Archive: News & Articles

With the re-election of US President Donald Trump, questions regarding the transatlantic relationship between the US and Europe have once again come to the forefront, including the extent to which the US needs Europe. A sober reading shows that the US has good reason to remain engaged in Europe; most notably, US security depends on […]

As Europe’s geopolitical landscape shifts, Finland stands out not just for bringing crucial conventional capabilities to the NATO alliance, but also as a key player in mitigating chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) threats, with a comprehensive network of military, civil, and industrial capabilities in this sphere. NATO’s new member in the far north, Finland, […]

Marking 20 years of NATO Life Cycle Management (LCM), the 20th edition of the NATO LCM Conference will be held on 21 and 22 January 2025 in Brussels. Gathering numerous government and industry representatives, and chaired by Thomas Espelund Pedersen (Danish Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organisation) and J. Bo Leimand (LEIMAND Freelance Consultancy), the conference […]

Almost three years since Russia invaded Ukraine, the rules-based order that once governed security on the European continent lies entirely in shreds. Yet, one European security organisation, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) was created during the Cold War to deal with precisely the threats that the European continent is faced with […]

ESD was recently invited on board a US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker to observe part of the Norwegian-led trilateral exercise ‘Apex Buccaneer’. This article details what this exercise involved and examines why exercises like ‘Apex Buccaneer’ are essential in facilitating Arctic security. On 3 December 2024 Norway, the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States […]

In late 2024, the prospects for ending the war in Ukraine or at least suspending hostilities remained unclear; however, officials from both Ukraine and its partners in the West are increasingly discussing the possibility of such a scenario. The inauguration of US president-elect Trump on 20 January 2025 is considered the starting point for the […]

A number of high-speed naval vessels currently in service are capable of speeds between 40 and 70 knots, significantly outpacing most surface combatants. Some high-speed vessels are specialised on performing particular mission profiles, while others are multi-mission craft. One characteristic that they all share is their relatively small size, with even the largest units being […]

Several Western navies are modernising their mine countermeasures capabilities with new, specialised vessels. Naval mine warfare remains a potent threat in the 21st century. The mine countermeasures (MCM) vessels of many nations are ageing and – in some cases – are in urgent need of replacement. The need to introduce new MCM vessels (MCMVs) is […]

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) have emerged as a potent new threat to military ships. This requires a re-evaluation of ship-defence technology and tactics.  For decades anti-ship missiles (ASMs) have arguably posed the dominant threat to surface vessels. However, a new, asymmetrical threat emerged in October 2000 when a small, explosive-laden […]

The future submarine operating environment The water around your submarine is reverberating due to a distant active low-frequency sonar. Every few minutes, the sonar operators report a splash point, a sign that a passive sonar buoy has been dropped by one of the numerous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) out on patrol that relentlessly hunt you […]

Underwater operations remain a core output that navies and their parent countries use to secure national interests and create international influence. Such operations are, of course, conducted covertly, with submerged platforms: this is the unique selling point, and it endures because the world’s oceans remain opaque to sensing technologies trying to see into them from […]

European naval shipyards are enjoying buoyant conditions. Numerous projects for the construction of major surface combatants – destroyers, frigates and corvettes – are now passing through the production stage, often after many years of planning and design development. The challenging international security situation is also driving opportunities for additional sales, both in Europe and across […]

A combat management system (CMS) is often referred to as a naval vessel’s ‘brain’, linking the vessel’s sensors – its ‘eyes’ and ‘ears’ – to its effectors – the ‘limbs’ that deliver the required kinetic and non-kinetic effects. Given the role of CMS in collecting data, processing this data into information, and distributing tasks and […]

Over the years, a number of different approaches to train commanders and their staffs have emerged. So-called Command and Staff Training (CAST) exercises featuring maps, counters and dice have been supplemented with computer-aided exercises (CAX), while more recently, games-based solutions are being offered. The challenge facing the military today is what solution, or solutions, should […]

One of the Vice Presidents at Lockheed Martin is Jeff ‘Cobra’ Harrigian, Commander of the US Air Force in Europe (USAFE) until 2022, with 4,100 hours on F-22, F-15C and A/OA-37. Now he is responsible for ‘Strategic Campaigns’ at the world’s largest defence contractor. On the sidelines of AIRPOWER-24, ESD spoke to him about the […]

While current plans a focused on providing the Ukrainian Air Force with F-16s, the Swedish government has started to put money behind the potential supply of Gripens to Kyiv. When Ukraine’s West European allies set about bolstering the Ukrainian Air Force (Povitryani syly Zbroynykh syl Ukrayiny; PS ZSU), to develop the air threat to Russian forces […]

On 29 September 2024, Austria held national elections. The challenge for the new government will be to start and set aside billions of dollars to replace the mixture of fifteen early T1-B2R-B5 Eurofighter Typhoon single-seaters flown by the Luftstreitkräfte. Their primary goal, which has been internally blocked for the last year, is to acquire 12 […]

Special Operations Forces (SOF) worldwide can choose from a wide array of aircraft for covert insertion, exfiltration and resupply, with new technologies being integrated into current and developmental platforms to enhance performance and survivability. SOF transport aircraft fall into various categories based on type, range, size and performance parameters. The vast majority are specially modified […]

Much attention has been lavished on Russia’s strategic cyberwarfare waged against Ukraine’s critical national infrastructure. Russia’s use of cyberwarfare at tactical and operational levels, particularly in the land domain, receives less coverage, but has important implications for NATO and its Allies. London’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) thinktank recently published a paper by Daniel Black, […]

Driven in large part by the increasing proliferation of drones and loitering munitions, recent years have seen a resurgence of interest in very short-range/short-range air defence (V/SHORAD). This article examines recent developments in the field of V/SHORAD radars, as well as the direction these innovations are taking, and their growing significance on the modern battlefield. […]

A rapidly-changing strategic landscape demands additional flexibility from global and regional actors. President Biden’s mantra in his first days in the White House – “America is back” – indicated the renewed involvement of the USA in world affairs. It also meant that the US modus operandi as the most advanced actor in the great power […]