Breaking Defense's Monday Morning Briefing

A News Roundup for the Week Ahead _________________________________________________________________________

A News Roundup for the Week Ahead Our NGI Team Will Help Keep Our Nation Secure. Presented by Northrop Grumman Missile Defense is critical to protecting our nation. Our unmatched NGI team combines unmatched experience and innovative technologies to address today's threats and tomorrow's challenges. Microsoft Pushes Urgent Fixes Overnight As Threat Actors Compromise Exchange Servers Worldwide By Brad D. Williams; Saturday, March 6, 2021 4:58 PM The cyberespionage campaign is said to be affecting the U.S. defense industrial base, think tanks, and "hundreds of thousands" of organizations globally. Microsoft is implicating China.   AFRL's Golden Horde To Test Swarming Munitions In Digital 'Colosseum' By Theresa Hitchens; Friday, March 5, 2021 3:20 PM The new simulation environment will use 'digital twins' to rapidly test and iterate "collaborative autonomous networked technologies," AFRL explains.   Exclusive: NORTHCOM Developing, Testing AI Tools To Implement JADC2 By Theresa Hitchens; Friday, March 5, 2021 2:07 PM The command is leading a virtual exercise, called the Global Information Dominance Exercise (GIDE) 2, March 18-23 to test three "decision aids" using AI to speed commanders' ability to act.   HASC Chair Slams F-35, 500-Ship Fleet; Highlights Cyber By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.; Friday, March 5, 2021 1:52 PM "What does the F-35 give us? Is there a way to cut our losses?" asked Rep. Adam Smith, who wants a mixed force of different types of fighters: "Don't put all your eggs in one basket."   No 'New Cold War' As US Bombers Move Into Norwegian Base By Paul McLeary; Friday, March 5, 2021 12:25 PM "I guess if someone were to take a message [from the basing agreement]  it's that we're not restricted to one particular location," said Gen. Steven Basham, deputy commander of Air Forces in Europe/Africa.   Hits & Misses In Biden's Interim National Security Guidance By Thomas Spoehr; Friday, March 5, 2021 10:20 AM "Seemingly gone is the naivety of the Obama era" about Russia and China, writes the Heritage Foundation's Tom Spoehr in this op-ed. But the retired three-star general still sees some worrying woolly-mindedness.   CYBERCOM Plays 'Key Role' As SolarWinds Unfolds: Gen. Nakasone By Brad D. Williams; Friday, March 5, 2021 9:48 AM As the government investigation continues, security firm FireEye published details of newly discovered backdoor, SUNSHUTTLE, which has "possible connection" to the SolarWinds hack.   Agile Product Management: How To Build Weapons Faster & Better By Ian Fogarty; Friday, March 5, 2021 4:01 AM Combining agile software development with product management is the secret weapon that can help the DoD maintain America's innovation advantage — and protect its global preeminence.   Advice For DIU At Five: Don't Just Grow, LEAD By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.; Thursday, March 4, 2021 3:18 PM "DIU is punching above its weight and having an impact beyond its size," acquisition guru Bill Greenwalt says. "Still, that will not be enough….  Unless the rest of the Department and Congress learns these lessons, we will continue to fall behind China."   GOP Press Pentagon Nominee On Nukes, Mean Tweets By Paul McLeary; Thursday, March 4, 2021 3:05 PM The nuke issue has been bubbling since Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was vague during his own confirmation hearing, telling senators he has to "look under the hood and see exactly what we're doing with our nuclear forces."   Israelis Push New Missile For Patriot Launchers: SkyCeptor By Arie Egozi; Thursday, March 4, 2021 10:16 AM Patriot missiles are expensive. Rafael and its US partner Raytheon say they can fire the cheaper Israeli SkyCeptor from existing Patriot launchers. Will that tempt the US Army?   DARPA's Rapid Power Grid Restoration Tech Goes Live By Brad D. Williams; Thursday, March 4, 2021 4:00 AM Some of the tech built to quickly restore power after a cyberattack is now operational on parts of the U.S. grid, with more deployments to follow. This week's news of RedEcho shows, yet again, it can't happen soon enough.   JADC2 Faces 'Huge Weakness': Old Policies, Old Tech By Paul McLeary; Wednesday, March 3, 2021 7:03 PM INDOPACOM's Brig. Gen. Jacqueline Brown said "policy is a significant concern…If we build a network, if we build these systems but they're not releasable to our mission partners, we're going to lose."   Who's Who in Defense: Jake Sullivan, National Security Advisor By Catherine Macaulay; Wednesday, March 3, 2021 4:04 PM National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan   Responsibilities Called the "the best foreign policy job in government," the NSA serves as the top aide to the president on national security and foreign policy. The NSA is generally a low-profile, high-influence position that plays a foundational role in the National Security Council (NSC). Created in 1947…   AFRL, NORTHCOM Eye Commercial Internet Sats For Arctic By Theresa Hitchens; Wednesday, March 3, 2021 3:07 PM "We'll have communications capability up there within the next year or so," said NORTHCOM commander Gen. Glen VanHerck.   Breaking Defense 611 Broadway • New York, New York • 10012 unsubscribe