Questions tagged [military]
Questions related to the military. This may include questions about the actions or inaction of the military, the armed forces themselves or government action related to the military.
257
questions
8
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4answers
469 views
Why was Australia willing to pay $2.6B/unit for the French diesel-electric submarines?
Note: All dollar values are USD.
One of the great advantages of diesel-electric attack submarines over nuclear-powered versions is that the former typically cost far less, so countries can purchase ...
0
votes
0answers
54 views
Has the US transferred any more naval nuclear reactor technology to the UK besides that S5W reactor piece that powered HMS Dreadnaught (S101)?
I've read that the first UK nuclear powered submarine HMS Dreadnaught (S101) was powered by a US made reactor, but that subsequent UK ships of that kind used UK-made ones. Wikipedia claims:
During ...
22
votes
6answers
6k views
Why are other countries reacting negatively to Australia's decision to deploy nuclear submarines?
Recently Australia decided to acquire nuclear-powered submarines, attracting several negative comments, such as:
Malaysia said on Saturday that Canberra's decision to build atomic-powered submarines ...
11
votes
3answers
6k views
Why are German local authorities taxing DoD employees, despite the protests of the US and of the German federal government?
There's a pretty long military.com (Stars and Stripes) article on the matter of taxes on some DoD employees in Germany:
The U.S. contends the situation amounts to a treaty violation, but so far ...
-4
votes
3answers
171 views
Why are there more American soldiers and bases in the UK and Germany than in Iraq? [closed]
I've just learned from this article that the US has soldiers and bases in the UK and Germany. This is somehow the violation of the sovereignty of those countries.
The US attacked Iraq, so it's not ...
0
votes
0answers
39 views
Has the Saudi purchase of Pantsir S1M (technology) from Russia made any progress?
It's been mentioned in an article last year that the Saudis were negotiating buying a short-range anti-aircraft system from Russia, supposedly to bolster their anti-drone defense, after the Houthi ...
13
votes
3answers
4k views
Why would the PLAAF buy additional Su-35 fighters from Russia?
In November 2015, China became the Su-35's first export customer when
the Russian and Chinese governments signed a contract worth $2 billion
to buy 24 aircraft for the People's Liberation Army Air
...
-10
votes
2answers
255 views
Was President Biden been Misled by the Generals in Afghanistan or Was the Fall-out His Own Misjudgment? [closed]
Prior to and during the troop withdrawal, President Biden has said repeatedly that he was adequately informed on the situations, has received daily briefings, and constantly discussed and listened to ...
16
votes
4answers
784 views
Military Equipment left in Afghanistan - US or ANA property?
Lots of the media (news sites and social) is talking about all of the equipment left in Afghanistan. Lots of the discussion (and confusion) is about generally how "The USA just left billions of ...
52
votes
5answers
13k views
Why did the US military leave Afghanistan in such a rush that they left so much equipment behind?
One would think that if the US military were to leave Afghanistan, they would surely take any equipment that might fall into the wrong hands, especially since there were reports that the "wrong ...
12
votes
1answer
337 views
What did the Western Governments expect to happen in Afghanistan?
A number of western leaders, particularly in the US, have said they were surprised by the rapidity of the Taliban's success over the last 2 weeks. For example, the Pentagon's top military officer, ...
5
votes
2answers
118 views
When the US government activates a Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF), can it activate the civilian crew as well, or are they always volunteers?
CNN's Pentagon activates US airlines to assist with evacuation efforts from Afghanistan
says:
The Pentagon announced Sunday that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the commander of US ...
3
votes
1answer
127 views
Is there an overview of battles between the Afghan Army and Taliban forces during the Resolute Support Mission (2015-2021)?
According to the Wikipedia page on the Resolute Support Mission (RSM):
Resolute Support Mission or Operation Resolute Support was a NATO-led train, advise and assist mission consisting of about 7,772 ...
2
votes
1answer
204 views
What was the average pay of an Afghan soldier (before the Taliban took over)?
The BBC reported that
The Sigar report also notes that these figures include “ghost” security personnel.
This, it says, means that “more than $300 million a year was spent paying salaries to non-...
3
votes
0answers
166 views
In the wake of the 2014 Iraqi army disintegration in front of ISIS, did the US make changes to how it trained such forces, esp. in Afghanistan?
Although some are shocked by the disintegration of Afghan army in front of the Taliban, I for one wasn't too surprised given the 2014 precedent provided by the US-trained Iraqi army, which ...
89
votes
9answers
20k views
Why are the Taliban winning against the Afghan army?
