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Presented by Lockheed Martin: From the SitRoom to the E-Ring, the inside scoop on defense, national security and foreign policy. | | | | | |  | | By Alexander Ward and Quint Forgey | Presented by Lockheed Martin | With help from Ryan Heath | 
Rep. Marc Veasey (D-Texas). | Eric Gay/AP Photo | Welcome to National Security Daily, your guide to the global events roiling Washington and keeping the administration up at night. Two requests: 1) As we embark on our 10th week here at NatSec Daily, we’re soliciting your feedback on what you like and dislike about the newsletter, what you want to see more or less of, and anything else you think your hosts should know. Find our contact info below. 2) Both of us will be giving “best man” speeches at weddings over the next couple months. Send us some tips! Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Alex | Email Quint SCOOP: A bipartisan group of 15 House members sent national security adviser JAKE SULLIVAN a letter last week urging the White House to help American defense contractors win a bid to sell Finland some warplanes. “We are writing today concerning Finland’s fighter jet competition and to request the White House support U.S. efforts to win this race,” reads the Sept. 13 letter obtained by NatSec Daily, the contents of which haven’t been previously reported. “We request the White House work closely with our Finnish partners to finalize this competition, and we ask that all departments and agencies be directed to fully support this effort.” The letter, led by House Armed Services Committee members MARC VEASEY (D-Texas) and MICHAEL TURNER (R-Ohio), came after signals from Finnish officials in Washington, D.C., that Helsinki will imminently make a decision on the $12 billion sale for 64 planes. The five finalists for the contract are Boeing’s F/A-18EF Super Hornet, Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II, France’s Dassault Rafale, the U.K.’s Eurofighter Typhoon, and Sweden’s Saab Gripen E/F. (Note: Lockheed Martin is a POLITICO sponsor.) Sullivan apparently took the advice and spoke with his Finnish counterpart last week, with a person familiar with their discussion saying it went well. A senior administration official told NatSec Daily: “The United States supports companies' defense industry offers through approved commercial advocacy procedures. We regularly engage with counterparts from Finland on the full range of bilateral issues,” noting other top U.S. officials — like Vice President KAMALA HARRIS, Secretary of State ANTONY BLINKEN and Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN — have engaged with their Finnish equivalents in recent months. After announcing the finalists last October, Finland is on the verge of awarding one of the largest air armament acquisition deals in Europe’s history, which is why the competition is so fierce. But it now has an extra element of drama, as it pits two American companies against a French one shortly after Australia canned a French submarine deal and opted for a U.S.-U.K. one instead . What’s more, reports in Swiss media indicate a meeting between French President EMMANUEL MACRON and Swiss President GUY PARMELIN was canceled over Bern’s decision to buy American — not French — fighter jets. The Elysee Palace in a statement denied those reports based on anonymous sources, saying "it was never cancelled and especially not due to the reasons mentioned.” PASI RAJALA, spokesperson for the Finnish Embassy in Washington, said a "decision is coming within months." Animosity between Washington and Paris won’t stop the U.S. from making a final push to win the deal, though. “Getting this fighter deal done with the Finns was a top Trump administration priority that would support thousands of high-paying U.S. jobs. It would be a shot into the arm of an economy that needs it,” said a senior House GOP staffer. “They got it to the two yard line. Hopefully the new team can get it across the goal line.” | | | BIDEN TO LOOK BEYOND AFGHANISTAN IN UNGA ADDRESS: President JOE BIDEN will lean into his decision to leave Afghanistan when he speaks before the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, casting the U.S. military withdrawal as the beginning of a new era in American foreign policy, per a senior administration official who spoke to reporters Monday ahead of the remarks. Biden’s speech — his first before the U.N. body since assuming office — “will center on the proposition that we are closing the chapter on 20 years of war and opening a chapter of intensive diplomacy by rallying allies and partners and institutions to deal with the major challenges of our time,” the official said. According to the official, Biden’s speech will touch on “Covid-19, climate change, emerging technologies, rules of the road on trade and economics, investments in clean infrastructure … a modern approach to counterterrorism, and vigorous competition with great powers — but not a new Cold War.” In the briefing call Monday, organized by the National Security Council, the official also pushed back against the notion that Biden — even as he calls for international cooperation — will be entering UNGA having angered some of America’s oldest allies in recent