The War
The supposed bomber at the center of a foiled plot to bring down a jetliner was actually a double agent who funneled vital information to U.S. and Arab intelligence agencies, according to officials, marking an apparently successful infiltration of al Qaeda’s most dangerous branch. – Wall Street Journal
Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri, who hails from a middle-class Saudi family, is the top bombmaker for al-Qaeda’s Yemen branch. Only 30 years old, he represents the CIA’s worst fears: a highly skilled terrorist determined to attack the United States. – Washington Post
Despite quietly dropping the phrase “war on terror”, when it comes to battling worldwide militant networks the success of the United States and its allies goes well beyond the killing of Osama bin Laden. – Reuters
Editorial: Drone strikes alone will not eliminate the threat: The United States must also aim at the political and economic stabilization of Yemen. But President Obama is not only justified in responding with military force, he is obligated to do so in order to defend the country. – Washington Post
Bruce Hoffman writes: After the thousands of American lives that have been lost thus far in the war on terrorism, and the billions of dollars consumed by this monumental struggle, the American public surely deserves to be afforded the fullest possible picture of the person and the movement that so irrevocably changed our lives. – Wall Street Journal
Katherine Zimmerman writes: In 2009, after the last attack against the U.S. almost succeeded, President Barack Obama pledged to “use every element of our national power to disrupt, to dismantle and defeat the violent extremists who threaten us.” AQAP may have been disrupted, it may even have been partially dismantled, but as we learned this week, it is far from defeated. – The Daily Caller
Defense
The U.S. House of Representatives’ Budget Committee on May 7 passed a plan that avoids across-the-board budget cuts in January and reverses $8 billion in defense cuts made last fall. – Defense News
The House Appropriations Defense subcommittee approved the defense spending bill on a voice vote Tuesday, moving forward the $608 billion legislation. – DEFCON Hill
One of the staunchest supporters of Boeing’s F-18, Rep. Todd Akin, will introduce [today] an amendment putting a fence around half of Lockheed Martin’s F-35′s procurement spending. – AOL Defense
There’s nothing wrong with the F-35 Lightning II that old fashioned engineering can’t fix, its program boss told Senate lawmakers on Tuesday — the only question is how long it’ll take. – DoD Buzz
The head of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program touted a fix for the jet’s troubled, high-tech helmet, which officials hope will solve jitter picture and lag time issues. – Defense News
In an exclusive interview with AOL Defense, the Navy’s top surface-warships expert frankly acknowledged that they’re still working on the answers [for the LCS]. Everything from concepts of operation to damage control to the ships’ top speed is still potentially open to revision, Rear Adm. Thomas Rowden said Friday in his Pentagon office. – AOL Defense
As the U.S. cuts its Army forces and shifts its focus and resources into the Asia-Pacific region, Congress may start to put the service’s proposed Ground Combat Vehicle under greater scrutiny, a recent Congressional Research Service (CRS) report says. – Aviation Week
The House Armed Services Committee this week is expected to mark up a defense spending bill that encourages competition in the Defense Department’s “conventional prompt global strike” mission arena, among other initiatives – Global Security Newswire
Boeing CEO Jim McNerney warned Tuesday that the threat of next year’s automatic, across-the-board budget growth reductions might force him to lay people off — even before the guillotine actually falls. – DoD Buzz
Mackenzie Eaglen writes: The world is becoming increasingly scary at the very time that the military will be facing 20% reductions. With each passing day, the world closes in; with each passing day, our ability to manage that world degrades. – AOL Defense
International Affairs
The House Appropriations State and Foreign Operations subcommittee has released its fiscal 2013 appropriations legislation, which would cut billions from the president’s request for a range of key international programs. – The Cable
Key U.S. ally Australia slashed Aus$5.5 billion ($5.57 billion) from its defense budget May 8 as part of sweeping cuts by deferring or scrapping jet and weapons deliveries and by sacking 1,000 staff. – AFP
NATO
In Chicago, NATO leaders will adopt a package of measures under the alliance’s “Smart Defense” initiative, which aims to prioritize capabilities, specialization and multinational cooperation. Many of the improvements will draw on the lessons of Afghanistan and NATO’s Operation Unified Protector action in Libya last year. – Aviation Week
