June 5, 2012 defpro.com

LISLE, Ill. | Navistar Defense, LLC on Monday received a contract for $59 million to deliver 1,357 rocket propelled grenade (RPG) net kits for International MaxxPro Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) units in Afghanistan. The order from the U.S. Army TACOM Life Cycle Management Command is considered an urgent buy.

RPG nets provide additional protection against the anti-tank weapon of the same name. Navistar previously fielded 970 RPG net kits for the MaxxPro family of vehicles to support Afghan operations. The new kits will be fitted onto MaxxPro units operating in theater. Delivery is scheduled to begin in August 2012 and be completed by the December 2012.

"Five years ago, almost to the day, we received our first MaxxPro contract to support the urgent operational need in Iraq," said Archie Massicotte, president, Navistar Defense. "We always strive to anticipate the needs of our warfighters and deliver on all contracts with the same urgency asked of us in 2007. We are proud to provide integrated solutions, such as the RPG nets, to our Armed Forces and we will continue to develop new solutions to meet the changing needs of the warfighter."

Navistar has fielded nine major MRAP variants during the last five years including the MaxxPro Dash Ambulance and the MaxxPro Recovery Vehicle. Earlier this year, the company retrofitted existing vehicles with a rolling chassis to upgrade and ready the fleet for future missions. Navistar is also currently competing for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV), Ground Mobility Vehicle (GMV) 1.1 and Standard Military Pattern (SMP) programs with new vehicle solutions. These new platforms were developed by leveraging and combining current assets of Navistar and our partners to create cost effective, robust and mature solutions that are available today.

4 juin 2012 ADM PA BG 12.024 - forces.gc.ca

Le Canada et l’Australie entretiennent des relations exceptionnellement étroites et très productives. Ces relations se sont établies sur une longue période et elles sont fondées à la fois sur un passé commun et des valeurs semblables. Elles couvrent un grand nombre de domaines, allant du commerce et de la défense, à l’enseignement et aux échanges de stagiaires, en passant par la culture, les ententes consulaires, les relations parlementaires, la coopération multilatérale, et les affaires politiques et gouvernementales.

L’Australie est un pays qui a des vues similaires à celles du Canada et qui est un partenaire clé de notre pays. Comme le Canada et l’Australie possèdent des forces armées de taille comparable et ont à peu près les mêmes alliés, ils collaborent ensemble depuis longtemps en matière de défense et maintiennent des relations dans ce domaine par l’intermédiaire d’exercices, de cours, d’échanges entre établissements d’enseignement, de discussions stratégiques, de visites de hauts dirigeants, et d’opérations telles que la mission en Afghanistan, menée sous la direction de l’OTAN. Bien qu’elle ne soit pas membre de l’OTAN, l’Australie a contribué de façon considérable à la Force internationale d’assistance à la sécurité (FIAS) et aux opérations menées en Afghanistan au cours des dix dernières années, et elle poursuit cette contribution.

La relation bilatérale dynamique et croissante en matière de défense qui existe entre le Canada et l’Australie reflète les difficultés mondiales communes auxquelles nous devons faire face, que ce soit dans le contre-terrorisme ou dans de nouveaux domaines comme la cybersécurité ou la sécurité spatiale.

Le ministère de la Défense nationale cherche à renforcer la collaboration à l’aide de discussions bilatérales. Voici des exemples de coopération dans la défense entre le Canada et l’Australie :

• Visites officielles — Il y a chaque année jusqu’à 500 visites de haut niveau et visites de travail, au Canada et en Australie, entre les deux pays, y compris une visite ministérielle, qui a eu lieu en 2011. 
• Appui par des femmes militaires canadiennes de l’initiative prise par la Force de défense australienne (FDA) de lever les restrictions visant la participation des femmes aux métiers des armes de combat — à l’invitation du général David Hurley, chef de la FDA, les membres de la délégation canadienne ont fait part de leurs expériences.
• Coopération bilatérale en Afghanistan — Le Canada et l’Australie continuent de travailler ensemble dans le cadre de la mission en Afghanistan dirigée par l’OTAN.
• Coopération et échanges dans la Marine — La Marine royale canadienne et son homologue australienne ont collaboré à l’occasion de plusieurs exercices d’entraînement, opérations et échanges, et continuent de le faire. En outre, les deux marines se font part de leurs pratiques pour la gestion du matériel et la construction des navires.
• Coopération et échanges dans l’Armée de terre — L’Armée de terre du Canada et celle de l’Australie collaborent à divers programmes, y compris le programme des armées des États‑Unis, du Royaume­Uni, du Canada, de l’Australie et de la Nouvelle­Zélande, ainsi que dans un certain nombre d’échanges.
• Coopération et échanges dans la Force aérienne — L’Aviation royale du Canada et la force aérienne australienne collaborent dans plusieurs domaines militaires, y compris l’instruction, les opérations et les échanges.

Par ailleurs, les ministères de la Défense du Canada et de l’Australie se sont engagés à organiser des réunions ministérielles annuelles, des entretiens de politique stratégique, et des réunions entre le chef d’état-major de la Défense canadien et son homologue australien. De plus, le Canada a un attaché militaire en Australie.

Appui par des femmes militaires canadiennes de l’initiative prise par la Force de défense australienne (FDA) de lever les restrictions visant la participation des femmes aux métiers des armes de combat

Le chef de la Force de défense australienne, le général David Hurley, a invité une délégation de membres des Forces canadiennes (FC) exerçant des métiers des armes de combat à se rendre en Australie pour parler de leurs expériences de combat avec des membres de la Force de défense australienne. Cette invitation a été lancée dans le but de faciliter la mise en œuvre d’un projet visant à rendre accessibles aux femmes tous les postes liés au combat dans les forces armées australiennes.

Deux femmes et un homme membres des Forces canadiennes, ainsi qu’un civil expert en intégration des femmes de l’Académie canadienne de la Défense, se sont rendus en Australie du 7 au 18 mai 2012, en réponse à l’invitation du général Hurley. Les membres de la délégation canadienne ont pu, à cette occasion, discuter avec leurs homologues australiens de leur engagement à l’égard de l’égalité des sexes dans les forces armées. Le colonel Jennie Carignan, chef d’état-major au Secteur du Centre de la Force terrestre, l’adjudant-chef Stan Stapleford, adjudant-chef au Secteur du Centre de la Force terrestre, et le capitaine Geneviève Bertrand, capitaine-adjudant au 3e Bataillon du Royal 22e Régiment ont ainsi fait part de leurs expériences personnelles.

Dans les FC, les femmes peuvent exercer tous les métiers, y compris les métiers des armes de combat. Elles peuvent également être affectées à bord des sous-marins. Les FC donnent le ton au niveau mondial pour ce qui est des domaines dans lesquels les femmes peuvent servir. Dans les Forces canadiennes, les femmes peuvent remplir n’importe quelle fonction, y compris dans l’artillerie, et elles peuvent servir dans n’importe quel élément. Les FC sont fières de jouer un rôle de leader dans le domaine de l’égalité et des droits des femmes, et elles recrutent activement des femmes pour leur offrir des postes dynamiques et enrichissants.

