Good Friday morning May 28
I hope that you all have a great weekend.
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On This Day in Naval History May 28
1813 During the War of 1812, the frigate Essex, commanded by Capt. David Porter, and her prize, Georgiana, capture the British whalers Atlantic, Greenwich, Catharine (burned), Rose, and Hector (burned) in the Pacific.
1943 USS Peto (SS 265) sinks Japanese hydrographic-meteorological research ship Tenkai No.2 northeast of Mussau Island. Also on this date, USS Tunny (SS 282) sinks Japanese gunboat Shotoku Maru off the west coast of Rota, Mariana Islands.
1945 USS Ray (SS 271) sinks Japanese freighter Biko Maru northwest of Changshan. Also on this date, USS Blueback (SS 326) and USS Lamprey (SS 372) damage Japanese submarine chaser Ch1 in a surface gunnery action off Japara, N.E.I.
1958 USS Galveston (CLG 3, previously CL 93), the first Talos-firing missile cruiser, is placed in commission. USS Galveston participates in the Vietnam War with the Seventh Fleet and serves in the Mediterranean during the Arab-Israeli War during 1967.
1980 55 women become the first female graduates of the U.S. Naval Academy.
2017 Special Operator 1st Class Remington J. Peters, dies of injuries sustained during an airborne demonstration of the Navy Leap Frogs at Liberty State Park for New York Fleet Week. Peters, a veteran of two combat deployments, was a member of the parachute team for more than a year with more than 900 jumps.
Thanks to CHINFO
Executive Summary:
• Multiple outlets reported on testimony of SecDef Lloyd Austin and CJCS Mark Milley about the budget. SECDEF explained "I believe our budget request will help us match our resources to strategy, strategy to policy, and policy to the will of the American people."
• Defense News reported on the first live fire test of a hypersonic missile motor.
• Associated Press reported on exercise Steadfast Defender, which tests NATO's ability to deploy troops from America and keep supply lines open across the Atlantic, through Europe and into the Black Sea.
Today in History May 28
585 BC | A solar eclipse interrupts a battle outside Sardis in western Turkey between Medes and Lydians. The battle ends in a draw. | |
1805 | Napoleon Bonaparte is crowned in Milan, Italy. | |
1830 | Congress authorizes Indian removal from all states to the western Prairie. | |
1863 | The 54th Massachusetts, a regiment of African-American recruits, leaves Boston, headed for Hilton Head, South Carolina. | |
1859 | The French army launches a flanking attack on the Austrian army in Northern France. | |
1871 | The Paris commune is suppressed by troops from Versailles. | |
1900 | Britain annexes the Orange Free State in South Africa. | |
1940 | Belgium surrenders to Germany. | |
1953 | Melody, the first animated 3-D cartoon in Technicolor, premiers. | |
1961 | Amnesty International, a human rights organization, is founded. |
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From the net…courtesy of Rich and JC …
Hi to all -
Spring Lake, NC
Dwayne Haynesworth owns an auto repair shop. After having it vandalized several times by persons unknown, spraying racist graffiti and smashing windows on cars, he installed cameras to see if he could catch the bad guys. Sure enough, he caught several young black males doing the deed, as cover for their efforts to steal cars or contents. Police came, looked, but did not take fingerprints. Guess they already knew who the bad guys were.
HUFFPO
These folks have only one foot on terra firma, most of the time. But, their latest is a doozy. Apparently, the January 6 events in DC were 'a thousand times worse than 911'. Let's see, now, on 911, nearly 3000 people died, and the twin towers came down, and the Pentagon was struck and severely damaged, and four airplanes, and all aboard them, crashed and died. A thousand times worse than that would mean 3,000,000 people dead, 4000 planes destroyed, and 2500 buildings destroyed, at least.
But, here is the rub. No buildings were destroyed. A few windows were broken. Three or four people died of medical conditions, and one was murdered by a Capitol Police Officer (said to be a large man, from Brazil). Could we be seeing some slight exaggeration here? Perhaps for political gain, among the less well educated among us?
London
Seems that Sasha, the BLM activist, was shot by four young black men. How ironic. Still not clear if she was a target, or just caught in the midst of a gang war.
