Overnight Defense & National Security — Report details Afghan withdrawal frustrations

by Jordan Williams - 02/08/22 5:45 PM ET

It’s Tuesday, welcome to Overnight Defense & National Security, your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. Subscribe here: digital-stage.thehill.com/newsletter-signup.

An Army investigative report obtained by The Washington Post revealed military leaders’ frustrations with the U.S.’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.

We’ll dive into the report, plus the Air Force being ordered to $230 million for the 2017 mass shooting in Sutherland Springs, Texas.

For The Hill, I’m Jordan Williams. Send tips to jwilliams@digital-stage.thehill.com.

Alright, let’s get started!

Army probe reveals Afghan withdrawal grievances

An Army investigative report obtained by The Washington Post documented frustration among military personnel with the White House and State Department over the United States’ evacuation from Afghanistan.

The report, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, was ordered after the suicide bombing at the Hamid Karzai International Airport that killed 13 American military personnel on Aug. 26. It detailed the decisions made by U.S. military personnel assigned to guard the airport.

The military would’ve been “much better prepared to conduct a more orderly” operation “if policymakers had paid attention to the indicators of what was happening on the ground,” Navy Rear Adm. Peter Vasely, who leads U.S. Forces Afghanistan Forward, told investigators, according to the newspaper.

What the report said: According to the report, military officials said planning for the operation began months earlier, and evolved from using Bagram Air Base and the Hamid Karzai airport to just using the airport.

Military officials said they wanted two weeks to evacuate the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan, but on Aug. 12 Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan demanded the process move more.

The report also revealed several instances of violence American personnel faced during the effort, according to the Post.

For instance, there was an exchange of gunfire after two Taliban fighters allegedly menaced a group of Marines and Afghan civilians, which left those fighters dead.

In another instance, seven people — one of which was part of an elite Afghan strike unit — fired on American troops. U.S. troops killed the strike unit member, and wounded six others.

‘We came together:’ U.S. Central Command chief Gen. Kenneth McKenzie told the Post in an interview that he wasn’t surprised commanders felt the evacuation should have been handled differently. However, he said “we came together and executed a plan.”

“There are profound frustrations; commanders, particularly subordinate commanders, they see very clearly the advantages of other courses of action. However, we had a decision, and we had an allocation of forces. You proceed based on that,” he told the newspaper.

Asked about the report, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told the Post that the evacuation effort was a “historic achievement.”

“We are committed to, and are intensely engaged in, an ongoing review of our efforts during the evacuation, the assessments and strategy during the conflict, and the planning in the months before the end of the war,” Kirby told the newspaper. “We will take those lessons learned, and apply them, as we always do, clearly and professionally.”

Read the full story here.

AIR FORCE ORDERED TO PAY $230M TO TEXAS MASS SHOOTING VICTIMS

A Texas federal judge on Monday ordered the Air Force to pay $230 million to the families of the victims of the 2017 mass shooting in Sutherland Springs, Texas, after originally finding that it hadn’t taken a crucial step that would’ve prevented him from owning a firearm.

In a Monday ruling, U.S. District Judge Rodriguez ordered the Air Force to pay the millions, the sum of which is divided among the plaintiffs, for “pain and suffering, mental anguish, disfigurement, impairment, and loss of companionship or consortium.

Anne Stefanek, a spokesperson for the Air Force, told The Hill that the service is “aware of the court’s award and are reviewing the judge’s ruling.”

How we got here: In what was the deadliest shooting in Texas history, Devin Patrick Kelley killed 26 people and wounded 22 more when he opened fire on First Baptist Church, and shortly afterward killed himself.

In 2018, families of the victims filed a civil complaint against the Air Force alleging negligence.

In July, Rodriguez ruled that the federal government was 60 percent responsible for the shooing, while Kelley was 40 percent responsible. The Air Force hadn’t reported a 2012 conviction for assault.

A crucial error: Kelley entered in the Air Force in 2009 after graduating from high school and began active service a year later, according to a report from the Pentagon’s inspector general released in 2018.

But in 2012, he was convicted in a court-martial for beating and choking his wife and hitting his infant stepson, fracturing his skull.

Under federal law, that conviction should have prevented Kelley from buying the gun he used in the shooting as well as three other guns he had purchased in a store. However, background checks repeatedly showed that he was eligible to purchase them.

The inspector general’s report found that the Air Force failed to notify the FBI six times of Kelley’s identity — including four times when it should’ve submitted his fingerprints.

