Category Archives: NATO

Russian Su-27 jet fighters and MIG 29 jet fighters fly over Red Square during the Victory Day military parade in Moscow on May 9, 2016 | Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images

Rising concerns come after series of confrontations between allies and Russian aircraft in the crowded airspace over the Baltic Sea.

By David M. Herszenhorn

7/11/17, 6:08 PM CET

Updated 7/11/17, 11:23 PM CET

Increasingly angry NATO allies will tellthe Kremlin on Thursday of their objection toaggressive and dangerous maneuvers by Russian military pilots over the Baltic Sea, including unsafe behavior by Russian pilots on intercepts, an alliance official said.

NATOs frustration over what it views as unnecessary provocations by Russian military aircraft will be conveyed ata meeting in Brussels of the NATO-Russia Council, a forum in which Western allies and Russia maintain dialogueeven amid heightened tensions.

NATOs rising concerns come after a series of confrontations between allies and Russian aircraft in the crowded airspace over the Baltic Sea, including an incident last month in which a Russian Su-27 fighter jet came within several feet of a U.S. RC-135 reconnaissance plane. The Pentagon released dramatic photos of that incident.

The NATO official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the actions by Russian pilots would be among severalconcerns raised by allies in Thursdays meeting. Allies are also bristling over plans by Russia for a large-scale military exercise, called Zapad, or West, which NATO officials say should be reported under a 2011 international accord known as the Vienna Document.

TheVienna Document, agreed by membersof the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which includes Russia and NATO allies, calls for official notice of exercises exceeding 9,000 troops and allows OSCE states to observe any exercises involving more than 13,000 soldiers.

NATO officials said they believed that Russias Zapad exercises would involve about 100,000 troops but that the Kremlin was dividing up the drills so it could claim not to be exceeding the threshold for notification or observation.

Relations between Russia and the West have been deeply strained since Russiasinvasion and annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the ensuing warin eastern Ukraine, in which Moscow has backed opponents of the Ukrainian government.

In response to an inquiry from POLITICO, a spokeswoman for the Russian mission to NATO said she couldonly confirm that the meeting of the NATO-Russia Council was scheduled for Thursday.

Because the airspace over the Baltic Sea is among the most crowded on the planet, civilian aviation regulators have worked out agreements by which Russian military aircraft traveling to the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad stay within a pre-determined corridor. Other countries have complained that Russian military aircraft were often traveling without using transponders or making radio contact, creating dangerous conditions for passenger jets.

NATOs most senior uniformed officer, General Petr Pavel, the chairman of the NATO military committee, has said that the actions by Russian pilots created undue risks.

There is always risk that something will go wrong when two forces that are not friendly are too close to each other and we are close to each other not only in the Baltic Sea airspace but in the Black Sea airspace, all around the border in Syria, Pavel said at a POLITICO Playbook breakfast interview.

In most of these cases, we havent been observing the situation thatwould be clearly hostile against NATO. There are some violations of airspace, not necessarily incursion into NATO territory, but we are mostly witnessing what we call non-professionalbehavior in the air.

Read more:
NATO bristles at 'unsafe behavior' by Russian pilots - POLITICO.eu

BUCHAREST, Romania Major NATO exercises in Eastern Europe have begun in Bulgaria on Tuesday involving 25,000 military personnel from more than 20 allied and partner countries as the U.S. seeks to reassure NATOs European allies.

The Saber Guardian 17 exercises are being led by U.S. Army Europe and run until July 20. The training will also take place in Hungary and Romania, including at the countrys Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base near the Black Sea. The opening ceremony was held at the Novo Selo military camp in southern Bulgaria.

The drills aim to increase the interoperability of participating countries and demonstrate resolve and readiness to act in support of security and stability in the Black Sea region. There will be a total of 18 specialized exercises.

A U.S. European Command statement said the drills are designed as a deterrent. The U.S. has beefed up its presence in Eastern Europe since Russia annexed Ukraines Crimea Peninsula to reassure NATOs East European members, which were formerly in Moscows sphere of influence.

The exercises will feature an air defense artillery live fire exercise, field training and live fire exercises, multiple river crossings and a mass casualty exercise.

The statement said that smaller U.S. and European-national exercises will be held in the Black Sea region this summer to support Saber Guardians objectives of supporting security and stability in the Black Sea region.

The Saber Guardian exercises have been held annually since 2013 in the Black Sea region.