Coopération bilatérale en Afghanistan

En raison de sa contribution considérable à la FIAS et aux opérations en Afghanistan au cours des dix dernières années, l’Australie est un partenaire clé pour le Canada et l’OTAN. L’Australie et le Canada ont servi ensemble dans le théâtre d’opérations le plus dur en Afghanistan, à savoir le Commandement régional (Sud-Ouest). Malgré le changement de la mission et du rôle du Canada, les deux pays continuent de collaborer pour échanger information et pratiques concernant leurs efforts pangouvernementaux respectifs en Afghanistan. Le Canada a prêté de l’équipement à l’Australie, lui permettant d’améliorer sa capacité de protection de la force, en plus de communiquer des renseignements au niveau opérationnel qui aident l’Australie à poursuivre la conduite des opérations en Afghanistan.

Le Canada et l’Australie sont en Afghanistan avec plus de 50 autres pays et organisations internationales, à la demande du gouvernement afghan démocratiquement élu, dans le cadre d’une mission autorisée par l’ONU et dirigée par l’OTAN.

Coopération et échanges dans la Marine

La Marine royale canadienne et la Marine royale australienne coopèrent depuis longtemps. Cette association trouve sa source dans notre appartenance au Commonwealth, et elle fournit une assise profonde à une culture et à des pratiques militaires communes, assise permettant de surmonter les difficultés présentes et futures en matière de sécurité. Le Canada et l’Australie participent ensemble à des manœuvres navales internationales, comme RIMPAC, exercice maritime multinational qui se déroule dans l’océan Pacifique sous la direction des États-Unis. De plus, le navire canadien de Sa Majesté OTTAWA a participé à TALISMAN SABRE 2011, grand exercice australo‑américain. Ces exercices servent à améliorer l’interopérabilité, les communications, et la coordination tactique en mer. Ce type de capacité représente le fer de lance de nos excellentes relations dans le domaine de la défense.

Depuis 2009, il y a eu plusieurs visites de navires : le NCSM WINNIPEG a visité Perth, Melbourne et Brisbane en 2009 en revenant du golfe d’Aden, les HMAS SYDNEY et BALLARAT ont fait escale à Halifax et à St. John’s en juillet 2009, le HMAS NEWCASTLE a participé aux célébrations du centenaire de la Marine royale canadienne à Esquimalt en juin 2010, et le NCSM OTTAWA était à Sydney du 6 au 10 juillet 2011.

Quatre marins canadiens ont été détachés dans la marine australienne de septembre à décembre 2011 et six autres y sont actuellement employés (de janvier à juin 2012), dans le cadre du programme REGULUS, qui permet la rotation systématique du personnel dans les marines alliées pendant que les frégates canadiennes sont modernisées. Ces programmes permettent la réciprocité et des marins australiens (ou d’autres marines alliées) ont donc l’occasion de s’entraîner et de travailler à bord des navires de la Marine royale canadienne.

De plus, les marins de la marine canadienne prennent part régulièrement à des échanges avec des marins australiens dans le domaine des opérations maritimes et de l’instruction, et étudient à l’Australian Defence College.

Coopération et échanges dans l’Armée de terre

Fonctionnant depuis plus de 60 ans, le programme des armées des États­Unis, du Royaume­Uni, du Canada, de l’Australie et de la Nouvelle­Zélande (ABCANZ) est un élément clé permettant l’interopérabilité des forces terrestres. Le Canada a été l’hôte d’ALLIED AURORAS, grand exercice d’entraînement de l’ABCANZ, qui a eu lieu en juillet 2011. L’exercice a vu la création d’un environnement synthétique réparti, qui facilite les activités d’entraînement à l’interopérabilité parmi les pays membres de l’ABCANZ. L’Australie a participé à ALLIED AURORAS; elle en tirera parti pendant AQUA TERRA, exercice dont elle sera l’hôte en 2014. De plus, l’Australie a envoyé une équipe de 20 personnes à l’assemblée annuelle de l’ABCANZ en mars 2012, à Ottawa. Lors de la réunion, les pays membres de l’ABCANZ se sont mis d’accord sur les difficultés en matière d’interopérabilité qui devraient être résolues dans l’année qui vient.

En outre, le Canada et l’Australie ont un programme d’échange entre les petites unités en vigueur. En août 2011, 24 Rangers canadiens du 4e Groupe de patrouilles des Rangers canadiens ont participé à l’exercice SOUTHERN CROSS. Cet échange est d’autant plus remarquable qu’il réunit des membres des communautés autochtones du Canada et de l’Australie, qui peuvent explorer des liens communs et parler de ce qu’ils ont appris dans leurs milieux respectifs.

L’Armée canadienne a récemment participé à l’exercice SEA LION 12, exercice amphibie organisé par l’Australie en mars 2012. Un peloton d’infanterie de l’Armée canadienne était incorporé à une compagnie d’infanterie néo-zélandaise, qui s’entraînait avec les troupes australiennes, pour acquérir de l’expérience dans les milieux opérationnels multinationaux, et profiter de leur expertise dans ce domaine d’opérations particulier.

L’Armée canadienne parraine un officier de liaison au QG de l’armée australienne à Duntroon, un échange d’officiers entre l’Australian Land Warfare Center et le Centre d’instruction au combat du Canada, et un échange pour la recherche dans les communications entre les régiments de guerre électronique respectifs des deux pays. Encore une fois, cela prouve que nos relations dans le domaine de la défense se situent vraiment à un niveau opérationnel; les militaires qui prennent part à ces échanges rapportent à leurs collègues des FC une expérience précieuse, tout en offrant au pays hôte notre point de vue et notre expérience.

Coopération et échanges dans la Force aérienne

Consolidant les bases lancées lors de la création du Programme d’entraînement aérien du Commonwealth britannique en décembre 1939, le Canada et l’Australie ont coopéré et cela s’est traduit par la participation d’aviateurs australiens aux programmes d’entraînement de l’Aviation royale du Canada, dont le Cours élémentaire de navigateur aérien à Winnipeg et le programme d’entraînement en vol de l’OTAN au Canada. Dans le cadre d’échanges, plusieurs membres de la force aérienne australienne sont actuellement employés au sein d’escadrons opérationnels un peu partout au Canada.

De plus, le Canada participe à la compétition internationale FINCASTLE pour les avions de patrouille maritime; elle a été organisée à Comox (Colombie-Britannique) en 2008. FINCASTLE met à l’épreuve le talent des forces aériennes de l’Australie, du Canada et de la Nouvelle‑Zélande. Au cours de la compétition, les équipages rivalisent dans les domaines de la lutte anti‑sous‑marine, de la lutte antinavires, de la surveillance et de l’acquisition de renseignement. Durant cette épreuve âprement disputée, les participants doivent détecter, catégoriser, suivre et attaquer un sous-marin de jour ou de nuit. De plus, l’exercice comprend un forum visant à la création de procédures et de tactiques, et un entraînement aux patrouilles et à la surveillance maritime étendue. La surveillance terrestre a été ajoutée à la compétition dernièrement.

04.06.2012 par P. CHAPLEAU Lignes de Défense

La DGA a émis un avis d'appel public à la concurrence concernant un "marché d'assistance à maîtrise d'ouvrage juridique et financière pour la passation et le suivi d'exécution du contrat de partenariat BSAH et le suivi d'exécution des contrats de partenariat RDIP-AIR et ea-alat Dax" (cliquer ici pour accéder au texte complet de l'annonce n° 12-79982).

