America’s relationship with Turkey has entered a period of deep crisis. At the heart of the matter is continued U.S. support for Syrian Kurds fighting the Islamic State. The partnership between the United States and a coalition of Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) and Syrian Arab militias, currently known as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), […]
Category: Foreign
Pentagon Wants To Add Thousands Of Soldiers In Afghanistan
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is proposing to counter the resilient Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan by adding thousands more U.S. troops, putting them closer to combat and pounding militants with more airstrikes, according to a senior Defense official. There are about 8,400 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, down from the peak of 100,000 in 2010-’11. The request […]
Trump Approves Arming Kurdish Rebels In Syria
May 9 (Reuters) – Despite fierce opposition from NATO ally Turkey, U.S. President Donald Trump has approved supplying arms to Kurdish YPG fighters to support an operation to retake the Syrian city of Raqqa from Islamic State, U.S. officials said on Tuesday. Ankara views the Kurdish YPG militia fighting within a larger U.S.-backed coalition as […]
Another Trump Nominee Withdraws From Consideration
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s choice for Army secretary withdrew his nomination Friday afternoon after weeks of withering criticism over past statements he has made about gays and lesbians, Muslims and other groups. Mark Green, a veteran and Republican state senator from Tennessee, issued a statement in which he said he was pulling his name from consideration to […]
Navy Seal Killed By Somalian Militants
A U.S. Navy SEAL was killed Thursday during an operation in Somalia targeting militants from the al Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab terror group, officials said Friday. “U.S. forces were conducting an advise and assist mission alongside members of the Somali National Army,” the U.S. military’s Africa Command (AFRICOM) said in a written statement. It said the operation […]
Army Photographers Last Photograph Captures Blast That Killed Her
Specialist Hilda Clayton dies after a mortar tube explodes in front of her lens during a training exercise The US Army has released images captured by a combat photographer of the explosion that killed her. Specialist Hilda Clayton, 22, died when a mortar tube blew up in front of her during a training exercise in Afghanistan. She was alongside a […]
Trump Sending Marines Back To Afghanistan
US soldiers from the Marine Corps have returned to Afghanistan’s Helmand province nearly three years after the US-led NATO forces ended combat mission in the country. Commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan General John Nicholson attended a handover ceremony on Saturday marking the return of the elite force, the first American soldiers to […]
Japan Taking Precautions Due To North Korea
Trains on Tokyo’s biggest subway were halted for 10 minutes Saturday morning after North Korea test-fired a ballistic missile. Tokyo Metro Co. Ltd. stopped services shortly after 6 a.m. as part of measures adopted this month under which services are halted after reports of a North Korean missile launch until confirming that it’s safe to […]
“Major, Major Conflict” With North Korea A Possibility
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday a major conflict with North Korea is possible in the standoff over its nuclear and missile programs, but he would prefer a diplomatic outcome to the dispute. “There is a chance that we could end up having a major, major conflict with North Korea. Absolutely,” Trump told Reuters […]
Trump Tells South Korea To Pay For Defense
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump told Reuters on Thursday he will either renegotiate or terminate what he called a “horrible” free trade deal with South Korea and said Seoul should pay for a U.S. anti-missile system that he priced at $1 billion. In an interview with Reuters, Trump called the five-year-old trade pact […]
Pentagon Warned Flynn About Foreign Payments
Former national security adviser Michael Flynn was warned by the Pentagon against accepting foreign payments following his retirement in 2014, according to new documents released Thursday by the House Oversight Committee. The Defense Intelligence Agency’s (DIA) inspector general launched an investigation into Flynn’s actions this month, according to another document released by committee Democrats. In […]
US Submarines Dock In South Korea As The North Tests Missiles
SEOUL North Korea conducted a big live-fire exercise on Tuesday to mark the foundation of its military as a U.S. submarine docked in South Korea in a show of force amid growing concern over the North’s nuclear and missile programs. The port call by the USS Michigan came as a U.S. aircraft carrier strike group […]