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USA
U.S.: NATO Agrees To Missile Defense System November 19, 2010
NATO agreed to a new, expanded missile defense system for Europe that would protect member countries and the United States, U.S. President Barack Obama stated at the NATO summit in Portugal on Nov. 19, AP reported. Obama also said NATO leaders back him on the stalled START treaty with Russia and agreed to strengthen alliances and increase European security. NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the alliance’s 28 member states agreed on a new strategic concept during the summit.
U.S.: Stuxnet Computer Virus A 'Game-Changer' - Official November 17, 2010
The acting director of the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security called the Stuxnet computer virus a “game-changer” during testimony before a U.S. Senate committee, AFP reported Nov. 17. Sean McGurk told the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs that Stuxnet significantly altered “the landscape of targeted cyberattacks.” McGurk expressed concern that Stuxnet’s underlying code could be reconfigured to target a wider array of control systems in critical infrastructure sectors, such as “electricity, drinking water and manufacturing.” He refused to speculate on the worm’s origins or intended target.
EUROPE
Dispatch: The Irish Bailout and Germany's Opportunity STRATFOR
Ukraine: Ready To Participate In NATO Missile Shield - Official
November 23, 2010
Ukraine is ready to participate in the NATO missile defense shield, Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council Rayisa Bohatyryova said Nov. 23 in Warsaw, UNIAN reported. According to Bohatyryova, Ukraine is willing to help create the shield and contribute to its observation capabilities. If NATO is interested in such a proposal, Ukraine is ready to begin its implementation, Bohatyryova said, adding that her country supports Russian involvement in the shield.
Poland: U.S. Aircraft To Be Stationed In Poland November 22, 2010
Polish Defense Minister Bogdan Klich confirmed that in 2013 Poland will begin to host U.S. F-16 fighter aircraft and Hercules transport aircraft as part of an increasing U.S. military presence in the country, Thenews.pl reported Nov. 22.
ASIA
U.S.: 2 North Korean Entities Sanctioned November 18, 2010
The United States on Nov. 18 sanctioned two North Korean entities, freezing any of their assets within U.S. jurisdiction and prohibiting Americans from engaging them in financial or commercial transactions, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced. Korea Daesong Bank helps facilitate Pyongyang’s illicit financing projects, and Korea Daesong General Trading Corporation helps facilitate foreign transactions on behalf of Office 39, a secretive government branch, the statement said.
Pakistan: Air Force Buy Chinese Missiles November 18, 2010
The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) confirmed its purchase of Chinese avionics and the middle-range, advanced active radar SD-10 missiles which will become the standard Beyond Visual Range weapon of the JF-17 Thunder fighter fleet of 250 aircraft according to Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman, adding pre-purchase evaluations on other Chinese air defense systems are underway, Global Times reported Nov. 18. The PAF have no plans to install Western devices or weapons on the aircraft for the time being, Suleman stated.
U.S.: South Korea Not Seeking Nuclear Weapons November 22, 2010
Redeploying tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea would harm the greater goal of a denuclearized Korean peninsula, parliamentary Defense Committee chairman Won Yoo Chul said Nov. 23, Reuters reported. Comments were taken out of context, South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae Young stated, adding South Korea and the United States were discussing available options to counter North Korea’s nuclear threat. Won said there were no discussions about bringing back tactical nuclear arms.
U.S., South Korea: Nuclear Aircraft Carrier Deployed For Joint Naval ExerciseNovember 24, 2010
U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington will join South Korean naval forces in the Yellow Sea to conduct a joint naval exercise on Nov. 28-Dec. 1, Yonhap reported Nov. 24. According to a statement from U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), the four-day exercise was planned before North Korea’s shelling of the South Korean island of Yeonpyeongdo on Nov. 23. Both USFK and the South Korean Defense Ministry said the drill demonstrates the defensive strength of the U.S.-South Korean alliance and its commitment to regional stability through deterrence. According to USFK, China has been informed of the exercise and U.S. forces plan to mobilize more battleships including the USS Cowpens, USS Shiloh, USS Stethem and USS Fitzgerald.
U.S. and Japanese Plans to Curb an Emerging China STRATFOR
RUSSIA
Russia: Intervention Reserves May Be Used If Grain Price Rises - Official November 23, 2010
The Russian government will begin selling grain from the state intervention reserve if domestic grain prices rise to 7,000-8,000 rubles ($224-256) per ton, First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov Nov. 23, Xinhua reported. The current price for grain is 6,000 rubles per ton, so there is no reason to use the intervention reserves, Zubkov said, adding that the situation in the grain market is stable.
IRAN
Iran: Nuclear Fuel To Be Produced In 2011 November 23, 2010
Iranian Atomic Energy Organization’s chief Ali Akbar Salehi said the actual process of producing nuclear fuel for Tehran’s research reactor would begin in Sept. 2011, adding that producing 20 percent enriched nuclear fuel in Iran is a firm response to the West, IRNA reported Nov. 23.
