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Evening Brief: US Navy Launches One-Way Attack LUCAS Drone, European Lawmakers Push ‘Military Schengen’ Area, Thai Jets Strike Cambodian Targets

BY Guy D. McCardle

Navy tests new attack drone as Trump eyes cannabis shift and EU wrangles Ukraine aid. Here’s what’s making headlines this Thursday evening.

A Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS) launches from USS Santa Barbara (LCS-32) in the Arabian Gulf, December 16, 2025. Image Credit: DVIDS.

Thursday’s coming to a close. Here’s what made news today, December 18, 2025.

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US Navy Launches One-Way Attack Drone From Warship in Gulf

The US Navy this week successfully launched a one-way attack drone from a warship at sea for the first time, marking a major step in the Pentagon’s push to field large numbers of low-cost unmanned strike systems.

The LUCAS (Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System) drone was launched Tuesday from the littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara (LCS-32) in the Persian Gulf, US Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) said.

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The test was conducted by Task Force Scorpion Strike and Task Force 59, units focused on developing and integrating autonomous attack drones into operations.

The LUCAS system, designed for long-range autonomous missions, is part of a broader effort to counter threats such as Iran’s Shahed drones and rapidly scale unmanned strike capabilities.

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The Navy did not disclose whether the drone carried a live payload during the launch.

 

Thursday’s coming to a close. Here’s what made news today, December 18, 2025.

 

US Navy Launches One-Way Attack Drone From Warship in Gulf

The US Navy this week successfully launched a one-way attack drone from a warship at sea for the first time, marking a major step in the Pentagon’s push to field large numbers of low-cost unmanned strike systems.

The LUCAS (Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System) drone was launched Tuesday from the littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara (LCS-32) in the Persian Gulf, US Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) said.

The test was conducted by Task Force Scorpion Strike and Task Force 59, units focused on developing and integrating autonomous attack drones into operations.

The LUCAS system, designed for long-range autonomous missions, is part of a broader effort to counter threats such as Iran’s Shahed drones and rapidly scale unmanned strike capabilities.

The Navy did not disclose whether the drone carried a live payload during the launch.

 

Trump Orders Fast-Track Review to Reclassify Marijuana

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Justice Department to speed the process of reclassifying marijuana from a Schedule I drug to Schedule III, a move that would ease restrictions on research and medical use but stop short of federal legalization.

Trump said the action responds to evidence that cannabis can help patients, including veterans with chronic pain, as a safer alternative to opioid painkillers.

The order instructs the attorney general to expedite the review under the Controlled Substances Act, which would formally recognize marijuana’s medical value if completed.

Trump stressed the move does not legalize recreational use and maintained his opposition to drug abuse, while acknowledging cannabis’ potential medical benefits when carefully administered.

 

US Coast Guard to Pay $2,000 One-Time Bonus to Service Members

The US Coast Guard will issue a one-time $2,000 “Devotion to Duty” bonus to eligible members at the end of 2025, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Thursday.

The pre-tax payment will go to active-duty Coast Guard personnel in the rank of captain and below who remain on active duty through December 31, along with certain reserve members, and will cost the service about $80 million.

The bonus marks the first concrete rollout of US President Donald Trump’s proposed $1,776 “warrior dividend” for military and federal law enforcement personnel, though the Coast Guard payment exceeds that amount.

Officials said the bonus recognizes service during a year of expanded operational demands, including heightened roles in drug and immigration interdiction.

 

US Coast Guard Reverses Course on Hate Symbol Policy After Backlash

The US Coast Guard will remove language from its new workplace harassment policy that classified swastikas and nooses as “potentially divisive,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said on Thursday, reversing a change that took effect this week amid bipartisan outrage.

Noem said outdated policy pages will be removed, though officials did not clarify what language will replace them or how quickly revisions will occur.

The reversal follows criticism from lawmakers who said the policy contradicted an earlier directive by acting Commandant Admiral Kevin Lunday banning the symbols outright. The failure to align the manual with that order fueled congressional anger and led Senators Jacky Rosen and Tammy Duckworth to place holds on Lunday’s nomination.

Noem called for the confirmation process to proceed, saying the dispute over the policy should not delay his appointment.

 

US Envoy Meets Mideast Mediators to Push Gaza Ceasefire Forward

US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, will meet Friday in Miami with senior officials from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey to try to advance the stalled Gaza ceasefire into its second phase, a State Department official said.

The talks will focus on implementing the next stage of the US-brokered agreement between Israel and Hamas that began in October.

Phase two envisions an international security force, a technocratic governing body for Gaza, the disarmament of Hamas, and further Israeli troop withdrawals, but none of those mechanisms are yet in place.

The ceasefire has been strained by mutual accusations of violations, disputes over hostages and border access, and worsening humanitarian conditions in Gaza as mediators press both sides to keep the deal from unraveling.

