Top 5     US Senate joins House in voting to halt Iran war (Military Times) The U.S. Senate backed legislation on Tuesday directing President Donald Trump to halt U.S. military action against Iran, the latest rebuke of the Republican president from an increasingly restive Congress.       Another top general is out at the Pentagon (The Atlantic) General Chris “C. D.” Donahue was the last U.S. soldier to leave Afghanistan during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal. As the head of Army forces in Europe and Africa, he has helped bolster Ukraine in its fight to repel the Russian invasion. Now Donahue has become the latest casualty in Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s purge of the military’s senior ranks.       A third of military families report $500 or less in emergency savings (Task & Purpose) More than a third of military families reported having less than $500 in emergency savings, or none at all, according to the results of a 2025 survey released this week.       Just one in four Americans believes the Iran war was worth its costs (Reuters) Just one in four Americans believes President Donald Trump’s war with Iran was worth its costs and a majority worry that a truce with Tehran is unlikely to last, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.       Nearly 5 million veterans have used magic mushrooms, LSD or MDMA, study finds (Military Times) An estimated 4.8 million U.S. veterans have used psychedelic drugs, but many are hesitant about discussing that use with their Department of Veterans Affairs providers for fear of jeopardizing their VA benefits, according to a new RAND study.   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     Senate NDAA adds protections for 'political speech' by military retirees amid Hegseth-Kelly battle (The Hill) The Senate’s defense authorization bill includes language that would better protect retired service members who speak out against the government in the midst of a battle between Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the lawmaker’s criticism of the Trump administration. The provision — included in the Senate Armed Service Committee’s version...   Army     US Army tests fire control software that helps moving vehicles kill drones (Military Times) The U.S. Army has successfully tested software designed to help vehicle-mounted weapons shoot down drones while both the target and the vehicle are moving, Picatinny Arsenal announced Tuesday.       Army aims to sync two divisions using next-gen C2 by year’s end (Defense One) Two Army infantry divisions will soon run the same next-gen command-and-control system, if all goes as planned, bringing the service one step closer to digitally sharing key battle data.       US Army expands unit stability program for junior officers (Military Times) The U.S. Army is expanding a pilot program that gives some high-performing officers the option to spend more years with a unit, the service announced this month, offering junior leaders stability and predictability not typically associated with military career progression.   Marine Corps     Marines expand use of Maven with new AI operational reporting tool (Military Times) The Marine Corps will shift to a new AI-enabled reporting platform next month, replacing its manual process for Situational Reports, or SITREPs, and after-action reviews with a system designed to provide commanders with near real-time operational updates.   AIr Force     Air Force selects new technical sergeants with highest promotion rate since 2021 (Military Times) The U.S. Air Force announced the promotion of more than 6,500 staff sergeants to technical sergeant in the 2026 promotion cycle, a boost in the past five years’ selection rate.   Space Force     Top Space Force official wears new mess dress uniform ahead of its formal wear testing (Military Times) The Space Force’s top-ranked uniformed officer sported the service’s new mess dress uniform ahead of its formal wear testing this fall.   Veterans     VA needs to do more to care for menopausal patients, watchdog says (Military Times) The Veterans Health Administration is developing clinical practice guidelines for physicians to treat symptoms of menopause, but more than half of female patients aren’t aware of resources available at the VA on the subject, a government analysis has found.       VA inventory report reveals 367 AI systems operating in healthcare, benefits and services (Military Times) The Department of Veterans Affairs has disclosed 367 artificial intelligence use cases operating across the agency, including 215 classified as high-impact systems supporting healthcare, benefits processing, records management, communications and internal operations.   Cyber, Space & Unmanned     Frustrating Israel, fiber-optic killer drone technology has arrived in southern Lebanon (Defense News) Fiber-optic First Person View drones operated by the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah have changed the battlefield in southern Lebanon, inflicting losses and causing damage to Israeli forces occupying parts of the area.   Defense Industry     Boeing wins $2 billion Space Force contract for communications satellites (Space News) Boeing won a contract worth up to $2 billion to build two next-generation military communications satellites for the U.S. Space Force, prevailing over Lockheed Martin.       India’s three new naval ships boost maritime firepower (Defense News) India has commissioned three domestically built naval vessels—a multi-role stealth frigate, an anti-submarine warfare platform, and a survey ship—as it accelerates both its naval modernization efforts and its push to design and build advanced naval platforms indigenously.       Leonardo, Baykar tout in-flight control of Kizilelma drone from a M-346 jet trainer (Defense News) An Italian M-346 jet trainer has controlled a Baykar Kizilelma drone in flight during a loyal wingman trial in Turkey.       Army will ‘open up’ ranges for defense vendors to speed up testing, with some sites mimicking Ukrainian frontlines (DefenseScoop) With vendors facing lengthy wait times to test new technology, the Army plans to increase industry access to its domestic ranges over the next several weeks, according to senior service officials, who said that at least two of those sites will mimic Ukrainian frontlines.       