Pakistan
Militants Attack Pakistani Air Force Base
Declan Walsh, New York Times – August 16, 2012
Suspected Islamist militants early on Thursday attacked a major Pakistani Air Force base where some of the country’s nuclear weapons are thought to be stored, setting off a heavy gun battle in which eight attackers and one security official were killed.
Iran
Israel Would Strike Iran to Gain a Delay, Oren Says
Tony Capaccio and Nicole Gaouette, Bloomberg – August 16, 2012
Israel would be willing to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities, even if doing so only delayed its ability to produce nuclear weapons for a few years, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren said.
Defense Spending
Navy No. 2: Budget cuts could threaten future operations
Cristina Silva, Stars and Stripes – August 15, 2012
Looming automatic budget cuts could drastically reduce the Navy’s global presence, requiring a narrower defense strategy drawing on an anemic fleet of roughly 230 ships, according to the Navy’s second highest-ranking officer.
Mitt Romney’s plan would add few new troops
Philip Ewing, Politico – August 15, 2012
Mitt Romney’s proposal to add 100,000 troops to the armed forces would not actually add that many new people, his campaign clarified Wednesday, but rather stop planned reductions by the Obama administration.
Navy Special Forces units: How many are needed?
Walter Pincus, Washington Post – August 15, 2012
Is the Navy’s increased interest in irregular warfare and counterterrorism “partly motivated” by concerns about remaining relevant, or by a desire to secure some of the growing funding for Special Forces units, or both?
Asia-Pacific
U.S. is right to assail China on its South China Sea claims
Washington Post – August 15, 2012
THE SOUTH CHINA sea stretches over 1.4 million square miles, rich in natural resources and bejeweled with islands. China has long regarded much of the sea as its own, claiming waters more than 1,000 miles from its shores and very close to the shores of other nations.
