US News

• While big name firms like Lockheed and Raytheon knock down the most money and get the most attention for supporting US military adventurism, new wars buoy smaller companies, especially those which find themselves on the leading edge of the latest killing technologies. AWC
• The US Air Force and Space Force jointly launched an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Wednesday, amidst increased tensions with Pyongyang and Moscow. Air Force Global Strike Command carried out the test firing from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The Institute 
• A federal judge denied Massachusetts Airman Jack Teixeira’s motion to be released while he waits for his trial to begin. Teixeira is accused of leaking classified documents on Discord that undermine the narrative put forward by the US government that the war in Ukraine was going well. The judge explained the authorities have been unable to find Teixeira’s hard drive, cell phone, or any of the documents he is accused of leaking. The Institute
• The US military is devising a new system designed to field thousands of drones controlled by artificial intelligence, deputy Pentagon chief Kathleen Hicks said on Wednesday, voicing hopes the tech would help to overcome Beijing’s “advantage in mass.” AWC

Russia

• Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced Washington would send over $1 billion in additional aid to Ukraine. The funds include $275 million for the military, $300 million for the police, and over $200 million in humanitarian assistance. The arms package includes depleted uranium, known to have grave health and environmental consequences. AWC
• The Washington-led effort to remove Russia from the world economy is widening the division in the Group of 20 (G20), according to the AP. AWC
• While visiting Kyiv on Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced another pledge of funds to Ukraine worth $1 billion in military and other financial aid. Included in that sum is $5.4 million in seized assets belonging to a Russian oligarch and this will go toward veterans’ services. AWC
• Ukraine’s domestic security service (SBU) has an elite ancillary known as the fifth counter-intelligence directorate, which has taken a central role in “counter-Russia operations” specializing in “wet work” or assassinations, according to a report in The Economist. AWC
• Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczyński told a group of arms manufacturers that Warsaw will have Europe’s strongest land force within two years through a series of weapons purchases. Warsaw believes increasing military spending to three percent of GDP and expanding its military to 300,000 personnel will make the Polish Army so powerful it cannot be challenged. AWC
• In an interview with renowned reporter Seymour Hersh, a US intelligence official scolded the media for misleading the American public about Ukraine’s battlefield failures during the Spring counteroffensive. The unnamed official additionally told Hersh he believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the assassination of PMC Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin to deescalate tensions with NATO. AWC
• Ukrainian President Zelensky spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu by phone on Thursday. The leaders discussed how Tel Aviv could support Kyiv’s fight against Russia and the potential deployment of Israeli police to Ukraine to support Jewish pilgrims. AWC
• In an article published last month in Foreign Policy Analytics, Karim Khan – the lead prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC), based in the Hague – declared that his office will now be investigating and potentially prosecuting “war crimes” committed in cyberspace. This comes after Joe Biden ordered his administration to begin sharing evidence of alleged Russian war crimes committed in Ukraine with the ICC. The Institute 

Middle East

• The UN nuclear monitoring organization confirmed that Iran is decreasing its rate of production of 60% enriched uranium and diluting its existing stockpile. Tehran’s decision could open the door for diplomacy on the nuclear issue. AWC
• The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Deir Ezzor Military Council (DEMC) have battled for over a week, leaving nearly 100 dead. The fighting between America’s Syrian proxies is a result of ethnic tensions boiling over. Washington has primarily relied on the Kurdish SDF to rule the eastern third of Syria, which 900 American soldiers occupy.  The Institute 
• A Dier Ezzor Military Council (DEMC) leader announced his militia was in a guerrilla war against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Ethnic tensions between Washington’s Arab and Kurdish partners in Eastern Syria boiled over last week, with analysts warning fighting could escalate. So far, at least 100 people have been killed in the fighting taking place near American soldiers. The Institute