Tag: military industrial complex

U.S. Approves Mexico’s $1.08 Billion Request for Helicopters, Equipment

The U.S. Department of State announced approval for the sale of 11 helicopters, high-tech equipment, and weapons to the Government of Mexico to strengthen its security operations.

State Department officials said Sikorsky, part of Lockheed Martin, would handle the sale.

The sale will include 11 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, 27 engines, 27 GPS Systems, and 27 radios. The helicopters would come outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment, including night vision, machine guns, and laser targeting systems.

The sale also includes training for Mexican soldiers and would require 15 U.S. officials or contractors to travel to Mexico for extended periods to provide training and support for the helicopters.

U.S. officials said the sale is meant to modernize Mexico’s helicopter fleet and strengthen relations and cooperation on security matters.

The move comes at a time when Mexico has been the topic of much criticism by the Trump administration and Republican legislators for its refusal to fully work with the United States to eradicate drug cartels and to also go after cartel-connected politicians.

As Breitbart Texas reported, Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum has been outspoken about not allowing U.S. troops or agents to operate inside her country, citing national sovereignty.

Most other countries in Latin America have joined an international anti-cartel effort called Shield of the Americas, where they have granted the U.S. full cooperation that includes shared intelligence, drone strikes, and joint operations with U.S. troops. The United States is also expected to train military and police partners in Latin America.

Mexico, by contrast, has limited international cooperation, limited to intelligence sharing while Mexican authorities carry out the actual operations. In one of the most famous controversies, Mexico’s federal government is currently prosecuting former Chihuahua Attorney General Cesar Jauregui for having run joint operations with agents from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency where they found and dismantled some of the largest drug labs in recent history, Breitbart Texas reported.

Sheinbaum and her government have also drawn heavy criticism for refusing to arrest and extradite Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha Moya. As Breitbart Texas reported, Rocha Moya is wanted by the U.S. Department of Justice on a criminal indictment accusing him of drug trafficking conspiracy and weapons charges for allegedly working for the Sinaloa Cartel.

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U.S. Strikes Iran’s Air Defenses as Tehran Seeks Russian Weapons

U.S. forces struck Iranian air defense systems early on Nov. 7, hours after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed it had shot down another American drone over Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. President Donald Trump told reporters Saturday that the strikes were “minor” and that U.S. forces knocked out an Iranian anti-aircraft device “in about 15 minutes, maybe five.” Washington has not confirmed the loss of any drone.

Trump also said talks through mediators were continuing. “We are talking to Iran. We have been,” he said.

According to Iranian state media, Iran is doing well in the war. However, no outside source has confirmed the IRGC’s claims of drone shootdowns and tanker damage. The IRGC said it shot down MQ-1 drones over Qeshm on Nov. 4 and Nov. 6, counting them as its 15th and 16th of the war. It also claimed to have downed an MQ-9 Reaper over the Strait on Nov. 4. As of that date, it put its combined total at 68 MQ-1 and MQ-9 drones since the war began.

The IRGC also said naval mines destroyed four tankers on Nov. 4 along a route it had declared prohibited, that it had seized two vessels, and that two more tankers struck mines on Nov. 6. CBS News reported “no confirmation of any of these incidents from maritime officials.” U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which says U.S. forces cleared the main shipping lanes of mines, has called earlier IRGC mine claims “FALSE”.

On Nov. 5, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) center, which reports attacks on commercial shipping, said a tanker had been hit by two unidentified projectiles about 50 nautical miles north of Madinat ash Shamal, Qatar.

The United States is enforcing a naval blockade of Iranian ports and oil terminals with more than 10,000 personnel. CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper said on Oct. 30 that Iran had exported no oil since the blockade was reimposed in mid-July and that IRGC naval forces were absent from the Strait. “I didn’t see the IRGC out there, at all,” he said. “Iran’s navy is all at the bottom of the sea.”

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Trump to cut off $4 billion in foreign aid to Israel by year’s end, convert to weapons sales

resident Donald Trump on Tuesday said that the U.S. would stop sending military aid to Israel by the end of the year.

