| MATTIS TEMPERS OUTLOOK ON AFGHANISTAN AFTER BOMBINGS: Defense Secretary James Mattis on Tuesday sought to temper media reports that the Pentagon has taken a more optimistic outlook on Afghanistan, a day after a pair of suicide bombings in Kabul killed at least 35 people, including 10 journalists. Mattis, when asked how to reconcile the bombings with recent Pentagon statements suggesting an improving outlook, said he would "not subscribe to that" line of thinking. "I don't know that that's been the message from this building. ... We said last August NATO is going to hold the line, we knew there would be tough fighting going forward," Mattis told reporters before meeting with Macedonian Defense Minister Radmila Šekerinska. Deadly bombings: An affiliate group of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has claimed credit for the recent attack, the deadliest single incident against journalists in Afghanistan since 2002. After the first suicide bombing, another militant detonated his explosives after journalists convened to cover the first blast. Mattis said that while the military anticipates such attacks and "have been successful at blocking many of these ... unfortunately once in a while they get through." The White House on Tuesday also strongly condemned the attack. Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said there was "absolutely no justification for such a senseless and heinous act." Attacks come as Afghan security forces shrink...: The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) this week released a new report that found that Afghan army and police forces have shrunk by about 36,000 personnel in a year. The report also found that, since August 2016, insurgents have expanded control over parts of the country by 4 percent. About 14.5 percent of the country's total districts "were under insurgent control or influence - the highest level recorded since SIGAR began receiving district control data," according to the report. ...and the military IDs a service member who was killed: The Pentagon on Tuesday identified a soldier who was killed the previous day during a combat operation in eastern Afghanistan. Spc. Gabriel D. Conde, 22, of Loveland, Colo., was killed in action by enemy gunfire in Tagab district, the Pentagon said in a statement. Conde was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, U.S. Army Alaska, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. MORE SPACE FORCE CHATTER: Trump on Tuesday said his administration is "seriously thinking" about creating a new military branch known as the "Space Force." "You will be part of the five proud branches of the United States Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and the Coast Guard. And we're actually thinking of a sixth, and that would be the Space Force," Trump said in the White House Rose Garden while presenting the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy to the Army football team. "Does that make sense?" he asked. "You probably haven't even heard that. I'm just telling you now because we're getting very big in space, both militarily and for other reasons. And we are seriously thinking of the Space Force." The background: Trump in March first pushed for the idea of creating a new military branch that would specialize in fighting and policy in space. "You know, I was saying it the other day -- because we're doing a tremendous amount of work in space -- I said, 'Maybe we need a new force, we'll call it the Space Force.' And I was not really serious, and then I said, 'What a great idea, maybe we'll have to do that. That could happen,'" Trump said during a speech at Air Station Miramar in San Diego at the time. ON NORTH KOREA TALKS: Trump is basking in the glow of chatter that he deserves a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts on the Korea peninsula. Trump's supporters -- and even the South Korean president -- say that getting North Korea to denuclearize and end the Korean War would be a monumental achievement worthy of the prize.
But is a Nobel Peace Prize likely? It's far from sure, of course, that Trump's upcoming summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un will lead to a lasting peace deal, and Trump himself on Tuesday appeared to suggest that people are getting a bit ahead of themselves. "I just think that President Moon [Jae-in] was very nice when he suggested it," Trump said Tuesday when asked about his Nobel prospects. "I want to get peace. The main thing, we want to get peace. It was a big problem, and I think it's going to work out well. It's certainly possible that Trump could have been nominated for this year's peace prize, which former President Obama won in 2009. The cut-off for nominations is February 1, however, which came after the news of the Trump-Kim meeting. That means a 2019 nomination for Trump might be more likely. Where the peace prize suggestion came from: The talk of Trump deserving a Nobel picked up after the Kim-Moon summit last week resulted in a joint declaration saying they are committed to denuclearizing the peninsula and ending the Korean War. South Korean President Moon suggested Trump might deserve a Nobel Peace Prize if peace on the Korean peninsula is achieved. Then on Friday, Rep. Luke Messer (R-Ind.), who is in a crowded Senate primary campaign, released a statement saying he was gathering support from his colleagues to nominate Trump for the award in 2019. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) has also talked about Trump deserving the award if there's a peace deal. ON TAP FOR TOMORROW Director of the Army National Guard Gen. Timothy Kadavy will speak at the Institute of Land Warfare Breakfast Series at 6:30 a.m. at the Association of the United States Army in Arlington, VA. Dave Trachtenberg, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, will speak as part of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies' breakfast at 8 a.m. at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington, D.C. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson will speak at the annual Meeting of the U.S. Naval Institute at 4 p.m. at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. Nonprofit debate series Intelligence Squared U.S. is hosting a debate tomorrow evening on the motion "Negotiations Can Denuclearize North Korea." It will live stream from D.C. ICYMI: -- The Hill: US Russian fighter intercepts Navy plane over Baltic Sea: report -- The Hill: White House revises statement saying Iran 'has' secret nuclear weapons program -- The Hill: Kerry says Netanyahu showed why Iran nuclear deal was needed: 'It's working' -- The Hill: Pentagon weighs possible investigation into Trump's former VA pick -- The Hill: Opinion: If Trump pulls out of the Iran deal, what's our new strategy? -- The Hill: Opinion: Israel's intelligence coup accentuates Iran's nuclear threat -- The Hill: Opinion: The details reveal the true danger of Iran's secret nuclear program -- The Hill: Opinion: US must avoid Soviet-era disarmament mistakes with North Korea's bioweapons -- Defense News: Trump gaffes on attack aircraft sale to Nigeria | 
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