 

Israel Strikes Hezbollah Targets as Disarmament Deadline Nears

Israel carried out a wave of airstrikes across southern and northeastern Lebanon on Thursday, targeting what it said were Hezbollah military sites as a deadline approaches to disarm the group along the border.

The strikes came a day before a meeting of an international committee monitoring a US-brokered ceasefire that ended last year’s war between Israel and Hezbollah.

The Israeli military said it hit training compounds, weapons storage sites, and launch areas used by Hezbollah.

Lebanese officials said the strikes sent a message ahead of talks in Paris focused on strengthening the Lebanese army’s role in securing the border.

Lebanon has pledged to clear Hezbollah’s armed presence south of the Litani River by the end of the year, amid growing US pressure to accelerate the effort.

 

European Union Lawmakers Push ‘Military Schengen’ to Speed Troop Movements

European Union (EU) lawmakers recently approved a resolution calling for the creation of a “military Schengen area” to remove internal barriers that slow the cross-border movement of troops and heavy equipment across Europe.

The measure aims to cut administrative delays, infrastructure bottlenecks, and regulatory hurdles that can take weeks to move forces, a problem lawmakers say Russia’s war in Ukraine has made urgent, particularly along NATO’s eastern flank.

The resolution urges major investments in transport infrastructure, faster border approvals, and new coordination mechanisms to allow allied forces, including US troops, to move within days or hours during a crisis.

Lawmakers backed boosting military mobility funding to about $20 billion in the EU’s next long-term budget and warned that upgrading hundreds of bridges, tunnels, and rail lines could cost more than $100 billion.

 

Belgium Seeks Guarantees Before Backing Russia Asset Loan for Ukraine

Belgium on Thursday demanded firm protections against possible Russian retaliation before supporting a European Union plan to use frozen Russian assets to underwrite a massive loan for Ukraine.

The proposal, debated at a high-stakes European Union summit in Brussels, would provide up to 90 billion euros ($106 billion) in financing to cover Ukraine’s military and economic needs over the next two years, with most of the assets held in Belgium-based Euroclear.

Belgian leaders warned that Russia’s legal and political pressure, including a lawsuit against Euroclear, exposes Belgium to outsized risk and called for stronger safeguards and broader burden-sharing among EU members.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged immediate action, saying Ukraine faces financial collapse without new funding.

EU leaders remain divided, with several countries opposed or undecided, as negotiations continue without a clear alternative plan.

 

Belarus Says Russia Deployed Nuclear-Capable Missile System

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday that Russia has deployed its new nuclear-capable Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile system to Belarus, placing it on combat duty as diplomacy to end the war in Ukraine reaches a critical stage.

Lukashenko said the missiles arrived Wednesday but did not disclose numbers or deployment details.

The move deepens Belarus’ role in Russia’s military posture after Moscow previously stationed tactical nuclear weapons there.

The Oreshnik, first tested in a conventional strike on Ukraine in 2024, is designed to carry nuclear or conventional warheads and is claimed by Russia to be impossible to intercept.

Opposition figures warned the deployment increases Belarus’ dependence on Moscow and makes the country a potential target as tensions with the West remain high.

 

War Correspondent Peter Arnett Dies at 91

Peter Arnett, the Pulitzer Prize–winning war correspondent known for frontline reporting from Vietnam to Iraq, died Wednesday at age 91, his family said.

Arnett, who won the 1966 Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Vietnam War with The Associated Press (AP), later became a global television figure during the 1991 Gulf War when he reported live from Baghdad as US-led forces attacked the city.

Across a career spanning more than four decades, Arnett reported from major conflicts in Asia and the Middle East, conducted high-profile interviews, and worked for AP, CNN, NBC, and international broadcasters.

Born in New Zealand, he was widely regarded as one of the most influential war correspondents of his era. He is survived by his wife and two children.

 

Thai Jets Strike Cambodian Targets as Border Fighting Intensifies

Thailand carried out additional airstrikes on Cambodia on Thursday, saying its fighter jets hit a warehouse used by the Cambodian military to store BM-21 rockets amid escalating border clashes that began last week.

Cambodia said Thai F-16s bombed residential areas in the cities of Poipet and Serei Sophaon, wounding civilians, while Thailand said the strikes targeted military sites on the outskirts and sought to avoid civilian harm.

The fighting, sparked by a border skirmish on December 8, has spread across multiple disputed areas, prompting mass evacuations on both sides.

Thailand reports at least 21 soldiers killed, while Cambodia says 18 civilians have died and dozens were injured. Both governments accuse the other of starting the conflict, as regional and international mediators, including Malaysia and China, push to revive a ceasefire that collapsed despite earlier US-backed efforts.

 

Sources: News Agencies

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