WASHINGTON: The Navy sails on the cusp a new “golden age” of seapower despite the fact that it will have one of the smallest fleets in recent history, a top service leader believes. While actual ship numbers have dropped, the Navy has roughly the same number of large warships — cruisers, destroyers and aircraft carriers… Keep reading →

UPDATED WASHINGTON: The Navy could abandon its long-standing goal for a 313-ship fleet in its new force structure plan to meet the needs of the White House’s new national security strategy. Navy leaders are in the midst of drafting a new force structure assessment, according Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mark Ferguson. That new… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: As the Navy prepares to push further into the Western Pacific, service leaders are doing all they can to prepare their warships for potential cyberattacks, the head of the Navy’s surface warfare fleet said today. Cyberwarfare remains the preeminent threat to U.S. naval forces around the world, Vice Adm. Richard Hunt, commander of naval… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The White House’s newly-minted national security strategy is full of big ideas. But among all these big ideas is a much smaller one that could draw the Pentagon much deeper into the small wars that have defined America’s global counterterrorism campaign. U.S. special operations forces and counterinsurgency specialists returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are… Keep reading →

CAPITOL HILL: House and Senate Republicans will team up on pending legislation to spare the Defense Department from a potential $1 trillion budget cut, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Buck McKeon said today. McKeon has been in contact with Senate counterparts who are pitching similar plan to clear the looming $600 billion budget cut off… Keep reading →

UPDATED WASHINGTON: The United States must not hand over sensitive missile defense technology to Russia even if it means abandoning White House plans for a European missile shield, a key GOP lawmaker says. There already have been numerous instances by Russia to obtain American military secrets even after the collapse of the Iron Curtain the… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: A Republican plan to spare the Pentagon roughly $500 billion in spending cuts faces rough passage with no guarantee the department could avoid the spending reduction, two defense analysts say. Sens. Kelly Ayotte, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Joe Lieberman and John Kyl will roll out a “substitute” sequestration plan this week. Formal legislation will… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: For the second time in as many years, the White House is asking the Pentagon to put a price tag on the Obama administration’s European missile shield program. The Office of Management and Budget first asked the Pentagon wrap up a comprehensive cost estimate for the missile shield program back in December 2009. The… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Despite reports of its possible demise, the Navy’s new aircraft carrier has been spared the budget ax. Now Pentagon and service officials have to figure out how they will pay for it. The White House’s Office of Management and Budget approved the Navy’s request to include the carrier program in its six-year spending plan,… Keep reading →

Washington: The Army’s strategy to close long-term readiness gaps stemming from its rush to rebuild war-torn equipment is falling woefully short of expectations, leaving service units to come up with their own solutions. The Army’s R3 initiative has been the blueprint for how the service plans to reset, retrograde and redistribute weapons, vehicles and equipment… Keep reading →