Dave Patterson

. The capability to use electronic surveillance equipment to identify soldiers' digital footprints in the field is available today in the commercial market. The militarized version is far more sophisticated but essentially uses the same technology as Apple's Find My Phone application. To understand the utility of such a capability, let me recount a personal experience that makes the point. On a return trip from Washington, DC, my wife and I stopped at a McDonald's only to find it closed due to COVID. My wife used her iPhone to find the nearest restaurant. It was about 20 miles down Hwy 81. We drove there, and as we were getting out of the car, my wife said: “Where's my phone?” We searched the car to no avail. Using my phone, I employed the Find My Phone feature. Sure enough, a blinking iPhone avatar showed her device on a satellite image. We returned the 20 miles to the highway cloverleaf interchange, where the satellite photo showed the iPhone's precise location on the side of the road. The mobile phone was inadvertently put on the top of the car and fell off when we entered the on ramp. If it can work for someone using Find My Phone, it can certainly work for an enemy looking for a US soldier using a similar mobile device.

China is preparing to deploy its own Golden Dome. Satellite photographs show a network of air defense missile launch pads designed to protect Beijing's intercontinental ballistic missile silos from a nuclear first strike. When your enemy begins to ensure that its offensive nuclear capability is protected, it is confirmation that the US's massive missile defense program has some validity.

indicated, “It was not immediately clear whether the Apache was shot down by Iranian fire, experienced mechanical failure, or encountered some other problem.” Subsequent reporting from CNN claimed the US helicopter was hit with a drone from Iran.

Ever thought about packing up the family and taking a Sunday afternoon train ride to Russia? Sound impossible? Well, not if Russian special envoy Kirill Dmitriev's proposed Bering Strait tunnel becomes a reality. He alone seems convinced that it is possible, even though it would be a monumental undertaking. It would be twice the length of the Channel Tunnel linking Great Britain with France. Furthermore, construction would take place in an environment as harsh as any on Earth.

As cyber threats grow, the Department of War may grow as well. Few would argue that the US does not face a cyber threat challenge.

An American Apache helicopter was shot down by Iranian drones – and it didn't take the Trump administration long to launch its “proportional” response.

President Trump says the framework agreement is nearly ready for signatures.

The long-awaited agreement between America and Iran is finally here - maybe.

It's clear that Hegseth and President Trump want NATO to return to NATO 1.0, in which Europe accepts responsibility for the preponderance of its own defense. “This review will be conducted with the benefit of inputs from the United States military, from European command; it will involve consultations with the US Congress and with our allies, but make no mistake about it, this will be a real review,” Hegseth explained. Secretary Hegseth directly addressed recent concerns about NATO's support for the US. He asserted:

The text of this initial agreement is as important for what it doesn't say as for what it does.