The Australian Department of Defence is contributing to a whole-of-Government initiative to further deepen Australia’s engagement in the Pacific region.
Since the announcement of the Pacific Step-up in November 2018, Defence has enhanced existing engagement across the region.
Working with her partners, Australia is increasing Defence’s presence, conducting training and activities with Pacific security agencies, strengthening their resilience.
Australian Department of Defence
December 2, 2019.
By Kenneth Maxwell
Politics in Brazil are already polarized and will continue to be so in 2020.
The Brazilian President, Jair Bolsonaro, owed his election to this polarization. He will stoke it further. It is in his political interest to do so. It is entirely in his character to do what he does best.
That is stirring up resentments, misogyny, homophobia, nationalism, and rightwing populism.
Confrontation is the new norm in Brazilian politics.
This in a country that once prided itself on conciliation.
Even if conciliation historically covered a multitude of social, racial, and economic inequalities.
Belligerent confrontation is now the name of the game.
Few are seeking consensus.
The economic situation may improve in 2020.
There are indications that the long recession the country has suffered over the last five years may be easing. Employment prospects are beginning to improve. The unemployment rate had been 13.70% in 2017.
But 2019 ended with unemployment falling to 11.20%. This still leaves almost 12 million people out of work within a population of over 210 million.
Some legislative changes have been made in Bolsonaro’s first year in office. Much now depends on implementing radical domestic reform legislation which the multifarious special Interests represented in the Brazilian Congress (there are 17 parties in the Senate and 30 parties in the lower chamber of the Congress) have always been loath to support (or to support in return for special favors.)
An improvement in international trade and business conditions will also help, especially a resolution of the trade dispute between the US and China which could have a major impact on Brazil’s prospects.
Brazilian growth according to the most recent projections, prior to the new crisis in the Middle East, may reach 1.7% which will return Brazil to pre-recession levels.
The World Bank forecasts Brazilian growth at 2%.
Brazilian society remains woefully divided.
The on-going culture wars will intensify.
Brazil will continue to be part of the global struggle over the future of democracy, authoritarianism, populism, internationalized drug trafficking, and especially over the environment. The broad de-facto consensus between center left and the center right which has dominated Brazilian politics since the 1980’s has clearly broken down.
A stable new configuration of political forces has yet to emerge.
The lingering presence on the political scene of the two principal political protagonists of the old political division between center left and center right, former two term presidents Lula da Silva (Lula) and Fernando Henrique Cardoso (FHC), complicates the situation.
Neither Lula nor FHC shows any willingness to gracefully retire from political protagonism.
Each seems determined to continue fighting old battles. In FHC’s case (he is ever conscious of US precedents) this means promoting the 2022 presidential prospects of the São Paulo TV host and entrepreneur Luciano Grostein Huck. Huck presents “caldeirão do Huck” (Huck’s Cauldron”) on the Rede Globo network, Brazil’s largest.
Lula’s continued political activism stymies the prospects for the emergence of credible alternatives on the left. It did so in his late withdrawn from the last presidential contest which undermined the prospects of Fernando Haddad who belatedly became the Worker’s Party (PT) candidate.)
But Lula’s resilience, wiliness, political ruthlessness, and instinct for self-preservation, should never be underestimated.
The political landscape is being recast by forces well outside the old networks of power (though sometimes these are old forces, like the Bolsonaro clan clothed in and weaponized by new garments.)
What is new is that these clusters of special interests have emerged in an environment which is already internationalized with the rise of cyber influence campaigns and sophisticated clandestine political interference and manipulation.
In this Brazil is well ahead of the game which marries the old surveillance mechanisms inherited from the military dictatorship to the new techniques developed in the age of the Internet.
One of the Harvard University students who co-founded Facebook in 2004 it should be remembered was the Brazilian Eduardo Saverin. He fell out with Mark Zuckerberg. His worth was estimated at US$10.1 billion in June 2019 and he is now living in tax exile in Singapore.
