MTQ News

This file photo shows an F-35 joint strike fighter, marked AA-1, landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California, on Oct. 23, 2008. (Photo: U.S. Air Force / Senior Airman Julius Delos Reyes)   Axios: Turkey's Erdoğan criticizes Biden, asks for money back on F-35   Fresh off his first visit with Vladimir Putin in over a year, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accused a top Biden official of "supporting terrorism" and demanded the U.S. pay $1.4 billion for kicking Turkey out of a stealth fighter jet program.   Why it matters: Erdoğan's belligerence and deepening cooperation with Russia is sending a key U.S. relationship in the wrong direction, serving up yet another foreign policy headache for President Biden.   Driving the news: Speaking to reporters on his way back from Sochi, Erdoğan condemned Brett McGurk, the White House coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa and former anti-ISIS envoy, for allying the U.S. with Kurdish militias in Syria...

In a letter to the U.S. Marine Corps Commandant, my colleagues and I have asked that LTC Stuart Scheller be released from pretrial confinement: pic.twitter.com/vTSBXTvKvh — Louie Gohmert (@replouiegohmert) September 30, 2021   Daily Mail: 36 members of Congress sign letter calling for Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller's immediate release from grim military brig after he was detained for repeatedly criticizing chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal   * Hearing for Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller will determine today whether he's released from the Camp Lejeune brig  * Members of the public and the media are prohibited from observing the high-profile case  * He was jailed Monday for defying orders to stop posting videos online that condemned Joe Biden's withdrawal from Afghanistan  * Dozens of congressmembers are calling for him to be released from the lockup  * His hearing was delayed Thursday as prosecutors and Scheller's lawyer seek to reach a resolution  * A so...

Vice President Kamala Harris has added two crisis communications professionals to her staff. REUTERS/Tom Brenner   Washington Examiner: Harris hires messaging gurus to shore up ‘long-term planning'   Vice President Kamala Harris has hired two veteran communications aides to help finesse messaging and long-term planning after a rocky first nine months in office for the second-in-command.  Lorraine Voles, a crisis communications expert, and Adam Frankel, a former Obama speechwriter, worked for Harris during the presidential transition and have extensive experience crafting messages from the White House and the corporate world.   Read more ....   Update: Harris reportedly adds crisis, strategic communication vets to her staff (NYPost)   WNU Editor : She knows that President Biden's days are numbered. She is setting up her own media and communications network independent from the White House.   Update : Her poll numbers are better than Presiden...

Student accuses US of funding “ethnic genocide” by Israel in front of VP Harris “Americans are struggling because of a lack of health care, public health care, lack of affordable housing and all this money ends up going to Israel..” the student said at an event on VOTING RIGHTS! pic.twitter.com/n2lTSU4qp3 — Press TV (@PressTV) September 30, 2021 FOX News: Iran state media promotes video of Kamala Harris not pushing back on Israel 'ethnic genocide' claim   Harris praised student after her remarks: 'Your truth should not be suppressed'  An Iran state media outlet promoted a clip Thursday of Vice President Kamala Harris praising a student who had just accused the United States of funding Israel's "ethnic genocide" against Palestinians.  Press TV, an Iran-affiliated international outlet, tweeted out the exchange Harris had at Virginia's George Mason University Tuesday with a female student, who raised questions about U.S. monies provided to alli...

 The European multinational developer and manufacturer of missiles, MBDA displays MARTE ER anti-ship missile, at the International Naval and Maritime Defense Exhibition Seafuture 2021. Read full news at this link A model of MARTE ER anti-ship missile (Picture source: Navy Recognition) Read more from World Defence News https://ift.tt/3okTaIj via IFTTT

 The company of all-Italian excellence that offers cutting-edge products and services in various fields, Fincantieri NexTech, displays OMEGA 360 software defined radar during Seafuture 2021. Read full news at this link OMEGA 360 software defined radar (Picture source: Navy Recognition) Read more from World Defence News https://ift.tt/3F4k2Cd via IFTTT

 At SeaFuture 2021, the International Naval and Maritime Defense Exhibition that takes place in the Naval Base of La Spezia in Italy from 28 September to 1 october 2021, Fincantieri NexTech LAOS-3/HP three-axes gyro-stabilized optronic platform. Read full news at this link LAOS-3/HP three-axes gyro-stabilized optronic platform at Seafuture, La Spezia  (Picture source: Navy Recognition) Read more from World Defence News https://ift.tt/3AZOACO via IFTTT

