Author: Michael

Less than two months after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ended the military’s flu shot mandate, several branches reinstated flu vaccine requirements after an outbreak at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas sickened at least 222 recruits and hospitalized four. Mainstream outlets tied the outbreak, and the June 12 death of recruit Keon McDaniel, to the end of the mandate, but several physicians and researchers interviewed by The Defender said there is no clear evidence linking McDaniel’s death to the flu or showing that the policy change caused the outbreak.

by Michael Nevradakis, Ph.D.

Ukraine’s long-range strike campaign escalated again on the night of June 23, with missiles striking one of the largest gas processing facilities in Russia.

The strikes also took out military satellite communications infrastructure and caused additional damage in occupied Crimea.

Tu-95. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Tu-95 Bomber Russian Air Force. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

It comes as Kyiv steps up its long-range campaign, forcing Russia to shut down major oil refinery operations and even prompting it to seek help from Kazakhstan to address its fuel shortage.

The 3 Commando name has officially gone⚔️
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RFA Lyme Bay, under the watchful protection of

Ukrainian drone and missile attacks in Russia and in Crimea are putting intense pressure on the Russian economy and on Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is facing increasing pressure both at the front and within the country.

However, some analysts believe that Ukraine’s recent string of successes will only cause Russia to escalate the war even further.

Su-34 Fullback. Creator: Vitaly V. Kuzmin. Credit: Vitaly V. Kuzmin

The Ukrainians have knocked out about 25 percent of Russia’s gas and oil refineries.

U.S. President Donald Trump sought to assure global partners on Wednesday that there would be no tolls charged in the Strait of Hormuz.

The president’s comments appeared to suggest that American negotiators had secured a concession from Iran on a permanent basis, meaning that passage will be free for commercial vessels during the 60-day negotiating period and afterward, too.

A U.S.

Space Systems Command announced Wednesday that Boeing will provide two additional satellites for the Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) constellation — extending operations for one of the Defense Department’s critical SATCOM networks.
Boeing beat out Lockheed Martin for the MUOS Service Life Extension program, initiated by the Space Force to ensure the tactical satellite communications constellation remains operational until 2035.

This video describes the military situation in

“The last thing I want to hear after several mo

In 2004, as a young defense analyst at the RAND Corporation think tank, I was once called into my boss’s office.

“Take a look at this Army Future Combat System, and give me a report,” he said.

On May 16th 2025, Montana’s 1-163rd Combined Arms Battalion hosted over a dozen British Army Soldiers of the Royal Wessex Yeomanry (RWxY) at the Limestone Hills Training Facility in a joint training event to help their armored crewmembers transition to the Challenger 3 tank which is currently in production.