Jair Bolsonaro with an eye on the next presidential election in 2022 is forming a new political party, an “Aliança pelo Brasil” with himself as the President of the party and his son, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro of Rio de Janeiro, as the Vice-President. Its objectives match his government’s slogan of “Brazil above all, God above all everyone.”
Like so much with (reserve) army captain Jair Bolsonaro and his outspoken nostalgia for the days of the military dictatorship, his new “Aliança pelo Brasil” is reminiscent of the National Renewal Party (ARENA), the pro-government conservative political party (or agglomeration) which between 1966 and 1979 was the” official” party of the military regime.
The Aliança pelo Brasil is mobilizing the support of leading Evangelicals to obtain the 491.000 signatures needed to make the new party a viable electoral alternative.
The Evangelicals are an important force in Brazil.
Recent analysis in one Rio de Janeiro favela found that 40% of the residents considered themselves to be evangelical and only 17% considered themselves to be Catholic’s. in São Paulo a vast 10,000 seat “Temple of Solomon” was built as the cost of US$300 million by the “Universal Church of the Kingdom of God.” Its minister is the son-in-law of the founder of the church, Edir Macedo, whose worth is thought to be US$ 1.3 billion and is the owner of Rede Record, the second largest broadcaster in Brazil. The “Universal Church” is said to have 1.8 million followers in Brazil.
The old battle between “Liberalism” (or “neo-liberalism”) and “Statism” (that is the dominant role of the state in business enterprises) is also back with a vengeance.
This is a conflict that rests in part on the struggle between the power of the “official” economy, where the statisticians, the bankers, the corporate managers, and the international investors live, and the “informal” economy where most non-rich (and non-white) Brazilians survive their daily challenges, and where emotional support for national enterprises remains very strong.
The “markets” know what it is they would like to see: A successful implementation of the plans of Paulo Guedes, the minister of the economy, and the creation of a slimmed down, more agile state, with more privatizations, a simplification of the tax system, much greater openness of the economy to the world, more flexible labour rules, and the overhaul of the pension system.
Paulo Guedes is certainly trying.
He has incorporated into his super-ministry the former ministries of planning and industry and commerce and established departments of “de-bureaucratization” and “de-Stateization.”
Guedes also has under his wing the national development bank (BNDES), the Banco do Brasil, the Central Bank, Petrobras, and the applied research institute (lpea). Guedes was promised a free hand by Bolsonaro.
Not surprisingly he is most popular among rich Brazilians (58% approval according to the December 5/6 DataFolha opinion survey) than among poorer Brazilians (where his rating is 31%).
The featured photo is of President Bolsonaro and is credited to Mauro Piemtel/AFP and the original source can be found here:
On Thursday, Jan. 9, while conducting routine operations in the North Arabian Sea, USS Farragut (DDG 99) was aggressively approached by a Russian Navy ship. Farragut sounded five short blasts, the international maritime signal for danger of a collision, and requested the Russian ship alter course in accordance with international rules of the road.
The Russian ship initially refused but ultimately altered course and the two ships opened distance from one another. While the Russian ship took action, the initial delay in complying with international rules while it was making an aggressive approach increased the risk of collision.
The U.S. Navy continues to remain vigilant and is trained to act in a professional manner. We continue to encourage vessels from all nations to operate in accordance with internationally recognized maritime laws, standards and norms.
01.10.2020
Video by Petty Officer 3rd Class Dawson Roth
U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / U.S. 5th Fleet
In a USNI News piece published on January 10, 2020, Sam LaGrone added:
Ivan Khurs, assigned to the Black Sea Fleet, is one of two Russian Yury Ivanov-class Russian intelligence collection ships. According to Turkish ship spotting site Bosphorous Naval News, the ship left the Black Sea on Nov. 29 before traveling to the Middle East.
USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) has been operating in the region since relieving USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) as the U.S. on-station carrier in the Middle East last month.
Thursday’s incident follows a June encounter in which Russian destroyer Admiral Vinogradov came within 100 feet of a USS Chancellorsville (CG-62) operating in the Western Pacific.
