To All,
Good Wednesday morning November 15, 2023
I get the feeling that there was something special about 15 November but it has escaped my thought processes so I apologize in advance for leaving it out.
Securing the outside and getting ready for a major storm that is coming early this afternoon. That is if you believe the weatherman. After flying out of San Diego since 1967 I have always taken the weathermen with a grain of salt. We actually had a real weatherman for many years but now we all have physically attractive women who wear some very revealing uniforms and can smile and point very well.
Regards,
Skip
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This day in Naval and Marine Corps History (thanks to NHHC)
November 15
1836 Under the command of Lt. Henry H. Bell, the sloop-of-war Saint Louis conducts an exploratory expedition along the coast of Florida with four boats and 70 men.
1863 Fort Moultrie opens a heavy evening bombardment on Union Army positions at Cummings Point, S.C., which also results in the Union monitor Lehigh running aground. Still under Confederate fire in the morning, the monitor Nahant is able to release her. Five sailors from Lehigh receive Medals of Honor for their heroic line work that frees their ship.
1942 Navy SBDs (VS-10) and TBFs (VT-10), Marine Corps SBDs (VMSB-132), and Marine Corps and Army coast artillery and gunfire from USS Meade (DD 602) sink four Japanese transports off the northern coast of Guadalcanal.
1943 USS Crevalle (SS 291) sinks Japanese army cargo ship Kyokko Maru off San Antonio, Zambales province, Philippines.
1944 USS Frament (DE 677), while escorting captured Italian submarine Luigi Settembrini, collides with the sub 685 miles west of Gibraltar. Frament is damaged but Luigi Settembrini sinks. Frament rescues 14 survivors.
1944 USS Barbel (SS 316) attacks a Japanese convoy about 250 miles east of Tourane, French Indochina, sinks transports Misaki Maru and Sugiyama Maru, then escapes searches by minesweepers W.18 and W.20. USS Batfish (SS 310) sinks Japanese supply ship Kurasaki north-northwest of Cape Bolinao while USS Jack (SS 259) sinks transports Nichiel Maru and No.2 Yuzan Maru.
1960 The Polaris fleet ballistic missile weapon system becomes operational when USS George Washington (SSBN 598) gets underway with her principal armament of 16 Polaris A-1 missiles from NWS Charleston, SC.
1994 Cmdr. Donnie L. Cochran becomes the first African-American commanding officer of the Navy's Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels.
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THIS DAY IN WORLD HISTORY `15 NOVEMBER
November 15
1315 Swiss soldiers ambush and slaughter invading Austrians in the battle of Morgarten.
1533 The explorer Francisco Pizarro enters Cuzco, Peru.
1626 The Pilgrim Fathers, who have settled in New Plymouth, buy out their London investors.
1777 The Articles of Confederation, instituting perpetual union of the United States of America, are adopted by Congress.
1805 Meriwether Lewis, William Clark and their party reach the mouth of the Columbia River, completing their trek to the Pacific.
1806 Explorer Zebulon Pike discovers the Colorado Peak that bears his name, despite the fact that he didn't climb it.
1864 Union Major General William T. Sherman's troops set fires that destroy much of Atlanta's industrial district prior to beginning Sherman's March to the Sea.
1881 The American Federation of Labor is founded.
1909 R. Metrot takes off in a Voisin biplane from Algiers, making the first manned flight in Africa.
1917 Kerensky flees and Bolsheviks take command in Moscow.
1920 Forty-one nations open the first League of Nations session in Geneva..
1922 It is announced that Dr. Alexis Carrel has discovered white corpuscles.
1930 General strikes and riots paralyze Madrid, Spain.
1937 Eighteen lawsuits are brought against the Tennessee Valley Authority, calling for its dissolution.
1942 Having lost the second battleship in as many days, the Japanese navy withdraws from Guadalcanal. Following this three-day confrontation, the initiative at Guadalcanal, in the Solomons and the entire Pacific passes irretrievably from the Japanese to the Americans. [From MHQ—The Quarterly Journal of Military History
1946 The 17th Paris Air Show opens at the Grand Palais des Champs-Elysees. It is the first show of this kind since World War II.
1952 Newark Airport in New Jersey reopens after closing earlier in the year because of an increase in accidents.
1957 Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev asserts Soviet superiority in missiles, challenging the United States to a rocket-range shooting match.
1960 The first submarine with nuclear missiles, the USS George Washington, takes to sea from Charleston, South Carolina.
1962 Cuba threatens to down U.S. planes on reconnaissance flights over its territory.
1963 Argentina voids all foreign oil contracts.
1965 In the second day of combat, regiments of the 1st Cavalry Division battle on Landing Zones X-Ray against North Vietnamese forces in the Ia Drang Valley.
1969 A quarter of a million anti-Vietnam War demonstrators march in Washington, D.C.
1976 A Syrian peace force takes control of Beirut, Lebanon.
1984 Baby Fae dies 20 days after receiving a baboon heart transplant in Loma Linda, California.
1985 An Anglo-Irish Agreement is signed by British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Irish Taoiseach Garret Fitzgerald.
1988 The Palestinian National Council proclaims an independent State of Palestine.
1990 The People's Republic of Bulgaria is replaced by a new republican government.
2007 Cyclone Sidr strikes Bangladesh, killing an estimated 5,000 people.
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OPERATION COMMANDO HUNT Thanks to the Bear
: WEEK ONE OF THE COMMANDO HUNT CAMPAIGN… 12-17 November 1968
Skip… For The List for Monday, 13 November 2023… Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
COMMANDO HUNT (1968-1972)… the air interdiction campaign shifts to Laos… From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 11 February 2019… Week One of 170 weeks of hunting and destroying NVN trucks on the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
Thanks to Micro
To remind folks that these are from the Vietnam Air Losses site that Micro put together. You click on the url below and get what happened each day to the crew of the aircraft. ……Skip
From Vietnam Air Losses site for Wednesday November 15
November 15: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=1455
God Bless Joe
This following 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.
