Breaking Defense's Monday Morning Briefing

A News Roundup for the Week Ahead _________________________________________________________________________

A News Roundup for the Week Ahead In Every Domain, Threats To National Security Evolve Fast—We're Faster. Presented by Parsons As global threats become more sophisticated, we are committed to advancing our nation's missile defense systems that protect national security, deployed forces, and allied forces from missile attacks in all phases of flight. Learn more.  Chinese Nuke Modernization Prompts Shift In DoD Strategy By Colin Clark; Friday, June 18, 2021 4:01 PM "The growing diversity of the Chinese nuclear threat and its mixing in with conventional forces creates complexity for US commanders. It is also unclear what conditions would lead to PRC nuclear use, since their arsenal is growing and creating more options," Bryan Clark of the Hudson Institute says.   DoD Cloud Delays Hamper Missions: IT Leaders By Brad D. Williams; Friday, June 18, 2021 3:52 PM  "The more we wait, the more vulnerable we are," a leader told the survey takers.   SMC's Space Safari Office To Focus On 'Urgent' Launch Needs By Theresa Hitchens; Friday, June 18, 2021 12:45 PM So-called 'responsive launch,' the ability to launch practically on demand, has been a Holy Grail for the Pentagon for more than a decade with arguably not much real-world progress.   World Powers Meet To Prop Up Lebanese Army By Chyrine Mezher; Friday, June 18, 2021 12:11 PM Unlike previous conferences designed to provide training, weapons or military hardware, the meeting was centered on finding ways to bolster the cohesion, resilience, and stability of the Lebanese Armed Forces.   Key Lawmaker Warns Off Space Force On Tactical ISR By Theresa Hitchens; Thursday, June 17, 2021 4:41 PM "I think before you hand off the ball, let's make sure there won't be a fumble — and the Space Force has a lot on it's plate right now," Rep. Jim Cooper says.   Homeland OKs Cyber Nominees; Sen. Rick Scott Slaps Hold On Floor Vote By Brad D. Williams; Thursday, June 17, 2021 4:36 PM Despite a unanimous committee voice vote, Sen. Scott announced a hold on the CISA director nominee, as well as all other DHS nominees, until President Biden visits the border with Mexico.   Rep. Cooper Predicts OK For $900M Space Wish Lists By Theresa Hitchens; Thursday, June 17, 2021 4:02 PM On the space acquisition czar, Rep. Jim Cooper said: "let's not let the politics of the Puzzle Palace dominate here. We can and must figure this out."   Air Force Starts KC-Y Tanker Search As Lawmakers Slam KC-46 By Colin Clark; Wednesday, June 16, 2021 7:29 PM So far, Boeing has lost $5 billion on the low risk system, is years behind schedule and doesn't seem to have a very good handle on basic manufacturing principles such as ensuring tools, scrap metal and other debris (FOD) are not left behind in the aircraft.   CYBERCOM Seeks 'Hunt Forward' Funding Boost By Brad D. Williams; Wednesday, June 16, 2021 6:15 PM "These robust information-sharing operations are just one part of our 'defend forward' strategy — where we see what our adversaries are doing and share that information with our partners in an effort to better bolster both our homeland defenses."   China's Third Aircraft Carrier Takes Shape: CSIS By Matthew Funaiole; Wednesday, June 16, 2021 3:39 PM China's third aircraft carrier will be considerably larger than its predecessors, the Liaoning and Shandong, which each measure 304.5 meters in length. Earlier assessments of the Type 003 by CSIS estimated its waterline dimensions at roughly 300 meters in length and 40 meters in width.   SecDef OKs Joint Warfighting Concept; Joint Requirements Due Soon By Theresa Hitchens; Wednesday, June 16, 2021 3:29 PM A next step will be a series of "strategic directives" from the Joint Requirements Oversight Council that roll out "over the next few months," Brig. Gen. Rob Parker, Joint Staff J6 Deputy Director says.   NIST Releases New Language To Automate Cloud Security By Brad D. Williams; Tuesday, June 15, 2021 5:15 PM OSCAL's goal is to enable compliance and security assessments to keep pace in complex, fast-moving, ever-changing DevSecOps environments.   Houthi 'Terror' Scuds Now Threaten Most Of Saudi Arabia By Ralph Savelsberg; Tuesday, June 15, 2021 3:41 PM A new variant of the Houthi's Burkan missile has a range of at least 1,200 km, putting almost all of Saudi Arabia within range of the Northern Yemeni rebels, posing a new threat to the kingdom. Ansar Allah, as the Houthis are formally known, released footage in August 2019 of a new ballistic missile, called…   NATO To Invest In C2 For Strategic Pivot: China Rises As Alliance Threat By Theresa Hitchens; Tuesday, June 15, 2021 3:00 PM "China is not mentioned with one single word in the current Strategic Concept," said NATO SecGen Jens Stoltenberg. "In one [way] or the other, I'm absolutely certain China will be reflected, and the challenges that China poses will be reflected" in the planned 2022 update.   Cross Domain Solutions: Enabling All Domain Operations By Barry Rosenberg; Tuesday, June 15, 2021 9:55 AM [Sponsored] Enabling the sharing of unclassified, Secret, and Top Secret mission critical data across warfighting domains and security boundaries at the tactical edge.   GPS III Launch Will Provide Global M-Code By Theresa Hitchens; Monday, June 14, 2021 5:39 PM "OCX and the user equipment piece do not come online until the third quarter of 2023; that is when we would expect to have our initial operational capability for the GPS enterprise across across all segments: space, ground and user equipment," said Space and Missile Command's Col. Ed Byrne.   Pentagon: Diversify Your Orbital Regimes By Sarah Mineiro; Monday, June 14, 2021 2:56 PM Even with the establishment of Space Force, space-based capabilities are primarily supporting terrestrial operations. Looking to the other recognized warfighting domains to redundant capabilities and interoperability will enhance architectural resilience.   NGA Seeks Upgraded Software To Speed Analysis By Theresa Hitchens; Monday, June 14, 2021 2:50 PM The goal is to have an improved version of the Data Transformation Services (DTS) system up and running on classified NGA networks by next February, the agency's request for information (RFI) says.   Houthis Lay Sea Mines In Red Sea; Coalition Boasts Few Minesweepers By Arie Egozi; Monday, June 14, 2021 1:33 PM Middle Eastern sources say most of the naval mines are floating mines the Houthis release into the open sea. They are supplemented by networks of mines laid at a depth of 16 meters. They are triggered by the passage of ships above them.   All-Domain Operations Shape The Joint Battlespace For Decision Dominance By Barry Rosenberg; Monday, June 14, 2021 8:34 AM [Sponsored] The Defense Department is shaping the joint all-domain environment by tying sensors to shooters in exercises like Northern Edge 21 and Project Convergence.   Breaking Defense 611 Broadway • New York, New York • 10012 unsubscribe