We live in a busy world with a lot of information being thrown at you. Don’t feel overwhelmed. OpsLens will give you a weekly briefing on the major stories you need to know about and cut out all the extra information that isn’t important. Here’s your weekly briefing on what’s going on in national security and military news.
Big Week for the F-35
Two U.S. Marine Corps F-35Bs flew the first American combat missions for the new joint strike fighter, while an F-35 landed on a British aircraft carrier for the first time this week.
The combat debut for the F-35B happened on Thursday morning, when two F-35Bs from the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit launched from the USS Essex, a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship.
“During this mission the F-35B conducted an air strike in support of ground clearance operations, and the strike was deemed successful by the ground force commander,” said a Marine Corps statement confirming the strike.
The airstrike in Afghanistan was not the combat debut for the joint strike fighter. In May, Israeli officials confirmed that the country’s F-35 “Adir” had conducted two airstrikes somewhere in the Middle East.
Meanwhile, two F-35s took off from and landed on a British aircraft carrier for the first time. The HMS Queen Elizabeth is sailing off the eastern U.S. seaboard in the Atlantic Ocean conducting developmental test trials of the joint strike fighter for the U.K.
The big week was not without some bad news. On Thursday, a Marine Corps F-35 crashed in South Carolina. The pilot safely ejected and the cause of the crash is under investigation.
China Calls U.S. B-52 Flights “Provocative”
Two United States Air Force B-52 bombers flew over the South China Sea this week and another two flew over the East China Sea. The South China Sea is claimed by China but remains disputed, while the East China Sea has been declared an air defense identification zone by China.
The B-52 flights came on the heels of the Chinese government’s demand that the U.S. cancel a $330 million sale of military equipment to Taiwan and then turned down a request for a port call in Hong Kong by the USS Wasp that had been planned for October.
China has claimed the South China Sea and has strengthened its military presence there by building islands and placing airfields and missiles on them.
The Air Force Times has reported that the B-52s took off from Guam and were from the 96th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron.
SecDef Mattis Comments on Women in Combat
Secretary of Defense James Mattis was asked about women serving in combat arms by a male cadet as he spoke at the Virginia Military Institute on Tuesday.
“We’re hoping to get data soon. There are a few stalwart young ladies who are charging into this, but they are too few. I mean…right now it’s not even dozens. It’s that few. So when we get a little more data, I’ll give you a much more objective answer. Clearly the jury is out on it,” said Mattis.
You can read Mattis’ full response here.
“Right now, I prefer just to say that I handle problems when they’re brought to me,” Mattis responded on Wednesday when told his remarks were taken to mean he didn’t support the women who had integrated into combat units.
“I have not had problems brought to me. If you look at other nations that have opened infantry positions to women, you see a very small, very small number. We can’t even draw statistical performance indicators from other nations right now. So I don’t talk about things that I don’t have data on.”
Mattis has remained consistent in commenting about women serving in combat roles like infantry, armor, and artillery. He has never indicated a lack of support but has presented a fair and honest assessment when asked.
The Army has seen an increase in the number of women in combat units, with almost 800 women serving in infantry, cavalry and fire support, across five divisions. The number of women in Marine combat units that were previously open only to men has grown steadily too, from 254 last year to 382 this year.
In December 2015, then-Defense Secretary Ash Carter ordered all combat posts be opened to women.
Situation Report on Syria
U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton recently said that the United States will keep troops in Syria as long as Iran does.
It’s difficult to assess where this puts the U.S. policy on Syria. The Russians recently held up a major offensive in the northern province of Idlib and instead agreed with Turkey to a demilitarized zone between rebel and Syrian lines. Islamist militant groups remain active in the country but the Islamic State is on the brink of defeat. The civil war appears to be in its final stages, with the rebels mostly defeated and Bashar al-Assad still firmly in charge.
President Trump had pushed for a withdrawal of U.S. troops but now appears content to leave some there.
“The new policy is we’re no longer pulling out by the end of the year,” said James Jeffrey, a retired senior Foreign Service officer and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s “representative for Syria engagement.”
On Saturday, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem told the United Nations General Assembly that the country was ready for the return of refugees who fled during the seven-year civil war.
There are currently 2,200 U.S. troops on the ground in Syria and while their primary mission has always been the defeat of ISIS, countering Iran is steadily rising in importance.
