Growth in Taiwan's defence expenditure is forecast by JDB to slow down in the next few years. JDB figures include funding for veterans' affairs and other defence funds. (Janes Defence Budgets)  Taiwan's National Defense Report 2023 has highlighted how the country is trying to learn lessons from the Ukraine-Russia war in ramping up its own multidomain and asymmetric military capabilities in preparing for any conflict with China.  The biennial policy paper – published by the Ministry of National Defense (MND) in Taipei on 12 September – also co...

Kongsberg NSM CDS on display at MSPO 2023. (Janes/Neil Dee)  Kongsberg has been awarded a contract worth around NOK16 billion (USD1.5 billion) to deliver four additional Naval Strike Missile (NSM) Coastal Defence System (CDS) squadrons to Poland, the largest single contract in Kongsberg's history. The contract was approved at the MSPO 2023 defence exhibition in Kielce, Poland, by Polish Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak in the presence of Polish President Andrzej Duda. Pending confirmation of export financing for the contract, de...

The Peregrine UAS, which comprises a Schiebel S-100 Camcopter and a Thales I-Master radar, will be deployed onboard an RN Type 23 frigate in the Gulf from 2024. (Schiebel)  Thales and Schiebel have successfully completed factory acceptance testing (FAT) of the UK Royal Navy's (RN's) Peregrine Camcopter S-100 rotary-wing unmanned aircraft system (UAS) integrated with Thales l-Master radar.  Announcing the milestone on 30 August, the two companies said the FAT approval marked an important step towards final delivery of the Camcopter S-100 UAS P...

AI will transform the evaluation of sensor data, support missions, and deploy effectors. To allow this key capability to be developed and deployed quickly, Germany has decided to create a cross-functional AI platform as a development environment for all partners and pillars of FCAS. (Hensoldt )  The German Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology, and In-Service Support (BAAINBw) has selected a consortium to deliver the artificial intelligence (AI) backbone for the Future Combat Air System (FCAS)/Système de Combat Aérien...

The total value of notified Foreign Military Sales to Taiwan over the past five years is about USD20 billion. (US Defense Security Cooperation Agency/Janes)  The Biden administration has approved the United States' first Foreign Military Financing (FMF) package for Taiwan, a State Department official has told Janes.  The official said the FMF transfer is worth USD80 million, adding that Congress was notified of the administration's intent to supply the assistance on 29 August.  The State Department official did not disclose what military equi...

HNLMS   Makkum,  one of six remaining Alkmaar (Tripartite)-class minehunters in the Royal Netherlands Navy service.  (Michael Nitz – Naval Press Service)  The Netherlands is gearing up to start training Ukrainian crews to operate the Dutch navy's Alkmaar (Tripartite)-class minehunters in the coming weeks.  Speaking at the third summit of the International Crimea Platform in Kyiv held from 12 to 23 August, Dutch Minister of Defence Kajsa Ollongren confirmed that training on the Alkmaar-class minehunters would star...

At Exercise ‘Talisman Sabre', which took place in Queensland, Australia, in July and August 2023, the NZDF participated in joint drills incorporating activities including air combat and maritime operations, amphibious landings, and ground force manoeuvres. (Tim Fish)  New Zealand's first National Security Strategy (NSS) was released on 4 August alongside the first two parts of a new defence review that highlight the threats the country faces and how it plans to respond.  The NSS is a cross-governmental analysis of the challenges that face New...

A Royal Australian Navy MH-60R helicopter conducts an in-flight refuel while embarked on HMAS   Ballarat  .  (Department of Defence, Commonwealth of Australia)  The Australian government has moved to strengthen fuel supplies to the Australian Defence Force (ADF) in line with requirements outlined in its Defence Strategic Review (DSR) to significantly enhance the management and supply of military fuel.  In recent weeks the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) has awarded two major contracts to local suppliers tha...

Swedish Leopard 2 MBTs and CV90 AFVs donated to Ukraine will receive additional ammunition from Sweden following a military aid package. (Krauss-Maffei Wegmann)  The Swedish government is preparing a SEK3.4 billion (USD313.4 million) military aid package for Ukraine, the authority announced on 15 August.  The assistance includes ammunition and spare parts for several of the equipment donated to Ukraine by Sweden, including the CV90 armoured fighting vehicles (AFVs) and Leopard 2 main battle tanks (MBTs).  In addition, Sweden intends to supply...

Defence Minister Andrew Little releases the defence policy papers in Wellington, New Zealand, on 4 August. (Tim Fish)  The New Zealand Ministry of Defence (MoD) has launched a National Security Strategy (NSS) alongside the first two parts of a new defence policy that prioritises enhancing security in the Pacific.  Released on 4 August the two policy papers include the Defence Policy and Strategy Statement (DPSS) and Future Force Design Principles (FFDP). Along with the NSS, these set the framework for future decisions about the New Zealand De...