Continued here:
NATO military drills in Eastern Europe begin in Bulgaria - The Seattle Times

Aquatic robots are busier than ever. They have seabeds to mine, cable pathways to plough, and marine data to gather. But they and their aquatic brethrenincluding submarines and scuba diversstill struggle to communicate.

For decades, global standards defining Wi-Fi and cellular networks have allowed people to exchange data over the air. But those technologies are worthless below the waves, and no such standards have existed for underwater communications.

Aquatic systems have instead used a mishmash of acoustic and optical signals to send and receive messages. However, manufacturers sell acoustic modems that operate at many different frequencies, which means those systems often cant speak to each other.

We live in a time of wild west communications underwater, says Joo Alves, a principal scientist for NATO.

Now, Alves and other NATO researchers have established the first international standard for underwater communications. Named JANUS, after the Roman god of gateways, it creates a common protocol for an acoustic signal with which underwater systems can connect.

Acoustics has long been a popular medium for underwater communications. Generally, optical signals can deliver high data rates underwater at distances up to 100 meters, while sound waves cover much greater distances at lower data rates.

The main role of JANUS is to bring todays acoustic systems into sync with one another. It does this in part by defining a common frequency11.5 kilohertzover which all systems can announce their presence. Once two systems make contact through JANUS, they may decide to switch to a different frequency or protocol that could deliver higher data rates or travel further.

In this way, Alves compares JANUS to the English languagetwo visitors to a foreign country may speak English to one another before realizing they are both native Spanish speakers, and switch to their native tongue.

Chiara Petrioli, a specialist in underwater sensors and embedded systems at La Sapienza, the University of Rome, says JANUS could be the first step toward an Internet of Underwater Things"a submerged digital network of sensors and vessels.

In addition to designating a frequency, JANUS also provides a modulation encoding scheme to describe how data should be encoded onto a sound wave, and describes the particular waveform that should be used (known as FH-BFSK). It also spells out which redundancies should be added to the data stream to minimize transmission errors.

In order to use JANUS, a system would first emit three optional tones to indicate that it intends to broadcast a JANUS data packet hitched to a sound wave. Then, the system would pause for about 400 milliseconds to allow other devices in its vicinity to wake up. Next, the system would broadcast a fixed series of tones to ensure both systems were properly synchronized to the JANUS protocol. Finally, the system would send the JANUS packet, consisting of 56 bits followed by a redundancy check, which tests for transmission errors.

The JANUS standard was developed by Alves team at NATOs Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation in La Spezia, Italy and sponsored by NATOs Allied Command Transformation. It is the first underwater communications standard to be defined by an international body.

Milica Stojanovic, an expert in oceanic engineering at Northeastern University, expects other standards will soon follow. She says the 11.5 kHz frequency used by JANUS is great for transmitting data between 1 and 10 kilometers, but a lower frequency, perhaps 1 kHz, would be better for sending data over longer distances of 10 to 100 km.

Even with JANUS and other standards, any future underwater Internet will probably be cursed by far lower data rates than modern Wi-Fi or cellular networks. Sound travels at much lower frequencies, and on much longer waves, than the signals used for consumer electronics. Though sound waves travel faster in water than on land, they still travel more slowly through water than radio waves through air.

To develop JANUS, Alves team relied on the Littoral Ocean Observatory Network, a collection of tripods that NATO researchers have placed on the seafloor in the harbour of La Spezia, Italy. Each tripod emits acoustic signals to other tripods, which send performance reports to researchers through undersea cables. Those reports helped the team understand how fluctuations in water temperature, and other environmental changes, will affect JANUS signals.

The tripods also allowed researchers to build a JANUS receiver, advanced versions of which could minimize decoding errors and account for the Doppler effect. The Doppler effect describes shifts in sound waves caused by motion, such as the whirl of an ambulance siren as it drives by.

In another series of tests, researchers aboard the research vessel Alliance, a NATO ship operated by the Italian Navy, measured the performance of JANUS signals along the surface of the ocean.

Once deployed, aquatic systems could use JANUS to send data directly to each other, or to gateway buoys bobbing on the waters surface. The buoys could then use radio waves to relay that data to nearby control centers.

In one demonstration, Alves group helped the Portuguese Navy set up a buoy that converted data about the positions and speeds of nearby ships to JANUS. The buoy rebroadcast this information to Portuguese submarines lurking below.

Based on their work, Alves says submarines could also use JANUS to issue calls for help to ships and rescue crews. Using an open scheme like JANUS to issue distress calls would increase incredibly the chances of those being picked up, he says.

