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Category: Military Intelligence

  • MIL-Evening Report: Trump may push Albanese on defence spending, but Australia has leverage it can use, too

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Thomas Corben, Research Fellow, Foreign Policy and Defence, University of Sydney

    Ahead of a prospective meeting between Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Donald Trump at the G7 Summit Canada, two key developments have bumped defence issues to the top of the alliance agenda.

    First, in a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles late last month, US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth urged Australia to boost defence spending to 3.5% of gross domestic product (GDP).

    This elicited a stern response from Albanese that “Australia should decide what we spend on Australia’s defence.”

    Then, this week, news emerged the Pentagon is conducting a review of the AUKUS deal to ensure it aligns with Trump’s “America First” agenda.

    Speculation is rife as to the reasons for the review. Some contend it’s a classic Trump “shakedown” to force Australia to pay more for its submarines, while others say it’s a normal move for any new US administration.



    Read more:
    Trump may try to strike a deal with AUKUS review, but here’s why he won’t sink it

    The reality is somewhere in between. Trump may well see an opportunity to “own” the AUKUS deal negotiated by his predecessor, Joe Biden, by seeking to extract a “better deal” from Australia.

    But while support for AUKUS across the US system is strong, the review also reflects long-standing and bipartisan concerns in the US over the deal. These include, among other things, Australia’s functional and fiscal capacity to take charge of its own nuclear-powered submarines once they are built.

    So, why have these issues come up now, just before Albanese’s first face-to-face meeting with Trump?

    To understand this, it’s important to place both issues in a wider context. We need to consider the Trump administration’s overall approach to alliances, as well as whether Australia’s defence budget matches our strategy.

    Trump, alliances and burden-sharing

    Senior Pentagon figures noted months ago that defence spending was their “main concern” with Australia in an otherwise “excellent” relationship.

    But such concerns are not exclusive to Australia. Rather, they speak to Trump’s broader approach to alliances worldwide – he wants US allies in Europe and Asia to share more of the burden, as well.

    Trump’s team sees defence spending (calculated as a percentage of GDP) as a basic indicator of an ally’s seriousness about both their own national defence and collective security with Washington.

    As Hegseth noted in testimony before Congress this week, “we can’t want [our allies’] security more than they do.”

    Initially, the Trump administration’s burden-sharing grievances with NATO received the most attention. The government demanded European allies boost spending to 5% of GDP in the interests of what prominent MAGA figures have called “burden-owning”.

    Several analysts interpreted these demands as indicative of what will be asked of Asian partners, including Australia.

    In reality, what Washington wants from European and Indo-Pacific allies differs in small but important ways.

    In Europe, the Trump administration wants allies to assume near-total responsibility for their own defence to enable the US to focus on bigger strategic priorities. These include border security at home and, importantly, Chinese military power in the Indo-Pacific.

    By contrast, Trump’s early moves on defence policy in Asia have emphasised a degree of cooperation and mutual benefit.

    The administration has explicitly linked its burden-sharing demands with a willingness to work with its allies – Japan, South Korea, Australia and others – in pursuit of a strategy of collective defence to deter Chinese aggression.

    This reflects a long-standing recognition in Washington that America needs its allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific perhaps more than anywhere else in the world. The reason: to support US forces across the vast Pacific and Indian oceans and to counter China’s growing ability to disrupt US military operations across the region.

    In other words, the US must balance its demands of Indo-Pacific allies with the knowledge that it also needs their help to succeed in Asia.

    This means the Albanese government can and should engage the Trump administration with confidence on defence matters – including AUKUS.

    It has a lot to offer America, not just a lot to lose.

    Australian defence spending

    But a discussion over Australia’s defence spending is not simply a matter of alliance management. It also speaks to the genuine challenges Australia faces in matching its strategy with its resources.

    Albanese is right to say Australia will set its own defence policy based on its needs rather than an arbitrary percentage of GDP determined by Washington.

    But it’s also true Australia’s defence budget must match the aspirations and requirements set out in its 2024 National Defence Strategy. This is necessary for our defence posture to be credible.

    This document paints a sobering picture of the increasingly fraught strategic environment Australia finds itself in. And it outlines an ambitious capability development agenda to allow Australia to do its part to maintain the balance of power in the region, alongside the United States and other partners.

    But there is growing concern in the Australian policy community that our defence budget is insufficient to meet these goals.

    For instance, one of the lead authors of Australia’s 2023 Defence Strategic Review, Sir Angus Houston, mused last year that in order for AUKUS submarines to be a “net addition” to the nation’s military capability, Australia would need to increase its defence spending to more than 3% of GDP through the 2030s.

    Otherwise, he warned, AUKUS would “cannibalise” investments in Australia’s surface fleet, long-range strike capabilities, air and missile defence, and other capabilities.

    There’s evidence the Australian government understands this, too. Marles and the minister for defence industry, Pat Conroy, have both said the government is willing to “have a conversation” about increasing spending, if required to meet Australia’s strategic needs.

    This is all to say that an additional push from Trump on defence spending and burden-sharing – however unpleasantly delivered – would not be out of the ordinary. And it may, in fact, be beneficial for Australia’s own deliberations on its defence spending needs.

    Thomas Corben receives funding from the Australian Department of Defence.

    – ref. Trump may push Albanese on defence spending, but Australia has leverage it can use, too – https://theconversation.com/trump-may-push-albanese-on-defence-spending-but-australia-has-leverage-it-can-use-too-258811

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Kaine, Van Hollen, Padilla Introduce Legislation to Sanction Salvadoran Officials for Human Rights Abuses, Collusion with Trump Administration in Violation of Constitutional Rights

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Virginia Tim Kaine

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Alex Padilla (D-CA) are introducing new legislation in a continuation of their efforts to hold El Salvador accountable for its human rights abuses and its collusion with the Trump Administration to imprison people from the United States without due process. The senators’ legislation would apply sanctions on Salvadoran officials and others who have engaged in international human rights violations or worked to deprive individuals residing in the United States of their rights under the U.S. Constitution. The legislation would additionally explicitly sanction President Bukele and Vice President Ulloa, as well as El Salvador’s Ministers of Foreign Relations, Defense, and Justice and Public Security, among others. In addition to its actions alongside the Trump Administration to imprison people from the United States, Bukele and his government have continued to jail and persecute innocent Salvadoran citizens, including journalists and human rights advocates such as Ruth López.

    The text of the legislation is available here.

    “Under President Bukele, tens of thousands of Salvadorans and even U.S. residents remain jammed in megaprisons without due process. President Bukele may think he has a friend in President Trump, but he should know that Americans will not tolerate his efforts to undermine the rule of law and democratic institutions—whether in El Salvador or here in the United States,” said Kaine. “That’s why I’m introducing this legislation with my colleagues to sanction foreign nationals complicit in Bukele’s behavior and the Trump Administration’s illegal actions to deny due process to people living in the United States.”

    “President Bukele and the Government of El Salvador are colluding with the Trump Administration, taking American taxpayer dollars to imprison people as part of a scheme to violate their constitutional rights. We must hold Bukele and his cronies accountable for these wrongful actions as well as for the gross violations of human rights they are committing in El Salvador. This legislation would do just that by placing sanctions on Bukele and those in his government who are responsible for these abuses. We must send a clear signal that these injustices are unacceptable and must end,” said Van Hollen.

    “President Bukele and his regime are continuing to commit abhorrent human rights atrocities and eradicate due process,” said Padilla. “We must hold Bukele and all responsible parties accountable for the suspension of constitutional rights and continued collusion with the Trump Administration to imprison people from the United States without due process. Imposing economic sanctions and visa restrictions on Bukele and his corrupt government is a necessary step to push El Salvador to finally uphold international human rights law and respect fundamental civil liberties.”

    The senators’ legislation is supported by the Latin America Working Group, the Washington Office on Latin America, Human Rights Watch, and Immigration Hub.

     “Senators Van Hollen, Kaine, and Padilla’s bill to impose sanctions on the regime of President Nayib Bukele is timely and importantly puts a spotlight on the gross violation of human rights that have occurred under President Bukele’s state of exception. Since March 2022, 85,000 people have been detained, constitutional guarantees have been suspended, and over 350 people have died while under state custody. Systemic torture and persecution are state policies. Significantly, the bill also addresses the pervasive corruption that has occurred since President Bukele took office and prevents the IMF and other international financial institutions not to lend support. Not one penny of our tax dollars should support this regime until there is an end to the human rights violations, and the rule of law, judicial independence, and government transparency are restored.  All Members of Congress should get behind this bill,” said Vicki Gass, Executive Director, Latin America Working Group.  

    “Targeted individual sanctions for gross human rights violations are a critical diplomatic tool the U.S. can use to push for change and hold authoritarian actors accountable; as El Salvador’s political and human rights crisis deepens, strong international action like this becomes essential,” said Ana María Méndez-Dardón, Director for Central America at the Washington Office on Latin America.

    “We are heartened to see Senators confronting the human rights abuses of government officials in El Salvador. This bill an important reminder that uncritical US government support to President Bukele will not last forever and a recognition that nobody should be deported to Salvadoran prisons,” said Juan Pappier, Deputy Director of the Americas division, Human Rights Watch.

    Additional Background:

    • Sanctions: Imposes property-blocking and visa sanctions on President Bukele, key members of his cabinet, and other foreign persons working on behalf of the Salvadoran government that have:
      • engaged in gross violations of internationally recognized human rights, including in connection with the ongoing “state of exception” in El Salvador;
      • engaged in the scheme, including by accepting U.S. taxpayer dollars, to deprive individuals residing in the United States of their Constitutional rights; or
      • provided material support to any person that has engaged in the above activities.
    • Termination/Snapback of Sanctions: Sanctions cannot be terminated until at least four years after the bill is enacted and unless the President certifies to Congress that the Government of El Salvador is no longer engaged in gross violations of internationally recognized human rights and no longer engaged in the scheme, including by accepting U.S. taxpayer dollars, to deprive individuals residing in the United States of their Constitutional rights. If the President determines that either of those conditions resume, then sanctions shall be reimposed.
    • Reporting Requirements: Requires reports to Congress that provide transparency on Salvadoran officials subject to a variety of sanctions authorities, U.S. government assistance to El Salvador, bilateral written agreements between the United States and El Salvador, and compliance with U.S. laws including the Leahy Laws and the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act. Also requires a report on the actions of Salvadoran officials, including President Bukele, to use cryptocurrency as a mechanism for gross corruption, graft, and sanctions evasion.
    • Blocking International Financial Assistance: Instructs the United States to use its voice and vote in international financial institutions to oppose financial assistance to the Government of El Salvador until the appropriate Presidential certification is transmitted to Congress.
    • Prohibiting U.S. Funds for El Salvador: Prohibits any U.S. funding for the Government of El Salvador until the appropriate Presidential certification is transmitted to Congress.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ER Report: A Roundup of Significant Articles on EveningReport.nz for June 13, 2025

    ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on June 13, 2025.

