the end of this year. 

President Obama was briefed on the latest developments during a National Security Council meeting Tuesday, according to a White House statement, although officials said no formal strategy review is underway. 

White House press secretary Josh Earnest said that the fall of Ramadi was undoubtedly a “setback” but stressed “how important it is for us to maintain some perspective on this.” He cited successes such as the defeat of militants last month in Tikrit and Saturday’s raid by U.S. Special Operations forces that killed a senior Islamic State operative in Syria. 

Fall of Ramadi raises new questions about U.S. strategy in Iraq

By Karen DeYoung and Missy Ryan 

May 19

Source LInk

Speaker of the House John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) is demanding that President Obama develop a new strategy for dealing with Islamic State militants after the group’s takeover of the city Ramadi in Iraq. (Reuters)

The fall of Ramadi to the Islamic State has raised new questions about the Obama administration’s Iraq strategy, including its efforts to resurrect Iraqi security forces and the focus of U.S. and Iraqi attention on retaking the city of Mosul by the end of this year. 

President Obama was briefed on the latest developments during a National Security Council meeting Tuesday, according to a White House statement, although officials said no formal strategy review is underway. 

White House press secretary Josh Earnest said that the fall of Ramadi was undoubtedly a “setback” but stressed “how important it is for us to maintain some perspective on this.” He cited successes such as the defeat of militants last month in Tikrit and Saturday’s raid by U.S. Special Operations forces that killed a senior Islamic State operative in Syria. 

By NICK GASS

5/19/15

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Bob Gates: U.S. has no Middle East strategy 'at all' 

Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Tuesday that when it comes to the Middle East, he does not think the United States has a strategy “at all.”

“We’re basically sort of playing this day to day,” Gates said in a discussion on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “I think our interests remain important in the Middle East.”

Story Continued Below

Gates said that during his “several decades” in the Situation Room, oil was never the reason for an invasion of the region. Early on, he said, the Soviet Union proved the impetus, and later it was Iran.

The ISIS March Continues: From Ramadi on to Baghdad?

BY HASSAN HASSAN

MAY 19, 2015

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Anyone telling you the Islamic State is in decline isn’t paying attention.

The ISIS March Continues: From Ramadi on to Baghdad?

Once again, in less than a year, Iraqi soldiers abandoned their positions en masse and fled in the face of advancing Islamic State forces. The fall of the city of Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar province, leaves no doubt about the jihadi group’s capabilities: Despite U.S. attempts to paint it as a gravely weakened organization, the Islamic State remains a powerful force that is on the offensive in several key fronts across Syria and Iraq.

Ramadi is far from the only front on which the Islamic State is advancing. The group last week launched an offensive, supported by multiple suicide operations, in the eastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor against President Bashar al-Assad regime’s holdouts in the military air base. In the central city of Palmyra, it attacked a regime base near the ancient Roman ruins. It also recently clashed with Syrian rebels and the regime in the eastern countryside of Aleppo, the provinces of Homs and Hama, and the southern city of Quneitra, near the border with Israel.

FIGHTING AND WINNING IN THE “GRAY ZONE”

David Barno and Nora Bensahel

May 19, 2015

http://warontherocks.com/2015/05/fighting-and-winning-in-the-gray-zone/?singlepage=1

The United States possesses the most capable armed forces in the world. America leads the world in military expenditures, spending more than the next nine nations combined — seven of which are either U.S. friends or allies. In part because of this dominance, the world has been free of major power warsfor decades.

But trends such as globalization, mass access to technology and communications, and asymmetric reactions to U.S. tactics in Afghanistan and Iraq are converging into an era where more and more conflicts are being fought at the lower end of the conflict spectrum. These form a “gray zone” between traditional notions of war and peace.

Is The Iraqi Army’s Collapse at Ramadi a Game-Changer?

Dexter Filkins

May 19, 2015

The Real Problem in Iraq

Over the weekend, as ISIS fighters rolled into Ramadi, the capital of Iraq’s Anbar Province, one of them posted a video to the Internet. It was shot from a recently captured Iraqi police station, and showed box after box of American mortar shells and bullets that appeared shiny and new. Several Humvees, apparently not long out of the packing crates, sat abandoned nearby. “This is how we get our weapons,” the narrator said in Arabic. “The Iraqi officials beg the Americans for weapons, and then they leave them here for us.”