Rand Paul
Cheers rang out in congress when his proposed legislation passed. It bans 'gain of function' research in China, using taxpayer money. Fauci, as you recalled, denied that such happened, and that he knew anything about it. But, curse the luck, those pesky facts keep leaking out that he not only knew about it, but was the source of this work. Fauci is not your friend. And, you certainly do not want him as your doctor.
Biden
He is on a roll. Seems he has hired Islamic activists, who hate America, to 'investigate extremism' in the military. Better lock the henhouse, Farmer Jim, the foxes are coming.
He has also banned 12 GOP congressmen from entering and investigating the El Paso Intelligence Center, which monitors border crossings. Guess there is something Biden and friends do not want the rest of us to know about that border.
Michigan
Well, we may be closer to knowing why Gretchen made that great deal with her head of Health Services, as he scurried under a rock. It appears that the death rate in nursing homes from Gretchen's lockdown, with positive patients forced into those homes, as in NYC, may be double the 5500 or so reported. It appears that it was 'too difficult' to find where thousands of people who died actually lived. Of course, it took an outsider about eight seconds to look up each patient and learn that fact. But, Gretchen, using half a billion of our tax dollars, could not seem to do that herself. Cover up? What cover up? Trust us, have we ever lied to you? Okay, yes, we have. But it was for your own good.
Looks like the fan is turning, and stuff is in the air....
Rich
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Thanks to Billy ... and Dr. Rich
On Aging
My doctor asked if anyone in my family suffered from mental illness. I said, "No, we all seem to enjoy it."
Just once, I want a username and password prompt to say: "close enough."
Being an adult is the dumbest thing I have ever done.
I'm a multi-tasker. I can listen, ignore, and forget all at the same time!
Retirement to-do list: wake up. Nailed it!
Went to an antique show and people were bidding on me.
People who wonder whether the glass is half empty or half full miss the point: the glass is refillable!
Retired: under new management. See spouse for details.
Sometimes it takes me all day to get nothing done.
I don't trip; I do random gravity checks.
My heart says chocolate and wine, but my jeans say, please, please, pulleaze, eat a salad!
One minute you're young and fun. The next, you're turning down the car stereo to see better.
I'd grow my own food if only I could find bacon seeds.
Losing weight doesn't seem to be working for me, so from now I'm going to concentrate on getting taller.
Some people are like clouds: once they disappear it's a beautiful day (some of these people are relatives).
My body is a temple: ancient and crumbling.
Common sense is not a gift. It's a punishment because you have to deal with everyone who doesn't have it.
I came. I saw. I forgot what I was doing. Retraced my steps. Got lost on the way back. Now I have no idea what's going on.
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Thanks to Tony for the F-4 Bubbas
https://www.thisdayinaviation.com/27-may-1958/
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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear
LOOKING BACK 55-YEARS to the Vietnam Air War— ... For The List for Friday, 28 May 2021... Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)...
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 28 May 1966...
"Remembering the fallen from the first years of the war"...
https://www.rollingthunderremembered.com/rolling-thunder-remembered-28-may-1966-some-gave-all-iii/
This work accounts for every fixed wing loss of the Vietnam War and you can use it to read more about the losses in The Bear's Daily account. Even better it allows you to add your updated information to the work to update for history…skip
Vietnam Air Losses
Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at: https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.
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This Day in U S Military History…….May 28
1918 – US forces undertake their first attack of World War I on the second day of the German offensive along the River Aisne. The fighting centers on the village of Cantigny to the east of Montdidier on the Somme River sector t the north. Elements of the US 1st Division under General Robert Lee Bullard are pitched against the German Eighteenth Army lead by General Oskar von Hutier. Bullard's troops capture Cantigny, taking 200 prisoners and block a series of German counterattacks over the following days.
1942 – The rest of the Japanese forces directed at Midway set out. Admiral Yamamato, commanding the operation overall, believes that, if the plan to invade the island succeeds, the American fleet can be forced into a decisive engagement and that their defeat will force a truce before American production can swamp the Japanese war effort.
1942 – Task Force 16 sails from Oahu for Midway with the carriers Enterprise and Hornet and escorts. Admiral Fletcher's Task Force 17 follows after miraculously quick repairs to the Yorktown.