Read the full story here.

Army unveils first climate strategy

The Army plans to install a microgrid on all of its installations by 2035 and have a fleet of all-electric vehicles by 2050, among other efforts outlined in a climate strategy released Tuesday.

The strategy, the first such plan for the service, is meant to guide the Army in how it responds to climate threats that affect soldier readiness, warfighting and installations. It also directs how the U.S. military’s largest branch can reduce its own climate impacts through less fossil fuel use, among other efforts.

“The time to address climate change is now. The effects of climate change have taken a toll on supply chains, damaged our infrastructure, and increased risks to Army Soldiers and families due to natural disasters and extreme weather,” Army Secretary Christine Wormuth said in a statement released alongside the report.

Deeper into the plan: The Pentagon in October released a 32-page climate strategy, part of its biggest effort ever to prepare the military to handle and operate within ever-increasing hurricanes, wildfires, heat, drought and floods “that can trigger crises and instability around the world.”

The Army’s strategy expands on that, laying out specific efforts in operations, training, installations, planning and procurement to increase warfighter resilience in harsher environments while saving dollars and reducing its impact on the planet.

The strategy notes several goals, including the reduction of the Army’s net greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2032, compared to 2005 levels, with net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045.

Updating energy infrastructure: The largest undertaking will likely be updating the energy infrastructure at the more than 130 Army installations around the world.

To help along that effort, the Army plans to install a microgrid on every installation by 2035, with 25 such projects planned in the next three years.

The service has already started or finished 950 renewable energy projects supplying 480 megawatts of power, according to the strategy.

Hybrid tactical vehicles: In an effort to reduce fossil fuel use by its vehicles, the Army plans to field hybrid tactical vehicles by 2035 before moving to fully electric by 2050.

For its non-tactical vehicle fleet, the service plans to get to all-electric by 2035.

Aiding that move, the service will invest in over 470 charging stations this year alone, according to the strategy.

Read more here.

100 US troops arrive in Romania

One hundred U.S. soldiers have arrived in Romania to bolster NATO allies in Eastern Europe amid heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine.

Romania’s defense minister, Vasile Dîncu, told reporters on Tuesday that the troops will oversee logistics.

“The Americans have arrived,” Dîncu said, according to Reuters. “Over 100 specialist U.S. soldiers together with our logistics specialists are preparing, which means it will not be long before the rest of the troops arrive.”

Where are the troops coming from? The Pentagon announced last week that it was deploying and repositioning more than 3,000 troops to bolster allies and strengthen NATO’s capabilities amid the tensions in the region.

Troops being repositioned to Romania are coming from Germany. They are part of an Infantry Stryker squadron that is intended to deploy in short order.

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby also announced on Monday that a “couple hundred” U.S. troops had arrived in Poland. More U.S. troops are expected to enter the country in the coming days.

Tense times: The arrival of U.S. troops in Romania comes amid heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine. Moscow has amassed more than 100,000 troops near the Ukrainian border, stoking fear among the U.S. and its allies that Russia is planning a military incursion against Ukraine.

Moscow, however, has denied having any plans to invade.

The U.S. and its allies, nonetheless, are gearing up amid the increased tensions. France has said it will dispatch troops to Romania and that it would lead a future NATO mission, according to Reuters. Such a mission could reportedly involve the deployment of 1,000 troops from various countries.

NATO announced last month that allies were sending additional ships and fighter jets to Eastern Europe and putting forces on standby.

Read the full story here.

ON TAP FOR TOMORROW

The Association of the U.S. Navy will present Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) with its annual legislative award at 9 a.m.
Robert Malley, the U.S. Special Envoy for Iran, will testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in a closed briefing on “Iran: Update on Vienna Discussions” at 10 a.m.
The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on “’Targeted Killing’ and the Rule of Law: The Legal and Human Costs of 20 Years of U.S. Drone Strikes” at 10 a.m.
The National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations will host a discussion on “Iran Nuclear Deal Negotiations: Policy Implications for Success or Failure” at 10:30 a.m.
The Armed Forces Communication and Electronics Association will host its Army luncheon at 11:30 a.m.
The Center for a New American Security will host a discussion on “Rethinking Human Capital: Before and After Service” at 12 p.m.
The Hudson Institute will host a discussion on “Germany’s Worldview and the Crisis in Ukraine” at 2 p.m.
The Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East Asia, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism will host a hearing on “Afghanistan: The Humanitarian Crisis and U.S. Response” at 2:30 p.m.