In 2016, Russian Navy frigate Yaroslav Mudry (FF-777) and the guided-missile cruiser USS San Jacinto (CG-56) came close to a collision in the Mediterranean Sea. Mudry made multiple erratic maneuvers near the cruiser while coming within 150 yards of carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) during flight operations. Days earlier, the same Russian frigate had published a video edited in a way that seemed to show guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely (DDG-107) cut in front of it.
The featured photo shows Russian surveillance ship Ivar Khurs making ‘aggressive’ move against USS Farragut (DDG-99). US Navy Image
Following up the insertion of a USMC SP-MAGTF Crisis Response Force to the US embassy in Iraq, U.S. Air Force Airmen load equipment assigned to 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, onto a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft bound for the U.S. Central Command area of operations from Fort Bragg, N.C. on January 4, 2020.
This deployment is a precautionary action taken to respond to increased threat levels against U.S. personnel and facilities.
The ‘Devil’ Brigade is the nucleus of the U.S. Immediate Response Force, capable of rapidly deploying anywhere in the world in response to a variety of contingency operations.
POPE ARMY AIRFIELD, NC, UNITED STATES
01.04.2020
Video by Sgt. 1st Class Jason Hull
49th Public Affairs Detachment
The photo highlights: Equipment assigned to 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division is loaded into aircraft bound for the U.S. Central Command area of operations from Fort Bragg, N.C. om January 4, 2020. This deployment is a precautionary action taken to respond to increased threat levels against U.S. personnel and facilities. The “Devil” Brigade is the nucleus of the U.S. Immediate Response Force, capable of rapidly deploying anywhere in the world in response to a variety of contingency operations.
FORT BRAGG, NC, UNITED STATES
01.04.2020
Photo by Spc. Justin Stafford
By Andrew McLaughlin
The Federal government has mobilized the ADF to support rescue and recovery operations for the ongoing bushfire crisis affecting NSW and Victoria.
Following a National Security Committee of Cabinet meeting on January 4, Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Defence Minister Senator Linda Reynolds, and Chief of Defence Force GEN Angus Campbell announced the mobilization of 3,000 mostly-Army reservists, and various air, ground and maritime transport units and assets to support civilian agencies across the vast area of the fires.
The announcement comes after Navy MRH 90 helicopters had already been assisting the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) from September right through to December to conduct fire ground surveillance and mapping and transport services near Sydney and Army Tiger ARH helicopters provided similar services in northern NSW and southern Queensland using their infra-red sensor
Civilian large aerial tanker aircraft and fire-fighting vehicles have also been utilising ADF base infrastructure for several months for refueling and reloading, maintenance and other support services, while ADF geospatial intelligence has been provided for fire mapping.
Further, the ADF has been supporting RFS and other state emergency management agencies with Defence Liaison Officers, Army has provided ground transport, there have been dozens of RAAF C-17A, KC-30A, C-130J and C-27J air transport missions, Army personnel had been assisting with fire break clearing, and all services have provided catering, base and field accommodation, and other support.
Following the rapid escalation of fire activity in Victoria’s East Gippsland area on New Years Eve, the Victorian Government formally requested additional ADF support to assist with the transport of fire crews and equipment around the state, and the evacuation of residents and holiday-makers from communities isolated by fire activity.
The RAN immediately started preparing its on-call humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) vessel for the Christmas/new year period, HMAS Choules, and the training vessel MV Sycamore to sail for from Sydney. Choules was loaded with Army LARC amphibious watercraft, an MRH 90 helicopter, and containers of relief supplies. Both vessels sailed on the afternoon on January 1, arriving off Mallacoota in far eastern Victoria early the next morning.
Army’s 5 Aviation Regiment (5Avn) also generated three CH-47F Chinooks of C SQN which self-deployed from Townsville and arrived at RAAF East Sale on the evening of January 3. Two S-70B-9 Black Hawks from 6Avn self-deployed to East Sale from Holsworthy near Sydney, and a C-17A from 36SQN, a C-130J from 37SQN, and three RAAF C-27Js from 35SQN also deployed to East Sale.