1944 – Allied forces continue the Italian offensive. The Canadian 1st Corps captures Ceprano. There is heavy fighting all along the front. However, other than rearguards from the German 14th Panzer Corps and the 51st Mountain Corps, German forces are retiring to the Caesar Line because of the threat to their rear posed by the US 6th Corps at Anzio.
1944 – Bombers of the US 8th Air Force attack Leuna and Magdeburg.
1944 – On Biak Island, the US 41st Infantry Division begins to expand its beachhead. There is heavy fighting near the village of Mokmer, where an airfield is located, and the American battalion pulls back.
1944 – General MacArthur announces that, strategically, the campaign for New Guinea has been won although there is still some hard fighting to be done.
1945 – William Joyce ("Lord Haw Haw") is captured in Flensburg. He is a British fascist who became a radio propagandist for the Nazis during the war.
1945 – Admiral Halsey, commanding US 3rd Fleet, takes command of American naval forces operating against targets in Japan; US Task Force 58 is assigned to US 3rd Fleet, becoming TF38.
1945 – More than 100 Japanese planes are shot down near Okinawa. This is the last major effort against the Allied naval forces surrounding the island. One American destroyer is sunk in the otherwise unsuccessful air strikes.
1984 – On Memorial Day the only American Unknown Soldier from the Vietnam War is laid to rest at ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC, attended by 250,000, including members of Congress and the international diplomatic community, and Vietnam veterans in fatigues. President Reagan, named honorary next-of-kin, delivers the eulogy at the hero's funeral, and urges greater efforts to locate the more than 2,400 service members still missing. The remains were unearthed in 1998 for DNA testing and possible identification. They were later identified as those of Air Force First Lieutenant Michael J. Blassie, and were sent to St. Louis for hometown burial.
1987 – Matthias Rust, a 19-year-old amateur pilot from West Germany, takes off from Helsinki, Finland, travels through more than 400 miles of Soviet airspace, and lands his small Cessna aircraft in Red Square by the Kremlin. The event proved to be an immense embarrassment to the Soviet government and military. Rust, described by his mother as a "quiet young man…with a passion for flying," apparently had no political or social agenda when he took off from the international airport in Helsinki and headed for Moscow. He entered Soviet airspace, but was either undetected or ignored as he pushed farther and farther into the Soviet Union. Early on the morning of May 28, 1987, he arrived over Moscow, circled Red Square a few times, and then landed just a few hundred yards from the Kremlin. Curious onlookers and tourists, many believing that Rust was part of an air show, immediately surrounded him. Very quickly, however, Rust was arrested and whisked away. He was tried for violating Soviet airspace and sentenced to prison. He served 18 months before being released. The repercussions in the Soviet Union were immediate. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev sacked his minister of defense, and the entire Russian military was humiliated by Rust's flight into Moscow. U.S. officials had a field day with the event–one American diplomat in the Soviet Union joked, "Maybe we should build a bunch of Cessnas." Soviet officials were less amused. Four years earlier, the Soviets had been harshly criticized for shooting down a Korean Airlines passenger jet that veered into Russian airspace. Now, the Soviets were laughingstocks for not being able to stop one teenager's "invasion" of the country. One Russian spokesperson bluntly declared, "You criticize us for shooting down a plane, and now you criticize us for not shooting down a plane."
2001 – The US and China tentatively agreed that the US spy plane on Hainan Island would be dismantled and possibly flown home aboard a giant Antonov-124 transport.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
CHRISTIANCY, JAMES I.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, Company D, 9th Michigan Cavalry. Place and date: At Hawes Shops, Va., 28 May 1864. Entered service at: Monroe County, Mich. Birth: Monroe County, Mich. Date of issue: 10 October 1892. Citation: While acting as aide, voluntarily led a part of the line into the fight, and was twice wounded.
STOREY, JOHN H. R.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company F, 109th Pennsylvania Infantry. Place and date: At Dallas, Ga., 28 May 1864. Entered service at: ——. Birth: Philadelphia, Pa. Date of issue: 29 August 1896. Citation: While bringing in a wounded comrade, under a destructive fire, he was himself wounded in the right leg, which was amputated on the same day.
JOHNSON, PETER
Rank and organization: Fireman First Class, U.S. Navy. Born: 29 December 1857, Sumerland, England. Accredited to: Pennsylvania. G.O. No.: 167, 27 August 1904. Citation: On board the U.S.S. Vixen on the night of 28 May 1898. Following the explosion of the lower front manhole gasket of boiler A of the vessel, Johnson displayed great coolness and self-possession in entering the fireroom.
