DEFENSE COOPERATION BETWEEN US AND GREECE EXPANDING

Source: Ekathimerini The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday reported that due to the rift in relations with Turkey, the US military is engaged in talks to expand its operations in Greece. This expansion will entail the use of more air and naval bases in the country. The paper cited American officials who said that relations… Continue reading DEFENSE COOPERATION BETWEEN US AND GREECE EXPANDING

MIG REPORTEDLY RESUMED WORK IN SKAT UCAV

Source: Air Recognition The Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG has resumed its work on the Skat combat unmanned aerial vehicle whose design will contain technologies that make drones less noticeable for radars, a defense industry source told TASS. “The company has resumed its work on Skat. It plans to create the preproduction model of a jet-propelled… Continue reading MIG REPORTEDLY RESUMED WORK IN SKAT UCAV

DON’T FEAR THE RUSSIAN MILITARY

Source: The Atlantic By Mark Galeotti The headline figures for Russia’s Vostok (or “East”) military exercises, which began yesterday, are dramatic: 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 tanks and other vehicles, 80 ships, and 1,000 aircraft operating across more than half the country. That’s double the size of the British armed forces. It’s also twice the size of… Continue reading DON’T FEAR THE RUSSIAN MILITARY

RUSSIA LAUNCHES BIIGEST WAR GAMES IN DECADES INVOLVING CHINA

Source: Military.com By Vladimir Isachenkov and Sergei Grits Russia on Tuesday launched its largest military exercise since the Cold War, war games that will also involve thousands of Chinese troops in a show of burgeoning military ties between Moscow and Beijing amid spiraling tensions with the West. Moscow said the Vostok (East) 2018 maneuvers will… Continue reading RUSSIA LAUNCHES BIIGEST WAR GAMES IN DECADES INVOLVING CHINA

IS GEORGIA IN LOVE WITH ISRAEL?

Source: Middle East Eye By Belen Fernandez In August, Georgia Today – an English-language newspaper of the eponymous former Soviet republic – featured a verbose analysis headlined “Georgia as ‘the Israel of the Caucasus’ – a Concept Worth Considering?” Following numerous twists and turns – including a quote from late Israeli prime minister Golda Meir,… Continue reading IS GEORGIA IN LOVE WITH ISRAEL?

NUCLEAR WEAPONS BUDGET GETS BOOST IN US SPENDING BILL

Source: Defense News By Joe Gould and Aaron Mehta Congress could, in the coming days, finalize a nuclear weapons budget that adds $458 million in 2019 over last year, after a conference committee released a compromise funding plan on Monday. The plan calls for $44.6 billion in Department of Energy appropriations, with $11.1 billion for… Continue reading NUCLEAR WEAPONS BUDGET GETS BOOST IN US SPENDING BILL

FRANCE SAYS RUSSIA TRIED TO SPY ON SATELLITE

Source: Shephard Media A Russian satellite attempted in 2017 to spy on a satellite providing secure communications for the French military, Defence Minister Florence Parly said on 7 September. The Athena-Fidus satellite, operated jointly with Italy, was approached ‘a bit too closely’ by Russia’s Luch-Olymp craft, known for its advanced listening capacity, Parly said at… Continue reading FRANCE SAYS RUSSIA TRIED TO SPY ON SATELLITE

CHINA NEARING MASS PRODUCTION OF J-20 STEALTH FIGHTER JET AFTER ENGINE PROBLEMS IRONED OUT

Source: South China Morning Post By Minnie Chan A new and improved engine designed to make China’s J-20 stealth fighter a world-class combat jet should be ready for mass production by the end of the year, military sources have said. The WS-15 engine features cutting-edge single-crystal turbine blades and has been in development for several… Continue reading CHINA NEARING MASS PRODUCTION OF J-20 STEALTH FIGHTER JET AFTER ENGINE PROBLEMS IRONED OUT

SINO-RUSSIA MILITARY RELATIONS AT “AN ALL-TIME HIGH”

Source: Asia Times By Gordon Watts Like most high-ranking military officers, Air Force General Xu Qiliang is direct and to the point. The vice-chairman of China’s powerful Central Military Commission rarely uses six words when one will do. Indeed, ‘blunt’ could be his middle name. Yet Xu left no-one in doubt about the depth and… Continue reading SINO-RUSSIA MILITARY RELATIONS AT “AN ALL-TIME HIGH”

GERMANY UNVEILS GROWTH PLAN FOR THE BUNDESWEHR

Source: Defense News By Sebastian Sprenger The German government has presented an ambitious plan for beefing up the country’s armed forces over the next 10-plus years. The strategy comes in the form of a new “capability profile,” described by Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen as a “grand, comprehensive modernization concept.” At its intermediate point,… Continue reading GERMANY UNVEILS GROWTH PLAN FOR THE BUNDESWEHR