Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- July 10, 2020

US Air Force Hornets refuel over Wake Island. Photo: Handout

SCMP: US upgrades defensive ‘buffer’ in Pacific as China’s military capabilities increase

* Satellite images show work on the remote base on Wake Island, which could play a key defensive role in event of conflict in the western Pacific
* China now has missiles capable of targeting the defences on Guam and striking the continental United States

The United States is planning to upgrade its facilities on a remote outpost in the western Pacific as a military fallback, satellite images suggest.

The images taken by US-based Planet Labs show how existing infrastructure on Wake Island – an incorporated territory between Guam and Hawaii that is run by the US Air Force – is being improved and new facilities are being built.

The island could also host vital anti-missile defences in the event of conflict with China or North Korea, which now have missiles capable of striking the continental United States.

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Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- July 10, 2020

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Top U.S. general on Russian bounty reports: 'If it's true we will take action' -- UPI

USAF Pilot Safe After A-29 Crashes in Afghanistan -- Air Force Magazine

How Air Force maintainers get a plane flying again after a lightning strike -- Business Insider

USS Roosevelt returns to San Diego after 6 months in Pacific -- UPI

Carrier Theodore Roosevelt Ends Deployment Rocked by COVID-19 and Chaos -- Military.com

Aircraft carrier USS Truman docks for maintenance after seven months at sea -- UPI

More-Lethal LCSs Flex Muscles During Pacific Deployments -- Stars and Stripes

Senate Ships vs. House Subs: Conference Clash To Come? -- Breaking Defense

Hundreds of Marine recruits have tested positive for Covid-19 at boot camp -- Business Insider/Military.com

Navy scraps physical assessment test again, citing COVID-19 -- UPI

The F-16's Replacement Won't Have a Pilot at All -- Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics

Army researchers get one step closer to in-flight shape-shifting drones -- Army Times

Northrop Grumman system to be interim anti-drone solution -- UPI

Pentagon And Congress Risk Bungling Drive To Modernize U.S. Military -- Bryan Clark, Forbes

Biden to review Trump move pulling troops from Germany if elected, aide says -- The Hill

Army probing how 'MAGA' was listed as 'covert white supremacy' in handout -- The Hill

Navy, Air Force troops train with UAE pilots to thwart fast-boat attacks in the Persian Gulf -- Navy Times

USAF air wings gather in Germany for Large Force Exercise -- UPI

The US Army's biggest European exercise in 25 years was canceled as it started, but it's already planning the next one -- Business Insider

BAE’s Strengthens Position as a U.S. Defense and Aerospace Powerhouse. -- RCD

Latvia Wants US Troops, And Is Ready To Pay For Them -- Breaking Defense

Russia Wants Its Civil and Military Sectors to Cooperate. So Far, Not So Much -- Breaking Defense

Chinese army releases footage of Hong Kong garrison’s drills -- SCMP

Chinese think tank rejects reports of planned South China Sea air defence identification zone -- SCMP

China’s military is using spider excavators to build roads near Indian border -- SCMP

Japan's defense minister warns of North Korea weapons advances -- UPI

Japan unveils timeline for indigenous fighter jet program -- Defense News

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