MAHONEY, GEORGE
Rank and organization: Fireman First Class, U.S. Navy. Born: 15 January 1865, Worcester, Mass. Accredited to: Pennsylvania. G.O. No.: 167, 27 August 1904. Citation: On board the U.S.S. Vixen on the night of 28 May 1898. Following the explosion of the lower front manhole gasket of boiler A of that vessel, Mahoney displayed great coolness and self-possession in entering the fireroom.
SHANAHAN, PATRICK
Rank and organization: Chief Boatswain's Mate, U.S. Navy. Born: 6 November 1867, Ireland. Accredited to: New York. G.O. No.: 534, 29 November 1899. Citation: On board the U.S.S. Alliance, 28 May 1899. Displaying heroism, Shanahan rescued William Steven, quartermaster, first class, from drowning.
DAVILA, RUDOLPH B.
Staff Sergeant Rudolph B. Davila distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action, on 28 May 1944, near Artena, Italy. During the offensive which broke through the German mountain strongholds surrounding the Anzio beachhead, Staff Sergeant Davila risked death to provide heavy weapons support for a beleaguered rifle company. Caught on an exposed hillside by heavy, grazing fire from a well-entrenched German force, his machine gunners were reluctant to risk putting their guns into action. Crawling fifty yards to the nearest machine gun, Staff Sergeant Davila set it up alone and opened fire on the enemy. In order to observe the effect of his fire, Sergeant Davila fired from the kneeling position, ignoring the enemy fire that struck the tripod and passed between his legs. Ordering a gunner to take over, he crawled forward to a vantage point and directed the firefight with hand and arm signals until both hostile machine guns were silenced. Bringing his three remaining machine guns into action, he drove the enemy to a reserve position two hundred yards to the rear. When he received a painful wound in the leg, he dashed to a burned tank and, despite the crash of bullets on the hull, engaged a second enemy force from the tank's turret. Dismounting, he advanced 130 yards in short rushes, crawled 20 yards and charged into an enemy-held house to eliminate the defending force of five with a hand grenade and rifle fire. Climbing to the attic, he straddled a large shell hole in the wall and opened fire on the enemy. Although the walls of the house were crumbling, he continued to fire until he had destroyed two more machine guns. His intrepid actions brought desperately needed heavy weapons support to a hard-pressed rifle company and silenced four machine gunners, which forced the enemy to abandon their prepared positions. Staff Sergeant Davila's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.
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This Day in Aviation History" brought to you by the Daedalians Airpower Blog Update. To subscribe to this weekly email, go to https://daedalians.org/airpower-blog/.
May 23, 1988
The Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey, the world's first production tilt-rotor aircraft, is rolled out at Bell Helicopter Textron's plant in Arlington, Tex.
May 24, 1918
United States Army Air Service is organized.
May 25, 1927
AAC Lt. James H. "Jimmy" Doolittle flies the first successful outside loop. Doolittle is Founder Number 107.
May 26, 2010
USAF's X-51A unmanned hypersonic air vehicle makes first flight, flying further on its own power than any other scramjet in history. A B-52 mothership carried aloft the Boeing-built X-51, which flew at Mach 5 for about 200 seconds before program officials terminated the flight.
May 27, 1958
The first flight of the McDonnell XF4H-1 (F-4) Phantom II is made by company pilot Robert Little (who was wearing street shoes at the time) at the company's facility in St. Louis, Mo.
May 28, 1956
Company pilot Pete Girard makes the first flight of the Ryan X-13 Vertijet Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) research aircraft in hover mode at Edwards AFB, Calif. He had also made the type's first conventional flight on Dec. 10, 1955.
