The Defense Department has begun planning for long-term military assistance to Ukraine, setting the stage for Congress to appropriate more funding for what Pentagon officials say will be a multiyear commitment.
Tuesday, February 7, 2023
Tuesday, February 7, 2023
Tony Bertuca is chief editor of Inside the Pentagon, the flagship publication of InsideDefense, where he focuses on defense budget and acquisition policy. He previously worked for the Sun-Times News Group in his hometown of Chicago, IL, and at the New Hampshire Union Leader in Manchester, NH. Tony has also served as managing editor of Inside the Army. He has a master's degree in journalism from Boston University.
The Defense Department has begun planning for long-term military assistance to Ukraine, setting the stage for Congress to appropriate more funding for what Pentagon officials say will be a multiyear commitment.
Senior defense officials are scheduled to speak at several public events this week.
An influential Pentagon advisory board is scheduled to meet next month to receive classified briefings on Chinese and Russian space weapons.
The Defense Department, in its biggest tranche of security assistance to Ukraine to date, is preparing to put $3 billion under contract to deliver surface-to-air missiles, long-range artillery, laser-guided rockets and a variety of drones.
Senior defense officials are slated to speak at several Washington think tank events this week.
The United States is sending dozens of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles to Ukraine, along with additional drones, artillery, ammunition and other weapons as part of an upcoming $775 million military aid package, according to a senior defense official.
Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks today highlighted President Biden's recent signing of the CHIPS and Science Act, which she said will "supercharge" U.S. semiconductor research, development and production.
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed (D-RI) is leading a bipartisan effort to convince the Federal Communications Commission to rescind an April 2020 decision allowing Ligado Networks to deploy a new, low-power, terrestrial nationwide network after next month that lawmakers say would cause "unacceptable risk" to national security.
Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks is scheduled to travel to four different states this week to discuss the Pentagon's efforts to strengthen the defense industrial base.
The week ahead is slated to be a quiet one in Washington but senior defense officials are scheduled to speak at different events hosted around the country.
The United States is sending a $1 billion military aid package to Ukraine, including long-range artillery ammunition, anti-armor systems, Claymore mines, armored medical vehicles and other equipment, according to a new Pentagon announcement.
The Pentagon is conducting a contract financing review that could alter its decades-old approach to paying defense contractors, a convoluted subject with a controversial history that the department's pricing chief has likened to a "third rail."
Senior Pentagon officials are slated to speak at a key space and missile defense conference in Huntsville, AL, this week.
Air Force Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, currently the Air Force public affairs director, has been named the Defense Department's new press secretary, according to a Pentagon announcement.
The Senate Appropriations Committee is taking a dim view of a new Pentagon proposal to create a $500 million "Critical Munitions Acquisitions Fund" intended to help the United States surge production of key anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons to continue to aid Ukraine and prepare for other potential crises.
The United States will be transferring $550 million in artillery ammunition to help Ukraine fend off an ongoing Russian invasion, including additional rounds for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, according to a Defense Department statement released today.
Nominees for several senior defense positions are slated to testify on Capitol Hill this week, while think tankers ponder the Pentagon's Nuclear Posture Review.
The United States is sending a $270 million military aid package to Ukraine that includes four additional High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems and up to 580 additional Phoenix Ghost tactical drones, which have loitering munition capabilities similar to Switchblade unmanned aerial systems.
The Senate Armed Services Committee wants the Government Accountability Office to review the Pentagon's process for considering defense industry mergers and acquisitions, a topic that has become especially controversial in recent months following the government's blocking of Lockheed Martin's proposed $4.4 billion acquisition of Aerojet Rocketdyne.
The United States intends to send four additional High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems and more long-range missiles to Ukraine, bringing the total number of transferred HIMARS to 16, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said today.