La mission PPP du ministère de la Défense (longtemps dirigée par Philippe Genoux) étant en phase de démantèlement (officiellement depuis le 10 mai), il faut donc désormais faire appel à des compétences extérieures pour cette AMO (assistance à maîtrise d'ouvrage) juridique et financière. Commentaire d'un observateur avisé du milieu des PPP: "En d'autres termes le ministère préfère payer à prix d'or des consultants privés plutôt que de recourir à ses compétences internes à la mission PPP, allez comprendre".

Le marché comporte 4 lots (c'est moi qui souligne):

 - Lot 1 Assistance juridique pour la passation et le commencement d'exécution du CP BSAH. Les domaines de compétences juridiques identifiés sont notamment le droit public des affaires, le droit des affaires privés, le droit bancaire et financier, le droit de la propriété intellectuelle, le droit des assurances, le droit fiscal ... ainsi que le droit maritime..
- Lot 2 Assistance financière pour la passation et le commencement d'exécution du CP BSAH. Le rôle de(s) Assistance(s) Financière(s) est d'apporter un conseil et un accompagnement à la DGA sur tous les sujets financiers, bancaires, comptables ou fiscaux, pendant la passation du contrat BSAH puis durant son exécution..
- Lot 3 Assistance juridique pour le suivi de l'exécution des CP RDIP-AIR et EA ALAT Dax. Les domaines de compétences juridiques identifiés pour RDIP-Air et EA ALAT Dax sont notamment le droit public des affaires, le droit des affaires privés, le droit bancaire et financier, le droit de la propriété intellectuelle, le droit des assurances, le droit fiscal ... et le droit informatique et des NTIC (notamment la règlementation CNIL) pour RDIP-Air..
- Lot 4 Assistance financière pour le suivi de l'exécution des CP RDIP-AIR et EA ALAT Dax. Le rôle de(s) Assistance(s) Financière(s) est d'apporter un conseil et un accompagnement à la DGA sur tous les sujets financiers, bancaires, comptables ou fiscaux, pendant l'exécution des contrats de partenariat RDIP-AIR et EA ALAT Dax..

Sont donc concernés le projet des bâtiments de soutien et d'assistance hauturiers (BSAH), le contrat RDIP (réseau de desserte IP de l'armée de l'air) et le PPP de Dax au profit de l'école de l'ALAT (contrat détenu par Héli-Dax). L'annonce date du 15 mai et la date prévisionnelle de débuts des prestations a été fixée au 20 juillet. Durée du marché: 60 mois.

2012-06-04 (foxnews.com)

A super-stealthy warship that could underpin the U.S. navy’s China strategy will be able to sneak up on coastlines virtually undetected and pound targets with electromagnetic “railguns” right out of a sci-fi movie.

But at more than $3 billion a pop, critics say the new DDG-1000 destroyer sucks away funds that could be better used to bolster a thinly stretched conventional fleet. One outspoken admiral in China has scoffed that all it would take to sink the high-tech American ship is an armada of explosive-laden fishing boats.

With the first of the new ships set to be delivered in 2014, the stealth destroyer is being heavily promoted by the Pentagon as the most advanced destroyer in history — a silver bullet of stealth. It has been called a perfect fit for what Washington now considers the most strategically important region in the world — Asia and the Pacific.

Though it could come in handy elsewhere, like in the Gulf region, its ability to carry out missions both on the high seas and in shallows closer to shore is especially important in Asia because of the region’s many island nations and China’s long Pacific coast.

“With its stealth, incredibly capable sonar system, strike capability and lower manning requirements — this is our future,” Adm. Jonathan Greenert, chief of naval operations, said in April after visiting the shipyard in Maine where they are being built.

On a visit to a major regional security conference in Singapore that ended Sunday, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said the Navy will be deploying 60 percent of its fleet worldwide to the Pacific by 2020, and though he didn’t cite the stealth destroyers he said new high-tech ships will be a big part of its shift.

The DDG-1000 and other stealth destroyers of the Zumwalt class feature a wave-piercing hull that leaves almost no wake, electric drive propulsion and advanced sonar and missiles. They are longer and heavier than existing destroyers — but will have half the crew because of automated systems and appear to be little more than a small fishing boat on enemy radar.

Down the road, the ship is to be equipped with an electromagnetic railgun, which uses a magnetic field and electric current to fire a projectile at several times the speed of sound.

But cost overruns and technical delays have left many defense experts wondering if the whole endeavor was too focused on futuristic technologies for its own good.

They point to the problem-ridden F-22 stealth jet fighter, which was hailed as the most advanced fighter ever built but was cut short because of prohibitive costs. Its successor, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, has swelled up into the most expensive procurement program in Defense Department history.

“Whether the Navy can afford to buy many DDG-1000s must be balanced against the need for over 300 surface ships to fulfill the various missions that confront it,” said Dean Cheng, a China expert with the Heritage Foundation, a conservative research institute in Washington. “Buying hyperexpensive ships hurts that ability, but buying ships that can’t do the job, or worse can’t survive in the face of the enemy, is even more irresponsible.”

The Navy says it’s money well spent. The rise of China has been cited as the best reason for keeping the revolutionary ship afloat, although the specifics of where it will be deployed have yet to be announced. Navy officials also say the technologies developed for the ship will inevitably be used in other vessels in the decades ahead.

But the destroyers’ $3.1 billion price tag, which is about twice the cost of the current destroyers and balloons to $7 billion each when research and development is added in, nearly sank it in Congress. Though the Navy originally wanted 32 of them, that was cut to 24, then seven.

Now, just three are in the works.

“Costs spiraled — surprise, surprise — and the program basically fell in on itself,” said Richard Bitzinger, a security expert at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University. “The DDG-1000 was a nice idea for a new modernistic surface combatant, but it contained too many unproven, disruptive technologies.”

The U.S. Defense Department is concerned that China is modernizing its navy with a near-term goal of stopping or delaying U.S. intervention in conflicts over disputed territory in the South China Sea or involving Taiwan, which China considers a renegade province.

China is now working on building up a credible aircraft carrier capability and developing missiles and submarines that could deny American ships access to crucial sea lanes.

The U.S. has a big advantage on the high seas, but improvements in China’s navy could make it harder for U.S. ships to fight in shallower waters, called littorals. The stealth destroyers are designed to do both. In the meantime, the Navy will begin deploying smaller Littoral Combat Ships to Singapore later this year.

Officially, China has been quiet on the possible addition of the destroyers to Asian waters.

But Rear Adm. Zhang Zhaozhong, an outspoken commentator affiliated with China’s National Defense University, scoffed at the hype surrounding the ship, saying that despite its high-tech design it could be overwhelmed by a swarm of fishing boats laden with explosives. If enough boats were mobilized some could get through to blow a hole in its hull, he said.

“It would be a goner,” he said recently on state broadcaster CCTV’s military channel.

PLA Navy's New Type 056 warship

June 2, 2012  china-defense-mashup.com

In the absence of a formal defence alliance like Nato, the annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore has become the pre-eminent annual security gathering in the Asia-Pacific region.

According to Dr John Chipman, the director-general and chief executive of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, who organise the gathering, “the Shangri-La Dialogue is now commonly referred to as the ‘indispensable forum’ for Asian defence diplomacy.”

This year defence ministers and senior officials from some 27 countries are gathering in Singapore.

The US defence secretary is a regular participant as too are senior officials from China, Australia, Japan, Canada, India, Indonesia and a host of smaller Asian countries.

One of the great benefits of this gathering is that unlike a formal summit there is no communiqué to be worked on.

