Despite Trump's chaos, Hegseth spoke an uncomfortable truth on defence
If you want an example of how distorted Australia's defence funding choices have become, Exhibit A lies in the smouldering ruins of about $11 billion worth of wrecked Russian warplanes.
Ukraine's audacious drone strike against Russian airfields shows how a smaller force can destroy billions of dollars of military hardware possessed by a superior enemy.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Hegseth to skip Ukraine meeting at NATO headquarters
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth won't attend a Wednesday meeting of 50 defense ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels that has been critical to coordinating military aid for Ukraine, marking the first time in three years an American defense secretary has skipped the meeting. The regular meetings of defense ministers from NATO and beyond have coordinated military aid to Ukraine, and have emerged as a key component for Western aid for Kyiv as it has battled Russian forces. The Trump administration has distanced itself from the group however, handing over leadership to the U.K. and Germany as President Donald Trump criticized Ukraine. Hegseth's absence appears to signal further softening of the Trump administration's relationship with Europe, and Ukraine. Hegseth will be in Brussels for Thursday's meeting of NATO defense ministers but his place at Wednesday's Ukraine Defense Contact Group will be taken by U.S. ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker, according to a defense official and two people familiar with their plans, all of whom were granted anonymity to discuss internal matters. The U.K. and Germany took over leadership of the group in February after Hegseth said the U.S. would no longer play a role in the monthly meetings established by then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in April 2022 after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. Since that February meeting, U.K. Defense Minister John Healey, and Germany's defense chief, Boris Pistorius, have run the show, with Hegseth only attending virtually last month. The pair will chair Wednesday's meeting as well. The Trump administration is continuing to ship weapons and equipment to Ukraine under a $61 billion aid package established by former President Joe Biden. The Ukraine gathering of defense ministers comes three weeks before many of them will come together once again for NATO's annual summit being held in The Netherlands on June 24-25. Leaders from across the alliance will attend that two-day event, including president Trump, who will likely command an outsize presence as European leaders wait for the administration's Europe and Russia policies to come into focus. Ambassador Whitaker said last month that the U.S. will begin talks with allies later this year about potential troop withdrawals from Europe, but that nothing has been decided. But during his first visit to NATO in February, Hegseth warned that the American military presence in Europe was "not forever," a comment that sent ripples of concern throughout the alliance. During that meeting, Hegseth also admonished European leaders for not spending enough on defense and controversially laid down a series of preconditions for Ukraine to meet before entering into peace talks with Russia, including forgoing an invitation to join NATO and not asking for a return to its pre-invasion borders.
The Sun
16 minutes ago
- The Sun
Britain pledges to deliver 100,000 drones to Ukraine by April 2026
LONDON: Britain pledged on Wednesday to supply 100,000 drones to Ukraine by the end of the current financial year in April 2026, marking a tenfold increase, after saying the unmanned aerial vehicles had transformed the way wars are fought. The government on Monday endorsed an independently-produced Strategic Defence Review, which calls for a more lethal, tech-driven army to counter emerging threats, including possible Russian aggression. Britain, one of Ukraine's staunchest Western supporters, plans to learn from Kyiv's more than three-year fight against Russian invasion, during which drones have transformed the battlefield. The 350-million-pound ($473 million) drone package is part of a broader 4.5-billion-pound military support initiative for Ukraine, the government said. Defence Secretary John Healey will make the announcement at a 50-nation Ukraine Defence Contact Group meeting in Brussels, co-hosted with Germany. "The UK is stepping up its support for Ukraine by delivering hundreds of thousands more drones this year and completing a major milestone in the delivery of critical artillery ammunition," Healey said in a statement ahead of the meeting. In addition to the drone deliveries, Britain said it has completed the shipment of 140,000 artillery shells to Ukraine since January and will spend a further 247 million pounds this year training Ukrainian troops. ($1 = 0.7402 pounds)
Sky News AU
17 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
Ukraine strike decimates only bridge connecting Russia and Crimea, cutting crucial supply line
Ukraine has carried out a devastating strike on the only bridge connecting Russia and the occupied province of Crimea, severing the vital supply line for President Vladimir Putin's forces, Ukraine's security service announced. Dramatic video shows the piers of the Crimean Bridge, also known as the Kerch Bridge, exploding on Tuesday morning after Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) agents mined it following a monthslong operation. Ukrainian special forces used more than 2,400 pounds of explosives, which 'severely damaged' the underwater pillars supporting the road and rail crossing, the SBU wrote on Telegram alongside the video. This is the third attack on the Kerch Bridge by Ukrainian forces since the start of the full-scale war in February 2022. Russian officials did not immediately respond to Ukraine's claims about the attack, but all traffic on the bridge was suspended on Tuesday morning, the Russian operator for the crossing announced on its official Telegram account. Traffic was later suspended again mid-afternoon before resuming shortly before 6 p.m. local time, according to the operator. The reported strike comes just two days after the SBU blindsided Russia with a devastating series of drone strikes on its airbases, reportedly wiping out 34% of the country's strategic nuclear bombers and causing an estimated $7 billion of damage. Vasyl Malyuk, the head of the SBU, who was responsible for Sunday's attacks, also oversaw Tuesday's attack on the Kerch Bridge, the Ukrainian Security Services said. 'We previously struck the Crimean Bridge twice, in 2022 and 2023. So today we continued this tradition, this time underwater,' Malyuk said in a statement shared on Telegram. The bridge, which serves both a practical and a symbolic role for Russia, is a 'completely legitimate target,' since it is used by Russia 'as a logistical artery to supply its troops' fighting in mainland Ukraine, Malyuk added. Built after Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, the bridge was officially opened by Putin in 2018 at a cost of around $3.7 billion. Connecting Crimea with mainland Russia, the bridge embodies Putin's insistence that the peninsula is part of his country. Originally published as Ukraine strike decimates only bridge connecting Russia and Crimea, cutting crucial supply line
