301: Israel PM Nonnegotiable Demands for Hostage Talks + Pitch Black Exercise in Australia + NATO Summit Starts in Washington D.C + USAF Sentinel ICBM Program Reset + More

I - On Defense Podcast

1. Pitch Black Exercise in Australia will see 20 nations participating. Of these, 16 are contributing combat jets to the exercise, with more than 140 aircraft and over 4,000 personnel. The three-week exercise will run 12 July - 02 August 2024.
2. US Navy vessel rundown in the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea.
3. IDF Hamas tunnel assessment in Gaza Strip.
After nine months of war, much of Hamas’s tunnel network is still in a “good functional state” in many parts of Gaza. It could take years to dismantle the tunnels, noting that underground passages must be mapped and checked for booby traps and hostages before the IDF can destroy them.
4. Israel PM Nonnegotiable Demands for Hostage Talks.
- “Any deal will allow Israel to return to fighting until its war aims are achieved.”
- “Weapons smuggling to Hamas from the Gaza-Egypt border will not be possible.”
- “The return of thousands of armed terrorists to the northern Gaza Strip will not be possible.”
- “Israel will maximize the number of living hostages who will be returned from Hamas captivity.”
5. NATO Command to be created up to coordinate training and equipment for Ukraine. The command will have about 700 personnel from NATO countries and partner nations assigned.
6. NATO Summit Starts in Washington D.C. Summit will take place from 09-11 July 2024.
7. US provides $2 billion loan to Poland. The money is allocated through the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program, which stipulates the dollars have to be spent on American-made weapons.
8. USAF Sentinel ICBM Program is reset due to severe cost overruns.
Restructuring the program will delay it by several years.