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VA, VACDC Partner to Build Ambulatory Care Center at Omaha VA Medical Center
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VA, VACDC Partner to Build Ambulatory Care Center at Omaha VA Medical Center


VA, VACDC Partner to Build Ambulatory Care Center at Omaha VA Medical CenterThe Department of Veterans Affairs has forged an agreement with Omaha, Nebraska-based nonprofit Veterans Ambulatory Center Development Corp. to build an ambulatory care center at Omaha VA Medical Center campus.

VA said Wednesday it has chosen to partner with VACDC instead of following through a 2011 plan to construct a $560 million facility.

The department will use $56 million of the original appropriated funds along with VACDC’s approximately $30 million donation to complete the project.

Congress supports the project through the Communities Helping Invest through Property and Improvements Needed for Veterans Act of 2016, which authorizes VA to accept real property or construction support donations from non-federal entities through a five-year pilot program.

The future ambulatory care center in Omaha is the first of five projects that will be built under an initiative authorized by the CHIP IN for Vets Act, VA noted.

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US National Security Adviser HR McMaster Talks to Indian Officials About Bilateral Cooperation
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US National Security Adviser HR McMaster Talks to Indian Officials About Bilateral Cooperation


US National Security Adviser HR McMaster Talks to Indian Officials About Bilateral CooperationNational Security Adviser H.R. McMaster met with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss topics such as defense and counterterrorism cooperation between the U.S. and India.

McMaster, a U.S. Army lieutenant general, also spoke with his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, the U.S. embassy in India said Tuesday.

The Indian officials discussed how both countries could help address regional peace and stability challenges while McMaster shared his opinions on the security situation in Afghanistan, North Korea and West Asia, according to a report published Tuesday on the Indian PM’s website.

McMaster visited India as part of a regional consultation tour that also included stops in Kabul, Afghanistan and Islamabad, Pakistan.

India and the U.S. held discussions in December regarding a deal that could potentially transfer the production of Lockheed Martin– and Boeing-built fighter planes to the latter country.

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GAO: Congress Should Delay $9B Frigate Block Buy Until More Data Becomes Available on Ship Design, Cost
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GAO: Congress Should Delay $9B Frigate Block Buy Until More Data Becomes Available on Ship Design, Cost


GAO: Congress Should Delay $9B Frigate Block Buy Until More Data Becomes Available on Ship Design, CostThe Government Accountability Office has called on Congress to delay its decision on the U.S. Navy’s authority request for a block purchase of 12 frigates worth approximately $9 billion in fiscal year 2018 until more data is available about the ship’s design, cost and capabilities.

GAO said in a report published Tuesday that Congress should push back funding of the lead frigate ship to FY 2019 in order to have more information on the program’s costs, risks and design for use in the decision-making process.

The frigate is a ship that contains minor alterations to the Littoral Combat Ship design.

The agency also urged the Defense Department to postpone its procurement plans on the frigate program until more information is available.

GAO made the recommendations after it found that the frigate program does not have a formal cost estimate and an industrial base to support a contract award in 2018 since each shipyard has demands for LCS construction that will run through 2021.

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GSA to Host Collaboration Session on Follow-On Vehicle for Call Center Services in May
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GSA to Host Collaboration Session on Follow-On Vehicle for Call Center Services in May


GSA to Host Collaboration Session on Follow-On Vehicle for Call Center Services in MayThe General Services Administration has asked federal agencies to participate in a focus group to discuss the development of a follow-on contract vehicle for call center technology platforms and services.

GSA said Tuesday it will hold the session on May 18 in Washington with contract specialists and program managers from federal agencies to determine the requirements for another round of the USA Contact indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract.

The agency will hold the event with the Office of Personnel Management’s Innovation Lab.

GSA noted that federal agencies have procured call center services and related technology offerings valued at approximately $1 billion under the current USA Contact vehicle that is set to expire in March 2018.

Interested participants have until May 5 to register for the GSA Contact Center Focus Group.

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Report: Pentagon Begins AT&L Separation Into 2 Mission Areas
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Report: Pentagon Begins AT&L Separation Into 2 Mission Areas


Report: Pentagon Begins AT&L Separation Into 2 Mission AreasThe Defense Department has begun preliminary work to divide its current acquisition, technology and logistics organization into two offices to comply with a fiscal 2017 National Defense Authorization Act provision, Federal News Radio reported Tuesday.

Scott Maucione writes Congress asked DoD to submit an implementation plan for the AT&L reorganization effort in August and complete the establishment of the new functions by February next year.

The 2017 NDAA requires the department to split the current AT&L office’s responsibilities between an undersecretary for research and engineering and an undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment.

Mary Miller, acting assistant defense secretary for research and engineering, said at a National Defense Industrial Association-hosted forum in Washington the proposed R&E office will manage the allocation of resources, experimentation, prototyping, technology development and transition efforts across DoD.

Miller added the future acquisition and sustainment office will oversee the department’s acquisition policy design, contract administration, industrial base policy, logistics, maintenance, sustainment policy and procurement of goods and services.

DoD assembled a small cross functional team to assess how a reorganized AT&L will align with the chief management office, the report noted.

