Happy Thursday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I’m Ellen Mitchell, and here’s your nightly guide to the latest developments in the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.
THE TOPLINE: the expansion of NATO troops in Iraq
Navo sal expand its security training mission in Iraq by thousands of troops following a deadly rocket attack on a military air base earlier this week.
The 30-member alliance will increase its staff in Iraq from 500 to about 4,000, an effort to prevent the war-torn country from becoming a breeding ground for terrorists, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced on Thursday.
“ISIS is still operating in Iraq and we need to make sure they cannot return,” Stoltenberg told reporters at the end of a two-day virtual NATO defense meeting.
What the increase means: He said NATO’s efforts would now include more Iraqi security institutions and areas outside Baghdad, although their presence “is based on conditions and the increase in the number of troops will be incremental.”
He added that the Iraqi government had made a request for the extended mission, which would begin in the coming months.
The forces that are already there: NATO has been in Iraq since 2004 to train Iraqi security forces. The current training mission, which began in 2018, is intended to help Iraqi forces resurrect ISIS.
The increase in NATO troops could potentially ease the pressure on US troops in Iraq, where about 2,500 troops are based on a mission not isolated from the alliance.
Will the US also increase ?: A senior defense official told reporters earlier this week that the Pentagon “welcomes NATO’s greater focus on Iraq” but declined to say whether the US would add more troops to the training mission.
Response to attack: Plans for an expanded NATO footprint follow Monday’s rocket attack on Erbil International Airport, a military air base in northern Iraq that killed a civilian contractor and injured nine people, including a U.S. official.
The militant Shia group Saraya Awliya al-Dam claimed credit for the attack, although the Biden government did not publicly confirm who was responsible for the strike.
The foreign ministry on Wednesday said “consequences for any group responsible for this attack.”
Suspended head of Army War College investigates sexual misconduct
The suspended principal of Army War College is allegations of sexual misconduct investigated, numerous outlets reported Thursday.
Major General Stephen Maranian “has been suspended from his duties due to an allegation of inappropriate contact unrelated to his current position,” Army spokeswoman Cynthia Smith said. said Military.com in a statement.
Special agents from Army Criminal Investigation Command are investigating the allegation, Smith added.
Further details: Task and goal reported that Maranian is being investigated for alleged abusive sexual contact with a civilian army, and that a military protection order was issued against him on February 9, the day he was suspended.
“No further information will be released at this time to protect the integrity of the investigation process,” Smith said. “These are allegations at the moment, and MG Maranian is considered innocent until and unless proven otherwise.”
A long time problem: The military has struggled for years to curb sexual harassment and assault within the ranks, an effort that was heightened after an independent review in Fort Hood, Texas. who found leadership failures uncontrolled and widespread sexual assault and violence allowed.
New promises: Army Secretary of State John Whitley, the service’s top civilian leader, last week called for the power to combat ‘corrosive behavior’, including discrimination, extremist views and sexual harassment.
And Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin
Lloyd AustinOvernight Defense: A third of service members refuse coronavirus vaccination | Biden will take action in response to Solar Winds hack | US, Japan reach cost sharing agreement Biden talks to Netanyahu for the first time since joining. The promotion of female generals is being held back for fear of Trump’s response: reports MORE during his nomination hearing, he vowed to “fight hard to eradicate sexual assault.”
Biden shifts approach to Saudi leaders
President Biden
Joe BidenFeds Investigates Cuomo’s Treatment of Outbreaks of Nursing Homes Overnight Defense: One-Third of Service Members Refuse Coronavirus Vaccination | Biden will take action in response to Solar Winds hack | US, Japan reach agreement on cost sharing over money: Biden gets backlash from links on student loans | Where things stand on the COVID-19 aid measure Retail sales take back MORE is shifts US approach to Saudi Arabia by turning away from the priority diplomatic access given to certain Saudi officials during the Trump administration, which gave the kingdom a prominent role in America’s Middle East policy.
Biden is expected to speak with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman at some point, indicating a downgrade in relations with the kingdom’s daily ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, an extraordinary figure on the world stage.