Now that JANUS is available, manufacturers of aquatic systems must decide whether or not to adopt it. Alves is confident they will, and Petrioli, who contributed feedback to the development of JANUS, agrees that adoption is essential to the industrys future.

But Stojanovic is not so sure. If there starts to develop a serious market, then everybody will have to play to the same tune, she says. If not, and everybody finds their own niche market with their own protocols, then they will do that.

IEEE Spectrums general technology blog, featuring news, analysis, and opinions about engineering, consumer electronics, and technology and society, from the editorial staff and freelance contributors.

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The new JANUS acoustic signal will connect aquatic robots and sensors into an Internet of Underwater Things 8Jul

So far, harvesters can get milliwatts of electricity from sound. That might be enough for some things26Apr2011

A prototype from the University of Washington leverages a backscattered radiofrequency wave to transmit analog signals 7Jul

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Instant photo sharing celebrates its 20th birthday today, proving that building a prototype when your wife is in labor is sometimes a good idea 11Jun

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Startup Phazr has emerged from stealth mode and quickly become a darling of the wireless industry 23May

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Full duplex could double the capacity of wireless networks, making it a key technology for 5G 1Apr

Just hold it in front of your face, and youre in 29Mar

University of Michigan researchers spoof an accelerometer by hitting the right note 17Mar

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Dont expect early 5G service in South Korea to reflect what carriers elsewhere have described 8Mar

The company knows it needs to ditch the dongle, and believes Li-Fi-enabled chipsets will be here soon 1Mar

Read this article:
NATO Unveils JANUS, First Standardized Acoustic Protocol for Undersea Systems - IEEE Spectrum

Ukraine is keen to start its Nato application process despite Russias ongoing aggression in the east of the country.

Today it has been emphasised that we should start a discussion about establishing a membership action plan [MAP] and our proposals were accepted with understanding, Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko told press after meeting Nato head Jens Stoltenberg in Kiev on Monday (10 July).

We have a clear-cut time table as to what we have to do by the year 2020 in order to meet the membership criteria, he added.

He said recent polls showed more than 60 percent of Ukrainians wanted to join the Western alliance.

Stoltenberg said Russia would not be able to stop Ukraines membership.

Whether Ukraine is going to become a member of Nato or not is for the allies and Ukraine to decide, no one else has the right to try to veto such a process, he said.

Ukraine is moving steadily towards meeting Nato standards, he added.

He noted that 40 million of Nato money was helping Ukraine to buy high-end satellite surveillance and cyber-defence equipment.

A Nato office in Kiev is also advising Ukraine on military and intelligence reforms.

Piers Cazalet, a Nato spokesman, said in Kiev on Tuesday that Stoltenberg took note of Poroshenkos MAP request.

He said the current priority was the modernisation of its defence and security institutions, however.

A Nato MAP, in which aspirant states submit annual reports on military and political assimilation, is the first step toward accession.

It does not guarantee future membership and it has no set duration, but in the latest case - Montenegro - the Balkan state began its MAP in 2009 and joined Nato this year.

Stoltenberg also said in Kiev that: Russia must withdraw its thousands of soldiers from [east] Ukraine and stop supporting the militants [there], with command and control, and military equipment.

He added that it is extremely important to maintain the sanctions as long as Russia doesnt change its behaviour in eastern Ukraine and Crimea, referring to EU and US economic sanctions.

Poroshenko called for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian soil, withdrawal of Russian artillery, tank, and multi-rocket launch systems back to Russia.

The Kremlin responded the same day by saying Ukraines Nato membership would not help strengthen stability and security in Europe.

Dmitry Peskov, its spokesman, added: Russia has never had and has no servicemen in Ukraine.

There is a wealth of photographic evidence and eyewitness testimony to the contrary, however.

There are also high-level statements that contradict the official line.

Sergei Larvov, the Russian foreign minister, told a seminar in Moscow on 30 June: I have read and heard much criticism that we should not have got involved into the conflicts in Donbass [a region in east Ukraine].

Russian president Vladimir Putin said on TV in June 2015: We never said there were not people there [east Ukraine] who carried out certain tasks including in the military sphere.

The Ukrainian parliament said in June by 276 out of 450 votes that Ukraine should join Nato.

A poll in June by the Democratic Initiatives Foundation, a Ukrainian NGO, showed that 69 percent of people wanted to join the Western military bloc.

