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Hundreds of Russian Mercenaries Now in Venezuela, US Admiral Says by Richard Sisk of Military.com

Hundreds of Russian mercenaries are in Venezuela to prop up the "illegitimate regime" of President Nicolas Maduro, who has announced his intention to go to North Korea to break out of the isolation imposed by the U.S. and its allies, Adm. Craig Faller, head of U.S. Southern Command, said Friday at a breakfast with reporters in Washington, D.C.

"Certainly strange friends," Faller said of the recent expressions of mutual support between Maduro and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, "but it would not surprise me and we are concerned about that relationship."

"Very soon, we will go soon" to North Korea to meet with Kim on military and economic cooperation, Maduro said on Venezuelan state TV Wednesday. His announcement followed on a visit last month by a Venezuelan delegation to North Korea.

The outreach to North Korea fit a pattern in Maduro's efforts to maintain power, Faller said. Those efforts have continued despite the internal corruption of Maduro's regime and crippling sanctions imposed by the U.S. that have forced an estimated four million Venezuelans to flee the country.

The Trump administration has backed opposition leader Juan Guaidó, and recognized him as the legitimate president, but Maduro has remained in office with support from Russia, Cuba, China, Iran and now, it seems, North Korea, Faller said.

"Russia, China and Iran -- they're there, they're present, and they're working for their national interests in ways that are counter to long-term stability of the region," Faller said. "Russia, I'm convinced, is out to make the United States look bad [in South America] at every turn of the corner."

China has focused on spreading economic influence in Latin America and worldwide, Faller said, and the "future of this globe depends on how we can reconcile that competition.

"But right now, in this hemisphere, that competition is strong, and in the area of values and access and influence it borders on conflict," he said.

Southern Command has limited capabilities, but is working with regional partners to counter "what Maduro's done in his country, how he's driven it into the ground with his cronies along with the interventionist assistance of Russia, China, Iran," Faller said. "And now we see liaison with North Korea."

To back Maduro, Russia has "deployed nuclear-capable bombers" for fly-bys in the region, and Russia has "deployed their most advanced warship that's capable of firing nuclear cruise missiles," Faller said.

He referred to a June visit to the region of the guided-missile frigate Admiral Gorshkov, which made a port stop in Cuba.

In addition, there are hundreds of Russian mercenaries in Venezuela, along with a "significant amount of Russian arms and Russian arms support," Faller said.

"The palace guard around Maduro is Cuban, nearly 100% of the presidential guard are now Cuban, so there's thousands of Cubans and hundreds of Russians" in Venezuela, Faller said.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.

Original article can be found here.

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The Washington Times: Russian and Chinese activity on the rise in South America, U.S. commander warns

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Task & Purpose: Hundreds of Russian mercenaries now in Venezuela, US admiral says

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Most Sealift Vessels Measured Up in 32-Ship ‘Pressure Test,’ Army General Says by Otto Kreisher of Seapower Magazine

Most of the ships mobilized in a severe “stress test” of the Maritime Administration’s and Military Sealift Command’s ability to get their aged fleets under way in a crisis did “pretty well,” but the commander of the U.S. Transportation Command wants to accelerate the programs to modernize that crucial force.

“If it were up to me, we’d be doing it faster,” and he discussed that objective with Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer, Army Gen. Stephen R. Lyons, commander of U.S. Transportation Command, said Oct. 2.

“We’re in the process of working with the Navy.”

In late September with little advance notice, MARAD and MSC mobilized 32 of their transport and support ships from both the forces normally on alert status and those in the Ready Reserve, which take more time and effort to get under way.

The exercise was a test of the capability of ships that are considered ancient by commercial standards and the availability of civilian mariners qualified to operate such ships, which include some of the last steam-powered vessels in the world. Independent analysts and some Navy officers have warned that the aged vessels and the declining numbers of qualified mariners could hobble the Navy’s ability to transport and sustain forces committed to an overseas conflict.

Of the 32 ships activated, “I would say most of them did pretty well. We’re waiting for final results. But in terms of sea trials, initial reporting, it was in the 80% to 85% range” of activating ships to task, Lyons told a Defense Writers breakfast. “Of those 32 ships, the average is 43 years old. In commercial industry it’s about 15.”

