| ZELENSKY: 'AN UNCONDITIONAL INVITATION RIGHT NOW': Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in Brussels today on a mission to sell his five-point victory plan, first at a European Council summit this morning, and later at an afternoon meeting with Secretary-General Mark Rutte at NATO Headquarters. And Zelensky's big ask is for a symbolic but vital message aimed at convincing Russian President Vladimir Putin he can't win: an invitation for Ukraine to join the 32-nation alliance. "There is no alternative to democracy in Ukraine. That is why this is the initial point of the Victory Plan. The first and very important point. The sign of determination. This is what the invitation is. An unconditional invitation right now," Zelensky said in a statement accompanying his five-point plan. "Ukraine’s invitation to NATO could become fundamental for peace and serve as a signal to the Russian dictator that his geopolitical calculations have failed." RUTTE: UKRAINE’S PATH TO MEMBERSHIP IS 'IRREVERSIBLE': At a news conference ahead of today's meeting of defense ministers, Rutte said NATO "stands shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine" and that the country is "on an irreversible path to NATO membership," but he added that membership will come "when time is right." "We will discuss, of course, this item in Zelensky's victory plan," Rutte said. "The plan has many aspects and many political and military issues we really need to hammer out with the Ukrainians to understand what is behind it, to see what we can do, what we cannot do. But in the meantime, we will continue massive military aid moving into Ukraine. Russia has to understand we will keep on doing that as long as they continue the war effort." "This all is about making sure that Ukraine is ready, stands ready, when the day comes when NATO membership is possible," he said. "But I cannot today now exactly sketch out what that path will be, but I am absolutely confident that in the future, Ukraine will join us." BIDEN ANNOUNCES $425 MILLION IN AIR DEFENSE AND AMMUNITION: President Joe Biden arrives in Berlin later today for meetings with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Because his path will not cross with Zelensky's, he spoke by phone with the Ukrainian president to inform him of the latest military aid package he's sending and to discuss Zelensky's victory plan. The $425 million in weapons and ammunition will be drawn from current U.S. inventory and is part of an effort by Biden to "surge security assistance to Ukraine over the remainder of his term in office," the White House said in a statement. The Pentagon said the latest shipment provides "additional capabilities to meet Ukraine's most urgent needs," including air defense capabilities, air-to-ground weapons, munitions for rocket systems and artillery, armored vehicles, and anti-tank weapons. "I am grateful for the new support package," Zelensky said in his nightly video address. "This is air defense — our special priority. Weapons for our warriors. We also talked about our upcoming packages. President Biden gave me his word that the packages will be implemented in the near future." In Germany, Scholz will reportedly discuss his desire to bring the war in Ukraine to an end. "Alongside clear support for Ukraine, it is time for us to do everything we can to explore how we can get to a situation where this war doesn’t carry on indefinitely,” Scholz told Germany’s parliament, according to AFP, which also quoted Scholz as saying he is open to talks involving Putin. BIDEN ANNOUNCES NEW $425 MILLION AID TO UKRAINE Good Thursday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre's Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Stacey Dec. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn't work, shoot us an email and we'll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP OR READ BACK ISSUES OF DAILY ON DEFENSE HAPPENING TODAY: Both Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have media availabilities with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte today. Austin and Rutte meet with reporters at NATO Headquarters at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time (2:30 p.m. in Brussels), while Zelensky and Rutte are scheduled for a joint press conference at 12:20 p.m. Eastern (6:20 p.m. in Brussels) ahead of a NATO-Ukraine Council working dinner. Both events will be livestreamed on the NATO website. US UNLEASHES B-2 BOMBERS ON HOUTHI TARGETS: The U.S. Central Command announced last night that U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy assets, including Air Force B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bombers, conducted "multiple, precision airstrikes on numerous Iran-backed Houthi weapons storage facilities within Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen." Five "hardened underground weapons storage locations" were targeted where the Houthis were believed to be housing "various weapons components of types that the Houthis have used to target civilian and military vessels throughout the region," Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement. "This was a unique demonstration of the United States’ ability to target facilities that our adversaries seek to keep out of reach, no matter how deeply buried underground, hardened, or fortified," Austin said. "The employment of U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bombers demonstrate U.S. global strike capabilities to take action against these targets when necessary, anytime, anywhere." "Houthis have targeted more than 80 merchant vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October 2023," according to the Associated Press. "They have seized one vessel and sunk two in the campaign that has also killed four sailors." Iran