May 29, 1952
The first combat use of air-to-air refueling of Air Force fighter airplanes takes place as 12 Republic F-84E Thunderjets flown by pilots from the 159th Fighter-Bomber Squadron are topped off on their way back from a bomb run against targets at Sariwon, North Korea. The F-84s are based at Itazuke AB, Japan. By July 4, three more of these Operation Rightside missions will be flown.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for May 28, 2021 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
28 May
1913: Lts Thomas DeWitt Milling and William C. Sherman set two-man duration and distance records of 4 hours 22 minutes and 220 miles from Texas City to San Antonio. (24)
1914: Glenn Curtiss flew the redesigned and rebuilt Langley airplane, with its original engine, off the water for 150 feet at Hammondsport. (24)
1940: Dr. Robert H. Goddard offered his research data, patents, and facilities to the military at a meeting with representatives of Army Ordnance, the Army Air Corps, and the Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics. The representatives were interested in using rockets for aircraft assisted takeoffs. (6)
1941: In Newark, a spin-proof private plane, designed for General Aircraft Company, demonstrated. (24)
1952: Operation HIGH TIDE. Through 29 May, the ANG's 116 FBW participated in this operation to conduct the first air refueling under combat conditions. After launching missions from Japan and attacking targets near Sariwon, N. Korea, the 116th's F-84 fighter-bombers were refueled by KB-29 tankers on their way back to Misawa AB. (32)
1958: Test pilot Capt Robert F. Titus became the first military pilot to accomplish a zero-length launch of a F-100 Super Sabre at Edwards AFB. (3)
1959: A Rhesus monkey, Able, and a squirrel monkey, Miss Baker, were the first primates to be launched and recovered successfully from space. They were recovered after their nose cone hit in the Atlantic Ocean near Antigua Island. They flew to 300 miles in altitude on a PGM-19 Jupiter missile launched from Cape Canaveral. (16) (24)
1962: SAC received the last GAM-72A Quail missile from McDonnell Aircraft Company. (6) (12)
1963: Cape Canaveral launched the first Minuteman equipped with retro-rockets. The project tried to increase the separation distance between the third stage and reentry vehicle. (6)
1964: A Saturn VI carried the first Apollo command and service module mockups into orbit from Cape Kennedy.
1968: The Cessna Aircraft Plant at Wichita, Kans., rolled out the first A-37B attack aircraft. (16) Exercise Cold Mass II: MAC's Twenty-First and Twenty-Second Air Forces put 36 C-141s and 3 C-130s in the air to form the largest C-141 combat airdrop formation to date. (16)
1995: To commemorate the World War II Hump Airlift, a C-17 Globemaster III and KC-10 Extender flew over the Himalayan Mountains from Calcutta, India, to Kunming, China. (16)
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World News for 28 May thanks to Military Periscope
USA—Air Force Wraps Up Networked Munitions Project With Final Test Air Force Research Laboratory | 05/28/2021 The Air Force has completed the final test for the latest phase of its Golden Horde swarming munitions program, reports the Air Force Research Laboratory. On Tuesday, two F-16s from the 96th Test Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., dropped six Collaborative Small Diameter Bomb Is (CSDBs), four from one aircraft and two from the other, over White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The munitions successfully established communication links with each other and a ground station using the Banshee 2 radio network developed by L3Harris. They then received an in-flight target update from a ground station shifting their objective to a new high-priority target. Two of the CSDBs demonstrated a new synchronized time on target attack on a single location, employing a capability made possible by a new targeting algorithm developed by Georgia Tech Research Institute. Two other munitions also demonstrated a synchronized attack capability on two targets. This capability had been demonstrated in previous tests. The Golden Horde program will move on to its next stage, dubbed "Colosseum," which will focus on implementing "digital engineering, hardware-in-the-loop, and surrogate [uncrewed aerial vehicle] testing to rapidly integrate, develop, and test transformational networked, collaborative and autonomous weapon technologies," the lab said in a release.
USA—Biden Administration Closes Door On Open Skies Treaty Nbc News | 05/28/2021 The U.S. has informed Russia that it does not intend to return to the Open Skies treaty, reports NBC News. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman informed her Russian counterpart, Sergei Ryabkov, of the decision on Thursday. A State Dept. spokesperson said that the decision was the result of Russian violations, appearing to concur with the assessment of the previous administration. Additionally, Russia has not taken any action to return to compliance, said the spokesperson. State also cited recent aggressive Russian behavior in Ukraine, which undermined confidence in it as a party to the treaty. The Trump administration announced in May 2020 that it intended to withdraw from the pact, citing concerns over Russian compliance and implementation. Washington officially withdrew from the agreement in November. Moscow announced its intention to do so in January and has submitted legislation to parliament to formally withdraw, reported Reuters.
