Today's Defense Pulse
Iran drafts $300B reconstruction MOU with the United States
Iran released a 14‑point draft memorandum of understanding that would require U.S. forces to withdraw from Iranian territory, lift oil sanctions and suspend the naval blockade. The proposal calls for the release of half of Iran’s frozen assets and outlines a reconstruction plan of at least $300 billion, with Tehran pledging to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 30 days.
Pennsylvania Guard Soldiers Strengthen AI, Critical Thinking Skills
The Pennsylvania National Guard delivered a two‑day AI 201 course at Fort Indiantown Gap, taught by U.S. Army War College faculty, to teach soldiers and civilian staff advanced AI concepts and critical‑thinking techniques. The program emphasized responsible AI integration, mission‑command principles, and the importance of human oversight. Participants, including logistics chief Maj. Maria Myers, expressed intent to apply AI tools in their duties and called for additional training. The Guard aims to develop the installation into an AI center of excellence, expanding both foundational and advanced curricula.
NUBURU Activates Q1 Production Ramp for 40 High-Power Blue Laser Systems
NUBURU Inc. has launched its Q1 2026 production ramp for 40 high‑power blue laser systems through its Italian subsidiary Lyocon, fulfilling an $850,000 contract with Dutch agritech firm Trabotyx. The order comprises 24 units of 100 W and 16 units of 200 W...
NAVWAR Cyber Directorate’s Mission to Secure, Survive, Comply
The Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR) created a new cyber directorate last August to centralize its cybersecurity efforts. The directorate targets three pillars—zero‑trust adoption, secure software development, and cutting‑edge defensive technologies—while automating risk‑management framework (RMF) compliance. By feeding feedback...
2/13/26 National Security and Korean News and Commentary
The Small Wars Journal roundup highlights a surge of geopolitical flashpoints, from the United States covertly shipping thousands of Starlink terminals into Iran and deploying its largest warship to the Middle East, to Germany’s preparation for offensive cyber operations and...
Microsoft Under Pressure to Bolster Defenses for BYOVD Attacks
Microsoft faces mounting pressure as ransomware groups increasingly leverage bring‑your‑own‑vulnerable‑driver (BYOVD) attacks to neutralize endpoint security tools. While Windows has introduced driver signing enforcement and a vulnerable driver blocklist, legacy compatibility rules allow drivers with expired or revoked certificates to...
Zelenskiy Meets Iranian Opposition Figure Pahlavi
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy met exiled Iranian opposition leader Reza Pahlavi on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. The two discussed the need to tighten sanctions on Iran and other authoritarian regimes, and jointly condemned the growing military cooperation between...
Inside the High-Stakes U.S. Pressure Campaign on Iran
The Trump administration is deploying a second aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, to join the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East, intensifying pressure on Iran over its nuclear, missile and regional proxy activities. Former intelligence manager Norman...
Navy Installations Shift to Continuous Cybersecurity Model
The U.S. Navy is moving to a continuous cybersecurity model that relies on artificial intelligence to detect and mitigate threats in real time. Navy Installations Command (CNIC) is replacing its legacy risk‑management framework with the Cybersecurity Risk Management Construct, emphasizing...
Confidence, Interoperability, and the Limits of U.S. Decision Systems
The article argues that the United States’ national‑security decision‑making suffers from a systemic confidence illusion: analysts routinely express 80‑90 percent confidence that only materializes at 50‑70 percent accuracy. This mis‑calibration stems not from data scarcity but from institutional architectures that...
NATO Must Impose Costs on Russia, China over Cyber and Hybrid Attacks, Says Deputy Chief
At the Munich Cyber Security Conference, NATO Deputy Secretary General Radmila Shekerinska warned that the alliance must make cyber and hybrid attacks by Russia and China more costly. She cited a December cyber‑attack on Poland’s energy infrastructure as a recent...