Depressing, isn’t it? The fall of Ramadi is not just a bleak symbolic defeat for the Iraqi government and its allies, including the United States. During the nearly nine years that American troops fought in Iraq, Anbar Province was one of the most lethal places for American soldiers and Marines; some thirteen hundred died there. In 2008, though, when the Americans finally handed the city back to the Iraqi Army, many of the American Marines present at the ceremony there were not even carrying weapons. After so much bloodshed, Ramadi had become one of the safest cities in the country.

Is the 'World’s Deadliest Tank' Bankrupting Russia?

By Franz-Stefan Gady

May 21, 2015

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Russia is expected to spend more money on its military in 2015 than in any previous year in its entire post-Soviet history.

According to an analysis conducted by Forbes Magazine, Russia will spend an estimated 5.34 percent of its economic output on defense in 2015. This estimate is based on the assumption that the Russian economy will contract by 3 percent and a 15 percent hike in the real value of the military budget.

However, another estimate quoted in the Wall Street Journal based on Russian government data notes that country’s GDP may even decrease by 4.6 percent largely due to lower oil prices and Western sanctions. Consequently, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev recently announced that this year’s 3.3 trillion rubles military budget will need to be adjusted and cut by five percent or 157 billion rubles.

Even worse, according to newly published budget data of the first three months of 2015, military expenditure exceeded 9 percent of quarterly GDP – almost twice the amount cited in Forbes Magazine.

Egypt's Religious Freedom Farce

Oren Kessler

May 21, 2015 

http://nationalinterest.org/feature/egypts-religious-freedom-farce-12935?page=show

Sisi sounds the right notes on pluralism, but penalties for “insulting” a faith are enforced only for the majority creed.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt presents himself as an Islamic reformer. He has challenged the sheikhs of Al-Azhar University—Sunni Islam’s preeminent religious institution—to promote moderation, and took the bold step (by Egyptian standards) of wishing worshippers a merry Christmas inCairo’s Coptic cathedral. The moves are commendable, but do little to alter an unfortunate reality: while Egypt’s penal code prohibits “insulting heavenly religions or those following it,” the law is enforced for just one faith: Sunni Islam.

Egypt takes religion seriously. By law, Egyptians are only allowed to practice one of the three recognized monotheistic religions: Islam (implicitly Sunni Islam—the faith of the overwhelming majority), Christianity (representing some ten percent of the population) and Judaism (today, Egypt has exactlyseven Jews, down from 75,000 in 1947). Still, Egyptians may only practice the creed they’re born into—the government does not recognize Muslim conversions to Christianity, and conversion from either faith to Judaism is nonexistent—unless the target faith is Islam.

Why the Drones Keep Firing

Paul R. Pillar

May 20, 2015 

http://nationalinterest.org/blog/paul-pillar/why-the-drones-keep-firing-12939

President Obama's announcement last month that earlier this year a “U.S. counterterrorism operation” had killed two hostages, including an American citizen, has become a fresh occasion for questioning the rationales for continuing attacks from unmanned aerial vehicles aimed at presumed, suspected, or even confirmed terrorists. This questioning is desirable, although not mainly for hostage-related reasons connected to this incident. Sometimes an incident has a sufficient element of controversy to stoke debate even though what most needs to be debated is not an issue specific to the incident itself. More fundamental issues about the entire drone program need more attention than they are getting.

The plight of hostages held by terrorists has a long and sometimes tragic history, almost all of which has had nothing to do with drones. Hostage-taking has been an attractive terrorist tool for so long partly because of the inherent advantages that the hostage-holders always will have over counterterrorist forces. Those advantages include not only the ability to conceal the location of hostages—evidently a successful concealment in the case of the hostages mentioned in the president's announcement—but also the ability of terrorists to kill the hostages themselves and to do so quickly enough to make any rescue operation extraordinarily difficult. Even states highly skilled at such operations, most notably Israel, have for this reason suffered failed rescue attempts.