USA—Blinken Concludes Middle East Visit Voice Of America News | 05/28/2021 Secretary of State Antony Blinken has wrapped up his first trip to the Middle East, including visits to Israel, Egypt and Jordan, reports the Voice of America News. Blinken traveled to Israel on Tuesday, where he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Blinken emphasized that the U.S. would work to ensure reconstruction assistance in Gaza would not benefit Hamas and Washington's support for Israel's right to defend itself, reported the Washington Post. He also met with Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, indicating that he would seek $75 million in funding to support the reconstruction of Gaza after the recent conflict. Blinken also announced that the U.S. would reopen its consulate in Jerusalem, which previously had served as a de facto embassy for Palestinians. The consulate was closed in 2019 and absorbed into the U.S. Embassy at the direction of then-President Trump. On Wednesday, Blinken met with Israeli President Reuben Rivlin before traveling to Egypt to meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. On the agenda was the release of U.S. citizens currently detained by Egypt, Blinken said. The secretary concluded his trip on Wednesday evening in Jordan, where he met with King Abdullah. Egypt and Jordan played a key role in negotiating the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas that halted fighting in the Gaza Strip. Blinken's region visit was intended to bolster the cease-fire.
USA—Plans Made To Evacuate Afghan Interpreters Defense One | 05/28/2021 Top military officials say the Pentagon and State Dept. are developing plans to evacuate Afghans whose work in support of the U.S. puts them at risk of retribution from the Taliban as foreign forces pull out, reported Defense One. The State Dept. is leading the effort to clear the way for Afghan interpreters and others who worked for the U.S. to leave Afghanistan, Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters on Wednesday. The general did not provide any details on how the evacuation might be accomplished but noted that time was running out. The New York Times reported this week that the withdrawal might be completed by mid-July, well ahead of President Biden's September deadline. There are around 18,000 Afghan interpreters currently waiting to be approved for Special Immigrant Visas that would allow them and their families to come to the U.S.
USA—Wormuth Confirmed As Army Secretary After Senate Hiccup The Hill | 05/28/2021 Christine Wormuth has been confirmed as the woman to serve as secretary of the Army, reports the Hill (Washington, D.C.). Wormuth was initially approved on Wednesday night by unanimous consent as part of a larger batch of military nominations put forth by Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.). Later that night, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) took the unusual step of vitiating the earlier vote on Wormuth, rescinding her confirmation. Schumer's office has not provided information on why the confirmation was rescinded, saying only that there was a "clerical mixup." Wormuth had bipartisan support and was expected to be easily confirmed. The Senate returned to Wormuth's nomination on Thursday, confirming her by unanimous consent.
NATO—Paris Concerned That Increased Common Funding Could Impact National Defense Priorities Reuters | 05/28/2021 France is pushing back on proposals to grant more flexible funding to NATO, reports Reuters. In February, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg proposed funding the alliance in part through small, common budgets as an effort to alleviate longstanding U.S. concerns over burden sharing. Analysts have estimated that these contributions would be modest, about US$20 billion over 10 years. But defense and diplomatic sources told Reuters that France is pushing back on those proposals over fears that they could undermine French defense priorities. A French military source told Reuters that placing an emphasis on shared responsibility would undermine the efforts of individual member states. Other countries, including Canada and Germany, have expressed concerns over how the increased funding would be allocated. One source said a June 14 NATO summit with U.S. President Joe Biden could produce a deal to alleviate French fears.
Spain—Airbus Delivers 100th A400M Cargo Aircraft Airbus | 05/28/2021 The Spanish air force has taken delivery of the 100th A400M Atlas transport aircraft produced by Airbus, reports the European aerospace firm. On Monday, the aircraft was ferried from Seville to the Spanish air force's A400M base in Zaragoza, Airbus said in a Thursday release. The aircraft is the 10th in Spanish service. The global A400M fleet also reached 100,000 flight hours this week, the company said.