Google Links China, Iran, Russia, North Korea to Coordinated Defense Sector Cyber Operations
Google Threat Intelligence Group disclosed a coordinated campaign by state‑sponsored actors from China, Iran, Russia and North Korea targeting the defense industrial base. The operations concentrate on battlefield technologies used in the Russia‑Ukraine war, recruitment‑process infiltration, edge‑device entry points, and...
Episode 12 - Domain OSINT, Building Methods, and Turning Intelligence Into Products
In Episode 12, host Jake Creps breaks down Domain OSINT, demonstrating how a single URL can reveal ownership, infrastructure, intent, and related activity using free tools like WHOIS, DNS enumeration, and reverse IP searches. He illustrates the process with a...
Taiwan’s Air Force Cancels C-130H Upgrade, Will Acquire 10 U.S. C-130J Transport Aircraft
Taiwan’s Air Force has scrapped a multi‑year upgrade of its legacy C‑130H fleet, deeming it too costly, and approved the purchase of ten new Lockheed Martin C‑130J Super Hercules transports from the United States. The decision creates a mixed “high‑low”...
China May Be Rehearsing a Digital Siege, Taiwan Warns
Taiwan’s senior security adviser warned that China is using a secret cyber‑training platform called "Expedition Cloud" to simulate attacks on critical infrastructure. The platform creates digital twins of power grids, transport and communications networks, allowing Beijing’s teams to rehearse disruptive...
Trump Says Change of Power in Iran Would Be 'Best Thing'
U.S. President Donald Trump publicly called for a regime change in Iran, saying it would be the "best thing that could happen," while dispatching a second aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, to the Middle East. The move intensifies U.S. military pressure...
Denmark Records 292 Russian ‘Shadow Fleet’ Tankers Passing Through Danish Straits
New data from the Danish Maritime Authority shows that 292 EU‑sanctioned Russian tankers sailed through the Øresund, Great Belt and Skagerrak in 2025, confirming the Danish straits as a critical gateway for Russia’s shadow fleet. The fleet has expanded since...
Startup Bets on New Approach to Space-Based Missile Defense
California startup Wardstone has closed a $5 million seed round to develop space‑based kinetic interceptors. The company plans to test its first prototype on a suborbital sounding rocket in late April, employing a novel “buckshot” particle‑cloud approach to counter hypersonic missiles....
New Video Reveals Details of Truxtun‑Supply Collision
#Collision Between USS #Truxtun and USNS #Supply, Feb 11, 2026. Clearer quality video. Check full analysis on YouTube at What's Going on With Shipping.
What Colby’s Northeast Asia Tour Tells Us About the Future of Japan-Korea-US Trilateral Deterrence
U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby toured Japan and South Korea in late January, reinforcing the Pentagon’s new National Defense Strategy that prioritises deterrence‑by‑denial along the First Island Chain. The visits highlighted Washington’s push for allies to shoulder...
Suspend Your Judgment? The Role of International Courts in Ending Wars
International courts are increasingly handling wars as they unfold, moving from traditional dispute settlement to real‑time adjudication. The Balkan conflicts set a precedent, while recent cases involving Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Israel‑Hamas hostilities illustrate both the ambition and limits...
National Guard’s Vice Chief Credits Georgia’s ‘Leadership Factory’
General Thomas Carden, a career Georgia National Guard officer, has been confirmed as the 13th Vice Chief of the National Guard Bureau, bringing nearly four decades of experience to an organization that oversees more than 435,000 Soldiers and Airmen. Carden...
UK Spends over £400 Million on Long-Range Weapons as Cooperation Scales up with European Allies
The United Kingdom has earmarked more than £400 million this year for long‑range precision and hypersonic weapons, expanding joint programmes with France, Italy and Germany. The Stratus missile project, which replaces the Storm Shadow, already sustains over 1,300 highly‑skilled jobs in...
NATO Remains Vital Amid Transatlantic Trust Crisis
for all the criticism and hand wringing, nato continues to serve a useful role for all members and nobody is trying to leave it or replace it. there’s a crisis of trust in the transatlantic relationship. but not an existential...
