PENTAGON ACQUISITION REFORM - CounterStrikeMedia

EXAMINING RUSSIAN A2/AD CAPABILITIES (ANTI-ACCESS, ANTI DENIAL), BABY STEPS ON ACQUISITION CULTURE & KEEPING MISSILE DEFENSE ON TRACK

1/31/2018

RUSSIA:
The S-400–Pantsir ‘Tandem’: The New-Old Feature of Russian A2/AD Capabilities
By Sergey Sukhankin, Eurasia Daily Monitor: “The Pantsir (NATO classification: SA-22 Greyhound), produced by the Russian Military Industrial Complex, is a unique mobile short- to medium-range surface-to-air missile and anti-aircraft artillery weapon system that has no known analogues in the United States Armed Forces.”

How to Keep US Missile Defense on the Right Track // Ian Williams
Use the coming funding boost to smooth the development of a new kill vehicle and increase GMD testing in general.

A Baby-Step Solution for Improving the Defense Acquisition System // J. David Patterson
Establish a source selection schedule and keep to it. Simple. Right?

Defense Firms Are Ready to Invest but Acquisition Reform Must Come First
By Dan Goure, The National Interest: “For years, senior Pentagon officials have been hectoring defense companies to put more “skin in the game” by increasing their spending on research and development and investing more of their own money on infrastructure and production technologies.”

RUSSIA: The End of 'Hide and Seek': Russian Iskanders Permanently in Kaliningrad
By Sergey Sukhankin, Eurasia Daily Monitor: “The combination of the Iskander-M complexes (meant to fully replace somewhat dated OTR-21 Tochka/Tochka-U systems), the S400 Triumf (SA-21 Growler) anti-aircraft weapon system, as well as the K-300P Bastion-P (SS-C-5 Stooge) and the 3K60 Bal (SSC-6 Sennight) coastal mobile missile complexes, are now forming the first (“outer”) level of the oblast’s Anti-Access/Area-Denial (A2/AD) capabilities.”

WHY U.S. ISN'T READY FOR WAR

1/31/2018

CSBA

Can the U.S. Military Handle Both China and Russia?
By Aaron Mehta, Defense News: “The Pentagon is in the opening stages of “redesigning the force” around the challenges of Russia and China, the department’s No. 2 uniformed official said Tuesday — while warning that America may not be able to afford preparing for two unique problem sets."

Strategic Innovation and Great Power Competition
By Elsa B. Kania, Strategy Bridge: “At this time of disruptive transitions, the new U.S. National Defense Strategy rightly recognizes that the character of warfare is changing due to the advent of a range of disruptive technologies.”

REVITALIZING AMERICA'S INDUSTRIAL BASE & ENDING U.S. DEPENDENCE ON RUSSIAN MADE ROCKETS, A LOOK AT ARMY ACQUISITION

1/29/2018

Navy’s Next Frigate: Revitalizing the Defense Industrial Base
By Robert C. O'Brien & Jerry Hendrix, Defense One: “The United States has not been a global leader in shipbuilding for a generation. The new frigate program is an opportunity to bring new designs, new construction techniques, lower prices, and higher efficiency back to the U.S.shipbuilding industry.”

Air Force Seeks to End Dependence on Russian RD-180 Rocket Engines
By Connie Lee, National Defense Magazine: “The Air Force Research Laboratory's initiative to help lessen the service's reliance on Russia's RD-180 rocket engine has passed a major milestone.”

The Army’s Acquisition Reform Must Be Even Bolder
By Daniel Gouré, RealClearDefense: ““I’m not interested in a linear progression into the future. That will end up in defeat on a future battlefield. If we think that if we just draw a straight line into the future and simply make incremental improvements to current systems, then we’re blowing smoke up our collective fourth point of contact …””

CHINA'S CONSCRIPTION PROBLEM

1/29/2018

China’s Conscription Cycle: Challenges, Vulnerabilities and Opportunities
By Zachary L. Morris, Small Wars Journal: “Due to current conscription and training cycles, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) loses considerable combat power for a significant portion of each year.”