Trump told “Fox & Friends” that Israel is in a position to purchase its own weapons and doesn’t need the U.S. to fund them.

The U.S. provides $4 billion per year in military aid, Trump said, and he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had discussed terminating the funding for years. He said that the idea originated with Netanyahu.

“They don’t need it. Israel is a very thriving country,” Trump said.

The U.S. provides approximately $3.8 billion annually through 2028 under the current U.S.-Israel security assistance agreement.

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Who is Making Billions from the Iran War?

At a campaign rally over the weekend, President Trump dismissed Americans’ concerns over high oil and gas prices, claiming that it’s a small price to pay for the hundreds of billions of dollars “we” are making from these higher prices.

“We’re making a fortune,” he said. “Hundreds of billions of dollars. Trillions of dollars.”

People are paying a little bit more for gas, he explained, but it doesn’t matter because “we” are making so much money.

The question is, “Who is ‘we’?” We know it is not the American people. They are seeing wage stagnation, inflation, and more pain at the pump. An Economist/YouGov poll earlier this month found that inflation and prices are the top concern among Americans by a wide margin. And in second place were jobs and the economy.

The same poll asked Americans how they rate the state of the US economy and in first place – again by a long shot – was “poor.”

If “we” as in the American people were making hundreds of billions of dollars from the war, you would think these would not be their top two concerns.

But we understand what the President meant by “we.” He meant that part of the “private” sector directly or indirectly in bed with the government war machine. From oil companies to weapons manufacturers and everything in between, war and conflict drive up profits in well-connected corporations at the expense of the rest of us.

That is why we are in a constant state of war. Twenty years in Afghanistan and a similar length in Iraq. Endless bombing in places like Somalia. A twelve-year (and counting) proxy war with Russia in Ukraine. Military bases and covert operations across the globe.

And if we find that the largest military budget in the world does not deliver enough actual weapons to win a war? Well, that’s all good too: just double military spending and accuse anyone who objects of not being patriotic!

“Private” companies with enormous political power – many of them revolving doors between government and business – “make so much money” on war, as Trump would say. Whether these wars produce US wins, loses, or stalemates, these corporations in bed with government always win. The money-printing machine makes sure the money cycles into government-favored companies, while campaign contributions are made to the politicians who support the wars.

And if you don’t support the wars? You get the Thomas Massie treatment.

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Inside the U.S. Army’s $2.2B plan to build microreactors at five bases

The U.S. Army recently announced plans to add nuclear microreactors at five military bases from New York to Texas as a reliable energy source independent of the commercial electric grid.

The decision comes as the Trump administration pushes hard to develop the next generation of nuclear power, including issuing billions in loans for large nuclear reactors to meet skyrocketing power demand from data centers and a pilot program to boost advanced reactor designs and projects for military and civilian use. No nuclear microreactors are supplying power to the commercial electric grid in the United States today.

Five companies selected by the Army will be awarded up to $2.2 billion over five years to own, construct, and operate the microreactors, provided they meet set performance milestones along the way. The Army expects that more than 20 nuclear microreactors will be built and operated.

Army and industry officials say microreactors offer a resilient power source for critical infrastructure at military installations in case the grid fails. Reactors can run for years without refueling.

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Disarming The Pencil Pushers? Administrative Agencies Begin To Cut Spending On Guns, Ammo

One would expect federal law enforcement agencies like the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Secret Service, Customs and Border Protection and Drug Enforcement Administration to have guns to carry out their daily responsibilities.

But what about the administrative agencies like the Internal Revenue Service, Social Security Administration and Small Business Administration?

These and dozens more pencil-pushing federal agencies have spent millions on guns, ammunition and other military-style equipment. Open the Books has documented those staggering figures spent on weapons arsenals over the years, most recently updating them in 2023.

Since then, combined spending at all non-DOD federal agencies did increase again. But hidden behind an understandable growth in spending at the Department of Homeland Security are signs of a drawdown at many non-military agencies.

