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5:30 PM ET, Thursday, September 28, 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:

Oversight Board Endorses Section 702 Court Warrant Rule in Setback to White House.   An executive branch oversight panel, the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB), is recommending new limits on Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.  Section 702 allows for warrantless surveillance operations against non-U.S. citizens, but it also incidentally collects information on U.S. citizens.  In a 3-2 vote along partisan lines, Democratic members on the panel recommended that intelligence agencies should obtain court approval before they mine the massive data repository gathered under the authority for information on U.S. citizens.  Approval would be based on whether a search request is reasonably likely to produce foreign intelligence information or evidence of a crime.  The proposed requirement will likely result in a scaling back of FBI searches conducted under Section 702 search authorities.  A spokesperson for the National Security Council described the court warrant mandate as “operationally unworkable.”  PCLOB members Beth Williams and Richard DiZinno registered their dissent from the majority vote, stating “we strongly disagree with the majority of the Board, which has not focused on the actual risks at hand.”  The board’s recommendations are non-binding but are nevertheless seen as a setback for the Biden administration, which has worked for months to gain reauthorization of Section 702.  The PCLOB offered additional recommendations in its report, including a requirement that NSA examine possible methods to estimate the incidental collection of data on U.S. citizens.  The board also called on Congress to pass legislation that would formalize a 2022 White House executive order that outlined twelve legitimate targets for signals intelligence collection.  The Record CyberScoop Washington Post Politico

China Says it Voluntarily Removed South China Sea Barrier.  China says it voluntarily removed a floating barrier it placed in disputed waters of the South China Sea.  The Philippines condemned China for installing the 300-meter barrier near the Scarborough Shoal, which Beijing calls Huangyan Island, on Sunday.  The Philippine coast guard said it removed it in a “special operation” on Monday.  A spokesperson for China’s Coast Guard said the “blocking nets” were temporarily placed in response to a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries vessel trespassing into the area and then China removed it on September 23 to “resume normal control.”  The spokesperson’s remark dates the removal of the barrier two days before the Philippines said it removed it.  The spokesperson called Manila’s report that it removed the barrier “complete fabrication” and a “self-induced drama.”  The Philippines said the barrier hindered Filipino fishermen’s livelihood activities and violated international law by infringing on Philippine territory.  South China Morning Post 

U.S. Accuses China of Global Information Manipulation.  The U.S. State Department released a report accusing China of conducting a multi-billion-dollar global media manipulation effort, which it warned could lead to a “sharp contraction” of global freedom of expression.  The report highlights China purchasing foreign media outlets and services through “public and non-public means” and sponsoring online influencers to promote Chinese state-backed media content and other propaganda; engaging in data harvesting overseas to better direct censorship activities; and promoting digital authoritarianism in other countries, which then become more receptive to China’s disinformation requests.  The report comes amid mounting concern over China’s efforts to expand the global footprint of its government-controlled media.  The report did note that despite the resources China has devoted to the information manipulation campaign, it has suffered “major setbacks” when targeting democratic countries due to push back from local media and civil society.  The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately comment on the report.  Reuters U.S. Department of State

U.S. Accuses Iran’s IRGC of Harassing Helicopter Over Gulf with Lasers.  The U.S. Navy said vessels of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy pointed lasers at a U.S. Marine Corps Ah-1Z Viper attack helicopter flying over the Persian Gulf on Wednesday.  The U.S. Navy said the helicopter, which was operating from the amphibious assault ship U.S.S. Bataan, was not damaged and no one aboard was injured.  It also said the helicopter was operating in international airspace during the incident.  A spokesperson for U.S. Naval Forces Central Command said the actions of the Iranian vessels were “unsafe, unprofessional and irresponsible” and must “cease immediately,” adding that U.S. naval forces will continue to operate where international law allows while promoting regional security.  An Iranian naval patrol boat previously targeted a helicopter associated with the Bataan with lasers in 2017.  Iranian state media also reported in 2022 that the Iranian military was developing a laser cannon to down aerial targets.  Al-Monitor Politico Navy Times

Germany Agrees to Buy Israel’s Arrow-3 Missile Defense System.  Germany and Israel signed an agreement on Thursday for Berlin to buy Israel’s Arrow-3 missile defense system for around $3.5 billion (3.3 billion euros).  The deal is Israel’s biggest ever defense sale and comes as European nations are building up their militaries in response to the Ukraine war.  Germany aims to start using Arrow-3 in late 2025 and seeks to integrate the system with wider NATO air defense efforts.  The long-range Arrow-3 is designed to intercept ballistic missiles above the Earth’s atmosphere and is powerful enough to protect Germany’s neighboring states.  The system was jointly developed by Israel and the U.S., which approved the deal with Germany in August.  Associated Press Reuters Al Jazeera

THE UKRAINE UPDATE:

