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| What To Expect in National Security in 2015 |
| 2015-01-05 |
| The year 2014 was one of many challenges and threats across the globe and in Washington, where defense spending remains an annual battleground. Heading into the New Year, there’s no shortage of problems at a time when uncertainty is the norm. The Pentagon will get a new leader next year. Outgoing Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel will stay on the job until Senate confirmation hearings are held for his successor, former Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter. Look for Carter, known best in Washington for his prior jobs in weapons and budgeting, to begin asserting himself on the global stage. As deputy defense secretary, Carter traveled often to visit deployed troops overseas. Now he must start fresh and earn the trust of troops hungry for leadership after just last month rating Hagel, famously a former sergeant, with a dismal report card. Budget caps, also known as sequestration, are scheduled kick back in on Oct. 1. Defense leaders in both parties have spent much of balance of 2014 voicing opposition to the caps and will do the same in 2015. Lawmakers and defense officials are expected to propose a number of procurement reforms and Pentagon leaders will further detail an innovation initiative designed to spur new development of new technologies to give the military an edge on the battlefield of the future. Expect DOD to make two major procurement decisions in 2015 that the defense industry is watching closely. The fight for 2016 also will heat up. It’s unclear what Republicans will offer that’s much different from what the White House is doing; it’s the same unsolved problem that plagued Mitt Romney’s failed bid to become commander-in-chief two years ago. Expect battles between the White House and Congress on the strategy against the Islamic State, the reluctance to put American boots on the ground and what to do with the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad; the timeline for withdrawal in Afghanistan; stricter sanctions against Russia and Iran ahead of the next deadline for nuclear talks, extended until June 30; and a push for more lethal aid to the Syrian rebels, Iraqi security forces and Kurds, and Ukrainian government. 2015 could be a breakthrough year for military robotics as a result of years of previous investments and research. In the same way that the 2004 and particularly the 2005 DARPA Grand Challenge ushered in the era of the self-driving car, the 2015 Robotics Grand Challenge could herald the dawn of a new day in human-like robotics. DARPA wants the machine for emergency work, (don’t worry, DARPA has been adamant that the military has no plans to arm ground robots,) but the winning system will go on to influence the design of medical, construction, home care, and other personal robots in the coming decade. But that’s not the only robotic surprise that could spring to life in 2015. An official at the Office of Naval Research, or ONR, told Defense One that the public will be “hearing a lot more” about the Shipboard Autonomous Firefighting Robot or SAFFiR. A research program originally launched in 2011, the SAFFiR will be able to withstand temperatures that would wither other robots and will be able to communicate with crew via gestures and voice commands, rapidly create 3D maps of fire damage and will feature what ONR is calling “advanced fire suppression technology suitable for robotic deployment.” The official said to watch for news and announcements during the Naval Future Force Science and Technology Expo, which takes place in Washington during the first week in February. |
| Posted by:Pappy |