    As Antarctic sea ice shrinks, iconic emperor penguins are in more peril than we thought
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dana M Bergstrom, Honorary Senior Fellow in Ecology, University of Wollongong When winter comes to Antarctica, seals and Adélie penguins leave the freezing shores and head for the edge of the forming sea ice. But emperor penguins stay put. The existence of emperor penguins seems all but

    Bougainville legal dept looking towards sorcery violence policy
    RNZ Pacific The Department of Justice and Legal Services in Bougainville is aiming to craft a government policy to deal with violence related to sorcery accusations. The Post-Courier reports that a forum, which wrapped up on Wednesday, aimed to dissect the roots of sorcery/witchcraft beliefs and the severe violence stemming from accusations. An initial forum

    NZ has a vast sea territory but lags behind other nations in protecting the ocean
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Conrad Pilditch, Professor of Marine Sciences, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images For the past fortnight, the city of Nice in France has been the global epicentre of ocean science and politics. Last week’s One Ocean Science Congress ended with a unanimous call for action

    US Army’s image of power and flag-waving rings false to Gen Z weary of gun violence − and long-term recruitment numbers show it
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jacob Ware, Adjunct Professor of Domestic Terrorism, Georgetown University A recruit participates in the Army’s future soldier prep course at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S.C., on Sept. 25, 2024. AP Photo/Chris Carlson The U.S. Army will celebrate its 250th birthday on Saturday, June 14, 2025, with a

    It took more than a century, but women are taking charge of Australia’s economy – here’s why it matters
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Duygu Yengin, Associate Professor of Economics, University of Adelaide For the first time in its 124-year history, Treasury will be led by a woman. Jenny Wilkinson’s appointment is historic in its own right. Even more remarkable is the fact she joins Michele Bullock at the Reserve Bank

    With Trump undoing years of progress, can the US salvage its Pacific Islands strategy?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Tidwell, Director, Center for Australian, New Zealand and Pacific Studies, Georgetown University Donald Trump signs a proclamation expanding fishing rights in the Pacific Islands, April 17. Getty Images Since 2018, the United States has worked, albeit often haltingly, to regain its footing with Pacific Island countries.

    Workers need better tools and tech to boost productivity. Why aren’t companies stepping up to invest?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Head, Canberra School of Government, University of Canberra As Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers turn their attention to improving productivity growth across the economy, it will be interesting to see what the business community brings to a planned summit in August. Labour

    AI overviews have transformed Google search. Here’s how they work – and how to opt out
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By T.J. Thomson, Senior Lecturer in Visual Communication & Digital Media, RMIT University cosma/Shutterstock People turn to the internet to run billions of search queries each year. These range from keeping tabs on world events and celebrities to learning new words and getting DIY help. One of the

    ‘Like an underwater bushfire’: SA’s marine algal bloom is still killing almost everything in its path
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Erin Barrera, PhD Candidate, School of Public Health, University of Adelaide Paul Macdonald of Edithburgh Diving South Australian beaches have been awash with foamy, discoloured water and dead marine life for months. The problem hasn’t gone away; it has spread. Devastating scenes of death and destruction mobilised

    Sunday Too Far Away at 50: how a story about Aussie shearers launched a local film industry
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Walsh, Associate Professor, Screen and Media, Flinders University Released 50 years ago, Sunday Too Far Away deals episodically with a group of shearers led by Foley (Jack Thompson), and the events leading up to the national shearers’ strike of 1956. The shearers are a ragtag group

    Khartoum before the war: the public spaces that held the city together
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ibrahim Z. Bahreldin, Associate Professor of Urban & Environmental Design, University of Khartoum What makes a public space truly public? In Khartoum, before the current conflict engulfed Sudan, the answer was not always a park, a plaza or a promenade. The city’s streets, tea stalls (sitat al-shai),

    Politics with Michelle Grattan: Senator Tammy Tyrrell on wild days in Tasmania
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Tasmanian politics has been thrown into chaos after a Labor motion of no confidence forced Premier Jeremy Rockliff to either resign or call for a new election. The premier opted for the latter, with Tasmanians to vote on July 19,

    Chris Hedges: The last days of Gaza
    Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – The genocide is almost complete. When it is concluded it will have exposed the moral bankruptcy of Western civilisation, writes Chris Hedges. ANALYSIS: By Chris Hedges This is the end. The final blood-soaked chapter of the genocide. It will be over soon. Weeks. At most. Two

    Grattan on Friday: the galahs are chattering about ‘productivity’, but can Labor really get it moving?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Former prime minister Paul Keating famously used to say the resident galah in any pet shop was talking about micro-economic policy. These days, if you encounter a pet shop with a galah, she’ll be chattering about productivity. Productivity is currently

    Greenpeace activists aboard Rainbow Warrior disrupt Pacific industrial fishing operation
    By Emma Page Greenpeace activists on board the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior disrupted an industrial longlining fishing operation in the South Pacific, seizing almost 20 km of fishing gear and freeing nine sharks — including an endangered mako — near Australia and New Zealand. Crew retrieved the entire longline and more than 210 baited hooks

    View from The Hill: Is the US playing cat and mouse ahead of expected Albanese-Trump talks?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra For the first time in memory, an Australian prime minister is approaching a prospective meeting with a US president with a distinct feeling of wariness. Of course Anthony Albanese would deny it. But it’s undeniable the government is relieved that

    Caitlin Johnstone: Staring down the barrel of war with Iran once again
    Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – COMMENTARY: By Caitlin Johnstone Well it looks like the US is on the precipice of war with Iran again. US officials are telling the press that they anticipate a potential impending Israeli attack on Iran while the family members of US military personnel are being assisted

    Global outrage over Gaza has reinforced a ‘siege mentality’ in Israel – what are the implications for peace?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Eyal Mayroz, Senior Lecturer in Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Sydney After more than 20 months of devastating violence in Gaza, the right-wing Israeli government’s pursuit of two irreconcilable objectives — “destroying” Hamas and releasing Israeli hostages — has left the coastal strip in ruins. At

    The weight loss drug Mounjaro has been approved to treat sleep apnoea. How does it work?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yaqoot Fatima, Professor of Sleep Health, University of the Sunshine Coast coldsnowstorm/Getty Images Last week, Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approved the weight-loss drug Mounjaro to treat sleep apnoea, a condition in which breathing stops and starts repeatedly during sleep. The TGA has indicated Mounjaro can be

    Not all insecure work has to be a ‘bad job’: research shows job design can make a big difference
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rose-Marie Stambe, Adjunct Research Fellow, social and economic marginalisation, The University of Queensland Matej Kastelic/Shutterstock Inflation has steadied and interest rates are finally coming down. But for many Australians, especially those in low-paid, insecure or precarious work, the cost-of-living crisis feels far from over. The federal government

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sullivan Chairs Hearing on Combatting Chinese & Russian IUU Fishing Threat

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Alaska Dan Sullivan

    06.12.25

    WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Coast Guard, Maritime, and Fisheries, today chaired a hearing on the threat of foreign illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing to Alaska’s fishermen and coastal communities. The hearing focused on strategies to combat foreign IUU fishing, many of which are found in Sen. Sullivan’s Fighting Foreign Illegal Seafood Harvest (FISH) Act. These strategies include blacklisting offending vessels from U.S. ports and waters, bolstering the U.S. Coast Guard’s enforcement capabilities and partnerships, and advancing international and bilateral negotiations to achieve enforceable agreements and treaties. On April 30, 2025, the Senate Commerce Committee unanimously passed Sen. Sullivan’s FISH Act, co-led by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I).

    The hearing featured testimony from a panel of expert witnesses, including Gabriel Prout, president of the Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers.

    [embedded content]

    “There was a senior Russian official who publicly declared, ‘We know we’re at war with American fishermen.’…What more should we be doing with regard to the unfair competition with Chinese and Russian fleets?” Sen. Sullivan asked. “We’ve talked about their IUU practices, their slave labor practices. Another thing that happens is their governments heavily subsidize their fleet…What are the other things we can be doing and how has the ban on Russian seafood into the U.S. market, including the Chinese communist loophole that we also shut down, helped your industry and other fishermen throughout the country?”

    “The effect of IUU and the importation of it into our markets has been nothing short of devastating,” said Mr. Prout. “When Russia floods the market with illegal, under-priced crab, or any other seafood commodity for that matter, it puts downward pressure on our prices and destabilizes the processors. Processors within Alaska especially rely on numerous revenue sources of different seafood commodities…They use that method to stay afloat, diversifying their portfolio a little bit. If they take a major loss on crab or salmon, it really destabilizes their efforts and it threatens their whole operation. Additionally, fishermen then are potentially looking at a loss of a place to deliver, because the processors are unable to compete with the importation of IUU products, just because of the price difference that is associated with it.

    “As far as the impact of your efforts, it’s had a tremendous impact—banning the importation of Russian crab. One of the most notable products in Alaska, of course, is the Alaskan red king crab. This past season, myself and my family, and all the rest of the fishermen who participated in that, experienced record prices at the dock for their catch. I can confidently say that I believe that wouldn’t have taken effect had there still been a large importation of Russian product coming into the domestic market. So your efforts to stem the flow of that IUU [seafood] have been very obvious to my family and many of the fishermen within Alaska.”

    Other hearing witnesses included Gregory Poling, director and senior fellow of the Southeast Asia Program and the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS); Nathan Rickard, partner at Picard Kentz & Rowe; and Whitley Saumweber, director of the Stephenson Ocean Security Project at CSIS.

    Below is a full transcript of Senator Sullivan’s opening statement at the hearing.

    Today’s hearing will focus on international conflict, criminal activity, and, yes, even slave labor associated with the ocean. We’re particularly focused on the fight for fisheries resources, geopolitical flashpoints where conflict is likely to arise, and the role of both state and non-state actors involved in conflict with criminal activity in the fishing sector. And, of course, we want sustainable, lasting fisheries.

    Additionally, we’ll discuss measures being taken to address the growing challenges and criminal activity surrounding these resources and conflicts, and what more can be done. Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, also known as IUU fishing, poses a significant threat to global marine ecosystems, economies, sustainable fisheries, and food security.

    It is estimated that IUU fishing accounts for up to 20 percent of the global catch, which translates to global losses between $10 billion and $50 billion annually for fishing fleets that actually fish legally, like ours in America. The scale of IUU fishing varies by region, with some areas experiencing more severe impacts due to lax enforcement, corruption, and high demand for seafood. Of course, the Chinese Communist Party in China plays a significant role in this problem in the global fishing industry, and is the worst offender of IUU fishing, by far. No surprise.

    The Chinese government has provided billions of dollars in subsidies to its distant water fishing fleets, “gray fleets,” as we sometimes call them, enabling their fishing sector to grow exponentially. According to Global Fishing Watch, China operates approximately 57,000 fishing vessels—57,000—which accounts for 44 percent of the world’s total fishing activity.

    Operating in tandem with the Chinese military to protect its fishing fleet, the Chinese fishing boats benefit from the protection of the Chinese Coast Guard and Navy, ensuring their ability to pilfer resources around the globe. If you care about the environment and healthy ecosystems, this should be a top concern of yours. China is ravaging our oceans.

    The scale of China’s fishing activities raises concerns about the sustainability of global fish stocks around the world, and the geopolitical tensions that can arise from maritime disputes.

    China is a concern, but Russia is as well. Close to Alaska, Russian and other vessels conduct IUU fishing near our exclusive economic zone, our EEZ. Although Russia banned imports of U.S. seafood into Russia over ten years ago, Russia has been able to bring their seafood into the U.S., sometimes using loopholes through China as recently as late 2023.

    IUU fishing is not an issue just for the United States. U.S. fisheries are the most sustainable fisheries in the world, but sustainably sourced, legally caught, high quality seafood can’t compete with illegally sourced seafood that is being plundered from our oceans.

    I might add, due to some great reporting—and I’m going to reference it here in this hearing—from Politico magazine, [and] the New Yorker, China also uses slave labor on many of its fishing vessels. Pretty hard to compete against slave labor if you’re an American fisherman. IUU fishing not only distorts the true cost of seafood sold in markets, but it is often linked overseas with transnational crime, forced and slave labor, and even human and drug trafficking.