The plenary sessions are often used by ministers to launch trial balloons or make new policy pronouncements and, John Chipman asserts, “the event as a whole allows the defence establishments to ‘take the pulse’ of the prevailing mood in the region”.

China factor

This may be the most dynamic part of the world in economic terms but it is also one of major security challenges.

To old disputes like the tensions between China and Taiwan or those between North and South Korea can be added a host of new problems, many of them focused on the competition for natural resources in the South China Sea.

Recent weeks, for example, have seen serious tensions between China and the Philippines.

Living with a rising and sometimes more assertive China is a perennial theme at these gatherings. But, as Dr Chipman said, this year events in China itself give the discussion an added dimension.

“Given the leadership transition in China, it is hard to predict how other ministers will address the China question during this summit. There is bound to be a great deal of discussion about the South China Sea,” he said.

The bubbling Korean crisis too is bound to figure. The North has stepped up its rhetorical assaults on the South and has threatened to conduct a new, third, nuclear test.

Dr Chipman notes that the situation on the Korean Peninsula is so delicate now that most of the debate on this at the dialogue will be in private rather than in public.

Of course strong economies combined with the perception of growing threats mean that more money is being spent on weaponry and defence equipment.

China itself has deployed its first trial aircraft carrier, it has developed a stealth fighter, it is expanding both its navy and its civilian maritime patrol force and it has begun to deploy a ballistic missile capable, potentially, of striking at US aircraft carriers far out at sea.

Other countries are responding by beefing up their own air and maritime forces – submarines and maritime patrol aircraft are a popular option.

India is modernising its air force and developing a capability to launch ballistic missiles from submarines.

There are also hopes in some quarters that the US will begin to deploy new naval assets of its own to bases in the region, like the ultra-modern Littoral Combat Ships.

‘Multipolar Asia’

Inevitably, says Dr Chipman, this is all going to colour much of the discussion in Singapore.

“With defence expenditure in Asia rising above that in Europe this year there is bound to be a debate about whether this is all about modernisation or significantly about competition.”

“Most Asians are keen on a multipolar Asia, and fear that China likes multipolarity on the global level but is less keen on it in the region,” he said.

“Equally, many are worried that if the US gets the tone and content of its policy wrong then there could be unnecessary US-China tensions.”

“The net effect is to impose on Asian middle and rising powers more responsibility for themselves shaping the debate.”

“Look to Indonesia, Australia and others to try to define the terms of the security debate more forcefully at this year’s Shangri-La Dialogue,” he said.

Two key speeches are likely to set the tone at this year’s gathering.

The meeting will be opened by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. How will he frame the policy challenges in the region and situate Indonesia in the multipolar Asia that is emerging?

Equally, the US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta’s speech will be closely watched. As the draw-down in Afghanistan begins the Obama administration has announced a US “pivot” back towards Asia.

What exactly does this mean in defence terms?

Mr Panetta’s speech is entitled “US Defence Policy in an Era of Austerity”. Does the US have the resources to maintain its interests in the Middle East and elsewhere whilst reaffirming its role as an Asian power?

Dr Chipman will be listening as closely as the rest.

How, he asks, will Mr Panetta balance reassurance to allies, outreach to new, potential partners and the need for a pragmatic, if hard-headed, defence relationship with China? Watch this space.

01 June 2012 by defenceWeb

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan will today commission Nigeria’s first locally produced warship, the NNS Andoni, at the Nigerian Naval Dockyard in Lagos.

The 31 metre long Nigerian Navy Seaward Defence Boat had its keel laid at the Naval Dockyard in December 2007, with full construction beginning in January the following year, according to Nigerian media. Between January 2008 and April 2009 the superstructure and shell were completed, but construction was delayed due to funding issues until Chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral OS Ibrahim approved extra funding.

Ibrahim late last month said that the vessel was “the first warship constructed locally in the West African subregion.” He added that it was a bold step taken by the Navy as part of the governments’ transformation agenda.

The vessel was conceived as a research and development project by Vice Admiral GTA Adekeye and Rear Admiral GJ Jonah, who were at the time Chief of Naval Staff and Chief of Naval Engineering respectively.

The NNS Andoni is believed to be inspired by the 35 metre Argungu class patrol craft (NNS Argungu, NNS Yola, NNS Bras, NNS Epe) supplied by West Germany in the 1970s.

Jonathan is also expected to lay the keel of a second Seaward Defence Boat, according to Field Officer Commanding Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Olufemi Ogunjimi. The Nigerian Navy is expected to receive nearly two dozen new acquisitions under this year’s defence budget.

In strengthening its military capabilities, Nigeria has paid particular attention to improving security in the Niger Delta and off its 780 kilometre long coast, where it has numerous oil installations.

Jonathan recently approved the purchase of two new 1 800 t Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) for the Nigerian Navy, which will use them mainly for maritime surveillance, patrol and response tasks. Other roles of the vessels would be protection of offshore assets, Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) patrol and surveillance, search and rescue and oil spill control.

The contract for the two OPVs was signed on April 18 this year, with China Shipbuilding and Offshore International Limited, the trade arm of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC). The first will be built in China while around 70% of the second one will be built in Nigeria in order to enhance local capability through technology transfer. They will be delivered in around three years time.

The OPVs will be 95 metres long, with a draft of 3.5 metres. They will be powered by two MTU 20V 4000M diesel engines, giving a speed of 21 knots per hour, and will be armed with one 76 mm and two 30 mm guns. Crew complement will be 70 sailors and endurance 20 days. They will be able to carry and support a helicopter off a rear deck.

The 2012 Defence Budget Proposal makes provision for three Shaldag Mk III fast patrol craft, three 24 metre coastal patrol craft and six 17 metre Manta Mk II ASD littoral interceptors (total cost N2.2 billion/US$13.7 million). In addition, the purchase of helicopter and ship spares will amount to N1.04 billion (US$6.5 million), according to Budget Office documents.

The FY2011 defence budget approved the acquisition of two offshore patrol vessels, the refurbishment of six coastal patrol craft by TP Marine and the delivery of nine Manta Mk II ASD craft.

French shipbuilder OCEA is building the three 24 metre coastal patrol craft and commenced sea trials of the first vessel on March 13. Delivery is expected this month.

The Suncraft Group is expected to construct the six Manta Mk II ASD vessels, bringing the total ordered over the last several years to 21. The Manta Mk II first entered service with the Nigerian Navy in 2008.

Nigeria’s Navy is seeking government approval to acquire up to 49 ships and 42 helicopters over the next ten years to police the nation’s territorial waterways and Gulf of Guinea, according to Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ishaya Ibrahim.

The Nigerian Navy has been allocated N69 billion (US$433 million) under this year’s budget while the Army has been allocated N122 billion (US$766 million), and the Air Force N64 billion (US$402 million), reports the Nigerian Budget Office. The navy has about 7 000 personnel.

Le porte-avions Charles de Gaulle

01/06/2012 MER et MARINE

Articulé autour du Charles de Gaulle, le groupe aéronaval français a débuté un entrainement à la mer de 6 semaines en Méditerranée et Atlantique. Le porte-avions, qui a appareillé mercredi de Toulon, est entouré pour ces manoeuvres PEAN (Période d'entrainement aéronaval) de la frégate de défense aérienne Forbin, de la frégate anti-sous-marine Montcalm, du bâtiment de commandement et de ravitaillement Var (puis du pétrolier-ravitailleur Meuse), ainsi que d'un sous-marin nucléaire d'attaque. Le groupe aérien embarqué est, quant à lui, constitué de 8 Rafale Marine, 7 Super Etendard Modernisés (SEM) et deux Hawkeye. Du 6 au 8 juin, le groupe aéronaval (GAN) de la Marine national mènera un exercice de lutte antinavire Exocet, avec le renfort de la frégate antiaérienne Jean Bart, dotée de son nouveau radar SMART-S, ainsi que des frégates furtives Surcouf et Courbet.


