Biden: US Mission Will out of End Aug
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MILITARY FACES VIRUS OUTBREAK Amid rising attacks, Colman Domingo’s Fans banned from rockets land near US recent high profile Olympics as Japan Embassy in Baghdad was hard-earned declares emergency Page 5 Page 14 Page 21 Losses fueled Lightning’s Stanley Cup repeat ›› Page 24 stripes.com Volume 80 Edition 60 ©SS 2021 CONTINGENCY EDITION FRIDAY,JULY 9, 2021 Free to Deployed Areas MILITARY AFGHANISTAN Biden: US mission will Out of end Aug. 31 Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday said the U.S. military mission in Afghanis- control tan will conclude on Aug. 31, saying “speed is safety” as the United States seeks to end the nearly 20- year war. “We did not go to Afghanistan to nation-build,” Biden said in a speech to update his administra- tion’s ongoing efforts to wind down the U.S. war in Afghanistan. “Af- ghan leaders have to come together and drive toward a future.” Biden also amplified the justifi- cation of his decision to end U.S. military operations even as the Ta- liban make rapid advances in sig- nificant swaths of the country. The effort to further explain his thinking on Afghanistan comes as the administration in recent days has sought to frame ending the con- flict as a decision that Biden made after concluding it’s an “unwinna- ble war” and one that “does not have a military solution.” “How many more, how many more thousands of American daughters and sons are you willing KIP SUMNER/U.S. Air Force to risk?” Biden said to those calling U.S. Air Force Capt. Kristin “BEO” Wolfe flies an F-35A Lightning II near Hill Air Force Base, Utah, in 2020. The Pentagon plans to procure for the U.S. to extend the military nearly 2,500 F-35s, but the Government Accountability Office said that plan is not financially sustainable. operation. He added, “I will not send another generation of Amer- icans to war in Afghanistan, with no GAO says cost overruns should force Pentagon to scale back F-35 program reasonable expectation of achiev- ing a different outcome.” BY JOHN VANDIVER costs for years. And while the military has tried the F-35 program,” the GAO said. Biden said he didn’t trust the Ta- Stars and Stripes to reduce expenses, those efforts “have pro- About 400 F-35s are already in service, mak- liban but trusted the capacity of the The failure to control F-35 aircraft cost over- duced limited results,” the Government Ac- ing the aircraft a growing portion of the Penta- Afghan military to defend the gov- runs should force the Pentagon to scale back its countability Office report released Wednesday gon’s tactical fleet. ernment. fleet of advanced warplanes unless it can find said. The Pentagon plans to procure nearly 2,500 Before his speech, White House new savings, a government watchdog agency “DOD’s inability to arrest the increases in F-35s with an estimated life cycle cost exceed- press secretary Jen Psaki said ad- report said. F-35 sustainment costs and make progress to- ing $1.7 trillion, the GAO said. About $1.3 tril- ministration officials always antici- The development of the advanced F-35 fight- wards the services’ established affordability lion of those costs are related to operating and pated an “uptick” in violence and er, the most costly weapon system in Defense constraints is due in part to the department’s greater turmoil as the U.S. with- Department history, has faced steadily rising not having a clear, strategic approach across SEE CONTROL ON PAGE 5 drawal moved forward. PAGE 2 • STARS AND STRIPES • Friday, July 9, 2021 BUSINESS/WEATHER EU fines car makers $1B over emission collusion EXCHANGE RATES Military rates South Korea (Won) 1,150.09 Associated Press Daimler wasn’t fined after it “Manufacturers deliberately Switzerland (Franc) .9153 Euro costs (July 9) $1.16 Thailand (Baht) 32.49 BRUSSELS — The Europe- revealed the cartel to the Eu- avoided to compete on clean- Dollar buys (July 9) 0.8221 Turkey (New Lira) 8.6855 British pound (July 9) $1.34 an Union on Thursday handed ropean Commission. ing better than what was re- Japanese yen (July 9) 108.00 (Military exchange rates are those available down $1 billion in fines to four EU antitrust chief Mar- quired by EU emission stan- South Korean won (July 9) 1,113.00 to customers at military banking facilities in the Commercial rates country of issuance for Japan, South Korea, Ger major German car manufac- grethe Vestager said that even dards. And they did so despite many, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Bahrain (Dinar) .3766 For nonlocal currency exchange rates (i.e., pur turers, saying they colluded to though the companies had the the relevant technology being Britain (Pound) 1.3787 