FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
1. The UnCareer Fair: Crisp and clean and no caffeine. Editor Lindy Kyzer explains, “Unlike traditional career fairs, with long lines and a number of unpromising leads, the un-career fair brings together a small number of highly qualified cleared professionals and motivated defense industry recruiters. Complete with food, drinks, and an MC who keeps the conversation moving, the un-career fair is a great way to network informally. . . . Small numbers and an informal setting make it easier to build connections that aren’t just about an immediate hiring need, but are about establishing a mutually beneficial relationship – exactly what the Cleared Network is designed to do online.”
2. Imaging emergencies: United Nation’s Disaster Charter. Contributor John Holst explains, “Why is the UN “Disaster Charter” important? Simple—the activation and subsequent actions get images to the affected countries quickly. This is theoretically a faster process than having to rely on a single national or commercial entity and waiting for their specific satellites to fly overhead at the right time. The Charter activation allows the affected countries to see where the impact of the disaster and then “rack and stack” emergency resource responses based on the imagery.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
1. Peace in Syria – al Assad’s hostage. AP’s Lori Hinnant and Matthew Lee report from Montreux, “Furiously divided from the start, representatives of Syrian President Bashar Assad and the rebellion against him threatened Wednesday to collapse a peace conference intended to lead them out of civil war. . . . With little common ground, the two sides were to meet separately Thursday with a U.N. negotiator, Lakhdar Brahimi, who said he still did not know if they were ready to sit at the same table when talks begin in earnest Friday.” Aljazeera.Com reports, “Syria peace talks stuck over Assad’s future,” and Christian Science Monitor adds, “Syria talks showcase chasm in positions. What was US expecting?”
2. Afghanistan served at Chiefs of Defence table in Brussels. Khaama.Com reports, “The Chiefs of the General Staff of NATO’s member countries and Strategic NATO commanders gathered for 170th NATO Chiefs of Defence meeting in Brussels, to discuss the future of operations in Afghanistan. . . . Chairman of the Military Committee, General Knud Bartels said, a meeting will be held with the NATO partners for the current ISAF operation in Afghanistan . . . . Gen. Bartels said NATO remains committed to the development of the Afghan National Security Forces during its mission which will be completed within the next 11 months. He said a particular focus will be made on the preparations for the forthcoming Afghan presidential elections.” Christian Science Monitor’s Anna Mulrine writes, “The message from top US military officials is reportedly that if President Obama doesn’t approve their 10,000-troop request, then he shouldn’t bother sending any troops at all.”
3. Ultimatum in Ukraine: today’s the day. AP reports from Kiev, “Thick black smoke from burning tires engulfed parts of downtown Kiev as an ultimatum issued by the opposition to the president to call early election or face street rage was set to expire with no sign of a compromise on Thursday. The three main opposition leaders urged protesters late Wednesday to refrain from violence for 24 hours until their ultimatum to President Viktor Yanukovych expires. They demanded that Yanukovych dismiss the government, call early elections and scrap harsh anti-protest legislation that triggered the violence.” Time’s Per Liljas reports that “opposition politician Arseniy Yatsenyuk said that if Yanukovich didn’t meet their demands, ‘Tomorrow [Thursday] we will go forward together. And if it’s a bullet in the forehead, then it’s a bullet in the forehead.’”
4. Iran’s Rouhani puts friendship on the table. Aljazeera.Com reports, “Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said it was possible to turn more than three decades of enmity with the United States into friendship if both sides made an effort. . . . he said relations with Washington had been difficult in the past but with hard work and efforts by both sides, problems could be overcome. ‘This effort is necessary to create confidence on both sides. Iran is in fact stretching out its hand in peace and friendship to all countries of the world and wants friendly, good relations with all countries in the world,’ the president said.
CONTRACT WATCH
1. Budget cuts deflating defense jobs argument. DefenseNews.Com’s William D. Hartung reports, “The history of Pentagon spending is rife with examples in which programs have been saved from the budget cutter’s axe because of the jobs associated with them. From the revival of the B-1 bomber in the 1980s to the current effort to keep the M-1 tank line open, jobs in key states and districts have provided powerful leverage to contractors seeking to save or extend major procurement programs. But those days may be coming to an end.”
