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13 Feb 25. Top Northcom, NORAD Officer Highlights Trio of Homeland Security Concerns During Senate Testimony. U.S. Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command’s most senior leader pointed out three topics that have “direct implications for homeland defense” during a posture hearing today before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill.
Air Force Gen. Gregory M. Guillot told the committee that growing cooperation between our country’s global adversaries, evolving technologies in the hands of our competitors and the ongoing threat of non-state actors continuing to target the homeland all present real-world challenges for Northcom and NORAD.
Guillot said China, Russia, North Korea and Iran are cooperating together to challenge the U.S.
“While their cooperation does not approach the level of complete integration demonstrated by the United States and Canada, their transfer of weapons, military technology and basing access is a cause for significant concern,” Guillot told the committee.
Guillot also said that associated risks to North America have continued to grow due to the level of incursions by Russian bomber aircraft into Alaskan and Canadian air defense zones having returned to levels not seen since before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
” Russian Navy surface and subsurface vessels conducted out-of-area deployments off both U.S. coasts, including in the vicinity of Alaska,” Guillot added.
On the topic of evolving technologies, Guillot said that rapid technological advancements have forced Northcom and NORAD to hurriedly adjust their defense posture.
“Small, uncrewed aircraft systems … proliferate the open market; and in the hands of malign actors, pose a growing threat to safety and security,” Guillot said.
As an example of this, Guillot said there were 350 UAS detections over a total 100 different U.S. military installations reported last year.
He said that roughly just half of U.S. installations fall under U.S. Code Section 130i, meaning they are considered “covered” installations and are allowed to defend themselves from UAS incursions.
There are currently nine criteria that can qualify a base as being eligible for “covered” status, with nuclear facilities, missile defense bases and test facilities being among them, Guillot explained.
“My request and proposal would be, as we look at 130i again, … to expand coverage to all military installations and not just those that are covered,” Guillot said, adding that he would like to see the range of self-defense extend beyond installation boundaries so that threats can be dealt with before reaching those boundaries.
Addressing the threat that non-state actors pose to the homeland, Guillot said radical Islamic terrorist groups have rejuvenated and are inspiring lone-wolf attacks such as the New Year’s Day attack in New Orleans last month. Guillot also described how Mexico-based, transnational criminal cartels are a threat to U.S. territorial integrity and the safety of U.S. citizens.
“With that strategic backdrop, homeland defense is our commands’ top priority and essential task, and in mindset and action, nobody waits on NORAD or Northcom,” Guillot said before proceeding to list numerous examples of how both commands have been addressing the challenges he listed.
Guillot explained that, over the past 12 months, NORAD and Northcom have intercepted joint Chinese and Russian bombers off the coast of Alaska, detected and assessed numerous North Korean missile launches and tracked Russian surface vessels off both coasts. He said they have also supported natural disaster victims throughout the country and worked to counter transnational criminal networks at the border through the deployment of troops and “unique military capabilities” such as airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. Guillot wrapped up his remarks by letting the committee know he appreciates the Defense Department and Congress’ support for fielding all domain capabilities, with airborne moving target indicator satellites and an integrated undersea surveillance system among them.
“Defending our borders, establishing a continental missile shield, protecting critical infrastructure and force projection capability, and safeguarding our citizens will require the best our nations have to offer,” Guillot said.