The surge in Nato support came after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2014. The invasion followed an anti-corruption revolution in Kiev that ousted its pro-Kremlin regime.

Poroshenko will meet top EU officials in Kiev on Wednesday.

The summit will discuss progress on an EU-Ukraine political and trade pact which enters into force in September.

US secretary of state Rex Tillerson also visited Kiev on Sunday.

He said it is necessary for Russia to take the first steps to de-escalate the situation in the eastern part of Ukraine before the US would consider relaxing sanctions.

The EU recently extended its economic sanctions until January next year.

The US senate voted to expand sanctions, including against Western investors in Russian gas projects such as Nord Stream 2, a pipeline to Germany.

We see an open sabotage of infrastructure projects that are economically well founded and attractive for consumers, like for instance Nord Stream 2, Russian energy minister Aleksandr Novak said at a congress in Istanbul on Monday.

Read more:
Ukraine keen to begin Nato entry process - EUobserver

WASHINGTON (AP) How's that "blazing" economy?

At home and abroad over the past week, President Donald Trump described an America where everyone's getting rich off the stock market, money has started gushing into NATO and practically everything's on the upswing since he took office. On Russian meddling in the U.S. election, he expressed an enduring uncertainty that his U.N. ambassador convinced of Moscow mischief doesn't share.

A look at some of his statements:

TRUMP, on whether Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. elections: "Nobody really knows." He added: "So, it was Russia, and I think it was probably others also." news conference in Poland on Thursday.

NIKKI HALEY, U.S. ambassador to the U.N.: "Everybody knows that Russia meddled in our elections." on CNN's "State of the Union."

THE FACTS: The weight of evidence supports Haley's certainty more than her boss' equivocation. Multiple U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia meddled in the campaign, and for the purpose of giving Trump an advantage over Democrat Hillary Clinton. The full scope of the interference has not been established, nor whether Russian officials colluded with Trump associates in the campaign.

White House officials said Trump confronted Putin about the interference in their private meeting Friday. Kremlin officials had a different account, saying Trump appeared accepting of Putin's denials that Moscow did anything untoward to shape the election.

In Poland, Trump argued alternately that it could have been Russia, probably was Russia and indeed was Russia, while insisting it could have been other countries, too, and adding, "I won't be specific."

President Donald Trump, with first lady Melania Trump, speaks from the Truman Balcony at the Fourth of July picnic for military families on the South Lawn of the White House, Tuesday, July 4, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

TRUMP: "No matter where you look, the economy is blazing. And on every front we're doing well. And we do have challenges, but we will handle those challenges believe me." remarks at Fourth of July event at White House.

TRUMP: "Really great numbers on jobs & the economy! Things are starting to kick in now, and we have just begun! Don't like steel & aluminum dumping!" tweet July 3.

THE FACTS: The economy is not blazing. At best, it's at a controlled burn.

The performance under Trump has been remarkably close to the relatively tepid growth under President Barack Obama, a record Trump criticized as a candidate. Most economists agree that any president is unlikely to suddenly transform an economy in a matter of months.

The economy grew at a sluggish annual pace of 1.4 percent during the first three months of the year. Growth can be uneven on a quarterly basis. But Federal Reserve officials estimate the economy will grow 2.2 percent this year, 2.1 percent in 2018 and 1.9 percent in 2019. That is pretty close to growth of roughly 2 percent during the recovery under Obama.

Trump can celebrate a 4.4 percent unemployment rate, but that builds on progress made during Obama's tenure. The lower unemployment rate has also translated into smaller job gains under Trump.

Monthly job growth has averaged 180,000 during the first six months of 2017, compared with an average of more than 186,000 last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

TRUMP: "Dow hit a new intraday all-time high! I wonder whether or not the Fake News Media will so report?" tweet July 3.

THE FACTS: Peaks and valleys during the day generally don't make for screaming headlines. Investors generally pay more attention to where stock market indexes stand when trading ends at 4 p.m. Because those markets have been setting records for months, Monday's intraday peak wasn't that notable, though the financial media reported on it. The stock market has been rising under Trump's watch, as it rose under Obama's since 2013.

U.S. President Donald Trump, left, meets with Poland's President Andrzej Duda after arriving at the Royal Castle, Thursday, July 6, 2017, in Warsaw. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

TRUMP: "When I say that the stock market is at an all-time high, we've picked up in market value almost $4 trillion since Nov. 8, which was the election. Four trillion dollars it's a lot of money. Personally, I picked up nothing, but that's all right. Everyone else is getting rich. That's OK. I'm very happy. " Energy meeting with European leaders in Warsaw on Thursday.

