Moscow’s Collective Security Organization: A Challenge to NATO?

07/09/2018
By Richard Weitz One issue that will probably not be on the NATO summit agenda, but should be, is to develop a strategy for dealing with the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). NATO has consistently rejected to do so, dismissing the organization as a façade for Moscow’s aspirations for regional…

“European Defence Initiatives: An Opportunity for the Italian Economy.”

07/07/2018
Undersecretary of State for Defence Angelo Tofalo recently participated in a workshop focused on "European Defence Initiatives: An Opportunity for the Italian Economy." According to a story published by the Italian Ministry of Defence on Jun e 26, 2018: The location of the event -organized by Assemblea Generale della Federazione aziende italiane per…

New UK MBDA Facility: Infrastructure for the Complex Weapons Project

07/07/2018
A new MBDA facility was officially opened during a July 2, 2018 ceremony during the visit of Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson. According to a Ministry of Defence article: An opening ceremony saw the Defence Secretary unveil a plaque to mark the completion of five years of work and £50 million…

The Strategic Shift: Recovering and Building Out ASW Skill Sets

07/04/2018
As the land wars dominated the past 15 years, a number of key skill sets atrophied or certainly were drawn down. A core one was clearly anti-submarine warfare skill sets. As the defense of Northern Europe returns as a direct challenge to core NATO nations, recovering and building maritime domain…

The Nordics Rework Defense: The Role of Cross Border Air Combat Training

07/03/2018
By Robbin Laird During the past couple of years, I have focused on the part of Europe which is very serious about defense, namely, Northern Europe. The Danes, the Norwegians, the Swedes and the Finns, all have refocused efforts on defense of their nations, but in a broader regional context.…

Raising the Bar on Maintainability: MAWTS-1 Focuses on the Challenge

07/02/2018
By Robbin Laird Maintainability is a key aspect to ensure aircraft availability to support combat operations. The readiness crisis of the past few years has also included the challenge of upgrading maintenance support efforts as well. The strategic shift from counter-insurgency to preparing for force-on-force conflict and a more rapid…

UK Mobilizes Reserves for Cyber Conflict

07/02/2018
The Ministry of Defence’s hunt for gamers and amateur coders to become cyber Reserves has led to a massive increase in applications, creating an elite force of specialists ready to support operations using their unique cyber skills. According to the UK Ministry of Defence in an article published on June…

The Building of the New Australian Frigate

06/30/2018
Australia's just selected a new build BAE Systems frigate to provide a new capability for the Royal Australian Navy. The projected cost is $35 billion to build nine high-tech, anti-submarine frigates. According to ABC Australia: The contract is a key building block in the Federal Government's defence industry plan, which…