EXCLUSIVE: Special ops to turn focus from war on terror to China, Russia

Army Green Berets are trained for lethal close-quarter combat operations and small-team interoperability, but they will need digital skills for the future of warfare. (U.S. Army) (Photo by: Sgt. Ian Ives)

 

Will be taking a larger role in cyberwarfare, information and ‘influence’ operations, sources say

America’s elite special operations forces are getting new marching orders as the Pentagon moves away from its post-9/11 focus on radical terrorist groups and trains its eye on big-power rivals such as China and Russia.

In a major shift of mission, officials at U.S. Special Operations Command are drafting new guidance to reorient its cadre of top-tier military units to fight the expanding armies and navies of what U.S. strategists call “near-peer” powers.

Pentagon Confirms Chinese Fired Lasers at U.S. Pilots

Chinese People’s Liberation Army personnel attend the opening ceremony of China’s new military base in Djibouti / Getty Images

 

Incidents near Beijing’s Djibouti military base injured American air crews flying nearby

The Pentagon confirmed Thursday that Chinese nationals fired lasers near a military base in east Africa against U.S. military aircraft in the region, injuring several pilots.

Pentagon Press Secretary Dana White said the U.S. government made diplomatic protests to the Chinese government over several recent incidents of laser firings near China’s first overseas military base at Djibouti.

China’s First Overseas Military Base Nearing Completion

Chinese military officers bid farewell to members of a Chinese medical contingent as it leaves for West Africa to help in the fight against Ebola from the airport in Beijing, China, Friday, Nov. 14, 2014. China’s first overseas military base should be ready this summer close by the operations hub of U.S. Africa Command in Djibouti. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

 

Marine Gen. Thomas Waldhauser, commander of AfriCom, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that he expected the Chinese base on the Horn of Africa to be operational later this summer.

Without getting specific, Waldhauser said he recently met with Djibouti’s President Ismail Omar Guelleh “and expressed our concerns about some of the things that are important to us about what the Chinese should not do at that location.”

China Building First Overseas Military Outpost Near U.S. Base in Africa

China is building its first overseas military outpost just miles from the largest U.S. military base in Africa.

The Chinese naval base in Djibouti is positioned on a 90-acre plot of land and expected to be completed next year, according to the Wall Street Journal. China’s construction of the base represents one of Beijing’s latest efforts to establish itself as a global maritime power.

The Chinese naval base is close to Camp Lemonnier, the U.S. base in Djibouti, which supports roughly 4,000 U.S. and allied military and civilian personnel and defense contractors. It is the primary base of operations for U.S. Africa Command.

Marine units positioned near Syria

Marines in the Middle East, Africa and Europe are poised to reach Syria within hours should President Obama order a strike on the country as officials work to determine whether the government there was involved in a chemical weapons attack against its own people.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told BBC television Tuesday that the Defense Department has “moved assets in place to be able to fulfill and comply with whatever option the president wishes to take.”