This is a list of all Helicopter Pilots Who Died in the Vietnam War . Listed by last name and has other info https://www.vhpa.org/KIA/KIAINDEX.HTM
MOAA - Wall of Faces Now Includes Photos of All Servicemembers Killed in the Vietnam War
The site works, find anyone you knew in "search" feature.
https://www.vvmf.org/Wall-of-Faces/ )
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THANKS TO INTERESTING FACTS
5 Things You Might Not Know About U.S. Passports
American consular officials issued the first passports in the late 1700s. This single sheet of paper was valid for just a few months — a far cry from the current 28-page blue book that's issued for 10 full years. These days, a passport has become one of the most important documents you'll ever own, opening up a world of adventures and giving travelers peace of mind on their journeys. But how much do you really know about this critical travel document? Here are six facts you might not know about U.S. passports.
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More Than 143 Million Passports Were in Circulation as of 2020
There were 143,116,633 passports in circulation in 2020, according to the U.S. Department of State. A small proportion of those were second passports, but overall that accounts for more than 40% of the U.S. population of 331 million. However, that hasn't always been the case: In 1989, just 7,261,711 million U.S. passports existed for a population of approximately 245 million, and as recently as 20 years ago, that number still remained stubbornly below 50 million.
Despite the significant increase in passport holders, the U.S. figure still falls short of the percentage in many other countries. For example, the Australian government reported that 4,614,941 Australians held a passport in 2019, equivalent to 57% of the population. According to the 2011 census (the most recent data available) just 15% of the 63 million people living in the U.K. did not have a passport. One of them was the Queen — who doesn't need one because it is she who issues them.
Several factors might explain the discrepancies. Thanks to the rapid growth of budget airlines, travel within Europe can be extraordinarily cheap, but a passport is needed to access those international flights. In contrast, visiting many foreign destinations from the U.S. requires a long and relatively expensive flight. The significant differences in climate, topography, and culture make international travel enticing to many foreign nationals, but in the U.S., there's already a great deal of variety within its borders. Paid holiday entitlements also vary considerably between countries, as does the culture and tradition of gap year travel.
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U.S. Passport Holders Can Travel to 186 Countries Without Having to Arrange a Visa
Immigration control officer will arrival stamp in the passport.Credit: ArtWell/ Shutterstock
The strength of a nation's passport can be measured in the number of countries its holders are entitled to enter under normal circumstances — either visa-free or by purchasing a visa on arrival (and not having to arrange one in advance). According to the Henley Passport Index, which is based on data from the International Air Transport Association, the U.S. passport currently allows access to 186 countries. That ranks No. 7 among all countries, and is on par with New Zealand, Belgium, Norway, and Switzerland.
Japan tops the 2022 chart with 193 countries, closely followed by Singapore and South Korea with 192. As countries alter their entry requirements, the rankings change; the U.S. most recently took first place in 2014.
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The Cover Color Is the World's Most Common, But It Hasn't Always Been Blue
According to the Passport Index from Arton Capital, the world's passports can be grouped into shades of just four colors: red, blue, green, and black. Blue, the current choice of the U.S. government, is the most popular, preferred by 83 nations. Red is second on the list with 65 countries, followed by green and black with 44 and seven countries, respectively.
Passport cover colors don't always stay the same, either: The U.S. passport has actually been all four at some point in its history. In his book The Passport: The History of Man's Most Travelled Document, author Martin Lloyd notes that America's first modern-style passport, issued starting in 1926, was red. Red was replaced by green from 1941 to 1976, when today's blue option was introduced to match the flag, in honor of the country's bicentennial celebrations. There are a few exceptions: Diplomats use black passports, and anyone traveling without diplomatic status but who is on government business uses red documents.
4 of 5
You Can't Use Just Any Old Photograph
Passport photos have to meet a long list of conditions today, but that wasn't always the case. In the early days of passports, there were few restrictions on the photograph you could use in a passport. People posed with family members and pets, smoked cigarettes, or played musical instruments. Today's photos must be recent, taken in the last six months, and set against a plain white or off-white background. If you wear glasses, you must remove them unless you can prove you have a medical exemption. No filters or selfies, either.
The list doesn't end there: Don't even think about wearing a uniform, or camouflage gear. Ditch the hat, unless it's worn because of your religion, and lose your headphones. Jewelry and piercings are considered acceptable, so long as they don't obscure your facial features, as are permanent tattoos. If your physical appearance changes significantly, it's likely you'll need a new replacement passport.
5 of 5
The Artwork in the Current U.S. Passport Protects Against Forgery
A 2016 makeover of the U.S. passport moved the machine-readable chip, which contains biometric data about the holder, inside polycarbonate paper to make it more secure. The practice of adding extra pages was banned. Inks, too, got cleverer — depending on the angle you view it, the word "U.S.A." in the current passport looks green or gold. Even the hot foil stamping on the cover is a feature that aims to make forgery trickier.
The passport's artwork is also used to frustrate potential forgers. The current passport design, dubbed "American Icon," features a wide range of patriotic images including the Statue of Liberty and Mount Rushmore, bison, bears, bald eagles, and longhorn cattle. The ideals and ethos of a nation are summed up through excerpts from the Declaration of Independence and rousing quotes from Martin Luther King, Jr., Anna Julia Cooper, Henry Ward Beecher, and former presidents.
For really mind-blowing passport artwork, however, take a look at some of the passports issued by the Nordic nations. Shining Norway's passport under a UV light reveals a hidden image of the Northern Lights. Finnish passports act like flicker-books: Flip the passport pages quickly enough and the pictures create a moving image of a moose. Staying one step ahead of forgers is a constant battle, and another, more advanced U.S. passport redesign may soon be in the works.
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A tale from YP
Feral swine hunting by night .
LISTO—MARRANO SALVAJE DEL DESIERTO
I've spent two tours hog hunting from pickup bed down in SW
Texas between Carrizo Springs and the Rio Grande. My two
brothers and I used deer guns, and the three of us blazing away
next to each other probably accounts for me saying "Wot?" a
lot. Porkers are wily and hard to kill, and, yes, they get butchered,
put into coolers, and turned into pig meats. There are rattlers in
this country that routinely rape Dodge trucks, and I learned about
carrying a 44-magnum pistola for rootin' around the brush near
stock tanks. Hunts were sponsored by a steel company in Houston
wot employs my youngest brother, and his awful collateral duty
was to set up hunts and fishing trips for hoity-toit
customers. Occasionally, bro's got snuck in.