He added: “It was a great pressure test. We’ll look at the numbers, also get the quality assessment” in a detailed report that could be available by the end of October.

Asked if he was making any progress on the three-tiered program Congress has approved to modernize the sealift and prepositioning fleets — by upgrading the newest ships, building some new ones and buying a lot of used commercial ships — Lyons said “yes,” but he wants to accelerate the effort.

“What I’d like to do in the authorization to acquire used vessels is to accelerate that. … I know there is work now at the [Navy] Department to fund the seven,” which include two new and five used. “I’m pushing to accelerate. The Navy program now needs to be plussed up. … But the secretary and others are in favor of finding the money.”

Lyons also expressed concern with the progress on efforts to solve a far different problem that has drawn widespread criticism from Congress and service families — the perpetual failure of commercial movers hired by the services to get household goods from one home to another in a reasonable time and in good condition.

The command issued a request for proposals two weeks ago and has gotten a lot of interest from firms willing to take on what would be a nationwide contract to provide the tens of thousands of household moves every year, Lyons said. The major failure in the existing program was the inability to hold contractors accountable and to lack of a national system with common standards and the ability to inform managers in different regions of a poor performing contractor elsewhere.

“Inside the Department, we don’t have clear lines to hold them accountable for delivering the service. … And most of all, we have to have a consistent pattern of quality of delivery,” he said.

Original article can be found here.

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US State Department clears Ukraine security assistance funding. Is the Pentagon next? by Aaron Mehta of Defense News

WASHINGTON — The U.S. State Department has cleared $141.5 million in security assistance for Ukraine, including money for sniper rifles and grenade launchers — and another $250 million from the Defense Department, controversially delayed by the Trump administration, appears set to move as well.

Speaking at a Defense Writers Group event Thursday, R. Clarke Cooper, assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs, announced that Congress was notified late Wednesday about the funding. Those dollars can be used 15 days after the notification, should there be no objection from Capitol Hill.

“The Department of State has assessed further opportunities on foreign military financing and additional opportunities on the Countering Russian Aggression accounts,” Cooper said. “We also have support to the conventional weapons destruction and abatement and weapon storage. So there is a whole host of security assistance that we have outlined and identified for Ukraine.”

“I would anticipate there would be further notifications, but we were able to get all that paperwork done and pushed to Capitol Hill yesterday,” he added.

An hour later, during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., indicated that the Defense Department’s funding for Ukraine may also move forward, saying Ukraine is “going to get the money.”

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., later claimed that the Trump administration moved the funds in part because the Whie House was embarrassed Congress was poised to act on the issue.

The $250 million become a political flashpoint at the end of August, when reports emerged that the White House requested Defense Secretary Mark Esper and then-national security adviser John Bolton to review that security assistance package. The delay resulted in bipartisan criticism from Congress, where support for Ukraine remains strong.

The situation expanded days later, when The Washington Post’s editorial board wrote that it was “reliably told” the Trump administration suspended the aid to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to relaunch a corruption probe into former Vice President Joe Biden — the front-runner in the Democratic primary to challenge President Donald Trump — and his son. Reportedly, a prosecutor previously investigated Biden’s son, who had worked for a Ukrainian energy firm. As a result of the Post’s claim, House Democrats threatened to launch an investigation.

The latest approval for funding comes from fiscal 2018 foreign military financing and overseas contingency operations accounts ($26.5 million) and from fiscal 2019 foreign military financing funds ($115 million).

The projects break down like this:

  • $10 million to the Countering Russian Influence Fund, which helps provide “advisors, equipment, spare parts and training to build maritime domain awareness, secure communications, command and control, marksmanship, night vision disaster preparedness and special operations and territorial defense units.” Some money may also be used for cyber resiliency efforts.
  • $16.5 million in Europe and Eurasia regional funds, targeted to Black Sea maritime security efforts with a focus on “detecting, identifying and tracking Russian surface, subsurface and long-range aircraft combatants.” This may include funding for naval special warfare training.
  • $115 million in foreign military financing funding for FY19. Included in that funding are English language training, medical equipment, an improvised explosive device simulator and urban operations simulation equipment. Other areas of focus include naval and maritime capability support, refurbishment of equipment, airfield defense, night vision devices, radars, vehicles and tactical communication equipment. More specifically, funding “seeks to improve anti-armor, anti-personnel and counter-sniper capabilities against Russian-led separatists by modernizing Ukraine’s small arms weapons inventory with more precise and capable weapons, including sniper rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.”

