DefenceTalkThe dwindling US troop presence in Afghanistan is hampering the Pentagon’s ability to train and monitor local security forces, a government watchdog report warned Friday. Since local Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) assumed responsibility for their country’s security, taking over from NATO forces at the start of 2015, US troop numbers have dropped […]https://www.defencetalk.com/shrinking-us-presence-in-afghanistan-creates-security-concerns-report-67378/

DefenceTalkDams, the power grid and other such infrastructure were once closed network systems. Then they were added to the Internet. “We still thought of them as closed networks — but they’re not,” said Lt. Gen. Edward Cardon, commander of U.S. Army Cyber Command and Second Army. “Other systems touch them and that starts to create […]https://www.defencetalk.com/iot-attacks-threaten-national-security-say-cyber-experts-67358/

DefenceTalkA massive exercise involving many, if not all, of nine US combatant commands will target an array of strategic threats facing the United States and its allies, the Department of Defense’s US Strategic Command (STRATCOM) announced in a press release on Friday. Beginning Saturday, the drill entitled “Global Lightning 2016” will integrate “nearly every conceivable […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-military-to-conduct-large-scale-drills-to-counter-strategic-threats-67339/

DefenceTalkA British Airways plane struck an object believed to be a drone on Sunday as it was coming in for landing at Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport, police said. An investigation has been launched into the incident, which follows a string of near misses involving drones and is believed to be the first case of a […]https://www.defencetalk.com/suspected-drone-hits-plane-during-heathrow-landing-67258/

DefenceTalkUS Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and his Indian counterpart agreed Tuesday to strengthen their cooperation on maritime security, as concerns grow in Washington over Beijing’s growing military ambitions. Carter is in New Delhi to bolster a strategic relationship Washington considers crucial in the face of what it sees as China’s rising assertiveness, particularly in the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-india-agree-to-strengthen-maritime-cooperation-67232/

DefenceTalkWith enough computing effort most contemporary security systems will be broken. But a research team at the University of Sydney has made a major breakthrough in generating single photons (light particles), as carriers of quantum information in security systems. The collaboration involving physicists at the Centre for Ultrahigh bandwidth Devices for Optical Systems (CUDOS), an […]https://www.defencetalk.com/breakthrough-technology-to-improve-cyber-security-67149/

DefenceTalkThe United States is facing five global strategic challenges, while at home sequestration poses a great risk to the funding of critical investments, Defense Secretary Ash Carter told lawmakers here today. “Today’s security environment is dramatically different from the last 25 years, requiring new ways of investing and operating,” Carter said at a hearing of […]https://www.defencetalk.com/carter-outlines-security-challenges-warns-against-sequestration-67111/

DefenceTalkThe Philippine Supreme Court ruled Tuesday a security accord with the United States was legal, allowing more US forces into the former American colony as it seeks to counter Chinese expansion in the South China Sea. The 10-year agreement, signed in 2014 but not implemented due to legal challenges, will see more US troops and […]https://www.defencetalk.com/philippines-welcomes-more-us-forces-to-counter-china-66339/

DefenceTalkQUETTA: Pakistan Navy has increased all-round security and surveillance at Gwadar Port with the commencement of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, reported Radio Pakistan. “A special marine battalion has been raised for the security of Gwadar,” stated a spokesperson of the Pakistan Navy while briefing media personnel during an extensive tour of the Gwadar site. […]https://www.defencetalk.com/cpec-pakistan-navy-ramps-up-security-at-gwadar-port-66248/

DefenceTalkThe overall security situation in Afghanistan deteriorated in the second half of 2015, with an increase in insurgent attacks and higher casualties among both Taliban and national forces, a Pentagon report stated Tuesday. This month marks a year since the US- and NATO-led mission in Afghanistan transitioned into an Afghan-led operation, with allied nations assisting […]https://www.defencetalk.com/afghan-security-worse-in-second-part-of-2015-pentagon-66109/