WE ARE REPOSTING THIS PIECE WHICH WAS FIRST PUBLISHED IN THE FALL OF 2019 By Robbin Laird There were a wide range of presentations in Berlin at this year’s International Fighter Conference. Among those presenting were Air Force officers or industry representatives from countries facing a direct “existential threat” from…
By Pierre Tran Paris - France and the U.K. signed Feb. 18 contracts with MBDA for development of next generation cruise and anti-ship missiles, with the weapons due to enter service by 2030, the European missile builder said in a statement. The long awaited agreement for work on risk reduction…
By Australian Defence Business Review Australia will spend $580 million to upgrade ports in Papua New Guinea, enhancing some of the country’s out-dated infrastructure, providing useful facilities for use by Australian and allied warships, and – perhaps most importantly – warding off investment by China. Under an agreement signed by…
By Pierre Tran Paris - Germany has yet to decide on whether to buy the F-35 fighter jet, but a decision will be made later this year, a senior German parliamentarian said Feb. 21. "There’s no decision yet, but we will decide this year," the parliamentarian told reporters, here. "There is…
In a press release published on February 6, 2022, the U.S. Sixth Fleet and the U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa announced the launch of Exercise Cutlass Express 2022. DJIBOUTI - Maritime forces from East Africa, West Indian Ocean nations, Europe, North America, and several international organizations began the multinational…
By Robbin Laird During a visit to 2nd Marine Air Wing last summer, I met with Marine Air Group 26. During that visit we discussed the transition from the land wars, which included the need for more focus on the Northern Flank of NATO. Certainly, the current European crisis has…
Even though the focus is upon Ukraine, the Northern and Southern flanks of NATO are deeply affected by the crisis. The Belarus takeover by Moscow and the virtual permanent deployment of Russian force there with the Kaliningrad enclave not far way poses a direct threat to the Nordics, the Balts…
By Pierre Tran Paris - Arquus, a French builder of light and medium armored vehicles, has set a high priority on winning export deals in 2022, after the COVID pandemic slashed foreign orders last year, executive chairman Emmanuel Levacher said Feb. 16. Foreign deals accounted for some 10 percent of…