Russia Increasing Defense Spending by 70% Next Year.  The Russian finance ministry on Thursday released a draft military budget for 2024 that allocates 10.77 trillion rubles ($111.04 billion) for “national defense,” marking a 68% increase in defense expenditures compared to 2023.  Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the surge in defense spending is needed to counter the “hybrid war” being waged against Russia and due to the ongoing “special military operation,” referring to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.  Russian Finance Minister Anton Sliuanov said that while the high defense spending is a “significant strain on our budget” it is the “priority” for Russia to bolster military spending.  CNN

Poland Confirms Ukrainian Air Defense Missile Landed in Polish Territory Last Year.  Polish Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro confirmed that the projectile that fell into southeastern Poland last year and killed two people was a Ukrainian S-300 air defense missile.  Ziobro said Poland's Prosecutor's Office "categorically" established that Ukraine launched the Soviet-era missile, which hit a Polish grain facility near the Ukrainian border.  Investigators concluded that Ukrainian air defenses launched two S-300 missiles in an effort to intercept Russian air strikes at the time of the incident.  One of the missiles missed its target and its self-destruct mechanism did not activate, resulting in the unintentional strike within Polish territory.  Kyiv denied that the incident was caused by one of its missiles but did confirm it attempted to intercept Russian projectiles around the time of the missile strike in Poland.  Kyiv Independent

Kazakhstan Says Will Comply With Sanctions Against Russia.  Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said on Thursday that his country will not help Russia avoid Western sanctions amid suspicions that Moscow is still receiving goods from Central Asian nations.  Western observers have noted an increase in trade volumes between Central Asia and Moscow which could indicate that some countries in the region are re-exporting sensitive goods to Russia.  Following meetings with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Tokayev maintained that Kazakhstan will follow the sanctions regime and that the West should not be concerned about sanctions evasion activities through Astana.  Barron's

THE CYBER AND TECH RUNDOWN:

Neuberger Says U.S., Taiwan Preparing for Potential Crippling Chinese Cyberattacks.  Taiwan is intensively preparing for Chinese cyberattacks as tensions around the island persist and presidential elections approach in January, according to Anne Neuberger, deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technologies.  Speaking at the Politico Tech Forum on Wednesday, Neuberger said, “from President Tsai [Ing-wen] on down, they’re very focused on increasing the cybersecurity and digital resilience of Taiwan.”  She noted that the U.S. would send elite cyber response teams to Taiwan during a major incident, who would “hunt on their most sensitive networks to help identify any current intrusions and to help remediate and make those networks as strong as possible.”  Taiwan is well aware of China’s potent cyber forces and is working closely with the U.S. in military gaming exercises to prepare for attempts to cripple Taiwanese networks and IT systems.  Politico

NATO Naval Exercises Test High-Tech Responses to Undersea Infrastructure Threats.  A 12-day exercise involving NATO naval forces is testing AI-enabled sea drones and sensors off the coast of Portugal as the alliance accelerates efforts to develop technologies capable of real-time detection of possible threatening activity near underwater critical infrastructure.  The severing of Nord Stream pipelines last year underscored the vulnerability of undersea systems and difficulties in monitoring them.  NATO has said that Russia actively maps Western undersea cables and pipelines as future targets.  Lt. Gen. Hans-Werner Wiermann, head of NATO’s cell for protecting undersea infrastructure, said that the capability to detect threats in real time “sends a deterrence signal to the enemy, be it Russia or somebody else.”  The goal of deploying advanced technology solutions to the monitoring problem is to share alerts with governments and private operators, Wiermann said.  In recent months, Russian spy ships have been seen operating near allied subsea systems, raising concerns that Moscow could make use of its advanced underwater capabilities.  According to Wiermann, Moscow is deploying warships, research vessels, and commercial fishing trawlers, container ships and tankers to trace NATO allies’ critical undersea systems.  One of the current NATO naval exercises concentrated on a fictitious hostile vessel attempting to disrupt digital cables to impact the financial sector, a threat detected by cable-mounted fiber optic sensors and relayed to NATO monitoring centers.  Upon confirming the “threat,” NATO aircraft, surface ships, and underwater drones were sent to intercept the suspect vessel.  Wiermann explained that AI-enabled sensors can monitor suspicious ship traffic, especially if they cross critical infrastructure repeatedly.  In July, NATO agreed to establish a new maritime center for undersea critical infrastructure at its maritime command in Britain.  NATO also will create a network to improve information sharing between NATO, its partners, and the private sector.  Bloomberg

Russian Flight Booking System Hit by ‘Massive’ DDoS Attack, Causing Delays.  Russian airline operations were disrupted Thursday when a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack impacted the Leonardo airline booking system.  Rostec, the Russian defense tech company and developer of the booking system, said the cyberattack was carried out by “foreign hackers.”  Rostec has claimed that the Leonardo system regularly experiences "large-scale and unprecedented" attacks.  The defense conglomerate commented that "it's clear that there's an actual cyberwar waged against Russia. Its goal is to damage the Russian IT infrastructure and disrupt the work of the most important industries.”  The disruption lasted for an hour and caused flight delays for several airlines, including Aeroflot.  The “IT Army,” a Ukrainian hacktivist group, claimed responsibility for the Leonardo attack, posting to its Telegram channel a teasing message:  “While you [Ukrainians] are sipping lattes, our friends up north are stuck in queues, trying to book flights.”  The Record Cybernews

ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD:

New U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Chair to Assess Turkey F-16 Deal.  Senator Ben Cardin, the new chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said on Thursday that he will assess the $20 billion F-16 fighter jet sale to Turkey, noting that Sweden’s accession to NATO is not the only issue impacting the agreement.  Cardin said he discussed Sweden’s NATO membership bid with Turkish officials at a NATO ambassador’s meeting on Wednesday, reporting that Ankara claims it will be “done in the first part of next month.”  If true, Cardin said the NATO issue will be resolved but that other issues need to be addressed as well.  The previous chairman of the committee, Senator Bob Menendez, blocked the F-16 sale for months over Turkey’s objection to approve Sweden’s NATO application, human rights concerns in Turkey, and Turkish overflights of Greek airspace.  Menendez was forced to step down as leader of the committee when he was charged over an alleged bribery scheme.  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Menendez’s case is an “advantage” for Ankara that could help its efforts to acquire the fighter jets.  Reuters

Chinese Defense Ministry Makes No Comment on Defense Minister’s Disappearance.  A Chinese defense ministry spokesperson said on Thursday that he is “not aware of the situation” regarding Chinese defense minister Li Shangfu’s one-month absence from public view, marking the ministry’s first public comments on the matter.  The spokesperson did not answer further when asked about reports that Li is being investigated for corruption or if he is still defense minister.  Li’s absence from public view follows former Foreign Minister Qin Gang’s similar sudden disappearance and removal from office in July.  Associated Press CNN Washington Post

Saudi Arabia, China to Hold Joint Naval Drills.  China’s defense ministry announced that Saudi Arabia and China will hold a joint naval drill next month in the southern Chinese city of Zhanjiang.  A defense ministry spokesperson said the “Blue Sword 2023” drills will focus on “overseas maritime counter-terrorism operations” and aim to boost military ties between the two countries and their navies’ training experience.  The drills will be the second joint naval exercises between China and Saudi Arabia.  Their two navies held their first joint drill in Jeddah in 2019.  Next month’s exercises will come as China increases its influence in the Middle East, including by brokering a rapprochement deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran earlier this year.  Al-Monitor Defense Post

Japan Upgrading Airports, Ports for Defense Use.  Japan is looking to upgrade civilian infrastructure such as airports and ports for potential military use amid mounting regional security concerns.  The Japanese government said it has selected 33 airports and ports in 10 prefectures as candidates for these upgrades, which would include runway and dock expansions that will enable the Self-Defense forces and Japanese Coast Guard to deploy troops or evacuate citizens in an emergency.  At least 16 facilities are in the Ryukyu Islands in southern Japan, including Okinawa, and the Kyushu and Shikoku islands in western Japan.  Selected facilities are mainly located near China and Taiwan.  The Japanese government will start discussions on the upgrades with the prefectures and municipalities that run the various facilities soon.  Asia Nikkei

Kosovo’s President Blames Serbia for Gunbattle, Belgrade Denies.  Kosovo’s President Vjosa Osmani accused Serbia of being behind a shootout between around 30 armed Serbs and Kosovar police in northern Kosovo last week.  The clash in the village of Banjska resulted in the deaths of three attackers and one police officer, marking the worst violence in the area in years.  Kosovo authorities have published what it says is evidence showing the armed men were trained, armed and supported by Serbia’s government and security agencies.  Osmani said the fighting showed “Kosovo is under attack” and directly linked the gunmen to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and his government.  She said she is concerned about future attacks and that talks between Kosovo and Serbia cannot continue amid such aggression from Belgrade.  She added that Serbia is trying a “Crimea model” by creating tensions in northern Kosovo, where around 50,000 ethnic Serbs live.  Serbia has accused Kosovo of precipitating violence against ethnic Serbs in the area, which Pristina denies.  Vucic denied Serbian government involvement in the attack, suggesting that it would not be “beneficial” for Belgrade.  He condemned the death of the Kosovar policeman and said that Serbian authorities will investigate the matter.  He also accused Kosovo police of shooting one of the gunmen at short range after he surrendered in an “execution,” which Kosovo authorities denied.  Reuters The Guardian

US Sanctions Minister, Companies Linked to Sudan’s Rapid Support Force.  The U.S. on Thursday sanctioned two companies and a former Sudanese foreign minister it accused of undermining peace in Sudan by funding the country’s paramilitary Rapid Support Force (RSF), which is fighting the Sudanese army.  The sanctions will block all property and entities in the U.S. owned by former Foreign Minister Ali Karti, as well as the companies GSK Advance Company Ltd. And Aviatrade LLC.  The U.S. Treasury Department said Karti is actively blocking efforts to reach a ceasefire and previously undermined the former civilian-led transitional government.  It also accused the companies of procuring military equipment for the RSF and providing training to the paramilitary force on unmanned aerial vehicles and monitoring equipment.  Associated Press U.S. Department of the Treasury

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