U.S. Southern Command is planning to expand its military space engagement in the Americas to help partner nations in ways China and Russia don't, combating crime from drug trafficking to deforestation and illegal fishing while also improving space domain awareness for the region.
National Security
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley spoke with his Russian counterpart Dec. 22 amid border tensions with Ukraine and mounting concerns of a Russian invasion in January. The call follows comments by Secretary of State Antony Blinken that high-level dialogue ...
The Pentagon confirmed Dec. 20 that Adm. Christopher W. Grady was sworn in as the 12th Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The swearing-in fills a monthlong vacancy following the retirement of Air Force Gen. John E. Hyten, whose last day was Nov. ...
A raft of strategy and posture reviews are coming in 2022 that will significantly shape the Air Force, even as the service is slated to make major strides on programs and conduct critical tests. The B-21 is expected to take to the air mid-year, and ...
The Russian troop buildup on the Ukrainian border and in the heavily militarized Black Sea region has led to calls by Black Sea allies to increase NATO and U.S. deterrence to prevent further Russian efforts to divide and isolate some of the alliance’s newest members. ...
The Senate confirmed Naval Fleet Forces Commander Adm. Christopher W. Grady as Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff late Dec. 16. Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III is tentatively scheduled to perform Grady's swearing-in Dec. 20, the office of the Joint Chiefs confirmed. ...
Preparing for conflict in the Pacific will require more than learning to fly fighters out of austere locations—it will also call for small bomber crews to go on quick consecutive missions at unfamiliar locations. In a "bomber agile combat employment" (BACE) exercise Dec. 6-8, two ...
The U.K.'s. RAF Lakenheath on Dec. 15 became the first European base to receive a U.S. F-35A Lightning II six years after plans for the delivery were announced as part of an eventual basing of two squadrons of the fifth-generation aircraft. “The Valkyries are leading ...
The Senate passed the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act on Dec. 15, sending the annual policy bill to President Joe Biden’s desk with a host of provisions affecting the Air Force and Space Force and ensuring that Congress’s long-standing record of passing an NDAA every ...