    The key to preventing IUU fishing is to lead international efforts to address the issue at its sources globally. Through the years, Congress and the executive branch, Democrats and Republicans, have worked together with global partners and have focused on IUU fishing. I’m proud to see my colleague and friend, Senator Whitehouse, here. He and I recently introduced our Fighting Foreign Illegal Seafood Harvest, also known as the FISH Act, a bipartisan bill that just recently in this committee passed unanimously. It puts IUU fishing vessels on a blacklist, raises costs for IUU vessel owners and importers, and supports increased Coast Guard enforcement and work with our partners. It builds on previous bipartisan legislation that this committee has championed, particularly Senator Wicker’s Maritime Safe Act.

    In April, President Trump signed an executive order entitled, “Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness.” My office, my team and I were proud to work closely with the Trump administration on this important executive order. This order aims at strengthening measures to combat IUU fishing, including preventing IUU seafood from entering the U.S. market, and supporting international efforts to address the issue at its source. We look forward to working with the administration on these efforts.

    But it’s not all bad news. This is, after all, the subcommittee in charge of the Coast Guard. I believe we are going to be embarking on a golden age for our Coast Guard. In the budget reconciliation bill right now, there is $24.6 billion focused on the Coast Guard of the United States. That will likely be the biggest investment in the Coast Guard in the history of the United States of America. There are a lot of good things happening with regard to our Coast Guard.

    The U.S. has a vital role to play, a leading role to play, in combating IUU fishing through regulatory measures, international cooperation, consumer awareness, and passing the FISH Act. By preventing IUU seafood from entering our market, the U.S. can help protect legitimate fishermen, some of whom we’ll hear from today, and promote sustainable fishing practices worldwide.

    Below is a full transcript of Mr. Prout’s opening statement at the hearing.

    Thank you for the opportunity to appear today to discuss the devastating impact of IUU—illegal, unreported and unregulated—crab fishing, and unfair Russian and Chinese trade practices on American crab fishermen and coastal communities. I’d like to first start by acknowledging and thanking Senator Sullivan, as well as Senator Cantwell, for their long-standing support of independent crab harvesters like myself. Thank you. My name is Gabriel Prout and I am the President of Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers. I represent the majority of quota and vessel owners harvesting king, snow, and bairdi crab in the Bering Sea. I’m also a third-generation commercial fisherman and a vessel owner from Kodiak, Alaska, a seafood powerhouse where hundreds of millions of pounds of product cross the docks each year.

    For nearly 20 years, I’ve worked in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska with two of my brothers, continuing a livelihood passed down from our father and grandfather. In recent years, the collapse of snow crab and red king crab stocks hit us hard. Boats sat tied up, crews were out of work, and families like mine faced deep uncertainty. This fishery isn’t just our livelihood, it is our identity. Crab stocks now appear to be rebounding, but we still need action to protect small fishing families, like mine, especially from the harms of IUU fishing.

    For over 20 years, Russian IUU crab has undercut the economic foundation of our industry. A 2021 U.S. International Trade Commission report found that, in 2019, over 20 percent of U.S. imports of snow and king crab from the Russian far east came from IUU sources. Fortunately, U.S. imports of Russian crab have largely ceased thanks to the embargo that began under President Biden, continued under President Trump, and was strengthened by Senator Sullivan’s work to close the China trans-shipment loophole.

    Still, Russia’s IUU crab continues entering global markets through other channels, suppressing prices and creating unfair competition for U.S. harvesters who follow the law. Russia’s actions extend far beyond IUU. The following are just a few key points.

    It has heavily subsidized its seafood industry to deliberately undercut U.S. competitors; flooded international markets with underpriced seafood following its 2022 invasion of Ukraine to help fund its war; and contributed to an estimated $1.8 billion in losses for the Alaska seafood industry during 2022 and 2023.

    There are also national security concerns. Russian crab is being funneled into the global market through North Korean smuggling networks, where it’s reprocessed and relabeled in China. This collaboration between two sanctioned regimes undermines trade restrictions and raises serious concerns about enforcement and global seafood supply chain integrity.

    Based on years of experience witnessing the impact of Russian IUU on Alaskan crabbers, I respectfully urge the following actions.

    One, expand the seafood import monitoring program and ensure it focuses on species at highest risk for IUU fishing; [and] mandate country-of-origin labeling, also known as “cool labeling” that also applies to cooked crab products.

    Two, expand economic sanctions and trade restrictions, which would extend and strengthen sanctions on Russian-origin seafood and ensure enforcement on the ban of Russian seafood entering through third countries, especially China.

    Expand intelligence sharing agreements with allies. This is under point three. Increase international cooperation and enforcement, increase support for international bodies working to combat IUU fishing, and push for stronger enforcement of port state measure agreements, especially with countries still importing Russian crab around the world.

    Four, provide economic relief to affected communities, establish emergency relief similar to the Seafood Trade Relief Program, and create low-interest loans to help crabbers and fishing fleets modernize gear and remain competitive throughout the world; prioritize support for small, independent, family-owned fishing operations like those that I represent.

    And five, strengthen U.S. enforcement against IUU fishing. Congress should pass Senate Bill 688, the FISH Act, and provide full funding and direction for the U.S. Coast Guard and NOAA to expand patrols, inspections, and enforcements targeting IUU threats.

    For over two decades, Russian IUU crab has undermined American fishermen who follow the rules, invest in sustainability, and support our coastal communities. This isn’t just about statistics. It’s about lost livelihoods, struggling towns and an industry fighting for survival.

    Congress has the opportunity to protect American harvesters and ensure global seafood is harvested legally and sustainably. Thank you for your attention to this critical issue affecting thousands of American fishing families. I look forward to your questions and working with the Committee on effective solutions.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Breaking: Israel Launches Preemptive Strike on Iran, Explosions Rock Tehran

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    TEHRAN/JERUSALEM, June 13 (Xinhua) — Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Friday that Israel launched a “preemptive strike” on Iran and declared a state of emergency throughout the country.

    Powerful explosions were heard in the capital Tehran on Friday morning, Iranian state television IRIB reported. Their source has not yet been determined. –0–

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Schatz Presses Secretary Hegseth, Defense Leaders On Use Of Military Against Protesters, Demands Transparency On Foreign Gift Of Luxury Plane

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Hawaii Brian Schatz

    WASHINGTON – At a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense hearing today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) challenged Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Dan Caine on President Trump’s deployment of the National Guard to respond to protests in Los Angeles. He also questioned the administration’s acceptance of a luxury aircraft from the government of Qatar to be used as Air Force One.

    “Is the United States being invaded by a foreign nation?” Schatz asked General Caine. “Is there a rebellion somewhere in the United States?”

    General Caine responded, “I do not see any state-sponsored folks invading,” adding, “There’s definitely some frustrated folks out there.”

    Senator Schatz asked Secretary Hegseth, “Did you just potentially mobilize every Guard everywhere and every service member everywhere? I mean, create the framework for that?”

    Hegseth replied that the order was intended in part to help the administration “get ahead of a problem” if protests expanded to other areas.

    Schatz also raised questions about the Defense Department’s recent acceptance of a luxury airplane from the Qatari government to replace Air Force One, asking, “Did the Department of Defense initiate the conversation with the Qataris? How did that go?”

    Hegseth said, “I would have to go back and review it, but we’ve been a part of the ongoing conversation.”

    “I think it kind of matters who is asking, doesn’t it?… If we’re going to disagree, let’s disagree with the same set of facts,” said Senator Schatz. “Let’s have the documentation on the Qatari aircraft.”

    A video of the exchange is available here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Case Opposes Proposed Annual Defense Funding Measure That Does Not Support Ukraine And Lacks A Coordinated Strategy For The Indo-Pacific

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Ed Case (Hawai‘i – District 1)

    (Washington, DC) – U.S. Congressman Ed Case (HI-01), a member of the House Appropriations Committee and of its Subcommittee on Defense, voted in Committee against the proposed Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Defense Appropriations bill today.  

    The FY 2026 Defense bill proposes to spend $831.5 billion, an amount equal to the FY 2025 enacted level, for federal agencies and programs in the Department of Defense (DoD) and intelligence community,

    including the military branches of services, the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency. Case’s Subcommittee on Defense is responsible for developing the bill. 

    “While the measure funds many critical Hawai‘i and Indo-Pacific priorities I requested, I regrettably had to vote against this version because it eliminates support for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative and fails to fund a cohesive and coordinated all-government defense strategy, all of which is critical as we face the generational challenge of the People’s Republic of China,” said Case. “The Committee also was forced to draft the bill in the dark because the administration failed to provide a detailed budget request, and that is a dangerous precedent to support.” 

    Case spoke in Committee in favor of continued support for Ukraine. He stressed that despite the tragic consequences of President Putin’s unprovoked and unjustified war, “you cannot fail to do something that is hard, when you know that if you don’t do it, it will be harder in the future. That was the lesson of Neville Chamberlain in World War II.” (See Case’s speech here.)

    Case also spoke in Committee on the proposal’s lack of a coordinated whole-of-government national defense strategy, which would include soft power tools like international assistance and trade. He called for a broader understanding of national security that looks beyond the narrow confines of military spending, including in the Indo-Pacific. He explained that “only a strong national defense, coordinated and delivered over time, will achieve the foundational necessity of all else.” (See Case’s speech here.)

    Case also offered an amendment, which was accepted by the Committee, to prevent the transmission of classified information or war plans over unsecured networks. His amendment is a direct response to high-level Trump administration officials who used Signal to discuss U.S. military plans to attack Houthi groups in Yemen. Case said: “There are clear federal rules … that prohibit handling classified material outside of approved, encrypted and monitored systems … The rules around are not just suggestions, they are mandates.” (See Case’s speech here.)  

    Despite his significant problems with the bill, Case highlighted programs and provisions he requested and secured that are especially critical to Hawai‘i, including: 

    ·         $30 million to continue efforts to replace O‘ahu’s outdated air surveillance radar, which is needed to defend Hawai‘i from missile attacks. 

    ·         Directing the Navy to support a program to control and eradicate invasive coral at naval installations, which is in response to the invasive coral found at the mouth of Pearl Harbor. 

    ·         Protecting the special contracting preference for Native Hawaiian businesses. 

    ·         $357 million for the Navy’s Environmental Restoration program plus an additional $235 million for the cleanup of Formerly Used Defense Sites. These funds will help accelerate efforts to remediate per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) contamination and remove unexploded ordnance and discarded military munitions in Hawai‘i and throughout the nation. 

    ·         Funding for two Virginia-class fast attack submarines, which are critical to protecting the Indo-Pacific and will be maintained at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard.  

    ·         $186 million for the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, which maintains critical scientific laboratories at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. 

    ·         $177 million for the Sea-Based X-Band Radar, which will help defend Hawai‘i from ballistic missile threats. 

    ·         Over $421 million for “Civil-Military Programs,” which will support Hawaii’s Youth Challenge Academy. 

    ·         Over $70 million for Impact Aid programs, which help Hawaii’s public schools by partially reimbursing the cost of educating military children. 

    ·         Blocked efforts to change the command and control structure of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. There have been efforts within the department to streamline control of forces under one command structure, which would limit the ability of Navy forces in Hawai‘i to respond quickly to changing threats in the Indo-Pacific region. 

    Other programs and provisions in the measure also requested and supported by Case and especially critical to the broader Indo-Pacific include: 

    ·         $8 million for the Asia Regional Pacific Initiative (ARPI) managed by U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. ARPI supports a wide range of exercises, humanitarian assistance, programs and training symposiums that help expand U.S. influence in the Indo-Pacific. The initiative is an important tool for the U.S. military to strengthen relationships throughout the Indo-Pacific region. 

    ·         Continued support for providing humanitarian and other assistance by U.S. military Civic Action Teams in the Freely Associated States. 

    ·         $6 million to expand the National Disaster Medical System Pilot Program to provide critical support to military and civilian health objectives. It will help advance national medical innovation, preparedness, disaster response and integration efforts to underserved regions, such as the Indo-Pacific. 