Cooper, for his part, said the number of different accounts for Ukraine, along with a recent visit from U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, is a sign of the Trump administration’s focus on the region.

“There is a whole host of security assistance that we have outlined and identified for Ukraine.,” he said.

Joe Gould in Washington contributed to this report.

Original article can be found here.

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The US Military’s AI Can’t Find Targets On Its Own — Yet, Top USAF General Says by Marcus Weisgerber of Defense One

Nearly two years since the Pentagon started bringing artificial intelligence to the battlefield, the algorithms still need human help, a top U.S. Air Force general said Tuesday.

But Gen. Mike Holmes said the technology is getting better at identifying people, cars, and other objects in drone video. He also sees promise in other AI applications, like predicting when parts on planes will break.

“[W]e’re still in the process of teaching the algorithms to be able to predict what’s there from the data and be as reliable as we would like it to be or as reliable as our teams of people [who] are doing that,” the Air Combat Command leader said Tuesday at a Defense Writers Group breakfast.

“Those tools are there. We’re starting to use them and experiment with them,” he said. “I don’t think, in general, they’re at the point yet where we’re confident in them operating without having a person following through on it, but I absolutely think that’s where we’re going.”

While Air Combat Command is best known for its high-performance fighter jets, Holmes also oversees the Air Force’s drone program and the stateside intelligence centers that process the video and other data collected from high above the battlefield.

Two years ago, the Pentagon stood up Project Maven, a small cell tasked with putting algorithms inside the computers that receive video captured by drones above the battlefield. Maven deployed its first AI-powered tools in 2017, and Pentagon officials soon declared the initial experiments a success. But the deployment also sparked an ethical debate about using decision-making machines on the battlefield. A batch of Google employees objected to the company working on Project Maven.

In June 2018, Holmes called artificial intelligence “a big part of our future and you’ll continue to see that expanded.”

But the general’s comments Tuesday show that’s still a ways off. Holmes compared Project Maven to “teaching your three-year-old with the iPad” to pick out objects that are a certain color.

“I would watch my previous aide de camp’s three-year-old and he’d pick out all the green things,” Holmes said. “Green, green, green, not green. “That’s what we’re doing with Maven. Its car, car, car, not car.”

“You have to teach it and it learns and it’s learning, but it hasn’t learned yet to the point where you still don’t have to go back and have mom or dad looking over the shoulder of the three-year-old to say, ‘Yeah, those really are cars.’ Or ‘those really are green’.”

Original article can be found here.

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Deasy Faces Senate Confirmation as IT Portfolio Progresses by Rachel Cohen of Air Force Magazine

Pentagon Chief Information Officer Dana Deasy will come under congressional scrutiny to stay in the same role, thanks to legislative language in the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act that turned his job into a presidentially chosen, Senate-confirmed post at the start of 2019.

President Donald Trump formally nominated Deasy on June 25. The CIO found out the announcement was posted during a Defense Writers Group breakfast that morning, but said there isn’t anything notable about the timing. The legislative change reflects Congress’s recognition of technology’s growing importance to the military, he argued.

Heading into his Senate confirmation process, Deasy wants members to think about the issues that fall under his portfolio—information management, technology, and assurance; certain space systems; satellite and telecommunications; navigation and timing programs; electromagnetic spectrum; and artificial intelligence—as interdependent parts of a bigger whole.

“When I arrived and I started conversations with different members, it was a variety of topics … it was cloud, it was [artificial intelligence], it was various parts of [command, control, and communications], it was about people, it was about organizational structures, data management,” Deasy said. “It just screamed out to me that this was connected, but someone just needed to step back, look at the individual pieces, be able to explain what each piece is trying to accomplish … and then bring it together into kind of a holistic story.”

