04/27/2021 News & Commentary – National Security

News and Commentary by Dave Maxwell.  Edited and Published by Daniel Riggs

1. The Ease of Tracking Mobile Phones of U.S. Soldiers in Hot Spots

2. The Spy in Your Pocket

3. We’ve Been Here Before: Learning From the Military’s History with White Nationalism

4. China’s Irregular Approach to War: The Myth of a Purely Conventional Future Fight

5. Intelligence and the Tyranny of Process

6. Spy chiefs look to declassify intel after rare plea from 4-star commanders

7. U.S. intelligence community to create center to address foreign malign influence

8. China and US to Send in New Ambassadors

9. China Raises Scrutiny on Companies With New Anti-Spying Rules

10. Pentagon Tracking 14 Cases of Heart Inflammation in Troops After COVID-19 Shots

11. No, SOCCENT Twitter wasn’t hacked as the command initially said

12. A Risky Bet? The U.S. Army of the Future Will Be Electric

13. Poll: Majority of Americans more concerned about voter access than ineligible voters

14. After Failures to Curb Sexual Assault, a Move Toward a Major Shift in Military Law

15. U.S. to share up to 60 million vaccine doses amid pressure to aid desperate countries

16. Addressing threats to U.S. national security

17. U.S. to Share AstraZeneca Covid-19 Vaccine Doses With World

18. American Vets See Echoes of Vietnam in Afghanistan Withdrawal Plan

19. Opinion | Why The New York Times Is Retiring the Term ‘Op-Ed’

20. US could seek ‘expeditionary’ base deal with India

21. Are U.S. Bases in Asia Vulnerable to Chinese Missiles? Very.

22. OPINION: Suga-Biden summit: Rekindling confidence in the U.S.-Japan alliance

23. What are the Top 10 Sources of Threats to America?

24.  How to Think About Counterinsurgency After Afghanistan

25. US Army to Replace Criminal Investigations Chief In Wake of Guillen’s Death

26. How the Army uses the West Virginia wilderness to find out who has what it takes to join Delta Force

 

1. The Ease of Tracking Mobile Phones of U.S. Soldiers in Hot Spots

WSJ · by Byron Tau

COMSEC. Communications security.  Digital exhaust. The end of cell phone use for the troops?  All smart devices?  Anything that connects to the network?

 

2. The Spy in Your Pocket

cdrsalamander.substack.com · by CDR Salamander

 

3. We’ve Been Here Before: Learning From the Military’s History with White Nationalism

warontherocks.com · by Simone Askew, Jack Lowe, Nette Monaus, and Kirsten L. Cooper · April 27, 2021

Conclusion: "Finally, the most important lesson is that policy updates alone are ineffective without continued commitment from military and civilian leadership. It takes more than words. New, centralized bureaucratic structures, robust strategies, and better processes are needed to create a standardized mechanism for reporting and recording incidents of extremism within the military. The absence of this type of data collection has left military leaders without the information they need to even understand this problem. Our academic research team is working to remedy one aspect of this information deficiency by developing a historical database of incidents with confirmed ties to the military and white nationalism in the hopes of mapping past patterns of behavior and response. Our database is limited only to publicly reported incidents and currently has over 130 identified entries and over 300 cases found in de-identified reports, forming the largest single compilation of such incidents. Yet, based on recent reporting that the FBI opened 143 investigations into extremist activity among current and former military members in 2020 alone, our database and the public record capture only a small sliver of the true extent of the problem. Austin’s Feb. 5 memo called for a “concerted” and “sustainable” effort to “eliminate the corrosive effects … [of] extremist ideology.” The military can learn from its own history to make this call a reality."

 

4. China’s Irregular Approach to War: The Myth of a Purely Conventional Future Fight

mwi.usma.edu · by David Knoll · April 27, 2021

Yep what they said.  There seem to be many in the US military industrial complex who long for a 'simple" conventional force on force fight.  Probably a bad assumption.

As I have written:

America may not be interested in irregular, unconventional, and political warfare but IW/UW/PW are being practiced around the world by those who are interested in them – namely the revisionist, rogue, and revolutionary powers and violent extremist organizations.

-With no apologies to Leon Trotsky

 

We will need to get the assumptions about warfighting right in the next NDS.