With further extreme weather forecast for January 4 expected to impact fires burning along the NSW south coast and the alpine regions, the Governor General GEN David Hurley authorized the mobilisation of the reserves, and the Commonwealth committed additional assets to the effort.
The federal response has been divided into three major elements; Joint Task Force (JTF) 1111 to support operations in South Australia and Tasmania, JTF 1110 to cover the NSW and ACT areas, and JTF 646 to support operations in Victoria.
The LHD HMAS Adelaide was prepared to deploy from Sydney to Eden on the NSW far south coast, and sailed with two MH-60R helicopters, 300 tonnes of relief supplies, Navy amphibious watercraft, and augmented medical and catering crews.
An additional Chinook and four MRH 90s have self-deployed from Townsville and two more Chinooks are preparing to deploy, while Army combat engineers and aeromedical evacuation (AME) teams were also generated to support the effort across all three JTFs.
RAAF Air traffic controllers have established a flight information service at Bairnsdale Airport in Gippsland to support increased operations there, while an RAAF P-8A Poseidon has provided overhead reconnaissance between East Sale and Mallacoota for ground transport engineering requirements. Also providing aerial reconnaissance is an Army Wasp small unmanned aerial system (SUAS) element from the 20th Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery.
Other Army elements are spread across all three JTFs. For JTF 1111, engineers, logistics capabilities and personnel from 9th Brigade have deployed to Kangaroo Island to assist with recovery and clean-up efforts there. JTF 1110 and JTF 646 comprises some 400 personnel from 7th Brigade to support the state emergency services, while additional scoping and advice support have been provided to the ACT in case fires in the alpine region move north towards Canberra.
International military support has also been provided, with New Zealand deploying three RNZAF NH90s to RAAF Edinburgh via RAAF C-17A to bolster transport support in South Australia, and Singapore self-deploying two RSAF CH-47D Chinooks from Oakey in Queensland to East Sale.
This article was published by Australian Defence Business Review on January 7, 2020.
Also, see the following:
The U.S. Air Force and its mission partners successfully launched the first Global Positioning Systems (GPS) III satellite at 8:51 a.m. EST, Dec. 23 from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.
The Lockheed Martin-built satellite, known as “Vespucci,” in honor of Amerigo Vespucci, the Italian explorer for whom the Americas were named, was carried to orbit aboard a Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) Falcon 9 Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle.
CAPE CANAVERAL, CA, UNITED STATES
1/7/19
Video by Krista Knaus
Space and Missile Systems Center Public Affairs
Pierre Tran
Paris
Industrial partners Airbus and Dassault Aviation last month cut an offer to between €7 billion-€8 billion ($7.8 billion-$8.9 billion) from a previous price tag of some €10 billion, to win a production contract for a European medium-altitude long-endurance drone, an industry source said Jan. 9.
The partners slashed the price of their bid to build a twin-engined unmanned aerial vehicle after the four client nations — France, Germany, Italy and Spain — made it clear the initial price tag was too high, the source said.
Airbus is prime contractor, with French Dassault and Italian Leonardo as partners.
The new price is seen as acceptable and opens the debate on who and how an announcement will be made, the source said.
The program manager, European agency OCCAR, or the French arms procurement, Direction Générale de l’Armement, could announce the deal, the source said. Another possibility was for industry to make an announcement.
The DGA declined comment.
Industry presents the UAV as one of the key cooperative projects to boost European arms capability and boost autonomy. France has made it clear that a big price cut was needed to secure the deal.
“There is a major problem on price,” said a Nov. 21 parliamentary report from French senators Cédric Perrin and Hélène Conway-Mouret.
“It appears that there is a spread of close to 30 percent between the price set by the client states, in view of the specifications set in 2017, and the price offered by industry,” said the report on the 2020 budget from the committee for foreign affairs, defense and the armed forces.
