• President Joe Biden delivered his first press conference of 2024 amid questions about his future.
• In response to a question about VP Harris, he referred to her as "Vice President Trump."
• It was the first major gaffe he made at the press conference.

At a press conference after the conclusion of this week's NATO summit, President Joe Biden referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as "Vice President Trump."

"Look, I wouldn't have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president if I didn't think she was not qualified to be vice president," said Biden.

It was his first major gaffe of the press conference, which remains ongoing.

Earlier this evening, Biden referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as "President Putin" before quickly correcting himself.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

• I was with my partner for 19 years when we suddenly got divorced.
• I am now working on rebuilding my life as a 40-year-old, independent person.
• I am starting to find my identity and leaning on friends for support. 

Nobody gets married planning to get divorced, and yet about half of all marriages end that way. This year I've learned even queer marriages aren't special or immune from this fate. Much to my great surprise, love doesn't always "win."

I spent over 19 years with my now ex-partner, believing that what we had was forever. However, this year, a few months before turning 40, I learned the life we had was no longer what my partner wanted. They had a new life and wanted a divorce.

In the aftermath, I was left figuring out who I was without them and how to rebuild my life as a newly middle-aged queer person.

My childhood prepared me for this

This month, the therapist I started seeing during the divorce "graduated" me out of therapy. It has been nearly six months since my ex-partner walked out. Her assessment is that I am thriving, solid, and confident with a plan for moving forward. She expressed amazement at my growth, noting that most people don't bounce back quickly from the shock of their families falling apart.

I credit my experience as a homeless teenager with helping me bounce back so quickly. When you lose your home, world, and family as a kid, on some level, you'll always be prepared to lose it again.

I spent years knowing my worst fear was my partner leaving. In our relationship, I did everything I could imagine to please my ex and prevent being abandoned. However, once they left and I realized the worst thing had happened, I was terrified, but I also felt a profound freedom.

Starting over and rebuilding is a thing that I know how to do. I've done it before and knew I could and would do it again.

I'm starting to rebuild my life

Once I wrapped my mind around the immediate crisis of being abandoned, I realized the first thing I had to do was figure out who I was, and who I wanted to be now.

In my case, spending practically all of my adult life (age 20-39) with a partner made it hard to know who I am as an individual. Divorce changes you. I will never be the person I was before that day in January when I came home and learned my marriage was over. To cope, initially, I immersed myself in my work, which, as a writer/small business owner, is never-ending.

I got rid of all the clothes my ex-partner had wanted me to wear. I dyed and then more recently cut off my hair. My life was mine to architect, and I wanted to look as different on the outside as I felt on the inside. I committed to my creative projects. I reconnected with friends and creative collaborators around the world. I started going out to social and community events. I reinvested my time and presence in the subcultures and interests that were mine before I met my now ex-partner.

Essentially, I started investing in getting to know myself again. As part of this journey, I've found that being in a community, being surrounded by people who have the same passions as I do, makes me feel less alone and more excited about the future than I've felt in years.

I'm leaning on my chosen family for support

I'll never forget the night after my ex-partner left when I got a call from one of my now closest friends. "Let me be part of your inner circle?" he asked.

In that moment all the lessons I learned as a homeless youth flashed through my brain. I could white-knuckle myself through this alone, trusting nobody, or I could remember that not everyone was trying to hurt me and create a new family built on trust, love, and shared experiences. Queer chosen family has always been important to my sense of self, but that has been especially true this year.

As I have navigated my divorce I have loved deeply, and I have let people love me. I have let people emotionally show up for me and trusted them not to hurt me. Contrary to my deepest fears, I wasn't isolated, and there were people ready and excited to build a new family with me. These are friends who were there on my worst days. People who got in their car in an ice storm to get to me the day my ex-partner left stayed up all night on the phone with me, listening as I tried to make sense of what happened.

I never wanted my relationship to end in divorce, and I never imagined it would. However, now that it has, I've learned that isn't the end of the world.

Being alone is scary, but much to my surprise, even though I'm starting over at 40, I feel much less alone than ever before. I'm surrounding myself with people who love me for who I am. I'm also learning that I like the new life I'm building — maybe even better than the one I lost.

• Ukraine's navy has acquired at least 16 Swedish-made patrol boats this year to counter Russia.
• The CB90 assault craft can deploy on various missions, from troop delivery to mine reconnaissance.
• They are also configurable — able to act as an armored raider or floating command center as needed.