INTRODUCING A CULTURE OF PERFORMANCE FOR PENTAGON ACQUISITION REFORM

1/29/2018

U.S. National Defence Strategy: A Wake-up Call for Australia
By Paul Dibb, The Strategist: “As for reform of the department, there are lots of meaningless modern management words used about the need to ‘drive budget discipline and affordability to achieve solvency’ and ‘streamline rapid, iterative approaches from development to fielding’. But the fact remains that the Pentagon has for decades resisted introducing a culture of performance in which results and accountability really matter.”

WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE F35

Navy Pursuing Anti-Air Defense Missile for the F-35
By Joseph Trevithick & Tyler Rogoway, The WarZone: “The U.S. Navy has hired Orbital ATK, now part of Northrop Grumman, to begin formal development of a new missile that can suppress and destroy enemy air defense emitters, known as the the Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile-Extended Range, or AARGM-ER.”

Missile Defense: Decentralize, Disperse, & Hide
By Sydney Freedberg, Breaking Defense: “China or Russia could all too easily detect and destroy U.S. Army missile defenses, exposing American forces to devastating attack, a forthcoming study finds.”

Chaque Homme un Roi!
Military Personnel and Hierarchy in the 21st Century
By Artur Varanda, Strategy Bridge: “What if Napoleon Bonaparte was brought back to life and told about the concepts of war and peace today, how militaries are structured and employed and their place in modern societies?”

NEW RUSSIAN TANKS BEGIN

1/29/2018

RUSSIA: Serial Production of Russia's Deadliest Tank to Begin in 2020
By Franz-Stefan Gady, The Diplomat: “Russia will begin serial production of the third-generation T-14 Armata main battle tank (MBT) in 2020 with the first batch of T-14s purportedly to be deployed to the country's Southern and Western military districts, a Russian defense industry source said in Moscow this week.”

CHINA'S NEW CYBER PLANE THE HG6 & U.S. EASILY DETECTS CHINESE NUCLEAR SUB

1/26/2018

CHINA: China Deploys H-6G Bomber in Electronic Warfare Configuration
From Economic Times: “China has built a new type of electronic warfare aircraft which can cover bigger combat areas such as the South and East China seas and greatly enhance the Navy's capabilities in modern warfare, a media report said today.”

CHINA: Is China’s Nuclear Attack Submarine Too Easy to Detect?
By Liu Zhen, South China Morning Post: “The PLA Navy's 110-metre Shang-class submarine surfaced in international waters with a Chinese flag on its mast on January 12 after it was followed by the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force for two days."

Why the PLA’s J-20 jet-fighter has been so hard to spot
BY ASIA TIMES STAFF
It was expected China would produce up to three of the stealth planes every month, but only a handful so far exist

PENTAGON CHANGES POLICY ON PERSONNEL

1/26/2018

Military 'Up or Out' Promotion System Outdated
By Claudia Grisales, Stars and Stripes: “A panel of military experts and leaders urged lawmakers on Wednesday to revamp a woefully outdated officer promotion system that has plagued recruiting and retention efforts.”

Navy Wants Congress to Allow a More Flexible Personnel System
By John Grady, USNI News: “The Navy is asking Congress for more flexibility to recruit rewards for talent and promote to higher rank its officers to better compete in the career marketplace, the service’s personnel chief said.”

Enlisted Education Must Be More Than Training
By Kyle G. Phillips, Proceedings Magazine: “The Marine Corps has traditionally understood and executed training very well for enlisted personnel; however, it should explore opportunities to provide enlisted Marines with an education that emphasizes a deeper approach to learning in leadership, character development, and ethical decision-making.”