The video: pic.twitter.com/Unhq9lsHwE — Ruben Hofs (@rubenhofs) September 22, 2021 Daily Caller: Lockheed Exec Refuses To Comment On Video Exposing Mystery Aviation Technology On Secret Testing Base   The general manager of Lockheed’s most secretive arm, known as “Skunk Works”, refused to comment Tuesday on a mysterious aviation technology spotted recently at a Lockheed testing facility in the Mojave Desert outside of Palmdale, California.  A video began making the rounds on Twitter Sept. 22 exposing an oddly shaped, sleek aircraft being loaded onto a flatbed trailer.  The video was re-posted by Ruben Hofs, an aviation enthusiast, who he says stumbled across it on TikTok.   Read more ....   WNU Editor : As I had mentioned in this post .... Future Fighter Concepts Spotted At Lockheed Martin’s Helendale Radar Test Range (September 25, 2021) .... I thought this was a super top secret site?!?!?!? from War News Updates https://ift.tt/39W3XjA via IFTT...

Photo: China Military   Global Times: Exclusive: Future AWACS to be unmanned, integrated: designer   The future airborne early warning aircraft and control system (AWACS) will be unmanned and integrated for future warfare, a major developer told the Global Times on Thursday at the Airshow China held in Zhuhai, South China's Guangdong Province.   Zhang Shaofeng, deputy manager of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation, told the Global Times that the AWACS will be a vital element for future warfare, which will require integrated clusters of various types of aircraft.  This will require AWACS to be unmanned and more intelligent, according to Zhang.   Read more ....   WNU Editor : China has high ambitions to face the the U.S. .... China’s ‘Sniping’ J-20 Jets, A.I. Enabled AWACS — Beijing ‘Unveils’ Its Plan To Puncture US Muscle Power (Eurasian Review). from War News Updates https://ift.tt/3F72C85 via IFTTT ...

Forbes: C oming Soon—A New Stealth Fighter For China’s New Aircraft Carrier   The Chinese navy could reveal its new naval fighter this year, officials said at an air show in southern China.  Observers widely expect this new carrier-compatible plane to be a derivative of the FC-31 stealth fighter that the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation developed for export, but which has never found a foreign buyer.  It’s apparent, however, that the People’s Liberation Army Navy isn’t counting on the unproven FC-31 to populate the deck of its first supercarrier, the thousand-foot-long Type 003 that’s nearing completion at a shipyard in Shanghai.   Read more ....  More News On China Developing A New Carrier-Based Fighter Jet   New AVIC fighter jet to appear 'before year's end' -- China Daily  China preps rollout of a new carrier-based fighter jet -- Defense News   China Is Working on a Next-Generation Fighter Jet for Its Carriers -- Business Insider ...

There are now more seniors than children in China. Photo: AP  SCMP : China’s population could halve within the next 45 years, new study warns   China's population decline may be much faster than expected, with the number of people in the country halving within the next 45 years, a new study has warned.  The projection was based on the official birth rate of 1.3 children per woman last year - well below the figure of 2 needed to keep the number stable - and forecast a much more dramatic decline than previous estimates.  China's current population is over 1.4 billion and in 2019 the United Nations projected that China would still have around 1.3 billion people by 2065.   Read more ....   WNU Editor: When I was living and working in China in the mid-1980s I was told by one of my Chinese hosts that for China to be a superpower in the future, with the territory and resources that it had, it had to have a population around 600 million. It likes that goal...

Photo taken in December 2020 shows the construction site at the Luang Prabang station in Laos, part of the BRI China-Laos railway project. Photograph: Xinhua   CNBC: Chinese loans leave developing countries with $385 billion in hidden debts, study says   * AidData, an international development research lab based at Virginia’s College of William & Mary, analyzed 13,427 Chinese development projects worth a combined $843 billion across 165 countries, over an 18-year period to the end of 2017.  * Researchers found that these nations’ debt obligations to China are larger than international research institutions, credit ratings agencies or intergovernmental organizations estimate.  China’s Belt and Road Initiative has caused dozens of lower- and middle-income countries to accumulate $385 billion in “hidden debts” to Beijing, a new study has claimed. AidData, an international development research lab based at Virginia’s College of William & Mary, analyzed 13,...