Ukraine's navy added three Swedish-made patrol boats to its fleet earlier this month as it continues to hammer Russian naval forces in the Black Sea.

The recent CB90 delivery comes after Sweden announced its massive $682 million military aid package to Ukraine in February, which included 10 CB90 vessels and 20 other riverine boats. The Netherlands similarly provided three more CB90s to Ukraine a month later, for a total of at least 16.

Turning the tide in the Black Sea

Steel Front, a military assistance initiative run by Ukrainian billionaire Rinat Akhmetov, sent Ukraine the new CB90-class fast assault crafts, which are already in operation in waters near Crimea.

Following a six-month effort by Steel Front and Ukrainian steel giant Metinvest, the three vessels and crew training for Ukrainian forces cost more than $4.1 million.

"There is no doubt the Black Sea is an important front," Oleksandr Vodoviz, an executive at Metinvest, said in a statement, "and our aim is that these powerful boats will make a significant difference to Ukraine's ability to defend itself."

In total, Sweden has provided at least 13 CB90s to Ukraine's navy. The Netherlands donated nearly two dozen inflatable and armored boats, including three CB90s, to Ukraine in March. The Finnish Ministry of Defense also delivered a number of landing crafts to Ukraine. It wasn't immediately clear what type of vessels were sent, but Finnish media speculated them to operate similarly to the Swedish CB-90.

Inside the CB90

Dockstavarvet, a shipyard owned by Swedish defense manufacturer Saab, originally developed the CB90 for the Swedish Navy.

The 52-foot-long patrol boat is propelled by twin diesel engines that allow it to travel at speeds of up to 40 knots — or 46 miles per hour — with a range of more than 240 nautical miles.

Two partially ducted water jets make the lightweight CB90 highly maneuverable. It can make sharp turns and come to a complete stop in about 130 feet.

Armed to the teeth

The combat boat is equipped with a gun mount atop its wheelhouse, which can mount a .50-caliber machine gun, 40mm grenade launcher, or remote-controlled weapons.

In addition to its top-mounted guns, the CB90 can deploy Hellfire anti-ship missiles, 2.8-ton sea mines, and depth charges.

A versatile vessel

Designed to patrol and defend coastal waters, the shallow-draught CB90 can be deployed in both open waters and rocky shores for missions like ferrying troops, mine reconnaissance, or landing troops for amphibious raids.

From gunboat to command post

The vessel's aft is also configurable; it can accommodate a range of gear, from remote-controlled weaponry to additional radar and communications equipment.

Armed and armored

Whether operating as a combat-ready gunboat or a floating command post, the CB90 has a durable hull made of lightweight polyethylene lining and safety glass, offering ballistic protection to shield its personnel and vital components during hostile operations.

"With its armament and ballistic protection, the CB90 can deliver its troops in the face of enemy fire with a degree of survivability for both the craft and embarked troops," Pete Pagano, a retired US Navy officer, wrote in an article for the US Naval Institute's Proceedings magazine.

While the armed and armored CB90 can survive the potentially high-risk delivery, Pagano wrote that the Swedish-built vessel alone "could provide limited supporting firepower for the embarked troops during the vulnerable approach to and landing on the beach," calling for support from other landing craft to bring in heavy equipment.

Transport for troops and cargo

The boat is typically operated by a crew of two officers and one engineer, with two operator seats and a middle jump seat in an aircraft-style cockpit.

The CB90's midsection has a compartment that can carry 21 combat-ready Marines and up to 4.5 tons of cargo, making it an efficient method to deploy troops or extract casualties.

Deployed by naval forces around the globe

Since being commissioned in 1991, more than 200 CB90 boats have been operated by naval forces worldwide. The US Navy even contracted US-based boat manufacturer SAFE Boats International to build CB90s as riverine command boats.

The combat boat's design and capabilities have also been modified over the years. Dockstavarvet optimized the boat's design in its next-generation variant, the CB90 HSM, altering the engine position to make it quieter and more efficient.

The CB90 HSM features a new combat management system and surveillance sensors, making it "a whole new breed, ready to take on the coasts of Sweden," according to a press release.

Supporting Ukraine's riverine flotilla

While the new combat boats are operating near Crimea, CB90 boats supplied by Ukrainian allies have bolstered the country's riverine units, which have been hammered by Russian forces.

Explosive-laden Russian drones and artillery have decimated Ukrainian boat crews defending the Dnipro River in southern Ukraine.

Last October, a Russian ace drone pilot, identified by the call sign "Moisey," struck nearly 400 Ukrainian marines and three dozen vessels.