    ·         $75 million for decoupling rare earth magnet manufacturing from China. 

    General military-related programs and provisions supported by Case related to the DoD overall include:

    ·         3.8% basic pay increase for all military personnel. 

    ·         $700 million for the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP). The CDMRP fills research gaps by funding high impact, high risk and high gain projects that other agencies may not venture to fund. 

    This measure is one of the twelve bills developed by the House Appropriations Committee that will collectively fund the federal government for FY 2026 (commencing October 1, 2025). The bill now moves on to the full House of Representatives for its consideration.  

    A summary of the defense funding bill is available here.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Attorney General Bonta, Governor Newsom Secure Court Order Blocking Unlawful Use of Federalized National Guard for Law Enforcement in California Communities

    Source: US State of California

    Thursday, June 12, 2025

    Contact: (916) 210-6000, agpressoffice@doj.ca.gov

    OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta and California Governor Gavin Newsom today secured a temporary restraining order blocking President Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and the U.S. Department of Defense from using federalized California National Guard to patrol our communities and engage in law enforcement activity. The order, issued by the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, found that President Trump’s actions were illegal — “both exceeding the scope of his statutory authority and violating the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution” and ordered the Administration to “therefore return control of the California National Guard to the Governor of the State of California forthwith.” The order is stayed until 12pm PT tomorrow. 

    “With this order, the Trump Administration is blocked from using federalized California National Guard troops to patrol our neighborhoods or carry out civilian law enforcement work,” said Attorney General Bonta. “The right to peacefully protest is a cornerstone of any healthy democracy. We will not stand idly by as the President attempts to intimidate and silence those who disagree with him. As the President attempts to inflame tensions and stoke fear in our communities, California and our local law enforcement stand ready to protect our communities and their right to make their voices heard safely and peacefully.”   

    On June 9th, Attorney General Bonta and Governor Newsom filed a lawsuit against President Trump and Defense Secretary Hegseth in response to their orders seeking to federalize the National Guard for 60 days under 10 U.S.C. § 12406. 

    In the early hours of Sunday, June 8th, the U.S. Department of Defense, at the direction of the President, redirected hundreds of California National Guard troops from San Diego to Los Angeles, without authorization from the Governor and against the wishes of local law enforcement. In total, the Department has deployed 4,000 California National Guard troops from across the state, as well as an additional 700 Marines, an inflammatory escalation unsupported by conditions on the ground. In response, Attorney General Bonta and Governor Newsom filed a motion for temporary restraining order in their case, arguing that the use of these troops is illegal, creates imminent harm to state sovereignty, deprives the state of its use of the California National Guard, escalates tensions, and promotes rather than quells civil unrest. 

    A copy of the court’s order is available here.

    # # #

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Over 80 arrested on second night of curfew in US Los Angeles

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    More than 80 people were arrested on the second night of curfew in Los Angeles amid protests over immigration raids in the second-largest city of the United States, authorities said on Thursday morning.

    There were 71 arrests for failure to disperse and seven arrests for curfew violation, said the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) in a press release, adding that police arrested two people for assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, and one person arrested on suspicion for resisting a police officer.

    More than 220 people were arrested on the first night of curfew in the city.

    Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced Tuesday evening the curfew for parts of downtown Los Angeles that started from 8:00 p.m. Tuesday to 6:00 a.m. Wednesday local time. She noted that local authorities imposed the limited curfew in response to looting and vandalism that occurred downtown Monday night, following largely peaceful daytime protests.

    The mayor noted that the curfew, which covers approximately one square mile in the downtown area, will remain in place nightly until it’s deemed to be no longer necessary.

    Hundreds of people have been arrested in Southern California since the protests over federal immigration enforcement started on Friday, with more protests having been planned in the coming days across the region and the country.

    U.S. President Donald Trump has made decisions to dispatch over 4,000 National Guard members and about 700 active-duty Marines to the Los Angeles area over the objections of California Governor Gavin Newsom and other local officials.

    As of Wednesday, about 2,800 service members, including 2,100 National Guard soldiers and 700 Marines, were deployed to the greater Los Angeles area, said U.S. Northern Command in a news release on Wednesday, adding that the Marines had completed required training and would be serving alongside National Guard soldiers within the next 48 hours. 

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Poll finds US split on Los Angeles troop deployment

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    U.S. citizens are almost evenly split over President Donald Trump’s decision to deploy troops to Los Angeles, according to a new Washington Post-George Mason University poll published on Thursday.

    41 percent support the move, 44 percent oppose it, and 15 percent are unsure, according to the text-message survey of 1,015 adults, including 217 Californians, conducted on June 10.

    California residents are more critical, with 58 percent opposing the deployment and 32 percent supporting it. Party lines remain stark.

    Nearly 86 percent of Republicans support the action, compared with 10 percent of Democrats. Meanwhile, 76 percent of Democrats oppose it. Independent voters lean against the troop deployment by a 15-point margin, with 48 percent opposed and 33 percent in favor.

    Trump federalized about 4,000 National Guard members and mobilized 700 Marines last week to reinforce immigration raids in the nation’s second-largest city, saying the troops will protect federal property and assist agents.

    Governor Gavin Newsom has sued, arguing the deployment undermines state authority and stokes unrest; a federal judge heard the emergency motion on Thursday afternoon but have not made a rule immediately.

    Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass imposed a curfew over roughly 2.6 square kilometers of downtown since Tuesday after scattered looting and clashes between protesters and police. The Los Angeles Police Department reported dozens of arrests for curfew violations and vandalism.

    The protests, which began after aggressive ICE raids in immigrant communities, have spread beyond Los Angeles to cities including Chicago, New York, San Antonio, and Spokane, according to multiple media reports. Curfews also have been imposed in multiple locations to curb unrest.

    Despite some incidents of property damage and clashes with police, officials emphasized that the vast majority of residents remain peaceful. Los Angeles County Attorney highlighted that 99.99 percent of residents near protest zones had not engaged in unlawful activities.

    Public opinion on the protests themselves is also divided: 39 percent of Americans support the anti-immigration-enforcement demonstrations, 40 percent oppose them, and 21 percent are undecided. Views of Trump’s broader immigration strategy have turned negative, with 52 percent disapproving and 37 percent approving.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: Congressional Bill S.160 Signed into Law

    Source: US Whitehouse

    On Thursday, June 12, 2025, the President signed into law:
     
    S. 160, which amends the Wildfire Suppression Aircraft Transfer Act of 1996 to reauthorize the sale by the Department of Defense of aircraft and parts for wildfire suppression purposes, and for other purpose

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Newhouse Commends Trump Action on Lower Snake River Dams

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Dan Newhouse (4th District of Washington)

    Headline: Newhouse Commends Trump Action on Lower Snake River Dams

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04) released the following statement on President Donald Trump’s memorandum revoking the Biden administration’s executive actions targeting the Lower Snake River dams.

    “Throughout my time in Congress, I have stood firm in my support for the Lower Snake River Dams and the critical role they play in our region’s economy,” said Rep. Newhouse.  

    “Today’s action by President Trump reverses the efforts by the Biden administration and extreme environmental activists to remove the dams, which would have threatened the reliability of our power grid, raised energy prices, and decimated our ability to export grain to foreign markets. I want to thank the President for his decisive action to protect our dams, and I look forward to continuing to work with the administration for the benefit of the Fourth District.” 

    The Memorandum signed today revokes the Biden Administration’s “Restoring Healthy and Abundant Salmon, Steelhead, and Other Native Fish Populations in the Columbia River Basin” Memorandum. 

    This Memorandum directs the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works to withdraw from agreements stemming from Biden’s misguided executive action, including the December 14, 2023, Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) filed in connection with related litigation. 

    The specified agencies will coordinate with the Council on Environmental Quality to review and revise environmental review processes related to the matters in the MOU, save federal funds, and withdraw from the MOU. 

    See the full announcement here. 

    Background 

    During his tenure in Congress, Newhouse has led the charge in combating efforts to breach the four Lower Snake River dams.

    In March of this year, Newhouse led a coalition of lawmakers from the Pacific Northwest, backed by regional stakeholders, in introducing a package of legislation to protect the Lower Snake River dams and strengthen hydropower as a reliable, affordable source of base load energy.

    In January of this year, Newhouse and Senator Jim Risch of Idaho introduced the Northwest Energy Security Act to require the Bureau of Reclamation, the Bonneville Power Administration, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to ensure the Lower Snake River dams remain operational and continue to support the region’s energy needs. 

    In October 2024, Newhouse criticized the Biden administration for wasting taxpayer dollars on more studies to find ways to replace the energy produced by the dams. 

    In June 2024, Newhouse opposed the Biden administration’s creation of a politically motivated Columbia River Taskforce, made up only of administration officials, to find ways to breach the dams.  

    In March 2024, Newhouse called out Secretary Jennifer Granholm in a hearing for refusing to acknowledge the long-term implications of the Columbia River Systems Operation Agreement are a de-facto breach of the Snake River Dams. 

    In December 2023, Newhouse slammed the Biden administration’s announcement of a package of actions and commitments in the Columbia River System Operations (CRSO) mediation. 

    In September 2023, Newhouse led a letter to then-Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallary addressing the lack of public and stakeholder input throughout the mediation process of the four Lower Snake River dams. 

    In June 2023, Newhouse hosted the House Natural Resources Committee for a field hearing in Pasco, Washington on the importance of protecting the dams on the Snake River. 

    In August 2022, Newhouse held a rally with over 100 community members from the Tri-Cities in Howard Amon Park to show support for the Lower Snake River Dams. 

    ### 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Congressman Raul Ruiz Speaks Out Against the Forceful Removal of Senator Padilla from Noem Press Conference

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Raul Ruiz (36th District of California)

    Washington, D.C. – Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz (CA-25) released the following statement responding to the forceful removal of Senator Padilla from Noem Press Conference:

    “The assault on Senator Padilla is part of a continuing pattern of authoritarian, dictatorial behavior.

    “[The authoritarian Trump Administration] goes into communities masked and in unmarked cars to disrupt restaurants and workplaces, to separate families, and people with no criminal backgrounds.

    “They call in the National Guard without the consent or authority of the Governor of California. They bring in unprepared Marines, who are not trained in civil de-escalation tactics, and they come armed with weapons.

    This is an outrage. This is authoritarian behavior spreading throughout the nation. It is a poison. It is a cancer. This has to end.

    “We need to stand up, every one of us, as Americans, against this authoritarian dictatorship. Because if it’s not us today, it’s going to be you tomorrow. It’s going to be your neighborhood next.

    “We are outraged at how they treated our Senator from California. Californians will stand with our Senator. I will stand with our Senator. We will fight until the very end, until this authoritarian regime is done and over.”

    Click here for Congressman Ruiz’s video in English and Spanish, summarizing the march on Senator Thune and Speaker Mike Johnson’s offices, led by Congressman Ruiz and House Democrats, demanding answers on what they are doing to protect Senator Alex Padilla.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Congresswoman Torres Amendment to Restore Rape Kits for Civilian Employees Overseas Passes Defense Committee Markup

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Norma Torres (35th District of California)

    June 12, 2025

    Washington, D.C. –  Today Congresswoman Norma Torres announced that her crucial amendment ensuring access to rape kits for civilian Department of Defense (DOD) employees stationed overseas has passed the Fiscal Year 26 Defense Appropriations Committee markup. This bipartisan, commonsense amendment restores medical support rescinded by a controversial March 2025 DOD policy change that stopped providing rape kits to many civilian personnel serving alongside U.S. military forces abroad.

