An op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal says there is no surprise in the fact that King Abdullah’s first official visit outside the Middle East was to China. The new Saudi Arabia leader is simply fulfilling a long-sought Royal Saudi desire to lessen the country’s dependence on the US. According to National Defense University professor Richard L. Russell, the Saudis have been seething since 1991 when they had to ask the US for help to fend off Saddam Hussein.
The Space Development Agency says it’s on track to issue its next batch of missile warning and tracking satellite contracts this month after those awards were delayed by the Pentagon’s decision to divert funds from the agency to pay troops during this fall’s prolonged government shutdown.