“And I’m grateful to the committee for your ongoing support of NORAD and Northcom’s vital missions,” he added. “We have the watch.” (Source: U.S. DoD)
14 Feb 25. China’s military exercises around Taiwan have become so extensive that they could soon be used as a “fig leaf” to conceal an attack on the island, according to the top US military commander in the Indo-Pacific. Speaking at the Honolulu Defense Forum, US Navy Admiral Samuel Paparo also warned about rising co-operation between China, Russia and North Korea, describing it as an “emerging axis of autocracy”. “China, Russia and North Korea have formed a triangle of troublemakers,” Paparo told the event sponsored by the Pacific Forum think-tank. The People’s Liberation Army had significantly increased activity around Taiwan in recent years, leaving it more difficult to distinguish between large-scale exercises and actual preparations for an attack, Paparo said. “We’re very close to that [point] where on a daily basis the fig leaf of an exercise could very well hide operational warning,” he said. “Their aggressive manoeuvres around Taiwan right now are not exercises as they call them, they are rehearsals. They are rehearsals for the forced unification of Taiwan to the mainland.” Referring to the growing co-operation between China, Russia and North Korea, Paparo said the US had seen “co-ordination in everything from bomber patrols that penetrate American ADIZ [air defence identification zones] to shared anti-satellite capabilities and advanced submarine technologies from the seabed to the heavens”. Highlighting an example of increased Russian activity in the Indo-Pacific, one US defence official said Russia had launched seven newly built submarines, including three nuclear-powered boats armed with nuclear weapons, in the Indo-Pacific since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The others were two nuclear-powered submarines carrying guided missiles, and two attack submarines. Paparo expressed concern about China’s rising military activity, saying that the US had to move more quickly to close critical gaps, such as increasing the amount of weapons the Pentagon had at its disposal in the Indo-Pacific. American defence officials are concerned about not having enough weapons in the case of a war over Taiwan. “Our magazines run low. Our maintenance backlogs grow longer each month . . . we operate on increasingly thin margins for error,” Paparo said. “Our opponents see these gaps, and they are moving aggressively to exploit them.” Paparo, who recently hosted a summit on artificial intelligence, said the US military needed to move with more urgency in acquiring and deploying different kinds of “unmanned systems”. He said AI would be a “key tool” to help the US improve early warning signs of any possible attack on Taiwan. (Source: FT.com)
11 Feb 25. Defense Secretary Discusses Force Posturing in Africa, Europe. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth today spoke about DOD’s force posturing priorities on the European and African continents while meeting with members of the media during a visit to U.S. Africa Command in Stuttgart, Germany. When asked whether visiting Africom on his first overseas trip as defense secretary should be taken as a sign that U.S. strategic aims in Africa are changing, Hegseth pointed to the threat posed by China in that region.
He said China’s intentions are pernicious, not just in their part of the world but also on the African continent.
“And America’s posture there, along with allies and partners, is going to matter contesting that space. So, it certainly remains a priority,” he continued.
In addition to continually monitoring China’s presence in Africa, Hegseth said force posturing in Africom’s area of responsibility is countering the ongoing terror threat in that region.
As an example of this, he pointed to the Feb. 1, 2025, airstrikes against ISIS targets in Somalia that Africom coordinated in conjunction with the Federal Government of Somalia.
Hegseth said the operation was an example of DOD returning tactical decision-making authority to senior military commanders.
“That’s a reflection … of pushing authority down untying the hands of warfighters,” he said. “[Such decisions] should be made at the four-star level or at the Secretary of Defense level more quickly based on the ability to degrade the enemy,” he added.
Regarding troop posturing in the European area of responsibility, Hegseth — who visited U.S. European Command earlier in the day — said there are currently no plans to shift forces from Europe to the Indo-Pacific region to deal with the emerging threat from China. He added that force posturing across the world will be reviewed.
The secretary said peacefully ending the war in Ukraine and ensuring European NATO countries raise their defense spending to sufficient levels would need to occur before the U.S. would consider any significant re-posturing of forces.
Hegseth clarified that any future re-posturing of U.S. forces in Europe should not be viewed as an abandonment of America’s allies.
“We would be remiss in not reviewing force posture everywhere, but it would be the wrong planning assumption to say, ‘America is abandoning [Europe]’ or ‘America is leaving.’ No, America is smart to observe, plan, prioritize and project power to deter conflict,” Hegseth said.
“Being strong — peace through strength — is how you deter that,” he continued.
Hegseth is scheduled to travel to Brussels next to attend the NATO Defense Ministerial and the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting.
At his first NATO ministerial with allied counterparts, Hegseth is set to engage with NATO allies and partners to discuss the aforementioned need to boost allied defense spending, increase European leadership and expand defense industrial base capacity on both sides of the Atlantic.