England's Submarines Are One Step from Nuclear Disaster

Michael Peck

May 21, 2015 

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"If airport security and nuclear weapon security were both compared to prisons, the airport would be Alcatraz and Base security would be house arrest."

If this whistleblower is right, the most amazing fact about Britain's Trident nuclear missile submarines is they haven't blown up yet.

William McNeilly, a submariner who has served on Royal Navy Trident subs, is under arrest right now for disclosing official secrets. But in the 18-page document he leaked, McNeilly paints a picture of Britain's seagoing nuclear deterrent as so comical that the name of at least one sub should be changed toHMS Pinafore.

McNeilly who describes his job as "Engineering Technician Weapons Engineer Submariner," comes across as a bit of an Edward Snowden-esque character. He eavesdrops on meetings between his sub's officers. When he wants to copy a top-secret Trident missile manual that isn't allowed to leave a secure compartment, he brings along his Android smartphone and dictates the contents into the device.

Corruption in the Nigerian Military and Why Nigeria Had to Outsource the War Against Boko Haram to Mercenaries

Overkill Works

Since early in 2015 there were rumors that Nigeria, desperate to deal with the growing success of Islamic terrorists (Boko Haram) in the largely Moslem north had hired South Africa mercenaries. Turns out the rumor was true, but the truth of the subsequent defeat (but not destruction) of Boko Haram says more about the sorry state of the Nigerian armed forces than it does about the use of highly skilled mercenaries. 

The basic problem was that the Nigerian military, and the rest of the government, were very (notoriously is not too strong a term here) corrupt and had been for decades. This meant too many officers were more concerned with stealing than maintaining and leading well trained, equipped and supplied troops. The main reason the United States would not provide modern weapons to Nigeria was the corruption and the likelihood that some of those weapons would end up with Boko Haram, gangsters or some other bunch of Islamic terrorists. That had already happened with some of the weapons Nigeria already had and that sort of thing had become such a problem that some officers were being prosecuted for it. But the government refused to take measures to eliminate the corruption in the military leadership. 

Ukrainian Government Parades 2 Captured Russian Special Ops Soldiers Before the Media

Kiev shows off captured ‘Russian soldiers’ to media

May 19, 2015

Kiev (AFP) - Kiev on Tuesday showed off two purported Russian soldiers it captured during a gun battle in the separatist east that Ukraine’s pro-Western leadership says proves the Kremlin’s direct involvement in the war. 

The two wounded men – recovering in a Kiev military hospital under the guard of masked state security men – have turned into pawns in a bitter public relations battle being waged by Moscow and Kiev since Saturday’s firefight.

Russia insists that Captain Yevgeny Yerofeyev and Sergeant Aleksander Aleksandrov had been decommissioned from the armed forces by the time Kiev believes they entered the Ukrainian war zone more than a month ago.

Moscow acknowledges the presence of Russian “volunteers” and off-duty servicemen in Ukraine while rejecting charges that they were there under orders from President Vladimir Putin’s generals.

Preventing Conflict in Cyberspace Triggered by Miscalculation

by Micah Zenko

May 20, 2015

http://blogs.cfr.org/zenko/2015/05/20/preventing-conflict-cyberspace-triggered-miscalculation/

A technician monitors power output in the control room at the operating nuclear power plant in France. 

What constitutes an act of war in cyberspace? What should be U.S. response options to a consequential cyberattack? These questions are repeatedly asked at Congressional hearings with U.S. officials struggling to provide satisfactory answers. 

Today, the Center for Preventive Action released aContingency Planning Memorandum, “The Risks of Ambiguity in Cyberspace,” which I am tremendously proud to say directly addresses these issues and much more. 

Written by Benjamin Brake, a CFR international affairs fellow and foreign affairs analyst in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research at the Department of State, this report details how the Obama administration can strengthen its ability to correctly and efficiently attribute an attack, reduce the likelihood of escalation, and mitigate the consequences of an ambiguous attack. This report does not reflect the position of the U.S. government, but tracks closely with how many officials and staffers in cyber-related agencies are thinking. 