The deal included good ol' boy guides, who bounced the shooters
in back thru the cacatooses in search of porkers; usually they had a
case of beer in the seat beside them that helped their focus on some
of the wilder chases. Throw lead! Throw lead! They'd
holler. Also, on the way to the hunting areas, they would hang the
edge of a feed sack of corn out the window and chum the roads to
attract targets for the return trip to the ranch house. Real
good. We were doing just that one evening after a day's hose-athon
when we picked up a line of eyeballs shining out of the
darkiness up ahead. We stopped and put the glasses on wot turned
out to be a line of feral hoglets munching their way down the
road. My middle brother allowed that he had to have one of them,
so we waited til they got up close, and the guide jumped out of one
door and my brother out the other and scooped one up! Pore little
critter squealed like the hoglet he was for an amazingly short time,
then settled down in my brother's arms. I tole him that it was
because he smelled like the hoglet's mother and was probably even
hairier.... Cute little bugger, with spiky black hair, black high heel
feets, and a bristly little tail that stuck straight up. But my brother
drew the line when he ride to root around and chest feed. We took
him back to camp, made a little cage, and fed him corn and
water. We decided to call him "Listo," Spanish for "Ready?"
because we were always saying that to each other.
I could see my brother was smote, and I knew wot was
coming. Sure 'nuff, he wanted me to fly the little shit home with
us. I tole him that only if he could make an enclosure that was
both leak and escape proof. We cut down his rations before
departure day to minimize the guano output, and my brother
fashioned a cardboard box lined with newspaper and secured with
about three entire rolls of duck tape. Not elegant, but
suitable. Departure turned out to be in the middle of a hot Texas
afternoon, due to fiddle farting around. On the flight back, there
was not a smooth altitude in the universe, and, somewhere over the
Panhandle, a TERRIBLE smell filled the cockpit. I looked at my
brother, Zat you? He shook his head, and I had to believe him
because he would have proudly claimed it. I rocked the wings
looking for a feedlot below, but there were not acres of cows
perfuming the air. The green cloud disappeared as mysteriously as
it appeared and we bumped on along. Right before we landed in
Portales, same awful green cloud, couldn't land fast
enough. When I shut down the plane, brother grabbed the box and
disappeared while I put the plane away. Brother showed up, said
pig got airsick. I tole him that it was his pig. We put him in the
back of my Dad's pick up, got him cleaned up and flea powdered,
and he would have a little piggy organism if you scratched his
back, eyes rolling back in his head and tumping over on his side.
Brother took him back to Salida, Colorado. Hoglet followed him
all around town, went camping with him. He didn't remain a
hoglet, but grew up to be a long and skinny teenage hog who still
followed my brother around town and went camping with
him. But, when brother and ladyfriend decided to split the sheets,
brother decided to take his poke and immigrate to Guatemala,
which he admired from his days of bike racing there. There were
some confused negociations with an airline, which kept
transposing the nature of the pet to be transported with dog instead
of hog. The airline went on strike, so brother decided to pile
everything on the back of his flatbed pickup and drive down, Listo
occupying the front with him. There was an understandable
contratemps at the border, when brother insulted the crossing
official by buying Listo a bottle of fancy water like the official was
drinking. Problem was solved by application of cash, of
course. They both made it to Antigua, Guatemala, despite wearing
a Che Guevara T-shirt thru a country that had just endured a thirtyyear
civil war that was won by the other side....
Long story short: brother's stay in Guatemala truncated by lung
cancer, came back and stayed with me til he went west. I flew
down to Guatemala to clean up things, but Listo, who had been
seconded out to a plantation, was not to be found, probably finding
immortality in tacos. I stayed with some local friends of my
brothers, and I had to tell the hog story to the senora of the
house. We both decided that "Listo, Marrano Salvaje del
Desierto!" sounded much better than "Listo, Wild Desert Pig."
But I prefer to think that Listo got the hell out and roams the jungle
still, only appearing for long, luxurious back scratches.
YP
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This Day in U S Military History November 15
1806 – Approaching the Colorado foothills of the Rocky Mountains during his second exploratory expedition, Lieutenant Zebulon Pike spots a distant mountain peak that looks "like a small blue cloud." The mountain was later named Pike's Peak in his honor. Pike's explorations of the newly acquired Louisiana Territory of the United States began before the nation's first western explorers, Lewis and Clark, had returned from their own expedition up the Missouri River. Pike was more of a professional military man than either Lewis or Clark, and he was a smart man who had taught himself Spanish, French, mathematics, and elementary science. When the governor of Louisiana Territory requested a military expedition to explore the headwaters of the Mississippi, General James Wilkinson picked Pike to lead it. Although Pike's first western expedition was only moderately successful, Wilkinson picked him to lead a second mission in July 1806 to explore the headwaters of the Red and Arkansas Rivers. This route took Pike across present-day Kansas and into the high plains region that would later become the state of Colorado. When Pike first saw the peak that would later bear his name, he grossly underestimated its height and its distance, never having seen mountains the size of the Rockies. He told his men they should be able to walk to the peak, climb it, and return before dinner. Pike and his men struggled through snow and sub-zero temperatures before finally taking shelter in a cave for the night, without even having reached the base of the towering mountain. Pike later pronounced the peak impossible to scale. The remainder of Pike's expedition was equally trying. After attempting for several months to locate the Red River, Pike and his men became hopelessly lost. A troop of Spanish soldiers saved the mission when they arrested Pike and his men. The soldiers escorted them to Santa Fe, thus providing Pike with an invaluable tour of that strategically important region, courtesy of the Spanish military. After returning to the United States, Pike wrote a poorly organized account of his expedition that won him some fame, but little money. Still, in recognition of his bravery and leadership during the western expeditions, the army appointed him a brigadier general during the War of 1812. He was killed in an explosion during the April 1813 assault on Toronto.
