Free Republic

It was one of the most significant developments in the Obama presidency. We refer to the leak last week of an explosive top secret memo sent in January by the Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to President Obama's national security adviser, Gen. James L. Jones, deploring the lack of planning concerning Iranian nuclear aspirations should the administration's much ballyhooed outreach approach fail. In itself, the memo's conclusion is nothing less than stunning - a senior official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, characterized the document as "a wake-up call." Yet the very fact that this highly classified analysis was leaked...

Iran: A leaked memo from the defense secretary reveals the administration has no alternatives to stop Iran's nuclear push if "soft power" fails. This should be a wake-up call, but we continue snoozing toward Armageddon. President Obama campaigned on the notion that not talking to tyrants was not an option or a workable policy. He said he'd be willing to talk with anybody anywhere to bring peace and relieve tensions. Unlike President Theodore Roosevelt, however, he has been talking softly but forgetting about the big stick. A memo written by Defense Secretary Robert Gates and unearthed by the New York...

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has warned the White House it does not have an effective policy for dealing with Iran's alleged nuclear weapons push, The New York Times reported late Saturday. Citing unnamed government officials, the newspaper said one senior official described the secret memorandum, which was written in January, as "a wake-up call." According to the report, the document sparked efforts in the Pentagon, the White House and the intelligence agencies to develop new options for President Barack Obama. They included secret military operation against Iran if international sanctions failed to force the country to change its approach,...

The US and Brazil signed a military agreement Monday that both nations touted as an example of partnership and transparency in the Americas. The defense pact, the first between the two nations since 1977, opens the door to more interchange on research and development, logistics support, education and training, and the acquisition of defense products and services. It comes as US Defense Secretary Robert Gates sets off on a tour of Latin America, including visits to Colombia, Peru, and the Caribbean – seen as part of a broader effort to strengthen ties with allies, as well as shore up support...

Here is video of Defense Secretary Robert Gates on "Meet the Press" today where he said the Obama Administration has not given up on preventing Iran from obtaining Nuclear Weapons. Moderator David Gregory asked Gates if they were coming to an acceptance of the possibility they would get Nuclear Weapons. But Gates certainly stopped short of an emphatic declaration that the United States will not allow Iran to obtain Nuclear Weapons. It appears the Obama Administration has shifted in the direction of appeasement and acceptance of a Nuclear Iran.

The Obama administration's nuclear posture review may have removed some of the intentional ambiguity from U.S. nuclear policy, but it does not leave the country any less safe, President Obama's top national security advisers said on CBS' "Face the Nation." In fact, they said, it gives a clear warning to other state actors that the U.S. will not ignore any growing threats. "This is putting everybody on notice," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told CBS News chief Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer in an interview conducted Friday at the Pentagon. "We don't want more countries to go down the path that...

Note: The following text is a quote: www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/statement-president-barack-obama-release-nuclear-posture-review Home • Briefing Room • Statements & Releases The White House Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release April 06, 2010 Statement by President Barack Obama on the Release of Nuclear Posture Review One year ago yesterday in Prague, I outlined a comprehensive agenda to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and to pursue the peace and security of a world without them. I look forward to advancing this agenda in Prague this week when I sign the new START Treaty with President Medvedev, committing the United States and Russia to...

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Tuesday that "all options" remained on the table to deal with Iran and North Korea despite a new US policy restricting use of nuclear weapons. "If there is a message for Iran and North Korea here, it is that if you're going to play by the rules, if you're going to join the international community, then we will undertake certain obligations to you," Gates said. "But if you're not going to play by the rules, if you're going to be a proliferator, then all options are on the table in terms of how we...

Despite a legal pact designed to slow the proliferation of unmanned systems, the Pentagon hopes to export U.S. drone technology to allies, Reuters reported. Defense Secretary Robert Gates testified before a Senate hearing that it was in the United States’ interest to share drone technology with allies despite the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), a pact signed by at least 34 countries. "There are other countries that are very interested in this capability and frankly it is, in my view, in our interest to see what we can do to accommodate them," Gates said. The U.S. military's demand for unmanned...

The Pentagon will name Vice Admiral David Venlet, commander of the Naval Air Systems Command, to run its F-35 fighter plane program, an influential defense analyst with knowledge of the plan, said on Tuesday. Venlet will get the job after U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he would restructure the program because of its poor record, Lexington Institute analyst Loren Thompson said. Thompson, who works for many of the largest defense companies and has close ties with defense officials, said he heard about the appointment from his sources within the U.S. government. “Venlet certainly has all the experience and expertise...

