The Army Brief: Afghanistan’s future; drone swarm; telemedicine training; and more

Welcome to The Army Brief, a weekly look at the news and ideas shaping the service’s future. 

Afghanistan war end date. The American military mission in Afghanistan will end August 31, President Joe Biden said Thursday, Defense One reports. The fate of the country, from security to government and women’s rights, now lies with the Afghan people, he said.

Installation energy security. A power plant at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii is one of just a few Army energy facilities that can fully power an installation in the event of a power outage, either due to natural disaster or a cyber attack, Defense One reports. It will take years to get most Army installations to meet their energy resilience goals, Army officials said.

Testing telemedicine. Telemedicine on the battlefield only requires low bandwidth to support chat and text features, but bureaucracy and misconceptions are making it difficult to train on the technology, Defense One reports. 

Sign up to get The Army Brief every Friday morning from Caitlin M. Kenney, Defense One’s military services reporter. On July 7, 1976, 119 women became the first class of women to join the Corps of Cadets at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. The new class of 2025 has 305 women.

From Defense One

The Convergence of Man and Machine, But Better // Yi Se Gwon: Three steps to improve how we plan investments and prioritize changes across the military.

How to Stop Political Division from Eroding Military-Academic Relations // Rikki H. Sargent, Shannon Houk and Lucian Gideon Conway: Four ideas.

Israel’s Drone Swarm Over Gaza Should Worry Everyone // Zak Kallenborn: It’s time global leaders set new rules for these future weapons already being used to kill.

‘Black Hawk Down’ Veterans to Receive 58 Silver Stars // Caitlin M. Kenney: The Army just upgraded combat medals given to 60 special operators of the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, right as Pentagon officials decide whether to return to Somalia.