Defense Mission Research Articles

Dual-Use “New Space”: US Experience

The article explores the growing involvement of private space companies in military activities, with a primary focus on the United States. It delves into the specific contributions of private entities to national defense missions, particularly in the militarization of outer space. The authors analyze the strategic interests of government agencies in integrating non-state actors to enhance space capabilities, such as communication, Earth observation, situational awareness, and in-orbit servicing. The paper also assesses the potential implications of these trends for international security, highlighting the complexities that arise from the blurred lines between civil and military space operations. It points to the creation of the U.S. Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve (CASR), an initiative aimed at enhancing defense through commercial space partnerships, and discusses the operational and strategic challenges of managing vast satellite constellations. Additionally, the article reflects on the security risks posed by the militarization of commercial space infrastructure, examining the potential consequences for geopolitical stability and the future of space conflict management. Finally, it suggests that further research and regulatory measures are necessary to mitigate the military threats linked to the New Space

Multiple Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Coalition Formation and Control for Collaborative Defense Mission

Multiple Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Coalition Formation and Control for Collaborative Defense Mission

Fast boulder fracturing by thermal fatigue detected on stony asteroids

Spacecraft observations revealed that rocks on carbonaceous asteroids, which constitute the most numerous class by composition, can develop millimeter-to-meter-scale fractures due to thermal stresses. However, signatures of this process on the second-most populous group of asteroids, the S-complex, have been poorly constrained. Here, we report observations of boulders’ fractures on Dimorphos, which is the moonlet of the S-complex asteroid (65803) Didymos, the target of NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) planetary defense mission. We show that the size-frequency distribution and orientation of the mapped fractures are consistent with formation through thermal fatigue. The fractures’ preferential orientation supports that these have originated in situ on Dimorphos boulders and not on Didymos boulders later transferred to Dimorphos. Based on our model of the fracture propagation, we propose that thermal fatigue on rocks exposed on the surface of S-type asteroids can form shallow, horizontally propagating fractures in much shorter timescales (100 kyr) than in the direction normal to the boulder surface (order of Myrs). The presence of boulder fields affected by thermal fracturing on near-Earth asteroid surfaces may contribute to an enhancement in the ejected mass and momentum from kinetic impactors when deflecting asteroids.

Cooperative defense of autonomous surface vessels with quantity disadvantage using behavior cloning and deep reinforcement learning

Autonomous Surface Vessels (ASVs) excel at undertaking hazardous tasks, garnering significant attention recently. Particularly, ASV cooperative defense is a crucial application for protecting harbors and combating smugglers. Here, ASVs intercept intruders from reaching a protected region. Unlike most research, which assumes defenders with numerical advantages, this work considers a more practical defense mission with fewer defenders, defender damages, and intruders employing evasion strategies. However, interception challenges are also introduced, including ASV underactuated dynamics, a limited interception time window, and environmental nonstationarity. Directly applying existing defense methods to such missions may not achieve success. To surmount the challenges, we propose an ASV decision-making framework by integrating supervised learning and deep reinforcement learning. Initially, supervised learning uses actions from a bi-level controller to train ASVs, addressing underactuated dynamics and aiding policy convergence. Subsequently, deep reinforcement learning explores more effective policies to enhance interception rates. Furthermore, hybrid rewards are meticulously designed to drive policy optimizations while mitigating environmental nonstationarity. Finally, numerical simulations are carried out to verify the effectiveness of our approach.

Live application programming in the defense industry with the Molecule component framework

At Thales Defense Mission Systems (DMS), software products first go through an industrial prototyping phase. Prototypes are serious applications that we evaluate with our end-users during demonstrations. End-users have a central role in the design process of our products. They often ask for software modifications during demonstrations to experiment new ideas or to focus the existing design on their needs.In this paper, we present how we combined Smalltalk’s live-programming capabilities with software component models to obtain flexible and modular software designs in our context of live prototyping. We present Molecule, an open-source implementation of the Lightweight CORBA Component Model in Pharo. We use Molecule to build HMI systems prototypes, and we benefit from the dynamic run-time modification capabilities of Pharo during demonstrations with our end-users where we explore software designs in a lively way.Molecule is an industrial contribution to Smalltalk, as it capitalizes 20 years of usage and maturation in our prototyping activity. The Molecule framework and tools are now mature, and we started building end-user software used in production at Thales DMS. We present two such end-user software and analyze their component architecture, that are representative of how we (learnt to) build HMI prototypes. Finally, we analyze our technological decisions with regards to the benefits we sought for our industrial activity.

