I - On Defense Podcast

For review:
1. Pakistan’s military is “cautiously optimistic” about its mediation between Iran and the United States, its spokesman said on Friday.
Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir— has been to Tehran twice this month, most recently on Monday alongside Saudi and Turkish officials.
Qatari mediators returned Friday to Tehran, a source briefed on the talks told Reuters, after US Vice President JD Vance contacted Mohsen Rezaei, the hardline head of Iran’s National Security Council, whom Washington reportedly sees as the best-placed official to head off renewed fighting.
2. The US military’s top commander overseeing the Middle East met President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday to present military options concerning Iran, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials and others with direct knowledge of the meeting.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine also joined the meeting, at which US Central Command chief Adm. Brad Cooper presented the options, according to the report.
3. As Israel continues to target Hamas operatives in Gaza, the Shin Bet security agency reportedly has been calling members of the terror group ahead of strikes, offering them a choice: Leave their homes and be killed alone, or be killed along with their family members.
4. The State Department announced today that it has approved the potential sale of 500 Patriot missiles to Ukraine.
5. Switzerland narrowed down the choice of the country’s second future long-range air defense system to either Israel’s Barak MX system or the French-Italian SAMP/T NG, while also sticking to plans to buy the United States’ Patriot air-defense system.
6. Nuclear powered ballistic missile submarine (K-553), assigned to the Russian Navy Pacific Fleet, launched a RSM-56 Bulava SLBM from the sea of Okhotsk  in northwest Russia.

For review:
1. The Houthis reported 12 killed in strikes Thursday on residential areas of western Yemen, which they blamed on Saudi Arabia, while explosions later rocked Riyadh.
The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis said on Thursday it had intercepted two ballistic missiles launched by the group toward the Saudi capital, soon after fresh explosions were reported there.
2. The United States has informed several unspecified Gulf Arab countries to be ready for a short yet intensive military offensive against Iran following the American midterm elections on November 3, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday evening.
3. US Vice President JD Vance has contacted Iran’s security chief in a bid to revive peace talks that could head off a renewed American assault on the Islamic Republic.
 VP Vance sent a letter to Mohsen Rezaei, head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, the WSJ reported, in a move that one of the newspaper’s sources said was directed by US President Donald Trump.
4. Russia’s next round of trilateral talks with Ukraine and the US could take place in Abu Dhabi after Nov. 4, but Moscow has yet to confirm a date and will not invite European representatives, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
5. The leaders of Norway and Finland held a rare call Tuesday with Russian president Vladimir Putin to discuss Ukraine.
6. The United Kingdom plans to reach 3 percent GDP spending on defense by 2030, Chancellor John Healey announced today. In addition, he said that next year’s spending review would spell out exactly how the UK plans to hit the NATO commitment of spending 3.5 percent GDP on defense by 2035, and how the UK will be at 3 percent by 2030.

For review:
1. Top officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan met Iranian officials in Tehran on Monday in a bid to de-escalate the Middle East conflict.
2. Qatar’s ruler and the Iranian president discussed the Middle East war and the blockaded Strait of Hormuz during a meeting in Moscow, the emir’s office said Tuesday.
3. A private geospatial intelligence firm said it examined 40 missile and drone attacks against Saudi Arabia by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen and militias in Iraq between July 1 and October 19. 
In every case, the firm found the same pattern of Russian government and military satellites orbiting above the areas for days before and after.
4. The Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group has spent three months preparing for a possible resumption of hostilities with Israel, after receiving an infusion of cash from Iran, according to Lebanese security personnel briefed on its activities.
5. Albania finalized its participation agreement with the International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza over the weekend, with Albanian liaison officers expected to deploy to the region in November, according to a statement from the US-backed Board of Peace.
6. The U.S. Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin a nearly $700 million contract for the production and fielding of a hypersonic missile.
The service granted Lockheed the $694 million contract in late September as it moved the AGM-183A Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon from prototyping and flight testing to production.

For review:
1. Havana on Friday, October 23, mocked the "desperation" of the United States after it called for Cubans to collaborate with the CIA, as Washington intensifies its pressure on the communist island.
2. Houthi media reported Saturday that Saudi strikes killed 11 people in Yemeni capital Sanaa, shortly after the Saudi-led coalition fighting them said it had intercepted two missiles targeting Saudi cities.
3. Two Iranian officials, one of them a Revolutionary Guards member, confirmed to NYT on Saturday that the Islamic Republic is preparing to target US diplomats and personnel, the newspaper said.
 The unnamed officials US officials were seen as “fair game” given the number of Iranian officials and their relatives that the US and Israel have killed.
4. US President Donald Trump doubles down on his endorsement of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, telling Israelis he needs to be reelected on Tuesday so that the two leaders can “finish the job” against Iran.
5. Senior Israeli military officials have presented intelligence to their US counterparts that indicates Hamas has no intention of disarming and is instead rebuilding its forces in the Gaza Strip in preparation for possible renewed fighting.
6. Denmark will acquire two types of long-range precision missiles in an effort to “strengthen national and collective deterrence.”
The purchases of F-35 Joint Strike Missiles, and ground-launched Anthem cruise missiles, “are a significant step towards making Denmark better able to defend itself,” said Minister of Defence Jeppe Bruus in a statement.
7. China built more than twice the naval tonnage of the United States in the 2024-25 period, narrowing the gap between the two countries’ navies, according to the World Defense Shipbuilding.
The combined tonnage of combat ships built by China in the two years through to December 2025 amounted to 636,208 tons, compared to 270,509 tons for the United States.

For review:
1. US SEC of State urged Cubans seeking political change Friday to discreetly cooperate with the CIA.
"To those who seek to create positive change in Cuba - now is the time," Sec of State Rubio wrote in a post on X.
2. The UK is sending military support to Saudi Arabia as Iran-aligned Houthi rebels launch repeated attacks on the kingdom.
The aircraft will protect Saudi cities and critical infrastructure from drones and missiles, the Ministry of Defense said. They will not carry out offensive strikes against Houthi targets.
3. Tehran has drawn up detailed plans to target undersea communications cables in the Persian Gulf if the United States and Israel attack Iran again, two senior Iranian security officials told Reuters.
4. A US envoy claimed Friday that Washington could strike Iran this weekend, but President Donald Trump appeared to pour cold water on the idea, subsequently telling reporters he was unfamiliar with such plans.
5. Up to 500 Moroccan personnel have undergone training in preparation for deployment with the International Stabilization Force in Gaza, a Board of Peace official told The Times of Israel Monday, as preparations for the multinational force continue despite significant delays in implementing the US-backed Gaza peace plan.
6. French and British air forces have for the first time staged a joint exercise simulating a nuclear strike, the countries’ defense ministries said in a statement Friday.
7. U.S. First Lady Melania Trump has mediated a localized ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine in and around the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in Kherson Oblast to allow the safe evacuation of civilians and delivery of humanitarian aid.
8. The Pentagon and LM announced today they reached a framework agreement covering a decade’s worth of F-35 Joint Strike Fighter production and sustainment, potentially inaugurating a transformative deal for the stealth jet’s enterprise. 
9. The U.S. Marine Corps stood up its first Medium-range Missile Battalion last week as the service works to integrate longer range and maritime strike capabilities across the force.
10. The U.S. Army’s recently activated a Guam-based air defense battalion meant to protect the island from increasingly advanced air and missile threats fielded by China and North Korea.