Defense Secretary Ash Carter, speaking in advance of the July summit in Warsaw, called on NATO to do more in the fight against ISIS, including approving another deployment of NATO E-3 AWACS and additional training forces inside Iraq. “I like the things that we are discussing today, and I hope the heads of state approve both the AWACS and the defense capability building and training aspects,” Carter said at the end of a meeting of NATO defense ministers on Wednesday in Brussels. “There’s going to be more that each of us as individual nations can do to hasten the destruction of ISIL.” NATO already is doing a good job generating forces to help train Iraqi forces to hold territory it has gained inside the country, Carter said. But, the alliance could provide more logistics support. “All this stuff is very important to getting victory and sustaining victory,” he said. While some individual countries have accelerated their participation in Operation Inherent Resolve, the organization itself needs to “keep accelerating” to hasten the destruction of ISIS. (See also: Rallying the Allies.)
Pentagon Releases Cost of Living, BAH Rates for 2026
Dec. 30, 2025
The Pentagon will pay cost of living allowances to 127,000 service members in the continental U.S. in 2026, an increase of 66,000 members in 2025. Airmen and Guardians across the U.S. will also receive an average increase of 4.2 percent for their Basic Housing Allowance, compared to the 5.4 percent…

