The Army Brief: Units on alert; Preventing drone-strike accidents; Hypersonic meeting; and more...

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

Units identified for NATO force. The Pentagon announced on Thursday a list of Army units and military installations who have been placed on heightened alert to respond quickly if called up to join NATO’s Response Force, Defense One reports. Parts of the elite 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions are among the units identified, two of the most prepared units for international deployment on short notice. 

A new center of excellence. The Pentagon aims to reduce civilian casualties during future military drone strikes by establishing an office to share lessons among drone operators after a RAND review found knowledge gaps that led to mistakes, Defense One reports. The U.S. military has also been criticized for undercounting civilian casualties when compared to independent assessments.

Hypersonic meeting. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has called a meeting with a dozen American defense CEOs to urge faster development of hypersonic weapons, Defense One reports. The Army is working with the Navy to develop a hypersonic missile; they hope to field a prototype by 2023.

Sign up to get The Army Brief every Friday morning from Caitlin M. Kenney, Defense One’s military services reporter. On Jan. 30, 1945, U.S. Army Rangers, Alamo Scouts, and Filipino guerrillas freed more than 500 prisoners of war from a Japanese camp near Cabanatuan, Philippines.

From Defense One

Pentagon Names Army Units Tapped for Possible European Deployment // Caitlin M. Kenney: Defense spokesman cautions that these units have only been alerted, not activated, as tensions continue around Ukraine.

‘Every Window Will Shoot’: Experts Lay Out Potential Ukraine Conflict Scenarios // Patrick Tucker: If the Kremlin decides to push across the border, it has widely varying options.

SecDef Austin Summons Hypersonics CEOs // Marcus Weisgerber,Patrick Tucker: Pentagon meeting set for next week in race to outpace China and Russia.

US’ Written Response To Russia ‘Isn’t About Concession,’ Blinken says // Jacqueline Feldscher: NATO and U.S. officials proposed ideas to cooperate with Moscow, an attempt to avert conflict over Ukraine.

Blame Houthis, Not Saudis, for Lingering Yemen War, White House Says // Jacqueline Feldscher: “It takes two to get to a ceasefire and end the war and right now the onus is on the Houthis,” Brett McGurk said.