I - On Defense Podcast

For review:
1. US President Donald Trump said Friday that he was “not happy” with Iran’s conduct in nuclear negotiations after the sides held a third round of talks in Geneva but that he hadn’t made a decision on whether to authorize a military strike on the Islamic Republic.
2. The United States and Iran made significant progress in talks on Thursday aimed at resolving a longstanding nuclear dispute and averting new US strikes, said mediator Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi.
3. At least nine American refueling tankers arrived at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport overnight as part of the United States’s massive buildup of military forces in the Middle East, according to footage and analysts monitoring open-source flight tracking data.
This week, several American refuelers and cargo planes were spotted at Ben Gurion Airport, and 11 F-22 stealth fighter jets — along with accompanying logistical support planes and aircrews — landed at Ovda Airbase in southern Israel.
There are now at least 14 US refuelers deployed at Ben Gurion Airport.
4. Iran has not allowed the United Nations nuclear agency access to its nuclear facilities bombed by Iran and the United States during a 12-day war in June, according to a confidential report by the watchdog circulated to member states and seen Friday by The Associated Press.
5. The US State Department on Friday authorized non-emergency personnel and the family members of those stationed in Israel to leave the country due to “safety risks,” with US Ambassador Mike Huckabee reportedly telling embassy staff that if they want to leave Israel, they “should do so TODAY.”
6. Britain, France, Germany and Poland on Friday warned against non-vital travel to Israel and the West Bank, joining multiple countries, including the US and China, that have issued warnings against travel to the region amid soaring tensions with Iran.
7. Ukraine has repatriated the bodies of 1,000 fallen soldiers, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War reported on Feb. 26.
The exchange comes as talks between Ukraine and the U.S. continue in Geneva, Switzerland, with preparations underway for a new round of trilateral negotiations with Russia that Washington hopes to broker in the coming weeks.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's adviser, Vladimir Medinsky, said that Russia, in turn, received the bodies of 35 fallen Russian soldiers, Russian state-run media outlet RIA Novosti reported.
8. A drone suspected to be of Russian origin was intercepted by the Swedish Navy some 13 kilometers from France’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier anchored in the port of Malmö, according to Sweden’s chief of defense.

For review:
1. The United States sees evidence that Iran is trying to rebuild its nuclear program after US-led strikes against Iranian nuclear sites in June, US Vice President JD Vance says.
2. US Secretary of State Rubio warns that Iran must negotiate on its missile program, a day after US President Donald Trump alleged Tehran was working on rockets that could hit the United States.
3. Iran’s foreign minister arrived in Geneva ahead of a third round of crucial negotiations with the US, as American envoy Steve Witkoff demanded that any deal over Tehran’s nuclear program remain in effect indefinitely.
4. The Australian government has told dependents of its diplomats in Israel and Lebanon to leave the two Middle East countries, citing a deteriorating security situation in the region, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.
5. In a clear message to the region emphasizing the strength of their alliance, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged on Wednesday to work in lockstep to confront Islamist terrorism, with the Indian leader telling the Knesset in a historic address that his nation stands “firmly” with the Jewish state.
6. A Hezbollah official said Wednesday that the Lebanese terror group will not intervene militarily in the event of “limited” US strikes on its backer Iran, but will consider any attack against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei a “red line.”
7. Israel sent an indirect message to Lebanon that it would strike the country hard, targeting civilian infrastructure, including the airport, in the event that Hezbollah gets involved in any US-Iran war, two senior Lebanese officials said Tuesday.
8. Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council Secretary Rustem Umerov is scheduled to meet with US Envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Geneva on Feb. 26.
9. Ukraine supplementing (replacing) understrength frontline ground units with unmanned systems.