At the UDCG, Hegseth plans to reiterate President Donald J. Trump’s commitment to a diplomatic and expedient end to the war in Ukraine and highlight the need for increased European leadership on security assistance to that country.
“The urgency of this moment requires friends talking to friends about capabilities, … leadership, … stepping up, … burden sharing and the incentives to say the European continent deserves to be free from any aggression, but it ought be those in the neighborhood investing the most in that … individual and collective defense,” he said. (Source: U.S. DoD)
10 Feb 25. US sanctions target revenue for Iranian armed forces. While Trump’s sanctions strategy may work when directed against Iran, targeting the ICC may undermine his efforts. The US State Department issued sanctions against international networks channelling revenue to the Iranian military on 6 February 2025.
Sepehr Energy – an Iranian entity which is considered a ‘front’ company – has facilitated “millions of barrels of illicit Iranian oil shipments to China to fund Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff.”
Furthermore, it is believed that the “proceeds of these sales support terrorist and proxy groups” such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
According to the government-controlled Islamic Republic News Agency, Iran’s petroleum minister, Mohsen Paknejad, rebuked the sanctions during the 46th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in the Iranian capital, Tehran, on 10 February. The American policies, he said, have already “failed,” adding that “Trump’s ambition to halt Iran’s oil exports is an unattainable dream.”
Specifically, the State Department outlined a plan to pursue “shadow fleet vessels and management companies that transported Iranian oil.”
A country may form a ‘shadow fleet’ – sometimes called a ‘dark fleet’ – to evade sanctions imposed on their energy exports. These illicit fleets employ various tactics to conceal the ownership of transportation vessels and the origins of its cargo.
Such methods are used by Iran’s allies too, particularly Russia, whose shadow vessel is believed to have severed a critical susbsea cable linking Estonia and Finland in December 2024.
US sanctions to increase
Even under President Donald Trump’s progressive predecessor, Joe Biden, the US government had issued sanctions against more than 600 individuals and entities as of April 2024. Although, some observers suggest there were as a many as 7,000 sanctions.
Under Trump, who claimed that he intends to “restore maximum pressure on Iran” this month, the screws appear to be tightening. The White House is seeking to strip Tehran of its potential to wield nuclear weapons now that the nation’s strategic position in the Middle East is deteriorating.
Boy who cried wolf?
However, the US president’s sanctions – against anyone and everyone – including, it seems, the International Criminal Court (ICC) on 7 February, may be placing the United States in the role of the boy who cried wolf.
The executive order will “impose tangible and significant consequences” on ICC officials who work on investigations into war crimes against citizens in Gaza.
Trump’s sanctions respond to ICC judges issuing arrest warrants in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of alleged war crimes in relation to the conduct of the war with Hamas on Gaza.
An Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson alluded to the ICC sanctions, stating the decision is “a new low.”
X post from Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson.
While sanctions may help to disrupt Iran’s military revenues at a practical level, imposing sanctions to contest the legitimacy of an organisation established by the United Nations may isolate the United States; even if neither country ratified the 2002 Rome Statute which established the ICC:
“Such threats and coercive measures constitute serious attacks against the Court’s States Parties,” some of whom are close US allies, asserted the ICC president, judge Tomoko Akane, following the US executive order.
Notably, the former US Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin had warned against this isolationist strategy ahead of Trump’s inauguration, having argued that global retreat was out of the question. (Source: army-technology.com)
09 Feb 25. Pentagon Prioritizes Homeland Defense, Warfighting, Slashing Wasteful Spending. During a media interview today, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said efforts at the Defense Department include modernizing the nuclear triad and building an iron dome for the U.S., referring to the iron dome that defends Israel against aerial threats. These and other homeland priorities will be reflected in the fiscal year 2026 defense budget and future defense budgets, he added.
The secretary also addressed defense spending. He said DOD is committed to passing a clean audit across the department, as the Marine Corps has done for the last two years.
“American taxpayers deserve to know exactly how and where their money is spent,” he said. “We need to know when we spend dollars; we need to know where they’re going and why.”
