![image001 (1)](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/12/image001-1-350x175.jpg)
![Biden nominates new Guard, TRANSCOM, SOUTHCOM leadership, among others](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/07/240724_DVIDS_nordhaus_flightsuit_8268179-scaled-e1721856150440-225x150.jpg)
The president has tapped Lt. Gen. Steven Nordhaus, a former F-16 pilot and current head of the Continental US NORAD region, to lead the National Guard Bureau, replacing Army Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson.
By Lee Ferran![SOUTHCOM chief calls for ‘Marshall Plan’ for Western Hemisphere to counter Russia, China](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/07/240718_DVIDS_SOUTHCOM_Richardson_school_7985943-scaled-e1721328420945-225x150.jpg)
Gen. Laura Richardson told the Aspen Security Forum she also needs high-profile visitors to “tell them [local officials] and show them how important they are to this region, and to the hemisphere that we all live in,” or Beijing would step into the void.
By Lee Ferran![Russian warships visit Cuba, sending a message to Washington: Analysts](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/06/240614_russian_ship_cuba_GettyImages-2156651481-scaled-e1718369410129-225x150.jpg)
As fighting continues in Ukraine, experts told Breaking Defense there’s no danger of a Cuban Missile Crisis 2.0, but Russia still wants to project global reach.
By Wilder Alejandro Sanchez![Argentina-Denmark F-16 deal would be boon to US in South America: Analysts](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/240401_denmark_f16s_f35s_GettyImages-1701106677-scaled-e1711984784617-225x150.jpg)
The deal is likely to be a key topic of discussion as Gen. Laura Richardson, commander of US Southern Command, travels to Buenos Aires this week.
By Wilder Alejandro Sanchez![JADC2 Faces ‘Huge Weakness’: Old Policies, Old Tech](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2021/02/2021-01-26_JADC2-Data-Summit-4-225x150.jpg)
INDOPACOM’s Brig. Gen. Jacqueline Brown said “policy is a significant concern…If we build a network, if we build these systems but they’re not releasable to our mission partners, we’re going to lose.”
By Paul McLeary![Sergeant Silicon: Lessons From An Army Cyber NCO](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019/12/4621297-225x150.jpg)
As old-school Sergeant Rock types give way to NCOs with advanced degrees, ARSOUTH Command Sgt. Maj. William Rinehart is helping build up both US and allied cyber forces.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.![Clock Ticks As Argentine Submariners Run Out Of Air; US, Allies Race To Rescue](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2017/11/Argentina-international-search-assets-DPHi27sXcAAC0rx-225x150.jpg)
In an extraordinary international response, a dozen nations have poured assets into the stormy South Atlantic to help find and save 44 Argentine submariners from the missing sub San Juan. It’s a stark contrast to the last great submarine disaster, when Russia was slow to accept international help for the stricken Kursk in 2000 and lost all…
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.![Coast Guard Dodges Big Trump Budget Bullet; But Coasties Fix Roofs](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2017/04/USCG-Advanced-Interdiction-Team-225x150.jpg)
WASHINGTON: The White House has dropped plans for a 14 percent cut to the Coast Guard, instead promising a budget that “sustains current funding levels.” The bad news is that “current funding levels” are already too low. The Coast Guard has to give almost 600 drug shipments a pass each year because they don’t have the ships or planes to catch…
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.![Trump, Kelly, & The Coast Guard: Exclusive Interview With Adm. Zukunft](https://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2016/12/140904-G-ZX620-001-225x150.jpg)
With the election of Donald Trump as the next President of the United States and with Trump’s nomination of Gen. John Kelly for Secretary of Homeland Security, life is going to change for the US Coast Guard. Trump’s campaign focused intently on border security, asking a fundamental question: Why do we send thousands of troops…
By Robbin LairdSASC sent full Senate nomination of Gen. Mark Welsh for CSAF http://aol.it/OcwsYw; also LTG John Kelly for SOUTHCOM, LTG Frank Grass for NGB Sydney%20Freedberg
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.The Air Force’s MC-12 Liberty surveillance plane, in heavy use in Afghanistan, is one of the scarce assets Southern Command chief Gen. Doug Fraser hopes to see freed up for drug interdiction as the war winds down. The U.S. military command covering South America intercepts only about a third of the drug shipments and other…
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.