Defense Secretary Robert Gates asked Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah for support lobbying for U.N. sanctions against Iran on Wednesday and discussed ways to boost the kingdom's air and missile defenses.The United States is leading a push for the U.N. Security Council to impose a fourth round of sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme, and aides to Gates made no secret of their hopes that Saudi Arabia could press regional allies for help. "We are certainly hopeful that the Saudis will use whatever influence they have, which is considerable, in this region and throughout the world to try to help...

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday the Pentagon will drive a hard bargain with Boeing on a contract for a new aerial refuelling tanker after Airbus parent EADS dropped out of the competition. "I wish that we had had a competition. I wish both companies had stayed in it," Gates said. But he said that "we will certainly be sharpening our pencil when it comes to negotiating a contract with Boeing", the sole bidder for the troubled tanker aircraft project. He said he saw no reason why the decision by EADS and partner Northrop Grumman to bow out...

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates raised the possibility Wednesday that some of the U.S. forces involved in the Afghanistan surge could leave the country before President Barack Obama's announced July 2011 date to begin withdrawal. Without giving specifics, Gates said, "It would have to be conditions-based." Gates made the remarks during a visit to a dust-blown training ground in Kabul province where Afghan soldiers come for weeks of training under U.S. and British instruction. British Brigadier Simon Levy told Gates that if NATO countries contribute more trainers, the project to expand the Afghan army will keep pace. In a press...

Military: Two U.S. congressmen take the lead in proclaiming the obvious — that those who attack this country should be punished and not those who risk their lives to defend it. The Navy SEALs are a special breed of patriot and warrior. This highly trained and select group — the best of the best — is a daily participant in the long twilight struggle against the enemies of freedom that President Kennedy warned us about. Kennedy formally created the SEAL (sea, air, land) outfit as an elite force capable of combat operations in any environment. It was a team of...

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has called on every member of the Defense Department to play a personal role in creating a secure environment that will help to prevent more tragedies like the Nov. 5 shooting rampage that left 13 people dead at Fort Hood, Texas. Secretary Gates issued a memo March 2 after reflecting on results of the independent review he directed following the incident to ensure the safety and health of servicemembers, civilian defense employees and their families. "I ask all commanders, supervisors, noncommissioned leaders and other personnel in the department to reinforce the fabric of trust with...

The release of the Obama administration's review of its nuclear strategy will be delayed even further as the government stakeholders continue to debate what options to ultimately present to President Obama, the Senate Armed Services Committee has confirmed. The Cable previously reported that the administration had notified Congress the Feb. 1 release date of the Nuclear Posture Review would be pushed back to March 1, which is next Monday. But multiple sources both in and out of government now say that mid to late March is the new thinking, following the latest principals' meeting and a still-unresolved debate over how...

You probably thought when Secretary of Defense Bob Gates killed the Lockheed Martin F-22 last year, it was a good thing for the F-35. I'm not so sure anymore. I think Gates simply shifted everyone's target. As the MOST EXPENSIVE WEAPONS PROGRAM IN HISTORY, Lockheed's F-35 program, with its nearly $11 BILLION ANNUAL PRICE TAG (and that's only the US-funded portion), faces F-22-like scrutiny, but now with an unprecedented level of public disclosure. I spent most of my day reading the 25 reports posted by the Defense Contracts Management Agency (DCMA), an unexpectedly public archive that tramples all over the...

Europe has demilitarized too much since the end of the Cold War and its underfunded defense budgets are undermining shared security goals, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Tuesday. Gates, addressing a NATO seminar in Washington, said too few helicopters and cargo aircraft for the NATO mission in Afghanistan were "directly impacting operations." NATO also needed more aerial refueling tankers and surveillance aircraft. "Despite the need to spend more on vital equipment for ongoing missions, the alliance has been unwilling to fundamentally change how it sets priorities and allocates resources," Gates said. "We need to provide our troops in...

The US navy has decided to allow women to serve on submarines, Pentagon officials said on Tuesday, ending one of the last all-male bastions in the American military. Defense Secretary Robert Gates approved the recommendation and sent letters to Congress on Monday informing lawmakers of the plan, officials said. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and Admiral Gary Roughead, chief of naval operations, had briefed Gates on the change and "he's endorsed it and sent it on to Congress," press secretary Geoff Morrell told reporters. Lawmakers have 30 days to comment on the move before it goes into effect, officials said. American...

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, who has long called European contributions to NATO inadequate, said Tuesday that public and political opposition to the military had grown so great in Europe that it was directly affecting operations in Afghanistan and impeding the alliance’s broader security goals. “The demilitarization of Europe — where large swaths of the general public and political class are averse to military force and the risks that go with it — has gone from a blessing in the 20th century to an impediment to achieving real security and lasting peace in the 21st,” he told NATO officers and...