• Ukraine is investing $72 million in drones to help counter Russian drone attacks.
• Russia often uses Iranian-designed Shahed drones, complicating Ukraine's air defense efforts.
• Interceptor drones offer a cost-effective defense against Russia's drone and missile threats.

Russia is regularly hammering Ukrainian cities with one-way attack drones. Kyiv, however, intends to meet that threat by pouring millions of dollars into interceptor drones designed to engage Russian threats.

In a statement posted to Telegram on Wednesday, Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal announced four contracts for drone intercept technology worth over $72 million.

"Special attention was given to drone interceptors capable of countering Russian Shaheds," Shmyhal said in the statement, which noted that Ukraine is also pursuing international partnerships for additional purchases.

Earlier in the month, the director of Ukraine's Defense Procurement Agency, Arsen Zhumadilov, told local media that the agency had contracts for tens of thousands of interceptor drones, weapons which are now being mass-produced. Zhumadilov did not provide a value for those contracts.

Interceptor drones have become an inexpensive option for defeating front-line loitering munitions and higher-end uncrewed reconnaissance assets, but the drones are increasingly being seen as an option for countering Shaheds, a term for a family of Iranian-designed attack drones that Russia also makes domestically.

Russia frequently deploys homemade versions of the Iranian-designed Shahed, called the Geran-2, to bolster its strike packages, mixing them in with decoy activity and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities. Such employment creates a more complicated threat for Ukrainian air defense systems, already stretched thin.

Ukraine has reported that Russia is arming its drones with bigger payloads and thermobaric warheads, increasingly operating them in ways that make them difficult to shoot down with inexpensive solutions, like mounted machine guns.

Ukraine has more sophisticated air defenses, but limited availability and prohibitive costs are pushing the country to find more innovative solutions.

Ukraine is believed to have about half a dozen operational Patriot batteries among its other air defenses. A Patriot battery consists of as many as eight launchers, which can hold up to 16 missiles. These weapons are useful for countering aircraft and ballistic missile threats. US lawmakers approved a decision to send more Patriot air defense systems to Germany last week after agreeing that Germany would frontload Patriot systems to boost Ukrainian defenses.

Each Patriot interceptor missile costs over $3 million. Missile production is limited, and overuse strains already limited stockpiles. That makes them less than ideal for combating drones.

Defensive interceptor drones function similarly to interceptor missiles, though drones are drastically cheaper and more easily produced.

Without other options, the continuous barrage of Shahed-style drones flooding Ukrainian airspace, coupled with missile strikes, is bound to overwhelm Ukraine's air defenses. Recent assessments by Western military experts suggest Russia is poised to overwhelm Ukrainian cities with thousands of drones in a single night.

In an effort to tout domestic drone production, Russian state media recently broadcast modified American-designed pickup trucks featuring a launch configuration for Shahed-style drones, which are capable of loitering in the air before diving onto a target.

Russia began using the Iranian-manufactured drones three years ago, but it quickly turned to its own domestic industries for producing the drones.

• An Air Force command is pausing its use of a Sig Sauer pistol following a fatal incident.
• The M18, a military version of the P320, has come under new scrutiny.
• The handgun has been the subject of safety complaints and lawsuits.

The Air Force command that oversees America's arsenal of long-range nuclear-capable bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles has decided to stop providing troops with Sig Sauer M18 pistols following a recent fatality.

In a statement shared with Business Insider, AFGSC spokesperson Charles "Moose" Hoffman confirmed the pause, adding that the decision was made after the death of a Security Forces airman at the base on Sunday morning.

Air Force Security Forces personnel are a military form of law enforcement and often work in base protection.

"Out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the safety and security of our personnel, the pause will remain in place pending the completion of comprehensive investigations by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the AFGSC Safety office," Hoffman wrote, adding that airmen will now carry their rifles only for the time being.

"While the investigations are underway, AFGSC is collaborating with the Air Force Security Forces Center and Headquarters Air Force Security Forces to conduct a thorough review of the M18 and develop appropriate corrective measures," the statement said.