A comprehensive risk prediction method for defense mission planning based on probabilistic reasoning and hierarchical analysis

A comprehensive risk prediction method for defense mission planning based on probabilistic reasoning and hierarchical analysis

PROFESSIONALISM OF THE INDONESIAN ARMED FORCES: NEW, OLD, OR HYBRID PROFESSIONALISM?

This paper examines the special characteristics of the military professionalism of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (Tentara National Indonesia, TNI). TNI, which once held strong political power during the Suharto era, was transformed into a professional military that follows the principle of civilian supremacy and has not been involved in politics since its military reform in 1998. It seems to have changed from a military of new professionalism that dominates the politics of the nation, to a military of old professionalism that focuses purely on defence missions. However, the TNI’s missions are not limited to national defence, as it also carries out non-military missions, such as territorial development (pembinaan teritorial, Binter). This paper uses qualitative data collected through interviews with relevant personnel of defence and security sectors. This paper analyzes the TNI’s extensive non-military missions and its organized structure that are the old system of the Suharto era, sometimes criticized from the framework of conventional, western military norms. As a result, I argue that this old system is effective in conducting operations and that the TNI’s professionalism is neither old, nor new, but what I call hybrid professionalism, which fits the Indonesian history and society.

VADER: Probing the Dark Side of Dimorphos with LICIACube LUKE

Abstract The ASI cubesat LICIACube has been part of the first planetary defense mission DART, having among its scopes to complement the DRACO images to better constrain the Dimorphos shape. LICIACube had two different cameras, LEIA and LUKE, and to accomplish its goal, it exploited the unique possibility of acquiring images of the Dimorphos hemisphere not seen by DART from a vantage point of view, in both time and space. This work is indeed aimed at constraining the tridimensional shape of Dimorphos, starting from both LUKE images of the nonimpacted hemisphere of Dimorphos and the results obtained by DART looking at the impacted hemisphere. To this aim, we developed a semiautomatic Computer Vision algorithm, named VADER, able to identify objects of interest on the basis of physical characteristics, subsequently used as input to retrieve the shape of the ellipse projected in the LUKE images analyzed. Thanks to this shape, we then extracted information about the Dimorphos ellipsoid by applying a series of quantitative geometric considerations. Although the solution space coming from this analysis includes the triaxial ellipsoid found by using DART images, we cannot discard the possibility that Dimorphos has a more elongated shape, more similar to what is expected from previous theories and observations. The result of our work seems therefore to emphasize the unique value of the LICIACube mission and its images, making even clearer the need of having different points of view to accurately define the shape of an asteroid.

Strengthening Naval Diplomacy RI-US in Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance through Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training 2024

This research discusses the joint exercise between the Indonesian Navy, the US Navy, and the US Marines (USMC), namely Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) to carry out Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR), littoral warfare, and coastal defence missions. This research uses descriptive qualitative related to Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT). CARAT is implemented bilaterally to enhance the maritime partnership between Indonesia and the US. For Indonesia, building a maritime partnership with the US should focus on bilateral interests as well as regional security. For the US, the CARAT programme in Indonesia can be seen as part of an effort to strengthen its influence in Southeast Asia, including facing China's dominance in the region. Based on the above background, the researcher formulates the problem, namely how to strengthen Indonesia's cooperative relationship with the United States in the face of China's dominance in the Southeast Asian region. Data collection is obtained from literature review by collecting various articles, books, journals, or other sources. The results of this study indicate that to strengthen Indonesia's cooperative relationship with the United States in the face of China's dominance in the Southeast Asian region, is to increase cooperation in the field of security and defence, through Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training 2024. This will help strengthen Indonesia's defence capacity and also send a signal to China that Indonesia is not easily intimidated. It is also important to continue to build relations with China in a critical but constructive manner, by promoting dialogue and diplomacy to seek points of agreement and achieve stability in the Southeast Asian region as a whole. CARAT activities are an effective strategy in enhancing security stability in the region through maritime defence cooperation. The programme benefits partner countries in building relationships of trust, enhancing defence capabilities and combating maritime threats. To increase the effectiveness of CARAT, it is recommended that partner countries continue to be committed to the programme and maintain good cooperation with the US navy and other countries in the region.