Data—as well as the general-purpose, global cloud system envisioned to hold it, the algorithms used to crunch it, and the means of keeping it all safe—will sit at the core of military operations going forward. Deasy provided updates on three key pushes expected to change future warfare: the enterprise cloud effort known as JEDI, a rollout of 5G networks at bases across the country, and pilot programs at the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center.

The Pentagon anticipates issuing a $10 billion contract to Amazon or Microsoft for the Joint Enterprise Department Infrastructure (JEDI) cloud in late August, even as Oracle awaits the outcome of its challenge to the program in federal claims court. Deasy said the ruling will not affect the contract award. Oracle and IBM’s bids were rejected earlier this year. Oracle alleges the Defense Department wrote its program requirements too narrowly and that Amazon offered two DOD employees jobs while they were working on JEDI.

“JEDI Cloud will enable the warfighter to quickly convert data to actionable information, which is recognized as critical by all of the combatant commands,” according to Joint Staff CIO Lt. Gen. B.J. Shwedo’s June 7 testimony in Oracle America v. US and Amazon Web Services. “Having an enterprise-wide cloud environment allows the data to be aggregated. Once aggregated, advanced analysis capabilities like [AI] and machine learning can be used to ensure the warfighters are receiving analyzed data in a reduced amount of time.”

The cloud should also be accessible when networks are cut off and is expected to boost military training and equipment maintenance.

Deasy noted that in the last six months, his office has reached out to commanders around the world who have a “significant amount of pent-up demand” for cloud capability. DOD will pull together a list of programs that are the top candidates for early migration to JEDI.

In addition, he said the department is assembling a list of military bases that will be the first to test out 5G network infrastructure and help refine the Pentagon’s approach to future wireless capabilities. He added that a predictive maintenance pilot at the JAIC recently offered its first algorithm to US Special Operations Command and the Army to help battle the negative effects of sand in Black Hawk helicopter engines.

Original article can be found here.

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Top U.S. general warns Iran to steer clear of U.S. interests by Wesley Morgan of Politico

The vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday the United States wouldn’t mount a unilateral military response against Iran for the attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman unless U.S. forces or interests in the region are targeted.

Any military response to the tanker attacks would “require an international consensus before military force is used,” Air Force Gen. Paul Selva told reporters, echoing earlier remarks by acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan that the U.S. government is focused on building international consensus in the wake of the tanker attacks.

But “if the Iranians come after U.S. citizens, U.S. assets or U.S. military, we reserve the right to respond with a military action, and they need to know that,” Selva said. And that’s the case even if an attack on U.S. troops comes through “surrogates,” he warned, a reference to Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and elsewhere.

Although Iran is “lashing out against the international community,” the Iranians “haven’t touched an American asset in any overt attack that we can link directly to them,” Selva said

Still, over the weekend, the Pentagon claimed Iranian-backed Houthi rebels had shot down an unmanned U.S. Reaper drone in Yemen earlier this month with what the Pentagon alleged was an antiaircraft missile supplied by Iran.

“The Iranians believe that we won’t respond, and that’s why we’ve been very clear in our message, Selva explained.

“Our history in the region is we have threatened to respond and not responded. It would be a miscalculation on the part of the Iranians to believe that that’s going to persist,” he warned, describing the message the U.S. is trying to impress upon Iranian leaders through the deployment, public messages and the messages through Swiss and Iraqi intermediaries.

Much remains unknown about the attacks, Selva acknowledged. For instance, if Iran indeed conducted them, how did Iranian forces pick the tankers to attack? One of the vessels was Japanese, and the incident occurred as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was visiting Iran.

Iranian forces may have singled out a Japanese tanker, Selva said, to send a message to Japan — or they may simply have picked the tankers nearest their patrol craft.

“I don’t know which one it was, and I’m not sure the intelligence community will ever be able to tell us which one it was,” the general said.

Also unknown is who in Iran authorized the attacks, if indeed Iran conducted them, Selva said.

