FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – American Liberty News (ALN) – in collaboration with respected national security expert Paul Crespo and 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.
POLITICS & BUDGET
AT LEAST UKRAINIANS ARE GETTING PAID – Biden signs $1.7 trillion bill funding government operations. President Joe Biden on Thursday signed a $1.7 trillion spending bill that will keep the federal government operating through the end of the federal budget year in September 2023, and provide tens of billions of dollars in new aid to Ukraine for its fight against the Russian military.
A look at the new veterans headed to Congress in January. Nineteen veterans will begin roaming the halls of Congress next week, contributing to one of the biggest classes of lawmakers who served in the military in recent years.
As Army military justice reform unfolds, Congress monitoring. By the end of 2023, the Army's new independent prosecutorial office dedicated to handling complex, severe cases will assume full control over those cases under changes imposed by Congress in recent years, taking such decisions out of commanders' hands.
NATIONAL SECURITY
Australia to extradite Marine vet who allegedly trained Chinese pilots. Australia approved a U.S. request to extradite a Marine veteran who has been charged with training Chinese military pilots, according to an Australian Attorney-General statement.
HOMELAND SECURITY
PENTAGON CORRUPTION – New in 2023: The fate of Fat Leonard. Who knew that “Fat Leonard” Glenn Francis had an encore planned?
CHINA THREAT
‘Danger close': Video shows Chinese jet buzzing US spy plane. The Pentagon on Thursday released video it said showed a Chinese fighter jet coming dangerously close to a U.S. Air Force RC-135 Rivet Joint spy plane over the South China Sea last week.
US to sell Taiwan anti-tank mine-laying Volcano system. The U.S. State Department has approved the sale of an anti-tank mine-laying system to Taiwan amid the rising military threat from China.
To deter China, Taiwan must prepare for war. Military conscription is a good start, but leaders in Taipei need to act with even greater urgency.
RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR
Russia launches one of its biggest missile barrages ahead of New Year's Eve. But Ukrainians say celebrations will go on. Explosions rattled villages and cities across Ukraine on Thursday, damaging civilian infrastructure and killing at least three people in what Kyiv has called one of Moscow's biggest missile barrages since the war began in February.
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 310. Shortly after 2am, Kyiv's city government issued an alert on its Telegram channel calling on residents to proceed to shelters, as air raid sirens sounded. Olekskiy Kuleba, governor of Kyiv region, said an “attack by drones” was under way. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a video address on Thursday night, said air commands in central, southern, eastern and western Ukraine repelled 54 Russian missiles and 11 drones. Officials had earlier said more than 120 missiles were fired during Thursday's assault.
Volodymyr Zelensky securing US Patriot defense system will shift balance but not end fighting. Because of its long range and high-altitude capability, the Patriot system can shoot down Russian missiles and aircraft far from their targets.
US weighs sending Bradley Fighting Vehicles to bolster Ukraine. The U.S. government is considering sending Bradley Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine as part of a further package of military support.
FALSE FLAG or EXCUSE? – Belarus says it downed Ukraine air defense missile. Belarus has summoned the Ukrainian ambassador, saying it had shot down a Ukrainian air defense missile in Belarusian territory.
Russia says Ukraine ‘not ready for dialogue' amid peace summit plans. Ukraine's proposed peace plan shows it is “not ready for dialogue,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told state media.
The bravery and the recklessness of Ukraine's improvised army. Helping repel the Russian invasion are army units with limited military experience. The question for their country is whether they can stay alive long enough to succeed.
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY – NATO, MIDDLE EAST, ASIA, AFRICA
WAR ON TERROR NOT OVER – US troops conducted 313 missions and killed 686 ISIS fighters in 2022. The war against ISIS continues.
Sweden, Finland try ‘future ally' path with Turkey in bid to join NATO. Finland and Sweden have adopted a common “future ally” approach with Turkey in an attempt to fast-track their NATO membership — something hindered by the Ankara government.
