Raw Intel

I don’t know about you, but in the arch from Ukraine to Israel, the Red Sea, and Venezuela to the First Island Chain (OK, that is less of an arc than a Nike Swoosh), it is getting hard to keep up on the natsec front. It is fun, and exciting, to keep track of the flashing objects—it is real, you can see it, and it is what we are most comfortable with. If you are looking at the long-term, there are the things in the background, the machine inside the skin, that really matter. It has been a busy year, and the new Pentagon team—younger and more vigorous than its predecessor—is moving fast across a whole host of fronts when it comes not just to people, but process, organizatio…

Ukraine’s Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has carried out a second strike in recent days against Russia’s Belbek air base in occupied Crimea, destroying Russian military aircraft and damaging critical airfield infrastructure, according to the SBU press service. In a statement, the SBU said its unmanned systems hit the Belbek facility, resulting in the destruction […]View the full article

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force confirmed it supported the first flight of a new stand-off electronic warfare aircraft, known as the EC-2, developed in cooperation with the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency. The development comes as Japan moves to strengthen its ability to operate in the electromagnetic domain and support air operations without entering contested […]View the full article

The United States Army has issued a Special Notice announcing an Industry Day for the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) Increment 4 program, outlining plans for a rapid prototyping effort that will culminate in a competitive missile fly-off scheduled for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2028. The event, organized by the Army’s Portfolio Acquisition Executive […]View the full article

The U.S. Central Command said on November 1 that one of its unmanned aircraft observed suspected Hamas operatives attacking and looting an aid truck in southern Gaza, an incident it said undermines ongoing international humanitarian efforts in the region. According to a release from U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), the event occurred on October 31 near […]View the full article

French company Asterodyn said it is continuing deliveries of its AST-78 interceptor system to “French state military stakeholders”, confirming the operational use of the high-speed unmanned platform. An announcement made on 25 March 2026 said that interceptor drones, such as the AST-78, are designed to provide a flexible option for engaging threats when traditional systems […]View the full article

An Israeli drone manufacturer has secured a new foothold in Central Asia after Aero-Sentinel confirmed an exclusive distribution agreement in Kazakhstan, expanding its access to one of the region’s most established security and defense markets. The announcement was made on Sunday by Ofir Avram, chief marketing officer at Aero-Sentinel, who said the company had finalized […]View the full article

Ukraine’s Tencore and France’s Shark Robotics have signed a memorandum of understanding and announced the creation of a joint venture, the companies disclosed at the Ukraine-EU Business Forum in Brussels, according to Oboronka. The agreement was announced under the Build with Ukraine initiative — a framework pushing Ukrainian defense companies to establish co-production partnerships with […]View the full article

The Ministry of National Defense of Taiwan reported that 38 sorties of Chinese military aircraft and 9 naval vessels operated around the island in a 24-hour period ending at 6 a.m. (UTC+8) on November 7. According to the ministry, 31 out of the 38 aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered […]View the full article

Airbus and Saab are in early talks to develop an unmanned combat aircraft, according to company executives who spoke with Reuters during a recent European defense industry event. The discussions reflect both the rising interest in drone systems and shifting alliances across Europe’s fragmented defense industry. The project would explore drone aircraft designed to support […]View the full article

The United States Navy has awarded Raytheon a $29 million contract modification to expand production tooling and test equipment for the Standard Missile-6 (SM-6) program. According to contract details released by Naval Sea Systems Command, the award covers new supplier special tooling and special test equipment needed to increase output of the SM-6 All Up […]View the full article

The North American Aerospace Defense Command is supporting a multi-agency operation to secure U.S. airspace during Super Bowl LX, scheduled for February 8, 2026, at Levi’s Stadium, the command said. As part of its homeland defense mission, NORAD’s Continental U.S. NORAD Region is providing aerospace warning and aerospace control in direct coordination with federal, state, […]View the full article

United States military air transport activity into Puerto Rico is continuing at a sustained pace, according to open-source flight tracking data and aviation observers monitoring movements from the continental United States into the Caribbean. The pattern has drawn attention from analysts who view the island as a forward logistics node for U.S. operations near northern […]View the full article

The United States Department of War is moving to integrate the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptor onto U.S. Navy destroyers equipped with the Aegis combat system, according to defense budget documents and reporting by Inside Defense. The plan directs $65 million in fiscal year 2026 reconciliation funding to support integration of the […]View the full article

Germany has overtaken China to become the world’s fourth-largest arms exporter, according to a new global weapons transfer report released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). The annual assessment reviews major conventional weapons transfers worldwide during the 2021–2025 period and shows Germany moving ahead of China in total export volume. The shift reflects […]View the full article

Elbit Systems said on Tuesday that Greece has taken a key step toward acquiring the Israeli company’s PULS rocket artillery system, after the Hellenic Parliament and the Government Council for National Security approved a dedicated budget for the program. In a statement issued from Haifa on December 16, 2025, Elbit Systems Ltd. said it was […]View the full article

The United States Army has deployed M1 Abrams main battle tanks to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, confirming a new movement of heavy armored forces into the Middle East as regional tensions remain elevated. U.S. soldiers assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Task Force Reaper, were photographed driving an M1 […]View the full article

Those who follow me on X know that every couple of months I remind everyone that we are gleefully training those whose life’s work is to defeat this nation. If you have been to a major top-shelf university or research institution’s graduation ceremony in the last two decades, one thing that dramatically stands out is how many People’s Republic of China (PRC) nationals are receiving not just undergraduate degrees, but master’s degrees and PhDs in the most highly skilled STEM fields from biostatistics to quantum physics. From aerospace engineering to industrial design—PRC nationals are overrepresented to an outlandish degree. Don’t forget, these are the places basic researc…

Japan’s Board of Audit revealed in January 2026 that military equipment worth approximately 1.1 trillion yen ($6.9 billion) purchased from the United States under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program has not been delivered to the Japan Self-Defense Forces despite more than five years passing since contracts were signed. The finding is detailed in an […]View the full article

History isn’t just about the past; it’s a guide for today! On this episode, we unravel the myths surrounding Pearl Harbor and what they teach us about current global tensions with returning guest, John Keuhn. Dr. John T. Kuehn is Professor of Military History at the Army Command and General Staff College. He served in the US Navy as a naval flight officer flying in EP-3s and ES-3s, retiring in 2004. He has authored or co-authored seven books and was awarded a Vandevort Prize from the Society for Military History in 2023 for his article “Zumwalt, Holloway, and the Soviet Navy Threat Leadership in a Time of Strategic, Social, and Cultural Change.” His latest book from is S…