Shashank Joshi
@shashj
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Defence editor @TheEconomist, Visiting fellow @warstudies KCL. Signal: shashank.96. Speaking engagements: https://t.co/8V3SSBwUYe
London
Joined November 2008
Laura Loomer, a white nationalist who believes 9/11 was an inside job, appears to be determining the leadership of America's largest intelligence agency, and one which has huge influence on the entire community of Five Eyes allies.
The White House is withdrawing @JoeFrancescon as its nominee to be the National Security Agency’s (NSA) Deputy Director, meanwhile the acting Deputy Director will retire at the end of the month. This means the top two positions at NSA and the four-star commander at Cyber Command
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'A statement from Guyana's Maritime Administration Department on Wednesday evening, however, said that the Skipper was "falsely flying the Guyana Flag as it is not registered in Guyana."'
bbc.co.uk
The move is a sharp escalation in Washington's pressure campaign against Nicolás Maduro's government.
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'that the ship’s registration in Guyana has come under question does open up a possible legal avenue for the seizure...Unclos permits boarding in circumstances where a ship “is without nationality”.'
theconversation.com
US forces have seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast, a move Caracas has called an ‘act of piracy’.
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"U.S. forces left more than $7 billion in military equipment with the Afghan national army [incl] more than a quarter-million rifles — enough to arm the entire U.S. Marine Corps — and nearly 18,000 night-vision goggles, enough [for] the 82nd Airborne..."
washingtonpost.com
Taliban propaganda has depicted a flurry of activity at former U.S. bases in Afghanistan. Aerial images show aircraft decoys and equipment scavenged for parts.
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"Bondi’s claim that the Skipper was seized in accordance with domestically imposed sanctions has no standing in international law."
theconversation.com
US forces have seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast, a move Caracas has called an ‘act of piracy’.
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Not sure I find this term convincing. "Hybrid air denial combines two age-old ideas—hybrid warfare and the denial of air superiority—into a peacetime contest for control of the skies."
lawfaremedia.org
Adversaries are using new technologies to disrupt commercial flight without escalating to broader conflict.
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Is there any legal basis for tanker seizures, given that the sanctions in question here are unilateral US ones? "New reporting suggests the Trump administration is planning a series of similar shadow-fleet tanker seizures"
csis.org
By itself, the U.S. seizure of a Venezuelan oil cargo won’t rattle oil markets. But it likely signals a new commitment to sanctions enforcement that will complicate “shadow fleet” operations and...
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"It is understood that under current plans a single counter unmanned aerial battery would be deployed to the airbase at Baldonnel in west Dublin, [with a] number of foreign leaders...expected to visit Ireland in the second half of 2026"
irishtimes.com
Incident during Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s visit is believed to have been intended to cause embarrassment to the Republic and highlight weak defences
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"The drone initiative will represent the first component of an overall military radar programme, likely to be the most expensive defence project in the history of the [Irish] State and which the Government wants fully in place by 2028."
irishtimes.com
Incident during Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s visit is believed to have been intended to cause embarrassment to the Republic and highlight weak defences
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To reconcile two news stories from the last 24 hours, it is interesting that India removed all administrative vetting for Chinese business visas (a Chinese ask) before China removed a variety of export controls that India perceives as throttling Indian businesses (an Indian ask).
Exclusive: India has cut red tape to speed business visas for Chinese professionals, a major step to boost ties between the Asian giants and end chronic delays that cost output worth billions of dollars because of scarce technicians
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Punchy language from the Irish taoiseach. 'Martin said the drones identified over Dublin Bay were "suggestive of being part of an ongoing Russian inspired hybrid campaign against European and Ukrainian interests".'
bbc.co.uk
Micheál Martin tells the Irish Parliament that the incident was very concerning.
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"Russia’s microelectronics industry is underperforming, still dependent on foreign suppliers for more complex chips, and ... disruption to its operations would have a serious impact on the production of some of the most critical components of its air defence systems"
After four months of research I am delighted to publish, alongside some amazing colleagues, an end to end break down of Russian air defence production, and its associated vulnerabilities: via @RUSI_org -
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'Neutral and poorly armed Ireland — long viewed as “Europe’s blind spot” — announced Thursday it will spend €1.7 billion on improved military equipment, capabilities and facilities to deter drones and potential Russian sabotage of undersea cables.'
politico.eu
The non-NATO member wants to erect drone defenses in time for next year’s EU presidency.
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Worth noting that last week Pete Hegseth repeated US military threats towards Greenland, which is part of Denmark, a NATO ally. If allies do not "defend shared interests" DoD, he said, "stands ready to take focused and decisive action" https://t.co/wJCAm9YDYg
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On the NSS. "North Korea is not mentioned at all." https://t.co/MU5q4egKQv Interesting signal for extended deterrence.
economist.com
Donald Trump’s court squabbles over the future of American power
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'Read it as polemic rather than policy, argue American insiders. “It will be forgotten in two weeks,” says one. Others disagree. The document will become the lodestar for the administration, predicts Rebecca Lissner, who helped draft Joe Biden’s NSS. Bureaucrats and military
economist.com
Donald Trump’s court squabbles over the future of American power
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"The former commander of a unit tasked with trialling the British Army's new Ajax armoured fighting vehicle has lost about 20% of his hearing"
news.sky.com
Rob Page is speaking publicly for the first time about his two years spent putting the vehicle through its paces from 2019 to 2021.
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Pentagon now appears to be working with far-right activists to threaten and smear journalists writing critical stories. Another stage in the department's assault on the press. "A Pentagon spokesperson and Posobiec both denied coordination. Geressy declined to comment. But
When @dfriedman33 discovered a Goodreads page tied to the email of a top Pentagon official featuring books on “Asian wife sharing," he did what any reporter would do: ask the Pentagon questions. The next day, a threatening email from Jack Posobiec arrived.
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Pentagon now appears to be working with far-right activists to threaten and smear journalists writing critical stories. Another stage in the department's assault on the press. "A Pentagon spokesperson and Posobiec both denied coordination. Geressy declined to comment. But
When @dfriedman33 discovered a Goodreads page tied to the email of a top Pentagon official featuring books on “Asian wife sharing," he did what any reporter would do: ask the Pentagon questions. The next day, a threatening email from Jack Posobiec arrived.
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