“The evidence points towards Iran,” Selva told reporters. “The only perpetrator in the area that has a motive to perpetrate it is Iran.”

“The Iranian regime has been under significant pressure both economically and politically to come to the table to negotiate a deal on nuclear weapons and malign activities,” Selva said. “They are lashing out.”

The main evidence of Iran’s role in the latest tanker incident is the speed with which Iranian sailors removed an unexploded limpet mine from 1 of the 2 tankers after the attacks, the general explained. “The fact that they were able to quickly and safely remove a mine from the side of a ship would indicate it was of their own design, of their own emplacement, and they took it into their custody so that it wouldn’t be available as evidence that they perpetrated the attack.”

“Getting alongside a vessel under cover of darkness to attach a mine underway is not an insignificant effort,” he added. “It was done by a military trained and capable … Somebody intended to affect the movement of oil through the Strait of Hormuz.”

Selva’s remarks to reporters came the morning after the Pentagon announced the deployment of another 1,000 U.S. troops to the region in addition to the 1,500 sent last month along with an aircraft carrier strike group and a unit of B-52 bombers.

The new forces are being sent to help protect U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria from possible future attacks by Iranian-backed militias, he said.

“We have to be cautious that we respond only as appropriate, so what we have done is deploy to the region forces that allow us to beef up the defenses of our own forces,” Selva explained.

Among the new troops, he noted, will be “surveillance and reconnaissance” assets that can help warn of attacks as well as units “that can respond if required to an attack against our forces.”

The earlier deployment also included Patriot antiaircraft missile units and fighter jets.

Original article can be found here.

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Lawmakers push and pull over $750B defense policy bill NDAA top line at HASC markup by Joe Gould of Defense News

WASHINGTON ― Partisan sparring over the size of the defense budget marked the House Armed Services Committee’s debate of its annual policy bill Wednesday, highlighting the headwinds faced by the legislation.

Rebuking at the House bill’s $733 billion top line, which is $17 billion less than the Trump administration requested, panel Republicans threw their weight behind an amendment to add the money back. The GOP-controlled Senate is due to consider a rival $750 billion bill that passed the Senate Armed Services Committee in May.

If the committee’s hawkish Republicans vote against the bill in large numbers at the markup, the chamber’s Republicans will also vote against it, observers said.

In that scenario, Democrats would have to rally their own ranks ― a challenge when the number of progressives in the party have expanded since 49 Democrats voted against the annual defense policy bill last year.

HASC’s ranking member, Rep. Mac Thornberry, offered the measure to meet the administration’s request and the Pentagon’s unfunded acquisition priorities. In lockstep Wednesday, Republicans repeatedly argued that a $750 billion top line reflects the 3 to 5 percent minimum growth defense leaders have testified they need to counter Russia and China.

“That is what is required to continue to repair readiness and not fall behind critical areas with the Russians and Chinese,” Thornberry said “Hypersonics: We cut the administration’s request and we are behind in hypersonics.”

A few other Republicans characterized the $17 billion reduction in terms of acquisition programs, like House Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee ranking member Rob Wittman, R-Va. The $17 billion delta represents “significant carnage,” including more than $500 million in submarine construction, nearly $400 million in aircraft carrier construction, $200 in carrier refueling and nearly $100 million in destroyer construction.

 

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US Air Force confirms plan to buy six light attack aircraft by Patrick Host of Jane's Defense

Key Points

  • The US Air Force has settled on purchasing six light attack aircraft for further experimentation
  • It will also perform additional international market research for turbojet and turbofan aircraft, among others

The US Air Force (USAF) has settled on buying six total light attack aircraft from Sierra Nevada Corp (SNC) and Textron Aviation Defense as part of its further experimentation work, according to the service's secretary.

Secretary Heather Wilson said on 16 May that the service would send three aircraft to Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada and Hurlburt Air Force Base in Florida to provide allies opportunities to fly with the USAF and check out the equipment. The air force said previously on 8 May that it would award a contract to SNC for two to three Embraer/SNC A-29 Super Tucanos and that a second procurement action, also for two to three aircraft, would be issued to Textron Aviation Defense for AT-6 Wolverine aircraft.

