Spanish Army's BRIPAC paratroopers, as well as oversees task units, have been recently issued the Heckler & Koch USP 9mm pistols. The type has won the Army's international competition, and will gradually replace legacy M82 Llama pistols.
Spain; Selected units receive new HK USP pistols
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France; DGA publishes RFI for six new OPV
The French Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) has issued a Request for information (RFI) for the development, construction and supply of six new and identical offshore steel or aluminum hull patrol boats for the French Navy. The RFI issued last Friday also asks for maintenance in operational conditions (OLS) of these vessels in overseas territories and realization of associated services, including the provision of spare parts, documentation and training.
As an indication, these boats must be of length of about 70 m, with a draft less than or equal to 3.8 m, will be capable of a speed of 22 knots minimum. They will be implemented from naval bases in New Caledonia, Reunion Island and French Polynesia and will be adapted to the climatic conditions of these areas (particularly high heat and high hygrometry), the RFI stated.
The boats must have capability to run missions for 30 days without refueling and should have a range of about 5,500 nautical miles.
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Russia; Air Force to upgrade Tu-95MSM bombers
Tupolev has signed a contract with the Russian Defense Ministry to modernize strategic bomber and missile carrier Tu-95MSM. The first Tu-95MSM departure is planned for the end of 2019.
In addition, the state tests of the strategic missile carrier Tu-95MS with the upgraded engine NK-12MPM are currently under way - they will be completed by the end of 2018. Major repairs and upgrades of the strategic missile carriers Tu-160 and Tu-95MS are being carried out, which significantly prolongs their service life. Also Tupolev is working on creating prototypes of modernized Tu-160M aircraft. The strategic missile carriers Tu-95MS and Tu-160 are an air component of the nuclear triad.
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Germany; Follow on RfI in TLVS SAM tender
The German Bundeswehr has issued a second Request for Proposal (RFP) to the TLVS bidders consortium - an MBDA and Lockheed Martin joint venture - to develop TLVS, Germany’s future Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) system.
The Lockheed Martin and MBDA joint venture, announced in March, is expected to become the prime contractor for the new system and is anticipated to add several hundred high-tech jobs in Germany and the United States. The joint venture remains committed to submitting a proposal in response to the RFP in anticipation of a contract award in 2019.
With its netted-distributed capability and open plug and fight interface, TLVS is the most advanced, networked 360° IAMD system in the world, and it is the only system with the ability to flexibly react to changing threats using force that is tailored to the mission. TLVS will transform Germany’s defense capabilities and enable the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Framework Nation to set an important precedent in how neighboring nations address persistent global threats for years to come.
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Bulgaria; Future fighter jet contenders list
Eight contenders line up for Bulgaria's MoD renewed tender to replace its aging MiG-29s.
At present 8 runner ups are; United States (F-16 and F/A-18 Super Hornet), Portugal (F-16), Italy (Eurofighter Tranche 1), Israel (upgraded F-16C/D) Germany (Eurofighter 3 Tranche), France (Dassault Rafale) and Sweden (Gripen C/D).
Some 1.8 billion leva (NIS 3.8 billion) will cover the cost of the fighter jets which would be acquired by Sofia in two stages of eight each, as well as ground handling, training and logistical support.
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UK; Artillery Corps to modernize BISA fire control systems
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has awarded a contract to Canadian information technology consulting company CGI for a mid-life upgrade to the Fire Control Battlefield Information System Application (FC BISA).
Under the four-year contract, the company will replace the existing practice of voice communications and liaison officers with digitized Joint Fires weapon systems.
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Serbia; Air Force commissions 2 more ex-Russian MiG-29
Serbia’s air force on Tuesday took the delivery of two Russian MiG-29 fighter jets, part of an arms purchase that could heighten tensions in the Balkans and increase Moscow’s influence in the region. In October, Serbia received six MiG-29 jets from Russia which has also promised the delivery of 30 battle tanks and 30 armored vehicles. Moscow gave the secondhand jets to Serbia for free and the two that flew on Tuesday have undergone an extensive overhaul. The repairs of all six will cost Serbia around $213 million.
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Bulgaria; Su-25 overhaul contenders
The Bulgarian MoD has invited bids from Russian United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) and Belarusian 558 Aircraft Repair Plant (ARP) to overhaul its Su-25 fleet.