1864 – Union General William T. Sherman begins his expedition across Georgia by torching the industrial section of Atlanta and pulling away from his supply lines. For the next six weeks, Sherman's army destroyed most of Georgia before capturing the Confederate seaport of Savannah, Georgia. Sherman captured Atlanta in early September after a long summer campaign. He recognized that he was vulnerable in the city, however, as his supply lines stretched all the way from Nashville, Tennessee. Confederate raiders such as Nathan Bedford Forrest threatened to cut his lines, and Sherman had to commit thousands of troops to protect the railroads and rivers that carried provisions for his massive army. Sherman split his army, keeping 60,000 men and sending the rest back to Nashville with General George Thomas to deal with the remnants of General John Bell Hood's Army of Tennessee, the force Sherman had defeated to take Atlanta. After hearing that President Lincoln had won reelection on November 8, Sherman ordered 2,500 light wagons loaded with supplies. Doctors checked each soldier for illness or injuries, and those who were deemed unfit were sent to Nashville. Sherman wrote to his general in chief, Ulysses S. Grant, that if he could march through Georgia it would be "proof positive that the North can prevail." He told Grant that he would not send couriers back, but to "trust the Richmond papers to keep you well advised." Sherman loaded the surplus supplies on trains and shipped them back to Nashville. On November 15, the army began to move, burning the industrial section of Atlanta before they left. One witness reported "immense and raging fires lighting up whole heavens … huge waves of fire roll up into the sky; presently the skeleton of great warehouses stand out in relief against sheets of roaring, blazing, furious flames." Sherman's famous destruction of Georgia had begun.
1906 – Curtis E. Le May, air force general and VP candidate, was born. Curtis Emerson Le May graduated from Ohio State University in 1928. He received his pilots wings at the Air Corps Flying School in 1929, the beginning of a thirty-eight year military career from a pilot in the elite First Pursuit Croup to Chief of Staff United States Air Force. "Curt" Le May was respected throughout his service for his vision, high order of discipline, and the professionalism he demanded of himself and his commands. From fighter pilot to bombardment pilot in the mid-1930's, he pioneered and became a leading expert in aerial celestial navigation. He proved his thesis on the 1938 B-17 Goodwill Flight to South America and the intercept of the ocean liner Rex, 800 miles off the U.S. coast in 1940. As Commander of the 305th Bombardment Group in England in 1942 and later as Commander of the 3rd Air Division, he developed the novel tactic of low altitude, non-evasive bombing. This was to become a major technique of World War II strategic air operations. In 1944, he assumed command of the struggling 20th Air Force B-29 operations in China. Later in 1945, he moved to the Marianas Islands in the Pacific to lead the 21st Air Force B-29's in low altitude operations in the final air assault on Japan. After the war, he was Deputy Chief of Staff for Research and Development and then Commander U.S. Air Forces in Europe where he organized the historic Berlin Airlift in 1947, employing air power for humanitarism. He led the Strategic Air Command from 1948 to 1957, when he became Vice Chief and then Chief of Staff of the Air Force in 1961. He led the Air Force through its transformation into an all jet force of great mobility, missiles, and high professionalism. General Le May retired from active service in 1965.
1960 – The first submarine with nuclear missiles, the USS George Washington, took to sea from Charleston, South Carolina.
2006 – The battle of Turki began after Lt. Col. Andrew Poppas, commander of the 5th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry, a unit of the 82nd Airborne Division, and other soldiers flew over the area on a reconnaissance mission on November 12. From the helicopters, they spotted a white car covered by shrubbery and a hole in the ground that appeared to be a hiding place. The colonel dropped off an eight-man team and later sent other soldiers to sweep the area. Gunfire erupted on November 15 when C Troop paratroopers ran into an ambush near the village of Turki. Several insurgents feigned surrender to lure American troops out of their up-armored humvees and onto the ground. This tactic would be repeated to draw in members from A and B Troops in other locations. Officers said that in this battle, unlike the vast majority of engagements in Diyala, insurgents stood and fought, even deploying a platoon-sized unit that showed remarkable discipline and that one captain said was in "perfect military formation." Insurgents throughout Iraq usually avoid direct confrontation with the Americans, preferring to use hit-and-run tactics and melting away at the sight of American armored vehicles. The insurgents had built a labyrinth network of trenches in the farmland, with sleeping areas and significant weapons caches. Two anti-aircraft guns had been hidden away. The fighting eventually became so intense that the Americans called in airstrikes, provided by both helicopter gunships and F16s. American commanders said they called in 12 hours of airstrikes while soldiers shot their way through a reed-strewn network of canals in extremely close combat. The fighting lasted for more than 40 hours. High level terrorist leaders were thought to have been present. The stiff resistance from insurgent fighters was believed to have given these leaders time to escape. In the end the 5th Squadron managed to destroy the insurgent trench system established in the area. Six insurgent weapons caches were also uncovered during the battle. The caches included more than 400,000 rounds of small-arms ammunition, 15,000 rounds of heavy machine gun ammunition, five mortar bipods, three heavy machine guns, three anti-tank weapons, two recoilless rifles and numerous mortar rounds, grenades, flares and other artillery rounds. But many more insurgent training camps remain in the area. An American captain and a lieutenant, both West Point graduates, were killed in the battle along with 72 insurgents and 20 insurgents were captured.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
BONG, RICHARD 1. (Air Mission)
Rank and organization: Major, U.S. Army Air Corps. Place and date: Over Borneo and Leyte, 10 October to 15 November 1944. Entered service at: Poplar, Wis. Birth: Poplar, Wis. G.O. No.: 90, 8 December 1944. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action above and beyond the call of duty in the Southwest Pacific area from 10 October to 15 November 1944. Though assigned to duty as gunnery instructor and neither required nor expected to perform combat duty, Maj. Bong voluntarily and at his own urgent request engaged in repeated combat missions, including unusually hazardous sorties over Balikpapan, Borneo, and in the Leyte area of the Philippines. His aggressiveness and daring resulted in his shooting down 8 enemy airplanes during this period.
BALDONADO, JOE R.
Rank and Organization: Corporal, U.S. Army, Company B, 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment. Place and Date: November 15, 1950. Kangdong, Korea. Born: August 28, 1930, Colorado. Departed: Yes (11/25/1950). Entered Service At: Santa Clara, CA. G.O. Number: . Date of Issue: 03/18/2014. Accredited To: . Citation: Baldonado distinguished himself on Nov. 25, 1950, while serving as a machine-gunner in the vicinity of Kangdong, Korea. Baldonado's platoon was occupying Hill 171 when the enemy attacked, attempting to take their position. Baldonado held an exposed position, cutting down wave after wave of enemy troops even as they targeted attacks on his position. During the final assault by the enemy, a grenade landed near Baldanado's gun, killing him instantly. His remains still have not been found.
