The following is the Oct. 11, 2017 Congressional Research Service report Arms Sales in the Middle East Trends and Analytical Perspectives for U.S. Policy. Read More
Tag Archives: Iraq
Document: Report to Congress on Overseas Contingency Operations Funding
The following is the July 19, 2017 Congressional Research Service report, Foreign Affairs Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) Funding: Background and Current Status. Read More
11th MEU: Contingency Ops, Crisis Response is ‘Our Bread and Butter’
U.S. Marines with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit fire an M777 Howitzer during a fire mission in northern Syria as part of Operation Inherent Resolve on Mar. 24, 2017. US Marine Corps Photo
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. – The Marine Corps touts its ship-based Marine expeditionary unit deployments as its go-to, “911” force when needed. The Navy highlights its amphibious ready groups for the forward presence and “power projection” it gives overseas combatant commanders. Read More
The Attack on USS Stark at 30
USS Stark (FFG-31) on May 18, 1987. US Navy
On May 17, 1987, the Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Stark (FFG-31) was on patrol when it was struck by two Iraqi Exocet missiles in the midst of the Iran-Iraq War. Read More
2017 Report to Congress on U.S. Troop Levels in Iraq and Afghanistan
The following is the April 28, 2017 Congressional Research Service report, Department of Defense Contractor and Troop Levels in Iraq and Afghanistan: 2007-2017. Read More
Italian PM Pushing for Political Removal of Bashar Al-Assad from Power
H. E. Paolo Gentiloni in New York in 2015. Photo by Luca Marfe’
Italy’s Prime Minster backed President Donald Trump’s retaliatory Tomahawk cruise missiles strike in response to the Syrian regime’s use of chemical weapons and said on Thursday action could provide “new momentum to foster a political solution.” Read More
Panel: Propping Up Pentagon Budget Through War Funding Account to Continue
An infantry Marine with 3rd Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, walks across a field during a security patrol in Helmand province, Afghanistan, Feb. 20, 2014. US Marine Corps Photo
To get around spending caps, Congress and the Pentagon have increasingly turned to a warfighting account to pay for items that would normally be in its base budget, and it’s a practice that will likely continue even with a request for a $54 billion increase in defense spending for the coming year. Read More
UPDATED: Marines with 11th MEU Join the Ground Fight in Syria
Marines with Alpha Battery, Battalion Landing Team 1st Bn., 4th Marines, conduct an M777 Howitzer live-fire night fire mission during Exercise Alligator Dagger in Djibouti on Dec. 18, 2016. US Marine Corps Photo
The following post has been updated with a statement from U.S. Central Command.
An undisclosed number of Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit arrived in Syria recently to join U.S. forces and local forces poised to push Islamic State militants out of the city of Raqqa, according to a report in The Washington Post. Read More
Document: Report to Congress on Overseas Contingency Operations
The following is the Feb. 7, 2017 Congressional Research Service report, Overseas Contingency Operations Funding: Background and Status. Read More
Documents: Islamic State and U.S. Policy
The following is the Feb. 2, 2017 Congressional Research Service report, The Islamic State and U.S. Policy. Read More