Hoffman said that "Security Forces Combat Arms Airmen at all AFGSC bases will conduct 100% inspections of the M18 handguns to identify any immediate safety concerns."

The Air Force did not specify whether a negligent discharge with the pistol caused the airman's death, saying only that the incident is under investigation and that "the discharge has not been categorized yet."

Sig Sauer did not respond to BI's request for comment on the recent Air Force decision.

The M18 and M17 are military-specific variants of the P320 platform, which is also sold on the civilian market.

The airman's death and AFGSC's decision to halt the use of the M18 come amid a history of reported safety issues associated with the P320-series weapons and their firing system. The handgun has been the subject of complaints and lawsuits in recent years.

Michigan State Police, for instance, reported problems with the pistol in 2024 after one was fired while still holstered by a police officer, according to the military news outlet The War Zone.

An FBI report detailing the incident said that in July 2024, the police officer's "department issued Sig Sauer M182 fired uncommanded," while holstered. "According to the MSP motor officer's statement and the statements of others present, at no time was the trigger pressed intentionally or inadvertently," the report stated, explaining that "the MSP motor officer had objects in his hands at the time." It said he was holding his keys.

TWZ reported that incidents involving 'uncommanded' discharges have been associated with the P320 and its variants before. A recent lawsuit against the manufacturer was filed by a widow who alleged that her husband died last year after his P320 fired uncommanded.

A 2023 joint investigation by The Washington Post and The Trace uncovered 100 similar incidents and found 80 people who said they were wounded by their gun's uncommanded discharge.

Other government and law enforcement agencies have sought to ban the weapon, but legal proceedings against Sig Sauer are poised to become more challenging for plaintiffs.

The New Hampshire-based firearms company has successfully sought increased legal protections from the state's lawmakers amid the lawsuits filed in response to safety concerns, according to New Hampshire Public Radio.

• Lawmakers worry that military housing funds may again be diverted to domestic operations.
• Barracks have been plagued with maintenance issues for years, impacting troop morale and safety.
• The Army and Marine Corps are seeking more funding to address barracks and quality of life concerns.

As lawmakers negotiate next year's defense bill, some are sounding alarms over the possibility that funds intended to improve housing for junior troops could instead be diverted to support military operations at home.

In a hearing on Tuesday, Rep. Sara Jacobs, a California Democrat, pushed to add two stipulations into the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act aimed at safeguarding funding for military barracks and childcare centers. The proposals would have prohibited using the funds for domestic deployments of troops — specifically in support of immigration enforcement — and barred their transfer to border operations.

"This is simply saying that the money that we allocate as Congress for barracks and child development centers and quality of life infrastructure should be used for barracks and child development centers and quality of life infrastructure, not anything else," she said during the hearing.

Both additions were shot down along party lines.

Military barracks, dormitories where unmarried junior troops are housed, have long been plagued by maintenance issues. Many buildings are decades-old and have fallen into disrepair during 20 years of war in the Middle East.

"This is about actually showing our service members that we care about them," Rep. Jill Tokuda, a Democrat from Hawaii, said during the hearing, highlighting instances of barracks rooms overrun by black mold, leaky plumbing, unreliable electrical and A/C systems, and a lack of kitchens.

A 2022 government watchdog report noted how continuously delayed maintenance aggravates problems for the military's buildings around the world, valued at $1.3 trillion overall. In fiscal year 2020, for instance, the DoD's deferred maintenance backlog amounted to over $137 billion, exacerbated by "competing priorities".

A separate report the following year found widespread concerns about barracks management oversight and hazardous health risks to troops— and noted that shoddy conditions harm troop morale.

The services have taken note after coming under fire for the poor living conditions highlighted in the reports and scandalous news reports of substandard living conditions.

The Army sought $2.35 billion last year to address barracks concerns, an over 60% increase in funding from the year prior. The Marine Corps, meanwhile, has undertaken a decade-long, nearly $11 billion refurbishment program.