‘Recalibrate’ ratio: The emphasis is on Biden communicating with the Saudi king, a move described by the White House press secretary Jen Psaki
Jen PsakiOn The Money: Biden gets backlash from links on student loans | Where things stand on the COVID-19 aid Retail sales increase again Overnight health care: Biden officials announce funding to detect virus variants Senate Dems unveils public option proposal | White House: Vaccinations for teachers not needed for schools to reopen Harris say teachers should be given more priority for COVID-19 vaccine as an attempt to “recalibrate” the relationship between Washington and Riyadh, it indicates that the president is taking steps to confront his commitment to Riyadh more vigorously over his human rights violations while still working together on shared goals.
How Trump handled it: The crown prince has played a prominent role in the Trump administration’s approach to the Middle East, and has reportedly exchanged WhatsApp messages with the former White House senior adviser and Trump’s son-in-law. Jared Kushner
Jared Corey Kushner LIVE COVER: Democrats focus on Trump remarks ahead of attack on Capitol Kushner. Ivanka Trump reported up to 0 million foreign revenue during the White House years. Can Palestine matter again? MORE, which helps pave the way for the Abrahamic Agreements, which begin relations between Israel and the Gulf and African countries.
But the crown prince also alienated Washington over his alleged role in ordering the assassination and disintegration of the American Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey in October 2018.
Trump in particular underestimated the role of the crown prince in Khashoggi’s assassination in an attempt to maintain strong bilateral ties and wrote in an extraordinary statement that ‘maybe he did and maybe not’ had knowledge of the plot against the journalist who The Washington Post wrote.
Rollback: Biden’s director of national intelligence, Avril Haines
Avril Haines The occasion of Biden’s cabinet Wexton, Speier, calls for the overhaul of the clearance process to look for extremist views Hillicon Valley: Senators express concern over reaction to Russian hack | Huawei takes legal action | Twitter sees growth of users MORE, pledged to downgrade the U.S. intelligence report on Khashoggi’s death, which allegedly concluded that Crown Prince Mohammed had personally ordered the assassination.
Officials from the Biden administration have welcomed the Abrahamic era of the Trump era as a positive development, but have already taken steps to reduce US support for Saudi action, which is seen as a contribution to human rights atrocities. .
Read the rest here.
ON CRANE FOR M TRE
The subcommittee on national security oversight will examine a path to peace in Afghanistan: the findings and recommendations of the Afghanistan study group, ‘with ex-sen. Kelly Ayotte
Kelly Ann AyotteOvernight Defense: New START Extended for Five Years | Austin recommends ‘give up’ to tackle extremism Panel recommends Biden withdraw delay in Afghanistan Study group recommends Afghanistan withdraw delay in Afghanistan Overnight Defense: Pentagon chief expels hundreds of advisory panels | Defense Select Discusses Trump Transition Barriers | Aircraft carrier returning home MORE after ten months (RN.H.), and former Chief of Staff, General Joseph Dunford, at 10:30 a.m.
US President Joe Biden, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and French President Emmanuel Macron
Emmanuel Jean-Michel MacronZaid Jilani responds to NYT report on leftist ideas creating unrest in France. European aid over Macron’s ‘strategic autonomy’ will soon no longer happen will take part in a virtual event of the Munich Security Conference on a new transatlantic agenda at 11:15
The Hudson Institute will hold a virtual discussion on ‘The Future of US Seapower: A View from Congress’, with Rep. Joe Courtney
Joseph (Joe) D. Courtney Republican in South Carolina tests positive for coronavirus for hours after speaking on House floor. Rick Allen is positive for COVID-19 Connecticut Democrat diagnosed with COVID-19 MORE (D-Conn.), Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee Subcommittee on Sowing Power and Projection Powers; and representative Robert Wittman (R-Va.), member of the sub-panel, at 12 noon
ICYMI
– The Hill: Justice Dept. asks Navy contractor employees dumped with alleged polluted water in Japan
– The Hill: US, Allies warns Iran against blockade nuclear inspections
– The Hill: Capitol Police recommend fencing around Capitol until September: report
– The Hill: American journalist detained in Syria released by a group linked to al-Qaeda: reports
– The Hill: Senate Intelligence Panel to Hold SolarWinds infringement trial Next week
– The Hill: meaning: Biden’s six-step strategy to rejoin Iran’s nuclear deal
– The Hill: opinion: defeating domestic terror requires white supremacy to be confronted around the world
– The Hill: meaning: A worried world wonder if America’s days are over
– The Washington Post: Pentagon awarded massive contract to Virginia company a US senator called ‘fraudulent’
– Military times: Concerns raised over COVID-19 vaccines reach deployed troops