THE FACTS: Everyone else is not getting rich. Most Americans lack meaningful stock market investments. Research by New York University economist Edward Wolff found that just 10 percent of the U.S. population owns 80 percent of stock market wealth.

Also, it's likely the rising stock market has indeed benefited him personally. Financial disclosures show the president has multiple brokerage accounts and extensive stock holdings. He owns shares in Apple Inc. (up 24 percent year-to-date), Caterpillar Inc. (up 15 percent) and Microsoft Corp. (up nearly 12 percent) among other companies. Even if Trump didn't buy into the recent stock market gains, his existing shares probably received a boost.

TRUMP, on NATO's core pledge: "To those who would criticize our tough stance, I would point out that the United States has demonstrated not merely with words but with its actions that we stand firmly behind Article 5, the mutual defense commitment." speech in Warsaw on Thursday.

THE FACTS: Rather than showing a commitment with his actions, Trump has sown confusion with his words. Article 5 has only been used once by other NATO members, to come to the defense of the U.S. after the 2001 attacks on American soil.

Trump suggested during the campaign that NATO members lagging on their own military spending might not be able to count on the U.S. to come to their aid if attacked. And he pointedly did not endorse Article 5 at a NATO meeting in May, unnerving some allies. In June, though, he said: "I'm committing the United States to Article 5." Those words won't be tested with action until or unless a NATO member is attacked.

President Donald Trump announces the approval of a permit to build the Keystone XL pipeline, clearing the way for the $8 billion project, Friday, March 24, 2017 in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Friday, March 24, 2017. From left are, TransCanada CEO Russell K. Girling, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Energy Secretary Rick Perry. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

TRUMP: "We just approved a big pipeline also the Keystone Pipeline. It was under consideration for many, many years, and it was dead, and I approved it in my first day of office." Warsaw energy meeting.

THE FACTS: He did not approve it on his first day in office. During his first week, on Jan. 24, Trump signed an order asking TransCanada to re-submit its application to build Keystone XL, which had been blocked by Obama. Trump suggested at the time that more negotiations would be required with TransCanada before he would approve the project. The project actually got the go-ahead in late March.

TRUMP: "Americans know that a strong alliance of free, sovereign and independent nations is the best defense for our freedoms and for our interests. That is why my administration has demanded that all members of NATO finally meet their full and fair financial obligation. As a result of this insistence, billions of dollars more have begun to pour into NATO. In fact, people are shocked. But billions and billions of dollars more coming in from countries that, in my opinion, would not have been paying so quickly." Warsaw speech.

THE FACTS: The notion of money pouring into NATO because of his tough talk is one of Trump's most frequent fictions. The actual issue is how much NATO countries spend on their own military budgets. They agreed in 2014, well before he became president, to stop cutting military spending, and have honored that. They also agreed then to a goal of moving "toward" spending 2 percent of their gross domestic product on their own defense by 2024. Most are short of that and the target is not ironclad. His tough talk is aimed at nudging them toward that goal.

Read the original post:
Fact check: Trump on the 'blazing' economy, Russia, NATO - Arizona Daily Star

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, right, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attend a joint news conference in Kiev on Monday. Efrem Lukatsky/AP hide caption

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, right, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attend a joint news conference in Kiev on Monday.

Ukraine is set to begin talks with NATO about eventual membership in the western alliance a move that has long raised the ire of Russia.

Petro Poroshenko, Ukraine's president, met with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in Kiev on Monday.

After their meeting, Poroshenko said he had "clearly stated that we would begin discussion about a membership action plan and our proposals for such a discussion were accepted with pleasure."

Since 2014, Ukraine has been battling a Russian-backed insurgency sparked by Moscow's forced annexation of the Crimean Peninsula. The chain of events was set in motion by Poroshenko's election defeat of then-President Viktor Yanukovych, who had been publicly pro-Russia.

As far back as 2008, Ukraine, an integral part of the old Soviet Union, agreed with NATO's leadership that it would work toward eventual membership in the alliance. But moves in that direction were ignored by Yanukovych.

During a joint news conference with Poroshenko on Monday, the NATO secretary-general also called on Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine and said that the alliance would be supplying hardware to protect Ukraine's computers from cyberattacks. Kiev has accused Moscow of being behind a massive ransomware attack last month that quickly spilled across Ukraine's borders and infected computers worldwide.