might also take note, given that the batwing B-2 stealth bomber can carry the GBU-57 bomb, known as the "Massive Ordnance Penetrator," that would likely be employed were the U.S. to attack Iran's hardened underground nuclear facilities. ARE NORTH KOREAN TROOPS FIGHTING IN UKRAINE? Neither the United States nor NATO seems able to confirm reports that North Korea is not only providing Russia with missiles and weapons in its war in Ukraine but that its soldiers are fighting side by side with Russian forces. A BBC report cited a Ukrainian military intelligence source as saying that the Russian army is forming a unit of some 3,000 North Koreans, but the U.K. news service noted that "so far the BBC has yet to see any sign of such a large unit being formed in Russia’s Far East." "We see an increasing alliance between Russia and regimes like North Korea," Zelensky said Sunday. "This is no longer just about transferring weapons. It is actually about transferring people from North Korea to the occupying military forces." It's not clear if Zelensky was referring to combat troops or technical advisers assisting with North Korean-provided weapons. At yesterday's news conference, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte called the reports "highly worrying" but was quick to add, "We do not have reports confirming this." "Even if it’s not true, North Korea is already supporting the war effort," Rutte said. "I mean, maybe not with troops. We do not know for sure, but they are, with their partnership with Russia and China and Iran. They are helping, and by the way, Russia is also paying for this, maybe not in money, but they don’t get this support for free." "Those reports are concerning to us," John Kirby, White House national security communications adviser, told reporters Tuesday. "This idea of North Korean soldiers fighting on behalf of Russia, we believe, if true, would mark a significant increase in the DPRK and the Russia defense relationship." But he cautioned, "We cannot independently confirm those reports." HARRIS NAMES IRAN AS NO. 1 THREAT: On Fox News last night, Bret Baier asked Vice President Kamala Harris why she named Iran, not China, as America's greatest adversary in her appearance on CBS's 60 Minutes. "A number of experts thought you would say China. The FBI director had said that. But you said Iran," Baier said. "If that’s the case, what do you say to critics who look at the actions of your administration and say you’re not acting like Iran is the No. 1 threat?" "Well, I will tell you most recently, whether it was in April or in October, in the several hours on each occasion, that Iran posed a threat to Israel," Harris said. "I was there most recently in the Situation Room in the most recent attack, working with the heads of our military and doing what America must always do to defend and to support Israel in its requirement to defend itself and to give American support, to be able to allow Israel to have the resources to defend itself against attack, including from Iran and Iran’s terrorist proxies in the region." "Critics just say that you either relaxed or failed to enforce sanctions on Iran, allowing all of this money to flow into Iran like billions of oil profits," Baier pressed. "Let’s go back to Donald Trump, who pulled out of a deal that would have actually put Iran in check," Harris replied. "Then it is during Donald Trump’s administration that we had an American military base that was attacked where American soldiers suffered traumatic brain injuries and Donald Trump dismissed them as headaches, not to mention how Donald Trump has treated and talked about America’s military and military service people, calling them suckers and losers." "When did you first notice that President Biden’s mental faculties appeared diminished?" Baier asked at another point in the interview. "I have watched him from the Oval Office to the Situation Room, and he has the judgment and the experience to do exactly what he has done in making very important decisions on behalf of the American people," Harris replied. "There were no concerns raised?" Baier said. "Bret, Joe Biden is not on the ballot. And Donald Trump is," she said. Of Trump, she said, "He’s not stable. And we should all be concerned." HARRIS'S RISKY FOX NEWS INTERVIEW TURNS COMBATIVE OVER IMMIGRATION AND BIDEN'S HEALTH THE RUNDOWN: Washington Examiner: Biden announces new $425 million aid to Ukraine Washington Examiner: Israel allows 50 aid trucks into northern Gaza after US warning Washington Examiner: Harris's risky Fox interview turns combative over immigration and Biden's health Washington Examiner: Ukraine claims North Korean soldiers being sent en mass to fight for Russia Washington Examiner: Air Force to Help Maintainers Better Understand Mishaps—If They Can Keep It Secret Washington Examiner: Opinion: Tom Rogan: US air defenses are full of holes for Chinese drones to exploit New York Times: With Jets and Ships, China Is Honing Its Ability to Choke Taiwan Defense One: Regional War in Asia Would Be a ‘Global Problem’ for the US, Pacific Army Chief Warns Atlantic Council: Inside The Navy's Plan To Improve Its Readiness For Conflict, With Admiral Lisa Franchetti Defense Daily: CNO: Navy Learning From Red Sea Ops Against Houthi Weapons Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force to Help Maintainers Better Understand Mishaps—If They Can Keep It Secret Stars and Stripes: Air Force Ospreys Complete First Flights to Okinawa Since Fatal Crash Militarycom: Search for Navy Crew of Crashed Growler Aircraft Underway in Washington State Air & Space Forces Magazine: Army Seeks New Space Capabilities for the 'Tactical Edge' Breaking Defense: Italy, US Space Cooperation Plan Includes Launch, Domain Awareness Wall Street Journal: Airbus to Shed 2,500 