The Navy is asking Congress for more flexibility to recruit rewards for talent and promote to higher rank its officers to better compete in the career marketplace, the service’s personnel chief said Wednesday. - USNI News

THE ARMY RESERVES: OPERATION COLD STEEL ON RISING NEAR PEERS; MATTIS ON CHINESE CONTAINMENT

1/25/2018

BREAKING DEFENSE

Mattis signals harder line in South China Sea
BY RICHARD JAVAD HEYDARIAN
US defense chief visits Indonesia and Vietnam, two potential key allies in new defense policy that views China as a 'strategic competitor'

CHINA MILITARIZES SPACE: DOCTRINE & IMPACT OF OFFENSIVE SATELLITE TECHNOLOGY & CENTRALIZED VS. DECENTRALIZED NUKES

1/24/2018

China is aggressively pursuing capabilities such as anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons that could diminish the U.S. military’s reconnaissance, navigation and communications in case of war in the South China Sea or on the Korean Peninsula.

China has spent more than a decade exploring technology for interfering with foreign satellites. This pursuit of ASAT capabilities clearly indicates a desire to threaten U.S. space infrastructure, which the Chinese military may consider useful during the initial moments of a conventional conflict with the United States in what Beijing considers its region of influence.
But while China’s ASAT capabilities threaten U.S. assets in space, it’s still unclear how they fit into Chinese military doctrine, and how or in what instances they would be deployed. The U.S. also lacks a clear path for reining in the proliferation of these capabilities because of its own reliance on ballistic missile defense systems that are viewed similarly as potential ASAT weapons.

Read the full brief,

BREAKING DEFENSE

THE SHUTDOWN & MILITARY POSTURE

1/23/2018

Speaking Monday at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a panel of experts responded to the findings of a report quantifying how defense spending cuts, enacted by the Budget Control Act of 2011, has caused a dramatic number of defense industry suppliers to leave the market while chilling industry’s research and development activities. - USNI

As of Feb. 1, the Defense Department is getting a new, stronger senior management position: the chief management officer. Thursday night, as the specter of a government shutdown hung over Washington, President Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate John Gibson, the current deputy chief management officer, to be the first to step into this new role. - Defense One

Anthony Cordesman writes: The problem is that the concepts, broad policy statements, and good intentions presented in the [ National Security Strategy] NSS and [National Defense Strategy] NDS do not come close to an actual strategy. - Center for Strategic and International Studies

Marcus Weisgerber writes: Just days into the U.S. government shutdown in 2013, several defense companies threatened to furlough thousands of their employees whose jobs were tied to federal facilities or projects that were curtailed. This year, that did not happen. - Defense One

Michaela Dodge writes: The Trump administration will release a new Nuclear Posture Review next month. It is expected to take a very different tack from that of the previous administration, which trumpeted its commitment to creating “a world without nuclear weapons.” And a different tack is sorely needed. - Heritage Foundation

HOW THE MILITARY GETS ITS SWAGGER BACK & THE NAVY'S GROUND ZERO IS BALTIC, BLACK SEAS, ACQUISITION REFORMS

1/22/2018

It's time for the military to get its swagger back
Mackenzie Eaglen | RealClearDefense
The Pentagon’s new strategy is expected to be released soon. The substance of the document is classified, but there is a growing consensus about how to grade it. It is past time for a new National Defense Strategy that seeks to break the mold in honesty, clarity, and fresh thinking. As an official articulation of Pentagon doctrine, this is an opportunity to mend the broken dialogue among the military, the government, and the people they serve.

BREAKING DEFENSE

NDS Prioritizes High-Tech Equipment, Acquisition Reforms
By Jon Harper, National Defense Magazine: “The Pentagon’s new national defense strategy, an unclassified summary of which was released Jan. 19, prioritizes the procurement of high-end capabilities and streamlining business practices.”

The Army’s Ryan McCarthy Pulls the Plug on Bad Acquisitions
By John M. Donnelly, Roll Call: “There’s something different about the Army these days. In a word, it is humility.”

