The Watch

THE WATCH STAFF U.S. Air Force Gen. Glen VanHerck made his first trip to Canada as commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and gave a threat assessment to the country’s military leaders that included risks from hypersonic missiles. VanHerck, who heads NORAD and is also commander of U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM), visited National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa on November 30, 2021 — the day after Russia announced it tested a hypersonic cruise missile. The Canadian Broadcasting Corp. (CBC) reported that VanHerck was candid in speaking about the challenge such missiles pose to NORAD, the binational command tasked with early…

THE WATCH STAFF The Mexican military’s raid on a synthetic drug lab has highlighted the ability of organized crime groups to mass-produce the deadly opioid fentanyl, which increasingly is bound for the United States. At the end of October 2021, Mexican Army and National Guard troops busted the illegal lab — set up in a home in the state of Sinaloa — and seized 118 kilograms (about 260 pounds) of fentanyl, the Armed Forces announced November 4, 2021, according to a November 9 story by the investigative website InSight Crime. This seizure of  “pure fentanyl is considered the largest in…

THE WATCH STAFF The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has completed installation of the ballistic-missile tracking Long-Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR) at Clear Space Force Station in Alaska. The MDA noted the achievement in a December 6, 2021, ceremony at the base south of Fairbanks. This “marks an extremely important milestone for U.S. homeland defense,” U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Jon A. Hill, director of the MDA, said in an agency news release. “The Long-Range Discrimination Radar has finished construction, and we can now begin the testing phase that will lead to the full operational use of this vital system. LRDR will…

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Russia’s navy has successfully tested a prospective hypersonic missile, the military said November 29, 2021. The Defense Ministry said the Adm. Gorshkov frigate in the White Sea launched the Zircon cruise missile, hitting a practice target 400 kilometers (215 nautical miles) away. The launch was the latest in a series of tests of Zircon, which is set to enter service in 2022. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Zircon would be capable of flying at nine times the speed of sound and have a range of 1,000 kilometers (620 miles). Putin has emphasized that its deployment will…

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Cybersecurity researchers say they have uncovered evidence that Belarus has been involved in a hybrid hacking and disinformation campaign against Eastern European NATO members since 2016 that aimed to sow discord in the military alliance, steal confidential information and spy on dissidents. The November 2021 report by the prominent U.S. cybersecurity firm Mandiant appears to mark the first time Belarus has been blamed in the campaign known as Ghostwriter. European Union members have said they suspected involvement by Belarus’ close ally Russia, and Poland has directly accused Moscow of hacking government officials’ emails and leaking them online.…

THE WATCH STAFF The United States has signed on to an international accord on cyberspace behavior that was established in 2018. Eighty countries have signed the Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace, a framework for norms and laws for cybersecurity and warfare, according to Axios news. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris made the announcement November 10, 2021, after meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron. (Pictured: U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris meets with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on November 10, 2021.) The French government began the voluntary initiative, which also counts tech companies — including Microsoft and Google — nonprofits and universities among its signatories.…

THE WATCH STAFF As part of the effort to advance its Arctic capabilities, the U.S. Army is testing a new tactical vehicle to operate in extreme conditions. Oshkosh Defense is collaborating with fellow defense contractor ST Engineering on a prototype for the cold weather all-terrain vehicle (CATV) to replace the small unit support vehicle (SUSV), which has been in service since the 1980s. The Army first announced it was seeking a successor for the SUSV, which the U.S. Marine Corps also operates, in 2018, according to The War Zone military news website. (Pictured: The cold weather all-terrain vehicle prototype, above,…

THE WATCH STAFF When U.S. Army Gen. Laura J. Richardson became the first woman to lead U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), her appointment resonated with women in the military across the hemisphere. SOUTHCOM, based in Doral, Florida, near Miami, oversees U.S. military operations across South and Central America and the Caribbean. Richardson, 57, is the third woman to lead one of the U.S. military’s 11 unified combatant commands. U.S. Air Force Gen. Lori Robinson was the first when she led U.S Northern Command from 2016 until her retirement in 2018. “We will draw upon the strength in our neighborhood from partners…

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A Montana Soldier is the first woman to graduate from the U.S. Army’s sniper course, the Montana National Guard announced in early November 2021. “We are extremely proud of this Soldier’s achievement and recognize that this is a milestone for not only Montana but the entire National Guard and Army,” Maj. Gen. J. Peter Hronek, the adjutant general for Montana, said in astatement. The military did not identify the Soldier. She enlisted in the Montana Army National Guard in December 2020 and underwent a 22-week training course at Fort Benning, Georgia, that combines Army basic training with…

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Russia’s defense chief signed a road map for closer military ties with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) on November 23, 2021, pointing to increasingly frequent U.S. strategic bomber flights near both countries’ borders. During a video call, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe “expressed a shared interest in stepping up strategic military exercises and joint patrols by Russia and China,” according to the Russian DefenseMinistry. “China and Russia have been strategic partners for many years,” Shoigu said. “Today, in conditions of increasing geopolitical turbulence and growing conflict potential in various parts of the…