"The idea is not to fix it and forget it," Lt. Gen. James Adams, Deputy Commandant for Programs and Resources, said of the initiative during a panel at the Modern Day Marine expo in April, explaining that the Corps partly "got ourselves into the position we're in now" by neglecting maintenance.

But the military is facing maintenance woes on other fronts too— one of the Army's biggest bases was forced to dissolve its teams that oversaw preventative housing maintenance last month, amid federal government cuts, according to Military.com. And the Pentagon sought to shift $1 billion intended for Army barracks to finance deployments to the southern border earlier this year.

In a statement provided to Business Insider, Jacobs said that funds approved for barracks issues and childcare centers — which have faced staffing shortages and meager pay — are already a comparatively modest sum, considering the level of disrepair with which some facilities must contend.

"There's not enough money as it is to upgrade and maintain quality of life infrastructure like barracks and child development centers, and address urgent issues like mold and broken heating and A/C units," Jacobs wrote. "None of this money should be diverted for any reason — let alone to terrorize immigrant communities and stifle dissent."

"The fact that a billion dollars in the first six months of this administration was diverted from barracks and quality of life and operations and maintenance to the border is sending the message that we really don't care about your health and wellness," Tokuda said during the hearing, adding that money transfers were equivalent to "essentially guaranteeing that we will ultimately never fix these barracks."

• 700 Marines remain in Los Angeles to guard federal buildings while 2000 California National Guard troops are set to depart.
• The Marine deployment follows Trump's orders, despite objections from California's governor.
• Marines face morale issues and public contempt amid protests against ICE raids in Los Angeles, an official shared.

Half of the 4,000-strong California National Guard force deployed by President Donald Trump to Los Angeles a month ago is returning home, but 700 Marines are set to remain.

As protests quickly quieted, Marines appear to now be guarding buildings that don't require such a forceful presence, leading to a lot of hanging around. Officials say their mission is mainly just "being present."

The Marines, who arrived in LA under Trump's orders amid objections from California's governor, Gavin Newsom, will continue to stand guard at three buildings — the Wilshire Federal Building, which houses the LA FBI and Veterans Affairs offices, a courthouse, and the LA Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters building. US Northern Command confirmed to BI on Wednesday that the mission hasn't changed since the Marines first arrived.

Some of those Marines, recent arrivals who took over for teammates who showed up in June, are suffering a blow to morale, with some feeling the work isn't what they joined the military for, according to a senior Marine official with knowledge of the deployment. The Pentagon did not respond to request for comment.

Such duties are far outside the norm for Marines who do not possess the same legal authorities as National Guard troops, which may conduct law enforcement within the US, though almost always at the request of their state's governor. Active-duty troops, like the Marines in LA, are barred by law from doing so, short of the president invoking the Insurrection Act.

"Their purpose is really just being a presence that is very much out in the open, showcasing kind of who they are, what they do," said the senior Marine official, who spoke to Business Insider on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

A second Marine source confirmed that Marines continue to guard the buildings, adding those stationed at the Wilshire Federal Building are dispersed at vehicle and pedestrian entry points and patrol the building's perimeter, a fairly routine task infantry personnel perform that could be seen as an opportunity to practice the skills in a delicate environment.

"There's nothing going on," said the second Marine of the atmosphere in LA after protests formed last month in response to ICE raids targeting immigrants, often without criminal histories. Other news reports have indicated that the Marines and Guardsmen remaining in LA are fighting boredom and public contempt.

Marines train for a variety of war-related tasks, which do not include anything similar to how Marines are being used in LA, the senior official said. "And I think that certainly has a degree of degradation of morale."

Infantry units like the 7th Marine Regiment in LA are trained in the Corps' most fundamental mission— locating, closing with, and destroying the enemy by a mix of fire and maneuver, Joe Plenzer, a retired Marine infantry officer, told Business Insider last month.

"Beneath the Kevlar, the eye-pro, if you see a face, the face is probably, you know, a little bit of disappointment, a little bit of 'this is not what I signed up for,'" said the senior official. "And by a little bit, I mean a lot of it."

"Let's be honest, too, there's a percentage of our Marines that are coming from backgrounds where their immediate family members are at risk of getting deported from ICE," the senior official said.

