McConnell Says, “Russians Are Not Our Friends”
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Noting alleged meddling in US and European elections and the 2014 annexation of Crimea, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, (R-KY) says, “The Russians are not our friends … [they] are acting like the old Soviet Union used to act,” reports Defense News.
Twice as many Marines will deploy to Norway next year and train just hundreds of miles from the Russian border, reports Military.com. And Asia Times reports the Russian military build-up continues, with Russian units in just the Pacific expect to take delivery of 37 new vessels by 2024.
The head of the National Guard Bureau’s intelligence directorate said several governors have asked for a review of election security processes, reports C4ISRNET.
The US State Department said Russia, last year, deployed “a space object … inconsistent with anything seen before from on-orbit inspection or space situational awareness capabilities, C4ISRNET reports.
C4ISR reports, a member of Congress who retired as a one-star general in the electronic warfare field says the US is at the rear of the top three electronic warfare powers in the world.
Chinese bombers are much more active and operating farther from Chinese shores at an increased frequency, reports Business Insider. The Pentagon thinks they are likely training for strikes on US targets, according to the 2018 China Military Power Report.
South China Morning Post reports, next year China will begin launching satellites to track water conditions and traffic, and reinforce “national sovereignty” in the South China Sea.
The University of North Florida will close a campus branch of a Chinese-run cultural institute, the latest US college to do so amid criticism from US legislators that China uses the institute to influence American higher education, reports South China Morning Post.
The Pentagon has awarded more than $34 million to install luxurious interiors in two of President Trump’s back-up Air Force One aircraft, which are also often used by the first lady and cabinet secretaries, reports Defense One.
The Navy, Air Force and Army collect different information on aircraft crashes, reports Pilot Online, complicating DoD efforts to improve safety across the services, according to a congressional watchdog report.
Hours after military officials pegged the price tag at $92 million for Trump’s military parade scheduled for Nov. 10, 2018, Military Times reports the Pentagon announced the military parade through the nation’s capital will be postponed until 2019.
Key Republicans in the Senate aren’t sold on the Space Force, reports Military Times. But two House GOP leaders do back President Donald Trump’s proposed Space Force, setting up a debate over establishing and paying for a new branch of the military.
Engineers soon need to work out how to prevent robots from killing, reports C4ISRNET. An upcoming a diplomatic gathering will debate how to govern or prohibit lethal autonomous weapons systems and outline meaningful control over the weapons they bring to war. But execution reside with the engineers.
Progress is being made to restore the F/A-18 Super Hornet to fighting condition, reports Defense News. Last year only one in three of the fighters was ready to deploy. Today almost half are considered “mission capable.”
Responding to reports that a key federal consumer protection agency is considering pulling back efforts to protect service members from predatory lenders, Military Times reports, that all 48 Senate Democrats plus independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders wrote Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget, and acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to use “all of the authorities available to the CFPB to ensure that service members and their families continue to receive all of their [Military Lending Act] protections.”
Google tracks users who turn off location history, reports BBC News.
Contracts:
Leidos Innovations Corp., Gaithersburg, Maryland, was awarded a $55,645,987 modification (PZ0011) to foreign military sales (Afghanistan) contract WRGZ58-17-C-0058 for logistics support services for the Afghan Air Force and Special Mission Wing aircraft fleets. Work will be performed in Kabul, Afghanistan, with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2020. Fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance Army funds in the amount of $55,645,987 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.
Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC), Reston, Virginia, is being awarded a $7,137,580 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to previously awarded contract N00024-14-C-6301 to exercise an option for the Mine Warfare and Environmental Decision Aids Library program. This option exercise is for the Mine Warfare and Environmental Decision Aids Library (MEDAL), which provides mine warfare situational awareness, mission planning, evaluation and asset management software to support existing and emerging mine warfare missions, users and systems. Work will be performed in McLean, Virginia (94 percent); Charleston, South Carolina (3 percent); Los Angeles, California (2 percent); and Hampton, Virginia (1 percent), and is expected to be completed by September 2019. Fiscal 2018 other procurement (Navy) and fiscal 2018 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $917,618 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity.
Six3 Intelligence Solutions Inc./CACI, McLean, Virginia, was awarded a $125,807,584 modification (P00021) to contract W911W4-16-C-0006 for intelligence support services to the U.S. Forces-Afghanistan and Resolute Support director of intelligence. Work will be performed in Kabul, Afghanistan, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 28, 2020. Fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance Army funds in the amount of $23,577,527 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity.
ForcePoint Federal LLC, Herndon, Virginia, has been awarded a $9,053,370 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract provides for user activity monitoring capability to detect, deter, and mitigate the insider threat on a classified network. Work will be performed in Herndon, Virginia; and San Antonio, Texas, and is expected to be complete by Aug. 16, 2021. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $1,269,366.30 are being obligated at the time of award. The Secretary of the Air Force, Concepts, Development, and Management Office, Pentagon, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (FA7146-18-D-0393).
