In a scathing report released by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), the U.S. Army’s watercraft fleet has been found to be in dire straits, with less than 40% of…
U.S. Army
GAO: Actions needed on U.S. Army watercraft fleet
A report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) says that actions are needed to optimize the “small but critical” fleet of U.S. Army watercraft.
The U.S. Army’s watercraft fleet is responsible for moving supplies, equipment, and personnel in deep ocean water, shallow coastal waters, inland waterways, and rivers. However, says GAO, the Army’s ability to meet its mission requirements with its fleet of 70 watercraft is limited.
Army policy establishes a fully mission capable goal of...
https://www.marinelog.com/news/gao-actions-needed-on-u-s-army-watercraft-fleet/
Biden Taps SOUTHCOM Deputy to Lead Combatant Command
President Joe Biden nominated the deputy of U.S. Southern Command to lead the combatant command, the Pentagon announced Wednesday.
Vice Adm. Alvin Holsey is up for a fourth star and to serve as the commander of...
https://news.usni.org/2024/07/25/biden-taps-southcom-deputy-to-lead-combatant-command
Army Unit Deploys Hypersonic Weapon in Navy-led Exercise
An Indo-Pacific-assigned U.S. Army unit designed to counter anti-access, area denial networks deployed its hypersonic missiles for the first time last month during a Navy-hosted...
https://news.usni.org/2024/07/19/army-unit-deploys-hypersonic-weapon-in-navy-led-exercise
Pentagon Announces End to Gaza Pier Operation
The temporary U.S. military pier built to ferry aid to civilians in Gaza will shut down and the international community will now deliver aid to Israel’s Ashdod port, officials announced Wednesday.
“Our assessment is that the temporary pier has achieved its intended effect: to surge a very high volume of aid into Gaza and ensure that aid reaches the civilians in Gaza in a...
GAO Report on U.S. Army Modernization
The following is the July 15, 2024, Government Accountability Office report, Army Modernization: Actions Needed to Support Fielding New Equipment.
From the report
What GAO Found
The Army’s new approach to generate ready forces, the Regionally Aligned Readiness and Modernization Model (ReARMM), is key to the Army realizing its modernization investments. These investments have totaled $46.5 billion since fiscal year 2021. The Army has adopted new acquisition approaches to rapidly develop multiple...
https://news.usni.org/2024/07/17/gao-report-on-u-s-army-modernization
Report to Congress on U.S., South Korea Relations
The following is the June 25, 2024, Congressional Research Service In Focus report, South Korea: Background and U.S. Relations.
From the report
Overview
South Korea (officially the Republic of Korea, or ROK) is one of the United States’ most important strategic and economic partners in Asia. The U.S.-ROK Mutual Defense Treaty, signed in 1953 at the end of the Korean War, commits the United States to help South Korea defend itself, particularly from North Korea (officially the Democratic People’s...
https://news.usni.org/2024/06/28/report-to-congress-on-u-s-south-korea-relations
Report to Congress on Use of Force in Cyberspace
The following is the June 25, 2024, Congressional Research Service In Focus report, Use of Force in Cyberspace.
From the report
Introduction
There are presently no internationally accepted criteria for determining whether a nation state cyberattack is a use of force equivalent to an armed attack, which could trigger a military response. Likewise, no international, legally binding instruments have yet been drafted explicitly to regulate inter-state relations in cyberspace. Self-defense and...
https://news.usni.org/2024/06/26/report-to-congress-on-use-of-force-in-cyberspace
U.S. Gaza Aid Pier Shut Down After Damage from Heavy Weather
A U.S. aid operation to send humanitarian aid to Gaza is shut down after a section of a U.S. humanitarian pier and at least four Army watercraft broke free from their moorings due to heavy sea states and were beached off the coast of Gaza, defense officials said Tuesday.
On Tuesday, part of the Trident pier, where Army watercraft unload aid trucks, separated from the larger structure and floated off...
https://news.usni.org/2024/05/28/u-s-gaza-aid-pier-shut-down-after-damage-from-heavy-weather
U.S. Soldier Critically Injured During Gaza Pier Operation, 2 Other Service Members Hurt
A U.S. soldier assigned to the Gaza pier mission was seriously injured on Thursday and medically evacuated to Israel, two defense officials confirmed to USNI News.
The soldier was working on the staging platform two miles off the coast of Gaza, where trucks filled with aid packages are driven from...