Iran: Missile System Upgraded November 18, 2010
Iran’s S-200 air defense system was upgraded to the same capability as the Russian-made S-300, according to Brig. Gen. Mohammad Hassan Mansourian, adding the upgraded system has been tested successfully using the experience of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards, the army and the Defense Ministry, Press TV reported Nov. 18. The details of Iran’s long-range missile defense system will be revealed soon, Mansourian stated
Russia Reportedly Sends Iran Radar Equipment STRATFOR
IRAQ
NOTHING SIGNIFICANT TO REPORT
ISRAEL
Israel: Gaza Militants Launch Rockets November 19, 2010
Israeli warplanes bombed the shoreline south of Gaza city early Nov. 18 local police said, Maan News reported. A policeman said he saw a missile from the north explode overhead. There were no immediate reports of casualties. Israel has not confirmed any action in Gaza. Earlier, Gaza militants also fired at least two Qassam rockets that landed in the Hamas-controlled area and a Grad long-range rocket into western Negev, north of the Israeli town of Ofakim.
AFGHANISTAN
Australia: Only Niche Forces To Afghanistan November 22, 2010
Australia will not increase troop levels in Afghanistan but it is open to providing specialized or niche assistance to NATO or the International Security Assistance Force, Australian Defense Minister Stephen Smith said speaking at a joint press conference with Singapore Defense Minister Teo Chee Hean, Australian Associated Press reported Nov. 22. Smith said Singapore Defense Force instructors will join 20 Australian trainers at the Afghan National Army school of artillery in 2011. Smith added that Australia has been asked to provide additional police instructors as well as personnel for the Afghan advanced military training school. Smith said he has not received any informal request from the United States for significant additional troop commitments.
U.S.: Tanks To Be Deployed To Afghanistan November 19, 2010
The U.S. will send a company of heavily armored M1 Abrams tanks to Afghanistan for the first time, defense officials said, The Washington Post reported Nov. 18. The tanks will be fielded by the Marines in the country’s southwest and will allow ground forces to target insurgents at greater distance with more lethality than it is possible from other U.S. military vehicles. The initial deployment of 16 tanks will be in the northern Helmand province, but the overall number and area of operations could expand, a U.S. officer said, adding “the tanks bring awe, shock and firepower.”
MIDDLE EAST
NOTHING SIGNIFICANT TO REPORT
SOUTH OF THE BORDER
U.S., Brazil: Talks On Fighter Jet Deal Under Way - Source November 22, 2010
U.S. firm Boeing proposed a partnership on 10 projects with Brazil’s Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica SA in order to strengthen its bid to manufacture 36 fighter jets for the Brazilian air force, Boeing’s vice president for Europe, Israel and America said, Valor Economico reported Nov. 22. According to a STRATFOR defense military source in Brazil, Boeing is upset that Brazil only allowed French Dassault to lower its price, and Boeing has pressured Brasilia for an explanation in addition to offering new deals. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Brazilian Defense Minister Nelson Jobim met Nov. 21 on the sidelines of the Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas, and the source said they will meet again Nov. 22 at the conference in Bolivia to discuss the fighter jet deal. Jobim said at an air force base in Natal that the fighter jet purchase will be announced by Dec. 19, the source said, adding that Dassault is still expected to win the contract.
Mexico: Former Colima State Governor Killed November 21, 2010
The former governor of Mexico’s Colima state, Jesus Silverio Cavazos, was shot at his home on the morning of Nov. 21, and later died from his wounds after being taken to a hospital, Reuters reported, citing Mexican media and the Colima state prosecutors’ office. Cavazos’ wife was also injured in the attack, according to reports. Cavazos left office in November 2009.
Mexico: Colima State Governor's Murder Unrelated To Drug Trafficking - Official November 22, 2010
Arturo Diaz Rivera, the attorney general for Mexico’s Colima state, said the murder of former state Gov. Silverio Cavazos was not linked to drug trafficking cartels, Milenio reported Nov. 22. However, the Mexican army and navy have taken over security duties in Colima, with patrols being carried out near the funeral parlor where Cavazos’s body is located, in the central part of the city, in surrounding neighborhoods and near the airport.
Mexico: LFM In Decline - Prisoner November 17, 2010
A suspected member of Mexican drug trafficking cartel La Familia Michoacana (LFM), Sergio Moreno Godinez, said that the cartel is suffering from a lack of personnel and that cartel head Servando Gomez is “worn out physically and emotionally,” El Universal reported Nov. 17. Moreno Godinez, who was arrested Nov. 16, confirmed that the group posted banners offering a truce with the Mexican government and the possible disbanding of the group.
Colombia, Mexico: FARC, EZLN May Be In Honduras November 23, 2010
Militants from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the Mexico’s Zapatista National Liberation Army may be operating in the Bajo Aguan region of Honduras, according to National Police Director Jose Luiz Munoz Licona, La Prensa reported Nov. 23. No foreign militants were yet located, but security forces searched for weapons in the local offices of the National Agrarian Institute, the official stated.
MISC
Above the Tearline: The Threat Behind Airport Security STRATFOR
Except where noted courtesy www.stratfor.com
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