Le Forbin (© : MARINE NATIONALE)


Le Montcalm (© : MARINE NATIONALE)


Le Jean Bart avec son nouveau radar (© : MER ET MARINE - JEAN-LOUIS VENNE)


Le Surcouf (© : MARINE NATIONALE)


Le Courbet (© : MARINE NATIONALE)


Un SNA du type Rubis (© : MER ET MARINE - JEAN-LOUIS VENNE)


Le Var (© : MER ET MARINE - JEAN-LOUIS VENNE)


La Meuse (© : MARINE NATIONALE)

Manoeuvres dans le sud-ouest avec l'armée de Terre et l'aviation

La flotte participera ensuite à l'entraînement interarmées Mojito, qui se déroulera du 11 au 14 juin. Organisé par la 11èmeBrigade parachutiste, et engageant principalement le 1erRégiment de chasseurs parachutistes de Pamiers, ce vaste entraînement de l'armée de Terre intègrera les avions du groupe aérien embarqué en appui-feu des troupes au sol. « S'entraîner à la projection de puissance vers la terre depuis le porte-avions nous permet de focaliser nos efforts tactiques sur le soutien aérien rapproché, la reconnaissance et les opérations aériennes combinées, ou encore la récupération et le sauvetage au combat »,explique le contre-amiral Coindreau, commandant la force aéromaritime de réaction rapide et du GAN. Mojito sera aussi l'occasion pour la Marine nationale de travailler avec une dizaine d'aéronefs de l'armée de l'Air et un groupe du commando parachutiste de l'air (CPA 30), ces derniers étant embarqués pour l'occasion à bord du Charles De Gaulle.


Le pont d'envol du Charles de Gaulle (© : MARINE NATIONALE)


Rafale Marine à l'appontage (© : MARINE NATIONALE)


SEM au catapultage (© : MARINE NATIONALE)


Hawkeye (© : MARINE NATIONALE)

Exercices avec les Espagnols, les Marocains et les Américains

Après ces manoeuvres, le GAN rejoindra les côtes ibériques pour un exercice avec la marine et l'armée de l'Air espagnoles, avec une escale à Carthagène, la première dans ce port pour le Charles de Gaulle. Après le passage de Gibraltar vers le 24 juin, le groupe aéronaval rejoindra ensuite le Maroc et s'entrainera au large de Rabat avec les forces armées marocaines, une campagne de tir air-sol au profit des avions du groupe aérien embarqué étant notamment prévue. De retour en Méditerranée, le Charles de Gaulle et son escorte devraient, enfin, rencontrer le groupe du porte-avions américain USS Eisenhower. « C'est entre autres grâce à des déploiements réguliers d'une force à la mer significative du type de PEAN que le GAN se maintient au plus haut opérationnel. Non seulement ces manoeuvres permettent d'entretenir et de développer les interactions interarmées et la coopération avec des forces armées alliées, mais c'est aussi une nécessité pour garantir de pouvoir fournir, sous faible préavis, une capacité opérationnelle significative n'importe où dans le monde » , rappelle le contre-amiral Coindreau.


Le Charles de Gaulle avec un porte-avions américain (© : MARINE NATIONALE)

May 31, 2012 ASDNews Source : Rheinmetall AG

Every two years, the international land forces community gathers in Paris. The Eurosatory defence show offers an impressive overview of the latest developments in wheeled and tracked vehicles, command and control technology, weapons, force protection systems, personal equipment, sensors and much, much more. One of the world’s leading suppliers of defence technology systems, Rheinmetall will be on hand 11-15 June 2012, displaying a selection of its product portfolio to high-ranking delegations and specialist visitors from around the globe, with “Force protection is our mission” as its motto.

Tracked and wheeled fighting vehicles
Main battle tanks and infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) as well as wheeled armoured combat vehicles continue to form the backbone of modern mechanized armed forces. Even in contemporary asymmetric conflicts, their mobility, excellent protection, firepower and C4I capabilities render them invaluable.

At its Eurosatory pavilion, Rheinmetall will be presenting its current products and projects in this vital domain. On display is the Boxer armoured transport vehicle in its Bundeswehr command post configuration, together with the protected Armoured Multi Purpose Vehicle (AMPV).

Yet older legacy vehicles too can be retrofitted to meet the contingencies of modern military operations. Taking two extensively overhauled Marder IFVs as an example, Rheinmetall shows how new protection technologies, improved drives and innovative build-ons based on tried-and-tested platforms can result in new, cost-effective vehicles ranging from armoured personnel carriers to medium-weight main battle tanks. Moreover, by integrating the latest technologies, components and subsystems, Rheinmetall is able to produce high-end solutions as well. An outstanding example of this is the MBT Revolution.

Mobility
Dependable vehicles form the key link in every logistics chain. Made by Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles (RMMV), the robust and versatile TG, HX and SX vehicle series have reliably served armies around the world for decades.

At Eurosatory 2012 Rheinmetall is showcasing an advanced version of the protected HX series for the first time. The vehicle is equipped with the ADS active hard-kill system. Also on view at the Rheinmetall stand are various versions of the HX 8x8, which, among other things, is the Group’s entry in the competition to supply Canada’s projected “Medium Support Vehicle System Standard Military Pattern” (MSVS SMP).

Another Eurosatory premiere: the lightweight Amorok M. RMMV is thus systematically expanding its range of commercial off-the-shelf vehicles in the under 3.5 t weight class.

Protection
Whether the object is preventing optical, optronic or electronic detection, or individual body armour, innovative vehicle systems or even safeguarding large-scale critical infrastructure, Rheinmetall supplies cutting edge systems and total solutions – all from a single source.

Rheinmetall Chempro und Rheinmetall Verseidag Ballistic Protection Systems are the Group’s experts for passive protection products. They are made of lightweight, high-performance materials, designed for inclusion in tactical vehicles, helicopters or ships for protecting passengers and crew. Inserts made of these materials are also available for ballistic vests.

“Soft-kill” solutions offer excellent active protection for ground vehicles as well as fixed-wing aircraft helicopters and ships. Smoke/obscurant systems like “Rosy” make vehicles invisible to the enemy in the event of an ambush, etc. Constituting the last line of defence, “hard-kill” systems such as Rheinmetall’s ADS neutralize incoming projectiles before they reach their target.

One of the must trusted names in the international defence industry for well over a century, a great strength of Rheinmetall is its unsurpassed ability to integrate new and existing technology into a highly effective system of systems.

Sensors and fire control technology
For the first time at Eurosatory, the Rheinmetall Electro-Optics division is presenting its cost-efficient Vingtags SLR observation system. Besides Rheinmetall’s own sensors, it can also accommodate third-party devices. It is able to collect and transmit target data even at long ranges.

Its big brother, the Vingtaqs II, which combines electro-optical reconnaissance with a battlefield radar, is on show as well, mounted on the AMPV as a mobile reconnaissance solution.

Rheinmetall is also displaying its FOI 2000 laser target marking system for forward artillery observers and forward air controllers. It can be integrated into vehicles or deployed in dismounted mode. The armed forces of Sweden and Norway already use this device.

