Overnight Defense — Presented by Raytheon — Trump takes tough line on Iran at UN | Boasts about record spark laughter | Pentagon in 5G race with China | GOP chair urges Trump to keep Mattis

Happy Tuesday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I’m Ellen Mitchell, and here’s your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.

 

THE TOPLINE: President Trump on Tuesday took aim at Iran in a defiant address to the United Nations, calling on world leaders to join the U.S. in isolating Tehran over its “aggression.” 

Trump used a large portion of his address to tout his administration’s plans to launch a “campaign of economic pressure” aimed at starving Iran of money it would use “to advance its bloody agenda” in the Middle East and beyond. 

The president noted his decision to withdraw the U.S. from the Obama-era nuclear agreement between Iran and other world powers and stressed that many sanctions would be reimposed on Iran in early November. 

“We ask all nations to isolate Iran’s regime as long as its aggression continues,” he told the U.N. General Assembly in New York City.

Trump’s complaints: The president rattled off a laundry list of complaints against the “corrupt dictatorship” running Iran, saying it poses a threat to Israel and is helping to destabilize Syria and Yemen, which are both plagued by civil war.

“We cannot allow the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism to possess the world’s deadliest weapons,” he said. 

The broadside against Iran was emblematic of Trump’s willingness to go it alone on the world stage to advance what he sees as U.S. interests, a central theme of his speech to the general assembly. 

But other countries aren’t so convinced: Trump’s decision to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal was unpopular with European allies.

That showed during Trump’s speech, with signs from allies that his approach has worn thin among world leaders. 

Members in the audience laughed when Trump boasted of the “extraordinary progress” during his presidency, during which he said he said he “accomplished more than almost any administration in the history of our country.”

Trump paused then responded, “I didn’t expect that reaction, but that’s OK.”

Many of Trump’s comments were met with silence or scorn. Members of the German delegation smiled and laughed when Trump suggested their nation would become hostage to Russia over an agreement to build an oil pipeline between the two nations.  

 

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And Iran hits back: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Tuesday said that the U.S. is exuding a “Nazi disposition” under Trump.

“It is unfortunate,” Rouhani said while speaking at the United Nations General Assembly in New York. “We are witnessing rulers in the world ride public sentiments and gain popular support through the fomenting of extremist nationalism and racism and through xenophobic tendencies resembling a Nazi disposition, as well as through the trampling of global rules and undermining international institutions.”

Rouhani did not directly refer to Trump in the Nazi comments, but he did note the U.S. sanctions on his country and referred to them as “economic terrorism,” making it clear that he was targeting the U.S. president’s rhetoric. 

Coming up at the UN General Assembly: Trump is still due to chair a meeting of the Security Council on Wednesday. The meeting is officially labeled as dealing with the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction, but Trump said Friday on Twitter that the meeting is “on Iran.”

At Monday’s press conference, Pompeo said topics Wednesday will also include Syria and North Korea.

More stories from the assembly:

— Iran: US sanctions are ‘economic terrorism’

— Bolton to warn Iranian regime of ‘hell to pay’

— UN chief warns ‘multilateralism is under fire’

— Trump: Venezuela is ‘one of the truly bad places in the world today’

— Trump praises Kim Jong Un‘s ‘courage’ in UN address

— President strikes softer tone on North Korea at United Nations

 

PENTAGON FEARS LOSING RACE FOR 5G TO CHINA: The next generation of wireless internet could be a boon for the U.S. military, but also comes with national security concerns about China‘s role in the market.

Industry leaders have promised 5G, or fifth generation, wireless networks will bring lightning-fast speeds to support futuristic new technologies.

For the military, that could mean better communications and support for tactical operations around the world.

For the Pentagon that means the U.S is in a race with China for dominance in 5G, with the foreign power appearing to be ahead. Experts warn that could pose national security risks here as China increases its wireless market share globally and as other companies rely on Chinese products to build out networks.

5G a priority under Trump administration: The Trump administration singled 5G out as a priority in its National Security Strategy.

The strategy, released in late 2017, names “deploying a secure 5G Internet capability nationwide” as one of the infrastructure improvements that will “increase national competitiveness, benefit the environment and improve our quality of life.”

In January, Axios published a leaked document showing the National Security Council considered a proposal to pay for and build a national 5G network, citing threats from China.

There is little sign the administration plans to move forward with a nationalized 5G network. But the document’s existence underscored the administration’s view of 5G as a national security issue.

What’s happened recently and the concerns: National security concerns reared their head again when Trump intervened in March to stop Broadcom’s attempted hostile takeover of the San Diego–based chipmaker Qualcomm. Again, Trump cited concerns about China.