Missile Strike Simulation in a Video Game Engine

In the field of modern computer gaming (especially within the genre of war-game strategies, realistic first-person shooters and other warfare games) the complexity of virtual naval warfare mechanics and strategies significantly increases. There is a growing demand for advanced simulation tools to provide more immersive experience and more complex gameplay for all players. The goal of this research is to create a model and tool that can accurately predict the impact of anti-ship missiles on ships engaged in different game scenarios, considering a wide range of battle conditions. By encompassing a broad array of missile types, landing strategies, ship classes, aircraft types, reconnaissance options, electronic warfare technologies and various anti-air and missile defense systems, the simulation includes both offensive and defensive maneuvers to make sure that anti-ship missiles are important within the game scenarios. Firstly, the research focuses on enhancing prediction models for calculating the damage inflicted by missile strikes on opposing naval forces. Secondly, it seeks to refine algorithms for determining the required number of missiles to prevent rival player advances, thereby maximizing operational efficiency and effectiveness in defensive missions.

육군 현역 병사의 군 의료서비스에 대한 의미

The purpose of this study is to examine the meaning of military medical services of Korean army soldiers. In-depth interviews were conducted with five study participants. The interview content consisted of 49 semantic units, 8 subcategories, and 4 categories. As a result of the study, first, there was a need to present measures and cases to establish trust that soldiers can receive the best medical services in a timely manner when they need medical services while performing defense missions. Second, problems with military medical services presented in the past, such as insufficient information on military medical services, pain to endure with timely medical services, and insufficient quality of military medical services, have not been resolved. Third, there was a sad reality that the level of medical services had to be divided into military and private sectors. Fourth, it was suggested that appropriate medical services must be provided to soldiers who perform national defense obligations.

Design and Implementation of a Model Predictive Formation Tracking Control System for Underwater Multiple Small Spherical Robots

Due to the characteristics of good concealment ability and strong mobility, multiple, small spherical underwater robot formations play an important role in near coast defense missions, such as cruising, reconnaissance, surveillance, and sensitive target capturing. Referring to the formation problem for underwater small spherical robots with limited energy, perception, and computation abilities, a trajectory tracking-based formation strategy that transforms the complex formation tracking problem into a simple trajectory tracking problem of a single robot is provided. Two layers are designed in the formation tracking strategy. The upper layer is a virtual structure-based formation algorithm. The bottom layer is a tracking controller based on model predictive control (MPC). The formation algorithm is in charge of calculating reference trajectory for each robot in the formation according to the global formation path. The MPC-based dynamic controller for each robot is designed to track the self reference trajectory. Compared with the model predictive control method used for the traditional trajectory tracking problem of a single robot, this paper additionally considers the formation constraints and the internal collision avoidance. In addition, the extended state observer (ESO) is utilized to estimate the lumped disturbance composed of environment disturbance and the inaccurate dynamic model of a small spherical robot. Not only are the numerical simulations based on MATLAB v.2015a, but physical simulations based on self-building multi-spherical robot formation platform are also carried out. Furthermore, through using two small spherical robots, a formation tracing experiment is conducted. All of the results prove that the proposed formation method is feasible and practical for small spherical robots.