Visitors can also have a look at the Group’s trusty laser pointers, laser target marker and laser light modules, including the Vario Ray (LLM-VR), and the LLM01, which is in service with numerous armed forces and law enforcement agencies. The Group’s ZEFF identification friend-foe system, known as the Dismounted Soldier Identification Device/DSID, rounds out the division’s array of products on display, together with its Multi-Ray fire control unit.

Soldier systems
Infantry and other units that operate in dismounted mode continue to play a vital role in modern conflicts. On behalf of the German Bundeswehr, Rheinmetall developed its modular Future Soldier – 2 (IdZ-2) array of combat kit, which is currently being fielded under the name “Gladius”. The system brings dismounted troops directly into the loop of network-enable operations. At Eurosatory, Rheinmetall is presenting the version now being procured by the German military.

Munitions
The Group’s comprehensive portfolio of 40mm x 46 (low velocity/LV and medium velocity/MV) and 40mm x 53 high velocity (HV) ammunition underscores Rheinmetall’s compelling lead in the 40mm field. This ranges from practice ammunition and non-lethal variants to highly effective service ammunition, including 40mm x 46 MV and 40 mm x 53 HV time-delay airburst rounds. In addition, Rheinmetall has developed the Cerberus grenade launcher and Hydra automatic grenade launcher, each specially designed for firing medium-velocity ammunition. Both feature a hydraulic shock absorber that reduces the recoil force to the level of LV ammunition. Concept studies can be examined at Eurosatory.

In the field of 60mm mortar ammunition Rheinmetall can also lay claim to a leadership role. This new family of insensitive ammunition meets all the requirements of STANAG 4439. It encompasses service, multi-purpose and practice rounds. The VingPods fire control unit, already successfully deployed in the 81mm mortar sphere, is currently being modified to meet the requirements of this new ammunition family.

Furthermore, on show at Eurosatory are Rheinmetall’s two new 120mm tank rounds, the HE Temp. DM11 and the HE SQ (standing for “high explosive super quick) RH31, both of them optimized for the modern battlefield. The DM11 is characterized by a) the programmability of the loaded cartridge, and b) delayed airburst detonation at ranges of engagement of up to five kilometres. The necessary technical modifications (programmability) can be carried out in any main battle tank equipped with a 120mm smoothbore gun and an up-to-date fire control unit. The lower priced RH31 features a selectable impact function (with or without delay) that requires no modification of the system. A number of Leopard 2/M1 user nations have already placed orders for both ammunition types.

LANCE is a state-of-the-art Rheinmetall medium-calibre turret system. It can be configured for manned operation or serve as a remote control turret. At Eurosatory, visitors can view a LANCE training demonstrator at the Rheinmetall stand. Moreover, MOWAG is showcasing a Piranha APC mounted with a LANCE turret.
Even small command and mission-specific vehicles can be provided with additional firepower. Possibilities include Rheinmetall’s remote control, fully stabilized weapon stations such as the Lite or Super Lite of the Protector family, which are integrated into various vehicles on display at the Rheinmetall stand.

Air defence
Modern air defence systems have to be able to contend not just with the traditional threat from above, but also with random asymmetric attacks, i.e. rocket, artillery and mortar fire (RAM). Rheinmetall Air Defence’s response to this tactical and technical challenge is the Oerlikon Skyshield MOOTW/C-RAM system. It is designed to protect military installations and critical civilian infrastructure from RAM attacks on the home front and during deployed operations abroad – whether in high-intensity conventional conflicts or military operations other than war (MOOTW). The Skyshield MOOTW/C-RAM system is based on Rheinmetall’s Ahead airburst technology. Germany has already procured two Skyshield MOOTW/C-RAM systems, which it refers to as the MANTIS.

Rheinmetall: global source for defence technology
The Rheinmetall products on display at Eurosatory 2012 underscore once again the multifaceted capabilities of one of the world’s leading suppliers of top-quality systems and equipment for armed forces and law enforcement agencies.

30 May 2012 by Guy Martin defenceWeb

Lockheed Martin is offering its C-130XJ ‘Expandable’ Super Hercules with maximum local content to the South African Air Force (SAAF) to meet its transport and maritime patrol requirements and will bring out an aircraft to Africa Aerospace and Defence in September.

Lockheed Martin is making the Air Force aware of its C-130XJ, a base model J variant with J model performance but lower acquisition cost due to less equipment. Plessas said customers did not need all the equipment US Air Force J model Hercules have, hence the creation of the C-130XJ, which can be modified with equipment as and when necessary. As the C-130XJ is slightly lighter than the standard model, it can carry slightly more payload. The XJ is aimed at the export market and, if bought by South Africa, would probably have a significant amount of locally developed and installed equipment.

Dennys S Plessas, Vice President Business Development Initiatives at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, said he thought South Africa would be most interested a C-130XJ with a maximum amount of local content. He said this would create an “African configuration” which could be promoted to other African countries. Plessas said that countries are free to put their own equipment on the C-130, such as India, which added an electro-optical turret and its own communications avionics.

Plessas, briefing journalists in Pretoria today, said that Lockheed has been talking to Armscor and the Air Force and making it aware of the C-130J’s capabilities. “The J or the XJ is the answer,” to South Africa’s requirements, Plessas said, as it can carry 95% of South Africa’s mission equipment.

He added that the C-130J could provide 90% of the SAAF’s airlift capability (including cargo transport, peacekeeping, humanitarian relief, medevac, search and rescue etc). It could also meet 100% of the SAAF’s maritime/border patrol requirements and 100% of its tanking needs, as the KC-130J has successfully refuelled Gripen fighters.

The SAAF’s eight C-130BZs are projected to keep flying until 2020, up from the earlier date of 2015, but the Air Force has yet to issue a request for information (RFI) or request for proposals (RFP) for replacements. Lockheed Martin pointed out that the SAAF’s Boeing 707 tankers had been retired in 2007 and that its C-47TP aircraft are 1940s vintage.

Until the cancellation of the A400M, the SAAF envisaged a transport trinity with the A400M as the heavy/strategic transport, a C130-type aircraft as a medium airlifter and a third type as a light utility aircraft. The Air Force is currently seeking maritime patrol and transport aircraft as part of Project Saucepan, with Airbus Military showcasing its C295 for this requirement – the company last month flew the aircraft to South Africa as part of an Africa demonstration tour.

Lockheed Martin emphasised the importance of maintenance and through life support and said that if South Africa was to acquire the C-130J, more than 50% of maintenance and support infrastructure is already in place as the SAAF flies the C-130BZ while Denel has the only certified C-130 maintenance centre in Africa.

Lockheed noted that the C-130J was suited to the South African National Defence Force’s long, hot and high missions. These encompass maritime patrol, peacekeeping, humanitarian relief and border patrol, amongst others. There is an increasingly large focus on peacekeeping operations (South Africa has 2 400 personnel deployed) and maritime patrol (Operation Copper is combating pirates off the east coast). Another possibility could be aerial refuelling, as the C-130J can refuel a Gripen in flight.

With regard to the rest of Africa, Plessas said that there was a lot of appetite but little funding for the C-130J on the continent, although North African countries had an appetite and some funding. Tunisia in 2010 bought two C-130Js and will receive its first aircraft next year, and its second in 2014. Egypt has issued a letter of request for the C-130J while there is also interest from Libya. Meanwhile, Algeria is refurbishing five C-130s and Nigeria is refurbishing some of its C-130s as well.