Strategic Risks of Ambiguity in Cyberspace

Author: Benjamin Brake, International Affairs Fellow

Release Date May 2015

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Introduction 

As major powers increasingly rely on digital networks for critical services, the number of plausible network attacks, accidents, or failures that could trigger or exacerbate an international crisis will increase. The likelihood and severity of such a destabilizing event will also grow as long as norms of appropriate behavior in cyberspace are underdeveloped, timely and convincing attribution of attacks remains difficult, and the number of cyber-capable actors increases. Preparing for or responding to such a crisis is complicated by ambiguity in cyberspace, primarily regarding responsibility and intent. Ambiguity about who is responsible for a cyberattack exacerbates the risk that countries amid a geopolitical crisis will misattribute an attack, unduly retaliate or expand a crisis, or be unable to attribute an attack at all, thereby preventing or delaying a response and weakening their deterrence and credibility. Ambiguity of what is intended complicates a country’s ability to distinguish between espionage operations and activity conducted in preparation for a cyberattack. The United States has strategic interests in preventing and mitigating these risks, given its commitment to global security and overwhelming dependence on networked systems for national security missions, commerce, health care, and critical infrastructure. The longer it takes to implement preventive and mitigating steps, the greater the likelihood of unnecessary military conflict in and outside of the cyber domain. 

The Art of (Cyber) War: Cybersecurity Tactics for All Financial Institutions From Bloomberg

By Richik Sarkar and James J. Giszczak

May 19, 2015

Richik Sarkar, a member of McDonald Hopkins LLC, regularly advises banks and bank vendor on risk management issues. His expertise is in contracts, commercial law, sales and trade practices, business torts, professional negligence and malpractice, financial services law, internal investigations, corporate governance and compliance and risk management. James J. Giszczak, who is Vice Chair of the firm's Litigation Department and Chair of its Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Practice Group, advises clients regarding data security measures and responding to security breaches involving sensitive personal information and protected health information.

As financial institutions of every type and size -- national, regional and community banks, thrifts, mutuaIs, credit unions, and non-bank lenders -- increase their collection of personal information about their customers and employees, they become larger targets for a data privacy incident. Financial institutions are truly in a cyber war and must fight this battle on four fronts: external threats, intentional misappropriation by rogue employees, data accidentally lost or misplaced, and vendor negligence; accordingly, proper tactics and strategy are essential for survival.

In line with DoD CIO, Army pushes forward with new cloud policy

April 10, 2015 

In line with broader Defense Department initiatives, the Army expects to soon release a new commercial cloud services provider policy that will outline service-specific acquisition requirements and provide further details about the Army's growing use of the commercial cloud.

"Transitioning to cloud-based solutions and services advances the Army's long-term objective to reduce our ownership, operation and sustainment of hardware and other commoditized information technology," Gary Wang, Army deputy CIO/G-6, wrote in an April 2 blog post. "Procuring these capabilities as services will allow the Army to focus resources more effectively to meet evolving mission needs."at will outline service-specific acquisition requirements and provide further details about the Army's growing use of the commercial cloud.

See our complete coverage of the C4ISR & Networks Conference at our Show Reporter site.

How DISA defends DoD networks

May 13, 2015

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The Defense Information Systems Agency is charged with a significant role in defending the Defense Department's networks, a role that is changing under evolving threats, policies and IT infrastructure. The launch of DoD's joint regional security stacks (JRSS), the transition to the Joint Information Environment (JIE) and a new cyber strategy from the Defense secretary all comprise a changing cyber landscape for the military.

DISA handles numerous systems and initiatives dealing with cybersecurity, but three critical programs in particular currently are undergoing developments aimed at improving DoD's cyber stance. The Cyber Situational Awareness Capability (CSAAC), a next-generation host-based security system (HBSS) and the Acropolis cyber-intelligence platform all are up for contract action, and they all provide critical layers to DoD's expanding cyber defense by fitting in with the broader efforts under JRSS, JIE and the new cyber strategy.

"In JIE, we are looking at the evolution of our security architecture. And, ultimately, moving toward a single security architecture, which really gets down to the notion of trying to do inspection at the minimal number possible of points, centralized commands and the full end-state of where we really want to get with security," said Jack Wilmer, DISA deputy chief technology officer for enterprise services.

