U.S. Northern Command Commander Gen. Gregory M. Guillot, center, speaks with Mexican Defense Secretary Adm. Raymundo Morales Angeles in February 2025. JOSHUA ARMSTRONG/U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE THE WATCH STAFF The leader of Mexico’s Secretariat of National Defense (DEFENSA) and the commander of U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) and the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) participated in a video call in April 2025 in which the leaders recognized the contributions made by both militaries in addressing border security. Gen. Ricardo Trevilla Trejo (DEFENSA) and Gen. Gregory M. Guillot (USNORTHCOM and NORAD) also discussed strengthening educational training and military exchanges between the…
The Watch
DIÁLOGO AMERICAS ILLUSTRATION DIÁLOGO AMERICAS In the information age, war is waged in the mind. Cognitive warfare seeks to influence perceptions and behaviors to obtain strategic advantages without resorting to physical force. A report in the blog of peer-reviewed European Journal of International Law, EJIL:Talk!, warns that China and Russia are manipulating narratives and weakening institutions, making human cognition a new conflict front. The report points out that this strategy goes beyond controlling information: It seeks to modify how people react to data. Unlike information warfare, which disseminates facts, cognitive warfare manipulates emotions and perceptions to influence decisions and destabilize societies and…
A Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile interceptor is seen during the third annual “Made in America Product Showcase” on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C. The Golden Dome for America project could employ several missile defense systems. REUTERS REUTERS Republicans in the U.S. Congress plan to introduce a sweeping $150 billion defense package that will give an initial $27 billion boost to President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome for America missile defense shield, according to a budget document and a congressional aide. “We’re revitalizing our defense industrial base, strengthening our ability to deter adversaries like China,…
The Freedom-class littoral combat ship USS Minneapolis-St. Paul departs Naval Station Mayport in Jacksonville, Florida, for her maiden deployment on March 26, 2025. The ship deployed to the U.S. 4th Fleet’s area of operations to support counter-illicit drug trafficking operations. PETTY OFFICER 1ST CLASS BRANDON J. VINSON/U.S. NAVY THE WATCH STAFF The littoral combat ship (LCS) has found its calling. The USS Minneapolis-St. Paul, a Freedom-variant LCS on its maiden deployment, halted two alleged drug smuggling operations in the Caribbean Sea within 72 hours. The feat showed once again that the LCS are well suited to terminating drug smuggling schemes.…
The Royal Canadian Navy’s Halifax-class frigate, the Ville de Québec, left its home port in Halifax, Nova Scotia, to deploy to the Indo-Pacific in April 2025 in a voyage designed to increase collaboration with NATO allies. ROYAL CANADIAN NAVY THE WATCH STAFF A Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) Halifax-class frigate, the Ville de Québec, left its home port in Nova Scotia in April 2025 to deploy to the Indo-Pacific region where it will take part in Operation Horizon, an exercise designed to maintain open navigation of the seas. The ship departed April 7 for Operation Horizon, Canada’s forward-presence mission to the…
A new analysis by The Associated Press found that drones are posing increasing risks to airliners near major U.S. airports. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The U.S. Northern Command’s leader’s warnings about drone use by gangs on the border with Mexico this year is supported by a new analysis that has found unmanned aerial systems and vehicles also pose an increasing risk to airliners in the United States. There have been some close calls. A commercial airliner was on final approach to San Francisco International Airport in November when the crew spotted a drone outside the cockpit window. By…
Royal Bahamas Defence Force personnel train in SAROPS with members of the United States Coast Guard to strengthen maritime and search and rescue capabilities. MARINE SEAMAN DANTE FORBES/RBDF THE WATCH STAFF Members of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) underwent intensive training in the Unites States Coast Guard (USCG) Search and Rescue Optimal Planning System (SAROPS) in April. The Coast Guard uses the SAROPS software system for maritime search planning. Conducted by the USCG National Search and Rescue School, the training at the Davy Rolle Operations Command Center at the Coral Harbour base from March 31 to April 11 brought…
The U.S. military is considering reopening Naval Air Station Adak in the Aleutian Islands. In 2019, the base, which closed in 1997, was used for an Arctic military exercise, shown above. U.S. MARINE CORPS THE WATCH STAFF A long-shuttered naval air station in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, situated where the Pacific and Arctic oceans converge, may be reborn as military deterrent to deal with growing interest in the area from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Russia. Recently, the United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) Commander Adm. Samuel Paparo told U.S. senators that he would like to reopen the Adak…
U.S. Marines will be trained to use first-person view attack drones to destroy enemy targets up to 20 kilometers away. U.S. MARINE CORPS THE WATCH STAFF The U.S. Marine Corps is outfitting an attack drone team to roll out first-person view (FPV) small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) in battlefield scenarios. The development comes as the U.S. adapts its tactics and technology to meet the challenges of 21st-century warfare. The Marines announced that the team would participate in training ground-level units in how to operate FPVs to destroy enemy targets up to 20 kilometers away, according to Task & Purpose, a…
U.K. Defense attaché Rear Adm. Tim Woods, center, with Royal Bermuda Regiment troops during a March 2025 visit to the British Overseas Territory. ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT THE WATCH STAFF A British admiral, serving as the United Kingdom’s defense attaché in the United States, visited Bermuda to discuss ways in which the U.K. can strengthen its relationship with the British Overseas Territory (BOT), especially in logistical support and training opportunities. U.K. Rear Adm. Tim Woods and his staff visited the Royal Bermuda Regiment (RBR) headquarters at Warwick Camp and the RBR Coast Guard base at Scenic House, Sandys in March 2025,…