2. Still, it’s not easy being green. DoDBuzz.Com’s Brendan McGarry reports, “The U.S. government’s decision last week to cut funding for the Army’s combat vehicle program may dash hopes for production of BAE Systems Plc’s so-called green machine. The London-based defense giant’s U.S. subsidiary was competing against General Dynamics Corp. to build the Army’s future troop carrier, known as the Ground Combat Vehicle, to replace the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. While General Dynamics, maker of the M1 Abrams tank, was developing a more traditional design, BAE, which manufactures the Bradley, was pursuing a more environmentally friendly model.”
3. $32 million for Coast Guard radars: Exelis. GovConWire.Com reports, “Exelis (NYSE: XLS) has won a potential five-year, $32 million contract to supply the U.S. Coast Guard with a radar system designed to support maritime surveillance, counterterrorism and drug interdiction missions. The company will provide AN/PY-11 multimode radars, support equipment, spares and technical services to the Coast Guard under the indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract . . . .”
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
1. Emasculated military – an unmanned future. DefenseNews.Com’s Marcus Weisgerber reports, “Rapidly rising personnel costs combined with a decline in defense spending could drive the Pentagon to expand its robotic arsenal, replacing humans with autonomous systems, a prominent think tank says. The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) report: ‘20YY: Preparing for War in the Robotic Age’, written by CEO Robert Work and Shawn Brimley, executive vice president and director of studies, says the increased cost of manned combat systems could lead to this shift.” Read the full report, “Preparing for War in the Robotic Age.”
2. Snowden sleeper . . . yawn.. DefenseOne.Com contributor Lucia Graves reports, “When President Obama announced his long-awaited reforms to the National Security Agency’s controversial surveillance program, it was met by a collective yawn. It was the Friday before a holiday weekend, and not many Americans were listening. Those who were were finding it difficult. . . . Taken together the numbers mean that nine out of 10 citizens had little interest in what Obama had to say following six months of heated policy debate in Washington.”
3. 5Gs in South Korea by 2020. Time’s Peter Liljas also reports, “South Korea has announced a $1.5 billion plan to upgrade its network to 5G capability by 2020. . . . The 5G-services are expected to be around 1,000 times faster than current technology — making it possible to download a full-length film in a second. . . . Tests with the 5G technology are also being carried out in Japan and the United States.”
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
1. Next Pentagon Policy Chief: “On the shortlist to become the Pentagon’s third-ranking civilian leader are a senior Defense Department official and a top White House national security adviser, multiple sources say. DoD’s Christine Wormuth and the White House’s Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall are under consideration by Obama administration officials to become Pentagon policy chief, a move that could make one the second female to hold the post . . . .”
2. Debt ceiling shoe dropping: “The U.S. is likely to exhaust its borrowing authority on the earlier side of what Treasury Secretary Jack Lew had estimated, he said in a letter to Congressional leaders on Wednesday. Lew warned in the new letter that Congress will likely need to raise the debt ceiling by late February to avoid a potential default on the country’s obligations.” Also, “Republicans are gearing up to pick yet another fight on the debt ceiling. Speaker John Boehner’s (R-OH) office on Wednesday signaled another standoff after Treasury Secretary Jack Lew wrote a letter saying Congress will have to act by ‘late February’ — sooner than expected — to raise the borrowing limit in order to avoid a potentially catastrophic default on U.S. debt.”
OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS
1. “Dooming the Syria talks before they begin.” Reuters’ David Rhodes argues, “The lack of an Iranian presence in Switzerland today dooms the talks’ prospects. Whether Tehran’s actions are depraved or not, its comprehensive efforts to supply troops, munitions and funding to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad makes the Iranian government the key foreign player in the conflict.”
2. “Geneva II: Great Expectations?” Aljazeera.Com contributor Randa Slim argues, “At Geneva II, the international community is laying to rest the idea of a final solution in Syria that can be reached through a unilateral military victory. Political negotiations are the only game in town.”
3. “Disengagement in Afghanistan is dangerous.” TheHill.Com contributor David Webb argues, “Afghanistan has the potential to simply become a pathway for the exertion of influence, transit of weapons and other trade, trampling the Afghan people under foreign feet.”
THE FUNNIES
2. Montreux missive.
3. Sochi.
