Author: thaobh.leo@gmail.com

The Trump administration, which last year stripped the Space Force of 14 percent of its civilian workers, now wants the service to handle a budget more than twice as large.The service’s 2027 budget request of $71.1 billion—way up from the $31.6 billion allocated in the current fiscal year—includes boosts for new space-based technologies and weapons in line with President Donald Trump’s “space superiority” executive order. The administration official who is temporarily handling the duties of the Pentagon’s chief financial officer conceded that it’s a tall order. “One of the major challenges for this budget is to be able to obligate dollars in…

Global Times By Liu Xin Published: Apr 22, 2026 11:49 AM US President Donald Trump claimed Tuesday that he will extend the ceasefire with Iran, as the current two-week truce is due to expire on Wednesday night. The move was described by The New York Times as striking a “starkly different tone” from his remarks earlier Tuesday, when he threatened military action if Iran did not agree to US demands. A Chinese expert said the US-Iran standoff has long revolved around ceasefire arrangements, creating a broader strategic deadlock, and that future rivalry will likely center on the Strait of Hormuz.…

Bottom lines up front WASHINGTON—As diplomacy between the United States and Iran seesaws between apparent breakthroughs and inevitable setbacks, it is easy to lose sight of the larger stakes for the global economy: If the Strait of Hormuz does not reopen soon, then the world will almost certainly face a major oil supply crisis, forcing painful, sustained reductions in demand. Given the gravity of the situation, global policymakers should prepare themselves and their citizens for a long crisis. Countries have few options, none of them are easy, and some that appear easier in the near term, such as government-provided demand…

Christian Lee would be the best-equipped combatant out there to best Islam Makhachev in a mixed martial arts contest, according to a Canadian champion who previously earned statement wins in ONE Championship. The referenced fighter is James Nakashima, who is currently the Unified MMA lightweight champ after recently winning gold on Canada’s premier regional show. Nakashima has also been training with standout ONE fighters like Christian Lee and Adrian Lee in recent times. When mentioning his time working with ONE Championship royalty and what he has gleaned honing skills with such high-level mixed martial artists, Nakashima said [via Bowks Talking…

Nurol Makina, a leading Turkish manufacturer of tactical wheeled armoured vehicles, and Malaysia-based Nadicorp Holdings Sdn. Bhd. have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at DSA 2026 to expand their strategic cooperation. This new agreement marks a significant milestone in the long-standing partnership between the two companies and establishes a framework for the local production of 4×4 armoured vehicles in Malaysia, as well as their export to regional markets across Asia. Building on a Proven Partnership The partnership between Nurol Makina and Nadicorp has already delivered a tangible and highly visible success. As the first outcome of this collaboration, 20…

In 2013, Army Chief of Staff General Raymond Odierno, Marine Corps Commandant General James Amos, and commander of US Special Operations Command Admiral William McRaven cosigned a document that should have grabbed the attention of the entire American defense establishment. Its central observation was unambiguous: The Pentagon’s concept of competition does not reflect the fundamental reality that “competition and conflict are about people.” A decade later, the Army proposed cutting its special operations forces by up to 20 percent. Congress felt compelled to insert a $20 million provision into the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act simply to make permanent US…

Funding for public-facing taxpayer services would remain untouched, but IRS enforcement would see the deepest cuts under the plan from House Republicans. Michele Sandiford April 22, 2026 8:31 am < a min read House Republicans are proposing a billion-dollar cut to IRS funding next year. A fiscal 2027 spending bill introduced by members of the House Appropriations Committee would give the IRS a $10.2 billion budget next year. The Trump administration proposed more severe IRS cuts in its budget proposal, closer to a $1.5 billion cut. Funding for public-facing taxpayer services would remain untouched, but IRS enforcement would see the…

UFC CEO Dana White has been accused of being checked out of the MMA game by a lot of people, but we never expected Darren Till to say it best.Till was once one of the UFC’s biggest U.K. stars and the promotion gave him a solid push between 2017 and 2020. “The Gorilla” would leave the promotion on a 1-5 skid, asking for and getting his release to heal up and compete in boxing. It’s been an up-and-down experience for Till out in the strange world of influencer boxing, but he now seems settled with BKFC.In a new interview with…

Let me start this one out by prefacing that these are my first impressions of the game, and not a review. That’s set to arrive a couple of days before the game releases. That being said, don’t be surprised that I’m not going to go very much in-depth into my talking points, and I’m just going to do an overview on how I feel about Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era, now that I have a couple of games under my belt, and as I’m preparing to dish out my final judgement when the game finally comes out, on…

During Sea Air Space 2026, LIG Defense & Aerospace (formerly known as LIG Nex1) showcased a variety of guided rockets targeted towards potential U.S. Navy usage, including their 70mm, 130mm, and 140mm guided rockets to be utilized on multiple platforms. LIG’s Poniard 70mm guided rockets headlined the roster of rockets eyed by the U.S. Navy. Poniard’s prominence in the lineup of cheap effectors is due to the prior testing conducted with the U.S. Navy, with Foreign Comparitive Testing (FCT) carried out from 2019 until 2024. Throughout this testing, Poniard achieved a 100% accuracy against fast attack craft, becoming the first…