*JORDAN, MACK A.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company K 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Kumsong, Korea, 15 November 1951. Entered service at: Collins, Miss Born: 8 December 1928, Collins, Miss. G.O. No.: 3, 8 January 1953 Citation: Pfc. Jordan, a member of Company K, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and indomitable courage above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. As a squad leader of the 3d Platoon, he was participating in a night attack on key terrain against a fanatical hostile force when the advance was halted by intense small-arms and automatic-weapons fire and a vicious barrage of handgrenades. Upon orders for the platoon to withdraw and reorganize, Pfc. Jordan voluntarily remained behind to provide covering fire. Crawling toward an enemy machine gun emplacement, he threw 3 grenades and neutralized the gun. He then rushed the position delivering a devastating hail of fire, killing several of the enemy and forcing the remainder to fall back to new positions. He courageously attempted to move forward to silence another machine gun but, before he could leave his position, the ruthless foe hurled explosives down the hill and in the ensuing blast both legs were severed. Despite mortal wounds, he continued to deliver deadly fire and held off the assailants until the platoon returned. Pfc. Jordan's unflinching courage and gallant self-sacrifice reflect lasting glory upon himself and uphold the noble traditions of the infantry and the military service.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for November 15, 2020 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
15 November
1921: Capt Dale Mabry commanded the flight of the largest semirigid airship in existence to date, the airship Roma, during its initial flight at Langley Field. (24)
1939: The first night nonstop airmail pickups in history were made on the Pittsburg-Philadelphia route.
1940: The US Navy began air operations from Bermuda as an outgrowth of an earlier destroyer-bases deal between the US and Britain (See 2 September). (24)
1942: Lts Harold Comstock and Roger Dyar set a new speed record for planes when their P-47s power-dived at 725 MPH from 35,000 feet over an east coast base. (24) First women entered US AAF flight training. The Army designated the Women's Flying Training Detachment at the Houston Municipal Airport as the 319th Army Air Force Flying Training Detachment.
1946: OPERATIONS MOUNTAIN GOAT AND ALISO CANYON. TAC used P-80 jets for the first time to provide close air support to ground forces in joint Army-Navy-Air Force exercises at Camp Pendleton, Calif. Six tactical groups flew 3,337 sorties, while troop carrier groups moved 1,052 people and 245,370 pounds of cargo to and from the maneuver area. (24)
1949: The Ryan Aeronautical Company released data on the first air-to-air missile, the XAAM-A-1 Firebird, a 10-foot, rocket-powered projectile. (24)
1955: Exercise SAGEBRUSH. The largest joint exercise since World War II to date, started to test USAF and Army capabilities to perform combat missions. (16) (24)
1960: The first submarine equipped with Polaris missiles, the USS George Washington, left Charleston for stations within some 1,200 miles of Soviet targets. It carried 16 missiles. (24) NASA pilot Scott Crossfield flew the North American X-15 research aircraft with the XLR-99 "Big Engine" for the first time at Edwards AFB. He reached Mach 2.51 and an altitude of 81,200 feet at a 50 percent power setting. (24)
1961: The USAF activated 2d Advanced Echelon, Thirteenth Air Force, in Saigon, Vietnam. This event signaled the official entry of the USAF into the Vietnam War. (21)
1965: Through 17 November, Jack L. Martin and four others flew a Boeing 707/320C around the world from Honolulu, Hawaii. They returned in 62 hours 27 minutes and average 420.75 MPH for the flight. (9)
1966: The USAF selected Hughes Aircraft Company and North American Aviation Corporation to start contract definition phase of the Maverick (AGM-65A) air-to-surface missile program. (12)
1967: Maj Michael J. Adams died in an X-15 crash. He was the first fatality in the program since its inception in 1959. (16) (26)
1968: COMMANDO HUNT. The USAF launched Commando Hunt, an extensive interdiction campaign in Laos, to partially offset the bombing halt imposed on the 1 November. Concentrated in the "Barrel Roll" and "Steel Tiger" areas, Commando Hunt drastically increased the sorties flown in Southeast Asia from 4,764 tactical and 273 B-52 sorties in October to 12,821 tactical and 661 B-52 sorties in November. (17)
1973: Arab nations friendly to Egypt cut off the supply of oil to the nations supporting Israel in the October War. The action significantly affected PACAF, which received almost 90 percent of its fuel from the Mideast. PACAF imposed restrictions on JP-4 fueled aircraft and ceased all sorties except combat missions, Medevacs, and other essential missions. (17)
1974: Vandenberg AFB launched a Delta rocket with three satellites on board: a US weather satellite, the amateur radio operator's satellite OSCAR 7, and Spain's first satellite, INTASAT 1. (7)
1976: First high-speed anti-radiation missile successfully fired from a manned aircraft. (12)
1985: Through 18 November, MAC C-130s airlifted 50 tons of relief supplies and 32 tons of fuel for US Army search and rescue helicopters to Colombia after a volcano erupted there. (16) (18)
2000: At Edwards AFB, the X-32A began field carrier landing practice to demonstrate its flying and handling qualities for low-speed aircraft carrier approaches. Cmdr Philip "Rowdy" Yates, the lead test pilot for the Boeing JSF program, flew the first approaches to a simulated aircraft carrier deck outlined on a runway and equipped with a shipboard-type Fresnel lens. (3)
2002: An AFFTC team flew a NKC-135E Stratotanker, with NASA researchers, and 42 astrobiologists from seven countries on board, from Edwards AFB to Spain to collect data on the Leonid meteor shower. The NKC-135E had special instrumentation and 11 quartz-crystal windows to facilitate the observations. NASA's DC-8 Airborne Laboratory aircraft also flew missions with the NKC-135E. (3) Dana Purifoy flew NASA Dryden Flight Research Center's Active Aeroelastic Wing F/A-18 made its first checkout flight at Edwards AFB. The Navy fighter had lightweight flexible wings to study improved aircraft roll control by means of aerodynamically induced wing twist. In other words, the F/A-18 used a high-tech version of the Wright Brothers' wing-warping principle. NASA, the Air Force Research Laboratory at Edwards, and Boeing sponsored Aeroelastic Wing program. (3)
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Thanks to Brett
Stratfor snippets - Spain, Saudi Arabia, Israel, U.K., Syria/U.S., Indonesia/U.S.,
Spain: Tens of Thousands Protest the Spanish Government's Proposed Amnesty Law
What Happened: Tens of thousands of people took to the streets across Spain to protest the government's plans to grant amnesty to hundreds of people involved in Catalonia's push for independence, Reuters reported on Nov. 12. The leader of the conservative People's Party said the demonstrations would continue until Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for an early general election.