According to the Wikipedia page on the current Taliban offensive, the combined Afghan army outnumbers the Taliban by roughly 3:1. The Taliban have less or worse equipment and vehicles, and the Afghan ...
2
votes
1answer
255 views
Why doesn't the USA use drones and bombardment to support the Afghan government troops? [closed]
Since 2001, it was the usual practice. Various warlords and the government army fight on the field, and they get air support from the USA military.
Sometimes Taliban leaders were also killed by USA ...
1
vote
1answer
127 views
Could there be any action taken against the contributors of Climate Change and Global Warming? [closed]
With the rising concern over Climate Change and Global Warming especially due to the IPCC report, could there be any sanctions or some kind of action taken by the UN or NATO against countries (and ...
0
votes
1answer
131 views
Does the U.S. military have the means to spend a lot more than the allotted budget for the military?
Does the U.S. military have the means to spend a lot more than the allotted budget for the military?
A black budget or covert appropriation is a government budget that is
allocated for classified or ...
24
votes
5answers
5k views
Is the U.S. military bound by the same environmental laws as the country being occupied?
Is the U.S. military bound by the same environmental laws as the country being occupied? Let's say that the United States is still occupying Afghanistan, to what extent does the U.S. military have to ...
10
votes
5answers
13k views
Why won't China or Russia modernize North Korea's army by selling them modern military equipment?
North Korea's uses many outdated tanks, mostly T-62s, or based on T-62s, many of which would be expected to be ineffective against the more modern Abrams tank. The S-400 missile system is the best ...
3
votes
2answers
187 views
Does China intend to intervene in Afghan affairs after the US withdraws? [closed]
Recently, the US army is withdrawing from Afghanistan. Britain, the USSR and the US had all sent their army to Afghanistan before, but all failed. So, will China, a rising country that has great ...
10
votes
1answer
342 views
Will any state or federal laws be broken by a rich individual funding the movement and support of South Dakota National Guard troops?
Politico's Billionaire GOP donor is funding South Dakota National Guard border deployment says:
Willis Johnson doesn’t live in the state but says he backs Gov. Kristi Noem, a potential presidential ...
1
vote
1answer
269 views
Is there any data about partisanship inside US police departments or armed forces?
Is there any open data about the extent of partisan division among the police or armed forces in the United States?
If such data does not exist, why might that be? For example, is there some law which ...
1
vote
1answer
135 views
Do military company have to talk to the U.S. government before they apply for a patent?
Do military company have to talk to the U.S. government before they apply for a patent? Sometimes, it makes more sense to keep a technology secret instead of applying the technology in a patent office....
2
votes
2answers
406 views
How is Russia responding to non-military maritime traffic in the legally recognized shipping lane passing within its territorial waters?
From the video BBC journalist reports from British warship as Russia “fires warning shots” - BBC News here are some screenshots and transcribed audio (mine but based on BBC's closed captions).
...
5
votes
1answer
408 views
In what situation can the U.S. military use nukes without the consent of the President?
In what situation can the U.S. military use nukes without the consent of the President, if any situation like this exists?
10
votes
2answers
517 views
Is the current (Biden) admin making provisions for 'collaborators' after the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan?
background...
I was on TDY at an NAS when I 'saw' this happen during the Vietnam Conflict; there was a huge surge of applications for exit visas at the embassy (consulate) in March/April 1975. There ...
3
votes
1answer
129 views
To what extent is the Pentagon able to influence or pressure POTUS? [closed]
Some countries are routinely criticized for their military having considerable influence over politics and foreign policy. E.g. Pakistan.
How does the situation in the USA compare to those countries?
...
0
votes
1answer
163 views
What is the military power of the Belarus, compared to the neighbor states?
What is the military power of the Belarus, compared to the neighbor states, in particular, Poland?
The reports like those from GlobalFirePower seems to be based on sheer numbers, but one thing is ...
5
votes
1answer
96 views
Has the Biden administration detailed what violations of the Open Skies treaties it accuses Russia of?
A somewhat difficult to parse news piece:
"The United States regrets that the Treaty on Open Skies has been undermined by Russia's violations," the state department said on Thursday.
"...
-3
votes
2answers
283 views
Why doesn't the world help Israel fight against Hamas? [closed]
in the last two days Israel has been in "Operation Wall Guard". In the crisis that caused this "operation", Hamas has launched more than a thousand rockets towards Israeli cities.
...
10
votes
1answer
111 views
What is the official position of the Collective Security Treaty Organization over the Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan border conflict?
Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan are both members of Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO, Rus: ОДКБ), a military alliance supposed to defend their borders and provide with military framework if one ...
-6
votes
1answer
565 views
Why was the USA planning on attacking Japan *before* Japan's attack on Pearl Harbour? [closed]
According to Wikipedia, Japan attacked Pearl Harbour to prevent the US Pacific Fleet from interfering with its actions in South-East Asia.
However, Noam Chomsky, referring to Michael Sherry's The ...
-3
votes
4answers
340 views
Why doesn't the UK rescue Nazanin Zaghari? [closed]
Nazanin Zaghari is a dual British-Iranian citizen who has been detained for years because of allegations over plotting to topple the Iranian government. These claims are clearly fictitious, and it's ...
5
votes
1answer
302 views
Which countries want to weaponize space?
I'd like to know which countries want to weaponize space and are against making a "peaceful space treaty".
To make myself clear:
I know more than 100 countries are parties to the Outer Space ...
4
votes
1answer
218 views
S-400 technology transfer to Turkey
As far as I know, the Turkish proposal to purchase Patriot PAC-3 was refused because Turkey wanted a technology transfer, but the USA didn't want to.
Am I correct?
If I am correct, then what is going ...
0
votes
1answer
280 views
Why does Bangladesh have a smaller military per capita than its neighbors?
Kindly, refer to the following answer:
https://politics.stackexchange.com/a/62759/32479
This answer essentially says that the size of the military is related to the population size and the GDP.
The ...
0
votes
1answer
350 views
Why does Sri Lanka have so small a military?
Sri Lanka suffered almost 33 years of LTTE menace because of not paying proper attention to its defense capability. India manipulated Sri Lanka's LTTE situation by using muscle power. During the ...
3
votes
2answers
477 views
Do users of F-16s need the USA's permission to use them in attack roles?
Document reveals official US position on F-16s
Are users of F-16 fighter planes obliged to take the USA's permission to use them in attack roles?
I am especially curious about Turkey and Pakistan.
P....
3
votes
1answer
158 views
What are resons for Prime Minister Abe Shinzo to desire amendment to Article 9 in constitution?
Prime Minister Abe Shinzo is reported to have said that "Japan cannot be a "normal state" until Japan has a fully functional armed force." There are reports that majority of the ...
18
votes
3answers
4k views
What happens to rank-and-file law-enforcement after major regime change [closed]
The question is inspired by the current situation in Myanmar, but since at the time of writing what will happen remains to be seen and obviously people on here can't predict the future, but surely ...
12
votes
2answers
696 views
What does it mean for the Pentagon to order a stand-down?
In order to combat extremism in the Pentagon's ranks, the new Secretary of Defense is ordering a stand-down in the next 60 days.
Three questions:
What is a stand-down? (Beyond the 'pause of military ...
3
votes
1answer
126 views
Is there a "unified command" over all the defense forces in Washington D.C.?
A Unified Combatant Command is a task organized command structure used to coordinate forces around one objective. Examples include CENTCOM (https://www.centcom.mil/), which coordinates the armed ...
8
votes
1answer
294 views
Why does H.R.335 not mention the nominee's name?
To my understanding, H.R.335 which became Public Law No: 117-1. was a bill before the United States House of Representatives which would provide an exception to 10 U.S. Code § 113 (a) in order to ...
29
votes
6answers
6k views
How do countries justify their missile programs?
I will use India as an example.
India seems to have only two real enemies: China and Pakistan.
The longest range missiles India would need to launch an attack on China should be roughly around 5000 km ...
-10
votes
1answer
315 views
Has an American president's administration ever requested the military to investigate political views of soldiers? [closed]
Has an American president's administration ever requested the military to perform political purity tests on soldiers?
Business Insider:
The National Guard is running additional background checks on ...
-2
votes
1answer
202 views
Any data about Trump supporters amount in National Guard? [closed]
As we know, now there is about 25000 national guardsmen in Washington DC. But doesn't it increase risk of strikes from the inside, from hidden Trump supporters? More people - seems more risky. And FBI ...
0
votes
2answers
230 views
What would a Green Party's position be when their country is under military invasion? [closed]
This question is referring to political parties that advocate green politics in general, rather than any specific party in a particular country.
While I understand that pacifist and anti-war policies ...
1
vote
1answer
253 views
Does all military authority come from the President?
If the President were to order it person who reports directly to them, it would be expected that they follow that order assuming it's legal and ethical, but does the President have the power to give ...
