July 8 Joint Base Lewis-McChord Daily News Clips
Local/Regional/ Pacific/Middle East:
*The Suburban Times
Lewis Army Museum restores historic military vehicles
(Key words): Big improvements are on the way for the Lewis Army Museum at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. This summer, after years of hard work from staff members, funding was secured for the restoration of all 18 vehicles on display outside on the museum’s grounds. Now through the end of the summer, each vehicle will be carefully cleaned, sanded and given a fresh coat of paint in preparation for what curators hope will be the first phase in a multiphase approach to revamping the vehicle park. https://thesubtimes.com/2024/07/04/lewis-army-museum-restores-historic-military-vehicles/
*Tacoma News Tribune
Doctor based at JBLM faces dozens of sexual-abuse charges. There are 41 alleged victims
(Key words): A doctor at Joint Base Lewis-McChord is facing dozens of sexual-abuse charges involving 41 patients in a case that has also ensnared the Army in allegations that it failed to protect servicemen at the base. Maj. Michael Stockin pleaded not guilty in April to 47 charges of abusive sexual contact and five charges of indecent viewing, according to Michelle McCaskill, spokesperson for the U.S. Army Office of Special Trial Counsel. The latter charge is defined as wrongfully viewing a person’s private area. https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/article289719944.html
Newsweek
U.S. Fighter jets in $10bn boost amid China threat
(Key words): The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has announced plans to bolster its fleet of fighter jets based in Japan as part of a $10 billion investment in the region's security. The move comes amid a buildup of Chinese military might in recent years, and souring relations between Japan and North Korea. "In large part this is driven by the need to balance against a strengthened Chinese military, but not only that. https://www.newsweek.com/us-fighter-jets-10-billion-boost-amid-china-threat-1921467
VOA
Indo-Pacific, Ukraine to drive talks at NATO summit
(Key words): As NATO prepares to mark its 75th anniversary next week, the alliance is beginning to explore a larger role for itself in the Indo-Pacific. In an interview with VOA, Stephen Flanagan — an adjunct senior fellow at the research organization RAND — said NATO doesn't play a major role in Indo-Pacific security, but that NATO and its allies are recognizing an increased need to take limited steps for cooperation in the region. Flanagan, who served as a senior director of the National Security Council during the Obama administration, said some NATO countries that normally don't have military activities in the Indo-Pacific, such as Germany, have begun sending ships to counter Chinese aggression in the area. https://www.voanews.com/a/indo-pacific-ukraine-to-drive-talks-at-nato-summit/7685481.html
BBC
Israel tells Gaza ceasefire negotiators to resume work
(Key words): Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to send a team of negotiators to discuss a hostage release deal with Hamas. US President Joe Biden welcomed the development, which comes a day after Hamas responded to a Gaza ceasefire plan he outlined in late May. The last indirect talks took place in Cairo earlier that month. Details of Hamas's latest response have not been made public, but a Palestinian official told the BBC that the group was no longer demanding a full ceasefire at the outset of the plan presented by Mr Biden. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3gvp5q9y2go
ABC News
7 Palestinians killed in West Bank by an Israeli raid and airstrike in the Jenin area
(Key words): Palestinian authorities say seven people were killed Friday during an Israeli military operation in the area of the West Bank city of Jenin, where the Israeli military said it had been carrying out “counterterrorism activity” that included an airstrike. The military said Israeli soldiers had “encircled a building where terrorists have barricaded themselves in” and the soldiers had exchanged fire with those inside, while an airstrike had “struck several armed terrorists” in the area. https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/israel-conducts-military-operation-area-west-bank-city-111685881
National:
U.S. Department of Defense
Two Civil War Soldiers Earn Medal of Honor for Hijacking Confederate Railroad
(Key words): Today, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III inducted privates Philip G. Shadrach and George D. Wilson into the Pentagon's Hall of Heroes — where the names of all service members who have earned the Medal of Honor have been enshrined. "The very first recipients of the Medal of Honor were a small band known as Andrews' Raiders, named for a spy for the Union Army, James Andrews, who led one of the most daring operations in the entire Civil War," Biden said. "Two soldiers ... died because of that operation but never received this recognition. Today, we right that wrong. Today, they finally receive the recognition they deserve." https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3827750/two-civil-war-soldiers-earn-medal-of-honor-for-hijacking-confederate-railroad/