Conclusion: "Department of Defense leaders would do well to consider these threats as they refine US approaches to competition and warfighting. Irregular warfare should not be treated as a separate domain, specific to counterinsurgency and counterterrorism, segmented off and studied by a niche community of specialists. Instead, the full spectrum of irregular warfare capabilities should be part of adversary threat estimates and incorporated into large-scale conventional wargames. As the military services exercise their distributed concepts, they should anticipate that adversary forces will combine advanced ISR, long-range precision munitions, and irregular warfare activities to target US forces, allies, and partners operating within these constructs. Acknowledging the full scope of conflict will better prepare the US military for the modern irregular warfare concept that Chinese forces have already begun employing in great power competition."

 

5. Intelligence and the Tyranny of Process

mwi.usma.edu · by Addison McLamb · April 27, 2021

Conclusion: “In Greek mythology, Poseidon’s son Procrustes was oddly cruel: he invited guests to spend the night in a bed, then stretched their bodies (if too short) or cut off their legs (if too tall) to fit more perfectly. It is an infamously brutish illustration of the asinine tendency to force all things—irrespective of variety—to conform to one standard. In intelligence, solving different problems requires different methodologies, and trying to benchmark tactical problem solving to one deductive process hardens the analytical ceiling of MI soldiers. We have a deep bench of talented analysts—officer and enlisted alike—who are ready and willing to think hard in tackling the next wave of national security issues. The process to help them win might not be another process at all.

 

6. Spy chiefs look to declassify intel after rare plea from 4-star commanders

POLITICO  · April 26, 2021

I think the 4 stars have it right.

 

7. U.S. intelligence community to create center to address foreign malign influence

CBS News · by Olivia Gazis

A follow-on to the 4 star letter.  I think this could be a good development and a path forward for dealing with the malign influence.  As Sun Tu says: "Thus what is of supreme importance is. to attack the enemy's strategy."  In my mind the first step in attacking the enemy's strategy is to identify and expose it.  And in the information domain exposing the enemy's strategy who would come under its malign influence is an important line of defense.  The general public is the target of the much of the malign influence; therefore, they need to be provided the tools for self defense.  

 

9. China Raises Scrutiny on Companies With New Anti-Spying Rules

Bloomberg · by Bloomberg News · April 27, 2021

Mirror imaging?

Excerpts: “The regulation didn’t specify which industries or companies will be on the list, but it said the list will be drawn up based on the level of confidentiality that the industry involves, the degree of foreign involvement, and whether there have been previous incidents that endangered national security, according to Global Times.

To carry out anti-espionage missions and eliminate the hidden dangers of foreign espionage, the regulation also gives national security organs access to buildings, internal materials, electronic kits, facilities, or computers and information systems of the companies involved, the report said.

China’s state security authorities will make further efforts to “organize and mobilize all social forces to jointly prevent and curb espionage activities and other acts hurting national security to strengthen national security shield,” Xinhua said.

 

10. Pentagon Tracking 14 Cases of Heart Inflammation in Troops After COVID-19 Shots

military.com · by Patricia Kime · April 26, 2021

Uh oh. We just received our second Pfizer vaccination yesterday.  I wonder if these 14 had already been exposed to COVID before they received the vaccinations?

Excerpts: “The rare disorder, usually caused by a virus, has been linked to COVID-19. But following a number of reports from Israel of patients developing the inflammation in conjunction with receiving vaccines, the Israeli Health Ministry is exploring a possible link, Israel's Channel 12 reported Friday, according to the Jerusalem Post.

Myocarditis is an inflammation of the heart muscle, the myocardium, that can reduce the heart's ability to function or cause abnormal heart rhythms. The first report of myocarditis in a patient who received a COVID-19 vaccine was published in Israel on Feb. 1.

 

11. No, SOCCENT Twitter wasn’t hacked as the command initially said

militarytimes.com · by Howard Altman · April 26, 2021

The first report is always wrong.

 

12. A Risky Bet? The U.S. Army of the Future Will Be Electric

19fortyfive.com · by ByCaleb Larson · April 26, 2021

Conclusion: "Though the Army’s electric vehicle initiative is perhaps not quite as far along as they’d like, the Cohort Program could quickly change where the Army program currently is — either way, the Army of the future will be electric."

 

13. Poll: Majority of Americans more concerned about voter access than ineligible voters

NBC News · by Carrie Dann · April 27, 2021

Because most American support democracy.

 

14. After Failures to Curb Sexual Assault, a Move Toward a Major Shift in Military Law

The New York Times · by Jennifer Steinhauer · April 27, 2021

I am pretty sure we are going to see a major change to the UCMJ process in this area.

