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5:30 PM ET, Friday, September 29, 2023

The Cipher Brief curates open source information from around the world that impacts national security. Here's a look at today's headlines, broken down by region of the world:  

TOP STORIES:

Milley Retires as Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff.  General Mark Milley retired as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Friday, handing over command to Air Force chief General Charles Q. Brown.  At a speech during his retirement ceremony, Milley praised the bravery of American service members and emphasized that U.S. military personnel take an oath to the Constitution and not to a “dictator” or a “wannabe dictator,” adding that the oath calls for the protection of the Constitution from “all enemies, foreign and domestic.”  Milley’s comments came days after former President Donald Trump suggested Milley be put to death for “treason” over reports that he contacted his Chinese counterpart during the Trump administration to assure him that the U.S. was not planning an attack on China.  Milley said there was “absolutely not” anything inappropriate about such calls.  Politico The Hill Reuters Washington Examiner

Navy to Test SEALs for Steroid, Performance Enhancing Drug Use.  The U.S. Navy will, for the first time, start random testing of its special operations forces for steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs this November, a step long resisted by military leaders.  Rear Admiral Keith Davids, commander of Naval Special Warfare Command, announced the move on Friday, saying it is necessary to protect their health and military readiness.  The new testing regimen will include regular random screening of 15 percent of its special operations forces each month, along with surprise unit-wide sweeps.  A civilian lab that specializes in testing athletes will analyze results.  SEALs who test positive may be expelled from the force.  The Navy is the first service to start testing its special operations forces — including all SEALs and supporting combat boat crews — but an Army spokesperson said the Army is “actively seeking” to follow suit.  The use of performance enhancing drugs has been a limited but persistent problem in the military.  Military leaders have not supported increased testing since it is highly specialized, costly and requires contracting with a select few labs that do such testing.  In the past, the services have done occasional tests when they perceive a problem with individual service members but must receive permission from the Pentagon to do routine random screening.  The Navy’s move comes after the death of a seaman who died during SEAL training in 2022.  Testosterone, human growth hormone and other drugs were found in a car that the sailor shared with other trainees.  The sailor’s death was determined to not not have been caused by drug use, but the incident still raised alarms about the issue.  Associated Press New York Times

The Ukraine Diaries: The Biggest Challenge is Not Allowing Ukraine to Lose This War.  Lieutenant General Frank Helmick (Ret.) shares his personal view on what is at stake in Ukraine why the U.S. cannot afford to allow Ukraine to lose to Russia.  Regarding the current war fight, Helmick notes that while Ukraine’s military has adapted quickly, especially in areas like drone warfare, Russia’s military capability and the success of trench warfare must not be underestimated.  Ukraine also still has areas to improve regarding its battlefield fighting styles and maintenance of donated equipment, and it faces issues in recruitment, which underscores the need for training on NATO-provided equipment.  Helmick added that Ukrainians are starting to be concerned about continued U.S. support, meaning that Washington must double down on its commitment to Kyiv, not only by words but through actions.  Helmick also notes that the U.S. should be proactive in drawing lessons from the battlefield in Ukraine for future warfare.  The Cipher Brief 

THE UKRAINE UPDATE:

Reduced Tempo in Russian Offensive Operations in East.  The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported on Thursday that there have been fewer Russian ground attacks in the Kupiansk and Lyman directions, suggesting that the Ukrainian counteroffensive has distracted Russian forces away from the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line and significantly weakened Russia’s offensive operations in the area.  The General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed forces appeared to echo ISW on Friday, reporting that Russia did not conduct assaults towards Kupiansk, as well as around Bakhmut in the previous day.  The General Staff added that Ukrainian troops repelled a Russian ground attack in the Lyman direction and that Russian forces failed to advance near Avdiivka, Marinka, Urozhaine and Nevelske in the Donetsk region, as well as near Chervone in the Zaporizhzhia region.  ISW previously reported that Russian offensive operations on the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line appeared to be aimed at drawing Ukrainian forces way from more critical front areas.  Kyiv Independent Institute for the Study of War

Ukraine Names Suspects in Sabotage Attacks on Ukrainian, Czech Military Sites.  Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation said on Friday that it identified Russian special service employees behind sabotage attacks at military warehouses in Ukraine and the Czech Republic from 2014-2015.  A joint investigation between the Bureau and Czech authorities found that the suspects “played an important role” in 2014 explosions at military depots in the Czech Republic storing Ukraine aid, and the 2015 fire at a warehouse in Luhansk region.  The fire at the Ukrainian facility destroyed 76 pieces of military equipment and over 3,000 tons of missiles and ammunition, worth over $1.9 million, and killed three Ukrainian soldiers and one civilian.  The suspects include Alexander Mishkin and Anatoly Chepiga, who are accused of poisoning the Skripal family in the British city of Salisbury in 2018.  Authorities also charged a Ukrainian citizen who joined Russian proxy forces in Luhansk, who is suspected of operating the drone that dropped explosives on the Ukrainian warehouse.  The Bureau says it plans to charge more former and acting Russian military officials who have committed sabotage attacks in the Ukraine and the EU, and may still be doing so now.  Kyiv Independent

