Thursday, December 8, 2016

Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- December 8, 2016

The Pentagon, headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, taken from an airplane in January 2008. Wikipedia

Washington Post editorial: The Pentagon can’t afford to sweep spending under the rug

WHEN IT comes to bigness, the U.S. military has few rivals. The Defense Department is the nation’s largest employer, with more than 1.3 million men and women on active duty. The Pentagon has three times the floor space of the Empire State Building . The department’s back-office business operations employ more than 1 million people. The $580 billion U.S. military budget takes up more than half of the discretionary spending of the federal government each year. Making the Pentagon more efficient, and wringing change from such a giant organization, has frustrated many of those chosen to lead it.

Robert O. Work, as deputy defense secretary the Pentagon’s second-highest-ranking official, set out to try again after taking office in 2014. He ordered the Defense Business Board to conduct an efficiency study, and boasted that corporate executives would be recruited. The board was chaired by Robert “Bobby” L. Stein, a private-equity investor from Jacksonville, Fla., who had been a campaign bundler for President Obama. The board drilled deep into the data of Pentagon back-office operations, looking at personnel, supply chains, acquisition, health care, financial flows and real estate management, and came up with an estimate that, with new ways of doing business, the military could save $125 billion over five years.

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Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- December 8, 2016

Russia's men increasingly see army as a good job, not a dead end -- AP

Russia Tests Nuclear-Capable Drone Sub -- Washington Free Beacon

A NATO to Contain China? Key US Commander Doesn’t See it -- Defense News

Chinese army launches massive military drill near Aksai Chin --Times of India

European Nations Sign Cooperative Aircraft Maintenance Contract -- Defense News

France, Australia Reach Deal to Share Secrets on Defense Programs -- Defense News

German Bundeswehr to train Saudi army officers -- DW

Israel 'Ready' to Operate F-35s Without Ever Actually Flying -- Defense News

Israelis Are in Denial About the Next Missile War -- Haaretz

Secrets stolen in cyber attack on German firm making Israeli subs -- Jerusalem Post

Israeli Army men have one of the world’s highest life expectancies -- New York Post

US and British spy agencies target air passengers' phone calls: report -- DW

Armed Services Committee chairmen blast DoD for $125 billion in wasteful spending -- Washington Examiner

$125 Billion Savings? Not So Fast, Say Experts, DoD, Rep. Smith -- Breaking Defense

In Bashing Air Force One Costs, Trump Targets Defense Spending -- DoD Buzz

The Pentagon told the Navy to cut $17B from its budget; the Navy said no -- Navy Times

US Navy may increase Black Sea patrols – Admiral -- RT

Navy on hook for most fixes on littoral ships, GAO finds -- Stars and Stripes

Navy's Futuristic-Looking USS Zumwalt Arriving in Homeport -- AP

US Army-led Future Vertical Lift faces budget challenges -- IHS Jane's 360

Army and Marines in No Rush to Chamber a Common 5.56mm Round -- Kit Up!

The U.S. Navy is Preparing the MQ-4C Triton Drone for Service in the Pacific -- National Interest

US Air Force Launches Advanced Military Communications Satellite -- Space.com

Judge throws out Marine Corps decision to remove officer who sent classified warning to colleagues -- Washington Post

Defense Lobby’s Answer to Trump? Don’t Tweet Back -- DoD Buzz

Rare World War Two Enigma machine - used to defeat Hitler - sells for world record price -- Mirror

Information Warfare Is Warfare -- Jon Herrmann, RCD

President Trump's Plans For The Military: How The New Commander-In-Chief Could Give Defense Companies A Boost -- IBTimes

Mattis is Outstanding, So What's the Problem? -- Alice Hunt Friend, War on the Rocks

Trump’s military picks raise fears over national security strategy -- Financial Times

Return war powers to Congress -- Washington Examiner

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