The USAF, in the next year, will also work with industry to perform a market assessment for a variety of aircraft types. These include turboprop, turbojet, and turbofan, among others. The service was previously considering this market analysis.

"One of the reasons for us to buy this is to enable our allies to do the same," Wilson said at a Defense Writers Group breakfast. "We recognise that not all allies may want the same thing, so we just need to understand that more."

SNC, Textron Aviation Defense, and the USAF did not return requests for comment.

Dan Grazier, military fellow with the Project on Government Oversight (POGO) watchdog group in Washington, DC, believes the USAF performing market research for a variety of light attack aircraft types demonstrates the service is working on the behalf of the defence industry.

Original Article can be found here.

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Walker: Hypersonic HAWC and TBG Neck-And-Neck to Fly by End of Year by John Tirpak of Air Force Magazine

Two hypersonic missile development projects jointly underway between the Air Force and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency are in a “race” to see which will fly first, but DARPA’s director said he expects it will happen by the end of this year, or early next.

Steven Walker, at a press roundtable in Washington, said he’s “hopeful” the Tactical Boost Glide or Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept projects will fly by December, though he said making that timetable will be “sporty.”

“As you get into the building of these things [and] qualify flight hardware, things tend to slip,” Walker allowed. “So, I’m hopeful that we can fly both of those by the end of ’19 [but] it may slip into the early ’20 timeframe.”

He said, “It’s really a race between HAWC and TBG to see which one goes first. They’re actually both scheduled around the same time … I can’t really see right now which one’s going to win out.”

Both approaches are accelerated to hypersonic speed atop a booster stage, but the TBG is a maneuvering coast vehicle that gradually bleeds off its velocity, while the HAWC takes in air to mix with fuel for a powered trajectory. They are both “focused on tactical and theater-level operations,” Walker noted.

Taking two different approaches to a hypersonic weapon is sensible, Walker asserted. “It’s good to have what I consider intended redundancy, because it’s a harder technology. Materials and propulsion systems that last in 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit temperatures is not easy.” He added, “These are going to be important tests for DARPA and the Air Force.”

The Advanced Rapid Response Weapon, or ARRW, will be an outgrowth of the TBG, Walker noted, suggesting it’s considered the most likely to be in service first. Prototyping activities on the concept with the Air Force are designed “so that the service could accept these concepts if they were successful in flight.” Under ARRW, USAF would be “taking that TBG concept and flying it several more times through the prototyping level, building some number for the Air Force.” This was “a very important thing we were able to do last year in the budget.”

Walker noted that Pentagon research and engineering czar Mike Griffin “has been able to get a lot more money into the service budgets for hypersonics for ’20,” and “you will see in the next several years the US aggressively pursuing these technologies; and not just pursuing, … but really thinking about how to turn it into a capability.”

Both projects are entering the “assembly, integration, and test phase,” Walker noted, a period when it’s not uncommon to have to “requalify things … [You] put all that together and you test the whole system, you hope it all works and has been done correctly. We’re still very much in the early stages of AIT for both programs.” He also cautioned that scheduling range tests and ensuring they’re done “by the book” can complicate or cause delays to testing. “Once you get into test hardware, there are all sorts of things you have to face down every day and beat back,” he added.

Technologically, tough challenges include managing temperatures and materials to withstand them, Walker said.

DARPA is also working with the Army on a variant of TBG that would be lofted to altitude and speed by an all-new booster. The project, called “Op Fires,” is a 50-50 cost sharing program with the Army. The booster is being eyed “to give some controllability to where that front end can be put. Re-entry conditions for a glider are very important for how far it can go, and what the environment it sees is.” Three “small companies” are working on the booster, he said.

For the Air Force versions, Walker said the B-52 will be the test launch vehicle.

The Navy, meanwhile, is considering whether the HAWC approach could be a solution to its needs, though it hasn’t finished studying the issue and has made no decision, Walker reported.

“I do know the Navy is working on the larger OSD program, but that’s not really a DARPA thing,” he added.

