Aaron Mehta

Aaron Mehta was deputy editor and senior Pentagon correspondent for Defense News, covering policy, strategy and acquisition at the highest levels of the Defense Department and its international partners.


  • US, China Stuck Over Reclaimed Lands
    US, China Stuck Over Reclaimed Lands

    As the US and China hold fast to differing legal opinions about reclaimed land in the South China Sea, analysts and stakeholders are trying to figure out the next step for each country.

  • Carter Announces $425M In Pacific Partnership Funding
    Carter Announces $425M In Pacific Partnership Funding

    US Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced Saturday a new plan to funnel $425 million into partner building in the Pacific.

  • McCain to Push Change on Vietnam Arms Embargo
    McCain to Push Change on Vietnam Arms Embargo

    Sen. John McCain wants to ease a long-standing arms embargo between the US and Vietnam

  • Carter: China ‘Out of Step’ With Pacific
    Carter: China ‘Out of Step’ With Pacific

    In a major address Saturday, US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter once again asserted America’s right of transit in the Pacific while continuing to single out China as a bad actor in the region

  • US Looks at Train, Equip Options in Iraq
    US Looks at Train, Equip Options in Iraq

    The Pentagon has assembled a group to look at potential changes to the train and equip mission in Iraq, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter said Thursday.

  • Carter: China Isolating Itself in Pacific
    Carter: China Isolating Itself in Pacific

    US Defense Secretary Ash Carter warned China Wednesday that attempts to expand its influence in the South China Sea will ultimately lead to isolation for the Pacific power

  • USAF Certifies SpaceX for Military Launches
    USAF Certifies SpaceX for Military Launches

    SpaceX has been certified for military space launch, the US Air Force announced Tuesday.

  • For NATO, a Cloudy Future
    For NATO, a Cloudy Future

    The future of European military power isn’t in a next-generation jet or a specialized unmanned system, according to a pair of top incoming NATO officials. Instead, the future is in that nebulous, if crucial, technology commonly referred to as the cloud.

  • USAF Releases Strategic Master Plan
    USAF Releases Strategic Master Plan

    The US Air Force has released the next piece of its long-term strategic planning restructure, one which begins to deliver benchmarks for how the service will grow in future decades

  • DoD Strategy in Iraq Unchanged Post Ramadi
    DoD Strategy in Iraq Unchanged Post Ramadi

    The Pentagon does not plan on changing its strategy in Iraq, despite the loss of Ramadi to Islamic State forces over the weekend.