"We were sitting in the water at night, and we were shelled by everything," a Ukrainian marine named Maksym, who was stationed at the river's east bank, told The New York Times in December. "My comrades were dying in front of my eyes."

Maksym added that Russian aircraft continued to pummel the left bank with glide bombs as the Ukrainian platoon tried to evacuate.

"The left bank was like purgatory," he said. "You are not dead yet, but you don't feel alive."

The Swedish CB90s, among additional donated boats from other allied nations, have been integral to Ukraine's efforts to fend off Russian forces in the region.

• President Joe Biden had a major mix-up while speaking at a NATO summit on Thursday.
• The 81-year-old president introduced Voldomyr Zelenskyy as Vladimir Putin.
• Biden quickly corrected himself and told Zelenskyy he was "better" than Putin. 

President Joe Biden introduced Ukrainian President Voldomyr Zelenskyy as Russian President Vladimir Putin in a cringeworthy moment at a NATO conference on Thursday.

The inaccurate introduction is Biden's most recent flub amid increasing skepticism over the 81-year-old president's fitness for office, including from members of his own party.

"Now I want to hand it over to the president of Ukraine, who has as much courage as he has determination," Biden said. "Ladies and gentlemen, President Putin."

Putin has waged a yearslong war in Ukraine after invading the neighboring country in February 2022.

Biden quickly caught his mistake after mixing up the two leaders on stage.

"He's gonna beat President Putin, President Zelenskyy," Biden said. "I'm so focused on beating President Putin."

Zelenskyy, for his part, appeared to make light of the situation, responding, "I'm better."

"You are a hell of a lot better," Biden said.

NATO leaders appeared to give halted applause following Biden's mix-up, with some chuckling and smiling following his correction.

The gaffe comes as a growing number of Democrats publicly call on Biden to drop out of the 2024 election following his disastrous debate performance earlier this month.

Vermont Sen. Peter Welch was the first Senate Democrat to urge Biden to end his reelection campaign, writing in a Wednesday op-ed that he no longer believes Biden to be the best candidate to beat former President Donald Trump come November.

Meanwhile, thirteen House Democrats and counting have called on Biden to step down as the party nominee.

Biden's Thursday slip-up unfolded less than an hour before the president will face reporters in an unscripted, live press conference to wrap up the NATO summit in Washington, DC, this week.

• General Atomics released video showing the maiden flight of the US Air Force's XQ-67A drone.
• The autonomous aircraft is part of the service's effort to build out its manned and unmanned fleet.
• The Air Force plans to deliver 100 collaborative combat aircraft by 2029, with up to 2,000 in total.

In what appears to be a fist pump as a rapidly built and developed new combat technology comes to life, the US Air Force and contractor General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) have released a 90-second video showing the first flight of the XQ-67A, a likely predecessor of the service's long-anticipated collaborative combat aircraft, or CCA.

The new video, published at the end of June, shows the unmanned aircraft taxiing from a covered hangar at the General Atomics Gray Butte Flight Operations Facility near Palmdale, CA, accelerating on the runway, and cruising and banking in the air before returning for a conventional landing.

"Move fast. Move first," a slogan superimposed by the contractor reads as the drone taxis back.

It's been an eventful few months for the XQ-67A and the Air Force's efforts to create a fleet of low-cost, high-tech autonomy-capable aircraft that can network with and support manned fighters in the air. First unveiled in February 2024, the same month it took its first flight, the drone prototype was given a life extension in April when the Air Force awarded both General Atomics and Anduril funding to continue developing their designs. In its own announcement, GA-ASI confirmed it would be sticking with the design of the XQ-67A, which it has called an "Off-Board Sensing Station," or OBSS.

"The CCA program redefines the future of aviation and will shape the USAF acquisition model to deliver affordable combat mass to the warfighter at the speed of relevancy," Mike Atwood, the company's vice president of Advanced Programs, said in an announcement at the time.

Following the release of the previously unseen first flight footage on June 26, the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) awarded GA-ASI a new $9.3 million contract for additional research on the platform, bringing AFRL's investment on the XQ-67A up to nearly $68 million. And, in an exclusive report published July 6, Air and Space Forces Magazine revealed that a first contract for delivery of CCA is expected to be awarded to one or both contractors this fall.

The new angles highlighted in the short video underscore the unique design of this prospective fighter jet teammate. Like a fighter, it has a pair of angled vertical stabilizers, a large jet intake — in this case where the cockpit would be — and, as The War Zone has pointed out, what look like openings for side-looking airborne radar. Based on the taxi shots, the aircraft appears to be similar in size to a small private plane such as the Cessna Skyhawk. And like many aircraft in that category, it has fixed, rather than retractable, landing gear.