Topline Figures

Open the Books looked at almost 70 federal offices that bought such equipment between FY 2024 and FY 2026, and found $1.4 billion spent.

Trump’s first fiscal year, FY 2026, saw $531 million in spending on guns, ammunition and other military-style equipment.

NOTE: While a fiscal year is Oct. 1 – Sept. 30, reported spending for FY 2026 is currently only available through August 2026. End of year use-it-or-lose-it spending in September, the final month of the fiscal year, makes up a large portion of some agencies’ spending. To compare dollars-to-dollars in the previous fiscal years of 2024 and 2025, we used a comparable time period of Oct. 1 through Aug. 31.

In the comparable time period in FY 2024, Biden’s final full year, agencies spent $228 million on guns, ammunition and other military-style equipment.

In the comparable time period in FY 2025, which includes the end of Biden’s term and beginning of Trump’s second term, agencies spent $278 million.

Homeland Security Drives Spending Increase

While the totals show increased spending under the Trump administration, much of it was at the Department of Homeland Security – home to increased enforcement at Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

At DHS, spending on guns and ammo increased almost 236% between FY25 and FY26 – from $60.8 million to $204.4 million.

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Mysterious black triangles spotted going 1,800 mph over secret US military bases, latest UFO file dump reveals

Mysterious black triangle objects speeding up to 1,800 miles per hour without vapor trails were spotted over secret US military bases on at least three separate occasions over the past year, a newly declassified tranche of government files on UFOs revealed Friday.

The sightings sparked national security concerns and it remains unclear if the objects were from other nations, according to redacted files on unidentified anomalous phenomena released Friday by the Trump Administration.

The triangle sightings raised concerns both for the advanced technology they appeared to use and for the location  — over top secret sites where the US government tests new technology. The exact location and dates of the sightings were redacted for security reasons.

Sketches released by the government show the black, triangle-shaped object over a mountainous area. No photos were provided.

The objects were observed moving at a rate of 1.5 miles in three seconds, which would be 1,800 mph, observers noted in an FBI report on the matter.

The mysterious triangles made no sounds, showed no exhaust gases and, when scanned with a thermal device, gave off a consistent heat signal — unlike an airplane or drone, which would register at a higher signal around certain spots, like its engine.

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Mysterious Object Spotted in St. Louis County Was Navy’s First Carrier-Based Unmanned Object Being Transported to New Location

The massive mysterious object that was seen in north St. Louis County on Sunday night has been identified.

Boeing Company in St. Louis told local FOX2 television that the object is the Navy’s first carrier-based unmanned aircraft.

Boeing was moving the MQ-25 model from Boeing to MidAmerica Airport in Mascoutah, Illinois.

Boeing St. Louis is the headquarters of Boeing Defense, Space and Security (BDS), home to over 18,000 employees, and is the site of major defense aircraft production and a new $1.8 billion advanced combat aircraft facility.

Boeing moved its Defense, Space and Security (BDS) headquarters to St. Louis in February of this year.

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Ukraine Asks Lockheed For Patriot Production Licenses While Its Inner Circle Faces Corruption Charges

Ukraine has asked Lockheed Martin to let it manufacture America’s most advanced air defense interceptor, the Patriot missile, on Ukrainian soil. At a meeting in Kyiv on October 19, Volodymyr Zelensky described to Orlando Sanchez Jr., President of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, a request to ‘jointly produce’ the interceptor under ‘production licenses’, and said Ukraine hopes to buy some ballistic-missile interceptors outright. He also requested that F-16s be repaired in Ukraine. Sanchez said Lockheed is ready to deepen cooperation.

As of now, the meeting hasn’t produced any figures (quantities and/or dollar values) or timeframes, which is the only reason this story is not bigger. Transferring the missile technology of America’s most advanced air defenses to a government that is currently struggling to contain its own corruption scandals is the ask on the table.