Why It Matters: In return for the amnesty law, Catalonia's pro-independence Junts party will support acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's reappointment in a vote of investiture on Nov. 16. As a result, the amnesty law will enable Sanchez to remain in power and avoid an early general election, but it comes at the price of significant resistance from opposition parties, security forces and the judiciary. This means that new protests are likely, especially on key dates connected to the parliamentary process to pass the amnesty law. The opposition can delay, but probably not block the law, which means it should be approved by early 2024. While the opposition is demanding an early general election, it will not have enough seats in parliament to depose Sanchez as long as the coalition of parties that backs him remains united.
Background: The main demonstration took place in Madrid, where the government says some 80,000 people protested, although the demonstration organizers claim 500,000 people attended. Large demonstrations also took place in cities including Seville, Granada, Malaga and Valencia. On Nov. 13, the Spanish government published a provisional text for the amnesty law, which it will formally present to the Spanish parliament in the coming days. The government has announced that it will try to approve the law as an emergency issue, trying to expedite the parliamentary process.
Saudi Arabia: Investment in Aseer Region Demonstrates Saudi Optimism Toward Houthi Stalemate
What Happened: The head of a sovereign wealth fund-owned commission announced plans to invest billions of dollars into the Aseer region and to expand the Abha airport to make the Red Sea coast an attractive tourist destination, Reuters reported Nov. 10.
Why It Matters: Saudi investment in the Aseer region, which Houthi missile and drone strikes have targeted since 2015, demonstrates increased confidence among Saudis in the stalemate with Houthi rebels, to the extent that it will seek to expand its tourism sector to the once-targeted region. Saudi Arabia will leverage the Aseer region as part of its Vision 2030 plan to expand its tourism sector, especially near the Red Sea.
Background: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had previously announced a 50 billion riyal investment plan in September 2023 to transform the Red Sea coast into a tourism destination through a combination of public and private investment. The Saudi Vision 2030 plan has outlined increased investment in the tourism sector as a priority for economic development.
Israel: Chevron Resumes Gas Supply From Israel's Tamar Gas Field, Easing Egypt's Gas Crunch
What Happened: U.S. energy giant Chevron Corp. announced that it resumed supplying customers from Israel's Tamar natural gas field, whose platform had been shut down after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack for precautionary reasons, Reuters reported on Nov. 13. Chevron has not said whether it will similarly resume operations at the EMG Pipeline from Israel to Egypt.
Why It Matters: Production from the field is expected to reach full capacity within a few days, which will ease Egypt's natural gas crunch, although Egypt remains at risk of electricity shortages since the issue predates the shutdown of the Tamar gas field. With much of Hamas' rocket capabilities severely degraded, either due to Israel's ground operations in the Gaza Strip or exhausted stockpiles, the physical threat to the Tamar gas field's platform, which is just off the coast of the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, has been reduced. The conflict in Gaza is now unlikely to have a major impact on Israel's gas production unless it escalates to a regional confrontation in which Lebanon's political and military group Hezbollah starts using its missile and rocket arsenal against Israeli gas infrastructure.
Background: Hezbollah's leader said in a nationwide speech on Nov. 3 that the group would not escalate the Israel-Hamas war immediately but would respond to future provocations. Hezbollah is Iran's most effective proxy and deters Israeli attacks on Iran itself, so Iran and Hezbollah are strategically disincentivized from attacking Israel.
U.K.: Sunak Tries to Win the Moderate Vote With a Cabinet Reshuffle
What Happened: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak named former Prime Minister David Cameron as his new foreign secretary, and former Foreign Secretary James Cleverly replaced Suella Braverman as home secretary, the Telegraph reported on Nov. 13.
Why It Matters: The reshuffle comes as Sunak tries to revive his party's image ahead of the next general election expected for late 2024 that the opposition Labour Party is set to win by a landslide. The Conservative Party's leaders are assuming that the addition of a prominent centrist figure like Cameron will help the government improve its image in the eyes of moderate voters after years of scandals and political turmoil under successive Conservative governments. However, this move could trigger a backlash from the right wing of the Conservative ruling party. Additionally, the reshuffle is unlikely to meaningfully boost the government's chances of reelection in 2024. No significant policy change is expected as a result of the reshuffle.
Background: Cameron's appointment comes as a surprise, as the former prime minister has played no political role since resigning from his post in the aftermath of the 2016 Brexit referendum. By contrast, Braverman's sacking was expected following controversies over her criticism of the police's handling of pro-Palestinian protests in recent days, which were not coordinated with the prime minister. The Labour Party is leading the ruling Conservative Party by 20 points in the polls ahead of the 2024 elections.
Syria, U.S.: U.S. Airstrikes in Syria Risk Escalation With Iran
What Happened: The United States carried out fresh airstrikes on Iranian-linked targets in Syria in retaliation for attacks on U.S. forces, Reuters reported on Nov. 12. The impacts of the strikes remain unclear.
Why It Matters: U.S.-Iran skirmishes remain focused in Syria as both sides seek to avoid direct escalation while deterring future attacks and responding to domestic political incentives to shape the Israeli military campaign in Gaza. These skirmishes carry the risk of accidental deaths on either side, which would reshape the incentives for escalation and potentially pull the region toward an overt Iran-U.S. conflict.
Background: These are the third American strikes on Iranian-linked sites in Syria since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7. Iranian-linked militias have also harassed U.S. forces in Iraq, and U.S.-Houthi clashes have occurred in Yemen.
Indonesia, U.S.: Leaders to Discuss Nickel, EV Supply Chains
What Happened: Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and U.S. President Joe Biden will discuss advancing a limited free trade agreement around nickel for electric vehicle batteries, Nikkei Asia reported on Nov. 13. The two presidents will also discuss the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Myanmar.
Why It Matters: The talks will be the "very first phase" of a potential deal that would render EVs made using Indonesian nickel eligible for subsidies under the Biden administration's Inflation Reduction Act. However, some U.S. senators oppose the potential arrangement because Indonesia has substandard labor and environmental protections and because China holds large stakes in Indonesian nickel mining and refining. Indonesia's resource nationalism policies, which force foreign entities to invest in nickel refining in-country by banning the export of raw nickel, are another complicating factor.
