Trump Will Focus US On China Threat, Let Europe Handle Russia

TUESDAY PDB – Less military involvement in Europe, dominant China focus likely if Trump wins. The decade-long spending jolt that has fueled an expanded U.S. military mission in Europe could be on the chopping block if Donald Trump becomes president again and turns more attention on national security toward China.

GOOD – EUROPE SHOULD FOCUS ON EUROPE.

An argument playing out now in defense circles centers on whether the U.S. can at once credibly deter China in the Pacific, underwrite the bulk of the security in Europe and rebuild a depleted defense industrial base worn out by Russia's war in Ukraine.

In light of the lack of political appetite for major defense spending increases, some influential conservative analysts are making the case that if something must give, it's America's level of military commitment in Europe.

“We need to grapple with scarcity,” said Elbridge Colby, who served as a deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy in the Trump administration. “We don't have a two-war military. We're not even sure if we have a one-war military, vis-a-vis China.”

ABSOLUTELY CONCUR.

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

UN Security Council rejects a faux Russia-backed resolution on banning weapons in space. Russia last week launched a satellite that could be part of weaponizing space, a possible future global trend that members of the United Nations Security Council condemned.

How artificial intelligence is reshaping modern warfare. Industry leaders discuss modernizing the Pentagon's most high-tech weapons.

WikiLeaks founder Assange wins right to appeal against an extradition order to the US. Julian Assange can appeal an extradition order to the U.S. on espionage charges, a London court ruled Monday — a decision likely to further drag out an already long legal saga.

POLITICS

WOKE A-HOLE – Biden's top military adviser chides Israel for losing ground to Hamas. Gen. C.Q. Brown has rarely spoken negatively about Israeli forces.

STOP THIS FED POWER GRAB! – Colorado officials fight military's attempt to move Air National Guard members to US Space Force. The U.S. military's proposal to unilaterally move potentially hundreds of Colorado Air National Guard members involved in space operations to the Space Force is facing pushback from the governor and most of the state's congressional delegation.

SCOTUS rejects appeal of ex-Gitmo detainee who killed US soldier. The Canadian-born former Guantanamo detainee was seeking to wipe away his war crimes convictions, including for killing a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan.

AI-created porn targeted Taylor Swift — now, lawmakers want to make sure that's a crime in the military. After celebrities were targeted with artificial intelligence-created porn earlier this year, a key House panel wants to make sure any similar incidents in the military can be prosecuted.

ISRAEL'S WAR AGAINST TERROR

TOTAL BS – War crimes prosecutor seeks arrest of Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Netanyahu. The chief prosecutor of the world's top war crimes court sought arrest warrants Monday for leaders of Israel and Hamas over actions taken during their seven-month war.

US POWER OVERSEAS

Trilateral coast guard training would be first among US, Japan, South Korea. This is another move to enhance their partnership amid threats from China and North Korea.

US Army exports multinational combat training center to Philippines. It is taking its Joint Pacific Multinational Combat Training Center to the Southeast Asia country as it seeks to enhance and modernize its defense strategy.

Watch Marines from the US and Philippines compete during martial arts training.

US-based troops' fast setup of field hospital in Europe puts skills on unique display. Over the past week at Baumholder Army Airfield in rural southwestern Germany, they put those plans into practice, pulling off what organizers said was a first in the process.

IRAN THREAT

What Raisi's death means for Iran's future. Iranian leader Ebrahim Raisi died on Sunday when a helicopter carrying him and a delegation of other Iranian officials crash-landed in the mountains of northern Iran, throwing the future of the country and the region into further doubt.

POETIC JUSTICE – Iran's leader was flying in US-produced helicopter when it crashed. The Bell 212 aircraft is a widely used civilian version of the Vietnam-era Huey military helicopter, operated by armed forces and businesses around the globe.

USS Carney had ‘seconds' to respond to anti-ship ballistic missiles. After a nearly eight-month deployment shooting down missiles and drones every week, the crew was put to the test with the mere seconds it had to respond to anti-ship ballistic missiles, ASBMs, launched by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen.

CHINA THREAT

To counter China, the US must strengthen ammunition production. A retired major general discusses the importance of domestic nitrocellulose production to keep up with America's needs.

China needed funds to complete an aircraft carrier; US investors may have helped. China is focused intently on developing aircraft carrier capabilities to project power well beyond its borders. It recently starting sea trials on its third and most advanced aircraft carrier, with a fourth under construction. STUPID AMERICANS HELPED!

RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR

‘They've grown back': How Russia surprised the West and rebuilt its force. The Pentagon in March put a price tag on Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

US has no plan to send military trainers into Ukraine, top general says. And would likely do so only when the war there with Russia is over. This, after France opened the door to sending troops to train Kyiv's forces.

Can Ukraine attack inside Russia? Kyiv wants US to say yes. As Russian forces bear down on the region that is home to Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, U.S. arms are being rushed into the country as quickly as they can.

SPACE THREAT

Space Force to demonstrate satellite maneuvering in 2026 mission. The Space Force's acquisition command is planning a first-of-its-kind logistics mission in 2026 aimed at demonstrating the ability to maneuver and service spacecraft in orbit.

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

US to consider major military, trade package to Georgia if anti-democratic drift reversed. Washington could sign off on a sweeping package of economic and security support for Georgia if its government abandons its increasingly anti-Western rhetoric and stops backsliding on human rights.

US MILITARY

GREAT! New ponchos look to make troops invisible to infrared, thermal scopes. The war in Ukraine has shown that neither darkness or concealment hides troops from optics on drones and sniper rifles.

Watch: Battleship New Jersey sails again: Historic ship heads for repairs in dry dock. One of the most storied ships in Navy history, the 80-year-old WWII battleship, gets pulled from the water for maintenance and repairs.

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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