European Union—Training Operation To Mozambique Could Start Soon Reuters | 05/28/2021 The E.U. could activate a military training mission in Mozambique within months, reports Reuters. Approval for the mission is anticipated but challenges remain in finding nations to contribute troops, said E.U. foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. Currently, Portugal has pledged in total about 140 troops to Mozambique, with about 60 special operators already in country and 80 trainers pledged as part of a security cooperation agreement running through 2026, according to a report in March. Borrell has said that 200 to 300 troops could arrive before the end of the year. Portuguese Defense Minister Joao Cravinho previously said that seven to eight countries were also considering contributions, but declined to name them. At least 2,600 people have been killed in northern Mozambique since 2017, when Islamist militants began attacking civilians in villages in Cabo Delgado province, according to Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) data cited by Agence France-Presse.
Switzerland—Framework Agreement Talks With E.U. Called Off Politico Europe | 05/28/2021 Switzerland has walked away from negotiations with the European Union on a wide-ranging cooperation agreement, reports Politico Europe (Brussels). On Wednesday, Switzerland ended talks on the framework agreement, saying that the E.U.'s demands on issues such as citizens rights and wages were unacceptable. The Swiss Federal Council determined that talks with the E.U. would not achieve the "necessary solutions" following domestic consultations, said Swiss President Guy Parmelin. Talks on the framework agreement began in 2014. The deal was intended to upgrade cooperation on issues currently covered under more than 120 bilateral treaties, reported BBC News. These include seamless travel; mutual recognition of industrial standards; agricultural products; state aid; medical devices; civil aviation; and land transport. A draft agreement was reached in 2018, but implementation was put on hold to allow the Swiss government to consult domestic partners. Switzerland subsequently requested changes in state aid rules, the ability of E.U. citizens to access the Swiss welfare system and protection of higher Swiss wages. Parmelin and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met in April to try and break the impasse but failed to make progress. The E.U. Commission has warned that the failure of the framework agreement could harm ties and undercut efforts to modernize the relationship. Certain deals are set to expire or obsolete. Earlier this week, a deal on bilateral trade in medical technology lapsed, which a trade organization warned would cost the parties US$127.2 million annually.
Ukraine—Foreign Minister Slams NATO For Lack Of Progress On Membership Ukrinform | 05/28/2021 Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says NATO has failed to take any steps toward granting Ukraine membership since 2008, reports Ukrinform (Ukraine). At the 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest, the alliance decided that Georgia and Ukraine would eventually be members and pledged to provide a Membership Action Plan (MAP) as the first step. Since that time, NATO has failed to take any steps to implement that decision, Kuleba said on Wednesday during a press conference with Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Secretary Helga Schmid in Kyiv. Kuleba also expressed frustration that Ukraine had not been invited to the NATO summit next month in Brussels, reported the Ukrainian Independent Information Agency (UNIAN). Ukrainian officials had hoped that the alliance would grant a MAP to Ukraine at that event would be granted, but have indicated that NATO had decided to postpone making any membership decisions.
Azerbaijan—Soldier Injured In Cross Border Attack, Says Defense Ministry Trend News Agency | 05/28/2021 Azerbaijan says one of its soldiers has been wounded by an Armenian-launched munition, reports the Trend news agency (Baku). On Friday, an Armenian shell struck a military position in the Babek district of the Nakhchivan exclave, said the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry. The wounded soldier was hospitalized. Azerbaijani troops returned fire, it said. A spokesman for the Armenian military denied the assertion, suggesting that no attack had taken place, reported the Tass news agency (Moscow). Tensions have remained high between the two neighbors following a truce in November that ended several months of fighting over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. On Tuesday, one Armenian soldier was killed, though both sides dispute the details of the incident that led to his death.
Philippines—Coast Guard, Navy Steps Up Actions In S. China Sea Following March Standoff Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative | 05/28/2021 The Philippines has substantially increased patrols in disputed areas of the South China Sea, according to new research from the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI), a project of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. From March 1 to May 25, AMTI detected 13 Philippine law enforcement and military vessels conducting 57 patrols around the Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal. For comparison, three vessels conducted seven patrols in those areas from May 2020 to February 2021. Philippine vessels also increased their presence around areas contested with China, including Second Thomas Shoal, Whitsun Reef, Sabina Shoal and Scarborough Shoal. Previous patrols had been largely limited to Thitu Island, home to a Philippine outpost. Some of these activities have resulted in interactions between Philippine and Chinese vessels. On April 27, Philippine coast guard and bureau of fisheries vessels dispersed Chinese fishing vessels near Sabina Shoal. In another incident on April 24 to April 25, Philippine National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said that Chinese vessels harassed a Philippine coast guard patrol near Scarborough Shoal. Manila's increased activity in the area follows an incident in March in which more than 200 vessels from the Chinese maritime militia swarmed Whitsun Reef.
