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Ben Wolfgang

Ben Wolfgang

Ben Wolfgang is a National Security Correspondent for The Washington Times. His reporting is regularly featured in the daily Threat Status newsletter.

Previously, he covered energy and the environment, Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2016, and also spent two years as a White House correspondent during the Obama administration.

Before coming to The Times in 2011, Ben worked as political reporter at The Republican-Herald in Pottsville, Pa.

He can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Ben Wolfgang

Afghan soldiers patrol outside their military base on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, May 9, 2021. By Sept. 11 2021, at the latest, the remaining U.S.and allied NATO forces will leave Afghanistan, ending nearly 20 years of military engagement. Also leaving is the American air support that the Afghan military has relied on to stave off potentially game-changing Taliban assaults, ever since it took command of the war from the U.S. and NATO in 2014. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

U.S. military to ‘rapidly’ evacuate Afghan allies targeted by Taliban

The Defense Department is "very, very rapidly" developing an ambitious plan to evacuate thousands of Afghans who worked with the U.S. over the past two decades but will soon be Taliban targets as American troops depart, the Pentagon's top general said Wednesday. Published May 27, 2021

From Jan. 22 through Feb. 4, students from the Army’s John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg, N.C. will be taking part in the latest “Robin Sage” exercise, the final test of their Special Forces Qualification Course training. (AP Photo/Chris Seward) ** FILE **

Push to erase Confederacy from U.S. military history expands dramatically

The push to sever all ties between the U.S. armed forces and the legacy of the Confederacy has reached new heights, with critics this week demanding that military facilities across the nation rename streets and dorms, take down plaques, and make other necessary changes to erase the Confederate legacy from the modern military. Published May 27, 2021

U.S. Navy F-35 jets fly over Levi's Stadium during the national anthem before an NFL divisional playoff football game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Minnesota Vikings, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020, in Santa Clara, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) ** FILE **

Air Force secretary nominee backs troubled F-35 program despite growing backlash

President Biden's nominee to lead the Air Force said Tuesday that the best way to combat cost overruns with the troubled F-35 fighter jet program is to "continue to buy" more of them, setting up a potential clash with lawmakers who are deeply frustrated with the aircraft and its rising price tag. Published May 26, 2021

People with Israeli flags attend a rally in support of Israel, in Berlin, Germany, Thursday, May 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber

Israel approves unilateral cease-fire in Gaza offensive

Israel and Hamas agreed on Thursday to a cease-fire, bringing to at least a temporary halt to nearly two weeks of brutal fighting that have claimed hundreds of lives, shaken the Middle East, and sparked a heated debate in the U.S. about how strongly Washington should back Israel and its military operations in the future. Published May 20, 2021

A Skyborg conceptual design for a low-cost Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV), via the Air Force Research Lab. Artwork via AFRL. [https://afresearchlab.com/technology/vanguards/successstories/skyborg]

Military AI advances spark debate over whether the machines may misbehave

Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida this month made military history: the first full-length test of Skyborg, a groundbreaking artificial intelligence system that hitched a ride on a drone and performed "basic aviation capabilities" with limited human involvement. Published May 20, 2021

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, May 19, 2021. (Sergei Ilyin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP) **FILE**

Russia in line to take control of Arctic Council

Russia is set to take control of the powerful Arctic Council, an eight-member body that wields tremendous influence over the icy region and could provide the Kremlin with a new platform to push its agenda amid rising tensions with the U.S. Published May 19, 2021

In this Feb. 12, 2009, photo, the Pentagon is seen from Air Force One. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) ** FILE **

Senators say Pentagon must pass audit or return millions of dollars

Military services and Pentagon offices that can't complete a full, clean audit of their budgets should return millions of dollars to American taxpayers, a bipartisan group of senators said Wednesday as they introduced legislation that could transform Defense Department finances. Published May 19, 2021

In this Nov. 3, 2009, file photo, Lt. Thomas Goodman, center, of the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division meets with villagers in Qatar Kala in the Pech Valley of Afghanistan's Kunar province with his interpreter Ayazudin Hilal, center left with hat. Hilil served as an interpreter alongside U.S. soldiers on hundreds of patrols and dozens of firefights in eastern Afghanistan, earning a glowing letter of recommendation from an American platoon commander and a medal of commendation. Still, Hilal was turned down when he applied for one of the scarce special visas that would allow him to relocate to the U.S with his family. (AP Photo/David Guttenfelder, File)

Capitol Hill critics warn Biden faces another Vietnam

The U.S. military exit from Afghanistan is beginning to look "just like Vietnam," a key lawmaker warned Tuesday as questions grow about the Biden administration's short-term strategy to ensure U.S. civilian personnel and Afghan allies aren't slaughtered by the Taliban and the long-term prospect that the country's pro-Western government may collapse without international support. Published May 18, 2021

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby puts his mask on following a media briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, Monday, May 3, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Pentagon drops indoor mask requirement

Fully vaccinated individuals no longer need to wear masks indoors at the Pentagon or other Defense Department facilities, military officials said Friday. Published May 14, 2021

An Israeli artillery unit fires toward targets in Gaza Strip, at the Israeli Gaza border, Thursday, May 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israeli-Palestinian fighting sparks bitter political battles

Israel wants the world to unite behind its war against Iran-backed Hamas, which it escalated Friday morning, but the fighting has sparked division, including in Washington, where shouting matches on Capitol Hill, charges of antisemitism and bitter foreign policy fights have broken out as lawmakers draw their own battle lines. Published May 13, 2021

Israeli police patrol during clashes between Arabs, police and Jews, in the mixed town of Lod, central Israel, Wednesday, May 12, 2021. As rockets from Gaza streaked overhead, Arabs and Jews fought each other on the streets below. Rioters torched vehicles, a restaurant and a synagogue in one of the worst spasms of communal violence that Israel has seen in years. (AP Photo/Heidi Levine)

Israeli-Palestinian clash rattles Trump Abraham Accords, Biden agenda

Escalating Israeli-Palestinian violence is threatening to undermine progress made by the Trump administration's Abraham Accords and drive a new wedge between Israel and the Arab world, all while President Biden scrambles to address the crisis that has eclipsed his own foreign policy priorities. Published May 12, 2021

An Israeli soldier stands guard next to an Iron Dome air defense system as smoke rises from an oil tank on fire after it was hit by a rocket fire from Gaza Strip, near the town of Ashkelon, Israel,, Wednesday, May 12, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israel’s vaunted Iron Dome stretched to limit by Hamas rocket barrage

Israel's state-of-the-art Iron Dome missile defense system is facing its toughest test to date amid rapid-fire rocket attacks from Hamas, with military analysts in Israel openly wondering whether the Palestinian militant group has found a strategy to partially pierce the shield. Published May 12, 2021

Russian President Vladimir Putin, center, and Tajikistan's President Emomali Rakhmon, left, attend a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier after the Victory Day military parade in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, May 9, 2021, marking the 76th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe. (Mikhail Metzel, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Joe Biden seeks Russia penalty to stop cyberattacks

Major cyberattacks with links to Russia have grown bolder even in the face of escalating U.S. economic sanctions, presenting a high-stakes dilemma for President Biden as he weighs how to respond to the devastating assault on the Colonial Pipeline and what tools America may have at its disposal to punch back. Published May 11, 2021