Defense

Factbox: What happens in a U.S. government shutdown?

By Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker and Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker, Reuters

In shutdowns, nonessential government employees are furloughed, or placed on temporary unpaid leave. Workers deemed essential, including those dealing with public safety and national security, keep...
The Mysterious Threat to Pilots That the Pentagon Can’t Solve

By Ciro Scotti

Episodes of oxygen deprivation affecting the pilots of F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet — and other military aircraft including the F-35 — are on the rise and remain an unsolved mystery.
What Game Theory Tells Us About Trump’s ‘Madman’ Approach to North Korea

By Rob Garver

Is Donald Trump out of his mind? Maybe he wants North Korea to think so.
Does the Army’s $580 Million Handgun Have a Fatal Flaw?

By Ciro Scotti

Last January, the Army made a $580 million decision: It would replace its longstanding sidearm, the M9 Beretta, with a new modular handgun made by the U.S. arm of the German-controlled gunsmith Sig...
Why the Escalating Threats Between Trump and Kim Won’t End in War

By Patrick Smith

The supercharged threats volleyed between President Trump and Kim Jong Un this week bring us closer to war with the North Korea than at any time since Pyongyang tested its first nuclear device in...

Here’s the Real State of the $1 Trillion U.S. Nuclear Upgrade

By David Francis

The American nuclear arsenal is just about the same as it was when Trump took office.
Here’s Why North Korea Put Guam in Its Crosshairs

By David Francis

Hours after President Donald Trump threatened North Korea with fire and fury like the world has never known, Pyongyang announced it is "examining the operational plan" to attack Guam, a tiny U.S...
Why the Price of the F-35 Keeps Soaring

By Ciro Scotti

The most costly fighter ever built is getting even more expensive. A new General Accounting Office report says the Pentagon will spend an additional $3.9 billion over the next five years on “...
The Media Has to Stop Provoking Trump’s Worst Instincts

By Rob Garver

For a man constantly boasting about his extraordinary negotiating prowess, President Trump made a pretty obvious rookie mistake on Tuesday, with his apocalyptic-sounding promise to deliver “fire and...
Five Things You Need to Know About Plans to Privatize the Afghan War

By David Francis

The White House is actively considering a plan to turn a big chunk of the war in Afghanistan over to private contractors. That’s according to Erik Prince, founder of the Blackwater security firm, who...

Analysis: How South Sudan leaders squandered nation-building effort

By Carl Odera and Edmund Blair, Reuters

JUBA/NAIROBI (Reuters) - At a well-attended investor conference in South Sudan's capital in early December, President Salva Kiir declared that the world's newest country was "at last safe" and open...
Nigeria says 70 killed in battle with Islamist group

By Camillus Eboh, Reuters

ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria's military said on Tuesday it had killed at least 50 Islamist rebels fleeing towards Cameroon in a battle in which 15 of its own soldiers and five civilians also died...
Exclusive: China commits $6.5 billion for Pakistani nuclear project

By Mehreen Zahra-Malik, Reuters

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - China has committed $6.5 billion to finance the construction of a major nuclear power project in Pakistan's port city of Karachi as it seeks to strengthen ties with its...
Week-long Aleppo air raids kill more than 300: monitor

By Reuters

BEIRUT (Reuters) - More than 300 people have been killed in a week of air raids on the northern Syrian city of Aleppo and nearby towns by President Bashar al-Assad's forces, a monitoring group said...
Exclusive: Assad's secret oil lifeline: Iraqi crude from Egypt

By Julia Payne, Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - The Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad has received substantial imports of Iraqi crude oil from an Egyptian port in the last nine months, shipping and payments...

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