U.K. Sanctions Russian Officials, Electoral Commission Over ‘Sham’ Elections in Ukraine.  The U.K. imposed sanctions on 10 Russian officials and Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) over the “sham” elections it held in occupied Ukrainian territory this month and last year.  The move imposes foreign asset freezes and travel restrictions on those targeted, though the CEC is not believed to have any U.K.-based assets.  The British government said the “falsified and illegitimate” elections, which were held in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine’s Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk regions, undermined Ukraine and threatened its territorial sovereignty.  Russia said its vote in the occupied areas last year showed it had local support to annex the regions, despite not having full military control over any of them.  Ukraine and its Western allies dismissed the votes.  Barron’s U.K. Government

Switzerland Imposes Further Sanctions Over Iran Drone Deliveries to Russia.  The Swiss government announced Friday that it had adopted further sanctions in connection to Iran’s drone deliveries to Russia, in line with recently passed EU measures.  Switzerland’s Federal Council said that under the new rules, the sale, supply, export and transit of components used to manufacture and produce drones is prohibited.  Financial and travel sanctions were also imposed on individuals and entities connected with Iran’s drone program.  Reuters

Romania Bolsters Border Defenses Amid Ukraine War.  Romania is moving its air defenses closer to its villages on its side of the Danube River across from Ukraine and adding more military observation posts and patrols in the area amid increasing concern that the Ukraine war will spill over into Romanian territory.  Russian drones have been attacking grain facilities in Ukraine’s Danube ports, striking close to Romania.  Drone parts have already landed in Romania, highlighting the risks of the war being waged so close to the NATO member country.  So far, there is no evidence that any Russian drone debris that fell into Romanian territory was part of a deliberate attack on Romania.  Still, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described Russian strikes near the Romanian-Ukrainian border as “reckless” and “destabilizing.”  Romania’s defense ministry said last Friday that roughly 100 U.S. troops and four U.S. F-16 Fighting Falcon jets had arrived at its Borcea military base, just 150 km south of the Ukrainian city of Izmail, to support air policing.  Reuters

THE CYBER AND TECH RUNDOWN:

Suspected Iranian Hackers Targeting Saudi Arabian Victims with New Malware.  Researchers from Trend Micro report that suspected Iranian hackers have launched a new cyber espionage operation that appears to be targeting victims based in Saudi Arabia with the new Menorah spying malware.  The new campaign from the hacking group — known as APT34, OilRig, Cobalt Gypsy, IRN2 and Helix Kitten — infected victims with the malware through phishing emails.  The malware is designed to upload files from a compromised device, execute shell commands, and download files to the system.  Researchers say the new malware has more features and is harder to detect than past methods APT34 has developed.  Little information could be found about the victims targeted in the operation, though phishing emails had pricing information in Saudi Arabian currency.  APT34 has been involved in high-profile cyberattacks across the Middle East since at least 2014, mostly targeting government, financial, energy, chemical and telecommunications entities.  The Record

ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD:

Top House Democrat Request ‘Pause’ in Egypt Aid.  U.S. Representative Gregory Meeks, the ranking Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Friday that he has asked the U.S. State Department to “pause” some U.S. military funding to Egypt that is conditional on human rights criteria.  He said the U.S. “needs more clarity” on issues like treatment of political prisoners and journalists and the rule of law in Cairo before the aid can resume.  The Biden administration decided to waive the human rights restrictions on $235 million of the aid this month.  While $85 million in aid is being withheld over lack of progress on releasing political prisoners, it is a fraction of the $1.3 billion allocated for Egypt each year.  Egyptian aid has been put under further scrutiny after Senator Bob Menendez, the former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was charged with accepting bribes in exchange for wielding his influence to aid the Egyptian government.  He has pleaded not guilty to the bribery charges.  Reuters The Hill

Netherlands Deploys More troops, Helicopters to NATO Mission in Iraq.  The Netherlands is deploying roughly 120 soldiers and 3 Chinook transport helicopters to reinforce the NATO alliance mission in Iraq.  The deployment is in addition to the infantry unit of 145 soldiers the Netherlands promised to send to Iraq from January 1 next year.  NATO’s non-combat mission in Iraq is intended to strengthen Iraqi security forces to bolster the country’s counter-terrorism operations and prevent the return of ISIS.  The new Dutch unit will be used to supply food and equipment to troops as well as transport military staff and equipment.  Reuters

Mogadishu Suicide Bombing Kills 7.  A suicide bombing at a tea shop in Somalia’s capital of Mogadishu on Friday killed at least 7 people, according to witnesses and health authorities.  Police said only 5 people were killed in the bombing.  Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack and claimed that 11 people were killed in the blast.  The bombing occurred at a checkpoint leading to the parliament and president’s office at a shop frequented by soldiers.  Reuters

OPINION:

The U.S. Can Learn from Ukraine’s Theory of Victory.  Lucas Crumpton, Crumpton Global’s Chief of Staff and Director of Business Strategy, argues for more focus on Ukraine’s novel theory of victory against Russia: simultaneously winning the war while rejuvenating its economy and national infrastructure.  This strategy focuses on “resilience” to achieve prosperity in the present and future rather than the conventional notion of “reconstruction” coming only once the war is over.  Crumpton argues that Ukraine's Western allies must recognize and adapt to this strategy.  Suggestions he offers include sending comprehensive air defense capabilities to protect strategic infrastructure in concert with the development of resilient energy networks, supporting the development of national communications and digital systems that meet wartime needs and support civil services, and leveraging innovation and civil resilience.  The Cipher Brief

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