months, whether over Afghanistan or the new AUKUS nuclear submarine agreement. “I think the picture is actually quite positive,” the official said, “despite the differences in perspective on Afghanistan and the issues we are dealing with, with France right now — which I believe we can find a productive pathway forward out of.” Here comes the Heath: Our own U.N. expert/king of all media RYAN HEATH sent us some Biden-related points to think about ahead of the president’s speech tomorrow: — The French submarine deal: On the heels of the hard Afghan pullout deadline — on which he didn't consult Macron — and not even calling the French president in advance of the subs deal, trust is down. Biden's got no rhetorical capital left to spend on basic "we're back" messaging. — Climate: The U.S. doesn't have a legally binding new climate target, or a carbon price... So, while Kerry's efforts are appreciated, that is just crumbs in the absence of both a big U.S. climate finance offer to poorer countries and the legally binding domestic commitments. — Covid: The U.S. wants the world to have an ambitious 2022 vaccination target but still has a vaccine export ban in place. So holding a Covid virtual summit on Wednesday, without fixing that issue, is getting to be tone deaf. Make sure to check out Ryan’s “Global Insider” podcast, chock full of all things UNGA this week. U.S. LIFTING EUROPE TRAVEL BAN: The Biden administration will make it easier for foreign visitors to travel to the United States starting in November, White House Covid-19 coordinator JEFFREY ZIENTS said today. “Beginning in early November, foreign nationals flying to the United States will be required to be fully vaccinated — fully vaccinated — and they must show proof of vaccination prior to boarding a U.S.-bound airplane," he told reporters. The announcement follows France’s eruption over the AUKUS deal and comes after months of open fighting between Washington and Brussels, as the European Union’s leadership felt it unjust that America’s borders remained closed to the bloc. PUTIN’S PARTY CLAIMS BIG WIN AMID VOTE-RIGGING ACCUSATIONS: Russia’s Central Election Commission reported that President VLADIMIR PUTIN’s United Russia party won almost 50 percent of the vote in the country’s legislative elections over the weekend, with 98 percent of ballots counted, per Reuters’ ANDREW OSBORN and GABRIELLE TÉTRAULT-FARBER. But Kremlin critics have alleged the vote was sullied by large-scale fraud, and some Moscow-based Communists were prevented from protesting the results after police sealed off the central square where they planned to gather. State Department spokesperson NED PRICE released a statement saying the election “took place under conditions not conducive to free and fair proceedings.” United Russia’s victory means it “will have more than two-thirds of deputies in the 450-seat State Duma lower house of parliament,” Osborn and Tétrault-Farber wrote, enabling it “to continue to push through laws without having to rely on other parties.” IT’S MONDAY: Thanks for tuning in to NatSec Daily. This space is reserved for the top U.S. and foreign officials, the lawmakers, the lobbyists, the experts and the people like you who care about how the natsec sausage gets made. Aim your tips and comments at award@politico.com and qforgey@politico.com, and follow us on Twitter at @alexbward and @QuintForgey. While you’re at it, follow the rest of POLITICO’s national security team: @nahaltoosi, @woodruffbets, @politicoryan, @PhelimKine, @BryanDBender, @laraseligman, @connorobrienNH, @paulmccleary, @leehudson, @AndrewDesiderio and @JonnyCustodio. Make sure to join POLITICO on Thursday, Oct. 7, for our inaugural defense forum, where we’ll talk to the decision-makers in the White House, Congress, military and defense industry who are reshaping American power abroad and redefining military readiness for the future of warfare. Assure your spot now by registering here. | | | | INTRODUCING OTTAWA PLAYBOOK : Join the growing community of Politicos — from lawmakers and leaders to pollsters, staffers, strategists and lobbyists — working to shape Canada’s future. Every day, our reporting team pulls back the curtain to shed light on what’s really driving the agenda on Parliament Hill, the true players who are shaping politics and policy across Canada, and the impact it all has on the world. Don’t miss out on your daily look inside Canadian politics and power. Subscribe to Ottawa Playbook today. | | | | | | | | NORTH KOREA THREATENS ARMS RACE OVER AUKUS: According to a report from the state-run KCNA news outlet, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry described the Australian-U.K.