THEO & MUFN: Defending Earth against the 2023 PDC hypothetical asteroid impact

Planetary defense is an emerging field among the aerospace community. As the rate of near-Earth object (NEO) discoveries increases, so too does the probability that we will discover a NEO on a collision course with Earth. This paper documents a planetary defense mission campaign design to defend against the hypothetical Earth impactor 2023 PDC. At its 90th percentile mass estimate, the asteroid could have a diameter of approximately 1120 m. The asteroid makes no close approaches until Earth impact and has the potential to affect over a billion people, depending on its actual size. This paper describes a mission campaign consisting of both reconnaissance and mitigation missions that will be deployed to neutralize the threat posed by the asteroid. The reconnaissance orbiter named THEO (Terrestrial Hazard Exploration Orbiter) will survey the asteroid to clarify its morphological, gravitational, and dynamical properties. This information will be used to inform the design of the subsequent mitigation mission. THEO will be designed to have a mission lifetime of 12 years which will enable it to observe the mitigation mission and confirm its success. Two 21-day launch periods have been identified that minimize post-launch ΔV requirements and include current launch vehicle capabilities. For the purposes of this paper, the mitigation mission has been designed assuming a geocenter impact for the 90th percentile mass estimate of the asteroid because a precise impact location and an accurate mass estimate will not be available until THEO reconnoiters 2023 PDC. The mitigation mission, named MUFN (Mitigation Using a Fission Nuclear device), will send three spacecraft to rendezvous with 2023 PDC and alter the asteroid’s trajectory prior to Earth impact through a series of standoff nuclear detonations. The MUFN spacecraft are identical in design, each employing a hypergolic bi-propellant thruster. Each MUFN spacecraft launches on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy Expendable launch vehicle between 2028 and 2030 and carries four 340 kt nuclear explosive device (NED) equipped orbiters, named BELA-Os (“Bull’s Eye, Later Asteroid” Orbiters). The BELA-Os are designed to sequentially deploy, maneuver to an optimal standoff distance anti-parallel to the asteroid velocity vector, and detonate the NED to impart a change-in-velocity to the asteroid. After arrival at 2023 PDC, each MUFN spacecraft will station-keep above the asteroid. The NED-equipped BELA-Os will deploy from the MUFN spacecraft and maneuver 180 degrees out of phase from MUFN to the ‘front’ of the asteroid. Once there, each BELA-O will detonate and impart 2.32 mm/s of velocity change to the asteroid. After the ablation debris has cleared, MUFN will complete a single orbit around the asteroid to survey the blast site and assess the effectiveness of the detonation. After MUFN has completed its survey, it will release another BELA-O. This process will repeat until all BELA-Os have been released by all MUFN spacecraft. All denotations will occur between 2029 and 2031. After all BELA-Os have detonated their NED payloads near the 2023 PDC asteroid to deflect its orbit, the asteroid will safely fly by Earth at a minimum altitude of 3500 km instead of colliding on October 22, 2036.

Planetary defense governance: Thirty years of development and the multilateral future

Planetary defense (PD) is a well-established program that refers to activities and actions to predict and mitigate a potential impact by an asteroid or comet on the Earth. States are discussing possible deflection scenarios based on their scientific knowledge and technology capacities at the UN-endorsed Space Mission Planning Advisory Group (SMPAG) and at the General Assembly. Even though PD is being formally recognized as an inherently global challenge requiring international cooperation at the level of UN COPUOS, the current state of the global PD governance depends on particular space-faring states and their willingness to fund and execute planetary defense missions. Political representatives consider PD mostly as scientific efforts, respectively efforts conducted mostly by the community of scientists. However, this would change the day an asteroid on a collision course is detected and without solid PD governance in place, behavior of decision-makers could be contingent leading to the possibly unpredictable supranational policy above national security agendas but with inherent implications to the national security of sovereign states. This situation has historical reasons. This paper, firstly, studies the evolution of PD governance from the 80s up to today, to identify the reasons for the current state-oriented (or inter-governmental in the case of ESA) PD governance. Then, secondly, I propose a multilateral PD security regime as an answer to the current state of PD governance. As the threat of being hit by an asteroid is a low probability, high impact natural phenomenon involving the whole Earth, it requires a multigenerational, financially sustainable, and scientifically beneficial planetary-wide program that covers all without exception and does not cause national security concerns of any sovereign state. As asteroids do not discriminate, the planet Earth should consider establishing a multilateral planetary defense security regime to provide security assurances to all, develop trust in the related technology development that all can oversee, and provide an environment to which all entities contribute with their scientific and industrial capacities.