And as Reuters reports following the meeting: "Russia, deeply opposed to enlargement of NATO towards its borders, weighed in quickly, saying the prospect of NATO membership for Ukraine would not promote stability and security in Europe."

According to Reuters, 69 percent of Ukrainians who were surveyed in a June poll supported joining NATO a sharp increase from before Moscow's forced annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in 2014.

Poroshenko has pledged that Ukraine will undertake a series of reforms aimed at qualifying the country for NATO membership by 2020. Those reforms, according to a NATO spokesman quoted by Reuters, would occur in the areas of defense, anti-corruption, governance and law enforcement.

The meeting with NATO's top official comes after Washington appointed Kurt Volker, a former U.S. representative to NATO, as a special representative to Ukraine. It also follows President Trump's public reluctance to commit to NATO's charter, which calls for mutual defense of its members.

Link:
Ukraine Recommits To NATO Membership Over Moscow's Objections - NPR

WASHINGTON (AP) How's that "blazing" economy?

At home and abroad over the past week, President Donald Trump described an America where everyone's getting rich off the stock market, money has started gushing into NATO and practically everything's on the upswing since he took office. On Russian meddling in the U.S. election, he expressed an enduring uncertainty that his U.N. ambassador convinced of Moscow mischief doesn't share.

A look at some of his statements:

TRUMP, on whether Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. elections: "Nobody really knows." He added: "So, it was Russia, and I think it was probably others also." news conference in Poland on Thursday.

NIKKI HALEY, U.S. ambassador to the U.N.: "Everybody knows that Russia meddled in our elections." on CNN's "State of the Union."

THE FACTS: The weight of evidence supports Haley's certainty more than her boss' equivocation. Multiple U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia meddled in the campaign, and for the purpose of giving Trump an advantage over Democrat Hillary Clinton. The full scope of the interference has not been established, nor whether Russian officials colluded with Trump associates in the campaign.

White House officials said Trump confronted Putin about the interference in their private meeting Friday. Kremlin officials had a different account, saying Trump appeared accepting of Putin's denials that Moscow did anything untoward to shape the election.

In Poland, Trump argued alternately that it could have been Russia, probably was Russia and indeed was Russia, while insisting it could have been other countries, too, and adding, "I won't be specific."

President Donald Trump, with first lady Melania Trump, speaks from the Truman Balcony at the Fourth of July picnic for military families on the South Lawn of the White House, Tuesday, July 4, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

TRUMP: "No matter where you look, the economy is blazing. And on every front we're doing well. And we do have challenges, but we will handle those challenges believe me." remarks at Fourth of July event at White House.

TRUMP: "Really great numbers on jobs & the economy! Things are starting to kick in now, and we have just begun! Don't like steel & aluminum dumping!" tweet July 3.

THE FACTS: The economy is not blazing. At best, it's at a controlled burn.

The performance under Trump has been remarkably close to the relatively tepid growth under President Barack Obama, a record Trump criticized as a candidate. Most economists agree that any president is unlikely to suddenly transform an economy in a matter of months.

The economy grew at a sluggish annual pace of 1.4 percent during the first three months of the year. Growth can be uneven on a quarterly basis. But Federal Reserve officials estimate the economy will grow 2.2 percent this year, 2.1 percent in 2018 and 1.9 percent in 2019. That is pretty close to growth of roughly 2 percent during the recovery under Obama.

Trump can celebrate a 4.4 percent unemployment rate, but that builds on progress made during Obama's tenure. The lower unemployment rate has also translated into smaller job gains under Trump.

Monthly job growth has averaged 180,000 during the first six months of 2017, compared with an average of more than 186,000 last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

TRUMP: "Dow hit a new intraday all-time high! I wonder whether or not the Fake News Media will so report?" tweet July 3.

THE FACTS: Peaks and valleys during the day generally don't make for screaming headlines. Investors generally pay more attention to where stock market indexes stand when trading ends at 4 p.m. Because those markets have been setting records for months, Monday's intraday peak wasn't that notable, though the financial media reported on it. The stock market has been rising under Trump's watch, as it rose under Obama's since 2013.