    “Today, we take an important step to guarantee that every American serving overseas, whether in uniform or as a civilian, receives the care and support they deserve,” said Congresswoman Torres. “Our civilian employees—intelligence officers, law enforcement, nurses, teachers, cooks, and more—often serve in dangerous environments alongside our troops. There is no justification for turning our backs on them when they become victims of violent crime.”

    In March 2025, the Department of Defense reversed its policy, discontinuing rape kit services for many civilian employees in conflict zones such as Iraq and Syria. This decision has been met with strong opposition from veterans’ groups and service members who fear the impact on their colleagues and loved ones.

    “This amendment is about a fundamental promise: when Americans serve their country in dangerous places, their country has their back when they need us most,” Congresswoman Torres continued. “What do we tell the young intelligence analyst in Baghdad if she is assaulted and denied the medical care she needs? We can and must do better.”

    The amendment’s passage sends a clear message that America will not abandon those who serve, regardless of their role. It restores critical medical care for civilian personnel, reflecting the nation’s commitment to their safety and dignity.

    Congresswoman Torres urges her colleagues in the House to support the amendment in the full Defense Appropriations bill and reaffirm America’s unwavering support for all who serve overseas.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senators Collins, Bipartisan Group Introduce Resolution Honoring Female Veterans

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Maine Susan Collins

    Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins, Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Cory Booker (D-NJ), John Boozman (R-AR), and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) introduced a bipartisan resolution to designate June 12, 2025, as “Women Veterans Appreciation Day” to honor the women who have served in the Armed Forces both on and off the battlefield throughout American history.

    “On Women Veterans Appreciation Day, we honor the millions of American women whose service has strengthened both our military and our nation,” said Senator Collins. “As we prepare to celebrate the 250th birthday of the United States Army, it is fitting that we recognize the vital contributions that women have made throughout the history of America’s armed forces. Over the years, their roles have expanded from support positions to senior leadership, and at every step, women have answered the call of duty, serving with courage, skill, and distinction.”

    The complete text of the resolution can be read here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: US Army’s image of power and flag-waving rings false to Gen Z weary of gun violence − and long-term recruitment numbers show it

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jacob Ware, Adjunct Professor of Domestic Terrorism, Georgetown University

    A recruit participates in the Army’s future soldier prep course at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S.C., on Sept. 25, 2024. AP Photo/Chris Carlson

    The U.S. Army will celebrate its 250th birthday on Saturday, June 14, 2025, with a parade in Washington, D.C., in which about 6,600 soldiers and heavy pieces of military equipment will roll through the streets. The parade aims to display the Army’s history and power.

    “It’s going to be incredible,” President Donald Trump recently said. Trump’s 79th birthday also occurs on June 14.

    Despite the festivities, however, the parade will occur amid bleak times for the U.S. military, as it experiences a multiyear decline in recruitment numbers. In the face of a pandemic and a strong civilian job market, the Army, Air Force and Navy all missed their recruitment goals in 2022 and 2023. In 2022, the Army missed its quota by 25%.

    In 2024, the U.S. military met its recruitment target, which supports the argument that the bump is not due to Trump, as recruitment levels began to rise again before his reelection. But in some cases, the U.S. military has met its recruitment goals by lowering target numbers.

    And as a scholar of terrorism and targeted violence, I believe a close reading of available data on military recruitment suggests U.S. gun violence may be largely to blame for the lack of interest in joining the military.

    Gun violence data

    Regardless of one’s personal politics, the data on U.S. gun violence makes for painful reading.

    Almost 47,000 Americans died from gun-related injuries in 2023. In 2022, there were 51 school shootings in which students were injured or killed by guns. And gun injuries are the leading cause of death for Americans between ages 1 and 19.

    Data about the perceptions of gun violence is equally staggering, especially among American youth between ages 14 and 30.

    Four out of five American youth believe gun violence to be a problem, and 25% have endured real active-shooter lockdowns, according to data compiled by Everytown for Gun Safety, where I serve as a survivor fellow, the Southern Poverty Law Center and American University’s Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab.

    Moreover, these perceptions have considerable impacts on youth mental health and their sense of safety. Studies have linked concern over school shootings among adolescents with higher rates of anxiety and trauma-related disorders.

    As Arne Duncan, who served as President Barack Obama’s secretary of education during the Sandy Hook tragedy, said in 2023: “Unfortunately, what’s now binding young people across the country together is not joy of music, or sports, or whatever, it’s really the shared pain of gun violence – and it cuts through race and class and geography and economics.”

    National security threat

    In the past couple of years, polls taken of Generation Z youth, born between 1997 and 2012, suggest mental health and mass shootings are among the most important political issues motivating this band of voters.

    Gun violence, in other words, is a national security emergency, undermining the U.S. government’s ability to protect its citizens in their schools, places of worship and communities.

    As former Marine Gen. John Allen wrote in 2019: “Americans today are more likely to experience gun violence at home than they might in many of the places to which I deployed in the name of defending our nation.”

    U.S. Army National Guard members stand outside the Army National Guard office during training on April 21, 2022, in Washington.
    AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File

    Rewriting American culture

    Accordingly, gun violence has undercut American patriotism, corroding the U.S. government’s soft power within its own borders. Generation Z, termed by some as the “lockdown generation,” is often derided as less patriotic than its predecessors.

    Surprising Gen Z Research.

    Also, the belief in American exceptionalism is dropping among millennials, born between 1981 and 1996. That perception is combined with less confidence in U.S. global engagement and the efficacy of military solutions.

    American culture has long inspired military service, with recruits seduced by action movies and promises of heroic returns to the U.S. But American culture today is being rewired into one of suffering, pain and victimhood.

    A fear of violence

    Gun violence destroys youth tolerance for the violence that defines a career in the U.S. military.

    Internal U.S. military surveys of young Americans show that “the top three reasons young people cite for rejecting military enlistment are the same across all the services: fear of death, worries about post-traumatic stress disorder and leaving friends and family — in that order.”

    Generations already suffering a shattered sense of safety and place do not see the military as a viable option.

    The explanations the U.S. Defense Department gives for dismal recruitment levels focus on the younger generation’s supposed lack of backbone or hatred of America.

    D’elbrah Assamoi, from Cote d’Ivoire, signs her U.S. certificate of citizenship after a military training ceremony at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, in San Antonio, Texas, in April 2023.
    Vanessa R. Adame/U.S. Air Force via AP

    Republicans, including Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, have blamed alleged “wokeness” for low recruitment levels.

    And the Trump administration’s statements about improving recruitment numbers over the past several months overlook both a late Biden-era surge after a pandemic slump as well as the reality that numbers remain depressed due to military services repeatedly lowering their recruitment goals.

    Very rarely are introspective questions publicly debated today about the objective attractiveness of military service or the appetite for violence among young people. The problem, I believe, is not that young people are insufficiently patriotic – it’s that they have already been fighting a war, daily, for their entire lives.

    In reversing the slide in recruitment, then, the military could improve its sensitivity to these important concerns.

    Highlighting the range of careers within the services that do not involve front-line combat and physical danger could encourage more reluctant would-be recruits to volunteer.

    Mental health support also could be made an essential element of military training and lifestyle − not a resource only for those bearing the hidden side-effects of life in the ranks. Encouraging those suffering from treatable mental health issues to seek meaning in service could also boost recruitment numbers.

    Jacob Ware is a gun violence survivor and serves as a Survivor Fellow at Everytown for Gun Safety.

    – ref. US Army’s image of power and flag-waving rings false to Gen Z weary of gun violence − and long-term recruitment numbers show it – https://theconversation.com/us-armys-image-of-power-and-flag-waving-rings-false-to-gen-z-weary-of-gun-violence-and-long-term-recruitment-numbers-show-it-257090

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Stops the Green Agenda in the Columbia River Basin

    Source: US Whitehouse

    STOPPING RADICAL ENVIRONMENTALISM: Today, President Donald J. Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum revoking an executive action issued by the prior administration that called for “equitable treatment for fish.”

    • Today’s Memorandum revokes the Biden Administration’s “Restoring Healthy and Abundant Salmon, Steelhead, and Other Native Fish Populations in the Columbia River Basin” Memorandum, which placed concerns about climate change above the Nation’s interests in reliable energy resources.
    • This Memorandum directs the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works to withdraw from agreements stemming from Biden’s misguided executive action, including the December 14, 2023 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) filed in connection with related litigation.
    • The specified agencies will coordinate with the Council on Environmental Quality to review and revise environmental review processes related to the matters in the MOU, save Federal funds, and withdraw from the MOU.

    RESTORING AMERICAN ENERGY DOMINANCE AND SECURING AMERICAN PROSPERITY: President Trump continues to prioritize our Nation’s energy infrastructure and use of natural resources to lower the cost of living for all Americans over speculative climate change concerns.

    • President Trump recognizes the importance of ensuring the future of wildlife populations in the Columbia River Basin, while also advancing the country’s energy creation to benefit the American public.
    • The MOU required the Federal government to spend millions of dollars and comply with 36 pages of onerous commitments to dam operations on the Lower Snake River. 
    • Dam breaching would have resulted in reduced water supply to farmers, eliminated several shipping channels, had devastating impacts to agriculture, increased energy costs, and eliminated recreational opportunities throughout the region.  
    • The dam breaches would have eliminated over 3,000 megawatts of secure and reliable hydroelectric generating capacity—which is enough generation to power 2.5 million American homes.

    PUTTING AMERICA FIRST: President Trump continues to deliver on his promise to end the previous administration’s misplaced priorities and protect the livelihoods of the American people. Unlike the previous administration, the Trump Administration understands that policies that promote environmental quality and economic growth are not mutually exclusive.

    • President Trump champions the needs of the American people and prioritizes U.S. interests in reliable, affordable energy resources.
      • President Trump signed an Executive Order reinvigorating America’s beautiful clean coal industry to support grid stability and hundreds of thousands of U.S.  jobs.
    • President Trump is committed to unleashing American energy dominance, reversing all executive actions that impose undue burdens on energy production and use.
      • On Day One, President Trump declared a National Energy Emergency to unlock domestic energy production and bring down costs for everyday Americans.
    • President Trump’s commonsense approach to environmental conservation empowers the American people to take full advantage of our nation’s vast and great natural resources.
      • President Trump reversed the burdensome regulations that impeded Alaska’s ability to develop its vast natural resources, unleashing the state’s potential to create a safe and prosperous future for the entire Nation.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Empowers Commonsense Wildfire Prevention and Response

    Source: US Whitehouse

    STRENGTHENING WILDFIRE PREVENTION AND RESPONSE: Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order returning common sense to wildfire prevention and response.

    • The Order directs the Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Agriculture to consolidate their wildland fire programs.
    •  The Order supports local wildfire preparedness and response by improving Federal partnerships, as well as driving responsible land management and prevention at the State and local level.
    • The Order directs the use of available technology, including AI, data sharing, innovative mapping, and weather forecasting, to enhance State and local wildfire identification and response capabilities.
    • The Order directs Federal agencies to modify rules to facilitate preventive prescribed fires and appropriate fire-retardant use, promote innovative use of woody biomass and other forest products to reduce fuel loads that strengthen fires, and minimize wildfire ignition risks from the bulk-power system.
    • The Order modernizes wildfire prevention and response by instructing Federal agencies to declassify historical satellite data to improve wildfire prediction and revise or eliminate rules that impede wildfire detection, prevention, and response.
    • The Order directs the Secretary of Defense to prioritize the sale of excess aircraft and aircraft parts to support wildfire mitigation and response.

    EMPOWERING STATE AND LOCAL LEADERS: President Trump is empowering State and local leaders to combat wildfires effectively.