In view of a price too high, the partner nations might buy a foreign UAV off the shelf and install a national payload, the report said. That might spark opposition but the fact was that the price sparked sharp debate.
“Industry and the DGA must reach an agreement before the end of the year, otherwise the program will be compromised,” the report said.
An offer has been submitted to OCCAR, Eric Trappier, chairman of GIFAS, the French trade association for aeronautics and space, said at the new year press conference.
“This is a major contract,” which will cover research and development, production and delivery, he said. The project might interest other European nations, he added.
There had been many meetings for negotiations all through 2019, he said, adding that it was important for Europe to acquire this equipment, which he hoped would be backed by financial support from the planned European Defense Fund.
Meanwhile, there was close prospect of a contract for a technology demonstrator for a New Generation Fighter, a key element in the Future Combat Air System.
“Call me an optimist, but the contract for the first phase should be signed in the next few days,” he said.
“We are in the process of notification. There is no problem.”
That was a deal which should have been sealed in 2019, as industry had submitted an offer in June, he said.
Work started in the last quarter of last year to bring Spain into the fighter project and engineers in the three partner countries — France, Germany and Spain — should start soon, he said.
A budget for the development project had yet to be agreed, he said.
The new fighter is due to operate in 2040, with the demonstrator expected to take off in 2026.
“We are right at the beginning,” he said. That is of “fundamental” importance as there was not a program if there was not a start, he added.
Trappier said he constantly told the DGA there was need to build a demonstrator, to cut risk to the program. Such a de-risking could not be done simply on paper and required “the reality of flight” to test the technology.
Now it was time to “mobilize” the budget, energies, and agree the industrial work share, he said. Cooperation between Airbus and Dassault — the lead industrial partners — was not easy but they managed, he added.
It was also important to factor in the supply chain in France, Germany and Spain.
On a new engine for the fighter, Safran and MTU said in a Dec. 3 joint statement the partners had agreed the French company would be prime contractor. The agreement resolved an attempt by the German partner to take a leading role on the project.
The pact referred to the letter of intent signed in February 2019 which said Safran would take the lead in engine design and integration, with MTU leading in engine services.
“In the framework of the contractual scheme defined by France and Germany, Safran Aircraft Engines will be the prime contractor and MTU Aero Engines the main partner for the first phase of research and technology (Phase 1A),” the joint statement said.
The two companies will set up a 50/50 joint venture by the end of 2021 for development, production and service of the new engine.
On the proposed €13 billion for the European Defense Fund, that amount might fall as the overall multi-year budget of the European Union will shrink with the departure of the UK, Trappier said.
France and Germany said in a joint statement at the Oct. 16 bilateral summit in Toulouse, southwest France, the two nations reaffirmed their support for industrial cooperation, in particular the Next Generation Weapons System/Future Combat Air System and Main Ground Combat System programmes.
The latter refers to a system of systems comprising a new tank and a network of manned and unmanned land vehicles.
The photo is from 2018 and shows a full scale model of the proposed European medium-altitude long-endurance drone.
According to an article by Mike Ball published on April 30, 2018: “Airbus Defence and Space has announced that, in conjunction with Dassault Aviation and Leonardo, it has unveiled the first full scale model of the European Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance Remotely Piloted Aircraft (MALE RPAS) at the 2018 ILA Berlin Air Show.
“The unveiling of the full scale model and the reaffirmed commitment of the industrial partners to jointly develop a sovereign solution for European Defence and Security comes after a nearly two-year definition study launched in September 2016 by the four participating nations, Germany, France, Italy and Spain, and follows the Declaration of Intent to work together on a European MALE unmanned aerial system signed by the countries in May 2015.”
A PDF Version of the report can be read below:
Updates from Pierre Tran 2019An e-book version of the report can be read below:
Travis AFB tests prototype to enhance KC-10 Extender Aeromedical Evacuation capabilities.
TRAVIS AFB, CA,
12.04.2019
Video by Senior Airman Amy Younger
60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs