Air Force @ MindSay

By Donna Miles

American Forces Press Service

 

July 1, 2008 - As U.S. Africa Command prepares to go fully operational, one of its big challenges will be communicating not only what it aims to achieve, but also what it doesn't, senior officials at the Pentagon and at the new command agree. AfriCom, which began initial operations Oct. 1, is slated to become an independent unified command three months from today. This will make it a full-fledged geographic combatant command on par with U.S. European Command, Pacific Command, Southern Command and Central Command, focusing on the African continent.

 

AfriCom will be responsible for all U.S. military activity in Africa. The one exception will be Egypt, which will remain under U.S. Central Command.

 

The goal, as described by Army Gen. William "Kip" Ward, AfriCom's commander, is to work in tandem with other U.S. government agencies and international partners to help African nations deal with a full range of challenges. AfriCom will support this effort through military-to-military programs, military-sponsored activities and other operations, all aimed at promoting a stable, secure Africa, the general said.

 

Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters while visiting the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies here last week that the United States recognizes the "hugely important issues to be addressed in Africa."

 

"That's one of the reasons we stood up AfriCom, because it's such an important continent for us," he said.

 

Mullen cited Africa's tremendous resources, but said it faces great challenges as well, from poverty and disease to threats including terrorists seeking safe haven.

 

"It's a place where there are opportunities for terrorists to evolve," he told the AfriCom staff while visiting their headquarters. "We have to address those things, because if we don't, they are coming our way. Either we have to engage them or they are coming to us as a country, and actually, as a world."

 

The AfriCom headquarters will become fully operational a decade after the near-simultaneous Aug. 7, 1998, terrorist attacks on the U.S. embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. The 10 years since then have witnessed additional terrorist activity, including the double car-bombing of a United Nations building in Algiers in December. Mullen told the AfriCom staff that the Pan-Sahel region and Horn of Africa are particular concerns.

 

Americans historically have looked east and west to face off threats, but Mullen said AfriCom and SouthCom show increasing recognition that the focus needs to go beyond that. "America doesn't look north and south to its own detriment," he said.

 

Despite widespread recognition of the challenges facing Africa, Mullen acknowledged last week that AfriCom has suffered from misconceptions about its intent. He told reporters at the Marshall Center that the command's standup has met with "some pretty stiff resistance" from Nigeria, South Africa and some other countries in the region or with ties to it.

 

"I think some of it is tied to the newness of it," Mullen told reporters after a town hall meeting at the AfriCom headquarters. "We have not been ... heavily engaged in Africa historically, so there are questions from people on the continent. There are questions from those who have been engaged historically, some of the former countries who were colonial powers in that part of the world."

 

Mullen said the United States needs to constantly repeat the intent behind AfriCom to clear up those questions and dispel misconceptions. But ultimately, he said, actions will speak louder than words. "I fundamentally believe we communicate most effectively through our actions," he told the AfriCom town hall session.

 

The United States has no interest in a big troop presence in Africa, the chairman said. AfriCom's headquarters will remain in Stuttgart -- also home to EuCom, which has had primary responsibility for Africa -- for at least the next several years.

 

"It is my view that it is much more important to emphasize projects and engagement than it is footprint," Mullen said.

 

Navy Vice Adm. Robert T. Moeller, AfriCom's deputy commander for military operations, emphasized during an address at the Brookings Institute earlier this month that the command also has no intention of stepping on the toes of other organizations' work there. He said the command will support -- not disrupt or confuse -- ongoing U.S. government, international and nongovernmental efforts in Africa.

 

Ward described military engagement the United States already has with Africa during testimony before the House Armed Services Committee in March. U.S. soldiers and Marines provide military training to African peacekeepers and professional development at the individual and unit level. The Air Force contributes airlift and logistical support. U.S. forces provide special operations counterterrorism training teams to strengthen national capabilities and enhance multinational cooperation. The Navy and Coast Guard are helping African nations increase maritime safety and security.

 

"Our intent is to enable them to provide for their own security," Ward told the committee.

 

He cited other U.S. agencies that also contribute toward this effort. The State Department's Africa Contingency Operations Training and Assistance program has helped prepare thousands of African troops for international peacekeeping missions. In addition, U.S. forces work hand in hand with the U.S. Agency for International Development to support numerous humanitarian missions in Africa, he noted.

 

Moeller stressed that AfriCom isn't trying to move into the foreign policy realm or militarize U.S. foreign policy. Rather, he said, the command will support the State Department and other U.S. agencies working in Africa.

 

Ambassador Mary Carlin Yates, AfriCom's deputy for civil-military affairs and former ambassador to Ghana and Burundi, said the command's mix of "hard" and "soft" power elements in a single organization will bring added value to ongoing operations in Africa. While helping to bring capacity to the Africans, she said, it will support other programs by the United States and others.

 

Ward took that message to Lisbon earlier this month for a meeting with the Commonwealth of Portuguese Speaking Nations. The group conducts peacekeeping operations and disaster response exercises with five African nations: Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe.

 

"Every nation around the world benefits from a stable and secure Africa, but each has limited resources to apply toward security capacity-building efforts," Ward told the Commonwealth of Portuguese Speaking Nations representatives. "Together we can cooperate to bring coherent programs to the African continent."

 

Like others, Ward said has heard the "Why now?" questions about AfriCom's standup. As he escorted Mullen around the command's headquarters facilities last week, he said the more significant question should be: "Why not now?"

By John J. Kruzel

American Forces Press Service

 

June 25, 2008 - A Defense Department spokesman today expressed satisfaction that a proposed GI Bill allowing servicemembers to transfer their education benefits to family members passed the first round of congressional voting. But he also expressed concern that a possible provision of the bill could hurt the department's efforts to retain servicemembers.

 

The U.S. House of Representatives last week passed a version of the bill that would provide military members a more generous education package, which for the first time could be passed to family members if troops opt not to use it themselves.

 

"The No. 1 priority of this department was that any enhanced benefit coming out of the Congress provide for the ability for servicemembers to transfer any unused benefit to their family members," Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell said during a Pentagon news conference.

 

But while the Defense Department is pleased the House version incorporates transferability, Morrell said, officials have voiced concern that the amount of time before the benefits become available -- after 36 months of service -- may hurt retention rates.

 

"That -- we've said from the beginning -- we believe, is too soon," Morrell said. "But if that's the way the Congress ultimately chooses to go, ... we will work with it."

 

The bill will next appear before the Senate, where it must receive approval before being enacted. Meanwhile, the Defense Department intends to study what effects the bill would have on military retention if it passes in its present form, Morrell said.

 

"If we find that it's having an adverse affect on retention, we're going to have to figure out other ways to entice men and women in uniform to stay in the service," he said.

 

Morrell suggested that bigger financial bonuses for re-enlistment could be offered if servicemembers become "lured out" of uniform by taking advantage of the new package, which would double the education benefit from about $9,000 to about $18,000 per year and kick in during the first enlistment.

 

The spokesman added that Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates is more pleased that the bill includes transferability than he is disappointed that it could adversely affect retention.

 

In other Defense Department news, Gates was scheduled to hold a meeting this afternoon to discuss an investigation by the Government Accountability Office – the investigative arm of Congress -- that found improper practices related to an Air Force tanker contract.

 

The GAO last week recommended the Air Force reopen the bidding process for the service's aerial refueling aircraft contract. The recommendation came after a review of the contract process that in February selected the Northrop-Grumman/EADS/Airbus consortium as the winner of the $35 billion contract. Boeing Co., which had submitted a competing bid, protested the decision.

 

Morrell said Gates would meet with representatives of the Pentagon's acquisition, technology and logistics office, the Air Force, and with Defense Department lawyers.

 

"It will be the first time he has had a chance to hear from them about the GAO's recommendations, as well as the preliminary analysis that's been done within the department on how those recommendations would potentially impact the Air Force's February decision to award the new tanker contract to Northrop Grumman and EADS," he said.

 

The Defense Department has 60 days from the release of the investigation report to respond to the GAO, Morrell said. He added that the secretary -- who is "intimately involved" in the issue -- hopes to move as quickly as possible.

 

"The secretary is just about to begin reviewing the various options available to him, and will chart a course as to the way ahead as soon as possible," he said.

By Army Staff Sgt. Michael J. Carden

American Forces Press Service

 

June 25, 2008 - Though the Defense Department doesn't see China as a strategic adversary, the country's military buildup and lack of openness in how it's going about it has officials wondering about Chinese leaders' intentions, senior Pentagon officials told the House Armed Services Committee today. James J. Shinn, assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific security affairs, and Air Force Maj. Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, vice director for strategic plans and policy for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified on the topic. Their testimony revolved around three key questions from the Defense Department's recently submitted China Military Power Report:

 

-- What are the Chinese doing in terms of their military modernization and buildup?

 

-- What does it mean for the United States and its allies in the region?

 

-- What are the Defense Department and the U.S. government doing to react?

 

According to the report, the Chinese have engaged in a sizeable and sustained increase in military expenditures over the past few years. Their official budget is reported to be about $60 billion, but the Defense Department estimates that it's twice that, Shinn said.

 

The buildup is across all of China's services, Shinn added. "It's comprehensive in the sea, land and air forces. It's also particularly significant that it includes its nuclear as well as the conventional forces," he continued.

 

Shinn noted China's heavy investment in personnel, recruiting and training, which in previous years was not as big a factor as the overall numbers of its forces. The Chinese also are devoting much effort into logistics and the command and control apparatus, he said.

 

China's buildup reflects a deliberate and well-thought-through strategy to invest in asymmetric warfare, cyber warfare, and counter-space capabilities, Shinn told the House panel, and also has sophisticated cruise missile and under-sea warfare programs.

 

The buildup means the United States and its allies in the region could be at risk, because the increasing capabilities may alter China's intentions, which currently seem to be peaceful, Shinn said. The increasing capacity may present the Chinese leadership with more options, he noted.

 

"As the Chinese nuclear forces increase their size and survivability, we don't know if [their intention] is going to alter," he explained. "We are very careful about inferring intent as to expanding capability. Part of the reason for the deep seriousness of the report is that one must always plan for the worst."

 

Therefore, he said, DoD will continue pressing intelligence collection and analysis to understand Chinese leaders' intentions for their country's increased capabilities. The United States will continue to train, equip and posture Pacific forces and work closely with regional allies to strengthen their capabilities, he said.

 

Shinn also stressed the importance of U.S. forces engaging and maintaining dialogue with the Chinese government and leaders of the People's Liberation Army to learn more about them and their intentions. The Defense Department does not currently see China as a strategic adversary, but rather as a competitor in some respects and a partner in others, he said.

 

"China's rise certainly presents a variety of opportunities and challenges, but the Chinese are definitely not destined to be an adversary," he told the committee.

 

Breedlove affirmed Shinn's comments, noting that cooperation continues to progress between the United States and China in areas of mutual interest such as humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, and military environmental protection.

 

"An encouraging sign [of cooperation] was China's reception of relief supplies delivered to the needy Chinese by our military aircraft during this past winter's storms and most recent earthquake," Breedlove said.

 

China's military modernization is no surprise, given the country's impressive economic growth, the general said.

 

"[The United States] continues to communicate to China that our desire for greater transparency and openness is to gain a better understanding of their strategic intent," he said. "We believe it is clearly in the interest of all to avoid any misunderstanding or miscalculation. We continue to watch the situation closely and respond in a matter that brings peace and stability."

How Smallpox Changed the World

“Smallpox epidemics continued through the 20th century until vaccination programs were regulated and implemented around the world. In 1980, the World Health Organization declared smallpox completely eradicated, but samples of the virus remain in two laboratories in the United States and Russia, prompting fears of biological warfare should the virus land in the wrong hands.” (Live Science; 23Jun08; Heather Whipps) http://www.livescience.com/history/080623-hs-smallpox.html

 

Enzymes made to order

“‘For the first time, we have been able to computationally design [and create] enzymes from scratch,’ says team member Daniela Röthlisberger, a biochemist at the University of Washington in Seattle. These enzymes are capable of dealing with substances for which no naturally occurring enzymes have evolved, she says. And in principle, the technique could be used to produce enzymes capable of ‘accelerating any desired reaction at all.’ The possibilities, the researchers agree, are vast and intriguing. […] Whichever industry they're used in – be it pharmaceutical, agricultural or chemical – Brown says the synthetic enzymes ‘have great potential to be used in … reducing the use of solvents and heavy metals, or degrading harmful chemicals such as pesticides and toxins.’” (Cosmos; 19Jun08; Lauren Monaghan) http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/features/online/2053/enzymes-made-order

 

CDC [Center for Disease Control and Prevention] action at germ lab questioned [Atlanta, Georgia]

“At the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's new $214 million infectious disease laboratory in Atlanta, scientists are conducting experiments on bioterror bacteria in a room with a containment door sealed with duct tape. […] The tape was applied around the edges of the door a year ago after the building's ventilation system malfunctioned and pulled potentially contaminated air out of the lab and into a ‘clean’ hallway.

Nine CDC workers were tested in May 2007 for potential exposure to the Q fever bacteria being studied in the lab […] agency officials said; the lab is safe and poses no risk to workers. The public was never at any risk because numerous security layers were in place between the lab and the outdoors, they said. Yet the duct tape remains in place. ‘It's an enhancement,’ said Patrick Stockton, CDC safety and occupational health manager, as he and four other agency officials took a reporter to see the door Wednesday. ‘We could take it off.’” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; 22Jun08; Alison Young) http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/2008/06/21/cdclab_0622.html

 

Norman Regional to host decontamination exercises [Norman, Oklahoma]

“Norman will be the site next week for exercises to help emergency personnel deal with accidents involving hazardous materials or bioterrorism situations that would require decontamination. […] Dozens of central Oklahoma hospital employees are expected to be in town to observe when Norman Regional Health System employees participate in decontamination training exercises Tuesday with the Norman Fire Department.

NRHS employees will be in level C suits and the fire department personnel will be in level A suits -- full decontamination gear, including head gear and a SCBA or self contained breathing apparatus in exercises at 8 a.m. and 1 p.m.” (The Norman Transcript; 20Jun08; Carol Cole-Frowe)

http://www.normantranscript.com/localnews/local_story_173003327

 

Flora Industrial Park site [Madison County Mississippi]

“The Gulf States Bio and Agro-Defense Consortium is a coalition of public and private entities working collectively to attract the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) to Mississippi. The Consortium is comprised of the State of Mississippi, the University of Mississippi (UM), the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC), Mississippi State University (MSU), Jackson State University (JSU), Tulane University, the Tulane National Primate Research Center, the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB), Tougaloo College, and Battelle Memorial Institute. […] Proposed NBAF Site Location [:] The proposed site is located in the Flora Industrial Park in Madison County, Mississippi. […] The portion under consideration for the NBAF currently has no tenants or physical structures and is approximately 150 acres.” (The Clarion Ledger; 20Jun08; DHS) http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080620/NEWS/80620050

 

Exercise prepares county for outbreak [Van Wert County, Ohio]

“The northwest region of Ohio, which is comprised of 18 counties, was involved in tabletop and functional exercises in preparation for an instance of pandemic flu. All 18 county health departments, emergency management agencies and almost all of the hospitals and in those counties participated. […] ‘This would be during a pandemic influenza, lets say if the bird flu would mutate - a type of flu that we do not have a vaccine for,’ said Hoffman of this year's focus. ‘We probably wouldn't have a vaccine for at least six months. It would be a very grand scale - a lot of death, a lot of illness. Any health care facility would breach their surge capacity.’ […] In such a situation, gravely ill patients or those needing emergency medical attention might be seen in the emergency department, but Hoffman said they could expect to wait six to eight hours.” (Times Bulletin; 21Jun08; Jill Dewert)

http://timesbulletin.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=147419&TM=5606.901

 

Here’s to your health! Open house at new facility [Pittsburgh County, Pennsylvania]

“It’s a year late, one contractor defaulted and another had to scramble to get the job finished, but the new Pittsburg County Health Department was the center of attention Friday as more than 200 people attended an open house. The 31,000 square foot structure, located across the street from the McAlester Regional Health Center on Strong Boulevard, is designed to offer a wide range of services. Dignitaries and just regular folks were given the grand tour during the event.” (McAlester News-Capital; 21Jun08; John Yates) http://www.mcalesternews.com/local/local_story_173153103.html

 

Mock Emergency Drill Tested Many Agencies' Response [Sebring, Florida]

“Wednesday's emergency preparedness drill at the Agri-Civic Center was only practice, but almost 200 volunteers and county employees acted like the mock exercise was real. […] Orange cards describing their roles were given to some volunteers who became belligerent or non-compliant, while others were unable to speak English, and some had special needs and many had mobility issues and trouble walking. […] The drill spilled over into the Emergency Operations Center, the county administration building and Florida Hospital Heartland Division campus in Sebring, Lake Placid and Wauchula. Several scenarios were created to give county workers a chance to put long-practiced plans into action. Terrorists were supposed to have planted anthrax poison at the local car race track in the water misting system used to cool race fans. Florida Hospital Heartland Division had an unbelievable string of bad luck: A fire broke out, a bomb was discovered, a tornado touched down, the flow of oxygen and gas was turned off and the morgue filled up during the exercise at the Sebring hospital.” (Red Orbit; 19Jun08; Bill Rettew Jr) http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1441595/mock_emergency_drill_tested_many_agencies_response/

 

Elk Grove man sentenced for toxic threats

“A former nuclear engineer and attorney who sent threatening letters containing fake poisons to local political officials and businesses was sentenced Friday to 51 months in federal prison. Michael Lee Braun, 53, of Elk Grove was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Edward Garcia, and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and $43,715 in reimbursement for law enforcement and hazardous material cleanup efforts. Braun sent letters that contained threats and a white powder, which he asserted was ‘poison’

and a ‘death powder’ and recipients feared might contain anthrax or some other weapon of mass destruction. Laboratory analysis showed it to be baking soda. He pleaded guilty to four counts on April 11.” (Sacramento Business Journal; 20Jun08; Mark Anderson) http://sacramento.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/06/16/daily71.html?jst=b_ln_hl

 

Staged protest at biolab site not much of a hit with police [Boston, Massachusetts]

“Maryann Colella, 21, and Leeanne McHugh, 22, were placed in a police vehicle at 609 Albany St., the site of the proposed biolab, after officers charged them with disturbing the peace and damage to property via graffiti. Police said they responded to a complaint about a small group of females throwing dummy bodies into the street. According to the report, one young woman at the scene, wearing white and red makeup on her face to simulate blood, lay on the sidewalk while a second female outlined her body in chalk. Meanwhile, police said, passing pedestrians and motorists slowed to rubberneck.”(Boston Globe; 22Jun08; Marc Larocque) http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/06/22/staged_protest_at_biolab_site_not_much_of_a_hit_with_police/

 

ECU professor receives federal grant for research

“An East Carolina University professor, in collaboration with the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Silver Springs, Md., has been awarded more than $400,000 by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency of the U.S. Department of Defense to study antibacterial activity. […] Due to their improved drug-like properties and increased stability, the peptides may be used to treat infections that are the result of bacterial, biological warfare agents – an area of research being examined by the WRAIR [Walter Reed Army Institute of Research].” (The Daily Reflector; 23Jun08) http://www.reflector.com/local/content/news/stories/2008/06/23/ecunotes.html

 

Academy grad's glow points way to award

“Myrtle Beach's Leah Baker, a 2008 graduate of the Academy of the Arts Science and Technology in Carolina Forest, won a national award for her Public Health DVD entry. The 18-year-old environmental science major simulated the theoretical spread of disease for her senior mastery project that recently earned a $2,500 award in the Labs Are Vital Scholarship contest promoted on Facebook. […] Early one morning before her classmates arrived, Baker dusted a door handle at the academy with some harmless fluorescent powder that glows under black light. A few hours later, she checked every student's hands to see how far the pseudo germ had traveled. ‘Based on the schoolwide experiment, if the disease were real, all of Horry County would be infected in 14 days,’ said Baker.” (Myrtle Beach Online; 22Jun08; Jan A. Igoe) http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/123/story/494972.html

 

Syria, North Korea helped Iran nuclear programme: report

“Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is having second thoughts about helping Iran with its controversial nuclear programme, German news magazine Der Spiegel reported Saturday, quoting unspecified intelligence reports. […] Der Spiegel, which did not elaborate on al-Assad's reported change of heart, also said Iran, Syria and North Korea had apparently been cooperating in the production of chemical weapons.  It cited an explosion near the Syrian city of Aleppo in July 2007, during which many were reported to have died when quantities of mustard gas and the nerve agent Sarin escaped. In addition to 15 Syrian military officials, dozens of Iranian ‘rocket scientists’ and three North Koreans were among those killed, the magazine said.” (The Earth Times; 21Jun08) http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/213997,syria-north-korea-helped-iran-nuclear-programme-report.html

 

State [Colorado] sets own deadline for mustard destruction

“Colorado officials told the Department of Defense this week to get rid of its mustard agent stockpile in Pueblo County by 2017, the same deadline set in recent legislation authored by some members of the state’s congressional delegation. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment issued a compliance order on Wednesday requiring the Defense Department to destroy its entire stockpile at the Pueblo Chemical Depot by 2017, six years earlier than the current target date of 2023.” (The Pueblo Chieftan; 21Jun08; John Norton) http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2008/06/21/news/local/doc485cb7926a528215719979.txt

 

Chemicals Blamed for Gulf War Ills

“An academic report released in March cites chemicals in pesticides, weapons and drugs used to counter nerve gas as causes of a wide variety of ailments reported by Persian Gulf War veterans. ‘Enough studies have been conducted and the results shared to be able to say with considerable confidence that there is a link between chemical exposure [and the ailments],’ Dr. Beatrice Golomb told the (San Diego) Union-Tribune. Golomb, an associate professor at the University of California- San Diego, wrote the report, which was published March 10 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. She analyzed findings from more than two dozen studies of U.S., Australian and European Persian Gulf War vets exposed to chemicals such as the nerve agent sarin.” (Red Orbit; 19Jun08; Tim Dyhouse) http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1440444/chemicals_blamed_for_gulf_war_ills/

 

Are we ready? Simulated chemical attack tests response [Gaylord, Michigan]

“The voice from Otsego County 9-1-1 Central Dispatch came crackling through at 1000 hours with a message over the scanner beginning and ending with ‘THIS IS AN EXERCISE.’ The message, for emergency responders, was all part of a disaster drill informing them of a terrorist incident in which the nerve gas Sarin had been released during preparations for a concert at the Otsego County Fairgrounds. ‘THIS IS AN EXERCISE.’ With the dispatch delivered, emergency personnel from across the county sprang into action beginning a three-hour, full-scale exercise Monday morning to gauge emergency response plans and procedures in the face of a chemical terrorism threat.” (Gaylord Herald Times; 18Jun08; Michael Jones) http://www.gaylordheraldtimes.com/articles/2008/06/18/news/top_stories/doc48590511789aa161728186.txt

 

Hill AFB [Utah] conducting readiness exercises

“Hill Air Force Base will conduct readiness exercises today through Friday. Airmen of the 388th Fighter Wing, 419th Fighter Wing, 75th Air Base Wing and Ogden Air Logistics Center will participate in an Operational Readiness Exercise. It will test the base's ability to deploy quickly and operate in a chemical combat environment.” (Deseret News;23Jun08)

http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700237208,00.html

 

Police squads in chemical boiler suits have raided a suspected crystal meth factory in Paddington.

“Originally cops thought the man was making a chemical weapon, or 'dirty bomb' - using the house as a bomb factory. José Eduardo Vieira, 29, will appear before Westminster Magistrates charged with producing a class A drug.” (The London Daily News; 20Jun08) http://www.thelondondailynews.com/police-raid-paddington-crystal-meth-factory-p-836.html

 

This is only a test: Are we prepared? [West Virginia]

“Mineral County was one of 25 counties that participated in this statewide emergency drill.~ Officials from the 911 Center, Emergency Operation Center, RACEY, CERT out of Piedmont ( a community emergency response team), Mineral County Sheriff, West Virginia State Police, Keyser Fire Department and EMS, Health Department, Department of Highways (DOH), the Medical Reserve Corps and Animal Control were on hand for two days to discuss and plan for this type of emergency.~ The Mineral County Board of Education and the National Guard were on hand for telephone communications. In this particular scenario Red Cross was unavailable. ‘This is our first time doing a statewide drill and I think everyone involved did pretty well,’ said Andrew Root, Mineral County Health Department R.S., administrator.” (Mineral Daily News-Tribune; 23Jun08; Elaine Blaisdell) http://www.newstribune.info/news/x1003971963/This-is-only-a-test-Are-we-prepared

 

Britain Sends Information on Suspect to the U.S.