Burma—Total, Chevron Suspend Dividend Payouts From Joint Venture Bloomberg News | 05/28/2021 Western energy firms Total and Chevron have suspended dividend payments from a joint venture that is partially owned by a Burmese state company, reports Bloomberg News. Total and Chevron have a combined 59.5 percent stake in the Moattama Gas Transportation Co., a pipeline company that carries gas from the Yadana offshore gas field in Burma to Thailand. Total runs the Yadana field, reported Agence France-Presse. Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise, which is owned by the Burmese government, holds a 15 percent stake in the firm, while Thailand's state-run energy explorer PTT Exploration and Production owns the remaining 25.5 percent. On Wednesday, Total and Chevron announced that, effective April 1, all cash distribution to shareholders was suspended due to the unstable situation in Burma. The pipeline would continue to supply gas to customers in Burma and Thailand. The decision comes after Total faced criticism from supporting Myanmar Oil and Gas, with critics arguing the payments were supporting the Burmese government's crackdown following the military-led coup earlier this year. Advocacy groups argued that the dividends represented only a small part of the payments to the Burmese junta and called for the energy firms to stop other payments to the regime from the pipeline, reported the Guardian (U.K.). Total paid US$230 million in 2019 and US$176 million in 2020 in the form of taxes and "production rights" to the Burmese government.
Pakistan—TTP Commander Among 4 Killed In Quetta Operation Press Trust Of India | 05/28/2021 A senior militant commander and three associates have been killed in a government op in Pakistan's Baluchistan region, reports the Press Trust of India. On Tuesday, operators in the Counter Terrorism Dept. (CTD) launched an operation in Killi Aghbarg, outside Quetta, against six suspected members of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), reported the Dawn (Karachi). The suspects opened fire as security forces approached the site. Four of the suspects were killed when police returned fire, while two managed to escape, said police. Among the dead was Riaz Thekedar, a senior TTP commander believed to be responsible for a 2016 attack on a hospital in Quetta that killed at least 80 people. Security forces recovered weapons and ammunition from the scene of operation.
Oman—Military Steps Up Recruiting In The Face Of Economic Protests Agence France-Presse | 05/28/2021 The Omani military is boosting recruitment efforts amid protests over economic stagnation and unemployment, reports Agence France-Presse. Protests began in the city of Sohar, about 125 miles (200 km) northwest of Muscat, the capital, on Sunday and have since spread to several other areas of the country. In response, Sultan Haitham bin Tareq ordered the Omani Defense Ministry and other government institutions to create 32,000 jobs for Omanis in 2021. The army began receiving candidates on Thursday. The air force will begin receiving candidates on May 31, according to the state-run Oman News Agency. Oman's economy increasingly relied on tourism following the downturn in crude oil prices in 2014. That reliance led the economy to contract about 6.4 percent in 2020 as a result of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Government debt rose to 81 percent of gross domestic product, while unemployment exceeds 10 percent.
Syria—Mercenaries In Nagorno-Karabakh, Libya Forcibly Recruited, Denied Wages New Arab | 05/28/2021 Some Syrian mercenaries who participated in recent conflicts in Nagorno-Karabakh and Libya may have been forcibly recruited, according to research cited by the New Arab (London). Since late 2019, thousands of Syrians were recruited as mercenaries by Turkey and Russia through direct and indirect means, according to the research by the Syria Justice and Accountability Centre (SJAC) and Syrians for Truth and Justice (STJ). The largest group was composed of former Syrian rebels who were defeated by pro-regime forces and relocated to areas of northwest Syria under the control of Turkey and its local proxies. In some cases, criminal groups were involved in their recruitment and deployment, said Mohammad al-Abdallah, executive director of SJAC. Others were members of the Syrian military or allied groups who were recruited by Russian-aligned groups. Many recruits complain that they were forcibly recruited and did not receive promised salaries. Some said that they went months without receiving pay, while others said that they received a fraction of what they were guaranteed. One recruiter blamed armed groups in Syria, which he said skimmed money from wages promised to fighters.
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