A French Defense Update from Minister Parly, July 2021

07/04/2021
By Pierre Tran Paris - It was natural for the U.S. president, Joe Biden, to encourage the Swiss authorities to opt for an American fighter jet in the Swiss competition, Florence Parly, armed forces minister said July 2. “There is nothing new under the sun,” she told the defense journalists…

Exercise Southern Jackaroo : An Update

07/04/2021
By Private Jacob Joseph With more than seven live-fire traces open simultaneously, the culminating activity of Exercise Southern Jackaroo, held from June 15-24, took months to plan, and included forces from the US Marines and Japan Ground Self-Defence Force. Private Brendan Hannam, from 5 Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (5RAR), fired the first…

Australian Sovereign Industrial Capability: Shaping a Post COVID-19 World

07/02/2021
Our colleagues at the Institute for Integrated Economic Research Australia Ltd having been working with Global Access Partners Pty Ltd and Gravity iLabs, DMTC Limited 2021 on a series of workshops framing key issues for a way ahead for Australia in the post-COVID 19 world. A key element of shaping…

Sea Breeze 21: Exercising in a Challenging Geo-Political Context

06/27/2021
On June 21, 2021, the U.S. Sixth Fleet announced the coming of Sea Breeze 21. U.S. Sixth Fleet formally announces participation in the upcoming annually held Exercise Sea Breeze 2021 (SB21) cohosted with the Ukrainian Navy, June 21, 2021. The exercise is taking place from June 28 to July 10…

The Bundestag Budget Committee’s Green Light on FCAS

06/25/2021
Paris - The German parliament approved Berlin’s share of a budget worth €4.5 billion ($5.4 billion) for development work on a European Future Combat Air System, an industry source said June 24. That long awaited June 23 vote by the Bundestag budget committee authorized funding for the German share of…

The European Intervention Initiative Conference: An Update on European Defense Cooperation

06/22/2021
By Pierre Tran Paris - The French air and space force should not have to wait for a future combat air system to gain access to a highly capable command and control network, a senior French air force officer said June 22. “We cannot wait for SCAF/NGWS. "We need to…

Tracking Chinese Engagement with Western Universities

06/22/2021
By Audrey Fritz When the University College Cork in Ireland withdrew from a partnership with Minzu University of China (MUC) in 2021, speculation cited concerns linking MUC with human rights abuses against Uyghurs in Xinjiang. This included the arrest of a Uyghur professor at MUC who was accused of separatism and escalating…

French, German and Spanish Air Chiefs Received FCAS Industry Briefings

06/21/2021
By Pierre Tran Paris - The French, German and Spanish air chiefs were briefed June 17 and 18 by three companies leading the industrial effort on a European Future Combat Air System, the three nations said in a joint statement. The official visits were made just days before German parliamentarians…