Pentagon says it has referred leak case to justice department for criminal investigation
The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has reportedly dismissed Lt Gen Brett Sylvia, a high-ranking army strategist serving on the Pentagon’s joint staff, following allegations that he disclosed classified information to the public.
The Pentagon announced on Thursday that it had referred an alleged information leak case for criminal investigation, maintaining that the removal of the senior general was essential “to protect sensitive information”, the Washington Post reported.
Continue reading...
© Photograph: Spc. Javan Johnson/Training Support Activity Europe
© Photograph: Spc. Javan Johnson/Training Support Activity Europe
© Photograph: Spc. Javan Johnson/Training Support Activity Europe
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth fired a lieutenant general earlier this week for allegedly leaking classified information related to the war with Iran and the Russia-Ukraine war, sources said.
The post Report: Hegseth Fires ‘Top Military Planner’ for Alleged Leaks of Classified Info appeared first on Breitbart.
Wednesday on CNN’s “The Arena,” Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) said it is possible if they win a majority in the midterms, Democrats will use impeachment as a tool to end President Donald Trump’s “corruption.” Anchor Kasie Hunt said, “When you
The post Crow: Dems Could Use ‘Impeachment’ as Tool to End Trump’s ‘Corruption’ appeared first on Breitbart.
Tuesday on ABC’s “The View,” co-host Whoopi Goldberg said Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is a “nonentity.” Goldberg said, “Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, there are calls on both sides of the aisle to impeach him and remove him from office. So
The post Whoopi Goldberg: Pete Hegseth Is a ‘Nonentity’ appeared first on Breitbart.
He had done it before, but it has escalated during the campaign for next Tuesday’s midterm elections. The president of the United States, Donald Trump, increasingly unfiltered in public remarks, seems obsessed with the arms, shoulders, hands and faces of his allies. When praising Republican candidates, Trump, rather than highlighting their intelligence or political vision, calls attention to their physical attributes.
© Alex Brandon (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Russia has fired more than 100 ballistic missiles at Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast since 14 October, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his evening address on 27 October. He said partners’ air defense packages are being delayed.
Ukraine’s front-line positions are stronger than they have been in a long time, Zelenskyy said. If partners’ support for Patriots and other air defense remained just as strong, he argued, Ukraine would be in a much better position diplomatically as well. He expects trilateral talks with US and Russian representatives in November. The US, on which, he said, “almost everything concerning Patriots depends,” will be one of the three sides.
Overnight on 27 October, Russia launched 16 ballistic missiles and more than 280 drones, in what Zelenskyy called a serious escalation of Russia’s campaign against Ukraine’s logistics. The strikes hit the State University of Trade and Economics campus and the Southern Bridge in Kyiv.
A 46-year-old woman was killed and 15 people were injured, among them dormitory residents and two medics, the Kyiv prosecutor’s office said on the morning of 27 October.
Zelenskyy wrote that artificial and lengthy delays in interceptor packages for Patriots and NASAMS directly help Russia achieve the goals of its terror campaign. In his evening address, he added:
“And everyone hears, everyone sees that right now, it is difficult for us to defend against Russian ballistic missiles. And above all, we do not have enough missiles for Patriots.”
Earlier, on 26 October, Zelenskyy wrote that Ukraine had waited almost a month for US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s signature on missiles for Patriots and NASAMS. Kyiv is also working with Europe and other partners, he added.
Separately, The Washington Post reported on 19 October that some transfers come from allies and need Hegseth’s approval, because the US must sign off on re-transfers. Zelenskyy’s post does not say whether his wait concerns those transfers.
Before Zelenskyy’s latest statements, US officials rejected claims of a deliberate hold. A US government official called Ukraine’s claims “not true,” the Kyiv Independent reported. On 20 October, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there was “nothing being deliberately denied to Ukraine.” Hegseth said the US had not changed its posture toward Ukraine but wants “our guys” to have as many interceptors as possible.
Ukraine has waited almost a month for US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to sign off on missiles for its Patriot and NASAMS air defense systems, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on 26 October. He ordered his team to raise it with Washington again. Two other US holds on Ukraine, on Starlink speeds and intelligence sharing, have been lifted, leaving the interceptors as the last one.
Russia keeps firing ballistic missiles at Ukrainian cities and the power grid before winter, and Patriots are the only systems in Ukraine that reliably stop Iskander-M, Kinzhal, and Zircon missiles. Zelenskyy has told EU leaders Ukraine needs 300 interceptors to get through winter, diplomatic sources told Radio Svoboda. The holds came as Washington pressed Kyiv to stop striking Russian refineries, which Trump blames for high US fuel prices before the midterms.
Zelenskyy held a meeting on weapons supplies with Ukraine’s defense minister, foreign minister, and commander-in-chief. They reported on interceptors for air defense, above all for Patriot systems. Afterward, Zelenskyy wrote:
“We are working in several directions: with the United States, Europe, and other partners that have stocks of PAC-2 and PAC-3 missiles. In particular, for almost a month we have been waiting for Mr. Hegseth’s signature on missiles for Patriots and NASAMS. I have instructed the team to discuss this with the American side once again.”
Talks with other countries continue, he added. The meeting also covered preparations for November’s Ramstein meeting of Ukraine’s allies, where Zelenskyy wants decisions already on the table carried out faster.
Some of the transfers come from friendly countries and need Hegseth’s approval, because the US must sign off on any re-transfer of its missiles, a US official and three people familiar with the matter said on 19 October. Hegseth has neither refused nor approved them.
A Ukrainian official said in mid-October that only “a couple” of interceptors were left. Hegseth has said the US wants “our guys” to have “the most possible” interceptors, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted nothing was “being deliberately denied to Ukraine.”
In an interview aired on 25 October, Zelenskyy listed three problems from his Oslo talks with the Americans: air defense, Starlink limits, and limits on US intelligence sharing. Full Starlink speeds returned on 24 October, and missile warnings resumed after his 20 October call with Rubio. Progress on Patriot missiles is “very slow,” he said, “slower than the flight of Russian missiles.”
Kyiv has also tried to trade for the missiles. Zelenskyy told US senators he had offered US envoys a 30-day pause in strikes on Russian refineries in return for Patriot interceptors. The envoys showed no openness to the idea.
Trump has called those refinery strikes a disgrace that only pushes oil prices higher. He said it days after striking a deal with Putin to bring Russian diesel back to the US ahead of the midterm elections on 3 November.
Trump treats Ukraine as the weak link to squeeze and wants a visible win partly with US domestic politics in mind, Ukrainian diplomat Oleksandr Khara has argued.
There appears to be little prospect of lasting peace between Iran and the United States while Donald Trump remains in the White House. This is a view that an increasing number of serious actors across the region now seem to share. Eight months into the Iran war, Washington has neither broken Tehran’s resolve nor found […]
The post Why the Middle East is already waiting out Trump’s presidency appeared first on Asia Times.
Login