U.S. President Donald Trump, left, meets with Poland's President Andrzej Duda after arriving at the Royal Castle, Thursday, July 6, 2017, in Warsaw. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

TRUMP: "When I say that the stock market is at an all-time high, we've picked up in market value almost $4 trillion since Nov. 8, which was the election. Four trillion dollars it's a lot of money. Personally, I picked up nothing, but that's all right. Everyone else is getting rich. That's OK. I'm very happy. " Energy meeting with European leaders in Warsaw on Thursday.

THE FACTS: Everyone else is not getting rich. Most Americans lack meaningful stock market investments. Research by New York University economist Edward Wolff found that just 10 percent of the U.S. population owns 80 percent of stock market wealth.

Also, it's likely the rising stock market has indeed benefited him personally. Financial disclosures show the president has multiple brokerage accounts and extensive stock holdings. He owns shares in Apple Inc. (up 24 percent year-to-date), Caterpillar Inc. (up 15 percent) and Microsoft Corp. (up nearly 12 percent) among other companies. Even if Trump didn't buy into the recent stock market gains, his existing shares probably received a boost.

TRUMP, on NATO's core pledge: "To those who would criticize our tough stance, I would point out that the United States has demonstrated not merely with words but with its actions that we stand firmly behind Article 5, the mutual defense commitment." speech in Warsaw on Thursday.

THE FACTS: Rather than showing a commitment with his actions, Trump has sown confusion with his words. Article 5 has only been used once by other NATO members, to come to the defense of the U.S. after the 2001 attacks on American soil.

Trump suggested during the campaign that NATO members lagging on their own military spending might not be able to count on the U.S. to come to their aid if attacked. And he pointedly did not endorse Article 5 at a NATO meeting in May, unnerving some allies. In June, though, he said: "I'm committing the United States to Article 5." Those words won't be tested with action until or unless a NATO member is attacked.

President Donald Trump announces the approval of a permit to build the Keystone XL pipeline, clearing the way for the $8 billion project, Friday, March 24, 2017 in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Friday, March 24, 2017. From left are, TransCanada CEO Russell K. Girling, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Energy Secretary Rick Perry. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

TRUMP: "We just approved a big pipeline also the Keystone Pipeline. It was under consideration for many, many years, and it was dead, and I approved it in my first day of office." Warsaw energy meeting.

THE FACTS: He did not approve it on his first day in office. During his first week, on Jan. 24, Trump signed an order asking TransCanada to re-submit its application to build Keystone XL, which had been blocked by Obama. Trump suggested at the time that more negotiations would be required with TransCanada before he would approve the project. The project actually got the go-ahead in late March.

TRUMP: "Americans know that a strong alliance of free, sovereign and independent nations is the best defense for our freedoms and for our interests. That is why my administration has demanded that all members of NATO finally meet their full and fair financial obligation. As a result of this insistence, billions of dollars more have begun to pour into NATO. In fact, people are shocked. But billions and billions of dollars more coming in from countries that, in my opinion, would not have been paying so quickly." Warsaw speech.

THE FACTS: The notion of money pouring into NATO because of his tough talk is one of Trump's most frequent fictions. The actual issue is how much NATO countries spend on their own military budgets. They agreed in 2014, well before he became president, to stop cutting military spending, and have honored that. They also agreed then to a goal of moving "toward" spending 2 percent of their gross domestic product on their own defense by 2024. Most are short of that and the target is not ironclad. His tough talk is aimed at nudging them toward that goal.

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Fact check: Trump on the 'blazing' economy, Russia, NATO - Bismarck Tribune

BBC News

Nato sends 'alive and strong' message from Estonia BBC News But today, sitting less than 150km (93 miles) from the Russian border, it is the base for a Nato battle group - here, according to the alliance, to reassure the Estonians and to demonstrate Nato's solidarity to Moscow. The decision to deploy Nato ... and more »

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Nato sends 'alive and strong' message from Estonia - BBC News

NATOs Resolute Support has issued a short statement denying that two Americans were killed while fighting the Islamic States Wilayah Khorasan (or ISIS-K). The jihadists claimed yesterday that they had repelled an attack by the apostate Afghan Army and the Crusader American Forces in Afghanistans Nangarhar province, which has been Wilayah Khorasans hub.

The soldiers of Tawhid [monotheism] stood up against them using various types of weapons and rockets, killing 10 murtaddin [apostates] and injuring others, the self-declared caliphates statement reads. Likewise, an SPG-9 round destroyed an American Cougar vehicle and killed 2 Crusaders along with 3 Afghan soldiers.

However, Resolute Support says the Americans were not killed, but instead wounded two days earlier, on July 7.