“The government of Britain has turned over classified material to American military prosecutors at Guantánamo Bay about a British prisoner’s allegations that he was interrogated and tortured in Morocco after secretly being taken there by the C.I.A., according to the British Foreign Office. […] Binyam Mohamed, was charged by American military prosecutors last month with conspiracy and material support for terrorism, and the Foreign Office said in a letter to his lawyer that the evidence it gave to the Pentagon could be ‘exculpatory and relevant.’ […] In the charges filed against Mr.

Mohamed, prosecutors said that he underwent training at several camps run by Al Qaeda in Afghanistan in 2001, in preparation for terrorist attacks in the United States, including the detonation of a so-called dirty bomb.”

(The New York Times; 21Jun08; Raymond Bonner) http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/21/world/europe/21gitmo.html

 

FBR, PNRA to jointly combat nuclear trafficking

“The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and the Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority (PNRA) on Saturday signed a Memorandum of Un-derstanding (MoU) to promote cooperation against illicit trafficking of radioactive and nuclear materials. Member Customs, FBR, Mahmood Alam, and Member Executive, Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority, Shakil-ur-Rehman, singed the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations. The MoU explains that the world today is facing a growing international threat of illicit trafficking of radioactive and nuclear materials, which present a grave hazard to national and international security.” (The News-International; 23Jun08; Mehtab Haider) http://www.thenews.com.pk/print1.asp?id=119932

 

Bush fails to appoint a nuclear terror czar

“Ten months after Congress passed a law establishing a White House coordinator for preventing nuclear terrorism, President Bush has no plans to create the high-level post any time soon, according to the National Security Council.” (Boston Globe; 22Jun08; Bryan Bender) http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2008/06/22/bush_fails_to_appoint_a_nuclear_terror_czar/

 

Security lacking at nuclear weapons sites in Europe: US report

“Most European air force bases that house US nuclear bombs are failing to meet security requirements to protect the weapons, according to an internal US Air Force investigation. The air bases often fall short of US Defense Department (DOD) standards, with fencing, lighting and buildings in need of repair and security guards lacking sufficient training and experience, said the document, obtained by the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). The 30-member air force team looking at the safety of nuclear weapons said that ‘inconsistencies in personnel, facilities, and equipment provided to the security mission by the host nation were evident as the team traveled from site to site’ in Europe. ‘A consistently noted theme throughout the visits was that most sites require significant additional resources to meet DOD security requirements,’ said the report, titled ‘Air Force Blue Ribbon Review of Nuclear Weapons Policies and Procedures.’ At some bases, military conscripts with less than a year of active duty experience were assigned the task of guarding the weapons against theft, the report said.” (Agence France Presse; 21Jun08) http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5ilTADjyg56JIknjap6wfjSEdHNTQ

 

Britain re-investigating umbrella killing

“British police are taking a new look at one of their most notorious Cold War cases -- the 1978 killing of a Bulgarian dissident with a poisoned umbrella. A group of senior detectives from the Metropolitan Police flew to Bulgaria last month to interview witnesses and examine documents in archives, The Independent reported. Dnevnik, a Bulgarian newspaper, reported that one of those they sought to interview was Vladimir Todorov, a former head of the Secret Police.” (United Press International; 20Jun08) http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/06/20/Britain_re-investigating_umbrella_killing/UPI-55311213992113/

 

OPCW Director-General Addresses Seminar on Middle East Security and WMD Non-Proliferation/Disarmament

“The OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Rogelio Pfirter, visited Paris, France on 19 June 2008 to address a seminar organised by the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) entitled ‘Middle East Security and Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Non-Proliferation/Disarmament.’ Addressing the issue of ‘Confidence Building Measures (CBMs): Benefiting from Previous Experiences,’ […] he stressed that prompt accession to the Convention would contribute to the goal of establishing a WMD-free zone in the Middle East and add a strong building block to the edifice of regional peace and mutual security.” (OPCW News; 20Jun08; Johan de Wittlaan)

http://www.opcw.org/pressreleases/2008/News13_2008.html

 

CNS ChemBio-WMD Terrorism News is prepared by the Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Program of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies in order to bring timely and focused information to researchers and policymakers interested in the fields of chemical, biological, and radiological weapons nonproliferation and WMD terrorism.

