Today's Headlines and Commentary

Secretary of State John Kerry announced that the United States is prepared to engage in discussion with Russia over the conflict in Syria, the New York Times reports. According to Secretary Kerry, the initial goal of military-to-military talks between U.S. and Russian forces will be to “define some of the different options that are available to us as we consider next steps in Syria.” Earlier today, Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoygu spoke directly for the first time in over a year over the strategy in Syria in hopes to diffuse the tension that has been growing with Russia’s buildup of forces in the wartorn country. The two have agreed to further discuss the their strategy against the Islamic State.

The announcement of U.S.-Russia military talks follows what has been a tumultuous week for U.S. policy on Syria, with the recent revelation that the United States has trained a total of five active recruits to fight ISIS. The Times covers the Obama Administration’s less-than-successful strategy against the Islamic State and the finger pointing that has ensued. No agreement has been reached on how precisely to reevaluate the U.S. strategy, despite what the Wall Street Journal describes as an overwhelming consensus that the current strategy needs to be overhauled.

Meanwhile, while both Russian and Syrian officials continue to deny any Russian military engagement against ISIS, the Kremlin stated that Russia would consider sending troops if asked by the Syrian government. Russia also urged coalition forces to engage Assad’s government as an ally in combating ISIS. The AP has more.

Buzzfeed sheds light on a strange arms deal, negotiated between the U.S. government and a tiny contractor, that stands at the center of the increasingly controversial U.S. strategy to train and equip local recruits to fight the Islamic State. The contract involved the purchasing of missiles from Belarus after the contractor’s failed effort to sell the United States 30-year-old Russian-style grenades.

The Times reports on the confusion in Europe over the migrant crisis: after first welcoming refugees, Croatia has now moved to close off its borders with Serbia, leaving 15,000 asylum seekers stranded. Al Jazeera indicates Croatia’s plans to redirect refugee flow to Slovenia and Hungary—and while the former has offered to accept 5,000 refugees, the latter is not a country in which asylum seekers have encountered a warm welcome in recent days. The Croatian interior minister’s bleak statement points to the challenge facing the hundreds of thousands of migrants and refugees seeking entrance to Europe: “Don’t come here any more,” he said, according to the BBC. “This is not the road to Europe. Buses can’t take you there. It’s a lie.”

Countries in central and eastern Europe continue to be weary of migrant influxes, with Czech authorities testing their military along the borders in anticipation of a rush of migrant and refugee populations. Other countries in Europe are imposing more restrictive measures towards asylum seekers, the Post writes. Germany, for example, proposed new measures to provide food and transportation money that would enable asylum seekers to register in the country of their first entrance to the European Union. Yet given the reluctance of most of those countries to accept asylum seekers, such proposals raise questions of how these measures could be implemented, the Post also notes. Advocates of refugee support suggest that closing borders will not solve the crisis.

The Times examines French unwillingness to accept refugees—which is especially striking when compared with the apparently sincere German efforts to grapple with the crisis. Most refugees and migrants are steering clear of France as a result.

And across the Atlantic, Foreign Policy reports on the delays and red tape that are likely waiting for Syrians attempting to enter the United States. The U.S. government has been unwilling to accept large numbers of refugees, on the grounds that unrestricted entrance may pose a risk of infiltration by ISIS recruits—but Al Jazeera suggests that such concerns may be unfounded.

Russia’s aggression in Crimea has pushed European countries to reinforce their military capabilities in the region. Despite the rise of hybrid and asymmetric warfare, Defense One reports, Europe is increasingly arming for a traditional conflict involving new technologies and modern weapons systems.

As of last night, the deadline for Congress to express disapproval on the nuclear deal with Iran has passed, and the long process of implementing the deal has begun. The Journal reports that Secretary of State John Kerry has appointed career foreign service officer Stephen Mull as ambassador to Iran to enforce the nuclear agreements. Kerry expressed hope that Mull would be able to enhance U.S.-Iran cooperation on security issues and diplomatic efforts.

With tensions rising over the clashes near Jerusalem’s al Aqsa Mosque, Israel has called upon reserve forces to help police the area. In efforts to minimize the chance of violence, the Israeli government has restricted access to the mosque for men under 40 and has deployed thousands of police force to patrol the area. The AP has more.

Over in Yemen, Houthi rebels have fallen back with the advance of Yemeni government and coalition forces in the province of Marib. Pro-government troops have recaptured territory only about 25 miles from the Houthi-held capital city of Sanaa.

Gunmen have killed 29 in an attack on a Pakistani air force base near Peshawar, the BBC tells us, and Pakistani security forces claim to have killed 13 of the attackers. The attack targeted, in part, a mosque located on the compound. The Pakistani Taliban have claimed responsibility for the attack. Meanwhile in neighboring Afghanistan, Defense One notes the rising pessimism in Kabul over the increasing levels of violence in and surrounding the capital city.