Canada’s River-Class Destroyer Training to Start Before Ships Join Fleet
Modest Tree, a Nova Scotia‑based defense tech firm, secured a $32 million subcontract from Fleetway to create immersive, design‑derived training systems for the Royal Canadian Navy’s upcoming River‑class destroyers. The platform will translate validated digital ship models and OEM documentation into...
Fake North Korean IT Workers Are Rampant on LinkedIn – Security Experts Warn Operatives Are Stealing Profiles to Apply for...
Security Alliance (SEAL) reports that North Korean actors are hijacking authentic LinkedIn profiles to pose as remote IT workers and infiltrate companies worldwide. By leveraging stolen personal data, verified workplace emails and AI‑generated imagery, they pass background checks and secure...
Energy Power Plays Trump, Russia, China Militarize Oil
Trump talks "deals" with Iran while Russia & China talk about naval escorts of Iranian oil to Cuba, writes @TheMichaelEvery The US repeals carbon regs & hopes to restart Venezuelan oil output soon. Energy is being militarized Markets, sanctions & climate...
US Force Surge Risks Overstretch, Sacrifices Future Readiness
Shifting a carrier strike group and F-35s from the Caribbean to the Middle East shows the US can surge forces, but raises the real risk of overstretch. Repeated retaskings are trading tomorrow’s readiness for today’s pressure campaigns. For @TheTerminal: https://t.co/JBJinJmRNS...
Munich Security Conference: Cyber Threats Lead G7 Risk Index, Disinformation Ranks Third
The Munich Security Index 2026 released at the MSC shows G7 nations rank cyber‑attacks as their top security risk for the second consecutive year. Disinformation campaigns sit in third place, while economic crises occupy the second slot. In contrast, the...
Operation Sindoor Ushered a New Indian Army
Really looking forward to listening to this @Gen_RajShukla deep dive on the Indian Army. I fully agree. Operation Sindoor saw a new Indian Army and a new India.
IDF Vows to Disarm Hamas, Demilitarize Gaza
The @IDF is ready to return to disarming Hamas and demilitarizing the Gaza Strip. Both vital for peace and stability to be achieved.
Bristol's Apprentices Celebrated as the Future of the Defence Industry
During National Apprenticeship Week, Defence Minister Luke Pollard visited Babcock’s Bristol facility to spotlight apprentices as the future of the UK defence sector. Babcock announced 1,600 new apprentice and graduate positions for 2025/26, adding to the roughly 5,000 roles already...
DoD China List Document Removed From Federal Register
Just in on DoD China List: (Bloomberg) -- Document that previously listed Alibaba, Baidu, BYD, Huawei, Nio, TP-Link among companies connected to the Chinese military is no longer available in the Federal Register.
Ford CSG Shift Highlights Readiness Tradeoffs in Carrier Strategy
Before news broke that the Ford CSG was moving from the Caribbean to the Middle East, we were already talking carrier chess on @BloombergTV. I laid out for @JMathieuReports & @kaileyleinz what this deployment really means for readiness and the...
Hypersonic Missiles Development Accelerated by New Contract
The UK Ministry of Defence has granted a £12 million contract to Amentum UK, supported by SMEs Ebeni and Synthetik, to design and flight‑test a sovereign hypersonic missile system. The award, part of a broader £48 million investment since July 2024, was secured...
Starlink Shutdown Blinds Russian Drones and Command Posts
“The shutdown didn’t only reduce Russian drone strikes. On the front lines, it also partially blinded Russian command posts and drone crews that relied on Starlink for communication, livestreams and more-precise control of assaults as commanders got real-time footage of...
Backing Philly Mayor’s Manufacturing Push Amid NY Crisis
I’ve seen her positive words — If @PhillyMayor is serious about supporting manufacturing, shipbuilding, and the defense industrial base in Philadelphia, I will help her. New York is in a rapidly accelerating crisis of conscience.
Dutch Carrier Odido Discloses Data Breach Impacting 6 Million
Dutch mobile carrier Odido announced a data breach that exposed personal information of more than 6 million customers, including names, addresses, phone numbers, email, dates of birth, bank account and passport or driver‑license details. The intrusion occurred on February 7‑8 and targeted...