While Broadcom was based in Singapore at the time, the administration argued the takeover could allow China to further overtake the United States by hindering Qualcomm’s investments in developing 5G technology.

The two main concerns about 5G and national security stem from the fact that of the four main companies whose supply equipment that will be necessary to build 5G infrastructure, two are Chinese: ZTE and Huawei.

Having that equipment in U.S. devices could facilitate Chinese espionage. The second concern is that China may be able to shut off U.S. networks in the event of a conflict.

 

GENERAL DEFENDS SUSPENDING EXERCISES IN SOUTH KOREA: The general nominated to take command of U.S. forces in South Korea said Tuesday that suspending military exercises on the peninsula was a “prudent risk” despite resulting in a “slight degradation” of readiness.

“The suspension of the exercise this past August and September I would say was prudent risk if we’re willing to make the effort to change the relationship with” North Korea, Gen. Robert Abrams said during his Senate confirmation hearing. “Something has to adjust, in my view, to be able to start to build trust and confidence as we move forward in the relationship.”

“I think that there was certainly degradation to the readiness of the force for the combined forces,” he added. “That’s a key exercise to maintain continuity and to continue to practice our interoperability, and so there was a slight degradation.”

But he remained optimistic: Abrams, who made the remarks before the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he has “great confidence” that the current commander, Gen. Vincent Brooks, has implemented “a mitigation plan to be able to sustain that until the next series of exercises are planned.”

The Senate committee is considering Abrams’s nomination to become the next commander of U.S. Forces Korea, South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command and United Nations Command. If confirmed, Abrams would take control of U.S. and allied forces on the Korean Peninsula at a time of delicate diplomacy between the United States and North Korea.

The background: After his first summit with Kim in June, Trump announced that he was suspending joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises, deriding them as provocative war games that are too expensive.

The announcement caught the Pentagon and U.S. allies by surprise, particularly the fact that Trump’s rhetoric echoed North Korea’s description of the exercises.

Still, the Pentagon later announced that it was canceling the summer Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercise and two Korean Marine Exchange Program exercises.

 

ARMED SERVICES CHIEF URGES TRUMP TO KEEP MATTIS ‘AS LONG AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN’: The top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee is urging Trump not to replace Defense Secretary James Mattis.

“The president does not ask my advice. If he were to ask my advice, I’d say keep Secretary Mattis there as long as you possibly can,” committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) told reporters.

“I think he’s been –– is –– a great secretary of Defense, who has tremendous credibility on Capitol Hill, around the world. I think he’s done a really great job, and I would do everything I could to keep him there as long as possible.”

What caused the comment: Reports have bubbled up in recent weeks that Trump is looking at replacing Mattis after the November midterm elections. Mattis has dismissed such reports about his possible departure.

“I wouldn’t take it seriously at all,” Mattis told reporters last week, adding that people should “keep a sense of humor about it.”

Mattis and Trump have differed on a number of issues, including whether to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, suspend military exercises in South Korea and ban transgender troops.

  

ON TAP FOR TOMORROW

Reps. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) and Ted Yoho (R-Fla.) will speak on bipartisan efforts to strengthen U.S. foreign assistance tools at the Center for Strategic and International Studies at 8:30 a.m. in Washington, D.C.

The full House Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing on the impact of national defense on the economy, diplomacy, and international order at 10 a.m. in Rayburn House Office Building, room 2141. 

A House Oversight subcommittee will hold a hearing on countering China: 
“Ensuring America Remains the World Leader in Advanced Technologies and Innovation,” at 10 a.m. in Rayburn 2247. 

Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson will speak at the National Press Club at 12:30 p.m. in Washington, D.C. 

A House Foreign Affairs subcommittee will hear from outside experts on countering Iranian proxies in Iraq at 2 p.m. at Rayburn 2200. 

A Senate Armed Services subcommittee will hold a hearing on cyber operational readiness of the Defense Department at 2:30 p.m. at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, room 106. 

A House Armed Services subcommittee will hear from defense officials on the U.S. strategy in Syria at 3:30 p.m. in Rayburn 2123. 

 

ICYMI

— The Hill: China warns against US fighter jet parts sale to Taiwan

— The Hill: China blocks US Navy ship’s port visit to Hong Kong: report

— The Hill: Trump to award Medal of Honor to retired Marine for service in Vietnam

— The Hill: Civilian deaths in Yemen up by 164 percent: report

— The Hill: Admiral defends record after coming under investigation in ‘Fat Leonard’ scandal

— The Hill: Coast Guard transferring two armed cutters to Ukraine

— The Hill: Opinion: Trump doctrine just declared at UN — and it’s called ‘maximum pressure’

— Defense News: Lead lawmakers urge DoD to halt new payment rule