Background: Indonesia proposed a limited free trade agreement along these lines in April and has previously met with U.S. officials, including Vice President Kamala Harris, to initiate talks.
Gabon: Junta Promises 2025 Elections
What Happened: Gabon's military junta said it will hold elections in 2025 following a national dialogue in April 2024, Agence France-Presse reported on Nov. 13.
Why It Matters: The Gabonese junta has been under pressure from some African and Western countries to announce a transition timeline in order to avoid the imposition of new and/or more severe sanctions and restrictions. While there is no guarantee that the junta will adhere to the proposed electoral timeline, the announcement will very likely ease tensions and enable the normalization of relations with some African and European partners.
Background: The military overthrew President Ali Bongo Ondimba, who had ruled for 14 years, on Aug. 30.
Venezuela, Guyana: Tensions Mount Ahead of Venezuela's December Referendum Over Essequibo
What Happened: On Nov. 14, the International Court of Justice will hear oral arguments regarding provisional measures submitted by Guyanese officials who are trying to prevent Venezuela's Dec. 3 non-binding referendum on the future of the Essequibo region from taking place, according to a resolution published by the Guyanese National Assembly on Nov. 11.
Why It Matters: It is highly unlikely that any statement from the court will impact Venezuela's referendum, as President Nicolas Maduro does not recognize its jurisdiction over the issue. If Venezuelans overwhelmingly vote in favor of annexing the disputed Essequibo region in December, Maduro may ramp up provocative measures, such as conducting more frequent military exercises in the eastern part of Venezuela or harassing fishing ships in Guyana's claimed offshore exclusive economic zone, to build support leading up to the 2024 presidential elections. These actions would draw criticism and perhaps additional sanctions from the United States, but a direct military confrontation between Venezuela and Guyana remains unlikely.
Background: The Essequibo region is a strip of land between the Essequibo and Orinoco rivers that accounts for over half of Guyana's national territory. The referendum will ask Venezuelans five questions about the region, including whether they "agree with the creation of the state of Guyana Essequibo and the development of an accelerated plan…[and] consequently incorporating said state in the map of the Venezuelan territory." For decades, Venezuelan governments have rejected an 1899 agreement signed between Venezuela and the United Kingdom (the colonial power of Guyana until its independence in 1966) that had previously settled the border dispute.
Israel, Gaza: Israel Captures Government Buildings as Stalemate at Shifa Hospital Continues
What Happened: Israeli troops made gains in Gaza City, capturing the Palestinian Legislative Council building, a government complex, the police headquarters, and sites associated with the Palestinian militant group Hamas' intelligence division and military wing, The Jerusalem Post reported on Nov. 14. Meanwhile, U.S. President Joe Biden said he wanted to see "less intrusive action" at Shifa Hospital, which Israel claims is Hamas' main headquarters, and Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said he estimated Israel had another two to three weeks before the country faced heightened diplomatic pressure to reduce its military operations in Gaza.
Why It Matters: Despite Biden's words, Shifa Hospital may still be the site of significant Palestinian civilian losses. These losses would push the United States to increase diplomatic pressure on Israel to wind down its campaign and/or alter its goals, and the Lebanese political and militant group Hezbollah and Iran could also escalate their attacks against the United States and Israel. Even without such losses, the United States will likely exhaust its willingness to back major combat operations in the coming weeks. An altered Israeli military campaign may prevent Israel from taking full control of the strip in the near term.
Background: Shifa Hospital remains a major source of humanitarian concern, as it is both a functioning hospital and a main target of Israel. Some 1.5 million of the 2.1 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have fled southward to an Israeli-declared safe zone as Israel completes operations in the north.
Russia: Russia Is Still Selling Most of Its Oil Above the West's Price Cap
What Happened: EU officials are holding discussions on reinforcing the West's $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil exports, including by potentially increasing the enforcement mechanisms, over concerns that "almost none" of Russia's oil exports are being traded below the cap, the Financial Times reported on Nov. 13. Meanwhile, a U.S. Treasury official said the goal of the price cap was not just to maximize the amount of Russian oil sold under the price cap, but "to change Russia's incentives in a way that makes it make hard choices."
Why It Matters: The gap between the U.S. and European response to higher volumes of Russian oil being traded above the cap highlights differing priorities across the Atlantic as Washington worries about the impact of harsher sanctions and stronger enforcement on global oil prices. Russia has proven adept at working with shadow tankers and oil traders to either trade oil without using Western insurance or avoid detection for sanctions violations. Nevertheless, Western oil sanctions have increased the cost of Russian oil sales to Asia by around an estimated $36 per barrel, which would still limit netback revenue from oil sales, even as the gap between Russia's flagship Urals blend and European light sweet crude benchmark Brent has narrowed to under $10 per barrel.
Background: The U.S. Treasury Department sent notices to 30 ship managers of nearly 100 vessels suspected of violating sanctions on Nov. 10.
U.S.: Government Releases Fifth U.S. National Climate Assessment
What Happened: The U.S. government warned that climate change was occurring across the United States and that all parts of the country will face a significant impact from climate change, according to the country's Fifth National Climate Assessment released on Nov. 14. The report warns that climate change is exacerbating economic inequality and hurting poorer Americans the most and that future climate risks include unreliable water supplies, food system disruptions and increased flood risks.
Why It Matters: The closely watched report is a foundational science-backed view of the risks of climate change to the United States, and it provides a granular look at how climate change is likely to affect all parts of the country. For Democrats and progressives, the report will increase calls for more action on the energy transition. However, the report is unlikely to convince most conservatives of the need to shift rapidly away from hydrocarbons, especially as gasoline prices remain elevated under the Biden administration compared with most of the Trump administration.
Background: This is the first National Climate Assessment the United States has released since 2018. The Biden-Harris administration has already announced $6 billion in investments to improve climate change resilience in the United States, including $3.9 billion for improving the electricity grid and $2 billion in funding for community-driven projects to strengthen climate resilience and build community capacity to respond to environmental and climate justice problems.
