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U.S. Says ‘Within International Law’ to Sail Near Taiwan Amid China Warning

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The Pentagon is defending its recent operation near Taiwan as compliant with international law in the face of Chinese protests that the U.S. deliberately was aggravating the geopolitically sensitive situation in the disputed waterway.

Senior Colonel Zhang Chunhui, spokesperson for China’s People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command, said Thursday that warships and warplanes were dispatched Thursday to monitor U.S. Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Barry as it sailed near the Taiwan Strait, where Zhang accused the Navy of “seriously undermining the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait.”

Zhang said his forces were “always on high alert” and accused the U.S. of “sending the wrong messages” to those in Taiwan who would seek to officially separate the self-ruling island from the mainland that claims it. . .

Challenging Chinese claims to the Taiwan Strait, the spokesperson said all U.S. operations “were within international waters, within international law.” (Read more from “U.S. Says ‘Within International Law’ to Sail Near Taiwan Amid China Warning” HERE)

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Pentagon Creates UFO Task Force (VIDEO)

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Pentagon officials on Friday confirmed the existence of a Navy-led “Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force” that will monitor ongoing encounters with strange aerial objects and determine whether these phenomena should be perceived as a threat.

Approved on Aug. 4 by Deputy Secretary of Defense David L. Norquist, the task force was officially launched “to improve its understanding of, and gain insight into, the nature and origins of UAPs,” according to a Friday evening news release. “The mission of the task force is to detect, analyze and catalog UAPs that could potentially pose a threat to U.S. national security.”

Pentagon officials did not immediately respond to questions about the timing of this announcement, what sparked it, or whether the UAP designation pertains directly to alien spacecraft.

“The Department of Defense and the military departments take any incursions by unauthorized aircraft into our training ranges or designated airspace very seriously and examine each report,” the release states. “This includes examinations of incursions that are initially reported as UAP when the observer cannot immediately identify what he or she is observing.” (Read more from “Pentagon Creates UFO Task Force” HERE)

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Pentagon Effectively Bans Confederate Flags on All Military Property

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The Pentagon on Friday unveiled a new policy that effectively bans the display of the Confederate flag — without actually naming it.

The policy … reflects an effort to find a compromise on the divisive issue, as Defense Secretary Mark Esper strives to satisfy military leaders without irking President Donald Trump, who has criticized NASCAR for banning the flag.

A draft version of the policy reportedly explicitly banned the Confederate flag on Defense Department property. Yet the official language simply lists the types of flags that are allowed to be displayed, including the American flag; the flags of the U.S. states, territories and the District of Columbia; military flags and those of allies.

“The flags we fly must accord with the military imperatives of good order and discipline, treating all our people with dignity and respect, and rejecting divisive symbols,” Esper wrote in the memo. The guidance applies to the public displays of flags by service members or DoD civilians “in all DoD work places, common access areas, and public areas.” (Read more from “Pentagon Effectively Bans Confederate Flags on All Military Property” HERE)

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Pentagon Draft Policy Would Ban Confederate Flag Displays

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A draft policy being circulated by Pentagon leaders would ban the display of the Confederate flag in Defense Department workplaces or public areas by service members and civilian personnel.

The policy, which has not yet been finalized or signed by Defense Secretary Mark Esper, comes as President Donald Trump earlier in the day criticized NASCAR’s decision to ban the flag at its races and venues. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the draft.

If approved, the draft Pentagon policy would bring the other military services in line with the Marine Corps, which banned Confederate displays on its bases in early June. Other military services had been poised to make similar decisions, but they were stalled when Esper said he wanted a review of the matter that would come up with a consistent department policy. (Read more from “Pentagon Draft Policy Would Ban Confederate Flag Displays” HERE)

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Pentagon Sources Warn: U.S. ‘Would Lose a War With China’ in the Pacific, ‘Fears the Guam Military Base Is at Risk Now’; U.S. Increases Military Pressure on China

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By Daily Mail. The US would lose a war with China fought in the Pacific, is unable to defend Taiwan from an invasion and fears the Guam military base is at risk now, US defense sources have warned.

‘Eye-opening’ Pentagon war games have revealed growing fears the US is vulnerable to threats from China and that any attack would lead to the US ‘suffering capital losses’, the sources said.

The worrying analysis is expected to come to light in the Pentagon’s 2020 China military power report this summer.

The stark warning comes as tensions continue to mount between the two nations after US President Donald Trump has blasted China’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and repeatedly suggested the nation lied about the extent of its crisis.