Reuters discusses the presence of U.S. Special Operations Forces in West Africa. Continuing the Obama administration’s “low-risk” method of countering extremism, their mission is to find local partners to fight the Boko Haram insurgency.

Unicef reports that Boko Haram has displaced over 1.4 million children, following a surge in violence across Niger, Chad, and Cameroon that was responsible for displacing an additional 500,000 children. In related news, Nigerian authorities have cracked down on a business issuing fake identification to Boko Haram militants so as to allow greater freedom of movement. AllAfrica has the story.

Following the recent military coup in Burkina Faso, Quartz notes the suppression of resulting protests in the country. The coup transpired when members of the presidential guard interrupted a meeting and abducted the interim president and other officials. The 1,300-strong military unit has since instituted a 7 p.m. curfew, dissolved the parliament, and appointed the Burkina Faso’s former chief of staff as president. Al Jazeera reported that the junta has released the detained interim president but that the prime minister remained under house arrest.

A high-profile Chinese fugitive who had previously been living in the United States has been repatriated to the custody of his home government, the Times tells us. Yang Jinjun, a businessman who fled to the U.S. in 2001 after facing a bribery investigation, is the first individual on a Chinese list of 100 “most wanted” corruption suspects to have been successfully returned from the United States—only days before President Xi Jinping’s first state visit to Washington. While the extent of U.S. involvement in Yang’s repatriation is not yet clear, Chinese authorities indicated that the operation involved “close cooperation of Chinese and United States law enforcement and diplomatic departments.”

Reuters reports on China’s reaction to the suggestion by the commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific, made yesterday, that the United States should conduct air and navy patrols around areas of Chinese construction in the South China Sea. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said it was “extremely concerned” by Admiral Harry Harris’ comments, demanding respect for Chinese “sovereignty and security interests.”

As Japan nears the hour of reckoning on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s controversial security bill allowing Japanese troops to be stationed abroad, the Post examines opposition parties’ last-ditch efforts to prevent the measure from passing into law. The Christian Science Monitor provides some useful context for understanding what the paper deems “the most sweeping changes to defense policy since World War II.” The driver of the policy change isn’t Abe, argues Gerald Curtis of Columbia University, but rather the changing international landscape spearheaded by Chinese aggression.

Yonhap News reports on the absence of North Korean envoys from a Chinese forum aimed at restarting nuclear talks with the isolated nation. The forum was meant to mark the 10-year anniversary of the preliminary six-nation nuclear accord on North Korean nuclear activity. Talks have continued since the 2005 accord, though last year North Korean envoys were in attendance. Meanwhile, the DPRK also reiterated its desire to launch a satellite as a “sovereign right,” despite international fears of political and military provocation.

On the eve of Pope Francis’ visit to Cuba, the United States has announced a lifting of restrictions on business activity with the country. The change in regulations, which enables easier travel and allows telecommunications businesses to establish new locations and bank accounts within Cuba, will go into effect on Monday. Politico has the story.

$500 billion. That’s the price tag for the military expansion proposed by Republican presidential hopeful Carly Fiorina at Wednesday’s primary debate. The proposal would add 100,000 active-duty Army troops, though Fiorina’s plan for the navy and the nuclear arsenal are more or less on-target with currently planned expansion. The Daily Beast has the numbers.

Having been pushed by the State Department to help grow the use of encryption technology in 2011, the U.S. government-sponsored outlet Radio Free Asia is now under fire from the FBI. According to Bloomberg, recent concerns over “going dark” have led to government concern over the same technology that, only four years ago, was touted as a tool of Internet freedom and a weapon against dictatorship.

Parting shot: For those of us having trouble keeping track of the wide spread of appeals court decisions on cell phone location tracking, Nate Wessler of the ACLU has come to the rescue. Check out his tweet for a user-friendly map of recent decisions.

ICYMI: Yesterday, on Lawfare

Herb Lin speculated on the connection between hybrid conflict and cyber-conflict.

Jack and Wells discussed the Obama administration’s expansive theories of Article II power as relates to military activity in support of U.S.-trained Syrian rebels.

Mirko Hohmann examined the problem of surveillance reform in Germany.

Lawfare posted not one, not two, but three new podcast episodes yesterday. First, Aaron Zelin posted the Jihadology Podcast, this week featuring a discussion on the role of Islam in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq.

Second, Stewart Baker provided the Steptoe Cyberlaw Podcast, with analysis of the Microsoft lawsuit and exchange of data between U.S. and E.U. officials, among other issues.

Third, Ben suggested that we all just ignore Wednesday’s Republican primary debate in this week’s episode of Rational Security.

Quinta failed to take Ben’s advice, instead identifying a handful of Lawfare-related statements made during the debate.

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