    • For too long, State and local wildfire responses have been slow and inadequate due to reckless mismanagement and lack of preparedness.
    • Wildfires threaten every region, yet many local government entities continue to disregard commonsense preventative measures.
    • Firefighters are forced to rely on outdated technology and face challenges in quickly responding to wildfires because of unnecessary regulation and bureaucracy.
    • Immediate action is essential to ensure the devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires never occurs again.
    • By streamlining Federal wildfire capabilities, States can leverage an efficient and straightforward approach concerning wildfire response and mitigation.

    RESTORING COMMON SENSE TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT: President Trump has consistently demonstrated a commonsense approach to safeguard and protect the environment and American communities.

    • On Day One, President Trump signed a Memorandum to prioritize routing water to Southern California in the wake of the destructive wildfires.
    • In President Trump’s first week back in office, he and First Lady Melania Trump visited Los Angeles to inspect wildfire damage, promising immediate Federal support and relief.
    • Upon visiting Los Angeles, President Trump immediately issued measures to provide increased water resources in California and promote expedited recovery procedures for Californians after their State government’s disastrous mishandling and misuse of resources and lack of preparation for the January 2025 wildfires.
    • In March 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order to enhance forest management, promoting responsible use of American timber to reduce wildfire risks.  

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: Empowering Commonsense Wildfire Prevention and Response

    Source: US Whitehouse

    class=”has-text-align-left”>By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered:
    Section 1. Purpose. The devastation of the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires shocked the American people and highlighted the catastrophic consequences when State and local governments are unable to quickly respond to such disasters.  In too many cases, including in California, a slow and inadequate response to wildfires is a direct result of reckless mismanagement and lack of preparedness. Wildfires threaten every region, yet many local government entities continue to disregard commonsense preventative measures. Firefighters across the country are forced to rely on outdated technology and face challenges in quickly responding to wildfires because of unnecessary regulation and bureaucracy. 
    The Federal Government can empower State and local leaders by streamlining Federal wildfire capabilities to improve their effectiveness and promoting commonsense, technology-enabled local strategies for land management and wildfire response and mitigation.  

    Sec. 2.  Streamlining Federal Wildland Fire Governance.  Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall, to the maximum degree practicable and consistent with applicable law, consolidate their wildland fire programs to achieve the most efficient and effective use of wildland fire offices, coordinating bodies, programs, budgets, procurement processes, and research and, as necessary, recommend additional measures to advance this objective.

    Sec. 3.  Encouraging Local Wildfire Preparedness and Response.  (a)  Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall:
            (i)   expand and strengthen the use of partnerships, agreements, compacts, and mutual aid capabilities that empower Federal, State, local, tribal, and community-driven land management that reduces wildfire risk and improves wildfire response, including on public lands; and
            (ii)  develop and expand the use of other measures to incentivize responsible land management and wildfire prevention, mitigation, and response measures at the State and local levels.
    (b)  Within 180 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the heads of executive departments and agencies (agencies) represented at the National Interagency Fire Center, shall:
            (i)   develop a comprehensive technology roadmap, in consultation with the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), to increase wildfire firefighting capabilities at the State and local levels, including through artificial intelligence, data sharing, innovative modeling and mapping capabilities, and technology to identify wildland fire ignitions and weather forecasts to inform response and evacuation; and
            (ii)  promote the use of a risk-informed approach, as consistent with Executive Order 14239 of March 18, 2025 (Achieving Efficiency Through State and Local Preparedness), to develop new policies that remove barriers to preventing and responding to wildfires, including through year-round response readiness, better forest health, and activities outlined in Executive Order 14225 of March 1, 2025 (Immediate Expansion of American Timber Production).

    Sec. 4.  Strengthening Wildfire Mitigation.  Within 90 days of the date of this order:
    (a)  The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall consider modifying or rescinding, as consistent with applicable law, Federal rules or policies that impede the use of appropriate, preventative prescribed fires.
    (b)  The Secretary of Agriculture and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, shall consider modifying or rescinding, as consistent with applicable law, Federal rules or policies hindering the appropriate use of fire retardant to fight wildfires.
    (c)  The Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, shall consider promoting, assisting, and facilitating, as consistent with applicable law, innovative uses of woody biomass and forest products to reduce fuel loads in areas at risk of wildfires.
    (d)  The Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Energy, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shall consider initiating rulemaking proceedings to establish, as consistent with applicable law, best practices to reduce the risk of wildfire ignition from the bulk-power system without increasing costs for electric-power end users, including through methods such as vegetation management, the removal of forest-hazardous fuels along transmission lines, improved engineering approaches, and safer operational practices.  
    (e)  The Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior, shall review pending and proposed wildfire-related litigation involving electrical utility companies to ensure the Department’s positions and proposed resolutions in such matters advance the wildfire prevention and mitigation efforts identified in this order.

    Sec. 5.  Modernizing Wildfire Prevention and Response. 
    (a)  Within 120 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Director of OSTP, the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, and the heads of relevant agencies, shall, as appropriate, identify, declassify, and make publicly available historical satellite datasets that will advance wildfire prevention and response and improve wildfire prediction and evaluation models.
    (b)  Within 180 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the heads of agencies represented at the National Interagency Fire Center, shall:
            (i)   Identify rules that impede wildfire prevention, detection, or response and consider eliminating or revising those rules, as consistent with applicable law.  This consideration and any resulting rulemaking proceedings shall be reflected in the Fall 2025 Unified Regulatory Agenda. 
            (ii)  Develop performance metrics for wildfire response, including metrics related to average response times, annual fuels treatments, safety and cost effectiveness, and other subjects, as appropriate for inclusion in strategic and annual performance plans.
    (c)  Within 210 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Defense shall evaluate and, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, prioritize the sale of excess aircraft and aircraft parts to support wildfire mitigation and response.

    Sec. 6.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
            (i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or
            (ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
    (b)  This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
    (c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
    (d)  The costs for publication of this order shall be borne by the Department of Agriculture and the Department of the Interior in equal shares.

                                  DONALD J. TRUMP

    THE WHITE HOUSE,
        June 12, 2025.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Essex County Convicted Felon Sentenced to 73 Months in Prison for Drug Trafficking and Possession of Firearms, including Two Assault Rifles

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    NEWARK, N.J. – An Essex County, New Jersey, man was sentenced on June 10, 2025, for his role in distributing cocaine, possessing with intent to distribute cocaine and heroin, and possessing three firearms, including two assault rifles with high-capacity magazines, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba announced.

    Azmar Carter, a/k/a “Bizzy,” 32, of East Orange, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo to a superseding information charging him with two counts of distribution and possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession of firearms and ammunition by a convicted felon, and possession with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine.

    According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

    In 2021, law enforcement began investigating a drug trafficking organization that operates primarily in and around Orange, New Jersey and distributes narcotics throughout Essex County. During the investigation, Carter distributed cocaine to law enforcement in May 2021 and in July 2021. Subsequently, on August 18, 2021, law enforcement searched Carter’s residence and car in East Orange, New Jersey and recovered the following items: one Draco AK 47 rifle; one Smith and Wesson AR rifle; one .40 caliber pistol; ninety-four rounds of associated ammunition; a distribution quantity of heroin and cocaine; and approximately $7,177.00.

    In addition to the prison term, Judge Arleo sentenced Carter to three years of supervised release.

    U.S. Attorney Habba credited special agents and members of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Newark Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge L.C. Cheeks, Jr.; members of the Orange Police Department, under the direction of Police Director Todd Warren, Chief Vincent Vitiello and Captain Brian Mooney; members of the Elizabeth Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Giacomo Sacca and Police Director Earl J. Graves; members of the East Orange Police Department, under the direction of Chief Phyllis Bindi; member of the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Emanuel Miranda and Chief of Police Sharonda Morris; and the Belleville Police Department, under the direction of Chief Mark Minichini, with the investigation leading to the charges and arrests.

    This case is part of Operation Orange, which is a part of the Newark Violent Crime Initiative (VCI), which was formed in August 2017 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, and the City of Newark’s Department of Public Safety for the purpose of combatting violent crime in and around Newark. As part of this partnership, federal, state, county, and city agencies collaborate and pool resources to prosecute violent offenders who endanger the safety of the community. The VCI is composed of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the FBI, the ATF, the DEA, the U.S. Marshals, the Newark Department of Public Safety, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, N.J. State Parole, Union County Jail, N.J. State Police Regional Operations and Intelligence Center/Real Time Crime Center, N.J. Department of Corrections, the East Orange Police Department, the Orange Police Department and the Irvington Police Department.

    The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Levin, Chief of the OCDETF/Narcotics Unit in Newark.

                                                                                                             ###

    Defense counsel: Christopher D. Adams, Esq.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Global: US Army’s image of power and flag-waving rings false to Gen Z weary of gun violence − and long-term recruitment numbers show it

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Jacob Ware, Adjunct Professor of Domestic Terrorism, Georgetown University

    A recruit participates in the Army’s future soldier prep course at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S.C., on Sept. 25, 2024. AP Photo/Chris Carlson

    The U.S. Army will celebrate its 250th birthday on Saturday, June 14, 2025, with a parade in Washington, D.C., in which about 6,600 soldiers and heavy pieces of military equipment will roll through the streets. The parade aims to display the Army’s history and power.

    “It’s going to be incredible,” President Donald Trump recently said. Trump’s 79th birthday also occurs on June 14.

    Despite the festivities, however, the parade will occur amid bleak times for the U.S. military, as it experiences a multiyear decline in recruitment numbers. In the face of a pandemic and a strong civilian job market, the Army, Air Force and Navy all missed their recruitment goals in 2022 and 2023. In 2022, the Army missed its quota by 25%.

    In 2024, the U.S. military met its recruitment target, which supports the argument that the bump is not due to Trump, as recruitment levels began to rise again before his reelection. But in some cases, the U.S. military has met its recruitment goals by lowering target numbers.

    And as a scholar of terrorism and targeted violence, I believe a close reading of available data on military recruitment suggests U.S. gun violence may be largely to blame for the lack of interest in joining the military.

    Gun violence data

    Regardless of one’s personal politics, the data on U.S. gun violence makes for painful reading.

    Almost 47,000 Americans died from gun-related injuries in 2023. In 2022, there were 51 school shootings in which students were injured or killed by guns. And gun injuries are the leading cause of death for Americans between ages 1 and 19.

    Data about the perceptions of gun violence is equally staggering, especially among American youth between ages 14 and 30.

    Four out of five American youth believe gun violence to be a problem, and 25% have endured real active-shooter lockdowns, according to data compiled by Everytown for Gun Safety, where I serve as a survivor fellow, the Southern Poverty Law Center and American University’s Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab.

    Moreover, these perceptions have considerable impacts on youth mental health and their sense of safety. Studies have linked concern over school shootings among adolescents with higher rates of anxiety and trauma-related disorders.

    As Arne Duncan, who served as President Barack Obama’s secretary of education during the Sandy Hook tragedy, said in 2023: “Unfortunately, what’s now binding young people across the country together is not joy of music, or sports, or whatever, it’s really the shared pain of gun violence – and it cuts through race and class and geography and economics.”

    National security threat

    In the past couple of years, polls taken of Generation Z youth, born between 1997 and 2012, suggest mental health and mass shootings are among the most important political issues motivating this band of voters.

    Gun violence, in other words, is a national security emergency, undermining the U.S. government’s ability to protect its citizens in their schools, places of worship and communities.

    As former Marine Gen. John Allen wrote in 2019: “Americans today are more likely to experience gun violence at home than they might in many of the places to which I deployed in the name of defending our nation.”

    U.S. Army National Guard members stand outside the Army National Guard office during training on April 21, 2022, in Washington.
    AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File

    Rewriting American culture

    Accordingly, gun violence has undercut American patriotism, corroding the U.S. government’s soft power within its own borders. Generation Z, termed by some as the “lockdown generation,” is often derided as less patriotic than its predecessors.

    Surprising Gen Z Research.