DISA Director LtGen Ronnie Hawkins takes a last look ahead

Barry Rosenberg, Editor 

May 19, 2015 

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Lt Gen Ronnie Hawkins, Jr., is the director of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), a job he has held since early 2012. He said 2015 will be his last year on the job, and in written responses to questions from C4ISR & Networks Editor Barry Rosenberg, he discusses cloud, cyber, the agency's reorganization, as well as his legacy as DISA director.

With support of the war fighter a given, what's at the top of your to-do list?

HAWKINS: Enabling mobility in its many forms is always at the top of DISA's to-do list. We have made great progress in establishing mobility for DoD, and we still have a lot to do. DISA's top priority when it comes to secure mobile technology is producing enterprise capabilities that the entire DoD, as well as other federal agencies, can leverage.

The Army Is Shopping for Cyber Weapons

BY ALIYA STERNSTEINNEXTGOV

MAY 19, 2015

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As part of the Pentagon's plan to beef up its capabilities, the service is reaching out to providers to see what kinds of tools are available.

The Army is seeking the assistance of cyberattack tool sellers, joining a growing number of Pentagon entities aiming to amass advanced cyber capabilities. 

Aliya Sternstein reports on cybersecurity and homeland security systems. She’s covered technology for more than a decade at such publications as National Journal's Technology Daily, Federal Computer Week and Forbes. Before joining Government Executive, Sternstein covered agriculture and derivatives ... Full Bio

A new market survey aimed at identifying suppliers is the third Defense Department document issued over the past month that points out a need to be able to execute “cyber effects.”

A cyber effect typically refers to a hack, disruption or other impact to an adversary’s network, according to security experts.

The Navy Is Trying To Hack-Proof Its Drones

BY ALIYA STERNSTEINNEXTGOV

Aerial robots weren't expected to become part of the Internet of Things, but now the Navy needs to protect them from cyber threats.

The Navy says it’s not sure what kind of cyber threats its drones, sensors and missiles are up against. That’s because aerial weapons systems were not expected to become part of the so-called Internet of Things, the present-day entanglement of networked appliances, transportation systems and other data-infused objects.

Aliya Sternstein reports on cybersecurity and homeland security systems. She’s covered technology for more than a decade at such publications as National Journal's Technology Daily, Federal Computer Week and Forbes. Before joining Government Executive, Sternstein covered agriculture and derivatives ... Full Bio

“Don’t Weaken Encryption”, Tech Giants Tell Obama

Nicole Perlroth

Tech Giants Urge Obama to Reject Policies That Weaken Encryption

SAN FRANCISCO — A collection of tech industry giants like Facebook, Google,Apple and Microsoft, as well as civil liberties organizations and Internet security experts, sent a letter to President Obama on Tuesday warning of the unintended consequences of any policy meant to weaken the encryption technologies that protect Internet communications.

The White House has been weighing whether to mandate that companies use only forms of encryption that provide law enforcement with the means for unscrambled access — a so-called back door.

Critics in the technology industry are concerned that a back door for law enforcement in the United States would be a back door for everyone, including other governments and hackers. One Yahoo executive likened the proposal to “drilling a hole in the windshield.”

CONFESSIONS OF A JIHADI NERD: A GUIDE TO READING THE NEW BIN LADEN DOCUMENTS

Clint Watts

May 20, 2015

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Today, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a new batch of declassified documents recovered during the raid to kill Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan. Like most terrorism researchers (nerds), I am excited to see these documents finally come to light as I think they provide a much needed window for the public to see inside al Qaeda’s operations and thinking. These documents will provide excellent primary source material for researchers and ideally yield insights into how terrorist groups operate — illuminating their vulnerabilities and offering solutions to mitigate their violence.

Will F-35 Pilots Command a Swarm of Drones in Flight?

By Franz-Stefan Gady

May 21, 2015

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Over at military.com, Kris Osborn discusses a new U.S. Air Force report to be released next month that outlines how F-35 Joint Strike Fighter pilots will be able to control a swarm of nearby drones from their cockpits while in flight.

According to Osborn, the new Air Force report, entitled “Autonomous Horizons,” will highlight plans to improve sensors, develop new algorithms and introduce new unmanned platforms. The paper will also deliberate on the teaming up of manned and unmanned aircraft, “wherein manned aircraft control the flight path and sensor payload of a nearby UAS while in flight.”

