James Mattis

 Will he or won't he certify the Iran new clear deal? All eyes are on President Trump as he prepares to make a crucial speech later on Friday which could make or break the historic agreement, Euronews reports. 

The deal saw sanctions eased on Tehran in exchange for curbs on its nuclear activity.

The US Army must be prepared for a military option to resolve the North Korean crisis if President Donald Trump takes such a decision.

This was stated by US Defense Secretary James Mattis at a military exhibition organized by the American Army Association, TASS reported.

North Korea's determination to pursue its policy of becoming a nuclear power continues to endanger world peace. When Kim Jong-un's photos appeared in the international press jubilating his country's latest test of an alleged hydrogen bomb, the international community condemned North Korea for its "unlawful, irresponsible and adventurous" behavior. South Korea launched its own missile test.

Since the recent visit of the U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis to Ankara, there is a growing sense that Washington is desperately in search of some confidence building measures to ease tensions with Turkey.

U.S. forces shot down a medium-range ballistic missile off the coast of Hawaii Wednesday as part of a test conducted amid heightened regional tensions.
Early Wednesday local time, U.S. Navy sailors on the USS John Paul Jones “successfully conducted a complex defense flight test,” according to a statement by the Missile Defense Agency, a section of the Defense Department.

Photo: AP

The US is considering supplying lethal arms to Ukraine, US Defense Secretary James Mattis has stated during a visit to Kiev. Washington has also agreed to supply Ukraine with an additional $175 million worth of equipment.

Turkish Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli and the U.S. Secretary of State James Mattis discussed the issue of Iran's "malign influence in the region" on Aug. 23, according to a statement released from the Pentagon.

Mattis and Canikli discussed the topic during the former's visit to Ankara, where he also held talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

US Secretary of Defense James Mattis pledged support to Turkey in its ongoing fight against rebels of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) during talks with the country’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish and US officials said today.

The U.S. military alliance against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) with the People's Protection Units (YPG), the Syrian extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), is "not a choice but a necessity."

Secretary of Defense James Mattis has a difficult task ahead. In a visit to Turkey Wednesday, he will step into the thicket of competing interests that characterizes one of America’s most important military partnerships. At the center of the difficulty is American efforts in Syria, which rely fundamentally on a collection of local forces among whom are actors Turkey considers terrorists.