US defense sources told The Times that one Pentagon simulation based on the year 2030 when China would have new attack submarines, aircraft carriers and destroyers resulted in the US being overwhelmed by the nation’s force. (Read more from “Pentagon Sources Warn: U.S. ‘Would Lose a War With China’ in the Pacific, ‘Fears the Guam Military Base Is at Risk Now'” HERE)

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U.S. Increases Military Pressure on China as Tensions Rise Over Pandemic

By CNN. The US is upping military pressure on China amid increased tensions over the South China Sea and accusing Beijing of seeking to leverage the coronavirus pandemic to extend its sphere of influence in the region.

Over the last few weeks US Navy ships and Air Force B-1 bombers have undertaken missions aimed at sending a very public message that the US military intends to maintain a presence in the region and reassure allies.

It’s also a top priority for the Pentagon to get the virus-stricken aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt back out to sea in the region by as soon as the end of the month. (Read more from “U.S. Increases Military Pressure on China as Tensions Rise Over Pandemic” HERE)

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WATCH: Pentagon Formally Releases Three UFO Videos

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The Pentagon on Monday approved the release of three “unidentified aerial phenomena” videos taken over the years by U.S. Navy aviators. All three had been, shall we say, informally available on the internet, but now viewers can see them with the military’s stamp of approval. Defense Department spokesperson Sue Gough said, “After a thorough review, the department has determined that the authorized release of these unclassified videos does not reveal any sensitive capabilities or systems, and does not impinge on any subsequent investigations of military air space incursions by unidentified aerial phenomena.”

Gough explained, “DOD is releasing the videos in order to clear up any misconceptions by the public on whether or not the footage that has been circulating was real, or whether or not there is more to the videos.” . . .

The first video was captured in 2004 and leaked to the public in 2017. The New York Times reported that an F/A-18 piloted by Cmdr. David Fravor with Lt. Cmdr. Jim Slaight in the back seat was flying about 100 miles off the Pacific coast when they were hailed by the cruiser U.S.S. Princeton:

“Well, we’ve got a real-world vector for you,” the radio operator said, according to Commander Fravor. For two weeks, the operator said, the Princeton had been tracking mysterious aircraft. The objects appeared suddenly at 80,000 feet, and then hurtled toward the sea, eventually stopping at 20,000 feet and hovering. Then they either dropped out of radar range or shot straight back up.

(Read more from “Pentagon Formally Releases Three UFO Videos” HERE)

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New Satellites Will Be a Big Step in the Pentagon’s Plan to Link Everything

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. . .The U.S. military’s push to link every object on the battlefield leaped forward Thursday with the release of a request for proposals to build 20 tactical-communications satellites by 2022.

The year-old Space Development Agency, or SDA, hosted an industry day to tell satellite makers about its plans for “transport layer”: essentially, orbiting communications nodes to transfer data related to intelligence, battle management, navigation and timing; and more.

The transport layer won’t replace the military’s existing communications satellites or the commercial ones whose services it rents, SDA director Derek Tournear told reporters. Instead the new layer will focus on “tactical data points that need to be given to a weapon system.” It will ferry very-time-sensitive data from drones, satellites in low Earth orbit, and other sensors. Pentagon officials received $25 million to develop and flight-test the satellites in the 2020 budget, and have asked for just under $100 million in 2021, said Tournear.

A slide from Thursday’s industry day explains how the transport layer would be the middle one in SDA’s plans for a three-tier space architecture. The lowest layer will consist of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance satellites flying about 600 km above the earth. The Pentagon has said that this sensor layer is crucial for tracking future highly maneuverable hypersonic weapons, spotting missile launchers, and noting sudden troop movements. Those satellites will send the data up to the transport layer, which itself will fly beneath a second layer of sensor satellites orbiting at roughly 1,200 km. These would also be able to watch and track the trajectory of hypersonic or other missiles. All of the satellites will work to share timing and navigation data with the ground, essentially serving as an alternative GPS system. (Read more from “New Satellites Will Be a Big Step in the Pentagon’s Plan to Link Everything” HERE)

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Amid Pandemic, Pentagon Urges ‘Hyper-Vigilance’ Against Foreign Investment

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The Pentagon’s top acquisition official is worried that adversary nations may use the economic downturn caused by the new coronavirus pandemic to buy out American-made technologies.

