US Breaks Opens War Stockpile
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The unprecedented global response to Russia invading Ukraine includes the US Army, for the first time ever, accessing equipment stored specifically for rapid response to international military crises, reports Army Times. Prepositioning was a “break-glass” type of preparation developed out of the Cold War. Soldiers would only touch the stocks in case of war. The 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division soldiers deploying to Germany in the first-ever activation of the NATO Response Force will also be the first-ever outfitted with thousands of vehicles and equipment pieces from Army Prepositioned Stocks-2.
Russia continued its assault on Ukraine urban areas at the close of its first week of war, reports The Associated Press, and pressed into other towns and cities, including the strategic ports of Odessa and Mariupol in the south.
A small portion of Ukraine’s arsenal has had a disproportionate effect, reports Military Times. A handful of armed Turkish drones, the Bayraktar TB2, made at a production site in Ukraine, are garnering millions of views on Facebook. They’ve destroyed surface-to-air missile launchers and logistics trains. They’ve inspired songs and are a common refrain in videos taunting the Russian invaders via Twitter.
The European Commission on Wednesday proposed granting automatic, temporary protection for up to three years to people fleeing war in Ukraine, including a residence permit and access to employment and social welfare, reports Reuters.
President Joe Biden promised more aid for Ukraine and more punishment for Russia in his State of the Union address, reports Military Times. He also promised that US troops will not be drawn into the fighting overseas.
Russia’s assault on Ukraine is impacting oil prices, which in the US surged 11% to $106 a barrel, a 7-year high, on Tuesday, reports CNBC. To ease supply constraints the International Energy Agency released 60 million barrels of oil from global reserves, about 4% of members’ emergency stockpiles of 1.5 billion barrels. It is only the fourth such effort in the IEA’s history.
The US will release 30 million barrels as part of the IEA effort to cool surging prices, reports Business Insider, drawing from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve, an underground storage network meant to stabilize oil supply in times of need. The reserve held more than 582 million barrels of crude oil in the week that ended February 18, according to the US Energy Information Administration.
The Pentagon is considering adding US troops in Eastern Europe, reports Defense News. The Biden administration’s $6.4 billion request to Congress to respond to the Ukraine crisis includes $3.5 billion for the DoD and $2.9 billion to support Eastern European allies with security assistance and humanitarian aid.
Turkey Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Russia canceled a bid to send four of its warships through Turkish waters into the Black Sea at Turkey’s request, reports Reuters, adding the decision was made before Ankara closed the straits over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. NATO ally Turkey borders Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea and has good ties with both. On Monday, Ankara said it had closed its Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits under a 1936 pact, allowing it to curb some Russian vessels crossing. The pact exempts vessels returning to their base.
Three Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in two different incidents in the occupied West Bank, reports Aljazeera. Ammar Shafiq Abu Afifa was killed by “Israeli occupation forces shooting at him near the town of Beit Fajar,” said the Palestinian health ministry. Two Palestinians came under fire during a raid resulting in the arrest of Imad Jamal Abu al-Heija, a freed prisoner. Abdullah al-Hosari, 22, and Shadi Khaled Najm, 18, were killed.
The US aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford has completed its sea trials, reports USNI News. The crew of the lead ship in the Navy’s new class of aircraft carriers now enters a training phase before deploying later this year for an abbreviated first patrol.
Boeing, Ford, and ExxonMobile are among the US and multinational companies to halt operations in Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, reports UPI. In a further blow to trade, the world’s three biggest shipping lines suspended shipping to Russia, reports gCaptain. Swiss-headquartered MSC, Denmark’s Maersk, and France’s CMA CGM announced suspension of bookings from Russia.
Biden vows the VA will do better on veterans’ burn pit illnesses, invoking his status as the father of a fallen soldier, reports Military Times. The president used his State of the Union address to promise to improve veterans health care and benefits, specifically focused on individuals suffering from the effects of toxic burn pit smoke from their time deployed overseas.
Major League Baseball has canceled regular season games as labor negotiations with players union implode, reports The Washington Post. It is the first delay of season in nearly three decades and will cost the MLB at least the first two series, or roughly 90 games.
The US Army will demonstrate its offensive drone swarms in this fall’s Project Convergence experimentation effort, reports 4CISRNET. The Army awarded a $14 million contract to BlueHalo in February to develop the capability over a 30-month period.
Contracts:
Leidos, Reston, Virginia (H92404-22-C-0002), was awarded a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract in the amount of $12,604,095 for 12 months of bridge engineering services for the Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) Operations Center (ROC). Fiscal 2022 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $6,000,000 are being obligated at the time of award. The majority of the work will be performed in Cannon Air Force Base, New Mexico; and the Hurlburt-ROC located at Hurlburt AFB, Florida, and will be complete on or about Dec. 13, 2022. This is a sole source contract in accordance with U.S. Code 2304(c)(2), as the agency’s need for the services is of such an unusual and compelling urgency. US Special Operations Command, Tampa, Florida, is the contracting activity. (Awarded Feb. 28, 2022)
Conflict Kinetics Corp., Sterling, Virginia, is awarded a $31,351,956 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract that will include terms and conditions for the placement of firm-fixed-price task orders for the procurement of Tactical Ocular Reaction Area™ (TORA™) small arms simulator software and upgrade support services to include software and contracted information technology system security; and software modifications/software warranty as needed to maintain all TORA™ simulators in training support of all Naval Expeditionary Combat Command locations inside and outside the continental U.S., and Conflicts Kinetics Corp. The contract will include a five-year ordering period with no options. The ordering period is expected to begin April 2022 and be completed by March 2027. Work will be performed in San Diego, California (15%); Port Hueneme, California (15%); Djibouti (15%); Williamsburg, Virginia (10%); Virginia Beach, Virginia (10%); Gulfport, Mississippi (10%); Newport, Rhode Island (7%); Jacksonville, Florida (7%); Seal Beach, California (7%); and Guam (4%). Fiscal 2022 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $100 will be obligated to fund the contract’s minimum amount, and funds will expire at the end of the fiscal year. Individual task orders will be subsequently funded with appropriate fiscal year appropriations at the time of their issuance. One source was solicited for this non-competitive, sole-source requirement pursuant to the authority set forth in 10 US Code 2304(c)(1) in accordance with Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1, with one offer received. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk, Norfolk Contracting Department, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N00189-22-D-0008).
Four Points Technology LLC, Chantilly, Virginia, was awarded a firm-fixed-price contract (HQ0034-22-F-0121) in the amount of $11,252,535 to provide a set of services via a Cloud Service Provider that provides Defense Technology Information Center (DTIC) and its system administrators the ability to operate and maintain DTIC’s Staging and Production environments at Impact Level (IL) 2‐4 level via a commercial cloud. Additionally, the IL4 NIPR environment provides the mission critical services required by our product owners and customers. Fiscal 2022-2023 research, development, technology, and evaluation funds in the amount of $1,080,000 have been obligated for this action. The expected completion date is Feb. 28, 2025. Washington Headquarters Services, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity. (Awarded March 1, 2022)