“We are setting up the ability for an aircraft to take high-level command of UAS [unnamed aircraft system]. Those unmanned aircraft will have to be capable of flying in concert in a safe manner. They will need to be capable of taking high level commands and be able to execute those effectively,” said Mica Endsley, the U.S. Air Force’s chief scientist, in an interview with military.com discussing the report.

Meet America's New 'Bunker-Buster' Super Bomb

Zachary Keck

May 20, 2015 

http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/the-f-35s-new-bunker-buster-super-bomb-12933

The U.S. Air Force has developed a new, lighter bunker-buster bomb that can be launched from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

Flight Global reports that David E. Walker, the Air Force’s chief scientist, says that the U.S. Air Force research laboratory has proven the technology for its high velocity penetrating weapon (HVPW). The HVPW program, which was launched in 2011, was aimed at building a 2,000lb, rocket-propelled bomb that would be small enough to be integrated onto the F-35 and other non-strategic bombers.

Like other bunker-buster missiles, such as the gigantic 30,000lb Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP), the HVPW is designed to destroy buried targets like underground bunkers and tunnels. However, unlike MOP and traditional bunker-busters, his new kinetic weapon is rammed into the ground like a pile driver instead of being accelerated naturally by gravity. The force with which the HVPW strikes the ground allows it to penetrate underground targets while still being compact enough to be carried on the F-35.

From ‘carrot & stick’ to just ‘carrot’

G Parthasarathy

May 21 2015

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Ever since the Nixon-Mao honeymoon commenced in 1971, India has periodically faced an alliance of the US, an avowed champion of democratic freedoms, China, a one-party communist state, and Pakistan, a theocratic Sunni state, more often than not, ruled by its military. The visceral dislike that these three countries displayed in 1971 towards India is well documented. The Clinton Administration thereafter spent its first six years in office almost exclusively focused on an effort to "cap, roll back and eliminate" India's nuclear programme, while deliberately turning a blind eye to China's transfer of nuclear weapon designs, uranium enrichment capabilities, plutonium production and reprocessing technology and missile production facilities to Pakistan. This was coupled with not-so-subtle pressure on India on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir, including through the establishment of contacts with Hurriyat separatists. Even today the US seldom raises its voice against the violation of NSG guidelines by China when it supplies nuclear reactors to Pakistan.

There’s no free Chinese lunch...

SATYABRATA PAL

May 21, 2015

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is being termed as a ‘game and fate changer’ for Pakistan. But if the past is prologue, the new projects under it may not have much of a future, and both Pakistan and China know this.

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), around which 51 agreements were signed during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Pakistan in April 2015, promises such massive investments that it is not surprising that the Pakistani government gushes over it as being a “game and fate changer”. Against the $46 billion announced, American baksheesh for Pakistan’s tenuous support in Afghanistan seems mealy-mouthed; its Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009 tripled economic assistance to $7.5 billion, spread over five years, but only $5.5 billion was actually appropriated. The annual aid to Pakistan from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), including the United States, has rarely risen above $3 billion. And most private investors, like tourists, have stayed away. Therefore, this Chinese largesse in the financial desert in which Pakistan wanders is a blizzard of manna.

Telescope: Here, there, everywhere

By Shailaja Bajpai

May 21, 2015

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Shanghai: Narendra Modi in kurta-waistcoat tells the Indian diaspora that while they holiday on Sunday, he will work (their fault?). Mongolia: Modi in a hat stands beside the horse gifted to him. Seoul: Modi, in a casual jacket and scarf snaked about his neck, asks Korean CEOs to see “the change” in India.

Here’s a striking feature of the Indian prime minister in the last year: even when he is far away from us, he is just a remote control button away. Or, to use the Delhi Police slogan— with you, for you, always.

By stringing Doordarshan along, by going tweet-tweet all day long, Modi has been the overwhelming presence in our lives.

We are unable to ignore him. He is always going places (literally and metaphorically), declaiming grandly on live broadcasts and cutting a fine figure. You may or may not approve of his fashion statements but he makes them all the time, and they say something about the man: He wants his presence known, felt. Can anyone forget his monogrammed suit?