 

15.  U.S. to share up to 60 million vaccine doses amid pressure to aid desperate countries

The Washington Post  · by Tyler Pager, Annie Linskey and Emily Rauhala  · April 26, 2021

 

16. Addressing threats to U.S. national security

washingtontimes.com · by Joseph DeTrani

Excerpts: “One of the many strengths of our system is the transparency the public expects from our government to provide routine and timely updates on the status of the threats and how they are being managed. Also expected is a responsible media disseminating this information to the public.

...

These are just some of the national security issues affecting the U.S. Each impacts the well-being of all Americans. And that means the public has a need-to-know what the government is doing to address, mitigate and prevent these country-specific and transnational issues from affecting the security of the U.S.

The annual threat assessment from the intelligence community is an excellent annual summary of the international threats to the U.S. How the government is managing these threats should be the substance of a daily dialogue with the American people.

 

17. U.S. to Share AstraZeneca Covid-19 Vaccine Doses With World

WSJ · by Sabrina Siddiqui and Jessica Donati

Excerpts: “India’s epidemic also brought renewed focus on the disparity in vaccine access between developing countries and wealthier nations.

The new wave of infections in India, which began in March, came after a loosening of restrictions and brought fresh criticism toward Mr. Modi and his government for participating in large political rallies and encouraging mass religious gatherings even as cases were on the rise.

Mr. Modi’s government has also come under scrutiny for ordering Twitter Inc., Facebook Inc. and Instagram to block about 100 social-media posts criticizing its handling of the surge, prompting public anger and allegations of censorship.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday that efforts by the Indian government to block social-media criticism “certainly wouldn’t be aligned with our view of freedom of speech around the world.”

U.S. to Share AstraZeneca Covid-19 Vaccine Doses With World

Biden administration to help India fight surge in coronavirus, readying oxygen shipments

 

18.  American Vets See Echoes of Vietnam in Afghanistan Withdrawal Plan

WSJ · by Michael M. Phillips and Nancy A. Youssef

Excerpts: “Many Afghanistan vets are glad to see U.S. troops return home and the flow of casualties come to a stop. At the same time, they wonder if the blood and treasure were well spent in a war that, if not a loss, certainly wasn’t a victory.

Mr. Nicholas has confronted for years the ambivalence of such unsatisfying conclusions and allies left behind to face the consequences. “The same thing that happened in Vietnam is happening here,” said Mr. Nicholas, now 68 and living in Green, Ohio.

“They’ll say we accomplished great things,” he said. “I say we accomplished nothing.”

American Vets See Echoes of Vietnam in Afghanistan Withdrawal Plan

U.S. troops who fought in conflicts decades apart see their country leaving behind wars unfinished and allies to face the consequences.”

 

19.  Opinion | Why The New York Times Is Retiring the Term ‘Op-Ed’

The New York Times · by Kathleen Kingsbury · April 26, 2021

Excerpts: “That important mission remains the same. But it’s time to change the name. The reason is simple: In the digital world, in which millions of Times subscribers absorb the paper’s journalism online, there is no geographical “Op-Ed,” just as there is no geographical “Ed” for Op-Ed to be opposite to. It is a relic of an older age and an older print newspaper design.

So now, at age 50, the designation will be retired. Editorials will still be called editorials, but the articles written by outside writers will be known going forward as “Guest Essays,’’ a title that will appear prominently above the headline.

Op-Ed has had a great run. It became a standard for the rest of our industry, and enormously popular among readers and contributors alike. It’s hard now to recall that the original editors were actually nervous at its inception and worried whether anyone would be moved to contribute. But as an essay marking the page’s 20th birthday observed, “It was as if the Gray Lady had hit the dance floor.” Contributions poured in, and by its 40th, nearly 15,000 Op-Ed pages had been printed.

 

20. US could seek ‘expeditionary’ base deal with India

asiatimes.com · by MK Bhadrakumar · April 27, 2021

Excerpts: “Thus India would probably be the only remaining regional state in Washington’s consideration zone as a potential collaborator. No doubt, the US is in a desperate hurry as the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan has commenced. The big question is whether the US is relenting on the vaccine front with a view to cutting a deal with India on Afghanistan.

The thought of it, of course, is very frightening. But if past experience is any guide, Washington has shown savviness to exploit India’s travails. A big step recently toward institutionalizing the Quad was possible only because of India’s border tensions with China.