HII is working on workforce issues to help stabilise Virginia-class submarine construction. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  Meeting labour hiring and retention goals will help get the Virginia-class submarine (VCS) programme back on schedule, HII president and CEO Chris Kastner said on 3 August during a quarterly call with investment analysts.  Asked what HII will do to get VCS back on “path” now that it is “well behind the two-per-year delivery objective in Block V”, Kastner said, “The largest obstacle, the largest risk on the VCS programme right now...

The Ukrainian Navy's two newly acquired ex-Royal Navy Sandown-class minehunters completed their latest phase of training in the multinational ‘Sea Breeze' exercise, held in UK waters in late June/early July. (Armed Forces of Ukraine)  The Ukrainian Navy has completed its first multinational exercise series, ‘Sea Breeze 2023', operating the service's two newly acquired ex-Royal Navy (RN) Sandown-class minehunters, Chernihiv (ex-HMS Grimsby) and Cherkasy (ex-HMS Shoreham).  In a Twitter announcement on 12 July the UK RN said the exercise marked...

The US Navy has conducted several transits of the Taiwan Strait in 2023. Its latest transit, on 13 July, by a Boeing P-8A Poseidon, attracted a major response from the Chinese PLA. (Taiwan Ministry of National Defense/US Indo-Pacific Command/China Ministry of National Defense)  The flight of a US Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft over the Taiwan Strait on 13 July prompted China to launch 26 combat aircraft, according to the Taiwan Ministry of National Defense (MND).  In a statement issued on 13 July the MND said it “successfu...

NATO enlargement from 1952 to the present. (NATO/Janes)  Allied leaders meeting on the second day of the 11–12 July NATO summit in Vilnius agreed to a multi-year assistance programme for Ukraine until it meets the conditions of alliance membership. “Our new multi-year programme of assistance for Ukraine will help you transition from Soviet era to NATO equipment and standards and will make Ukraine's forces fully interoperable within NATO,” the alliance's Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, announced at a joint press conference with Ukrainian...

Lockheed Martin completed another milestone in its efforts to integrate the PAC-3 missile with Aegis. (Lockheed Martin)  Lockheed Martin's Patriot Advanced Capability – 3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptor successfully communicated with the AN/SPY-1 radar, a key component in the Aegis Weapon System, for the first time, the company confirmed on 10 July.  “This successful test is a major step forward to fully integrate PAC-3 MSE into the Aegis Weapon System,” Tom Copeman, vice-president, Naval Systems, Lockheed Martin Missile...

The USCG and the USN are deploying more cutters and other surfaces ships into Arctic waters. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  A new Arctic landscape being sculpted by climatic changes is recasting US naval concepts and the global geopolitical framework associated with the region, according to a US Congressional Research Service (CRS) report.    “The diminishment of Arctic ice is creating new operating areas in the Arctic for [US] Navy (USN) surface ships and [US] Coast Guard (USCG) cutters,” the CRS said in its updated report   Changes in the...

JCO-UK became operational on 26 June and is based at the UK Space Operations Centre, which monitors space 24/7, 365 days a year. (Crown Copyright)  UK Space Command has officially established a space domain awareness (SDA) cell in co-operation with the US to enhance orbital surveillance, the Royal Air Force (RAF) announced on 4 July.  A UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesperson informed Janes the cell would be based at RAF High Wycombe.  The cell is known as JCO-UK (‘Joint Task Force-Space Defence Commercial Operations Cell') and is an extens...

The US is making investments in its submarine industrial base to help meet AUKUS and US Navy needs. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  Country members of the AUKUS security pact – Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States – have begun to work towards Pillar 2 of the pact, according to US officials.  “We have begun efforts associated with Pillar 2,” Kurt Campbell, deputy assistant to the president and co-ordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs on the National Security Council, said on 26 June during an AUKUS discussion at the Center for Strategic an...

A screenshot from a video shared by the Wagner paramilitary group's social media accounts shows its convoy seemingly being hit with an airstrike. (Wagner/Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)  The Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) suffered significant losses during the seeming mutiny of the Wagner Group on 24 June.  Footage posted online during the event showed a number of fixed- and rotary-winged aircraft types of the VKS being shot down by Wagner forces during the mercenary group's short-lived insurrection against the Russian military and p...

GE Aerospace is working with the US government to secure the necessary export authorisation for the joint production of its F414-INS6 engine with India. (GE Aerospace)  The leaders of the United States and India have announced agreements to accelerate defence industrial co-operation including the potential joint production of General Electric (GE) F414 engines for future combat aircraft.  The agreements were made following discussions between US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Washington on 22 June.  A keystone...