Archive: News & Articles

A seemingly inconspicuous note with potential for conflict made its appearance on 19 December 2023, as the US State Department announced an expansion of the extended continental shelf claimed by the United States. The new delineations concern sea areas in the Western Atlantic, the Arctic, the Bering Sea, around the Mariana Islands, in the Gulf […]

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has approved a Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to Israel of 13,981 120 mm M830A1 High Explosive Anti-Tank Multi-Purpose with Tracer (MPAT) tank rounds and related equipment, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced on 9 December 2023.   The tanks ammunition, which would come direct from the US […]

The United Kingdom and Norway are leading a new Maritime Capability Coalition to strengthen Ukraine’s ability to operate at sea, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on 11 December 2023. The new coalition will provide long-term support to Ukraine, including training, equipment and infrastructure to enhance security in the Black Sea. In announcing the […]

As final approval for Sweden to join NATO nears, the country has signed a Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) with the United States that fosters closer military ties and agrees the conditions for US forces using military facilities in Sweden. The DCA was signed on 5 December 2023 by Swedish Defence Minister Pål Jonson and US […]

While US and UK military strategists continue to learn lessons from the conflict in Ukraine, recent geopolitics events suggest they might need to keep an eye on somewhere completely different: Guyana. This country, a sparsely populated former British colony on the northern coast of South America, has since 2015 been enriched by significant revenues from […]

The US Department of Defense (DoD) announced a new security assistance package for Ukraine on 6 December 2023 that includes additional air defence capabilities, artillery ammunition, anti-tank weapons, and other equipment to help Ukraine continue to stem the Russian invasion. The package, valued at up to USD 175 M (EUR 163 M), is the Biden Administration’s 52nd tranche […]

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and his Dutch counterpart, Kajsa Ollongren, signed an agreement to further intensify bilateral military cooperation on 30 November 2023. The signing took place on the fringes of the Berlin Security Conference. According to a spokesperson from the German Federal Ministry of Defence (BMVg), one of the aims of the new […]

The war in Ukraine has clearly shown the value of anti-ship missiles. Both Bulgaria and Greece are NATO member states that, due to significant threats and a risk of war, must strengthen their capabilities in this regard. One of the lessons learned from the Russian full-scale aggression against Ukraine initiated in 2022 relates to the […]

NATO allies the United Kingdom and Türkiye have signed a Statement of Intent on defence co-operation that could see closer collaboration in military aerospace technology or even fighter sales. The statement was signed on 23 November 2023 in the Turkish capital, Ankara, by UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps and Turkish Minister of National Defense Yaşar […]

At the Armed Forces Reserve Center in Richmond, Kentucky, on 11 October 2023, various dignitaries celebrated the US military destroying the last of its chemical warfare (CW) agents. It was in Kentucky, at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant, where the last remaining M55 rocket filled with deadly sarin nerve agent was destroyed on 7 […]

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has directed UK military assets to be deployed to the eastern Mediterranean to support Israel in its conflict with Hamas and to “reinforce regional stability and prevent escalation”, a UK government press release stated on 13 October 2023. The UK deployment involves P-8 maritime surveillance aircraft, which began operations in […]

The United States is to lead a newly formed coalition focused on developing Ukraine’s air force in a bid to bolster the country’s long-term capability to defend itself against Russian attack. The initiative was announced by US Defense Secretary Lloyd J Austin III on 11 October 2023 following the 16th meeting of the Ukraine Defense […]

A new internationally funded package of military support for Ukraine was announced by UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps on 11 October 2023. The new package, which is worth more than GBP 100 M (EUR 115.9 M), is designed to help Ukraine’s armed forces clear minefields, maintain their vehicles, and shore up defensive fortifications to protect […]

US Air Force (USAF) Charles Q Brown Jr became the 21st Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) on 1 October 2023, succeeding US Army General Mark Milley. As JCS Chairman Gen Brown thus becomes the country’s highest-ranking military officer, whose duty it is to be the principal military advisor to the US president, […]

A pair of Royal Air Force (RAF) Eurofighter Typhoons have successfully landed on and taken off from a regular highway for the first time, the RAF reported on 24 September. The road landings and take-offs occurred in Finland during Exercise ‘Baana 23’: this year’s iteration of the Finnish Air Force’s annual road base exercise, which […]

BAE Systems announced at DSEI 2023 on 14 September that it is set to launch its first Azalea multi-satellite cluster into low Earth orbit at the beginning of 2025. The group of satellites will use a range of sensors to collect visual, radar and radio frequency (RF) data to deliver high-quality information and intelligence from […]

Monaco-based surveillance and infrastructure protection specialist MARSS announced at DSEI 2023 on 12 September the launch of a new portable unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) countermeasure. Known as the Interceptor-SR (Short Range), the countermeasure is smaller and lighter than MARSS’ larger Interceptor (now known as the Interceptor-MR) and can be used to provide more mobile protection […]

The US government announced on 21 September 2023 that it is sending an additional security assistance package to Ukraine: the Biden Administration’s 47th tranche of equipment to be provided to Ukraine from US Department of Defense (DoD) inventories since August 2021. The package, valued at up to USD 325 M (EUR 305 M), comes as […]

BAE Systems announced at DSEI 2023 on 12 September that, in a collaboration with Canadian subsea specialist Cellula Robotics, it would put its Herne Extra Large Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (XLAUV) technology demonstrator in the water in September 2024. The Herne XLAUV is a militarised version of Cellula Robotics’ 12 m-long Solus-XR that will ‘test the […]

With Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev stating on 20 September 2023 that his forces had taken back the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh after a rapidly executed offensive launched the previous day, Armenia appears to have suffered indirect fallout from the war in Ukraine. Although internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, the landlocked region of Nagorno Karabakh […]

The US State Department has approved a potential Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to Canada of munitions and other systems to be integrated onto the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) MQ-9B SkyGuardian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced on 15 September, even though Canada has not yet selected the MQ-9B. […]