The Watch

THE WATCH STAFF In yet another example of how the Arctic is changing, the region’s “Last Ice” developed a massive hole. The hole, known as a polynya, was north of Ellesmere Island, Canada’s northern-most island, and just west of Greenland. The area, known as Last Ice, is considered to have the oldest and thickest Arctic ice. Researchers at the University of Toronto-Mississauga in Canada discovered that the polynya formed May 14, 2020, according to an October 19, 2021, story in the USA Today newspaper. The polynya expanded to about 62 miles long and 18 miles wide before eventually closing May…

THE WATCH STAFF In a joint effort, the militaries of the United States and United Kingdom have successfully demonstrated machine-learning algorithms. The cooperation between the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and the U.K.’s Defense Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) showcased the countries’ ability to collaborate on deploying artificial intelligence (AI) in support of war fighters, according to an October 20, 2021, story in the Air Force Times newspaper. The joint effort is part of a four-year Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence Collaboration (AAIC) Partnership Agreement signed in December 2020, according to the Air Force Times. The AFRL is the lead agency…

THE WATCH STAFF In March 2020, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson retweeted a story from a conspiracy site with links to Russian disinformation operations that suggested a link between a U.S. Army research facility and the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. The retweet was quickly debunked, but the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) — through state media and government officials — continued to spread disinformation about Fort Detrick in Maryland, according to an October 5, 2021, study by the Alliance for Securing Democracy. The CCP campaign was so pervasive that the most common Google search for the facility in 2020 was “Fort…

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A new Pentagon plan calls for incorporating the realities of a hotter, harsher Earth at every level in the U.S. military, from making worsening climate extremes a mandatory part of strategic planning to training troops how to secure their water supplies and treat heat injury. The Pentagon — whose jets, aircraft carriers, truck convoys, bases and office buildings cumulatively burn more oil than most countries — was among the federal agencies that U.S. President Joe Biden ordered to overhaul their climate-resilience plans when he took office in January 2021. “These are essential steps, not just to meet…

REUTERS The United States has offered to meet North Korea without preconditions and made clear that Washington has no hostile intent toward Pyongyang, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said October 21, 2021, as the Security Council met over North Korea’s latest missile launch. North Korea, which is formally known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), has long accused the U.S. of having a hostile policy toward the Asian state and asserted that it has the right to develop weapons for self-defense. “The DPRK must abide by the Security Council resolutions, and it is time…

THE WATCH STAFF Sometimes the best way for troops to learn to fight together — especially in extreme cold — is to break the ice. That’s how 350 members of India’s Army and units from the U.S. 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division began two weeks of combined exercises in October 2021 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska. Teams from both sides played American football, volleyball and kabaddi — an Indian contact sport — at the Anchorage base before starting Yudh Abhyas, an annual joint training exercise, Asian News International reported October 17, 2021. The exercises further…

THE WATCH STAFF During the recent Noble Defender military exercises in Alaska, Soldiers from Special Operations Command North (SOCNORTH) deployed to the remote Shemya Island in the Aleutian chain. The 6-square-mile island known as “The Rock” is home to Eareckson Air Station, which played an important role in the United States’ Cold War defenses. Eareckson is the closest U.S. military installation to Russia — just 200 miles across the Bering Sea — and fighter aircraft once based there were in position to quickly intercept Russian warplanes, according to an October 23, 2021, Forbes.com story. The U.S. troops who trained on the…

THE WATCH STAFF China presumptuously declared itself to be a “near-Arctic state” in a 2018 white paper, raising concerns about its ambitions in the region that have only intensified. Recent history suggests those concerns are warranted: Beijing’s broad claims to maritime rights have led to disputes in the South China Sea, and it has sought greater global influence through its One Belt, One Road infrastructure scheme. Still, one scholar says that China’s goals in the Arctic may be more nuanced than its conduct in the Indo-Pacific and elsewhere, given what he calls “two very inconvenient truths.” “First of all, China’s…

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin signed an agreement to continue U.S. support for Georgia’s military for six years as part of his trip through the Black Sea region to support allies facing Russian aggression. The action came ahead of visits to Ukraine and Romania to deliver a message of support for their sovereignty and territorial integrity. “One point I’d like to be clear on is the United States condemns Russia’s ongoing occupation of Georgia and its attempts to expand influence in the Black Sea region through military coercion and malign activities,” Austin said while standing beside Georgian…

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The United States and its closest partners are stepping up pressure on Iran to return to stalled nuclear negotiations, warning that it will face greater international isolation, new economic penalties and possibly military action if it forges ahead with its atomic program. In a series of high-level diplomatic meetings in Washington, U.S., European, Israeli and Arab officials agreed on the need to make clear to Iran that its continued resistance to rejoining the talks in Vienna will not be ignored or left unpunished. The consensus comes amid growing concerns that Tehran is not serious about returning to…