    Also, the belief in American exceptionalism is dropping among millennials, born between 1981 and 1996. That perception is combined with less confidence in U.S. global engagement and the efficacy of military solutions.

    American culture has long inspired military service, with recruits seduced by action movies and promises of heroic returns to the U.S. But American culture today is being rewired into one of suffering, pain and victimhood.

    A fear of violence

    Gun violence destroys youth tolerance for the violence that defines a career in the U.S. military.

    Internal U.S. military surveys of young Americans show that “the top three reasons young people cite for rejecting military enlistment are the same across all the services: fear of death, worries about post-traumatic stress disorder and leaving friends and family — in that order.”

    Generations already suffering a shattered sense of safety and place do not see the military as a viable option.

    The explanations the U.S. Defense Department gives for dismal recruitment levels focus on the younger generation’s supposed lack of backbone or hatred of America.

    D’elbrah Assamoi, from Cote d’Ivoire, signs her U.S. certificate of citizenship after a military training ceremony at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, in San Antonio, Texas, in April 2023.
    Vanessa R. Adame/U.S. Air Force via AP

    Republicans, including Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, have blamed alleged “wokeness” for low recruitment levels.

    And the Trump administration’s statements about improving recruitment numbers over the past several months overlook both a late Biden-era surge after a pandemic slump as well as the reality that numbers remain depressed due to military services repeatedly lowering their recruitment goals.

    Very rarely are introspective questions publicly debated today about the objective attractiveness of military service or the appetite for violence among young people. The problem, I believe, is not that young people are insufficiently patriotic – it’s that they have already been fighting a war, daily, for their entire lives.

    In reversing the slide in recruitment, then, the military could improve its sensitivity to these important concerns.

    Highlighting the range of careers within the services that do not involve front-line combat and physical danger could encourage more reluctant would-be recruits to volunteer.

    Mental health support also could be made an essential element of military training and lifestyle − not a resource only for those bearing the hidden side-effects of life in the ranks. Encouraging those suffering from treatable mental health issues to seek meaning in service could also boost recruitment numbers.

    Jacob Ware is a gun violence survivor and serves as a Survivor Fellow at Everytown for Gun Safety.

    – ref. US Army’s image of power and flag-waving rings false to Gen Z weary of gun violence − and long-term recruitment numbers show it – https://theconversation.com/us-armys-image-of-power-and-flag-waving-rings-false-to-gen-z-weary-of-gun-violence-and-long-term-recruitment-numbers-show-it-257090

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Secretary Pete Hegseth: “What’s an AST?”

    Source: US Representative Gabe Vasquez’s (NM-02)

    Vasquez Exposes Secretary Hegseth’s Shocking Ignorance on Border Issues in House Armed Services Hearing

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a House Armed Services Committee hearing today, U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (NM-02) confronted Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth for his blatant lack of knowledge about the U.S.-Mexico border, despite the Department of Defense’s growing involvement and massive spending in the region.

    WATCH: VASQUEZ PRESSES SECRETARY HEGSETH IN HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE

    Vasquez’s district includes 180 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border, a fact that Hegseth was unaware of. It also includes some of the country’s most remote, rugged borderlands, and Vasquez pressed Hegseth on basic geography, local conditions, and defense department spending. The result was clear: the Secretary of Defense is dangerously unprepared for the role he’s been entrusted with.

    “Pete Hegseth couldn’t name how many miles of border exist in New Mexico. He couldn’t point to where the wall starts or ends. He couldn’t say whether there are roads in critical terrain. And he had no meaningful answer when I asked about surveillance technologies despite their clear value as modern, cost-effective alternatives to a border wall,” said Vasquez. “This is not just concerning—it’s disqualifying. The military doesn’t belong on our border.”

    Vasquez repeatedly highlighted the disconnect between the Department of Defense’s policies and the realities of life on the border, challenging Hegseth’s cookie-cutter rhetoric and false claims about the effectiveness of the administration’s strategy.

    “I have serious concerns with your fundamental lack of knowledge about the U.S.-Mexico border, considering the billions of dollars that DOD is slated to spend on this mission,” said Vasquez. “I would encourage you to do some homework on my region and learn what will actually make our border more secure and safer.”

    Hegseth had no response when asked about the Bootheel, a highly remote and strategically significant stretch of southern New Mexico. When pressed on terrain features like the Animas Mountains or local infrastructure, he dodged. When confronted with data showing the DOD diverted over $1 billion from troop housing and modernization to border deployments, he deflected.

    Hegseth notably admitted that a border wall is not always the most effective border security tool despite the administration’s stance on the issue, “I’m aware that there are places where walls are not as much as effective as other places, and I get that.”

    Vasquez continues to advocate for modern surveillance infrastructure, expanded port-of-entry capacity, and smarter, humane approaches to immigration. He has introduced bipartisan legislation to realign border security investments with what works on the ground, not what plays best on cable news.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: DMV Lawmakers Call on Department of Transportation, Army To Investigate Deadly January 29th Plane Crash

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan (Virginia 4th District)

    Lawmakers urge DOT and Army Inspectors General to investigate actions leading up to and after the tragic crash

    Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan (D-VA-04) joined U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD) and U.S. Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA-08), Sarah Elfreth (D-MD-03), Glenn Ivey (D-MD-04), Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA-10), and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) to write to the Inspectors General (IGs) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and the U.S. Army pushing for respective investigations into Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Army policies and procedures that may have contributed to the January 29, 2025 mid-air collision at Ronald Reagan National Airport that took 67 lives.

    In their letters the lawmakers highlighted the need for a deeper investigation into potential organizational failures that may have contributed to the tragedy.
     
    To the Department of Transportation, the lawmakers wrote, “Any lapses in internal accountability, interagency coordination, and safety oversight must be uncovered and addressed swiftly for the families of those lost that day, for the safety of the flying public and residents of the National Capital Region, and for the integrity of the National Airspace System.”

    In their letter to the DOT, the lawmakers requested an investigation into:

    1. FAA training and operations in the National Capital Region;
    2. The concurrent use of helicopter routes and runways at DCA;
    3. Pre-January 29, 2025 safety incidents at DCA between airplanes and helicopters, and FAA risk pattern identification, escalation and sufficiency of policy responses;
    4. Post-January 29, 2025 safety incidents at DCA between airplanes and helicopters, and FAA risk identification, escalation, and sufficiency of responses to those incidents and the January 29 crash;
    5. FAA Air Traffic Controller staffing, training, and real-time responses at DCA, including on January 29; and
    6. U.S. Army, federal law enforcement, and FAA interagency communication, including effectiveness of established working groups, and FAA follow-through.

    To the U.S. Army, they wrote, “While the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the immediate actual and proximate causes of the January 29, 2025 DCA aviation incident, the Department of the Army Inspector General has the authority to uncover the deeper institutional failures that enabled this tragedy. Emerging evidence points to longstanding lapses in internal accountability, safety oversight, safety culture, and interagency coordination.”

    Additionally, the lawmakers requested that the Army investigate the following:

    1. TAAB training activities and operations in the National Capital Region, including whether training standards, operational planning decisions, risk identification, or compliance with routes or equipment contributed to operational risk;
    2. Army and TAAB policy and practice on aircraft collision-avoidance systems, including the rationale for and coordination around the August 2024 ADS-B Out directive, and whether longstanding near-miss patterns were adequately identified, escalated, and addressed;
    3. Army, federal law enforcement, and Federal Aviation Administration interagency communication; and
    4. Army actions taken in response to the January 29, 2025 crash, including any policy changes, coordination efforts, transparency with oversight bodies, and measures to prevent further incidents.
       
      Sens. Warner and Kaine have been closely involved with the in the investigation of the January 29th collision, meeting with first responders and offering condolences to the families and loved ones of the 67 lives lost immediately following the tragedy. Last week, Sens. Warner and Kaine introduced comprehensive aviation safety legislation in response to the tragic mid-air collision. The senators also saw through passage of a legislation to remember the victims of the crash. Sens. Warner and Kaine also requested answers from FAA on its plans to protect the flying public in the wake of the January 29 collision. In March of this year, the senators responded to the preliminary National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report on the crash. The senators have also sounded the alarm for years about the need for increased safety for the flying public, including fighting against additional flights out of DCA that contribute to overcrowding. 
       
      A copy of the letter to the DOT is available here. A copy of the letter to the Army is available here.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: VIDEO: Senator Peters Secures Army Corps Commitment to Prioritize Timely Completion of Soo Locks Construction

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Michigan Gary Peters

    WASHINGTON, DC – During a hearing in the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) secured a commitment from key U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) officials to prioritize the timely completion of the ongoing Soo Locks construction project. In his questioning, Peters emphasized the importance of this critical project for U.S. economic and national security.  

    “To put things into perspective, just a six-month unscheduled outage at the Soo would result in an estimated 11 million jobs lost and a $1.1 trillion hit to the economy. I think that’s a classic definition of critical infrastructure,” said Senator Peters during the hearing. “The bottom line is, we need a second Poe-sized lock to alleviate this risk, and I’ve been leading the charge with a lot of my colleagues for quite some time.” 

    In response, Mr. D. Lee Forsgren, Acting Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Army (Civil Works) said, “As you so articulately laid out, it is the backbone of the economy of this country, and we cannot afford as a nation to let that happen. I commit we will be looking at ways forward to enhance that system.” 

    To watch the full video of Senator Peters’ questioning, click here.

    Peters also applauded the $264 million included in the 2025 Army Corps Work Plan and Budget Request, which he recently led the bipartisan Michigan delegation in advocating for. This funding would allow the USACE to award the final remaining contracts needed to finish the project at their current cost.  

    “It was great to see the funding in the work plan allowing us to hit those final three options,” said Lt. Gen. William H. Graham, Jr., Chief of Engineers and Commanding General of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “We’re never going to get better prices than what we had locked in to finish those last three options up at the Soo. I’m heading up there in a few weeks to make sure that there are no surprises up there and that the team on the ground has everything they need to continue to deliver, and I think we’re on track for 2030, which is exciting.” 

    Peters has prioritized securing the funding necessary to build a new Poe-sized Lock at the Soo Locks. In 2024, he toured the ongoing construction project after helping to secure $257.4 million for the project in government funding legislation. In January 2022, Peters helped to secure $479 million for modernizing the Soo Locks through the bipartisan infrastructure law. In December 2022, he helped pass the bipartisan Water Resources and Development Act as part of the annual national defense bill, including needed funding flexibility for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to keep the New Lock at the Soo project on schedule. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senators Collins, King Announce USS Gravely to Visit Eastport for Fourth of July Celebrationbl

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Maine Susan Collins

    Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that Eastport will receive a port visit during the city’s 2025 Fourth of July celebration. The U.S. Navy has committed to sending the guided missile destroyer USS Gravely (DDG-107), which has a crew complement of approximately 330 sailors.

    USS Gravely is a battle-tested warship and recently saw action in the Red Sea.

    “We are grateful to the U.S. Navy for honoring the State of Maine with this port visit during Eastport’s Fourth of July celebration,” said Senators Collins and King. “The arrival of the USS Gravely will give Mainers a special opportunity to meet the sailors bravely serving our country. It’s an honor to welcome these servicemembers to our state as we mark Independence Day, and we thank the Navy for making this visit possible.”

    The Eastport Fourth of July parade and festival is the largest in the state and draws thousands of Maine people every year.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cramer, Alsobrooks Urge Army to Take Action to Keep Outdoor Recreation Sites Open

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the first day of summer approaches, recreation sites across the country managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) face reduced hours or full closures due to a U.S. Department of Defense hiring freeze. The freeze was signed on February 28 and restricts the Army Corps from hiring the seasonal staff needed to safely manage boat ramps, campgrounds, and swimming areas. The Army Corps has requested Secretary Driscoll use his waiver authority to allow seasonal hires. Without it, Army Corps recreation sites will be closed or have reduced access at the time they are used the most. 