Plessas said the C-130J was a proven aircraft that caters well to growing demand for air mobility. He said that air forces around the world are struggling to acquire new air mobility capabilities in the face of budget cuts. “Air Forces today have to do more with less and need the flexibility and adaptability of a multipurpose aircraft.” Lockheed claims that due to its roll on/off mission payloads and flexibility the C-130J is right for air forces that cannot afford dedicated aircraft for each role, such as maritime patrol, transport, firefighting etc.

To date, 2 403 C-130s of all model shave been delivered to 73 countries around the world, including 248 C-130Js, of 320 J models on order. The C-130J fleet has exceeded 845 000 flying hours, with more than half of that made up by non-US operators.

Plessas admitted that the C-130J was more expensive than twin engined aircraft like the C-295 and C-27J but said that based on the aircraft’s tasks, it is the more cost effective solution. He also praised the C-130J’s maintenance and operating requirements, saying the aircraft only requires 1.07 maintenance man hours per flight hour and that aircraft deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq had recorded a 95.8% mission reliability rate, 89.3% operational readiness rate and had a 1.8 hour meantime to repair rate.

An Armored Scout Specialist Vehicle, being built by General Dynamics UK for the British Army.(General Dynamics UK)

May. 26, 2012 By ANDREW CHUTER Defense News

LONDON — The fielding of the British Army’s new generation of medium-weight armored scout vehicles could be pushed back five years to 2020 amid budget cuts in the Ministry of Defence’s equipment plan.

The 500 million pound ($784 million) demonstration phase being undertaken by General Dynamics UK to provide a family of tracked Scout and other specialist vehicles could be extended and the fielding of the vehicle pushed back, one MoD source said.

A second source said the Army was “looking at its options and while the issue had not been finally settled, it was likely the vehicles would not enter service until 2020.”

International observers will likely track the possible delay since the Scout Specialist Vehicle (SV) was already generating interest in the export market. A recent Ernst & Young study estimated the potential export value of the program at more than 1.3 billion pounds over a 16-year period.

The MoD has never publicly acknowledged the expected in-service date for the Scout vehicle, although Army officers at last year’s DSEi exhibition in London said it was 2015.

The number of vehicles eventually purchased could also be cut. That’s a reflection of continuing budget pressures and the fact the Army is facing a heavy downsizing as part of a restructuring plan.

Details of the restructuring, known as Army 2020, and a tri-service reorganization and expansion of the reserves are expected to be rolled out before the government goes into summer recess in July.

A MoD spokeswoman said: “The Defence Secretary [Philip Hammond] made clear in his announcement earlier this month that the MoD will spend 5.5 billion [pounds] over the next 10 years on an armored vehicle program for the Army. That includes the Scout specialist vehicle, which is well into its demonstration phase.”

“The funding for the vehicle pipeline, which also includes the Warrior Capability Sustainment Program, a utility vehicle and improvements to Challenger 2, will be prioritized, according to the Army’s requirements. In the case of Scout, production numbers and delivery dates will be confirmed at Main Gate,” referring to the U.K.’s production decision.

A spokesman for General Dynamics said he was unable to comment on the issue.

General Dynamics secured the demonstration deal for the Scout SV program in 2010. A new Scout vehicle to replace the aging Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked) platform is the priority, but the company is also building infantry carrier, recovery and repair demonstrators as well as a base platform version of the Austrian-Spanish Cooperation Development SV machine on which the family will be based.

The Scout vehicle was part of the 5.5 billion pound armored vehicle program given a green light to continue when Hammond announced the MoD had balanced its equipment program budget for the next decade after years of overspending.

The MoD named General Dynamics SV program and Lockheed Martin’s 1 billion pound upgrade of the Army’s Warrior infantry fighting vehicle among the big-ticket items across the armed services that had been funded in the 10-year equipment budget plan.

At the time, Hammond declined to specify what programs or capabilities had been dropped or delayed to achieve the final round of budget cuts proposed as part of the Planning Round 2012 process.

The victims of the latest round of cuts are starting to become apparent. Last week, it emerged that the MoD had axed the 500 million pound plan to equip Royal Navy Type 45 destroyers and Type 26 frigates with the Cooperative Engagement Capability used by the U.S.

The life-extension program for the Challenger 2 main battle tank is expected around 2018 and the new utility vehicle to replace the Bulldog armored personnel carrier by around 2022. A second phase of the specialist vehicles requirement may also be involved.

Last year, General Dynamics UK caused a furor when managing director Sandy Wilson told reporters the program could be delayed or axed.

At the time, the specialist vehicle program, like many others, was under scrutiny at the MoD as it grappled with balancing its books in the face of a 7.5 percent budget cut and a 38 billion pound black hole in unfunded commitments over the next 10 years left by the previous Labour administration.

All three services have suffered significant capability losses imposed since the strategic defense and security review of 2010 took out tanks, artillery, warships, fast jets and large numbers of military and civilian personnel to reduce spending.

A significant delay to the Scout and other variants involved in what is known as Recce Block 1 could result in the other specialist vehicle variants being considered for manufacture in Recce Block 2 — the ambulance, command-and-control and engineering-reconnaissance variants.

The SV program was originally part of the MoD’s Future Rapid Effects System project, which also encompassed an eight-wheel-drive utility vehicle, primarily as a troop carrier.

General Dynamics won that deal, too, with its Piranha V vehicle, before the MoD axed the program.

The MoD source said the current plans envision fielding a utility vehicle in the 2022 time frame.

Part of the requirement for a highly protected troop carrier was taken up by an urgent operational-requirement purchase of the Force Protection Mastiff MRAP and other vehicles for use in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Army has been working for months on deciding which of the numerous fleet types purchased by the government as urgent operational requirements will be taken into the core vehicle program as the British withdraw combat troops by the end of 2014.

Defense ministers have already said Force Protection’s new Foxhound lightweight protected vehicle, which is now being delivered to Afghanistan, will be taken into the core program.

Analysts here believe the Mastiff, the British customized version of the Cougar, is also a likely candidate to become part of the core equipment program.

25/05/2012 Jean Guisnel Le Point.fr

Au 1er janvier 2013, 42 % des effectifs militaires français en Afghanistan s'y trouveront toujours. Si tout se passe comme prévu, la promesse du président sera tenue avec six mois de retard.

Au cours d'une visite de huit heures sur le sol afghan qui n'avait pas été annoncée publiquement, le président de la République et chef des armées François Hollande a confirmé le retrait "ordonné et coordonné" des troupes françaises qu'il avait annoncé durant la campagne. Ses précisions sur place rendent ce mouvement beaucoup moins rapide qu'annoncé. Aux journalistes que l'Élysée avait invités à l'accompagner à Kaboul, François Hollande a déclaré que 2 000 "troupes combattantes" quitteront le pays d'ici la fin 2012. Ce qui veut dire concrètement que 1 500 soldats resteront sur place après la fin de 2012, soit 42 % des effectifs actuels.