During a Wednesday news conference, Ellen Lord warned that it “is critically important that we understand that during this crisis, the [defense-industrial base] is vulnerable to adversarial capital, so we need to ensure that companies can stay in business without losing their technology.”

The Pentagon over the last several years has become increasingly vocal about concerns that foreign nations — primarily China — are investing in U.S. startup companies whose technologies could have national security applications. Those startups have been willing to accept Chinese funds in exchange for Beijing having ownership or access to certain technologies.

Several times the officials were asked if there is a specific threat they are seeing from foreign investment at this moment, but both Lord and Jen Santos, deputy assistant secretary of defense for industrial policy, spoke only in general terms.

“I think it presents a greater attack surface, if you will, as there is uncertainty especially with small businesses as to whether their contracts will continue,” Lord said of the current pandemic. “To basically mitigate that uncertainty, that’s why we’re being forward-leaning and over-communicating, probably, to say: ‘We are open.’” (Read more from “Amid Pandemic, Pentagon Urges ‘Hyper-Vigilance’ Against Foreign Investment” HERE)

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Pentagon Pushes Back on Joe Biden’s Horrible Coronavirus Plan; Senate GOP Crafting New Massive Coronavirus Package at ‘Warp Speed’

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By U.S. News. The Pentagon on Monday pushed back against an idea former Vice President Joe Biden proposed at a Democratic presidential debate Sunday night for how the military could support federal efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

“I would call out the military now,” Biden said at the debate in Washington, D.C., against Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. “They have the ability to provide this surge that hospitals need. … They have the capacity to build 500 hospital beds and tents that are completely safe and secure. It’s a national emergency, and I would call out the military.”

Military officials, however, said during a briefing Monday afternoon about the coronavirus – which causes a disease known as COVID-19 – that the rapid-response medical capabilities currently at their disposal might not provide much help.

“The challenge is, they’re designed to take care of trauma patients and combat casualties,” Air Force Brig. Gen. Paul Friedrichs, the surgeon for the Pentagon’s Joint Staff, said during a press briefing. “We don’t have a lot of 500-bed hospitals designed for contagious disease outbreaks.” (Read more from “Pentagon Pushes Back on Joe Biden’s Horrible Coronavirus Plan” HERE)

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Senate GOP Crafting New Massive Coronavirus Package at ‘Warp Speed’

By Politico. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the Senate will work at “warp speed” to craft a massive new stimulus package to help Americans deal with the economic fallout from the coronavirus crisis, vowing that senators “will not leave” Washington until it’s done.

And Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) said Tuesday there is a “high level of interest” among Republicans for a Trump administration proposal to send as many as two $1,000 checks directly to individual Americans to help respond to the economic slowdown, a move that could cost an estimated $500 billion, according to GOP sources.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin made a pitch for the initiative at a lunch with Senate Republicans on Tuesday, part of an $800 billion-plus package being floated by the White House that also includes as much as $250 billion in emergency loans for smalls businesses being hit by the economic slowdown.

Under the Mnuchin plan, direct payments — on a means-tested basis — could be sent to American via the IRS as early as next month, although even that may not be as fast as some in Congress want. (Read more from “Senate GOP Crafting New Massive Coronavirus Package at ‘Warp Speed'” HERE)

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Man Arrested After Trying to Blow up Car in Pentagon Parking Lot

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A 19-year-old man from Arkansas has been charged with trying to blow up a car in the Pentagon parking lot Monday morning.

The charges, announced Tuesday afternoon, follow an extensive search yesterday involving numerous law enforcement agencies, including Arlington County Police, that resulted in the man being arrested in Arlington National Cemetery.

Federal prosecutors say the suspect, Matthew Richardson, tried to blow up a Land Rover, parked in the Pentagon North Parking lot, by sticking a piece of fabric in the gas tank and lighting it on fire. The vehicle did not explode and the suspect took off running after being confronted by a Pentagon police officer. . .

Arlington officers were dispatched to the area around Arlington National Cemetery around 11 a.m. to look for a man who, according to initial reports, might have intended to light himself on fire. They were joined by Pentagon police, Fort Myer police and U.S. Park Police in searching for the man. . .

Richardson was arrested this past weekend in Arlington and charged with felony assault on a law enforcement officer, according to prosecutors. Savage said he was arrested by a different police agency, not Arlington County Police. Richardson was previously arrested on theft charges in Arkansas in November. (Read more from “Man Arrested After Trying to Blow up Car in Pentagon Parking Lot” HERE)

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