  OilPrice.com: “At All Costs”: China Pulls Out All Stops To Prevent Winter Energy Crisis   China’s central government has ordered state-owned energy companies to do whatever they must to secure energy supplies for this winter, according to Bloomberg sources. The Vice Premier Han Zheng issued the desperate order at an emergency meeting earlier this week with state-owned asset regulator and economic planning agencies.  The message was clear: blackouts will not be tolerated, Bloomberg sources revealed.  But China is already suffering blackouts and coal shortages leading up to the week-long National Day holiday.   Read more ....  More News On China's Energy Crisis   Why China’s power crunch is such a big deal -- CNBC   China Panics: Beijing Orders Energy Firms To "Secure Supplies At All Costs" -- Zero Hedge   China's growing power crunch threatens more global supply chain chaos -- CNN   How bad is China’s energy crisis? -...

During Seafuture 2021, Leonardo’s stand is divided into two areas – Air and Water (the latter in turn divided into surface and underwater). It will showcase systems capable of accompanying the evolution of increasingly multi-domain operations, thanks to the development of new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, automation, data processing and information management. The firm showcases also the Lionfish 12.7 Ultra Light naval gun. Read full news at this link Lionfish 12.7 Ultra Light naval gun on board of Sea Watch Dog Unmanned Surface Vehicle (Picture source: Navy Recognition) Read more from World Defence News https://ift.tt/3F5QiVy via IFTTT

The Chinese and American militaries resumed high-level dialogue in August. Photo: AP   The Hill: China, US military officials held talks to discuss relations   U.S. and Chinese defense officials held two days of talks amid strained relations between the two nations, the Pentagon revealed late Wednesday.  Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for China Michael Chase led the secure video conference on Tuesday and Wednesday with Maj. Gen. Huang Xueping, deputy director of the People’s Liberation Army’s Office for International Military Cooperation.   Read more ....   WNU Editor: I know these talks did not end well when I hear Chinese officials lecturing the U.S. on what they should do .... Chinese military urges US to ‘correct mistakes’ to improve defence ties (SCMP). More here .... China Says US Must Correct Its 'Cognitive Problems' After Tense Military-To-Military Talks (Zero Hedge).  More News On China - US Talks On Military Relations Amid Strai...

DW: Russia says Tajiks, Afghans amassing troops at shared border, urges solution   Russia's Foreign Ministry reports massive troop deployments and has called on both sides to deescalate.  US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has voiced concern for Afghan personnel who fled the Taliban into Tajikistan.  The Russian Foreign Ministry on Thursday claimed to have reports indicating troop deployments by Tajikistan and Afghanistan along those two countries' shared border.  "We observe with concern growing tensions in Tajik-Afghan relations against the background of mutual harsh statements by the leaders of the two countries. Reports have appeared about the deployment of armed forces by both sides to the common border.  According to information from the Taliban, tens of thousands of special forces units have been deployed in the bordering [northern] Afghan province Takhar alone," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexei Zaytsev.  Read more ....   WNU Edit...

  WNU Editor: It is hard for me to trust a CIA officer (former or current). But Mike Baker's take on Afghanistan is spot on. from War News Updates https://ift.tt/39SLS61 via IFTTT

BBC: Venezuela crisis: Three in four in extreme poverty, study says   Three in every four Venezuelans live in extreme poverty, a study has said, as a years-long severe economic crisis in the oil-rich nation continues. Researchers at Andrés Bello Catholic University (UCAB) linked the increase to both the pandemic and a fuel crisis.  Since 2014, the country has suffered from shortages of basic supplies and hyperinflation.  Millions of people are in need of aid.  The government has not commented but it often says US sanctions are to blame. Critics, however, say the crisis is a result of President Nicolás Maduro's economic mismanagement. Public services have collapsed, unemployment has soared and the local currency - the bolivar - is almost worthless.  According to the report, the National Survey of Living Conditions (Encovi), extreme poverty rose to 76.6%, from 67.7% last year.  Someone is considered to be in extreme poverty when living on less than ...

