The year 2025 saw the intensification of conflicts across multiple theatres, and the outbreak of new hostilities in Latin America, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, while major developments in ongoing arms races have shifted consensus among analysts regarding long term power trajectories affecting several key hotspots.
Author: Michael
It was nearing midnight just two days before Thanksgiving when a small Marine Corps drone buzzed to life, obscuring the sound of insects chirping away at the Puerto Rican military facility known as Camp Santiago.
Then there was an explosion, briefly illuminating the drone’s target — a container — and the flora surrounding it in an otherwise dark night, according to a Marine Corps video of the exercise. A voice then cracked over the radio: the target was destroyed.
An analysis of federal health survey data found that children in U.S. military families are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at higher rates than children in civilian families. Children’s Health Defense scientists, who conducted the study, said child exposure to toxins, either directly or through their parents, cannot be ignored and must be investigated.
by Brenda Baletti, Ph.D.
Children in U.S.
Air Force Special Operations Command is interested in equipping its AC-130J Ghostrider aircraft with SpaceX’s made-for-government Starlink/Starshield terminals.
According to a request for information posted to Sam.gov on Tuesday, AFSOC is conducting market research for “ruggedized Starlink/Starshield integration solutions onto AC-130J Ghostrider” — a gunship that primarily provides close air support and armed reconnaissance for ground-based forces.
This video describes the military situation in
the numbers don’t spin…and happy New Year to all
Chinese aircraft carrier Fujian flight deckImage by 中国新闻社
As the final post of 2025, let’s look at the warships the U.S. Navy commissioned this year.
Carriers:
None. Next scheduled in 2027.
Amphibious Ships:
None. Next LHA expected in 2026.
Destroyers:
None. Two expected in 2026.
Frigates or Other Small Surface Combatants:
USS Pierre, LCS-38
Attack Submarines:
USS Iowa, SSN-797
So, a LCS and a SSN. 2026 should be a bit better, but it is what it is.
Two.
If you are reading this, conduct a sensitive items check on your sanity. You made it. You survived another twelve months of last-minute orders to places that haven’t been added to maps yet, healthcare transitions that will be studied for centuries, and the special brand of politics that comes from being told “we care about you.” At the same time, you’re doing battle with the black mold that has achieved sentience in your laundry room.
This video describes the military situation in
A failure to properly follow procedures and a lack of supervision led to the death of an airman last year in Alaska. That’s according to a newly released Air Force investigation, which found that Staff Sgt. Charles Crumlett’s death while working on a F-22 Raptor was in part because of a lax attitude from his maintenance crew.
Crumlett died on March 15, 2024, while working as a weapons load crew chief at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska. He was working on an F-22A Raptor fighter jet when a weapons bay closed on him, resulting in a fatal head injury.
George Friedman, Geopolitical Futures There is talk of Russia moving into Belarus, launching attacks on Latvia and Lithuania, and preparing a massive operation in and around the Black Sea.