The corruption unearthed by Ukraine’s anti-corruption bureau NABU in its Operation Midas investigation is a matter of public record. NABU says the outfit ran as a massive criminal organization, taking kickbacks of 10% to 15% from contractors to the state nuclear operator Energoatom, and laundering roughly $100 million. The alleged organizer of the gang was Timur Mindich, a long-time business associate of President Zelensky’s from their days at Kvartal 95 studio. Andriy Yermak, then head of the President’s Office, who stepped down on the day investigators searched his apartment in November 2025, was charged with large-scale money laundering in May 2026. He has been denying any wrongdoing on his part. The same case also led to charges against a former energy minister.

This would be a massive transfer of highly protected technology to a government whose inner circle stands accused of skimming wartime funds. American taxpayers have been underwriting this war. Nobody serious is asking whether corruption reaches Kyiv’s top offices. The question is whether Washington wants to hand this same system the blueprints to some of the most guarded and protected technology that Raytheon and Lockheed Martin have to offer.

Ukraine has also reopened its arms exports. Reuters reported in February that Kyiv was opening up wartime technology sales to raise cash, and Zelensky has framed the policy as “controlled” sales of surplus production. Recent defense cooperation agreements have been signed by Ukrainian officials with countries of the Gulf. A country that is shopping its military industry abroad for cash while still at war is unlikely to keep licensed Patriot production in a locked safe once it has the technology. The next buyer would be whoever pays most.

It is after all the Pentagon’s own Inspector General who highlighted serious problems with the US DoD’s attempt to track more than $1 billion in high-risk defense equipment, including Javelin and Stinger missiles, sent to Ukraine over the past years. If Washington struggled to track shoulder-fired weapons, it should not be exporting the manufacturing know-how for Patriot interceptors.

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What is the RCMP buying with four Deloitte firearms contracts worth $13 million?

The RCMP has signed another $7.6 million contract with Deloitte Inc. to build the licensing functions of its new firearms computer system, the fourth Deloitte contract for the Canadian Firearms Program disclosed since July 2025; the four total about $13.15 million. The latest, dated June 11, 2026 and running to June 18, 2027, is worth $7,614,867.26. It is described as “Canadian Firearms Program – Possession & Acquisition Licences (PAL) and Minor Licences Functionality. This Task Authorization 06 focuses on development, configuration, testing and deployment.” A Possession and Acquisition Licence is the permit most adult gun owners must hold. There were two bids.

A Deloitte contract dated November 10, 2025, worth $3,323,903.48, covered “configuration and testing of the Business Licence functionality” and data synchronization between the new Canadian Firearms Digital Services Solution (CFDSS) and the older Canadian Firearms Information System (CFIS), the database behind the 2,473,661 licence holders the RCMP counted in 2025. Two smaller Deloitte contracts, $1,373,594.10 dated July 21, 2025 for “Program Assessment & Mobilization” and $840,736.95 dated March 23, 2026 for registration and transport authorization design work, complete the set.

The apparent parent, posted on CanadaBuys as “M7594-240711_A – Canadian Firearms Digital Services Solution (CFDSS) project,” lists Deloitte Inc. of Toronto, a total value including amendments of CAD 21,264,192.88 and a term from January 15, 2025, extended by amendment to January 14, 2028. That figure is a ceiling, not money paid, and the disclosures do not say whether the task authorizations count against it. The RCMP’s 2025 Commissioner of Firearms report calls the platform red-tape reduction and says 56.4 per cent of new PAL applications were filed online in 2025.

The program is still answering for a 2021 breach that exposed licence information on about 2.2 million gun owners held by a private vendor, Gilmore; in a written reply tabled in April 2026 the RCMP said it was unaware of any compensation to those affected.

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) awarded it competitively; the disclosure names PSPC buyer Connie Wright and has no approving-official field. The 2025 report lists RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme as Commissioner of Firearms and Kellie Paquette as Director General of the program. The minister is Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree, named in May 2025 under Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Four contracts, $13 million, and a parent agreement with a $21 million ceiling: that is what it costs to put the gun licence online.

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