Jobs in Embattled Defense and Space Division AP: Defense Contractor RTX Agrees to Pay More than $950 Million to Resolve Bribery, Fraud Claims Real Clear Defense: Army's Future Tiltrotor Blazes a Trail in Software, Soldier Feedback Breaking Defense: General Atomics Could Produce CCAs at a Rate of One-Per-Day, Exec Says Air & Space Forces Magazine: All 6 Air Task Forces Now Activated; Combat Wings Will Follow Air & Space Forces Magazine: Electronic Warfare: The Invisible Battlespace National Security Journal: Russia Must Choose: Ukraine or the Arctic National Security Journal: What Happens If Israel Strikes Iran's Nuclear Sites? National Security Journal: NGAD: Is the Air Force's 6th Generation Fighter RIP? National Security Journal: Israel's F-15I Ra'am Is a Truly Unique Fighter Plane National Security Journal: Ukraine Floats 'Victory Plan' Against Russia. But It Won't Work National Security Journal: North Korea Is Clearly Helping Russia Invade Ukraine: Kim Must Pay a Price National Security Journal: Cannon Fodder: North Korean Soldiers Are Dying in Ukraine THE CALENDAR: THURSDAY | OCTOBER 17 8:30 a.m. Brussels, Belgium — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte make remarks at NATO Headquarters at the start of a two-day defense ministers meeting https://www.nato.int/ 9 a.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Hudson Institute discussion: “Strengthening the Allied Industrial Base,” with Rep. Robert Wittman (R-VA); South Korean Ambassador to the U.S. Hyun-dong Cho; Steve Brock, senior adviser to the Navy secretary; Sang-bong Lee, head of engineering and design, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries; Jim Schirmer, senior vice president and deputy managing director, American Rheinmetall Vehicles; Michael Kuenzli, deputy to the deputy assistant Army secretary for defense exports and cooperation; Mike Smith, CEO, Hanwha Defense USA; and Rob Murray, chief innovation officer, Saab https://www.hudson.org/events/strengthening-allied-industrial-base 12 p.m. Brussels, Belgium — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte holds a news conference at the end of Day One of a meeting of defense ministers at NATO Headquarters https://www.nato.int/ 5 p.m. — Council for a Livable World, J Street, and Foreign Policy for America virtual discussion: beginning at 5 p.m., on “Election 2024: The Future of Progressive Foreign Policy,” with John Tierney, executive director of the Council for a Livable World; Connor Murray, political director, Council for a Livable World; Jeremy Ben-Ami, president, J Street; Tali deGroot, national political director, J Street; Andrew Albertson, executive director, Foreign Policy for America; Willa Lerner, political manager of Foreign Policy for America; and Anna Schumann, communications director, the Council for a Livable World https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register FRIDAY | OCTOBER 18 6:15 a.m. (12 p.m. local) Brussels, Belgium — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte holds a news conference at the end of a meeting of defense ministers at NATO Headquarters https://www.nato.int/ 8:45 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW — Center for Strategic and International Studies and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point Center for the Study of Civil-Military Operations inaugural conference: “The Future of Critical Minerals and National Security," with former Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Frank Fannon; retired Army Gen. Paul Kern, former U.S. Ambassador to Algeria, South Africa, and Indonesia Cameron Hume; and Rogier de la Rambelje, head of mining at EAS Advisors https://www.csis.org/events/future-critical-minerals-and-national-security 10 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Wilson Center Global Europe Program, the Wilson Center Kennan Institute, and the Wilson Center Wahba Institute for Strategic Competition discussion: “Disrupting Russia Artillery Supply Chain,” with Jack Watling, global fellow, Wilson Center Global Europe Program and senior research fellow for land warfare at the Royal United Services Institute; Sam Cranny-Evans, associate, Open Source Centre; and Robin Quinville, director, Wilson Center Global Europe Program https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/disrupting-russias-artillery-supply-chain 10 a.m. — Center for a New American Security virtual discussion: “Integration for Innovation: A Report of the CNAS Defense Technology Task Force,” with former Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work; Ellen Lord, former defense undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment; Michael Brown, former director, Defense Innovation Unit; and Andrew Metrick, former executive director, CNAS Defense Technology Task Force https://www.cnas.org/events/virtual-event-integration-for-innovation 12:30 p.m. 1957 E St. NW — George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs book discussion: A Call to Action: Lessons from Ukraine for the Future Force, with co-editor John Nagl, professor of warfighting studies at the U.S. Army War College; co-editor Col. Katie Crombie, chief of the Defense Department Joint Operational War Plans Division; Lt. Col. Stephen Trynosky of the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness; Michael Hackett, State Department foreign service officer; and Matthew Levinger, director of the GWU National Security Studies Program https://calendar.gwu.edu/event/a-call-to-action-lessons-from-ukraine-for-the-future-force | | | | "Bret, Joe Biden is not on the ballot. And Donald Trump is." | | Vice President Kamala Harris, after being asked about Joe Biden's "diminished mental faculties" by Fox News anchor Bret Baier Wednesday |
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