By Fred W. Baker III

American Forces Press Service

 

June 19, 2008 - The mood in the C-17 Globemaster III hanger here was festive today as nearly 1,000 airmen waited for the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to take the stage for an "all-hands" call. Music played. Photos of planes and patriotic images flashed on two large screens flanking the stage. Airmen tapped the toes of their boots on the hangar floor and talked and laughed.

 

"I just want to fly – put your arms around me baby, put your arms around me baby," crooned a popular pop song.

 

The truth was, most of them probably could have used a hug. The troubled service has been rocked in the last weeks and months by procurement problems, funding debates and is still reeling from the resignations of those serving in its two top posts just more than a week ago.

 

And yesterday the Government Accountability Office released a report that could unravel one of the largest aircraft acquisition contracts in U.S. history.

 

"Put your arms around me baby, put your arms around me baby -- I-I-I-I just w-a-a-ant t-o-o fly," the song chorused.

 

Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, here on a tour of western-U.S. military bases walked on stage and stood before the crowd in a green flight suit with a Joint Chiefs patch on his chest. As the military's top officer, he was here to listen to, and take back to the D.C. beltway, the questions and concerns of the airmen. This airlift base is only about 50 miles from the western coastline, and its airmen are probably as far removed from the Pentagon and the levels of leadership that are feeling the heat as you can get in the "lower 48."

 

Mullen did not stand on the elevated podium above the crowd. Instead, after he was introduced, he walked down to the hangar floor and asked that all those standing in the back come to the front and sit down on the floor. It left him, a career Navy man, surrounded by a sea of airmen.

 

For an hour the chairman fielded questions from the group on topics ranging from pay to politics. He thanked the airmen for their service. He challenged them to lead. He prodded them to up their standards.

 

But one question, from a senior noncommissioned officer here, cut to the heart of the chairman's message he has carried from Air Force to Marine base to Army post throughout his four-day trip.

 

"What is on your short list to make this great military better," the NCO asked.

 

"I don't have any short lists," Mullen joked.

 

After some laughter the chairman responded, "My shortest list is one.

 

"People," he said.

 

"It gets to the heart and soul that is really you setting in this hangar -- because we can't do it without you. We can have the greatest missions in the world, and the greatest aircraft in the word, and the greatest technology in the world. It's not going to make any difference at all without the greatest people in the world.

 

Mullen, a Vietnam War veteran, said he remembers the military when it was not the all-volunteer force it is today. He regularly calls the military now the best in the history, and the world.

 

"I don't want to go back there. I don't want to do that again," he said of his service in the mid-1970s and 80s.

 

But today's military is based on the quality of the volunteer, he said. Recruiting, retention, pay, promotions, families -- all demand his attention.

 

"I spend probably sometimes more of my time on these than others might like me to do," Mullen said.

 

"Literally every single day, decisions come across my desk, and there's not one of those decisions that I'm not thinking about what it means for your life, thinking about what it means for your families, thinking about what it means for the missions that I am asking you to carry out in a very dangerous time in very dangerous parts of the world."

 

Mullen said making sure the force is robust and supported, and allowing for career advancement, training and education are critical to taking care of troops.

 

And leaders must take care of families, he added.

 

"I never got to vote whether I stayed in or not. Never did. It was 'us' that did that. If the family is not inclined, I'm not sticking around," Mullen said.

 

The military needs to set up its systems to put the servicemember at the "center of the universe," not the other way around, Mullen said. Assignments should consider not only the needs of the service, but also the servicemember.

 

"Top of the list, is making sure we have it right for you. You're the ones ... that carry this load," Mullen said.

 

That would be my list of one, the top officer in the nation told the NCO as he sat back down in a hangar full of airmen who just heard that they were at the center of the chairman's decision-making process. Not money. Not planes. And certainly not bureaucracy.

 

"We can't do anything without you. Period," Mullen said