The service— which has the highest percentage of Hispanic troops compared to the other services, nearly 26% in 2022 — has found itself wrestling with new immigration enforcement policies on multiple fronts. The father of three US Marines, brutally beaten and detained by ICE agents, was released from custody earlier this week following efforts from his sons and other advocates, according to a report from Military.com.

Although active-duty Marines are generally barred from participating in domestic law enforcement, they are permitted to support the civilian agencies. The Marines, though made for a very different mission, appear to be supporting ICE more frequently.

The Pentagon ordered 200 air-support Marines to Florida earlier this month to assist with administrative oversight at ICE detention centers there. And the Corps appears to be the first and only service with a pilot program in place with ICE at three bases to ostensibly guard against access by foreign personnel, according to Military.com.

Deepening ties with ICE in Florida and at the three bases, as well as the deployment to LA, could be taking a toll on Marines worried about their families, the senior official said. "What do you think that does to them?" they said of Marines who may have family members who immigrated illegally. There could be a notable effect, they suggested, "not only morale, but just like, in terms of their ethics and their values."

"My hope is that they're quickly relieved of being in that position," he continued. "And it's no longer a thing."

• A new bipartisan effort aims to let troops repair military gear, reducing contractor reliance.
• Current contracts restrict military repairs, causing delays and increased costs for the DoD.
• Similar right-to-repair issues affect other industries, like tech and agriculture.

Troops often find themselves surrounded by gear they cannot legally fix. A bipartisan push is trying to allow troops to turn to their own wrenches to repair military equipment rather than relying on civilian contractors.

Service members are allowed to fix a lot of military equipment on their own, with many troops specializing in mechanical repair for guns, aircraft, and even weapons optics.

But some equipment contracts come with strict provisions that stipulate that repairs can only be performed by contractors and limit the technical data and intellectual property that can be shared with troops for repairs. Some lawmakers say these stipulations are problematic for troops in need of urgent repairs and take advantage of DoD funding.

"When you're deployed in the field and you have a mission to complete and you have people's lives to protect, it just doesn't make sense to be constrained by some commercial agreement that you have with the manufacturers," said Greg Williams, the director of the Center for Defense Information at the Project on Government Oversight.

Now, a bipartisan push from senators Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, and Tim Sheehy, a Montana Republican, is calling for a change amid new movement on the National Defense Authorization Act.

These lawmakers highlight instances of the Navy ferrying contractors to sea for simple fixes, Marines in Japan forced to send engines to the US for repair instead of repair on site, and one contractor that "charged $900 a page for upgrades to its maintenance manuals for an Air Force aircraft."

These moves mark the latest in a string of actions to overcome right-to-repair barriers.

A 2023 California bill, for example, spurred Apple to endorse the ability for consumers to repair and modify their own devices. Medical device manufacturers came under fire during the pandemic for troublesome restrictions on ventilator repair. And US farmers have criticized farming equipment manufacturer John Deere, now embroiled in a federal lawsuit, for what they see as prohibitively restrictive controls on repair part access and burdensome diagnostics tech tools.

President Donald Trump's tariffs could strengthen the right-to-repair movement throughout the nation, as some consumers grow increasingly reluctant to toss out high-priced goods that are damaged and seek to repair them instead.

Top Pentagon brass have pushed for comprehensive changes to repair policies since January. Amid major transformation initiatives within the Army, Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth have each called for the inclusion of right-to-repair provisions in all new and existing Army contracts.

Navy Secretary John Phelan told lawmakers in June that when visiting the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, he discovered six of the ship's eight ovens, essential tools required to feed thousands of sailors, were out for repair, adding that crewmembers aboard the vessel were legally prohibited from performing repairs.

"It is crazy. We should be able to fix this," he said.

Such high-level advocacy comes as other military leaders have observed that future warfare will require more innovative fixes from troops on the front lines.

"The force of the future will fix on the spot," Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said during a congressional hearing on military spending last month. The Iraq and Afghanistan wars saw robust base build-ups for troops, where equipment could be sent for intensive maintenance needs with the near-assurance of US air supremacy. Such guarantees are almost certainly a thing of the past, experts say, at least for high-end fights.

