MONDAY PDB – Ukrainian forces rammed through the Russian border on Aug 5 and swept across some Western parts of Russia's Kursk region.
Russian residents are being moved from some western parts of the Belgorod region, with more than 76,000 people evacuated from the Kursk region, where a state of emergency has been declared by local authorities.
Ukraine's surprise cross-border incursion seen as a tactical reply to Russia's grinding gains. The Ukraine army's surprise charge into Russia this week was a stunning maneuver that caught the Kremlin's forces unawares.
Ukraine appears to expand Russia incursion, in morale boost for Kyiv. Ukrainian forces have continued to push deeper into Russia, further signaling this operation wasn't a short raid but rather a potential occupation.
MEANWHILE – Ukraine's invasion of Russia could bring a quicker end to the war. One aim of the surprise breakthrough may be for Kyiv to gain leverage in negotiations after the U.S. election.
LISTEN – Ukraine goes into Kursk: A dose of the ‘Russia Contingency' with Michael Kofman.
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
US Coast Guard patrol spots Russian military ship off Alaska Aleutian islands. The Russian ship was in international waters but within the U.S. exclusive economic zone
TOO BAD. SO SAD. US says Sinaloa cartel head taken to Texas against his will. Two leading figures in the deadly drug trafficking Sinaloa cartel were arrested after their plane landed in Texas last month. Authorities said one of them did not fly here willingly.
HOMELAND SECURITY
Iran is accelerating cyber activity that appears meant to influence the US election, Microsoft says. Iranians have spent recent months creating fake news sites and impersonating activists, laying the groundwork to stoke division and potentially sway American voters this fall, especially in swing states.
POLITICS
Veterans in Congress jump into Vance-Walz military record fight. Minnesota's Democrat Gov. Tim Walz was recently accused of “stolen valor” by his GOP rival vice-presidential nominee, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio).
Walz's worrisome China ties garner attention, provoke GOP criticism. Washington and Beijing are figuring out what to make of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's deep and concerning connections to China and how they might shape policy if Kamala Harris wins in November.
US POWER OVERSEAS
US submarine trains with allies in Mediterranean amid tensions in Middle East. This, as the Pentagon bolsters its forces in the Middle East amid deepening worries of an Iran-Israel conflict.
Could thousands more US Marines be stationed in Australia? Roughly 2,000 U.S. Marines played a central role in two exercises in Australia this summer that tested how the nation would react to a crisis in the region. More could be on the way to face an ascendant China.
USS Abraham Lincoln sails with Italian carrier Cavour in western Pacific. CVN-72 and ITS Cavour (550) drilled together in the Philippine Sea. Meanwhile amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD-4) arrived in Busan, South Korea on Friday.
Testing new drones, jammers and big balloons. In the desert outside of Agadir, American and Moroccan troops are putting new electronic warfare technology and tactics to the test. This, as part of a long-overdue effort to restore and update capabilities disbanded after the Cold War.
DoD launching new Indo-Pacific partnership for buying, sustaining weapons. The new program will explore opportunities for joint production and sustaining of weapons. It's called PIPIR.
US and Australia making ‘significant progress' on new hypersonic weapon. After more than 15 years of collaboration, the two are perfecting a new fighter-launched air-breathing cruise missile traveling five times the speed of sound. It is designed to target high-value, time-sensitive objectives.
ISRAEL'S WAR AGAINST TERROR
US will keep aid flowing to an Israeli unit accused of rights abuses, citing remediation efforts. The State Department has opted against what would have been its first-ever blocking of aid to an Israeli military unit over rights abuses.
IRAN THREAT
The threat Israel didn't foresee: Hezbollah's growing drone power. Lebanon's terror group launched one of its deepest strikes into Israel in mid-May, using an explosive drone that scored a direct hit on one of Israel's most significant air force surveillance systems.
What to know about Hezbollah weapons as Israel awaits retaliatory strikes. The terror group has guided and unguided rockets, anti-tank artillery, and ballistic and anti-ship missiles, as well as drones equipped with explosives.
With Middle East on edge, experts say Iran has plenty of reasons to delay strike against Israel. Ten days have passed since Israel's dual attack on Tehran, killing Hamas leader Ismail Hanieh, and on Beirut, killing Hezbollah military head Fuad Shukr, but so far neither Iran nor Hezbollah have struck back.
Iran keeps UN-sanctioned Eslami as head of nuclear agency. Tehran is keen to restart talks with the West to ease painful sanctions over its nuclear program. But Mohammad Eslami remains on a UN blacklist for his role in nuclear proliferation and atomic weapons development.
CHINA THREAT
US ‘ill-equipped' to handle nuclear escalation with China in the Indo-Pacific. This, both in the current security environment and in a potential conflict, says new report.
China courts developing nations in its push to build a new world order. It is forging ties in the “Global South” not just with money but also by lending political support based on antipathy toward the American-led order.
Vietnam accelerates island building to challenge China's maritime claims. It is dredging and filling in land, fortifying barriers and erecting new structures to create hundreds of acres.
US funding $32M upgrade to air base in the Philippines. This, as part of a broader U.S. program to upgrade and improve Manila's military bases to face China.
RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR
Veteran human rights advocate freed in recent swap says Russia is sliding back toward Stalinist times. Oleg Orlov thought Russia had turned a corner when the Soviet Union collapsed, and a democratically elected president became leader.
Putin's new agents of chaos. How Russia's growing squad of saboteurs and assassins threatens the West.
SPACE THREAT
Chinese rocket breaks up in orbit, scattering debris. The rocket carrying the first satellites in a planned communications constellation intended to rival Starlink broke up in low-Earth orbit this week.
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY
US restarts offensive weapons sales to Saudi Arabia after lengthy ban. The sale of certain American weapons was frozen in 2021 to signal the Biden administration's misguided disapproval of a Saudi military campaign in Yemen.
New dry dock for Aussie subs an ‘ongoing' discussion. Australia knows it needs to build a large and expensive dry dock, and probably add several other large maintenance facilities to cope with an expanding surface fleet.
US MILITARY
Navy warship production in worst state in 25 years. What's behind it? A labor shortage is one of myriad challenges that have led to backlogs in ship production and maintenance at a time when the Navy faces expanding global threats.
Missile Defense Agency to pick hypersonic interceptor vendor this year. This, to take out a hypersonic weapon in its glide phase of flight.
Army to test hypervelocity projectile for 155mm cannon artillery in 2025.
Ship-killing guided bomb put to test in July as Air Force sinks cargo vessel.
Navy still bullish on lasers but widely deployed directed-energy ship defense remains years away. This, describing the service's latest projects that seek practical anti-air defenses of pure energy.
Pentagon unveils new policy to address troop exposure to blasts. This, as evidence mounts that mortar firing, including during training.
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.
No problem – Eisenhower outlawed the communist party in this country so all we need to do is round them up and run them out of the country. And all the ones that came across our border, courtesy of Biden – interview them and pick out the people that are here because they want to be here as part of our country. One way they can earn their way in is to join our military and defend this country which would now be their country. Educate them in the constitution and bill of rights. Teach them a trade so they can contribute to the wellbeing of the nation. Some could become policemen, firemen, hospital workers, farmers and grow food, etc. My guess is a lot of them want to members of a community and be productive. Food for thought. Take what Biden and the communist democrat party was pushing on them from the dark side and show them the peace and comfort of the light side.