Angle-only Autonomous Terminal Guidance and Navigation Algorithm for Asteroid Defense based on Meta-reinforcement Learning

This paper presented a robust angle-only guidance and navigation algorithm for asteroid defense missions based on meta-reinforcement learning. A recurrent neural network, trained via proximal policy optimization, is used to map the line-of-sight angles captured in real-time by the onboard camera to the optimal thrust. The neural network effectively replaces the roles of the navigation and guidance system while simultaneously removing the dependence on dynamic and observation models. The guidance and navigation model is tested on numerical simulations of a simulated mission directed to asteroid Bennu. The objective is to enable the spacecraft to hit the asteroid precisely, despite the presence of scattered initial conditions, uncertain model parameters, thruster control error, and attitude control and measurement error.

Atlas of historical and proposed nuclear devices and power systems in the Earth-Moon System and wider Solar System

The 2010s witnessed a renewal in international interest of space operations extending outside geosynchronous orbit to encompass the cislunar environment and beyond with invigorated U.S., Chinese, and Russian lunar mission initiatives; planned commercial lunar projects; and coalescing international efforts to reach Mars and push deeper into the Solar System. With the space beyond the near-Earth orbital regimes likely to become competitive and congested in the coming decades, reliable and high-yield means of generating power and propulsion will be needed to enhance mission assurance and operational responsiveness. Nuclear systems represent a promising technology with a rich heritage and provenance of space-based applications to satisfy emerging requirements for electrical power and propulsive impulse for long-term human development of the Earth-Moon system and its planetary neighbors. In this work, an atlas for defining the varying historical or proposed uses of nuclear power in space operations and exploration is presented according to spatial zone within the Earth-Moon and wider Solar System. Depending on the spatial zone, nuclear power will be discussed with respect to applications such as electrical power generation, propulsion, resource extraction, and weapon testing and employment for the space control and planetary defense missions.

Targets selection and mission optimization of kinetic impact deflection test mission for small size asteroids

Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) impact poses a major potential threat to life on Earth, and kinetic impact is currently the most mature and feasible means of asteroid defense. The deflection effect of kinetic impact (KI) is closely related to the asteroid orbit, structure, material composition, mechanical properties, impact velocity, and other factors. To ensure the success of an asteroid defense mission, it is crucial to conduct in-orbit test missions and gain a thorough understanding of momentum transfer and orbital deflection principles. The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) Mission has been launched and successfully impacted the Dimorphos whose diameter is 160 m. However, missions specifically targeting near-Earth asteroids with diameters ranging from 20 m to 90 m, which are more abundant but fainter and pose greater challenges in terms of navigation and guidance accuracy, have not been executed. For in-orbit demonstration and performance evaluation of kinetic impact asteroid deflection missions, the selection criteria for candidate asteroids were first established considering the size, orbit distribution, orbit uncertainty, characteristic information, and optical observability. 20 near-Earth asteroids were selected as primary candidate asteroids from the 28,946 cataloged near-Earth asteroids. Then, according to the mission cost and the way to evaluate the deflection distance, two Kinetic Impact in-orbit Demonstration (KID) mission scenarios were designed. A kinetic impact test mission optimization model was developed, integrating global and local optimization algorithms, while considering constraints like launch vehicle, launch site, and observability during and after impact. The model utilized a high-precision orbital dynamics model of the solar system to assess the deflection effect on the asteroid. We further reduced the candidate asteroids to 7 and ranked them in each mission scenario. Additionally, disruption conditions of the asteroids were examined, and mission parameters were re-optimized to ensure deflection without disruption. Accounting for factors such as the momentum enhancement factor, the impact probability between the asteroid and Earth was calculated for a 200-year period following the impact, thus evaluating the risk of an asteroid colliding with Earth after the KID mission implementation. The research can provide references for the target selection and kinetic impact test mission options for 20–90 m asteroids.

Liberating the Electrolyte via In Situ Conversion of an Amide, Sulfonate‐Containing Monomer Precursor for High‐Temperature Graphite/NCM Batteries

