Top 5     US Coast Guard helicopter crashes in Alaska with four onboard (Military Times) A U.S. Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter carrying four members crashed during a training flight Monday in Sitka, Alaska, the service announced.       The Strait of Hormuz’s future is unsettled even as more ships venture through (The Associated Press) Ship traffic has picked up in the Strait of Hormuz since Iran and the U.S. signed an interim deal to end a war that constricted global oil supplies and fueled inflation, but questions surrounding control of the vital waterway and whether vessels will be charged tolls to cross it could interfere with negotiations to forge a lasting peace.       House to vote on landmark bill that boosts DOD and VA benefits for some while cutting others (Military Times) The U.S. House will consider legislation this week that would give medically retired veterans both full military retirement pay and Veterans Affairs disability compensation, as well as allow surviving spouses to retain military benefits if they remarry before age 55.       The unlikely role of Operation Epic Fury in a Mississippi AI data center lawsuit (Military Times) A Defense Department official disclosed that U.S. forces used Elon Musk’s Grok AI tool to help deploy “over 2,000 munitions to 2,000 distinct targets” during the first four days of combat operations in Iran.       Flu outbreak sickens 200 trainees at Lackland Air Force Base (Military Times) More than 200 service members at a Texas base have contracted the flu following a new Pentagon policy that allows flu vaccinations to be optional.   US Strikes in Caribbean and Eastern Pacific     A list of US military strikes against alleged drug-carrying vessels (Military Times) Since early September 2025, the U.S. military has conducted strikes against alleged drug-carrying vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean in support of what the Pentagon has called continued counternarcotics efforts.   Operation Timeline     The human impact of policy changes at the DOD and VA (The War Horse) An ongoing timeline of the Trump administration’s actions focusing on the military and veterans.   Congress & Politics     Trump summons munitions makers as worries grow over low US stockpiles (The Wall Street Journal) Defense CEOs are planning to expand production but await congressional funding President Trump has summoned senior Pentagon officials and the top military contractors to the White House on Wednesday to discuss ramping up munitions production amid concerns about the supply of U.S. missiles.       Vance says UN nuclear inspectors will return to Iran as US suspends sanctions (France 24) The United States temporarily eased sanctions on Iranian oil on Monday after Vice President J.D. Vance said Tehran had agreed to allow U.N. nuclear inspectors back into the country, marking a significant step in renewed negotiations aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear program and stabilizing the Strait of Hormuz.       White House expected to direct intelligence agencies to protect quantum research from foreign threats (Nextgov) A pending executive order expected this week will task the FBI and intelligence community with better protecting the nation’s quantum research from foreign spying, according to four people familiar with the matter.   Army     US Army tests autonomous boats during Philippine exercise (Military Times) Autonomous boats helped escort a U.S. Army vessel during a recent military exercise, the Army said, in a demonstration of how uncrewed assets are changing maritime operations.   Marine Corps     US Marines in Okinawa receive first MADIS, NMESIS platforms (Military Times) U.S. Marines in Okinawa this month formally received the installation’s first Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System and Marine Air Defense Integrated System, the service announced. The delivery is the service’s latest integration of modernized defenses in the increasingly contested Indo-Pacific.   Space Force     Space Force to test new mess dress uniform this fall (Task & Purpose) A Space Force general donned a new mess dress that the service is testing for wear this fall, an official confirmed to Task & Purpose.       Space Force mission goes from orders to launch in less than 17 hours (Air & Space Forces Magazine) The Space Force started its second live Tactically Responsive Space mission June 19, working with a contractor to launch a satellite to low-Earth orbit in less than 17 hours. That spacecraft will now conduct a series of maneuver demonstrations with another vehicle.   Veterans     VA chief vows to fire employee accused of abusing Marine veteran at state facility (Task & Purpose) Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins has announced that the agency will fire an employee who is accused of abusing a Marine veteran at a state-run veterans home in New York, where he also worked.   Defense Industry     Ukraine launches ‘TrophyLab’ platform to share captured Russian weapons with allies (Defense News) Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense launched an access-controlled online platform last week that provides allied governments, defense companies and research institutions with technical intelligence drawn from captured Russian military hardware ? a formalization of what Kyiv has long done informally with select partners.   Israel-Gaza-Lebanon-Syria     Israel holds to Lebanon truce, with troops kept on defense (The New York Times) Israel and Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group, appeared to maintain a tense cease-fire for a second day. Israel’s military has new orders that restrict troops to defensive actions.   