However, Afghanistan is a “graveyard of empires.” The calculus of fratricidal wars keeps changing and India is best advised to steer clear of the Afghan civil war. Predicating any policy on the United States’ consistency is risky too.

Therefore, India should never contemplate a Faustian deal allowing Pentagon basing arrangements on its soil for the upcoming Afghan operations as quid pro quo for raw materials for the Covid-19 vaccine.

This should be delimited as a purely commercial transaction between the Indian vaccine manufacturing company and the US supplier of raw materials.

 

21. Are U.S. Bases in Asia Vulnerable to Chinese Missiles? Very.

The National Interest · by James Holmes · April 27, 2021

Conclusion: "So America needs to rediscover the habit of strategic humility after being top dog for a generation. Here’s what Indo-Pacific allies need to do: help us help you. Even if island-chain defense works out, U.S. reinforcements must gain access to the Western Pacific to prevail in wartime. PLA commanders have predicated their access-denial strategy on disheartening their U.S. counterparts or convincing the U.S. administration the military effort cannot succeed at a cost the country is prepared to pay. Allies and partners should devise strategies and operations that hold down the price of access for U.S. forces—and thus make it thinkable if not easy for an American president to order them into combat."

 

22. OPINION: Suga-Biden summit: Rekindling confidence in the U.S.-Japan alliance

KYODO NEWS · by Sayuri Rome and Scott W. Harold · April 26, 2021

Excerpts: “The April 16 summit signaled a substantial deepening in the U.S.-Japan alliance, highlighting important new areas of cooperation and a concrete agenda for U.S.-Japan relations. But major domestic and foreign policy issues remain that could distract from, or provide further impetus for, allied cooperation. Prior to the summit, both China and South Korea reacted strongly to Japan's announcement that it plans to release treated radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster into the Pacific Ocean. Japanese fishermen from the region also criticized the decision, arguing it would undermine market confidence in their products. Separately, at the post-summit press conference, Suga chose not to respond to a question about whether or not public health considerations would permit the country to follow through with hosting the Olympics this summer. A majority of the Japanese public remain opposed to holding the event. Despite the procurement of promises of additional supplies of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine, several major Japanese cities have again been put under a state of emergency.

The U.S. issued a statement supporting Japan's approach to the disposal through dilution of the stored Fukushima wastewater, and Biden offered his personal support for Japan's "efforts to hold a safe and secure" Olympics this summer. Suga, whose domestic approval ratings remain low, has thus been able to draw substantial gains from the alliance, while Biden used it to answer the question of whether he might pursue a more China-centric foreign policy that prioritizes Beijing over Tokyo. Little wonder then that the latest polls show the Japanese public is overwhelmingly in favor of moves such as the two sides took this past week to continue strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance.

 

23. What are the Top 10 Sources of Threats to America?

The National Interest · by Jeff Allen · April 26, 2021

Transparency and informing the public are important for our national security.

 

24. How to Think About Counterinsurgency After Afghanistan

defenseone.com · by Steven Metz

The pendulum will swing. (again)

Conclusion: “How then should the United States think about counterinsurgency? In a word, realistically. First, Americans should admit that today’s terrorists do not need physical sanctuary, so trying to control every isolated patch of territory on earth is not worth the cost even if it could be done. Second, as heartbreaking as it would be to see evil movements like the Taliban, the Islamic State, or al Qaeda in control of all or part of a nation, the United States must base counterinsurgency support on the viability of the partner government, not the pathology of the insurgents. If a government is truly dedicated to altering the system that gave rise to insurgency and shares basic American values, it might deserve help. Otherwise, the United States should resist supporting a deeply flawed partner simply because its opponent is worse. This may ultimately be the most important strategic lesson of Afghanistan.

 

25. US Army to Replace Criminal Investigations Chief In Wake of Guillen’s Death

defenseone.com · by Tara Copp

 

26. How the Army uses the West Virginia wilderness to find out who has what it takes to join Delta Force

Business Insider · by Stavros Atlamazoglou

 

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"And that's probably one of my biggest gripes with the Internet, that it settles for mediocrity and disinformation, which puts all information on the same level. Everything has the same value, whether it's Albert Einstein speaking, or [email protected]."

- Harlan Ellison

 

"Among all the world’s races…Americans are the most prone to misinformation...so much of what they believe is wrong."

John Kenneth Galbraith

 

"As long as anger, paranoia and misinformation drive our political debate, there are unhinged souls among us who will feel justified in turning to violent remedies for imagined threats."

- David Horsey