Af/Pak & Other News (5/20/2013)

[dump...@hotmail.com]

Afghan Air Force learning air assault from 101st Airborne:

http://alert5.com/2013/05/20/afghan-air-force-learning-air-assault-from-101st-airborne/



Official: Karzai To Seek More Military Aid During India Trip:

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20130520/DEFREG03/305200015/Official-Karzai-Seek-More-Military-Aid-During-India-Trip



Kabul Rejects Report That It Levied $1 Billion In Taxes On
Contractors:

http://www.rferl.org/content/afghanistan-foreign-minister-zakhilwal-rejects-us-tax-claims-contractors/24987339.html



Robot Guns, Combat Facebook: The Tech of the Army’s ‘Last’ Afghanistan
Brigade:

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2013/05/tech-of-the-last-brigade/




US says Pakistan curbing explosive fertilisers:

http://dawn.com/2013/05/20/us-says-pakistan-curbing-explosive-fertilisers/




Without U.S. helicopters, Afghans struggle to save wounded:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/without-us-helicopters-afghans-struggle-to-save-wounded/2013/05/19/2856b772-b64e-11e2-b568-6917f6ac6d9d_story.html




Taliban suicide bomber assassinates senior politician in Afghan north:

http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2013/05/taliban_suicide_bomb_47.php



First female Afghan graduates pilot training:

http://alert5.com/2013/05/20/first-female-afghan-graduates-pilot-training/



A Taliban Cry For Help:

http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htterr/articles/20130520.aspx




Activists mark 100 days of Guantanamo strike with petition:

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Activists_mark_100_days_of_Guantanamo_strike_with_petition_999.html







Wave of violent attacks kills at least 86 in Iraq:

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/05/20/iraqi-officials-5-car-bombs-across-baghdad-shiite-neighborhoods-kill-16/




Iraq PM says to overhaul security strategy after attacks:

http://dawn.com/2013/05/20/iraq-pm-says-to-overhaul-security-strategy-after-attacks/



Iraq Slaughter Intensifies; Gunmen mass at Iraq security command HQ:

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Iraq_violence_kills_eight_police_kidnapped_999.html







US drones strike again in Yemen, kill 2 AQAP fighters:

http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2013/05/us_drones_strike_aga_7.php





Battle in Syria Pulls Hezbollah Further Into Assad’s War:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/21/world/middleeast/syria-developments.html



Why the Rebels Aren’t Winning:

http://nation.time.com/2013/05/20/why-the-rebels-arent-winning/



Hezbollah suffers big losses in Syria battle - activists:

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/20/uk-syria-crisis-idUKBRE94J0EF20130520



Iran Shows How It Is Done:

http://www.strategypage.com/qnd/syria/articles/20130520.aspx





Air strikes, dozens dead in Nigeria assault on Islamists:

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Air_strikes_dozens_dead_in_Nigeria_assault_on_Islamists_999.html




European Union Naval Force commander warns of continued pirate menace:

http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=30502:european-union-naval-force-commander-warns-of-continued-pirate-menace&catid=108:maritime-security&Itemid=233






Former UK aircraft carrier towed to Turkey for scrap:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jA0IiMIa6MXDHZ07oOqkPQhRJT-w?docId=CNG.d4d41dbe0bb1f5b73e0b20a5078fa065.171




Italian Navy Chief Proposes New Dual-Use Vessel:

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20130520/DEFREG01/305200014/Italian-Navy-Chief-Proposes-New-Dual-Use-Vessel?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE




Dagestan’s Shadow War, Fought by ‘Many Tsarnaevs’:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/20/world/europe/bomb-suspects-trip-sheds-light-on-caucasus-war.html?_r=0




U.S. Lawyer Booted From Russia for (Allegedly) Refusing to Serve as
Kremlin Spy:

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2013/05/russian-spies/




American accused of spying in Russia flies home:

http://news.msn.com/world/american-accused-of-spying-in-russia-flies-home




UK confirms Brimstone trials plan for Reaper:

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/uk-confirms-brimstone-trials-plan-for-reaper-386072/






Japanese leader revives dark memories of imperial-era biological
experiments in China:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/05/18/japanese-leader-revives-dark-memories-of-imperial-era-biological-experiments-in-china/




N. Korea fires yet another missile: 6th in 3 days:

http://news.msn.com/world/n-korea-fires-yet-another-missile-6th-in-3-days





Fiji turns to Russia, China amid strained regional ties:

http://www.defencetalk.com/fiji-turns-to-russia-china-amid-strained-regional-ties-47821/




Asia's Naval Procurement Sees Major Growth:

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20130519/DEFREG03/305190004/Asia-s-Naval-Procurement-Sees-Major-Growth




Chinese Hackers Resume Attacks on US Targets:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100749575





Fox News Reporter May Face Criminal Charges for Reporting on the CIA:

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2013/05/fox-news-reporter-james-rosen-may-face-criminal-charges-reporting-cia/65393/



High-Speed Strike Weapon To Build On X-51 Flight:

http://www.aviationweek.com/Article.aspx?id=/article-xml/AW_05_20_2013_p24-579062.xml



Report: Obama Administration Apologizes for Another National Security
Leak:

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/05/19/report-obama-administration-apologizes-for-another-national-security-leak/



U-2 pilot clocks 2,000 hours on final combat mission:

http://alert5.com/2013/05/20/u-2-pilot-clocks-2000-hours-on-final-combat-mission/

[dott.Piergiorgio]

Il 20/05/2013 21:18, dump...@hotmail.com ha scritto:
> Italian Navy Chief Proposes New Dual-Use Vessel:
>
> http://www.defensenews.com/article/20130520/DEFREG01/305200014/Italian-Navy-Chief-Proposes-New-Dual-Use-Vessel?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

not a news for me. After the Condottieri, the Navigatori....

(History eerily repeats.... seems also that the superstructures of the
7th and 8th FREMM will be "redesigned")

and, no, albeit the long-term Naval procurement here look ominously
clear to me, I can't divine *what* will be laid down in mid-20s.....

Viva l' Italia !
dott. Piergiorgio.

[Arved Sandstrom]

You're going to have me re-reading my book on inter-war naval
construction programmes. ;-)

AHS

[dott.Piergiorgio]

yea, I don't hide that I noticed that the recent and current programmes
is substantially coincident to that of mid-late 1920s, minus the four
Zaras and two Sella/Sauros;

but you should look also in history of Naval development; Italy was
already behind the demise of ironclads, pre-dreadnoughts and CVS/CVE:

what should be justapoxed is the not-much veiled message to the local
politicos that this programme will be the only acceptable bargain in
exchange to the renounce to the -35B and that the initial armament will
be gun-only (vulcanized, of course); I fear that the -35 saga has
reached the worst conclusion, and the most unfortunate one for the USN....

OTOH, the literal last but not least is that Italian Navy has decided
that the future ship designs will be in-house; this will surely led to
rather interesting innovations, not necessarily good for the current
holders of Sea Power:

you should go to a library, find a copy of 1903 Jane's and read *very*
carefully an article by a certain Cuniberti...)

to get an approximate idea of what can happen, read here:

> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vittorio_Cuniberti

Best regards from Italy,
dott. Piergiorgio.