Right now, "it all comes down to the particulars of the contract involved," Williams explained. "Different contractors have arrived at different arrangements with the Defense Department about when they have a chokehold on repairs and when they don't."

"And so it needs to be negotiated on a contract-by-contract basis," he said.

Williams pointed to a near-miss naval incident and subsequent relief of USS John McCain's captain as a clear example of what can happen when repairs go unaddressed. The destroyer nearly collided with another vessel during a refueling operation when the ship's lingering steering problems arose unexpectedly.

It's unclear whether the right to repair would have prevented that outcome, but the argument for it is that it eliminates the unnecessary tension that exists today.

As things stand now, Williams said, "it comes down to a push and pull between the manufacturer and the consumer."

• Nearly 30 M1A1 Abrams tanks will roll down Constitution Ave. in DC for the Army's 250th birthday.
• The service is finalizing plans to prevent the heavy 70-ton tanks from damaging the road.
• Engineers will use steel plates and track pads to protect roads during the parade.

The powerful M1A1 Abrams tank, with its heavy armor and 120mm cannon, is a massive hulk of steel, and dozens are set to hit the streets in the nation's capital next month.

Nearly 30 of the tanks are expected to rumble down Constitution Avenue as part of the US Army's 250th anniversary celebration on June 14, set to coincide with President Donald Trump's birthday.

The street, which runs parallel to the National Mall and serves as a major route for city traffic, isn't built to easily accommodate each tank's nearly 70-ton frame. Most cars weigh only about two tons.

So how is the Army going to keep its tanks from chewing up Constitution Avenue? The service's engineers are putting the finishing touches on plans to protect the busy street's pavement from biting tracks.

Officials aren't too concerned with the straight path down Constitution, which will likely see a single file of tanks. It's turning points that will be the most vulnerable to tears from the heavy tracked vehicles.

"We are targeting those areas that we have concerns," said Army Col. Jesse Curry, Executive Officer for the Army's Chief of Engineers, during a media roundtable with reporters on Wednesday. "Particularly the areas where the surface of the pavement would typically, you know, receive an exaggerated level of stress."

To prevent such stress, military engineers are figuring out which turn points will be layered with steel plates at least one inch thick.

Such large plates are commonly seen on city streets where heavy equipment is used, Curry said, adding that equipment staging areas and the parade route were specially chosen to minimize weight-related damage.

Heavy tracked vehicles like the M1A1 often make turns by using differential steering — one side will roll forward while the other reverses, or the tracks will operate at a different speed. That can cause tracks to "pinch," a problem for asphalt.

Inbound parade tanks will also don new "track pads," rubber components that create some separation between the metal tracks and the pavement, Curry told reporters.

Additional measures to prevent damage are still being examined, with help from DC's Department of Transportation, the National Park Service (which oversees maintenance of the National Mall), and the Federal Highway Administration.

The tanks and other vehicles, such as Bradley fighting vehicles and Strykers, will arrive in the DC area via rail and will then depart to parade staging areas via heavy-duty trailers, similar to those used to move houses down highways.

Troops will not be conducting any full-scale rehearsals for the parade, a notable deviation from typical military planning. Normally, complete rehearsals are an important part of any military mission, including small unit ceremonies.

Officials said Wednesday that while the Army has been planning a major 250th birthday event for two years, the idea to include heavy vehicles like tanks and other armored vehicles in a parade only arrived this year. The officials did not specify how the idea originated.

Even moving at a slow parade pace, any military activity using heavy equipment and vehicles is fraught with concerns that require meticulous planning for safety precautions, especially when it comes to the equipment offloads required to stage for such a parade. Large vehicles must rely on ground guides to ensure no one is inadvertently run over.

Officials said Wednesday that Hercules wreckers will be available to recover any tanks that break down. How roads might handle the behemoth 70-ton M88 Hercules recovery vehicle with a downed tank on its trailer bed is unclear.