Hypersonics is an urgent technology push, Walker insisted, because although the US has “led the way” in research previously, “some of our peer competitors have taken that technology and turned it into a capability faster than we have.” It’s “an area that I believe the US really needs to make progress in and be a leader in.”

Original article can be found here.

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It’s Getting Harder to Track US Progress in Afghanistan by Katie Bo Williams of Defense One

Almost every metric “is now classified or nonexistent,” says the special inspector general for Afghan reconstruction.

It’s getting harder and harder for the public to track the U.S.military’s progress in its 17-year war in Afghanistan, the special inspector general for Afghan reconstruction warned Wednesday ahead of the release of his latest quarterly report.

“What we are finding is now almost every indicia, metric for success or failure is now classified or nonexistent. Over time it’s been classified or it’s no longer being collected,” John Sopko told reporters. “The classification in some areas is needless.”

Sopko did not detail what information previously made public would be blacked out in the new report, due out this month. The quarterly reports — which are mandated by Congress and are intended to be public documents — track waste, fraud and abuse in U.S. reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan. The reports have also become an important tracking tool for territorial and population control by the Taliban.

The inspector general reports have long suggested the creeping rise of classification. The number of Afghan security forces killed in action is kept classified at the request of the Afghan government. In the last year, the Defense Department classified basic performance evaluations for the U.S.-backed Afghan security forces, as well as the Afghan Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defense — metrics that have been used in the past to gauge progress in America’s so-called “forever war.”

“I don’t think it makes sense,” Sopko said. “The Afghan people know which districts are controlled by the Taliban. The Taliban obviously know which districts they control. Our military knows it. Everybody in Afghanistan knows it. The only people who don’t know what’s going on is the people who are paying for all of this and that’s the American taxpayer.”

President Trump in January questioned why the reports are made public, arguing that they provided useful battlefield intelligence to the enemy. “What kind of stuff is this?” he said during a televised cabinet meeting. “The enemy reads those reports; they study every line of it…. I don’t want it to happen anymore, Mr. Secretary. You understand that.” Future investigations, he said, “should be private reports and be locked up.”

Sopko on Wednesday said that the rise in classification was an ongoing trend, not a result of the president’s apparent public order to Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan. “There’s been some changes” in the latest report, he said, but “I don’t see any direct link” to the January press conference.

“I don’t think there was any link specifically. There’s been no pushback, nothing as a result of that press conference, and I’ve talked to the other IGs about it too,” Sopko said.

Since 2008, the Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, or SIGAR, has probed the over $100 billion in relief and reconstruction funds spent in Afghanistan since 2002, building the security forces and civil governance institutions, providing development assistance, and running counter-narcotics and anti-corruption efforts. The reports at times have been deeply critical. In November, SIGAR said that Afghan government control over the country was at its lowest point since 2015.

Asked whether the U.S. is meeting its strategic goals in Afghanistan, Sopko was blunt.

“Ultimately, I don’t think we’ve met all our strategic goals there. The two major goals were, we were going to kick the terrorists out and create a government that could keep the terrorists out. Obviously, we haven’t kicked the terrorists out if they’re still blowing things up and we’re negotiating with them,” Sopko said. “That strategic goal is now changed to get them to the peace negotiations. So maybe ultimately, we will achieve that strategic goal.

“I don’t know.”

Original article can be found here.

Other Articles:

The Hill: Watchdog: Info on US progress in Afghanistan needlessly classified

Voice of America: US Official: Afghan Peace Deal Could Trigger Internal Woes

Military Times: SIGAR: Drug lab bombing was a dead end, and most metrics for success or failure in Afghanistan are ‘classified or nonexistent'

Air Force Magazine: Watchdog: US Air Campaign Against Taliban Drug Infrastructure, Financing Had Little to No Impact

Inside Defense: SIGAR says overclassification of Afghanistan war, reconstruction continues

US News and World Report: Key Issue Could Cost Afghanistan Billions in Foreign Aid

Tolo News: It’s 'Getting Harder' To Track US Progress In Afghanistan

 

 

The Project for Media and National Security is supported by a grant from Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Additional support from The George Washington University, and gifts from CNA and The MITRE Corporation.

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