According to information published on September 30, 2021, General Dynamics European Land Systems (GDELS) has announced that it and its partner, Hanwha Defense Corporation (HDC), have been selected by the Republic of Korea’s Defence Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) to jointly produce 110 M3 amphibious bridging vehicles for the Republic of Korea Army. Read full Defense News at this link ... GDELS M3 amphibious bridge and ferry system.  (Picture source GDELS) Read More from World Defence News https://ift.tt/3zSRV51 via IFTTT

Turkey’s land systems manufacturer Otokar and the European leading robotics and autonomous systems developer Milrem Robotics signed a teaming agreement during the DSEI 2021 exhibition in London to merge know-how and resources for autonomy development and application for unmanned and robotic operations of military vehicles. Read full Defense News at this link ... Milrem Robotics from Estonia and Turkish company OTOKAR will jointly develop new unmanned robotic systems. Read More from World Defence News https://ift.tt/3ihsvs8 via IFTTT

During the COMPASS2020 demonstration, Airbus showcased their DeckFinder technology to launch and recover a rotary wing UAV from the Portuguese Offshore Patrol Vessel NRP Setubal, successfully completing more than 10 fully autonomous launches and recoveries. Read full news at this link When landing on small or moving helidecks, a difference of a few centimeters can compromise and endanger a whole mission. To avoid such risk, DeckFinder provides a 3-dimensional image of the RPASs relative position, aiding in landing the aerial vehicle safely  (Picture source: Airbus) Read more from World Defence News https://ift.tt/3B2Hhuc via IFTTT

The world premiere of the new-generation G-Class (model series 464) for emergency crews working on behalf of the state and authorities took place: in Graz, Mercedes-Benz is opening a new chapter in the success story of the off-road vehicle with the largest product revision of the G-Class for Rescue and Special Operations in 29 years (here, “special operations” must be understood as uncommon use, not militarily speaking, as special ops vehicle are designed in a much different shape). A very robust vehicle, the new G-Class for Rescue and Special Operations (model series 464) ensures maximum mobility even under the most difficult conditions. The already brilliant reputation will certainly get new credentials. The first vehicles are already in production for some customers. Read full news at this link... Demonstration of some of the stunning capabilities of the new G-Class 464 model at Graz on September 28, 2021 (Picture source: Army Recognition) Read more... from World Def...

 The Technodinamika holding of the Rostec State Corporation has completed the factory tests of the "smart" transport parachute system. It is equipped with an integrated automated control complex that allows you to drop loads weighing up to 250 kg in a fully automatic mode and land them with increased accuracy. Read full news at this link The capabilities of the parachute allow landing various weapons, equipment and ammunition. The development is capable of significantly increasing the capabilities of the airborne troops, as well as the special operations forces. (Picture source: Technodinamika) Read more from World Defence News https://ift.tt/3uryYFz via IFTTT

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  The Lockheed Martin (LMT) F-35 Lightning II and Virtual Aegis Weapon System (VAWS) demonstrated the ability to share real-time sensor data from Fort Worth, Texas, to Honolulu, Hawaii, and on to the Australian Defence Force during a recent military exercise between the United States and Australia. Read full news at this link A Royal Australian Air Force EA-18G Growler, F/A-18F Super Hornet and F-35A Lightning II fly alongside a United States Air Force B-52 Stratofortress aircraft during Exercise Talisman Sabre 2021 (Picture source:SGT Andrew Eddie 464SQN AFID-AMB) Read more from World Defence News https://ift.tt/2YgQXmm via IFTTT

Kongsberg Geospatial announced on September 28 that it has partnered with Avalon Holographics to develop a revolutionary holographic sonar display for submarine warfare, in a project funded by the Canadian Department of National Defense IDEaS (Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security) program. Read full news at this link The solution will consist of three components: a SONAR sensor system, a SONAR map rendering system, and the holographic display. The SONAR sensor system is located on board a surface vessel. Data from the system is fed to the SONAR map rendering system containing the information required to create the operational images to populate the 3D holographic display (Picture source: Kongsberg) Read more from World Defence News https://ift.tt/39VkBQg via IFTTT

France 24 : International spectators to be barred from Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics   Tickets for the Beijing 2022 winter Olympics will be sold to spectators from mainland China only, while unvaccinated athletes must spend 21 days in quarantine ahead of the Games, the International Olympic Committee said on Wednesday.  Organisers of the Beijing Games have informed the IOC’s Executive Board 2022 of the principles to deliver “safe and successful Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games as scheduled,” the committee said.  The Beijing Games start on Feb. 4 and the Chinese capital will become the first to have hosted both summer and winter editions after also staging the Beijing 2008 summer Games.   Read more ....    Update: 2022 Beijing Olympics to ban foreign spectators (The Hill).  WNU Editor: The Olympic Committee's announcement is here .... Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 - Updates on Spectators, Vaccination and COVID-19 Counterm...

General Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, conceded in a stark admission that the US 'lost' the war in Afghanistan   France 24: US 'lost' the 20-year war in Afghanistan: top US general   The top US general conceded in a stark admission on Wednesday that the United States "lost" the 20-year war in Afghanistan.  "It is clear, it is obvious to all of us, that the war in Afghanistan did not end on the terms we wanted, with the Taliban in power in Kabul," General Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the House Armed Services Committee. "The war was a strategic failure," Milley told a committee hearing about the US troop pullout from Afghanistan and the chaotic evacuation from the capital Kabul.   Read more ....   WNU Editor : I think General Milley is the first top U.S. government official to officially state the obvious. from War News Updates https://ift.tt/3ifXDbi via IFTTT

  The Guardian/AP: Top US general says Afghan collapse can be traced to Trump-Taliban deal   The Doha agreement, signed in February 2020, set a date for the US to fully withdraw troops by May 2021   The collapse of the Afghan government and its security forces can be traced to a 2020 agreement between the Taliban and the Trump administration that promised a complete US troop withdrawal, senior Pentagon officials have told Congress.  Gen Frank McKenzie, the head of central command, told the House armed services committee that once the US troop presence was pushed below 2,500 as part of President Joe Biden’s decision in April to complete a total withdrawal by September, the unraveling of the US-backed Afghan government accelerated. “The signing of the Doha agreement had a really pernicious effect on the government of Afghanistan and on its military, psychological more than anything else, but we set a date – certain for when we were going to leave and when they ...

Men are pictured as Afghanistan's Taliban-controlled central bank seizes a large amount of money in cash and gold from former top government officials, including former vice president Amrullah Saleh, in Afghanistan, in this handout obtained by Reuters on September 15, 2021. Da Afghanistan Bank/Handout via REUTERS   Reuters: Exclusive-Afghan central bank drained dollar stockpile before Kabul fell - document   FRANKFURT/MUMBAI (Reuters) - The Afghan central bank ran down most of its U.S. dollar cash reserves in the weeks before the Taliban took control of the country, according to an assessment prepared for Afghanistan's international donors, exacerbating the current economic crisis.  The confidential, two-page brief, written early this month by senior international economic officials for institutions including the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, said the country's severe cash shortage began before the Taliban took control of Kabul.   Read more .... ...

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  The Bangladesh Air Force celebrated its 50th anniversary with a flypast on Sept. 28. from Asian Defence News https://ift.tt/3oi0KDx via IFTTT

  Meghann Myers, Military Times: Afghanistan probably never stood a chance, reports show   On July 29, the Pentagon’s independent inspector general for Afghanistan told a group of reporters that with 20 years in and trillions dollars spent, Afghan security forces were not confident enough to do basic route clearance or checkpoint management.  Two weeks later, the Taliban had taken nearly all of Afghanistan and was preparing to launch its campaign into Kabul, the capital.  Video would show Afghan forces laying down their weapons as the insurgents rolled into city after city, shocking many, but certainly not everyone.    Read more ....  Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- September 29, 2021   Blame Biden, Not the Military. The president can’t dodge responsibility for the botched Afghanistan withdrawal. -- Peter Campbell, City Journal  From hubris to humiliation: America’s warrior class contends with the abject failure of its A...

Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said for the first time that the U.S. 'lost' the war in Afghanistan after 20 years of mistakes and missteps as he delivered testimony to the House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday  Daily Mail: Gen. Milley admits America LOST the Afghanistan war and top Republican calls Biden 'delusional' for the withdrawal fiasco during humiliating House hearing   * Biden's top brass returned to Congress on Wednesday for second day of grilling  * Gen Milley, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said: 'The war was a strategic failure'  * And he said that the Afghan war had been 'lost' as he described 20 years of missteps in testimony to the House Armed Services Committee  * Milley, Gen Frank McKenzie and Lloyd Austin appeared before Congress  * Republican Mike Rogers said he wanted answers on their Afghan strategy  * 'I fear the president may be delusional,' he said about Biden's claim t...