President Bush has nominated Maj. Gen. Larry James for appointment to the grade of lieutenant general to serve as commander of 14th Air Force (Air Forces Strategic-Space) at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., the Pentagon announced July 14. In that role, James would also head US Strategic Command’s Joint Functional Component Command for Space. James is currently vice commander of 5th Air Force and deputy commander of 13th Air Force at Yokota AB, Japan. He would replace Lt. Gen. William Shelton who has led 14th AF since May 2007. Shelton has been nominated to be the Air Force’s chief of warfighting integration.
The Islamic State’s Khorasan branch, responsible for the suicide bombing that killed 13 U.S. service members during the evacuation from Kabul, could develop the capacity to strike outside Afghanistan within “six to 12 months,” Undersecretary of Defense for policy Colin Kahl warned. Testifying to the Senate Armed Services Committee on…