Global: U.N. Climate Reports Offer Reality Check on Global Emissions Goals
What Happened: The United Nations warned that current nationally determined contributions submitted by global governments would only cut emissions levels in 2030 by 2% compared with 2019 levels and that for peak emissions to occur this decade, countries must also implement conditional elements of their NDCs, according to a U.N. report published on Nov. 14. A second U.N. report evaluated that the long-term low-emission strategies submitted by 75 countries would lower emissions by 63% from 2019 levels.
Why It Matters: The two reports are designed to evaluate existing NDCs and will add pressure on governments to make more significant promises at the 2023 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which begins on Nov. 30. However, China's economic slowdown and disputes over the pace of decarbonization between developed and developing countries will undermine significant progress at the conference.
Background: Most global climate negotiations in 2023 ahead of the conference have been fraught with disagreements over issues like climate finance, language around phasing out fossil fuels versus phasing out fossil fuel emissions, and the funding and management of the loss and damage fund.
Thailand: Prime Minister Seeks Foreign Investment for Land Bridge
What Happened: Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin is in San Francisco pitching a governmental land bridge project to foreign investors, The Bangkok Post reported Nov. 14. The $28 billion project envisions constructing a land bridge between two yet-to-be-constructed seaports along the Kra Isthmus in the Malay Peninsula in Thailand's deep south, thus circumventing the Strait of Malacca, cutting maritime travel time by four days and lowering shipping costs by 15%.
Why It Matters: If completed, the land bridge would have massive regional and shipping implications while representing a new trade link between the Indian and Pacific Oceans. However, the plan likely has more constraints than drivers, making its eventual realization uncertain. The separatist movement in Thailand's restive deep south, as well as mountainous terrain, render construction a massive challenge, in addition to the potentially prohibitively high construction costs for the land bridge and the two envisioned ports. The plan could also open up Thailand to maritime spats with its neighbors. Though there has yet to be any indication of interested foreign investors, the project's highest chance of would come from Chinese investment and backing.
Background: Thailand has long envisioned circumventing the Strait of Malacca via the Kra Isthmus, first as a canal and now as a land bridge. The canal idea was scrapped under the last government in favor of a more environmentally friendly land bridge plan. Srettha has also recently visited Riyadh and Beijing to court foreign investors for the project.
China, U.S.: Fentanyl Precursors Agreement Forthcoming, True Progress Elusive
What Happened: The meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in San Francisco, California, on Nov. 15 is expected to produce, among other agreements, a plan for China to crack down on the export to the United States of precursors to make the drug fentanyl, the Financial Times reported on Nov. 13.
Why It Matters: China is motivated to continue the fentanyl trade to develop its strategic pharmaceutical industry, so a Xi-Biden agreement will likely be minimally impactful. However, it will enable each side to claim rhetorical victories against the drug trade. Meanwhile, the fentanyl trade will remain a congressional cudgel against China and an impediment (among many others) to broader progress in the bilateral relationship.
Background: Fentanyl is a major money-maker for China's nascent pharmaceutical industry, which is one of China's strategic emerging industries in which the government prioritizes funding and other support in order to facilitate national economic development. Previous bilateral efforts to stop the fentanyl trade have proved fruitless due to the resilience of the drug trade and lax Chinese enforcement.
Australia, U.S., U.K.: Legal Revisions Could Open the Door to Defense Trade via AUKUS
What Happened: Australia opened a bill for comment on Nov. 7 that would tighten the country's restrictions on sharing sensitive military technologies with anyone other than U.S. or British nationals and would reduce Australia's barriers to trading military technologies with the United States and the United Kingdom, the Sydney Morning Herald reported on Nov. 13.
Why It Matters: If passed, the measures would give Australia's military more access to cutting-edge U.S. and British technologies — including artificial intelligence and other cyber capabilities, hypersonic missiles, and underwater technologies — via the AUKUS trilateral security pact. This would increase China's sense of military containment by the West and could strain Beijing's relations with Canberra. However, for now Beijing is committed to easing trade restrictions on Australia in an attempt to bring Canberra out of the U.S. orbit.
Background: Australia's lax military technology protections compared with the United States have been the country's greatest impediment to greater technology sharing via AUKUS. The pact's initial landmark development was a commitment to provide Australia with nuclear-propelled submarines, which China decried as nuclear proliferation.
France: Government and State-Owned Nuclear Company EDF Strike Deal on Power Prices
What Happened: The French government and state-owned nuclear power producer EDF agreed to set future electricity prices in France at 70 euros ($76) per megawatt-hour, Reuters reported on Nov. 14.
Why It Matters: The agreement will enable the French government to shield households and businesses from price hikes in the electricity market and provide consumers with some stability and predictability while enabling EDF to still generate revenues to fund investments in the renovation and expansion of its aging nuclear fleet. The deal follows a recent package of measures proposed by the German government to reduce electricity prices for energy-intensive industries in the country, showing how France and Germany — the European Union's two largest economies — maintain a degree of coordination in controlling domestic energy prices in order to avoid an internal subsidy race. The two deals will increase industrial power consumption in Europe following the demand destruction of 2022 and 2023 caused by the energy crisis.
Background: The deal will replace a framework known as ARENH, under which EDF sells a chunk of its power output to third-party distributors and industrial groups at a set price (that has been agreed with the European Union) of 42 euros per megawatt-hour. The system is set to expire at the end of 2025. The agreement will need approval from the European Commission.
Mexico, U.S.: Lopez Obrador to Discuss Bilateral Relations, Migration With Biden
What Happened: U.S. President Joe Biden will have a bilateral meeting with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Nov. 17 on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in San Francisco, California, Reuters reported on Nov. 13.
Why It Matters: While this meeting is unlikely to produce policies that will decrease irregular migration in the short term, it will set the stage for larger regional discussions on migration ahead of the 2024 elections in both countries. Lopez Obrador has suggested that he will use the meeting to advocate for an economic aid package for Latin America and the Caribbean to address the root causes of migration. To this end, he plans to present a joint agreement that 12 regional countries developed during an October summit in Mexico that proposes regional solutions to promote trade, combat crime, and protect women and children on migration routes.
Background: The Migration Policy Institute reported that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection had 2.5 million encounters with migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border during the 2023 fiscal year, an overall increase in the number of encounters from the previous year. However, there was a decline in the number of migrants entering the United States without prior authorization between ports of entry. The October summit in Mexico yielded a joint agreement that highlighted frustration over U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and Cuba as "coercive unilateral measures" that drive outward migration.
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