The unknowns for this CCA prototype remain abundant, including its top speed, range, and payload capacity. Also unclear is what that payload will ultimately consist of, and whether the OBSS, or a variant, will be able to carry weapons. A payload that includes weapons has always been part of the Air Force's ultimate vision for the CCA. Also unclear is to what extent the OBSS, which is remotely piloted but also capable of autonomous flight, employed autonomy in its maiden flight.

In an announcement accompanying the new footage, Air and Space Forces Magazine hailed the rapid design, building, and testing process that led to a first flight in just over two years.

"It is the first of its kind to be built on a common chassis or genus — much like that of a motor vehicle frame — and with its first successful flight, the XQ-67A is proof that the genus approach works," the announcement stated. "This enables a faster and more cost-effective replication of the aircraft," it added.

The OBSS shares much of its DNA with the Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie, an entrant in the Air Force's Skyborg program that remains in use by the Marine Corps as a testbed platform. The Marine Corps anticipated the Valkyrie to meet a variety of needs ranging from electronic warfare to fires support, and as a platform to inform its own low-cost drone wingman program, the Penetrating Affordable Autonomous Collaborative Killer, or PAACK.

Many challenges remain ahead of OBSS as the Air Force continues to fast-track plans for its cheap, smart drone fleet, which it calls Low Cost Attritable Aircraft Technologies, or LCAAT. The Air Force plans to fast-track production of the first 100 collaborative combat aircraft, delivering them to the fleet by 2029. Ultimately, according to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, who testified before Congress this spring, the service wants at least 1,000 and possibly as many as 2,000 CCAs at an individual cost of $30 million or less.

The Air Force hopes CCA won't just augment or modernize air warfare — but transform it entirely. A report released in February from the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies emphasizes that the service is the "oldest, smallest and least ready in its history" while it faces an "unprecedented threat" from a highly capable China. The report describes an internal wargame employing different mixes of CCA and manned fighters that showed how the unmanned aircraft, if made rugged and capable enough, could "help disrupt and suppress" the integrated air defense system employed by China and supercharge the Air Force's ability to project combat mass.

CCA, the paper's authors write, could help disrupt China's preferred way of fighting and deny the country an assured victory, if employed correctly to multiply capabilities.

"Understanding what is meant by 'collaborative' is important to fully appreciate the potential of CCA," the paper states. "AI-enabled CCA should be capable of collaboratively operating with other crewed and uncrewed aircraft to share threat information, their own locations, and fuel and weapons status across a force package. Future CCA could even be designed to autonomously assign targets to aircraft within a mission package to achieve the best weapons-to-target pairings," it adds.

As the development phase for GA-ASI and Anduril moves forward, we'll be looking for demonstrations of how XQ-67A and other prototypes interact with manned fighters and exhibit the full effect of their autonomous and AI networking capabilities.

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• Trump now says SCOTUS immunity voids his entire hush-money case, not just his conviction.
• The argument was made in a 55-page legal filing on Thursday.
• It argues that grand jurors should never have seen 'official-act' evidence now banned by SCOTUS.

In a new court filing made public Thursday, lawyers for former President Donald Trump argue that his newly-won presidential immunity voids not only his hush-money conviction, but the indictment itself.

Grand jurors should never have been shown "official-act" evidence in violation of "the Presidential immunity doctrine" set earlier this month by the US Supreme Court, the 55-page filing argues.

SCOTUS found that former presidents cannot be prosecuted for official acts and that such acts cannot be used as evidence against them, even in the prosecution of non-official acts.

The filing appears to mention at least four instances of "official-acts testimony" used by Manhattan prosecutors in the grand jury that indicted Trump on 34 counts of falsifying business records.

But one portion of Trump's filing has been redacted to obscure what this official-act evidence purportedly was.

No reason for the redactions was given, but grand jury proceedings are presumptively secret in New York.

Showing grand jurors this evidence retroactively tainted the indictment, Trump argues.

"Because an Indictment so tainted cannot stand, the charges must be dismissed," a lawyer for Trump, Todd Blanche, writes in the filing.

Read the Trump motion to dismiss his hush-money indictment and his verdict here.

Trump's defense team had warned in a one-page court filing just hours after the landmark immunity opinion was published that it would be using it to challenge his May 30 hush-money conviction.

This is a breaking story; please check back for developments.