*Raw Story
Project 2025 will rob veterans and active-duty troops of billions in benefits
(Key words): Among other recommendations, the plan proposes eliminating concurrent eligibility for both service-related disability benefits and military retirement benefits, which Tucker says would reduce mandatory outlays by at least $160 billion through 2032, and revising the disability rating awards that determine eligibility for benefits and determine monthly disability compensation to reap "significant cost savings." https://www.rawstory.com/project-2025-veterans/
*Military News
Mental Health Tops List of Reasons Troops Were Hospitalized in 2023, New Reports Find
(Key words): Mental health disorders were the top reason that active-duty U.S. military personnel were hospitalized in 2023, a trend that began in 2009 but has shown signs of easing in the past three years, according to two new reports from the Defense Health Agency. Musculoskeletal injuries remain the No. 1 reason service members visit a medical facility, but mental health conditions are most responsible for putting them in hospitals overnight and keeping them there, according to epidemiologists with the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division, who reviewed all medical appointments and hospitalizations among troops in 2023. https://www.military.com/daily-news/2024/07/03/mental-health-tops-list-of-reasons-troops-were-hospitalized-2023-new-reports-find.html
*Federal Times
Senators implore VA secretary keep community care access for veterans
(Key words): The ranking member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee urged Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough to address a policy that he said is making it difficult for veterans to receive care, according to a June 25 letter. As ranking member, Sen. Jerry Morgan, R-Kan., led 19 other senators who asked McDonough to ensure veterans’ right to community care — a program the VA utilizes to connect veterans to health care through local providers. The senators claim that a panel, dubbed the Red Team, meant to assess the reasoning behind community care’s increased spending, made recommendations that are negatively impacting veterans in need of care. https://www.federaltimes.com/federal-oversight/congress/2024/07/05/senators-implore-va-secretary-keep-community-care-access-for-veterans/
Air Force Technology
US Coast Guard opts for Shield AI V-BAT for UAS services
(Key words): The US Coast Guard has purchased the services of the V-BAT uncrewed aerial system (UAS), a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) system manufactured by Shield AI, an up-and-coming defence technology startup based in California, in a deal worth $198m on 1 July 2024. As a branch of the armed forces beholden to the US Department of Defense (DoD), the Coast Guard will augment its Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) operations in the maritime environment through a ‘contractor owned, contractor operated’ model of service. V-BAT first came to the fore in April 2021 when the DoD provided funds to prototype the system. https://www.airforce-technology.com/news/us-coast-guard-opts-for-shield-ai-v-bat-for-uas-services/
Business Insider
US Navy Super Hornets armed with SM-6s, a warship missile newly tested in combat, have been spotted in the Pacific
(Key words): US Navy fighter aircraft have been spotted in the Pacific carrying an air-launched version of a powerful ship-fired interceptor missile that only recently debuted in combat. American warships fighting in the Middle East have fired the Standard Missile 6, or SM-6, to intercept munitions launched by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, using it in a surface-to-air role. https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-aircraft-spotted-sm6-missile-newly-tested-in-combat-2024-7
Stars and Stripes
Marine Corps revives in-demand attack helicopter unit scrapped in 2022
(Key words): A ongoing need for attack helicopter squadrons led the Marine Corps to revive a unit this week, less than two years after it was deactivated, service officials said. The Marine Corps bid farewell to its Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 269, known as the “Gunrunners,” in December 2022 as part of a service-wide overhaul. But the farewell was not so final, lasting just 18 months. https://www.stripes.com/branches/marine_corps/2024-07-05/marine-corps-revives-attack-helicopter-unit-14395112.html
The New York Times
Ex-Engineer Charged With Obstructing Inquiry Into Military Crash That Killed 16