He said the department welcomes Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, which will help identify ways to streamline this process, fast-track acquisitions and cut waste.
The secretary will be traveling to Brussels, Belgium, this week to attend the NATO ministerial meeting. He also will be traveling to Poland and Germany to meet with his counterparts and U.S. service members stationed there.
Hegseth said he especially looks forward to meeting the troops and hopes to do some physical training with them.
“I want to make sure our troops understand how focused we are on their warfighting capabilities,” he said.
But the focus is not just on Europe. It’s also the Indo-Pacific region, he said, mentioning recent phone calls and meetings he’s had with leaders in Australia, South Korea, the Philippines and Japan.
He said the focus there is maintaining a strategic advantage over China. “We want the future of the world to be free.”
“We’re confronting threats in real time, restoring the warrior ethos, rebuilding the military, reestablishing deterrence,” he said.
“I’m proud to come alongside the 1.3m uniformed members of the department who execute America’s national security approach and do so with fidelity only to the Constitution and the rule of law, and that’s all you can ask for,” he said. (Source: U.S. DoD)
07 Feb 25. Senate Republicans release budget plan with $150bn more for defense. The new budget resolution tees up a separate process for the Senate and the House as the two legislative bodies grapple over how best to enact President Donald Trump’s policy agenda. The Senate Budget Committee has released a budget blueprint that, if ultimately passed by Congress, could add $150bn in new funds for defense.
Details of exactly what that funding could pay for will be determined by the House and Senate Armed Services Committees if the budget resolution is passed. However, a summary of the bill lays out four main focus areas: maintaining military readiness; growing the Navy and strengthening the shipbuilding industrial base; building an integrated air and missile defense for the United States — a Trump administration priority it has termed the “Iron Dome for America” — and investments in the nuclear enterprise.
The new budget resolution, unveiled today by Budget Committee Chairman Sen. Lindsey Graham, tees up a separate process for the Senate and the House as the two legislative bodies grapple over how best to enact President Donald Trump’s policy agenda.
The goal, as espoused by Trump and supported by House Speaker Mike Johnson, is for “one beautiful bill” containing all the president’s priorities to move through Congress via the process of reconciliation, which allows bills to avoid filibuster and pass with a simple majority. However, the Senate is opting for a two-bill strategy, with a first that focuses on border security, defense and energy priorities and a second to follow that would extend tax cuts enacted in Trump’s first administration.
The Senate Budget Committee will mark up its version of the budget resolution next Wednesday and Thursday. The House has not put forward its own budget blueprint.
“To those who voted for and support real border security and a stronger defense in a troubled world, help is on the way,” Graham said in a statement. “This budget resolution jumpstarts a process that will give President Trump’s team the money they need to secure the border and deport criminals, and make America strong and more energy independent.”
In a January interview with Breaking Defense, SASC chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., said he was advocating for “$100 bn a year [for defense] for the next two years” to be added during the reconciliation process, which could help pay for defense needs such as Iron Dome, shipbuilding and submarine production, and sixth-generation fighter aircraft.
In addition to the defense funds, the Senate resolution would add $175bn in homeland security spending and $175 bn in spending to be determined by the judiciary committees.
It would obligate an additional $85.5bn to the federal budget each year from FY25-FY28, but that spending would be offset by equivalent cuts, according to a summary of the budget. The text of the bill directs several committees, such as agriculture and education, to identify potential cuts, and all committees would have until March 7 to provide recommendations.
The reconciliation process is just one mechanism that Republicans are looking at in order to obtain funding for a US Iron Dome. Elsewhere, Sens. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, and Kevin Cramer, R-ND, introduced legislation this week pushing for $19.5 bn for a US Iron Dome, with expenses including $12 bn to expand missile interceptors in Alaska with Next Generation Interceptors, and $1.4 bn for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system. (Source: Breaking Defense.com)
07 Feb 25. Shared Challenges, AUKUS Partnership Top Topics as U.S., Australian Defense Leaders Meet for First Time. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met today with his counterpart Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles during a bilateral meeting at the Pentagon to discuss shared defense roles, security priorities, and the challenges and opportunities both nations see in the Indo-Pacific.
