FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – American Liberty News (ALN) – in collaboration with the Center for American Defense Studies (CADS) – provides our readers the PDB:
Not the President's Daily Brief, but almost as good – PAUL'S DAILY BRIEFING.
Get Your Best Daily Defense and Foreign Affairs Intelligence Here in One Brief.
Read the summaries or dive deeper via the linked articles.
Today's PDB includes a variety of critical, global national security issues.
** For additional intel on the Russia-Ukraine war and other hot topics we can't fit here, please also subscribe to ‘Paul's Defense Brief' at paulcrespo.substack.com.
READ TODAY'S PDB BELOW:
NATIONAL SECURITY
MIGHT BE KIND OF A BIG DEAL – UN to debate Security Council permanent member veto power. The United Nations is on Tuesday set to debate a provision that would require the five permanent members of the body's Security Council – the United States, United Kingdom, France, China and Russia – to justify invoking their veto powers.
EU OR NATO? First-ever defense talks between US, EU near amid Ukraine war. Against the backdrop of Russia's attack on Ukraine, U.S. and European Union officials are preparing a new meeting later this month officials hope will tie the two global players closer together on defense.
CHINA THREAT
EXCEPT THAT YES, IT WILL – Solomon Islands PM says security pact with China won't undermine regional peace. Solomon Islands' decision to sign a security pact with China will not hurt or undermine peace and harmony in the region, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare told parliament on Wednesday.
Lincoln Carrier Strike Group teams up with Japanese navy in Philippine, East China seas. The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group conducted operations with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force in the Philippine Sea and East China Sea Monday.
RUSSIA THREAT
Russia ratchets up battle for control of eastern Ukraine. Russia ratcheted up its battle for control of Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland on Tuesday, intensifying assaults on cities and towns along a front hundreds of miles long in what officials on both sides described as a new phase of the war.
NOT NOTHING – Russia has lost about 25% of its combat power originally used in the Ukraine invasion, say Pentagon. Russia has lost about one-quarter of its troops, weapons and military equipment originally sent to invade Ukraine less than two months ago, a senior U.S. defense official said Tuesday.
Bring the Reforger exercises back to Europe. The Defense Department should reinstitute the Reforger — REturn of FORces to GERmany — deployment exercises, last conducted in 1993.
IRAN THREAT
UNDER BIDEN, NOT TRUMP – How US-Saudi relations reached the breaking point. The decades-long alliance is at risk over disagreements regarding oil production levels, security concerns, human rights and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY
NO BUENO – Exclusive: Mexico shuts elite investigations unit in blow to U.S. drugs cooperation. Mexico has disbanded a select anti-narcotics unit that for a quarter of a century worked hand-in-hand with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to tackle organized crime, two sources said, in a major blow to bilateral security cooperation.
Are Nigeria's bandits a new Boko Haram cell or rival ‘terrorists'? In northwestern Nigeria, evidence suggests bandits are becoming collaborators with, and rivals to, Boko Haram factions.
BIDEN'S AFGHAN DISASTER
THANK YOU, MR. BIDEN – Desperate Afghans sell kidneys to survive. Afghanistan's deepening humanitarian crisis is fueling a booming trade in human organs. “No father in the world wants to sell his son's kidney.”
US MILITARY
NICE! Army chooses Sig Sauer to build its Next Generation Squad Weapon. The Army has picked Sig Sauer to build and deliver its Next Generation Squad Weapon variants, according to a release issued late Tuesday.
Shifting gears: Marine Corps exercise reflects focus on Indo-Pacific. The Marines' reorientation toward the Indo-Pacific region will largely depend on how well the Corps can overcome the challenges of a vast maritime environment.
National Guard discussing possible deployments to Eastern Europe. With the Russian invasion of Ukraine expected to last months, thousands of troops deployed in February and March have been extended past their initial 90-day commitments, calling into question how long these deployments will last, and how rotations might continue.
WHAT A ‘MONUMENTAL' WASTE OF EFFORT – Military sites honoring Confederates can't be renamed without further action from Congress. The debate over renaming military sites which honor Confederate leaders will return to Capitol Hill in coming weeks after defense officials said Congress needs to approve additional authorities allowing them to make those changes.
END of PDB
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
