Archive: News & Articles

Ever since the NATO Prague summit in late 2002, NATO has fundamentally changed. This change can be witnessed by the addition of new members and the transformation of the alliance that has strengthened its deterrence posture. As an intrinsic part of the transformation process training has had a major part to play and this role […]

The adoption of improved laser-based tactical engagement simulation for military collective training continues to grow. Alongside this growth, technology is enabling new capabilities to be added to aid training realism. A case in point is the use of geometric pairing to provide simulation of indirect fire weapons such as artillery and mortars. The cornerstone of […]

When it comes to holding ground, some military fundamentals never change. From trench systems to urban fortifications, this analysis examines how armies are protecting their forces in an era of contested logistics and persistent surveillance. “It takes a land force to defeat a land force,” Amos Fox, a retired US Army officer and now lecturer […]

The US Army is moving ahead with efforts to ensure that manoeuvre forces enhance their mobility with requisite on-the-move networking and command-and-control capabilities. One of the key takeaways from the ongoing war in Ukraine sounds like one of the most obvious, particularly for land manoeuvre forces: Movement is life, staying still is death. Manoeuvre formations […]

The Russian aggression against Ukraine has a bitter twist to it – one of the belligerents, Russia, is the world’s largest holder of small ‘tactical nuclear weapons’, along with its more publicly-discussed strategic nuclear deterrent force. As this conflict continues to rage, it is worth discussing these tactical nuclear weapons and their implications. Tactical nuclear […]

Russia is violating hydrocarbon sanctions introduced because of Moscow’s continued occupation of Ukraine. A new initiative by the UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force may help to combat Russia’s illicit oil exports. It was easy enough to see that the MV Eventin was not doing much in the Baltic Sea on the marinetraffic.com vessel tracking website. As […]

Demand for long-range rocket artillery has increased with the return to great power conflict. The Ukraine war is demonstrating the utility and power of this weapon category on the modern battlefield. The definition of long-range rocket artillery is fluid on two axes, so it is necessary to set some parameters for this review since different […]

From outsourced versus domestic production, to collaborative procurement, to the introduction of a new calibre – the story of modern assault rifle procurement reveals the divergent paths being taken by various NATO members, Ukraine, and the US. In the past, the capability to design, develop and manufacture a complete range of small arms was considered […]

NATO nations are procuring several state-of-the-art night vision systems to provide their infantry forces with a tactical advantage for night fighting. For millennia, the dark of night provided sufficient cover for armed forces to advance or redeploy undetected. That all changed with the introduction of night vision systems (NVSs). The first infrared (IR) scopes for […]

It is remarkable how a change in leadership in one country can so radically alter the overall strategic picture for many others, especially when this country is the US. In the wake of the Munich Security Conference, and the disastrous 28 February 2025 meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Europe finds itself at […]

Since the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine has maintained the ban on arms exports, naturally directing all supplies to sustain its own effort to repel Moscow’s onslaught. Now, three full years into the war, there are more and more voices highlighting the need to lift the restrictions. In October 2024, Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem […]

The demand for anti-tank guided missiles is expected to grow in the near future, with a clear need for new capabilities. Since their introduction in the 1950s and 1960s, anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) have evolved from purely anti-tank assets into versatile weapons capable of engaging a wide range of targets, including armoured fighting vehicles, low-and-slow […]

The issue of legal and procedural forensics does not come up very often in this publication. However, the collection, handling, storage, and exploitation of evidence of use of chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear (CBRN) weapons and materials is actually an issue of vital importance. The idea that forensics is something that police and courts need […]

The US DoD trains thousands of military helicopter pilots each year and these are produced by the US Army, Navy and Air Force to different standards using unique training pipelines and utilizing different training aircraft. All three services have, or are in the process, of adopting new training syllabi to address a number of shortfalls. […]

In July 2024 the NATO Support and Procurement Agency issued study contracts ultimately intended to kickstart the development of a next-generation medium, multi-role rotorcraft capability for the alliance: an ambitious project that could see a preferred solution selected by the end of 2027. The Next-Generation Rotorcraft Capability (NGRC) effort is a NATO Support and Procurement […]

The market for armoured fighting vehicles (AFVs) is growing, and the vehicle turret market is following suit. The armoured fighting vehicle and vehicle turret markets are closely linked, both influenced by shared dynamics and various factors—political, technological, and tactical. Some of these factors were present during the past decade, while a number of new factors […]

Protected patrol vehicles balance mobility with protection from mine and ballistic threats. While they come in various size, weight and protection configurations, the current trend is pointing towards prioritising enhanced mobility over heavy armour. What follows is a selected overview of currently marketed systems. Protected patrol vehicles (PPVs) are versatile or multi-mission-capable vehicles. The British […]

The small arms sector is undergoing a significant transformation, with a growing focus on integrating advanced fire control systems (FCS). This shift is poised to reshape the future of weaponry, as users increasingly seek to enhance the effectiveness and precision of small arms systems. The problem is that while most agree some form of optic […]

While the Middle East and Africa are no strangers to the use of drones in warfare, increasingly, many of the technological developments, trends, and tactics in unmanned vehicle employment observed in Ukraine appear to be proliferating. It was around December 2023 when the first evidence began to appear on social media – a grainy video […]

Small, adaptable, and increasingly autonomous, unmanned systems are increasingly reshaping the battlefield and changing how military operations are conducted, with numerous countries and non-state armed groups demonstrating their potential in conflict zones. During his long career as a member of Hamas, and as its leader in Gaza since February 2017, Yahya Sinwar probably accepted a […]

Recent years have seen wheeled self-propelled artillery platforms proliferate, outpacing procurement of their tracked counterparts. Yet what challenges do designers of these platforms face, and do the claimed advantages of wheeled platforms outweigh their potential disadvantages? Yes and no. Wheeled self-propelled artillery (SPA) is by no means a new concept, with the first examples of […]