It’s the first such meeting Hegseth has had with one of his counterparts, though he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Feb. 5, 2025.
A big part of their discussion involved progress on the Australia, U.K. and U.S. trilateral security agreement, known as AUKUS, which has been in place for just over three years.
The first pillar of that agreement involves the delivery of a conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine capability to Australia and also significant investments in the industrial bases of all three partner nations.
As part of that plan, Australia will buy three Virginia-class submarines from the U.S. to be delivered in the 2030s. Together, all three partner nations will also develop a new platform called “SSN-AUKUS,” which is expected to be ready for use by the U.K. in the 2030s and by Australia in the 2040s.
The second AUKUS pillar involves enhancing joint capabilities and interoperability between the three nations.
Hegseth said President Donald J. Trump is very familiar with the agreement and equally supportive of it.
“The president … recognizes the importance of the defense industrial base,” Hegseth said. “It enhances our ability in the [subsurface] space, but also our allies and partners … this is not a mission in the Indo-Pacific that America can undertake by itself. It has to [include] robust allies and partners. Technology sharing and subs are a huge part of it.”
A big part of AUKUS involves Australia investing heavily in the U.S. submarine industrial base. This week, in advance of Marles’ visit with Hegseth, Australia made the first payment of $500 m toward a $3 bn promised investment.
“AUKUS is a very powerful symbol of our two countries working together in the Indo-Pacific,” Marles said. “It represents a very significant increase of the American footprint on the Australian continent, something that we very much welcome. It represents an increase in Australian capability through the acquisition of a nuclear-powered submarine capability. But what comes with that is it also represents an increase in Australian defense.”
He said Australia wants and is willing to pay for an increase in its defense.
“We really understand the importance of building our capability, but [also] in paying our way,” he said. “That is a very important principle that we bring to bear, and one of the aspects of that is the contribution that we’re making to your industrial base.” (Source: U.S. DoD)
07 Feb 25. Defense Secretary Underscores DOD Priorities During Pentagon Town Hall. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth today reiterated his core priorities for the Defense Department during a town hall meeting with service members and DOD civilians at the Pentagon.
As outlined in his Jan. 27, 2025, message to the force, Hegseth said he intends to spend the next four years working with the Defense Department to revive the warrior ethos and restore trust in the military, rebuild it by matching threats to capabilities and reestablish deterrence by defending the homeland.
“I’ve been so incredibly impressed by … the professionalism of the men and women throughout the ranks who recognize who we work for, which is the American people and the defense of our nation,” Hegseth said.
“President Trump asked me to not maintain the status quo, we’re going to take unconventional approaches,” Hegseth said of his working philosophy.
“We’re going to move fast, think outside the box be disruptive — on purpose — to create a sense of urgency that I want to make sure exists inside this department,” he explained.
Speaking on restoring the warrior ethos, Hegseth said that there exists a necessity within DOD to “get back to basics.”
He said DOD’s job is to deter conflict and — if necessary — completely destroy, demoralize and defeat enemies of the United States. “That’s what we do,” Hegseth said.
“We do warfighting here at the Department of Defense,” he continued. “And we want to restore that through a laser focus on readiness, lethality and warfighting across the spectrum.”
Noting a recent uptick in the military’s recruiting numbers, Hegseth said that young men and women are now choosing to serve because they want to embrace such an ethos.
“I think we’ve seen an enthusiasm and excitement from young men and women who want to join the military actively because they are interested in being a part of the finest fighting force the world has to offer,” Hegseth said.
“It’s about readiness; it’s about staying focused,” he added.
Hegseth said DOD gathers its strength from unity.
“Our strength is our shared purpose, regardless of our background, regardless of how we grew up, regardless of our gender regardless of our race,” he said.
“In this department, we will treat everyone equally, we will treat everyone with fairness, we will treat everyone with respect, and we will judge you as an individual by your merit and by your commitment to the team and the mission,” he continued. “That’s how it has been that’s how it will be,” he added.
