Latest news with #FDD
Fox News
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Pentagon's weapons pause to Ukraine could ‘encourage' and ‘escalate' Putin's war ambitions: security experts
The Pentagon's decision to halt previously promised air defense systems to Ukraine was met with ominous warnings on Wednesday from Washington-based security experts, who warned the move will "encourage" and possibly "escalate" Russian President Vladimir Putin's war ambitions. The decision was confirmed by Fox News Tuesday night after Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby assessed that the U.S. possessed dangerously low munitions stockpiles. However, experts are sounding the alarm that the move undermines U.S. and Ukrainian leverage as President Donald Trump looks to broker a ceasefire deal. "The Trump administration is right to put American warfighters first," John Hardie, deputy director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies' (FDD) Russia Program, said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "Many of these munitions were not drawn from U.S. stocks but were instead procured specifically for Kyiv under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative." U.S. military officials confirmed that the weapons set for shipment to Ukraine were already staged in Poland before the Pentagon issued its order to reverse supplies pledged during the Biden administration. "By weakening Ukraine's defenses and fueling perceptions that America is tiring of supporting Ukraine, this decision will likely reinforce Putin's belief that he has the upper hand," Hardie argued. "This will make him even more intransigent." Fox News confirmed with U.S. military officials tracking the shipments that the systems withheld include missile interceptors and 155 mm ammunition shells — defensive equipment slated to be delivered at a time when Russia has drastically ramped up its offensive. In June, Russian forces broke their previous record for the number of drones fired at Ukraine in a single month by levying more than 5,300 drones in a series of mass attacks — up from the previous record set in March when nearly 4,200 drones were launched. "Putin has launched an intensified aerial assault, targeting civilians in cities across Ukraine with hundreds of drones and missiles," founder and FDD President Clifford May told Fox News Digital. "Cutting off or even slowing munitions to Ukraine now can only encourage Putin to continue and even escalate this offensive. "That cannot be what President Trump wants," he added. Ukraine echoed these concerns on Wednesday and called the U.S. chief diplomat in Kyiv to meet with Foreign Ministry officials. "The Ukrainian side emphasized that any delay or slowing down in supporting Ukraine's defense capabilities would only encourage the aggressor to continue war and terror, rather than seek peace," the ministry said following its meeting with John Ginkel, deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv. Neither the U.S. Embassy nor the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry immediately responded to Fox News Digital's questions regarding the meeting. The attacks by Russia, which have increased in severity and frequency, have coincided with unsuccessful efforts to secure a ceasefire by the Trump administration, and come as Putin has also amassed some 50,000 troops along Ukraine's northern border in what some fear could signal plans to launch another ground offensive. Special Envoy to Ukraine Gen. Keith Kellogg did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's questions over how the Pentagon's order will impact the war and ceasefire attempts.
Bloomberg
5 days ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
China Builds Influence in America's Old Pacific Backyard
'In a desert, an oasis is life saving. And in a vast ocean of blue, a little spot becomes extremely important for survival or defense or power projection,' Cleo Paskal, a senior fellow at the Washington-based think tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), explained in a podcast this month. Japan was well aware of this axiom in the early 1900s, when it acquired the administration of a vast stretch of the central Pacific Ocean — offering a series of outposts from which it could cut off its rival, the US, from east Asia. Today, it's China that's eyeing economic and diplomatic inroads into a pivotal area stretching east of the Philippines, from Palau to Micronesia to the Marshall Islands.
Fox News
6 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Iran intensifies internal security crackdown after US, Israel strikes
Iranians are experiencing internal turmoil as authorities intensify a domestic security crackdown following the 12-day war in which three major nuclear sites were effectively destroyed. There have been reports of mass arrests and executions in the country. Authorities in Iran began the crackdown following Israel's June 13 airstrikes. It started with widespread arrests and an intensified street presence, according to Reuters, which cited activists and officials. The harsh measures have dampened hopes—among some in Israel as well as Iranian dissidents—that the country could see an uprising and regime change. However, no significant demonstrations have taken place yet, Reuters reported. The outlet also noted that some on the ground expressed frustration with the Islamic Republic's policies, which they believe led to the war against the U.S. and Israel. "The regime convicts and imposes the death penalty based on trumped-up charges to spread terror among the Iranians. Meanwhile, Israel's Operation Rising Lion has helped the public realize that the Iranian regime is a paper tiger that is weaker than ever," Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) Senior Iran and Financial Economics Advisor Saeed Ghasseminejad said in a statement. The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said Monday that 705 individuals had been arrested in Iran on "political or security-related charges." This report was echoed by Islamic Republic-run Fars News Agency, which said that 700 were detained for allegedly working with Israel. In addition to the arrests, there are reports that three people in Iran accused of being Mossad spies were executed, NBC News reported, citing Tasnim, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The outlet also noted that the three were accused of bringing "assassination equipment" disguised as alcoholic beverages into the country. According to NBC News, citing Tasnim, the "equipment" was allegedly used in the assassination of a public figure. Nonprofit Iran Human Rights (IHR) warned that at least six others on death row for allegedly spying for Israel are at risk of execution. The organization also said that at least nine individuals have been executed this year on similar charges.
Sky News AU
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
US strikes have significantly ‘hindered' Iran's nuclear program
FDD's Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program Deputy Director Andrea Stricker discusses how much damage strikes from the US and Israel dealt to Iran's nuclear aspirations. 'I would say many years to restore what they had; if we are talking about a crash push to assemble an atomic weapon, that could be less,' Ms Stricker told Sky News Australia. 'My hope is that it's around two years at least, and Iran is significantly hindered.'
Sky News AU
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
US strikes likely have made Iran incapable of making nuclear weapons in a ‘dash effort'
FDD's Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program Deputy Director Andrea Stricker discusses how far the US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities have set the country's atomic weapons program back. 'The nuclear program has likely been set back many months if not years, we have seen damage to the uranium conversion step, the enrichment and the processing of turning into atomic weapons metal,' Ms Stricker told Sky News Australia. 'Even if Iran wanted to make a nuclear weapon in a dash effort, it likely doesn't have the people or capability to do so.'