chasing British pounds in Germany), check with Canada (Dollar) 1.2538 your local military banking facility. Commercial limit the development and rol- technology to cut cut harmful available.” It made their prac- China (Yuan) 6.4878 rates are interbank rates provided for reference Denmark (Krone) 6.2712 lout of car emission control emissions beyond legal limits, tice illegal, Vestager said. Egypt (Pound) 15.6692 when buying currency. All figures are foreign systems. they avoided to compete and It was the first time the Eu- Euro .8432 currencies to one dollar, except for the British Hong Kong (Dollar) 7.7682 pound, which is represented in dollarsto Daimler, BMW, VW, Audi denied consumers the chance ropean Commission imposed Hungary (Forint) 302.02 pound, and the euro, which is dollarstoeuro.) Israel (Shekel) 3.2805 and Porsche avoided compet- to buy less polluting cars. collusion fines on holding Japan (Yen) 109.67 INTEREST RATES ing on technology to restrict “Factories compete with one back the use of technical de- Kuwait (Dinar) .3011 Norway (Krone) 8.7552 Prime rate 3.25 pollution from gasoline and another also when it comes to velopments, not a more tradi- Philippines (Peso) 50.32 Interest Rates Discount rate 0.75 Poland (Zloty) 3.84 Federal funds market rate 0.09 diesel passenger cars, the Eu- reducing carbon emissions tional practice like price fix- Saudi Arabia (Riyal) 3.7507 3month bill 0.05 ropean Commission said. from the cars,” Vestager said. ing. Singapore (Dollar) 1.3521 30year bond 1.94 WEATHER OUTLOOK FRIDAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST FRIDAY IN EUROPE SATURDAY IN THE PACIFIC Misawa 67/64 Kabul Seoul 98/58 80/69 Baghdad 111/80 Osan Tokyo Drawsko Kandahar Mildenhall/ 81/69 83/70 109/68 Pomorskie Busan Lakenheath 74/63 77/74 69/55 Iwakuni Kuwait City 78/75 Bahrain Zagan Sasebo Guam 113/91 95/88 Brussels Ramstein 72/56 78/75 68/55 71/58 86/83 Riyadh Lajes, 111/78 Doha Azores Stuttgart 109/84 72/69 68/58 Pápa Aviano/ 76/73 Vicenza 77/65 Naples 86/74 Okinawa Morón 82/79 100/65 Sigonella Rota 99/71 The weather is provided by the Djibouti 85/64 Souda Bay American Forces Network Weather Center, 102/85 79/76 2nd Weather Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. TODAY IN STRIPES American Roundup ...... 13 Comics .........................16 Crossword ................... 16 Faces .......................... 14 Opinion ........................ 15 Sports .................... 18-24 Friday, July 9, 2021 • STARS AND STRIPES • PAGE 3 MILITARY Thomas returns to Yokosuka to lead 7th Fleet BY ALEX WILSON “Security issues important to both Stars and Stripes of our navies are increasing, such YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, as the growing activity of Chinese Japan — A familiar face has taken Coast Guard ships around the the helm of 7th Fleet, a command Senkaku islands and the militari- he described as a “supremely zation of the reefs of the South credible and integrated naval China Sea.” force” that gives the United States Yamamura also said peace and and its allies an upper hand over stability in the Taiwan Strait is its rivals in the Indo-Pacific re- “very critical” to Japan, the U.S. gion. and the region as whole. Vice Adm. Karl Thomas as- The odds of U.S. warships en- sumed command of 7th Fleet on countering Chinese vessels are set Thursday during a ceremony at to increase along with tension Yokosuka’s Fleet Theater. He re- across the strait and the frequen- lieved Vice Adm. William Merz, cy of U.S. freedom-of-navigation who had led the nation’s largest patrols in the South China Sea, Bo overseas fleet since September Kong, co-director of the Institute 2019. for US-China Issues at the Univer- Thomas most recently served sity of Oklahoma, told Stars and as assistant deputy chief of naval Stripes in an email this spring. operations for operations, plans ARON MONTANO/U.S. Navy Likewise, Jeff Kingston, direc- and strategy at the Pentagon, but Vice Adm. Karl Thomas salutes after taking command of the 7th Fleet at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, tor of Asian Studies at Temple previously served as the com- Thursday. University Japan, in an email to mander of 7th Fleet’s Task Force Stars and Stripes on Wednesday, 70 and Carrier Strike Group 5. to a new, no-port-at-all routine,” dom-of-navigation patrols and Korea, coupled with regional said Thomas “will face the ongo- “This is oddly, and pleasantly, he said. “Through that, we other operations designed to up- weather impacts, violent extre- ing escalation of tensions in the re- very familiar,” he said during the learned some things about what it hold international law or keep the mists, and, most recently, the CO- gion related to a rising and more ceremony.