Quotes of the Week
- General Anthony Cotton: Emphasizes the importance of the Sentinel project and regrets the simultaneous tackling of multiple strategic modernization programs.
- Strategic Command: Highlights the vital role of the Nuclear Triad in national security.
- USAF Vice Chief of Staff General James Slife: Stresses the necessity of maintaining a nuclear arsenal.
Essay of the Week: Ukraine, Proliferation, & Deterrence
- Peter Huessy: Discusses the complexities of the US and NATO’s approach to Ukraine, the implications of a ceasefire, and the need for a robust deterrent against Russian aggression.
- Key Points:
- Historical failures in responding to Russian aggression.
- Current defense spending and military assistance to Ukraine.
- The importance of a strategic security arrangement involving NATO and Ukraine.
Event of the Week
- Defense Conference: General Anthony Cotton calls for more B-21 bombers and underscores the urgency of nuclear modernization.
Administration Developments
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth: Plans to increase spending on space operations, highlighting the importance of the space domain in future warfare.
The AF Chiefs Corner
- Air Force Chief Gen. David Allvin: Sees an opportunity for additional funding for missile defense and nuclear modernization.
The Commanders Corner
- General Cotton: Advocates for increased production rates of B-21 bombers and more Long Range Stand-Off weapons due to evolving security threats.
Strategic Developments
- Taiwan: Defense budget to exceed 3% of GDP due to rising threats from China.
- NATO Air Command: Demonstrates interoperability and transatlantic unity through Bomber Task Force missions.
Top Essays of the Week
- Essay #1: Discusses the uncertainty surrounding US extended deterrence guarantees and the potential for nuclear proliferation among US allies.
- Essay #2: Emphasizes the importance of maintaining the US nuclear umbrella over its allies.
Congressional Budget Developments
- Defense Spending Tips: Recommendations for cuts and increases in various defense programs, including missile procurement and Air Force programs.
Economic Developments
- Stephen Moore: Highlights the shift towards a production-driven economy and its impact on inflation and economic growth.
Proliferation Concerns
- Colin Demarest: Discusses the global proliferation of nuclear weapons and the implications for international security.
Ukraine Corner
- Clifford May: Advocates for a realistic goal of achieving a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine, leading to a frozen conflict.
Media Error of the Week
- Wall Street Journal: Criticized for suggesting negotiations with Houthis terrorists, which could lead to endless conflict.
About the Author
Peter Huessy
Mr. Peter Huessy is President of his own defense consulting firm, Geostrategic Analysis, founded in 1981, and through 2021, Director of Strategic Deterrent Studies at the Mitchell Institute on Aerospace Studies. He was the senior defense consultant at the National Defense University Foundation for 22 years. He was the National Security Fellow at the AFPC, and Senior Defense Consultant at the Air Force Association from 2011-2016.
Mr. Huessy has served as an expert defense and national security analyst for over 50 years, helping his clients cover congressional activities, arms control group efforts, nuclear armed states actions, and US administration nuclear related policy, budgets, and strategies, while monitoring budget and policy developments on nuclear deterrence, ICBM modernization, nuclear arms control, and overall nuclear modernization.
He has also covered nuclear terrorism, counterterrorism, immigration, state-sponsored terrorism, missile defense, weapons of mass destruction, especially US-Israeli joint defense efforts, nuclear deterrence, arms control, proliferation, as well as tactical and strategic air, airlift, space and nuclear matters and such state and non-state actors as North Korea, China, Iran, Syria, Venezuela and Hezbollah, Hamas, and Al Qaeda. This also includes monitoring activities of think tanks, non-governmental organizations, and other US government departments, as well as projecting future actions of Congress in this area. His specialty is developing and implementing public policy campaigns to secure support for important national security objectives. And analyzing nuclear related technology and its impact on public policy, a study of which he prepared for the Aerospace Corporation in 2019.