(Key words): A former U.S. Air Force engineer has been charged with making false statements and obstructing justice during a federal criminal investigation into a 2017 military plane crash that killed 16 people, the Justice Department said Wednesday. The engineer, James Michael Fisher, 67, formerly of Warner Robins, Ga., had been living in Portugal when he was arrested Tuesday morning on an indictment issued by a federal grand jury in the Northern District of Mississippi, the department said in a news release. He is charged with two counts each of making false statement charges and obstruction of justice. If convicted, could receive up to 20 years in prison. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/03/us/military-plane-crash-2017-engineer-charges.html
*The Associated
Virginia lawmakers reach deal on military tuition program
(Key words): After weeks of disagreement, Virginia lawmakers have reached a deal to repeal new restrictions on a program that offers free college tuition at state schools for families of military veterans who were killed or seriously disabled while on active duty. Senate Finance Chair Louise Lucas and House Appropriations Chairman Luke Torian announced late Tuesday that they plan to introduce identical legislation to repeal changes to the Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program in the two-year budget that took effect on Monday. Members of the Senate and the House of Delegates will return to Richmond on July 18 to vote on the agreement. https://www.armytimes.com/education-transition/2024/07/03/virginia-lawmakers-reach-deal-on-military-tuition-program/
Air Forces Times
Air Force Ospreys in Japan resume flight ops
(Key words): U.S. Air Force crews from the Japan-based 353rd Special Operations Wing started flying the CV-22 Osprey once again Tuesday, seven months after one of the aircraft crashed during a training mission, killing all eight airmen on board. The return to flying followed a “multi-phased” approach to ensure the readiness of crews and follows a “meticulous and data-driven approach” that includes the development of added safety controls, the Air Force said in a news release. https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2024/07/03/air-force-ospreys-in-japan-resume-flight-ops/
International:
CBS News
U.S. troops leaving Niger bases this weekend and in August after coup, officials say
(Key words): The U.S. will remove all its forces and equipment from a small base in Niger this weekend and fewer than 500 remaining troops will leave a critical drone base in the West African country in August, ahead of a Sept. 15 deadline set in an agreement with the new ruling junta, the American commander there said Friday. Air Force Maj. Gen. Kenneth Ekman said in an interview that a number of small teams of 10-20 U.S. troops, including special operations forces, have moved to other countries in West Africa. But the bulk of the forces will go, at least initially, to Europe. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-troops-leaving-niger-bases-this-weekend-august-after-coup-officials/
Newsweek
U.S. Fighter jets in $10bn boost amid China threat
(Key words): The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has announced plans to bolster its fleet of fighter jets based in Japan as part of a $10 billion investment in the region's security. The move comes amid a buildup of Chinese military might in recent years, and souring relations between Japan and North Korea. "In large part this is driven by the need to balance against a strengthened Chinese military, but not only that. Japan faces threats from North Korea and indirectly from Russia, which has been cooperating with Beijing and Pyongyang more closely since the intensification of the war in Ukraine after 2022", Philip Shetler-Jones, Senior Research Fellow for Indo-Pacific Security at the Royal United Services Institute, a defense and security think thank in the U.K. told Newsweek. https://www.newsweek.com/us-fighter-jets-10-billion-boost-amid-china-threat-1921467
Army Times
Opinion: Coldest War: ‘Near-Arctic’ China joining power competition in North
(Key words): The competition between China and the United States for global supremacy is moving into a new frozen theater. The undeveloped Arctic region, with its wealth of resources, logistical nodes for faster travel and vast military and strategic potential, has long made it an important frontier for nations including Russia and the U.S. seeking geopolitical dominance. https://www.armytimes.com/opinions/2024/07/05/coldest-war-near-arctic-china-joining-power-competition-in-north/
Morningstar
How a burger-shack owner allegedly toppled a government and evaded taxes on $7 billion in U.S. military contracts
(Key words): Douglas Edelman has been charged with hiding $350 million in income, some of which he allegedly spent on yachts and an Austrian chalet. In the 1990s, Douglas Edelman moved from California to the capital of Kyrgyzstan to open a beer and burger bar. That sense of adventure would lead him to landing one of the biggest contracts during the American war in Afghanistan - a $7 billion deal that would result in the collapse of the Kyrgyz government amid riots over corruption. https://www.morningstar.com/news/marketwatch/20240705295/how-a-burger-shack-owner-allegedly-toppled-a-government-and-evaded-taxes-on-7-billion-in-us-military-contracts
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