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Rex Tillerson: Trump Orders Interagency Review of Iran Nuclear Pact
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Rex Tillerson: Trump Orders Interagency Review of Iran Nuclear Pact


Rex Tillerson: Trump Orders Interagency Review of Iran Nuclear PactPresident Donald Trump has instructed the National Security Council to lead an interagency review group tasked to examine whether the lifting of sanctions on Iran aligns with U.S. national security interests.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson informed House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) in a letter published Tuesday that Iran has continued to comply with commitments under a 2015 nuclear deal dubbed Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

Tillerson added the Middle Eastern country “remains a leading state sponsor of terror, through many platforms and methods.”

The State Department is required to notify Congress on Iran’s compliance with JCPOA every 90 days and the latest notification is the first under the Trump administration, Reuters reported Wednesday.

Lesley Wroughton writes Iran agreed to reduce its nuclear development in exchange for the suspension of oil and financial sanctions against the country as part of the nuclear deal.

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Reports: House Lawmakers Ask White House to Clear Reaper UAV Sales to Jordan, UAE
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Reports: House Lawmakers Ask White House to Clear Reaper UAV Sales to Jordan, UAE


Reports: House Lawmakers Ask White House to Clear Reaper UAV Sales to Jordan, UAEHouse lawmakers have called on President Donald Trump’s administration to clear the sale of General Atomics-built MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles to the United Arab Emirates and Jordan to help address threats associated with the Islamic State militant organization, The Hill newspaper reported Tuesday.

Ellen Mitchell writes Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-California) led the bipartisan group of 22 policymakers to urge Trump to approve the drone sales through a letter dated Monday.

He said the sale could add $1 billion to the U.S. economy and retain manufacturing jobs in the country, the report added.

Hunter told Defense News in an interview published Tuesday that the Middle Eastern countries might turn to China if the White House fails to approve the Reaper sale.

“They are going to buy their defensive and offensive weapons somewhere, and if they buy from China, that aligns them in some aspect with China,” he added.

Joe Gould writes the Obama administration declined to approve the sale of such drones to UAE and Jordan due to the Missile Technology Control Regime.

MTCR is an agreement signed by 35 countries to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons through the use of UAVs, the report added.

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Air Force Seeks to Boost Crisis Response Capacity With Unit C2 Platform
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Air Force Seeks to Boost Crisis Response Capacity With Unit C2 Platform


Air Force Seeks to Boost Crisis Response Capacity With Unit C2 PlatformU.S. Air Force acquisition personnel have begun to update the service branch’s Unit Command and Control system in an effort to boost soldiers’ crisis response capacity and help commanders gain access to data on assets in military exercises or real-world settings.

The service branch said Tuesday the UC2 system is designed to generate checklists, updated lists and locations of transportation aircraft, assets and fire-fighting units to provide situational awareness data that can help increase accountability for everyday operations.

Capt. Kurt Carlson, UC2 program manager, said three Air Combat Command and two non-ACC bases will receive the platform within the next 90 days in addition to the Shaw, Tinker, Moody and Mountain Home Air Force bases that currently operate the UC2 system.

Carlson’s team partnered with Leidos to integrate feedback from various installations on the UC2 program as well as to manage the security of the application on Non-classified Internet Protocol Router and Secure Internet Protocol Router networks.

Second Lt. Michael Byon, cyber security engineer assigned to the UC2 program, said the service branch scans the system regularly to comply with National Institute of Standards and Technology‘s security protocols.

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Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch: Air Force May Seek ‘Anomalies’ For Nuclear Modernization Programs Under Full-Year CR
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Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch: Air Force May Seek ‘Anomalies’ For Nuclear Modernization Programs Under Full-Year CR


Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch: Air Force May Seek ‘Anomalies’ For Nuclear Modernization Programs Under Full-Year CR
Arnold Bunch

Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch, military deputy to the Air Force’s assistant secretary for acquisition, has said the service branch may have to ask for “anomalies” or consent from Congress to fund its nuclear modernization programs if lawmakers resort to a full-year continuing resolution, Defense News reported Tuesday.

Bunch told Defense News in an interview that a full-year CR would drive the military branch to delay by a year its plans to award contracts for the air-launched Long Range Standoff cruise missile and the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent program designed to replace the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile.

He said the B-21 Raider bomber program, which concluded its initial design review, would require a “serious” anomaly in order to keep the development phase on schedule, Valerie Insinna wrote.

Bunch testified in a Senate hearing in March and noted that the military branch would need to seek 17 anomalies to advance its nuclear modernization programs and request approval from Congress for 60 new acquisition initiatives, the report added.

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Reuters: Leaked Docs Show Alleged NSA Hacking of SWIFT Money Transfer Network
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Reuters: Leaked Docs Show Alleged NSA Hacking of SWIFT Money Transfer Network


Reuters: Leaked Docs Show Alleged NSA Hacking of SWIFT Money Transfer NetworkThe hacker group called “Shadow Brokers” has released documents that it says describe National Security Agency techniques to exploit commercially available software in order to access the SWIFT money-transfer system, Reuters reported Sunday.

Clare Baldwin and Joseph Menn write that Comae Technologies Founder Matt Suiche indicated in the company’s analysis of the documents that NSA utilized vulnerabilities in Microsoft software and Cisco firewalls to gain entry through Middle Eastern and Latin American transfer service providers.

Suiche told Reuters that the leaked data shows NSA penetrated the Adaptive Security Appliance security firewall with a tool dubbed “BARGLEE” then used exploits to target SWIFT-connected computer servers running old versions of Windows in 2013.

The report said SWIFT transfers are a “natural” target for intelligence agencies in efforts to track the flow of money that funds terrorist and criminal groups.

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