NATO and Ukraine turning to private sector to help crater Russian airfields (The War Zone) One of Russia’s biggest advantages in the war against Ukraine is its ability to launch tactical airstrikes from bases largely out of reach of kinetic responses. While we have frequently reported about Ukrainian attacks on these bases, they aren’t sustained enough to stop Russia from generating devastating sorties.   Israel-Gaza-Lebanon-Syria     Israeli troops kill two in south Lebanon after lull in fighting, authorities say (BBC News) Israel's military says the two men were Hezbollah operatives, but the Iran-backed group accuses it of a ceasefire violation.   Ukraine     Volodymyr Zelenskyy to skip postwar conference amid tensions with Poland (The Guardian) Ukraine’s president will not attend after sparking Polish ‘outrage’ over naming of military unit   Military Culture & History     Gunfight at the Veracruz Custom House led to six Medal of Honor recipients (Military Times) On April 9, 1914, amid the chaos of Mexico’s revolutionary conflicts, nine U.S. Navy seamen had been detained by the dictatorship of Gen. Victoriano Huerta. Although they were released on April 21, the United States learned that the steamship Ypiranga had entered the port of Veracruz with a cargo of German weaponry. In response, the U.S. Navy confiscated Ypiranga and landed an occupation force in Vera Cruz. Although the Americans hoped to avoid bloodshed, the city’s commander, Gen. Gustavo Maass had orders to resist foreign occupation. Consequently, the parties that came ashore on April 21 found themselves in an escalating urban battle.   Video     Celebrating America's 250-year legacy of service, sacrifice and strength (Defense News) For 250 years, America has been shaped by ordinary people willing to do extraordinary things. This tribute honors the service, sacrifice, innovation and resilience that continue to carry the nation forward.       Four service members safe after Coast Guard helicopter crash in Alaska (Defense News) Crew members suffered "non-serious" injuries in the crash of an MH-60 Jayhawk, the service said.       Check out a test-fire of MBDA's Dragonfire laser system taking down a drone. (Defense News) Watch now.   Commentary & Analysis     The deal that should not have Happened (The Cipher Brief) The announcement of a ceasefire between the United States and Iran surprised many observers. The underlying conditions appeared unfavorable to an agreement—and yet a deal emerged. For months, analysts pointed to profound disagreements over Iran's nuclear program, regional influence, sanctions, and ongoing military activity as reasons why the space for agreement was extremely narrow. Now that an MOU is in place, the immediate temptation is to ask whether it will hold—and perhaps it will not—but a more interesting question may be why it happened at all.       Adapting to uncertainty in the Strait of Hormuz (War on the Rocks) Iran’s threats to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — in response to the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran that began on Feb. 28 — effectively closed the strait, sending economic shockwaves around the world. As part of negotiations between Tehran and Washington, Iran has eased restrictions, and shipping traffic has picked up in recent days — albeit well below pre-war levels.Whatever the outcome of negotiations, Iran has clearly demonstrated its ability to shut down the strait. It could happen again. That reality significantly increases incentives for many countries to reduce their reliance on the strait. We asked five       From bombing Iran to negotiating: Trump explains his red line (The Cipher Brief) “I had to stop them [the Iranians] because if they had a nuclear weapon, they would use it. And you want to see bedlam, let them blow up a couple of cities someplace, like they would've blown up Israel. If it weren't for me, Israel would not exist today, because I terminated the Barack Hussein Obama deal, the JCPOA (the 2015 international agreement limiting Iran’s nuclear program), which was a road to a nuclear weapon. They [the Iranians] would've had it five years ago. They would've used it within the first week, in my opinion. And Israel would no longer be with us. Israel would've been gone years ago had I not done that.”       ‘No one wants to talk about Iran’: White House hopes to pivot back to economy (Politico) Inside the White House, the plan is to move on from the war in Iran and focus on the domestic issues that polls show matter most to voters. It’s proving hard to do.       What Iran wants and how it can still fight (The Cipher Brief) U.S. Vice President JD Vance is touting success out of the latest round of talks in Switzerland focused on seeking a permanent end to the war in Iran. But despite his description of a “very, very good day” of negotiations on Sunday, Iran is denying that it has made any new agreements. It’s more of the same inconsistent messaging the world has become accustomed to over the past three months since the U.S. and Israel launched attacks intended to eliminate Iran’s nuclear program.       Space Force must prepare for all-out warfare, think tank says (Defense One) The Space Force needs to better define its policies regarding conflict in space and better rehearse for various scenarios, a new research paper argues.       Cuba’s new spy array raises concerns for US security (The Cipher Brief) On 18 June, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) researchers released a new study that says Cuba has completed construction of a major signals intelligence antenna array at its Bejucal facility near Havana. CSIS says that based on commercial imagery and open source information, this new construction significantly enhances Cuba’s ability to monitor and locate radio transmissions across a large portion of the Western Hemisphere. This is a specialized listening system designed to intercept radio transmissions and pinpoint their geographic origin with high precision. Construction on the antenna field appears complete, and the CSIS team assesses the facility has very likely begun operations.