2012-10-22 by Richard Weitz The government of China will play a key role, either positively or negatively, in whether the next U.S. administration will achieve its foreign and domestic objectives. The Obama administration’s increased focus on China and the Asia-Pacific region enjoys widespread bipartisan support in Washington and even a…
New U.S. National Security Space Strategy Proposes New Partnerships By Dr. Richard Weitz 03/22/2011 - The new approach expounded in the National Security Space Strategy released by the Obama administration in early February could, if implemented, affect a number of SLD readers, including the military logistics community, industrial players, and…
[caption id="attachment_10829" align="alignleft" width="128" caption="(Credit Photo: the Hudson Institute)"][/caption] By Dr. Richard Weitz In his August 2 speech before a Disabled American Veterans conference in Atlanta, President Barack Obama said that the American role in Iraq was transitioning from Operation Iraqi Freedom, a military effort led by U.S. combat troops,…
[caption id="attachment_505" align="alignleft" width="186" caption="Delta II Launch. Photo credits: Boeing Co."][/caption] The more than 40 year history of US military space has entered a new phase. The US military space system was built as a unique overlay for the US intelligence community and the US military to provide for strategic…
9/17/09: The United States and its allies are in the midst of a significant financial downturn with serious consequences for defense acquisition. The “contingency operation” in Afghanistan and the “withdrawal” from Iraq both generate severe budgetary pressures and emphasize force acquisition priorities most appropriate to those operations. And the “withdrawal”…
[caption id="attachment_1187" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="C-5M in Flight"][/caption] As the Obama Administration shapes the acquisition approach of the Department of Defense for the years to come, hard choices will be taken. And these choices will have significant impact both in implementing strategy and in shaping strategy for years to come. Among…
The military budget under President Obama and Secretary Gates is dominated by the twin themes of Afghanistan and austerity. The focus on Afghanistan is shaping the strategic perspective for the Administration’s military strategy and austerity is re-shaping the defense portfolios. The power projection forces so dependent upon proprietary military space…
Much lost in the U.S. scurrying for dollars in dealing with "overseas contingency operations" and paying for the Obama "stimulus package" and "health care reform" is the significant question of the role of manufacturing in the evolution of the U.S. economy and its global competitiveness. Notably when President Obama delivered…