-U.S. trilateral security pact as “extremely undesirable and dangerous,” and warned it could trigger a “nuclear arms race” in the region, per Reuters’ HYONHEE SHIN. “We are closely looking into the background of the U.S. decision and will certainly take a corresponding counter-action in case it has even a little adverse impact on the security of our country,” the ministry reportedly said. The threat from leader KIM JONG UN's regime comes after Pyongyang claimed it successfully tested long-range cruise missiles earlier this month, and after North and South Korea engaged in dueling ballistic missile drills last week. Also, new satellite images show North Korea carrying out construction on a uranium enrichment plant at its main nuclear reactor site Yongbyon, per The Associated Press’ HYUNG-JIN KIM. BOLSONARO TO TEST COVID “HONOR SYSTEM” AT U.N.: The United Nations has asked all world leaders speaking at this week’s General Assembly to be vaccinated. But the global body won’t be checking to see who got their shots, instead relying on an “honor system.” That good-faith strategy will be put to the test Tuesday when Brazilian President JAIR BOLSONARO steps up to the lectern, The Washington Post’s ANNABELLE TIMSIT noted. He says he doesn’t need the jab since he contracted the virus last year, thereby giving him natural antibodies he deems “more effective than the vaccine itself.” A U.N. official told Timsit the organization won’t prohibit unvaccinated attendees from entering the facility or participating in events. In other words, this honor system has a giant loophole you can fit a Brazilian leader through. EU-AUSTRALIA TRADE DEAL GOING (DOWN) UNDER: The AUKUS ruckus is jeopardizing the European Union’s trade negotiations with Australia, per POLITICO Europe’s JAKOB HANKE VELA and BARBARA MOENS. “CLÉMENT BEAUNE, France's European affairs secretary, told POLITICO that Europe could hardly continue talks for a free-trade agreement after such a breach of trust. Brussels has held 11 rounds of talks with Canberra to date, and Australia originally hoped to conclude the accord before the end of the year,” they wrote. The EU conceivably could move forward without France’s buy-in for the deal, but analysts say that’s very unlikely. | | | KEY CYBER PROPOSAL STALLED: An aggressive cybersecurity policy proposal from the Cyberspace Solarium Commission — which would allow Americans to sue companies over hacks resulting from known flaws in their products — has faded in Congress, and the commission isn’t pushing for its inclusion in the annual defense policy bill, per our own ERIC GELLER. “The proposal faces significant obstacles, including the difficulty of defining when and how much to hold a company liable for a particular security weakness — and which company that should be,” Geller wrote. “But the push for accountability reflects mounting frustration with what many observers see as the technology industry’s indifference to repeated security failures.” | | A message from Lockheed Martin: Outpacing air and missile threats: Aegis Combat System evolves even faster with digital thread
Artificial Intelligence, model-based engineering and a common source software library are a few of the techniques that U.S. Navy’s Combat System Engineering Agent Lockheed Martin uses to keep Aegis upgraded at the speed of relevance. Learn More | | | | | | WATCHDOG WHACKS PENTAGON FOR FAILED FRAUD OVERSIGHT: The Government Accountability Office has released a report criticizing the Defense Department for being unable to determine the full extent of waste and fraud associated with the Pentagon — despite it spending roughly $422 billion on contracts in fiscal 2020 and its status as the largest contracting agency in the federal government, per our own LARA SELIGMAN. According to the report requested by Sen. BERNIE SANDERS (I-Vt.) and Rep. CAROLYN MALONEY (D-N.Y), the “incomplete and inadequate” anti-fraud efforts are the result of “faulty and incomplete reporting and implementation,” which “may ultimately affect DOD’s ability to support the warfighter.” | | | DEMS URGE BIDEN TO SAVE AFGHAN U.N. STAFF: Twelve House Democrats — including well-known progressive Reps. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-N.Y.), BARBARA LEE (D-Calif.) and RO KHANNA (D-Calif.) — sent a letter to Biden requesting the United States help evacuate Afghan United Nations staff under threat from the Taliban. “While we support the United Nations maintaining a presence in Afghanistan to the extent possible, as well as delivering humanitarian assistance, this should not come at the expense of Afghan nationals who signed up to work under vastly different circumstances and now face grave threats to their security,” reads the letter obtained by Foreign Policy’s COLUM LYNCH and ROBBIE GRAMER. The United States is preparing to increase its presence in Afghanistan to provide humanitarian support, but Lynch and Gramer note “[s]ome U.N. officials have privately expressed concern that such action will leave local Afghan staff in the lurch while they face reprisals from the Taliban.” A staffer involved with the letter told NatSec Daily that Democratic members “support U.N. presence in Afghanistan but believe all Member states need to step up to ensure the safety of staff.” | | | | JOIN THURSDAY FOR A WOMEN RULE CONVERSATION ON ENDING SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE MILITARY: Sexual assault in the military has been an issue for years, and political leaders are taking steps to address it. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) proposed bipartisan legislation to overhaul military sexual assault policies, but still face opposition. Join Women Rule for a virtual interview featuring Sens. Ernst and Gillibrand, who will discuss their legislative push and what it will take to end sexual assault and sexual harassment in the military. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | | U.N. CHIEF BLASTS STALLED U.S. CLIMATE CO-OP WITH CHINA: Despite America’s rivalry with China, the Biden administration believes both nations can work together to curb climate change. But United Nations Secretary-General ANTÓNIO GUTERRES isn’t impressed with their work so far. “The efforts of JOHN KERRY have largely failed because the Chinese have said, at such a moment, ‘Well, we cannot have cooperation on climate or on anything else,’” he told CNN’s FAREED ZAKARIA yesterday. Guterres also said Washington and Beijing would struggle to find common ground on trade and technology. Earlier this month, Kerry addressed the yawning gap between two nations while in Tianjin, China. “It is essential, obviously, that no matter what differences we have and feel, which is one of the purposes of the trip itself, that we have to — we have to — address the climate crisis,” he told reporters. | | | — Breaking Defense announced several new hires, including VALERIE INSINNA as a senior reporter covering air warfare and OSD, ANDREW EVERSDEN as a reporter covering the Army and land warfare and LEE FERRAN as managing editor. SYDNEY FREEDBERG also has been elevated from deputy editor to senior columnist. | | | — PHILIP SMUCKER, The Daily Beast: “The Mastermind Behind Bin Laden’s Escape Is Back — With His Own Taliban Army” — DAVE PHILIPPS, The New York Times: “ U.S. Troops Are Still Deploying to Iraq, Even as Afghan War Ends” — EVELYN N. FARKAS, POLITICO: “Opinion: To Counter China, the U.S. and EU Need to Get Back on the Same Page — Fast” | | | |   | | | | | | — Biden delivers remarks before the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly: The president also will participate in a bilateral meeting with Australian Prime Minister SCOTT MORRISON before returning to the White House, where he will meet with British Prime Minister BORIS JOHNSON . — The Center for Strategic and International Studies, 8:30 a.m.: “The Nuclear Policy Trilemma: Day One — with ERIC BREWER, JESSICA COX, IVO DAALDER, REBECCA HERSMAN, JINA KIM, ANGUS KING and HIDESHI TOKUCHI” — The Institute of International Affairs, 8:30 a.m.: “The future of popular mobilization in the Middle East and North Africa: Insights from 10 years of struggle” — The International Institute for Strategic Studies, 8:30 a.m.: “The Armed Conflict Survey 2021 Launch — with BEN BARRY, AARON CONNELLY, JAMES CRABTREE, NIGEL GOULD-DAVIES, EMILE HOKAYEM, IRENE MIA, BENJAMIN PETRINI and SAMIR PURI” — Chatham House, 9 a.m.: “How will geopolitics impact circular trade and a just transition?” — The Institute of International and European Affairs, 9:30 a.m.: “Fostering a Fair Recovery and Building Resilience: The Path Forward for Ireland and the EU — with PAOLO GENTILONI, MICHAEL MCGRATH and FRANCES RUANE” — Senate Armed Services Committee, 9:30 a.m.: “ Closed Briefing: Department of Defense support of Afghan Nationals who have recently left Afghanistan — with COLIN KAHL, MICHAEL MCCORD and JAMES MINGUS” — Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, 9:30 a.m.: “ Full Committee Hearing: Threats to the Homeland: Evaluating the Landscape 20 Years After 9/11 — with CHRISTINE ABIZAID, ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS and CHRISTOPHER WRAY” — The Center for International Policy, 10 a.m.: “Learning From The Afghanistan Experience: Re-Assessing U.S. Weapon and Security Assistance — with JAMES CUNNINGHAM, JODI VITTORI and ELIAS YOUSIF” — The Hudson Institute, 12 p.m.: “Israel After the Abraham Accords: Changing Regional Dynamics — with OFIR AKUNIS, JOSH BLOCK and RUTH WASSERMAN LANDE” — House Foreign Affairs Committee, 1:30 p.m.: “Subcommittee Hearing: An International Response to Ortega’s Destruction of Democracy in Nicaragua — with RYAN C. BERG, LAURA CHINCHILLA, EMILY MENDRALA and BERTA VALLE” — The Center for Strategic and International Studies, 2 p.m.: “ Civics as a National Security Imperative: A Conversation with Secretary ROBERT GATES — with JOHN J. HAMRE and SUZANNE SPAULDING” — Senate Intelligence Committee, 2:30 p.m.: “Closed Briefing: Intelligence Matters” — AT&T Policy Forum, 3 p.m.: “Identity Authentication: The Next Layer of Protection in a Robust Cybersecurity Strategy — with BEN FLATGARD, JEREMY GRANT, CAROLE HOUSE, BILL O’HERN, DIANE RINALDO and ALEX SCHLAGER” — The Foreign Policy Research Institute, 3 p.m.: “What Is The Meta-West? — with CHARLES HECK, ROBERT D. KAPLAN and MATTHEW KROENIG” | | A message from Lockheed Martin: Augmented reality and lidar technologies enable faster, more reliable Aegis maintenance and installation efforts.
Artificial Intelligence, model-based engineering and a common source software library are a few of the techniques that U.S. Navy’s Combat System Engineering Agent Lockheed Martin uses to keep Aegis upgraded at the speed of relevance. Learn More | | | Have a natsec-centric event coming up? Transitioning to a new defense-adjacent or foreign policy-focused gig? Shoot us an email at award@politico.com or qforgey@politico.com to be featured in the next edition of the newsletter. And thanks to our editor, Ben Pauker, who never needs prompting to finn-ish his work. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |  |