The Clearance System Is Mission Infrastructure. Treat It Like One
The article warns that the U.S. security clearance system is being treated as a back‑office task rather than essential mission infrastructure. Recent fake‑remote‑worker scandals and DOJ reports of foreign infiltration highlight the risks of a brittle trusted‑workforce pipeline. Leadership gaps...
Trump’s $12 B Rare‑Earth Stockpile: Mere Band‑Aid
The Trump administration has announced a plan to create a $12 billion stockpile of rare earths. The goal is to create a buffer against any supply disruptions, but this is just a band-aid. Full Newsletter: https://t.co/daeIxnpldt #rareearths #trump #projectvault https://t.co/p6icljXtjO
Forget Cloud: Istari Unveils “Ground,” A New Data Sharing Infrastructure Tailored for Aerospace
Istari Digital unveiled "Ground," a new data‑sharing protocol that lets aerospace and defense firms keep information behind their own firewalls while still enabling global collaboration. The platform replaces the traditional cloud model with a shareable, auditable connection layer that embeds...
Malicious Chrome Extensions Caught Stealing Business Data, Emails, and Browsing History
Researchers uncovered a wave of malicious Chrome extensions that siphon data from corporate tools, social platforms, AI assistants, and general browsing activity. The CL Suite add‑on steals Meta Business Suite credentials and analytics, while VK‑styled extensions hijacked roughly 500,000 VKontakte...
SAFE: France Didn’t Get the Most, but Sets the Rules
France is set to receive about €16.2 billion in preferential SAFE loans, making it the third‑largest beneficiary after Poland and Romania. Paris is using the instrument to push a European‑preference policy that favours French defence firms and aims to reduce reliance...
A Sustainable Approach to Counter Piracy and Armed Robbery?
Julian Pawlak and Deniz Kocak explore the persistent threat of piracy, armed robbery, and kidnapping in the Gulf of Guinea, contrasting it with past successes off the Horn of Africa. They argue that counting incidents is insufficient and advocate for...
Iran’s Future Hinges on IRGC-Artesh Power-Sharing
Iran’s strategic trajectory now depends on how the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the regular armed forces (Artesh) negotiate power. The IRGC’s performance in the 2024‑25 conflict with Israel exposed operational weaknesses, eroding its dominance. This vacuum has allowed...
Npm’s Update to Harden Their Supply Chain, and Points to Consider
npm completed a major authentication overhaul in December 2025, revoking classic long‑lived tokens and moving to short‑lived session tokens with MFA default for publishing. The changes also promote OIDC Trusted Publishing, giving CI systems per‑run credentials. However, MFA phishing attacks...
The Bristol Beaufighter TF.X: The Definitive WWII Torpedo-Fighter Variant of the British “Torbeau”
In 1941 RAF Coastal Command introduced the Bristol Beaufighter TF.X, the definitive torpedo‑fighter derived from the Beaufort bomber’s wing and tail assemblies. The TF.X replaced the interim Mk VIC “Torbeau” with 60 conversions and featured the low‑level Hercules XVII engines, a torpedo...
Australian Navy’s Anzac-Class Frigate Transits South China Sea
Australia’s Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Toowoomba completed a routine transit through the South China Sea’s Spratly Islands region from February 9 to 10, 2026, as part of its 2026 regional presence deployment. Commander Alicia Harrison confirmed the passage occurred in...
Wieslander Published in Euractiv
In a Euractiv op‑ed, Anna Wieslander and Rachel Ellehuus of RUSI argue Europe must build a NATO led by Europeans. They warn waiting for a new U.S. administration would waste critical time. The authors propose an action‑oriented process focusing on...
Vulcan Centaur Reaches Orbit Despite Booster Glitch
LAUNCH at 0922 UTC Feb 12 of a Vulcan Centaur from Canaveral with the Space Force's GSSAP 7 and 8 satellites, and possibly other payloads. One of the GEM 63XL solid boosters malfunctioned but the vehicle was reportedly able to reach...