As is usually the case, the ISIS-K claim of killing 2 US Soldiers in Nangarhar Province over the weekend is false, US Navy Captain William K. Salvin, the Resolute Support spokesman, said in a statement released today. Two service members were wounded on July 7th and were medically evacuated out of theater for treatment.

Although Wilayah Khorasans statement was apparently wrong about the Americans fate, it appears that another significant engagement took place.

In April, three American service members were killed during operations against the Islamic State branch in Nangarhar. [See FDDs Long War Journal reports: American soldier killed fighting Islamic State in Afghanistan and 2 American service members killed fighting Islamic State in eastern Afghanistan.]

That same month, the US dropped the MOAB, the GBU-43 Massive Ordnance Air Blast (also known as the mother of all bombs) in Nangarhars Achin district. Afghan officials initially said that the explosion caused 36 Islamic State casualties, but subsequently increased their estimate to 94 killed, according to the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR). The Islamic State has claimed that there were no casualties from the bombing.

Thomas Joscelyn is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Senior Editor for FDD's Long War Journal.

Tags: Afghanistan, Islamic State, Islamic State Wilayah Khorasan, NATO Resolute Support, Wilayah Khorasan

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NATO: Islamic State falsely claimed killing of 2 Americans in Afghanistan - Long War Journal

Ukraine has officially set NATO membership as a key foreign policy goal, overturning the countrys non-aligned status adopted by the previous government ousted in the Euromaidan coup of 2014.

An amendment to Ukraines main law related to security was signed by President Petro Poroshenko on Thursday and officially came into force on Sunday.

The amendment, which was published in the Ukrainian Radas official Golos Ukrainy (Voice of Ukraine) newspaper, makes entry into the Euro-Atlantic security realm with the goal of becoming member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization a top priority.

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Poroshenko, who has led the country since the Euromaidan coup removed President Viktor Yanukovich from power in 2014, wrote on his Facebook page that Ukraines course towards NATO membership is now clearly stated as one of the key priorities for government policy. He added that an active effort to reform the security and defense sectors to comply with membership criteria now lies ahead.

The amendment was backed by 276 of the 450 lawmakers in the Verkhovna Rada on June 8. The authors of the draft asserted that NATO membership will help Ukraine strengthen national security, sovereignty and territorial integrity and stop Russian aggression, as cited by Ukrinform media outlet.

Before 2014, Ukraine had been committed to a non-aligned status, meaning the country abstained from entering military alliances and strengthened ties with both Russia and the West. However, things changed dramatically after the coup, and the new government took a pro-Western course with overwhelming support from the Obama administration.

Kiev later unleashed a massive military operation against rebel forces in eastern Ukraine who rejected the coup in the capital. The intense hostilities have claimed the lives of at least 10,000 people, including civilians. Ukraine and its Western backers have accused Russia of supporting the rebels and violating Ukraines sovereignty.

READ MORE:Russia-NATO relations at worst point since Cold War Moscow

Though Moscow has repeatedly dismissed the accusations as baseless, the US has imposed a wave of sanctions against Russia and sent instructors, as well as military aid, to Ukrainian troops fighting in the eastern part of the country. The UK and Canada followed suit shortly afterwards and sent non-lethal supplies to Kievs forces.

Kiev has taken numerous steps to engage in accession talks with NATO over the past few years, but the alliance has been wary of discussing the issue, even when relations between Russia and the West were at historic lows. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in March that it was up to Ukraine to pursue its NATO aspirations, but warned that its application would be considered carefully once submitted.

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Thats for Ukraine to decide whether they want to apply, Stoltenberg told CNN in April. And then if Ukraine applies, then its for 28 NATO allies to decide whether Ukraine qualifies, he added.

As a rule, adopting new members requires unanimous support from all the members. An applying country must reform its military to comply with NATO standards, ensure the rule of law, and defeat corruption. Some independent analyses have suggested the latter may be difficult for Ukraine.

A recent report from the European Court of Auditors (ECA) featured a discouraging description of Ukraine, both before and after the so-called Maidan events.

Ukraines state finances have deteriorated over the years, mainly due to mismanagement of public funds, it said, adding, despite reform efforts, Ukraine is still perceived as the most corrupt country in Europe Oligarchic clans continue to exert a dominant influence on Ukraines economy, politics and media.

European assessments aside, the Trump administration has also signaled a rethinking of previous US policies supporting Ukraine.

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NATO membership is Ukraine's main foreign policy priority - RT