AbstractHigh‐temperature (HT) operation and storage performance of Li‐ion batteries (LIBs) are essential for applications in electric vehicles, grid storage, or defense missions. Unfortunately, severe capacity fading is witnessed due to growing instability of the electrode/electrolyte interphase at HT. Herein, the study liberates the electrolyte from the task of film‐formation. Instead, it takes advantage of the favorable solid‐electrolyte interphase (SEI)‐forming functional groups by priorly anchoring them on graphite surface. Specifically, via molecular design, unsaturated CC bond, together with amide and sulfonate groups, are concurrently involved, namely the lithium‐2‐acrylamido‐2‐methyl‐1‐propanesulfonate (Li‐AMPS). Upon electrochemical cycle, the unsaturated CC bond in Li‐AMPS turns into a radical that induces polymerization between CC bonds to construct a polymeric network. The presence of amide and sulfonate groups endows the SEI with nitrogen, sulfur‐based reduction products OSO2Li and Li3N, etc. As such, the designed interphase makes the use of propylene carbonate‐based electrolyte possible. By assembling full cells with the modified graphite and LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2 (cathode loading of ≈18.5 mg cm−2), the capacity retention of the full cell has increased from 53.2% (with pristine graphite) to 77.8% after 300 cycles under 60 °C. A 2 Ah, 265 Wh kg−1 pouch cell is also able to operate for 200 cycles at an extreme temperature of 80 °C with the modified graphite.

Public Governance Mechanisms and Organizational Performance Case Study: Cameroon Military Engineering

Reflecting on governance mechanisms and organizational performance of the Cameroon Military Engineering raised some questions on the role of the Army in society in general, developing countries in particular and in the same vein, the efficiency thereof. The questions arising from this thinking are: How can governance mechanisms influence the organizational performance of Military Engineering? A tentative answer to this question is one based on an institutional approach and stakeholder theory to enable the analysis of Military Engineering’s (ME) exposure to several factors and actors. Through qualitative research method, key data was collected from ME documents and interview protocols from 10 executives of the said military organization, including 5 representatives of civilian bodies engaged directly in the projects covered by this research. Data analysis was done using N’VIVO, thematic content analysis software. Results indicated varied and complementary governance mechanisms. These results first cut across every aspect of national defence mission, display trends on gender-based specificities and civil-military relations and provide information on the role played by Civil Society Organizations (CSOs). By so doing, they contribute in improving the organizational performance of Cameroon Military Engineering.

NEGOCIERILE BILATERALE ROMÂNO MAGHIAREPRIVIND TRECEREA FRONTIEREI (1945-949)

The Romanian-Hungarian border after the end of the Second World War was one of the priorities of the Petru Groza government at the Paris Peace Conference in 1946. The border before the Conference benefited from additional protection from the Romanian authorities to prevent the illegal crossing of the border by the Hungarians. Even after the ratification of the Peace Treaty in 1947, there were incidents on the Romanian-Hungarian border. Due to the fact that at the beginning the Romanian-Hungarian border did not benefit from official recognition by international bodies, surveillance was mainly done through security and defense missions, with the exception of the border with the USSR. In 1944, in Northern Transylvania, the Soviets began an extensive border surveillance activity. Soviet military rule was maintained from November 1944 to March 1945, with the coming to power of a pro-Soviet government led by Dr. Petru Groza. Also, while the Soviet leadership controlled Northern Transylvania, they made provisions for the Border Guard Corps, which was significantly reduced. From a number of 44,000 in 1944 to 12,000 in April 1945. The Frontier Police also underwent permanent restructuring, coming under the supervision of the Allied Control Commission. In order to avoid illegal border crossing, we will see throughout this article that Romania has taken special measures to prevent this. This caused discontent among Hungarian citizens living in Hungary, as they were subjected to a series of bureaucratic procedures that made it difficult for them to come to Romania. In 1946, the Border Troops Command belonging to the Ministry of National Defense was established. The pedantic problems between Romania and Hungary regarding this aspect were dealt with within the Ministry of the Interior. The numerous problems caused by crossing the border determined the creation of a mixed Romanian-Hungarian delegation to discuss and lay the foundations for a convention in order to solve the existing problems. The first convention aimed to settle the points being accepted by both parties. Later, the Hungarian side requested the reinstatement of the Convention for Small Border Traffic with Hungary from 1931, which, however, was not accepted by the Romanian state. On November 25, 1947, with the arrival of the Hungarian delegation in Romania, a Protocol was signed. Point 3 of it referred to the issue of movement of people who have property in both countries. Transit visas were also on the agenda of the discussions. The two delegations held numerous negotiations between 1945-1949, but which did not lead to the definitive stop of the fraudulent crossing of the border with Romania.