The estimated value of the contract is 41 million levs ($24.2 million), the defense ministry procurement notice was quoted by SeeNews in its report Tuesday.
The overhaul of the Su-25 ground attack aircraft is already 10 years overdue, the ministry noted.
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Georgia; Merkel rules out early admission into NATO
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on 24 August ruled out any fast-track NATO membership for Georgia, ten years after the alliance's leaders pledged the ex-Soviet nation would join the club.
During a meeting with students at the Tbilisi State University in the Georgian capital, Merkel said: ‘I do not see Georgia's prompt accession to NATO (membership), this is the position of Germany.’
‘Things come gradually,’ she said of the country's NATO integration during the first leg of her regional trip to the South Caucasus.
At a summit in Bucharest in 2008, NATO leaders said Georgia would become a NATO member at some point, but – under pressure from Merkel and France's then-president Nicolas Sarkozy – refused to put the tiny Black Sea nation on a formal membership path.
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Denmark; Defense Ministry accused of misleading Parliament regarding F-35 noise levels
The Danish Defense Ministry's unverified claims about the noise levels of the future backbone of the Scandinavian country's air force may add extra costs to the divisive multi-billion krone purchase, experts suggest. Defense Minister Claus Hjort Frederiksen of the ruling Liberal Party has misled the Danish parliament in matters pertaining to the noise levels of the F-35 fighters before allocating billions for the procurement of the fifth generation US combat jets, two experts claimed in an interview with the Jyllands-Posten daily. According to Jyllands-Posten, Frederiksen failed to inform the parliament about problems with measures to ensure that the residents in the vicinity of Skrydstrup air base in South Jutland won't be affected by the noise.
Furthermore, the Danish Defense Ministry maintained that changing the aircraft's engines could reduce the noise levels below what was claimed by the manufacturer, Lockheed Martin. Despite the fact that the Danish calculations were never approved by the US Development Office for the F-35 (JPO), the Danish Parliament's Finance Committee allocated over DKK 16 billion for the procurement of the new fighter jets in December 2017.
The acquisition of 27 F-35 fighter jets is estimated to become the largest-ever state purchase in the history of Denmark, with the lifelong costs associated with the aircraft expected to set the Danish state coffers back a whopping DKK 66 billion ($10 billion).
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Czech Rep.; Army orders French Titus armored vehicle
The Czech Ministry of Defence has awarded a contract to supply 62 Titus six-wheel drive armored vehicles, jointly developed by France’s Nexter Group and Czech vehicle-maker Tatra Trucks, to local defense company Eldis Pardubice.
The ministry decided to change the contractor from Tatra Export to Eldis Pardubice after the former company failed to obtain a relevant security clearance, including a license from Nexter Systems.
Deliveries of the vehicles are scheduled for the years 2020-2025, according to the minister. The contract is estimated to be worth about 6.7 billion koruna (U.S. $303.1 million).
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NATO; Belgium and Denmark receive 1st. shipment of PGMs under NSPA cooperative arrangement
The NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) received the first lot of Precision Guided Munitions (PGMs), acquired through a NATO project involving 11 Allies and one NATO partner. The PGMs, produced in the United States, will be delivered to their final recipients, Belgium and Denmark, in the coming weeks. The value of this initial acquisition is around 20 million US dollars.
The delivery is part of a cooperation effort, launched in 2014 at the NATO Summit in Wales, which offers Allies a framework to acquire air-to-ground PGMs in a cost-effective and flexible way. Working through this NATO initiative, rather than individually, allows Allies to draw upon each other’s PGM stocks in case of need: during air operations or in a possible crisis. This will also help NATO and Allies to reduce dependence on the US for air missions.
The project is managed by the NSPA on behalf of the Allies. So far, 11 NATO members have joined this effort: Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom . NATO partner Finland is also a participant.
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Poland; Defense modernization program extended to 2030
Polish government’s Permanent Committee of the Council of Ministers has adopted a draft law, to extend the tri-services modernization program time line by 5 years- till 2030.