Growing Submarine Threat in the Black Sea
By George Vișan, Eurasia Daily Monitor: “In the four years that have passed since Russia annexed Crimea, the number of Russian submarines active in the Black Sea has grown from one to seven. These submarines pose a grave threat to the security of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) eastern flank.”

Baltics Steadily Grow Their Armies
By Olevs Nikers, Eurasia Daily Monitor: “The biggest success for all three Baltic countries—Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia—last year was the arrival of the multinational battalion groups to the region, thus implementing the decisions reached at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) 2016 summit in Warsaw.”

Military Readiness Is Not a Bargaining Chip
By Paul Cook, RealClearDefense: “Since 2011, the Budget Control Act (BCA), also known as “sequestration,” has arbitrarily underfunded the U.S. military. At the same time, our nation asked the men and women of our Armed Forces to do more around the globe, including missions in areas ravished by flooding and fires.”

MOSCOW CREATES STATE BANK TO EVADE U.S. LED SANCTIONS REGIME WHILE COMPLETING MODERNIZATION EFFORTS

1/19/2018

Russia will create a state bank to service the defense sector, the finance ministry said on Thursday, after a tightening of U.S. sanctions heightened the risks for existing Russian lenders in handling defense deals. - Reuters

HOW THE ARMY & AIR FORCE SEEKS REFORM & HOW READY IS THE NAVY, HOOVER INSTITUTION STRATEGIKA ISSUE

1/16/2018

BREAKING DEFENSE: HOW ARMY DOES REFORM

Maneuver SHORAD: First Success for Army Acquisition Reform?
By Daniel Gouré, RealClearDefense: “A good candidate for a quick victory is a program called the Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense (Maneuver SHORAD or M-SHORAD).”

The Air Force's Future Operationally Resilient Ground Evolution
By Sandra Erwin, Space News: “The project is called “future operationally resilient ground evolution,” or FORGE. It is part of a broader $173.5 million SBIRS modernization plan. And it is one of several projects where Air Force hopes to attract nontraditional vendors that can bring fresh ideas and cutting-edge products.”

Strategika Issue 47: The State Of U.S. Naval Readiness
via Strategika
Strategika Issue 47 is now available online.

The status of US Navy readiness: Too small, too old, and too tired
Thomas Donnelly | Strategika

Army Secretary Talks Vision for Modern War Fighter
By Jen Judson, Defense News: “Esper’s past experience as a soldier both in the active force and reserves; his experience on Capitol Hill doling out policy advice for the House Armed Services Committee; several tours in the Pentagon; and his time as a vice president at Raytheon sets him up to offer a multifaceted perspective to the job at a time when the Army is undergoing major transformation.”

The Navy SEALs New High-Tech Gear
By Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics: “Sharp-eyed observers have spotted U.S. Navy SEALs driving a new but familiar vehicle: modified versions of Yamaha personal watercraft. SEALs were also spotted using magnetic gear to scale the hull of a navy destroyer.”

XI'S CONSOLIDATION OVER CHINA'S ARMY & WHY WE NEED 350 SHIPS

1/9/2018

U.S. REACH IN PACIFIC GROWS DIM

CHINA: Has Xi Fully Consolidated His Power Over the Military?
By Charlotte Gao, The Diplomat: “Recently, multiple signs have shown that Chinese President Xi Jinping, who also holds the positions of chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) — the highest body that controls China’s military — and general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central Committee, has further consolidated his power over Chinese military.”

What Taiwan can do to push back against China
Gary J. Schmitt and Michael Mazza | The National Interest

THE ALLIANCE STRUCTURE OF FAR EAST ASIA

1/6/2018

THE ILLUSIONS OF THE U.S. ARMY & HOW FOREIGN MULTINATIONALS COMPANIES SPY WITH COMPUTER HARDWARE

1/5/2018

BREAKING DEFENSE

FOREIGN NATIONALS SPY WITH COMPUTER HARDWARE

CAN THE NAVY SAY "NO" & CHANGES IN THE MARINES

1/4/2018

Five Reasons the U.S. Army Must Modernize Faster to Avoid Catastrophe
By Loren Thompson, Forbes: “The famous Prussian military theorist and professional soldier Carl von Clausewitz said that war is the continuation of politics by other means. In contemporary Washington, politics sometimes seems like the continuation of war by other means.”

Defense Acquisition: Pushing Strategic Capabilities to the Services?
By Caroline Houck, Defense One: “The President nominated Will Roper, the founding director of the secretive Strategic Capabilities Office, to become the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition.”

Marine Corps to Cut Infantry Assaultman Job to Resource Other Roles
By Hope Hodge Seck, Military.com: “The Marine Corps is doing away with its 0351 infantry assaultman military occupational specialty and phasing out the assault section of Marine rifle companies in an effort to build up communities such as cyber and electronic warfare, Military.com has learned.”

2018 Forecast: Can the Navy Say No?
By Sydney Freedberg, Breaking Defense: “In 2017, the Navy and Marine Corps hit the wall, with an string of deadly accidents on the sea and in the air. In 2018, we’ll see whether the overstressed sea services start saying “no” to missions.”

THE C.R. (CONTINUING RESOLUTION) & DEFENSE SPENDING

1/4/2018

Defense Spending Under a Continuing Resolution
From USNI News: “DoD has started the fiscal year under a CR for 13 of the past 17 years (FY2002-FY2018) and every year since FY2010. The amount of time DoD has operated under CR authorities during the fiscal year has increased in the past 9 years and equates to a total of more than 36 months since 2010.”
Pentagon Surges Weapons Into Middle East Terror Fight
By Jack Detsch, Al-Monitor: “Using a little-known U.S. legal authority established by Congress after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the Pentagon is doling out substantial arms packages to build up Jordan's and Lebanon’s air forces to take on terrorists from the air.”

LIMITATIONS ON RUSSIAN INFORMATION WARFARE & WHAT DOES RUSSIA & CHINA NEED IN R&D

1/3/2018

Where Russian Information Warfare Is Failing
By Bill Bray, Proceedings Magazine: “Given the news the past few years, one could be forgiven for concluding Vladimir Putin’s Russia is the world’s grand practitioner of information warfare.”

Chinese military analysts have claimed that China’s new hypersonic ballistic missile, the DF-17, could destroy U.S. defense systems by flying fast and low to evade detection. - Newsweek

What China, Russia want from each other in weapon R&D
BY FRANK CHEN
Moscow needs parts and money while Beijing is eyeing technologies for its engine and fighter programs

Dr. Kathleen Hicks

getting_to_less.pdf
File Size:	91 kb
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THUCYDIDES & THE LONG WAR PROBLEM

FORCE PLANNING IN AGE OF GREAT POWER COMPETITION

AGAINST ALL ODDS: CHANGING ACQUISITION CULTURE

THE CRISIS OF AMERICAN MILITARY PRIMACY

NATIONAL MILITARY STRATEGY: REVOLUTIONARY APPROACH

UNDERSTANDING MILITARY MODERNIZATION

5 STRATEGIES FOR SEC. OF DEFENSE

WHY THE 3RD OFFSET FAILS

INADEQUATE DOCTRINES FOR IRREGULAR WAR

ALTERNATIVE WAR STRATEGIES & FORCE POSTURE

REVERSING DECLINE: ELIZABETHIAN ENGLAND

U.S. GRAND STRATEGY FOR WINNING WORLD WAR IV

MULTI-DOMAIN BATTLE REPLACES R.M.A.

GLOBAL DEFENSE SPENDING.pdf
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REBUILDING AMERICAN MILITARY.pdf
File Size:	1854 kb
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Tweets by WilliamHolland

Principles Guiding Pentagon Acquisition Reform
File Size:	56 kb
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