Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter issued a directive that creates the “Warfighter Senior Integration Group” to oversee the Pentagon’s efforts to respond rapidly to combatant commanders’ urgent requests for new capability. The group will also have responsibility for mitigating “the risk of operational surprise associated with ongoing or anticipated near-term contingency operations,” reads the directive, dated Aug. 24th. “DOD’s highest priority is to provide warfighters involved in conflict or preparing for imminent contingency operations with the capabilities urgently needed to overcome unforeseen threats, achieve mission success, and reduce risk of casualties,” states the directive. The deputy defense secretary will chair the group; the Joint Chiefs’ vice chairman is the group’s co-chair. Membership will also include senior-level officials from across the Office of Secretary of Defense as well as representatives from the services and combatant commands, states the directive. (Carter directive; caution, large-sized file.)
North Korea conducted it’s 17th round of ballistic missile tests of the year May 24, including a believed intercontinental ballistic missile, in the skies over the Pacific while President Joe Biden was returning to the United States from the region. U.S. Indo-Pacific Command reported that the tests did not pose…