Serbs revoke troop alert, remove some roadblocks in Kosovo. Serbia on Thursday revoked combat readiness of its troops on the border with Kosovo as local Serbs started removing more than a dozen of the roadblocks they had set up in the north of the state, in a sign of easing of tensions that have sparked fears of a renewed conflict in the Balkans.
PREPARE FOR CONFLICT WITH IRAN – Netanyahu returns as PM, wins Knesset support for Israel's most hardline government. Incoming coalition, approved by 63-54 votes, has pledged to hobble the High Court, consider West Bank annexation, and further centralize Orthodox control over state Jewish services.
Turkey, Syria, Russia defense ministers hold talks in Moscow. The three nations agree to continue meeting in future to ensure stability in Syria and the region, Turkish defense ministry says.
Eritrean soldiers leave major towns in northern Ethiopia – witnesses. Eritrean soldiers, who fought in support of Ethiopia's federal government during its two-year civil war in the northern Tigray region, have pulled out of the major towns of Shire and Axum and headed toward the border.
NORTH KOREA THREAT
South Korea stages drills simulating downing of North drones. South Korea staged large-scale military drills Thursday to simulate shooting down drones as a step to bolster its readiness against North Korean provocations, three days after the North flew drones into its territory for the first time in five years.
South Korea's Indo-Pacific strategy highlights partnerships against regional threats. South Korea's first comprehensive strategy for the Indo-Pacific region embraces the country's ties to the United States and Japan against its neighbor North Korea's “serious threat to peace and stability.”
DOUBTFUL – North and South Korea must return to peaceful dialogue after year of tit-for-tat escalation raises nuclear risks. Stakes are never higher as North Korea grows bolder in developing its nuclear weapons, passes a first-strike law, and cozies up to Russia and China.
IRAN THREAT
Iran holds military drill near strategic Strait of Hormuz. Iran's military on Friday kicked off its annual drill in the coastal area of the Gulf of Oman and near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, state TV reported, even as the authorities continue their crackdown on anti-government protests that have been underway for over three months.
BIDEN'S AFGHAN DISASTER
SUCH ABSOLUTE BULLSH*T SPIN – HE KNEW AND DIDN'T CARE – Afghan withdrawal left Biden frustrated, sleepless: book. Chris Whipple's “The Fight of His Life: Inside Joe Biden's White House” says Biden was stunned as the Afghan forces quickly crumbled in August 2021.
US MILITARY
PODCAST – New Army rifle and light machine gun coming. The Army is planning to field a new rifle and light machine gun combination in 2023 for some of its troops.
New in 2023: Small boats for Marine Reserve experimentation. Rigid inflatable boats could align with the Marine Corps' ambitious modernization plan.
PENTAGON ‘WOKENESS' IS ALSO A BIG FACTOR – 6 ways the Army can appeal to Gen Zers and recruit more than a few good men and women. The U.S. Army fell short of its enlisted recruiting goals for 2022 by 25%. A confluence of obesity, lack of high school diplomas and accelerated mental health crises among youth hurt. So, too, while the all-volunteer force (AVF) has been a great success on many counts, it has separated the military from wider society, leaving declining interest in military service and Army recruiting from a smaller and smaller pool of military families.
New in 2023: Air Force tries for a better year of recruiting. Air Force recruiters again aim to bring in more than 26,000 new enlisted airmen in fiscal 2023 during what could be another tough year for military accessions.
Navy rolls out new incentives for sailors who refer new recruits. Amid recruiting challenges across all branches of the military, the Navy is rolling out new incentives for sailors to participate in the service's “Every Sailor is a Recruiter” program.
MEANWHILE – Dozens of US Space Force Guardians finish basic, graduate in style at Lackland. It was a banner day for some of the military's more unique trainees today as 80 U.S. Space Force Guardians graduated from basic training.
New in 2023: PACT Act processing set to start Jan 1. Last summer, Congress passed landmark veterans benefits legislation that could provide new health care options and disability payouts to as many as one in every five living American veterans.
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.
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