For review:
1. The next round of talks between the United States and Iran will be Thursday in Geneva, Oman’s foreign minister said.
2. American refueler and cargo planes were spotted at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv on Monday, amid a massive US buildup of military forces ahead of a potential attack on Iran.
There was no comment from Israeli authorities regarding the American military deployment at Israel’s main civilian airport.
3. Bulgaria’s Sofia International Airport briefly suspended civilian air operations twice over the weekend while a fleet of American military aircraft staged at the facility, fueling speculation that Washington is positioning forces ahead of a potential strike on Iran.
4. US President Donald Trump hits back amid a series of reports that his top general has been warning him against the consequences of a prolonged military campaign against Iran.
 5. Another round of talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine could be held at end of this week, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff told Ukrainian media on Monday.
"I think at the end of the week, this week," Kyrylo Budanov told reporters when asked about the next round of talks.
6. The Air Force today announced a new agreement with Northrop Grumman to “ramp” production of the in-development B-21 Raider, using $4.5 billion in reconciliation funding to help deliver the bomber by 2027.
7. The US Army briefly published and then removed new official images of its Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW), offering rare updated views of the system as it nears operational fielding.
8. The US Marine Corps has confirmed it will not field the Sig Sauer M7 assault rifle, steering away from a potential adoption in partnership with the US Army.
This decision leaves the service operating its M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle (IAR) due to its proven effectiveness in amphibious deployments.

For review:
1. Iran and the United States continued to slide rapidly toward military conflict at the weekend, as hopes faded for a diplomatic solution. Israel and Iran’s Gulf neighbors now consider a conflict to be more likely than a settlement.
2. The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement that it struck three Hezbollah command centers belonging to the terror group’s missile force in the Baalbek area, in eastern Lebanon’s Beqaa Valley.
3. Officers from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have effectively taken charge of Hezbollah in anticipation of a war with the US and Israel, Saudi outlet Al-Arabiya reported Saturday, as Lebanese officials were said to assail the possibility of their country getting dragged into battle.
The IRGC officers, some of whom recently arrived in Lebanon from Iran, are tasked with rebuilding Hezbollah’s military capabilities.
4. Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said Friday that his terror organization is open to international peacekeeping forces in Gaza, but rejected any interference in the territory’s “internal affairs.”
5. Estonia has started public procurement of 600 modular bunkers as part of a joint push by the Baltic states to secure their border with Russia and Belarus.
6. Germany does not want to pursue nuclear weapons of its own, but is interested in incorporating French and British atomic bombs in a deterrence arrangement reminiscent of NATO’s U.S.-based nuclear umbrella, according to Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
7. France-Germany-Spain FCAS 6th Generation Fighter Dead.
8. Shipbuilder Austal Defence Australia has been selected to build 8 x Landing Craft Heavy (LCH) vessels for the Australian military under an approximately $4 billion Australian dollar ($2.82 billion) contract, the company announced today.

For review:
1. Iran on Thursday repeated its assertion that no country can “deprive” it of its “right” to nuclear enrichment, as US President Donald Trump continued to send US military assets into the Middle East in what a report called the biggest build-up of American air power in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
2. WSJ Report: US President Donald Trump is considering launching preliminary limited strikes on Iran with the aim of forcing the Islamic Republic to agree to his demands for a nuclear deal.
3. US President Donald Trump warned Iran on Thursday that it must reach a deal over its nuclear program or “bad things” will happen, and appeared to set a 10-15 day deadline before the US might take action.
4. Iran tells UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that Tehran will consider bases, facilities and assets of the “hostile force” in the region as legitimate targets if it faces military aggression.
5. Satellite images show that Iran has recently built a concrete shield over a new facility at a sensitive military site and covered it in soil.
In addition, images show that Iran has buried tunnel entrances at a nuclear site bombed by the US during Israel’s 12-day war with Iran last June, fortified tunnel entrances near another, and has repaired missile bases struck in the conflict.
6. Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday issued a sharp threat to Tehran’s leaders, should they fire missiles at Israel.
“We are prepared for any scenario.” “And one thing is certain — if the ayatollahs make a mistake and attack us, they will face a response they can’t even imagine.”
7. A wave of Israeli airstrikes in several areas of southern Lebanon early Thursday morning targeted Hezbollah weapon depots, missile launchers, and other military sites, the Israel Defense Forces said.
8. President Trump Hosts Board of Peace Inaugural Meeting in Washington D.C.