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France; Defense Innovation Agency inauguration
French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly announced on August 28 that the creation of the Defense Innovation Agency will become effective on September 1. She has appointed Mr. Emmanuel Shiva, an entrepreneur and a reserve officer, as its first chief. “He is a recognized voice, and embodies my vision: to open us to the civil economy, and preferring the thirst for daring to the fear of failure.”
This agency, placed under the responsibility of the Directorate General of Armaments (DGA), will involve all actors of the ministry by the end of 2018. It will be open to the civil economy and start- ups, and will be turned towards Europe. It will initiate new tools as well as new ways of intervention of the ministry, in particular to favor the fast experiments.
Its budget will be gradually increased, so as to attain one billion euros per year from 2022.
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Ukraine; US plans to widen arms supplies
The United States is ready to widen arms supplies to Ukraine to help build up the country's naval and air defense forces in the face of continuing Russian support for eastern separatists, the U.S.
Kurt Volker said in an interview published on September 1 that pro-Western, anti-Russian sentiment was growing in Ukraine and that the Trump administration was "absolutely" prepared to go further in supplying weaponry to Ukrainian forces than the antitank missiles it delivered in April.
"They are losing soldiers every week defending their own country," Volker, a former U.S. ambassador to NATO, said in the interview.
"And so in that context it’s natural for Ukraine to build up its military, engage in self-defense, and it's natural to seek assistance and is natural that other countries should help them. And of course they need lethal assistance because they’re being shot at," he added.
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Spain; Government embargo on PGM to Saudi Arabia
The Spanish government announced Monday that it is canceling a deal with Saudi Arabia to supply 400 precision bombs and return 9.2 million Euros paid by Riyadh amidst apprehensions that the bombs could be used to target civilians in the Saudi-led bombing campaign in Yemen.
The attack on August 9 on a bus carrying Yemeni students, which killed 51 people including 40 children, prompted defence minister Margarita Robles to review all arms deals with the Arab kingdom. The bomb sale contract cancelation is said to be the first stage of the revision process, EL Mundo newspaper reported.
Spain is the fourth biggest arms exporter to the Riyadh regime. In one of the most recent contracts, the Spanish state-owned shipbuilder Navantia signed a €1.8-billion deal to sell five small warships to Saudi Arabia.
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France accuses Russia of attempting satellite-to satellites espionage
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 France's National Centre for Space Studies (CNES) in Toulouse, southern France.
She added: ‘It got so close that we might have imagined it was trying to intercept our communications. Trying to listen to your neighbours is not only unfriendly. It's an act of espionage.’
Parly said officials took the ‘appropriate measures’ and continued to monitor the satellite after it left, and observed it manoeuvring near other targets as well, she said.
In August 2018, Washington accused Moscow of developing anti-satellite weapons and cited ‘very abnormal behaviour’ of a ‘space object’ deployed by Russia in October 2017.
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Estonia; MoD mulls medium range SAM purchase
Estonia’s MoD is prioritizing the purchase of a midrange air defense system as the country seeks to plug a capability gap its defense minister called the result of a “total oversight” by NATO.
The country in June signed an agreement with MBDA to purchase more Mistral short-range air defense weapons, but has its eyes on adding another layer of protection.
The country is looking at procuring a medium-range air defense system, similar to the Kongsberg network-centric air defence system, or NASAMS, purchased by Lithuania, which is also in use by Finland.
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Europe; Juncker proposes a European border corps of 10,000 agents
The president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, has proposed the creation of a corps of permanent and continental border agents. "In the EU we must establish a border guard worthy of that name and be authentic and effective," he explained in what will be his last speech of the State of the European Union (EU), delivered on Wednesday.
"By 2020 I want a permanent corps of 10,000 agents ready to support the more than 100 000 national border guards in their arduous task," Juncker said. In his speech he has not forgotten that to implement this plan "we must also address the issue of equipment." The president of the Commission has pointed directly on this point: "We need more airplanes, more ships, more vehicles".
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Estonia; 155mm ammunition from Finland
The Finnish Government has granted approval for the sale of a batch of 155mm field artillery ammunition to the Estonian Defence Force.
With an overall value of €8.5m, taxes excluded, the procurement request was made by Estonia and the proposed business transaction will be carried out between the authorities of the two countries.
The 155mm howitzers will be delivered from Finland Defence Forces’ stock and the sale is expected not to affect the ammunition readiness of the country.
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