Ukraine     Kyiv’s drone leverage moved the US. Moscow could be next, a top Ukrainian official says. (Defense News) U.S. President Donald Trump told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Group of Seven summit in France that he would consider letting Ukraine build its own Patriot interceptor missiles, the first time Washington has signaled openness to a request Kyiv has made since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022.       Ukraine says it hit missile electronics plant in western Russia (Al Jazeera English) Ukraine says facility a 'critical component' in defence production as local Russian authorities confirm attack.   International     US strike on alleged drug boat kills 2, leaves 6 survivors, in the Caribbean (CBS News) The U.S. military has conducted another strike against a boat accused of smuggling drugs in the Caribbean, killing two and leaving six survivors, the U.S. Southern Command said.       US carries out days of airstrikes in Somalia after a month’s pause (Task & Purpose) After more than a month without conducting airstrikes in Somalia, the U.S. military quickly ramped up its actions in the country this past week. U.S. forces carried out four strikes in support of Somali, all targeting al-Shabab militants in the country.       US gives Philippines underwater vehicles as China feud persists (Bloomberg) The U.S. said it provided four underwater vehicles to the Philippine military, as Washington boosts its longtime ally’s capability to counter Beijing’s actions in the South China Sea.       Anger mounts as Sudan's army takes in Darfur paramilitary defectors (Reuters ) Last month, Ali Rizkallah, a commander in the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group, was welcomed to Sudan’s capital ?Khartoum and given a uniform and a rank in the armed forces he had spent about three years fighting.   Military Culture & History     Visa battle for mother of Cape Verde footballer puts spotlight on nation and its military heritage (Military Times) The battle over a visa for the mother of a revered soccer goalie has put a spotlight on the archipelago of Cape Verde, whose residents have a storied legacy of service in the U.S. military, including one sailor who some researchers consider to be the first African-born recipient of the Medal of Honor.   Commentary & Analysis     Can China’s latest air-to-air missile take on its US equivalent? Definitely maybe, experts say. (Military Times) China’s newest air-to-air missile, the PL-16, could vie with an equivalent advance by the U.S. military and give the People’s Liberation Army an edge in any Asia-Pacific conflicts because of its increased travel distance and a second-wind feature, experts say.       When a cease-fire is really a stalemate (Foreign Affairs Magazine) A stalemate is the least admired of diplomatic outcomes. It resolves nothing, satisfies no one, and is counted as a victory only by the weaker party, for whom survival is achievement enough. But this is the condition into which the war between Iran and the United States has settled and, after 107 days of hostilities, the one both sides have finally made formal. On June 17, Tehran and Washington signed a deal that reopens the Strait of Hormuz and ends the American naval blockade while doing nothing to address the two countries’ underlying disputes. The deal offers Tehran genuine relief: Washington will immediately waive sanctions on Iranian oil, begin releasing frozen Iranian funds, and commit to a reconstruction package worth at least $300 billion. But every hard question about Iran’s nuclear program, its missile program, and its network of proxies has been punted to an undetermined point in the future.       US couldn’t repair battle-damaged ships in war with China, study finds (Military Times) Battle-damaged U.S. warships could not be quickly repaired and returned to combat during a war with China, according to a new report.       If Iran accepts new inspections, can the US even make them work? (Defense One) A new U.S.-Iran peace plan can work only if the United States can overcome three difficult challenges, experts said: the Iranians must agree to tighter international inspections, the inspecting agency must fix its budget crisis, and the White House must heed nuclear experts over real-estate developers with ties to President Trump.       Too big to break again: India, Italy, and the defense partnership that almost wasn’t (War on the Rocks) A single bribe nearly ruined a defense partnership most people didn’t know even existed. It took India and Italy almost a decade to recover. The story of how that rupture happened — and what it exposed about Italy’s quiet but deep role in India’s military — is essential to understanding why both countries now treat their renewed ties as something too valuable to lose again.       Ecuador bets on drones to beat the cartels — at what cost? (Small Wars Journal) Ecuador’s pivot to drone warfare against narco-trafficking networks illustrates both the promise and peril of technology-driven counterinsurgency, writes The Telegraph’s Gemma Brown in “How Ecuador’s ‘cocaine superhighway’ is being dismantled with drones. ” With roughly 70 per cent of global cocaine flows transiting the country, President Noboa’s “internal armed conflict” declaration , which is backed by $19m in US funding (including $6m earmarked for drones), reflects how state forces are leaning on unmanned systems to offset risk to personnel while scaling surveillance across ungoverned spaces.