On the topic of rebuilding the military and the industrial base, Hegseth said he has the advantage of approaching the field as an outsider who has no special or conflicted interests that would relate to the defense industrial base.
“I don’t have a background invested in any systems or services; I’m agnostic to that,” Hegseth said, adding that he’s prepared to “take a lot of arrows” if necessary.
“We need the best systems in the hands of warfighters … to deter send the signal that, when the fight comes, we’re ready to win and win decisively,” Hegseth said.
The secretary also said that rebuilding the military and defense industrial base necessitates an audit of the Pentagon.
“We are going to focus heavily to ensure that — at a bare minimum, by the end of four years — the Pentagon passes a clean audit; the American taxpayers deserve that. They deserve to know where their $850bn,” Hegseth said.
“I believe we are accountable for every dollar we spend and every dollar of waste we find … is a dollar we can invest somewhere else,” he added.
On the third priority of establishing deterrence, Hegseth said that securing the country’s borders is a top priority, noting that many of the people seeking to gain entry into the U.S. are genuinely seeking a better life and have no nefarious intent to harm the country.
“We also don’t know who ms of them are, what their intentions are why they’re here. That creates a very real national security threat to the country,” Hegseth said.
“Border security is national security, and … we’re going to get 100% operational control of our southern border, and that needs to be and will be a focus of this department,” he continued.
” charge to me was to return to its warfighting mission at its core: warfighting, lethality, meritocracy, accountability and readiness; the things at the bedrock of what we all understand our basic mission to be,” Hegseth said.
“It’s the honor of a lifetime to come alongside you; no one will work harder,” he told the audience.
“No one’s going to … attempt to be more transparent with the American people and with you. We want to hear your feedback, and we want to hit the ground running.” (Source: U.S. DoD)
06 Feb 25. Lockheed Martin Corporation Agrees to Settle False Claims Act Allegations of Defective Pricing. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced that Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMC) has agreed to pay $29.74m to resolve False Claims Act allegations of defective pricing on contracts for F-35 military aircraft. This payment is in addition to $11.3m that LMC previously paid to the Department of Defense (DOD) for the same undisclosed cost and pricing data on some of the same contracts. LMC, headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, is one of the world’s largest defense contractors. According to court documents, between 2013 and 2015, LMC inflated pricing proposals it submitted to obtain contracts for the F-35 by failing to provide to DOD’s F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) accurate, complete, and current cost and pricing data during the negotiations leading to the award of five contracts for the production or sustainment of the F-35. The United States alleged that LMC had knowledge of suppliers’ cost or pricing data that it did not disclose to the JPO in violation of the Truth in Negotiations Act (TINA). Congress enacted TINA in 1962 to help level the playing field in sole source contracts — where there is no price competition — by making sure that government negotiators have access to the cost or pricing data that the offeror used when developing its proposal. The United States alleged that had LMC provided accurate, complete, and current cost and pricing data, JPO would have awarded the contracts in lower amounts. The settlement derives from allegations originally brought in a lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Texas by a whistleblower under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private parties, known as relators, to bring suit on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. The qui tam case is captioned U.S. ex rel. Patrick Girard v. Lockheed Martin Corp., No. 4:17-CV-147 (EDTX). The relator’s share of the settlement has not yet been determined. (Source: glstrade.com)
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Founded in 1987, Exensor Technology is a world leading supplier of Networked Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) Systems providing tailored sensor solutions to customers all over the world. From our Headquarters in Lund Sweden, our centre of expertise in Network Communications at Communications Research Lab in Kalmar Sweden and our Production site outside of Basingstoke UK, we design, develop and produce latest state of the art rugged UGS solutions at the highest quality to meet the most stringent demands of our customers. Our systems are in operation and used in a wide number of Military as well as Homeland Security applications worldwide. The modular nature of the system ensures any external sensor can be integrated, providing the user with a fully meshed “silent” network capable of self-healing. Exensor Technology will continue to lead the field in UGS technology, provide our customers with excellent customer service and a bespoke package able to meet every need. A CNIM Group Company
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