North Korea Tests New Nukes To Overwhelm US Defenses

FRIDAY PDB – North Korea Says It Tested Multiple-Warhead Missile Technology. This, coming days after Vladimir V. Putin's visit to Pyongyang, suggests an ambitious attempt to upgrade the North's nuclear arsenal.

This gives North Korea the ability to fire multiple warheads on a single intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

Achieving “MIRV (multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle) capability is a very important defense technological task and a top priority of the WPK Central Committee,” North Korean military officials said after the test, adding they will work to “further improve the effectiveness of decoys.”

The development of MIRV technology is complicated. It requires the combination of large missiles, small warheads, accurate guidance, and a complex mechanism for releasing warheads sequentially during flight.

This is the first known launch of a developmental weapon coveted by leader Kim Jong-un to overwhelm U.S. missile defenses. (RELATED: China, Russia, Iran And North Korea Are Coming For Us)

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – Here's a roundup of today's other top defense stories from conservative national security expert PAUL CRESPO.

Not the President's Daily Brief, but almost as good – PAUL'S DAILY BRIEFING – the PDB:

NATIONAL SECURITY

BECAUSE HE DID! – US State Department says WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's actions put people at risk.

Why Pentagon is looking to speedily buy deepfake-detection technology. With aims to confront and mitigate the disruptive, still-emerging threats posed by deepfakes, the Pentagon's Defense Innovation Unit is moving to adopt commercial capabilities to identify and detect such fabricated or manipulated multimedia and online content.

How the military is preparing for AI at the edge. The Defense Department has long used artificial intelligence to detect objects in battle spaces, but the capability has been mainly limited to identification. New advancements in AI can offer leaders new levels of mission awareness.

Beyond TikTok: Navigating the cybersecurity landscape of tomorrow. TikTok's potential ban in the U.S. has stirred up widespread debate, raising the question: Are we overreacting, or is there a deeper issue at play? This situation sheds light on the complexities and vulnerabilities of being so interconnected in the digital age.

The US is losing the race for better munitions — here's how to help. As the global strategic environment worsens, the race to innovate in the domain of energetic materials — crucial components of modern weaponry — is only going to become more intense.

HOMELAND SECURITY

HE IS BALD FACED LIAR – Mayorkas denies report that 400 migrants linked to ISIS-affiliated network entered US under Biden. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas denied reporting by NBC News.

PENTAGON WOKE WATCH

WITCH HUNTS – Army imposes stricter rules for addressing ‘extremism' among troops. Under new rules, commanders must ensure troops are trained about off-limits extremist activities, act when they spot' extremism' in their units and report any incidents to the Pentagon IG's Office.

POLITICS

Request to reconsider former soldier's pardon in fatal shooting denied. A Texas appeals court denied a request to reverse Gov. Greg Abbott's pardon of a former Army sergeant convicted of killing a Black Lives Matter (BLM) demonstrator.

Senators' latest idea to fix military recruiting slump? Sharing enlistment data with high schools. Public high schools would be able to access the data under a data-sharing program being proposed by a bipartisan group of senators.

ISRAEL WAR AGAINST TERROR

Netanyahu picks fight with Biden over arms transfers as US election heats up. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has escalated his feud with Joe Biden, accusing him of holding back arms transfers in a highly public dispute likely meant to pressure and embarrass the White House ahead of the U.S. elections.

U.S. war aid of $6.5 billion discussed during ‘productive' Gallant visit. “This is a massive, massive undertaking,” said a senior administration official, who disclosed the totals to show the depth and complexity of U.S. support for Israel.

What the court's ruling on drafting the ultra-Orthodox means for Israel. The Israeli Supreme Court's ruling ending a decades-old exemption for ultra-Orthodox Jews from serving in the country's military could herald a seismic change in the trajectory of the country.

Israelis' lawsuit says UN agency helps Hamas by paying Gaza staff in dollars. Israelis taken hostage or those who lost loved ones during Hamas' Oct. 7 attack are suing the UN agency that aids Palestinians, claiming it has helped finance the terrorists by paying them via moneychangers in Gaza who give a cut to Hamas.

US POWER OVERSEAS

Marines at Okinawa make first trip in new amphibious combat vehicles. This, in waters off Okinawa doing for the first time what it was designed to do: moving troops from ship to shore.

Air Force Ghostrider flies the South Korean skies for joint training. An AC-130J made an appearance this month at Osan Air Base, South Korea.

Veteran submariner takes command of US Naval Forces Japan. The strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance — and the threats of Chinese and Russian activity in the region — are front and center for him.

CHINA THREAT

US ambassador calls China's tech support for Russia's arms industry during Ukraine war a ‘major mistake.'

Philippines seeking call with China over emerging Sierra Madre naval outpost crisis.

TO FACE CHINA – Australian Defense Force to fast-track transfers for US troops. Australia is streamlining a program that allows American troops and soldiers from other nations to transfer to its army, navy or air force.

Taiwan's Aging Society Poses a National Security Threat. Taiwan's declining population has pressing ramifications for its ability to recruit and sustain an adequate fighting force.

RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR

Ukraine's Zelenskyy and top commander visit front-line troops in the eastern Donetsk region who have weathered fierce Russian ground and air assaults in recent months.

Amid war setbacks and complaints, Ukraine changes another top general. A prominent Ukrainian officer this week accused a top commander of incompetence, blaming him for “thousands” of casualties in a rare public criticism from within the military amid growing discontent among the troops as Russia has advanced on the battlefield.

SPACE THREAT

United Launch Alliance to fly second Vulcan mission in September. UAL expects its Vulcan rocket to conduct its second Space Force certification flight in September, positioning the launch vehicle to fly its first national security space missions this year.

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

Independent UN experts accuse Sudan's warring parties of using starvation as a weapon. This, amid growing concerns about imminent famine in the African nation.

Kenya's president says he won't sign a finance bill that led protesters to storm the parliament leaving several people killed as police opened fire. It was the biggest assault on Kenya's government in decades.

MAYBE KENYA NEEDS ITS COPS MORE AT HOME – Haitians hold their breath as newly arrived Kenyan police force prepares to face gangs. Anticipation is mingling with fear across Haiti as the country welcomes the fourth major foreign intervention in its history to fight gang violence choking the Caribbean country. (RELATED: Obama's Sister Tear-Gassed During Kenya Protest)

Ex-Honduran president sentenced to 45 years for trafficking drugs to US. Juan Orlando Hernández was accused of running a “narco-state.” He has maintained his innocence.

US MILITARY

The Navy's ongoing carrier conundrum. After a grueling eight months leading the Navy's effort to counter Iran-backed Houthi rebel attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower received a reprieve this month when it transited the Suez Canal and headed into the Mediterranean Sea, on its way back home to Norfolk.

Manta Ray submarine drone seemingly spotted on Google Maps at California's Port Hueneme naval base.

Why the US Air Force should keep Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) aircraft project alive. Former secretary of the Air Force, “deeply troubled by recent reports suggesting the possible termination of the Next Generation Air Dominance system due to budgetary constraints.”

Documents detail US soldiers shot by their own Sig Sauer guns; military says no reason for concern. But the incidents are concerning and similar to incidents with many civilian police officers.

END of PDB

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