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...

During shutdown, U.S. charity to ensure fallen troops' death benefits

By Phil Stewart and Roberta Rampton, Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A private U.S. charity struck a deal with the Pentagon on Wednesday to advance a "death gratuity" to families of American troops who die during the government shutdown, after...
Chemical weapons watchdog says Syria cooperating with mission

By Anthony Deutsch, Reuters

THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Syrian officials have been constructive and cooperative in the early stages of the program to destroy Syria's chemical weapons arsenal, the head of the global chemical weapons...
Fire from Syria wounds Israeli soldier on Golan Heights

By Reuters

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Two mortar bombs fired from Syria hit an Israeli military post on the occupied Golan Heights on Wednesday, wounding an Israeli soldier, in an incident that drew Israeli return...
In Pakistan's Pashtun tribal belt, Taliban reject peace talks

By Saud Mehsud, Reuters

WAZIRISTAN, Pakistan (Reuters) - The Pakistani Taliban envoy drew his white trousers up before settling on the floor of a mud-walled house in Pakistan's ethnic Pashtun tribal region near the Afghan...
U.S., Japan press China on South China Sea dispute

By Lesley Wroughton and Manuel Mogato, Reuters

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Brunei (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will press China and Southeast Asian nations to discuss the South China Sea dispute at an Asian summit, a senior U.S...

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