    U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee, sent a letter to Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll and Commanding General of the Army Corps Lt. Gen. William H. “Butch” Graham highlighting the need for immediate action to address the staffing shortfalls. Specifically, it urges the Army to approve a waiver request from the Army Corps allowing it to bring on seasonal workers. Under current policy, the Secretary of Defense has authorized Service Secretaries to grant waivers for positions essential to public safety.

    “Every year, outdoor recreation contributes more than $1 trillion to the economy and supports over 5 million jobs,” the senators wrote. “Limiting access to Army Corps recreation sites hampers this economic engine and has adverse impacts on communities who depend on the reliable summer influx of visitors. However, this is about much more than merely the economic implications. Outdoor recreation is a way for people to engage with nature, spend quality-time with family, and boost their physical and mental health.”

    If the waiver authority is not utilized, several Army Corps managed recreation areas in North Dakota will be partially or fully closed for the summer season due to staffing shortages. This includes the East Totten Trail and Wolf Creek at Lake Sakakawea, Beaver Creek and Hazelton at Lake Oahe, and East Astabulta Crossing, Eggerts Landing, and West Ashtabula Crossing at Lake Asthabula.

    Click here for the letter.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: High-ranking U.S. military officials agree: Trump’s takeover of Los Angeles is illegal

    Source: US State of California Governor

    Jun 12, 2025

    What you need to know: Former secretaries of the Army and Navy and retired four-star admirals and generals filed an amicus brief in support of the Governor’s motion to block the Trump administration’s illegal militarization of downtown Los Angeles.

    SACRAMENTO – Veterans of the U.S. Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and Navy, who collectively served under each president from John F. Kennedy to Barack H. Obama,  recently filed an amicus brief in support of Governor Gavin Newsom’s motion to stop President Trump’s illegal takeover of California National Guard units and deployment of the Marines to downtown Los Angeles. 

    “Veterans of our military agree that President Trump’s takeover of Los Angeles is not only illegal – it poses a dangerous and serious risk to Americans who may find themselves in the crosshairs of troops ordered to act against their fellow Americans.”

    Governor Gavin Newsom

    Recently, several veterans and veteran rights’ groups came together to decry Trump’s militarization of California. 

    Illegal militarization 

    On June 7, one day after the protests began, President Trump issued a memorandum purporting to authorize the DOD to call up 2,000 National Guard personnel into federal service for a period of 60 days, and declaring a “form of rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States” and directing the Secretary of Defense to coordinate with state governors and the National Guard to commandeer state militias. 

    The action puts state sovereignty in danger, as his order was not specific to California and suggests that the President could assume control of any state militia. 

    The U.S. Constitution and the Title 10 authority the President invoked in the memo require that the Governor consent to federalization of the National Guard, which Governor Newsom was not given the opportunity to do prior to their deployment and which he confirmed he had not given shortly after their deployment. The President’s unlawful order infringes on Governor Newsom’s role as Commander-in-Chief of the California National Guard and violates the state’s sovereign right to control and have available its National Guard in the absence of a lawful invocation of federal power.

    Additionally, DOD is now expanding the duties of these federal soldiers, ordering them to assist ICE agents in civilian law enforcement activities — including arresting and detaining immigrants and others who may be suspected or accused of interfering with ICE — a direct violation of the U.S. Constitution and the rights of American citizens. 

    Cleaning up Trump’s mess

    On Saturday, there were 250+ protesters pre-National Guard deployment. On Sunday, the protesters grew to 3,000+ after the federal government commandeered the National Guard. Their presence is inviting and incentivizing demonstrations.

    Since President Trump’s impulsive memo and actions to send the military to the Los Angeles region, the state continued to work with local partners to surge additional state and local law enforcement officers into Los Angeles to clean up President Trump’s mess.  Local and state law enforcement has had to intervene to protect public safety. Federal soldiers are currently standing sentry outside federal buildings, with local and state law enforcement doing all of the work. 

    The President’s actions have not only caused widespread panic and chaos, but have unnecessarily created an additional diversion of resources as the state tries to calm a community terrorized by this reckless federal action

    Hypocrisy on full display

    President Trump agrees he’s breaking the law in California — here’s the evidence.

    In 2020, Trump said he wouldn’t federalize National Guard members without the approval of the state’s Governor first. His own Department of Homeland Security leader said just last year that federalizing the National Guard would be a direct attack on state rights. The federal administration is adding more National Guard soldiers and Marines to an already charged situation when they are unneeded. Read more about the lawsuit here.

    Press releases, Recent news

    Recent news

    Jun 12, 2025

    News What you need to know: Governor Newsom signed an executive order further advancing California’s clean vehicle transition by kickstarting development of next-generation policy to spur innovation, updating state vehicle purchasing requirements, and directing the…

    Jun 12, 2025

    News LOS ANGELES –  President Trump continues efforts to turn the military into his own personal police force against American citizens in Los Angeles.  Prior to this week, President Trump and members of his administration have repeatedly and publicly declared that a…

    Jun 12, 2025

    News What you need to know: U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed all members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices — a politically motivated move that will jeopardize public health and undermine proven scientific…

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Nadler Speech on Situation in Israel and the Palestinian Territories

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Jerrold Nadler (10th District of New York)

    Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), the most senior Jewish Member of the House of Representatives, spoke on the House floor regarding the current situation in Israel and the Palestinian Territories:

    Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of Israeli security, Palestinian freedom, a just, peaceful, and swift end to the war in Gaza, and an eventual, viable, and negotiated two-state solution.

    The situation in Gaza today is dire. I want to be clear: the war in Gaza began with Hamas’ brutal attack on innocent Israelis on October 7th, the bloodiest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust. For many in the Jewish community, in the United States and around the world, time stopped on that day, and has not yet resumed. It will resume when all the hostages are home. It will resume when the war is over, and the reservists can return to their families. It will resume when there is enough food, water, and medicine in Gaza to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe. It will resume when families on both sides of the border can sleep peacefully without the constant fear of rockets and bombs falling from the sky. It will resume when there is a lasting, durable, and negotiated ceasefire.

    And Mr. Speaker, that day need not be far away. Israel achieved its goal of destroying the military capabilities and existential threat of Hamas months ago. Now Prime Minister Netanyahu should be proclaiming victory and indicating his readiness to withdraw from Gaza contingent on the return of all the hostages—both living and dead. He should be signaling his willingness to support an international security force on an interim basis to ensure law and order, and Israel’s support for international investment in the training and equipping of an eventual Palestinian security force. He should be supporting confidence building measures in the West Bank which empower the Palestinian Authority—contingent on the PA embracing and implementing real reforms, he should not be enacting an annexationist vision, while the plague of settler violence runs rampant.

    The alternative, Mr. Speaker, is a stark and disturbing picture. This week, Tom Friedman wrote in the New York times that, if “Israel goes ahead with Netanyahu’s vow to perpetuate this war indefinitely — to try to achieve… the far right’s fantasy of ridding Gaza of Palestinians and resettling it with Israelis — Jews worldwide better prepare themselves, their children and their grandchildren for a reality they’ve never known: to be Jewish in a world where the Jewish state is a pariah state — a source of shame, not of pride.  Because one day, foreign photographers and reporters will be allowed to go into Gaza unescorted by the Israeli Army. And when they do, and the full horror of the destruction there becomes clear to all…”

    Friedman continued, Mr. Speaker, writing, “Israel, instead of being seen by Jews as a safe haven from antisemitism, will be seen as a new engine generating it; sane Israelis will line up to emigrate to Australia and America rather than beckon their fellow Jews to come Israel’s way. That dystopian future is not here yet, but if you don’t see its outlines gathering, you are deluding yourself.”

    Mr. Friedman is not alone in this analysis. Indeed, Mr. Speaker, former Israeli security officials have been speaking out.

    Last week, two former Israeli Air Force pilots, Brigadier General Asaf Agmon and Colonel Uri Arad, published a letter in Hebrew in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. They wrote “as the war in Gaza dragged on, it became clear that it was losing its strategic and security purposes and instead served primarily the political and personal interests of the government. It thus became an unmistakably immoral war, and increasingly appeared to be a war of revenge.”

    I agree with these distinguished former officials. It is clear to me that we long ago reached the point where victory is no longer the goal, and the main obstacle to bringing the hostages home and ending the war is the politics of one man: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

    General Agmon and Colonel Arad are not peace activists, Mr. Speaker. They are former top Israeli air force pilots and high-ranking officers, and we must heed their calls.

    They are not alone, Mr. Speaker. Commanders for Israel’s Security is a movement of over 550 retired senior officials from Israel’s defense, security and diplomatic services. The Commanders, as they are often referred to, recently published a letter urging Jewish diaspora voices to speak out in favor of ending the violence in Gaza. They wrote, “Accused of weakening Israel or betraying their connection to the Jewish state, they are told that those who live abroad or do not serve in the I.D.F. must keep silent. We categorically reject the notion that Jews in the diaspora must remain silent on matters concerning Israel… To those who fear that public criticism undermines Israel, we say that open, honest dialogue only reinforces our democracy and our security.”

    This is true for this body too, Mr. Speaker. We all must speak up. If our voices contribute to preventing one more ounce of bloodshed, or to the return home of a hostage one minute sooner, or gets one more piece of bread into the hands of a starving Gazan, or helps redeem the moral position of the State of Israel, our words are worth it. Jewish tradition teaches in Mishna Sanhedrin that “saving one life is like saving the whole world.” I hope that we can come together to heed the voices that are speaking out at this moment, and that together work to save as many worlds as we can.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: USA: Deployment of military is a ‘chilling preview’ of more human rights violations to come

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to President Trump’s remarks that protesters will be met with “very heavy force”, Paul O’Brien, Amnesty International USA’s Executive Director, said: 

    “Now is a good moment to remind President Trump that protesting is a human right and that his administration is obligated to respect, protect, and fulfil the human rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly – not suppress them.  

    “The militarised response to protests, including the deployment of the National Guard and the Marines in Los Angeles, further escalates tensions and is a chilling preview of even more human rights violations that could be coming

    “The Trump administration must urgently halt the militarised response to protests. The US military is not trained or equipped to police civilians. It increases the risk of excessive force, arbitrary arrests, and other violations of free expression and peaceful assembly.

    “The protests, whether against Israel’s genocide in Gaza or the relentless attacks on immigrant communities, are an urgent outcry against a broader pattern of human rights violations: death and destruction, mass deportations, unlawful detentions, expulsions to dangerous conditions in other countries, suppression of dissent, and the denial of due process. 

    “Make no mistake: President Trump’s response to protests has nothing to do with public safety. This is his administration’s way of stoking fear and suppressing opposition. By sending police, ICE, or the military into neighbourhoods to silence voices calling for justice and human rights, President Trump is continuing to send a clear and chilling message: dissent will be punished.  

    “Across the country, people are showing solidarity with immigrants and taking a stand against authoritarian practices. Together, we are making a powerful statement – human rights belong to all of us.”  

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Highlights – SEDE: Defence omnibus presented by EU Commissioner for Defence and Space A. KUBILIUS – Committee on Security and Defence

    Source: European Parliament

    RaresGheorghiu_CommissionerDesignate_Kubilius_Hearings2024.jpg © European Union 2024 – EP

    On the 17 June, immediately after publication, Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius will present the Defence omnibus to the SEDE Members. This omnibus, announced in the White Paper, proposes amendments to simplify the legal and administrative framework in order to address obstacles and bottlenecks hindering a rapid ramping up of the defence industry and thereby strengthening European defence.

    MIL OSI Europe News –