Plus précisément, 3 550 militaires - dont 150 gendarmes - se trouvent actuellement en Afghanistan. Ils seront 2 000 de moins au 31 décembre 2012, soit une accélération notable par rapport aux 800 retours prévus à cette date par Nicolas Sarkozy. Au 1er janvier 2013, une partie des gendarmes seront rentrés, à savoir ceux qui sont affectés aux POMLT (Police Operational Mentor and Liaison Team), tandis que ceux assurant la formation de la gendarmerie afghane dans la province du Wardak resteront sur place. 1 000 militaires assureront jusqu'au début du second semestre 2013 les opérations de désengagement, y compris ceux qui seront spécifiquement chargés de la protection des logisticiens. Ne resteront plus ensuite sur place que les 400 soldats français intégrés à l'Isaf, que ce soit dans l'état-major, dans les centres de formation ou dans l'hôpital Role 3 installé sur l'aéroport de Kaboul.

Principe de réalité

De fait, le président de la République s'est trouvé confronté à la réalité, ce qui l'a contraint à faire évoluer son discours depuis le début de l'année. Le 20 janvier 2012, quatre soldats français (un cinquième a perdu la vie depuis) étaient assassinés par un militaire afghan. Le jour même, le candidat socialiste confirme le calendrier qu'il appliquera, s'il est élu : "Je renouvelle ma volonté de retirer nos forces d'Afghanistan, le plus rapidement possible, au plus tard à la fin de l'année 2012, en concertation avec nos alliés."

Lors d'un point de presse qui se tient le même jour, il enfonce le clou : "Si les Français m'accordent leur confiance le 6 mai prochain, je retirerai nos troupes d'Afghanistan fin 2012. Ce retrait se fera rapidement, en concertation avec les autorités afghanes et avec nos alliés, et avec toutes les garanties pour que nos soldats, dans ce délai, puissent être protégés. C'est une décision ferme, que je défends depuis longtemps (...) Cette opération n'a que trop duré." Deux jours plus tard, lors de son grand meeting au Bourget, le candidat socialiste fustige la décision de Nicolas Sarkozy d'accélérer le retrait en lançant : "Présider la République, c'est savoir aussi prendre des décisions difficiles, pas simplement à la suite d'un drame. Leur sacrifice suscite le respect de la nation tout entière. Mais il faut aussi avoir la lucidité de dire (...), d'affirmer que notre mission est terminée."

Pas avant l'été 2013

Ces mots très fermes se sont pourtant heurtés à l'impossibilité matérielle d'évacuer tous les hommes et tout le matériel avant l'été 2013. L'état-major des armées avait déjà fait ses calculs, réminiscence des problèmes scolaires de robinet et de baignoire : sachant qu'en l'absence de routes ouvertes et de chemins de fer, seuls des avions russes et ukrainiens peuvent évacuer les 1 200 véhicules, les 1 600 containers et tout le fatras d'une armée en campagne, impossible de faire plus vite ! Quant aux soldats français, ils passent six mois en Afghanistan, puis rentrent chez eux et doivent être remplacés. Les avions français suffisent à faire les navettes, mais une chose est sûre : pendant le retrait, de nouveaux soldats français vont arriver en Afghanistan ! Sentant venir le pépin, les armées se sont rapprochées des conseillers du candidat socialiste, notamment de Jean-Yves Le Drian, pour expliquer que la date de fin 2012 était juste impossible à respecter... Il ne fut pas plus difficile à convaincre que le candidat.

Le discours a donc changé. Début février, la notion de "troupes combattantes", pourtant maladroite, a été reprise par l'équipe de François Hollande, qui la présentait en personne dans son discours sur la défense du 11 mars : "Nous accélérerons dans les meilleures conditions de sécurité le retrait de nos forces combattantes pour que, fin 2012, nos soldats soient rentrés." François Hollande aurait été mieux inspiré de dire, ce qui est vrai, qu'il poursuivra la politique engagée depuis l'été 2011, et confirmée depuis janvier dernier, à savoir que les troupes françaises ne seront plus engagées dans des opérations de combat. La feuille de route que le président de la République a donnée au chef d'état-major des armées, l'amiral Édouard Guillaud, ce matin à Kaboul est on ne peut plus claire : "Le retrait ne sera pas facile à organiser. Nous devons prendre toutes les précautions. Le chef d'état-major des armées est là, et il aura comme mission d'assurer le succès de cette opération comme il y a eu des succès jusque-là. Nous devons limiter autant qu'il sera possible nos pertes, faire en sorte qu'il n'y ait aucun risque pour nos soldats, rapatrier notre matériel. Voilà votre mission."

May 23, 2012 Spacewar.com (AFP)

Brasilia - French President Francois Hollande's visit to Brazil next month for the Rio+20 summit could help hasten Brasilia's decision on a contract to buy 36 next-generation fighter jets, a government official said Wednesday.

The Rafale fighter, made by French firm Dassault Aviation, is competing against the US F/A-18 Super Hornet and Swedish manufacturer Saab's Gripen for the contract valued at between $4 billion and $7 billion.

The government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Hollande's attendance at the June 20-22 UN summit on sustainable development "could untie the knot", with Brasilia hoping for clarifications on the French offer.

"We are not happy with any of the proposals" right now, the official said, explaining that the French price was deemed too high while Brasilia does not trust US assurances on technology transfer.

Brazil, Latin America's dominant power and the world's sixth-largest economy, is insisting on technology transfer in all its defense agreements.

Last month, US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta visited Brazil and pledged US advanced technology transfers if Brasilia chooses the Boeing's F/A-18.

France has offered full technology transfers in its bid to win the contract.

Another factor is India's recent tentative decision to buy 126 Rafales in a contract valued at $12 billion, a more attractive price than that proposed to Brazil.

Brazilian Defense Minister Celso Amorim traveled to India in February to discuss prospects for a "technical military accord."

May 23, 2012: STRATEGY PAGE

Pakistan has agreed to allow NATO to resume trucking supplies into Afghanistan via Pakistan, but only if an additional fee of $4,750 be paid per cargo container. Most of this cash would go into the pockets of senior officials. That comes to $14 million a month in bribes. The Pakistanis consider this a good deal, because it is costing NATO $38 million a month in additional transportation costs because the Pakistani route is not available. American politicians note that the U.S. has been giving Pakistan over $80 million a month in military aid, so that aid is being withheld and may be cancelled completely if Pakistan does not open the border. The Pakistanis are also aware that the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan will involve the shipment of over 100,000 containers (and half a billion dollars in loot for Pakistani leaders, not the Pakistani people). So far, NATO and the U.S. refuse to give in to these extortionate demands, which include the U.S. taking the blame for last November's friendly fire incident that left 26 Pakistani soldiers dead. There is a long history of Pakistani troops firing across the border at NATO and Afghan forces. Giving the Pakistanis the apology they demand would be bad for NATO morale, as American and NATO troops are still facing a lack of cooperation from Pakistani forces along the Afghan border.

Meanwhile, the Pakistani military continues fighting selected Islamic terrorists in the tribal territories. While these Islamic radicals want to turn Pakistan into a religious dictatorship, an unpopular prospect with most people in the territories, there is widespread anger at the corruption and incompetence of the Pakistani government. Thus while the Islamic terrorists have destroyed several thousand schools in the tribal territories in the last decade (to protest educating girls and secular education in general), a very unpopular tactic, the people are appalled at the inability of the government to stop this violence or rebuild all the destroyed schools. Pakistanis are also angry at continued government support for some Islamic terror groups (that are supposed to restrict their attacks to India or foreigners outside Pakistan, like Western troops in Afghanistan). The problem with this strategy is that these terror groups tend to eventually slip off their leash and attack Pakistanis. Three decades of this military strategy has created a large minority of Pakistanis who are Islamic radicals and who advocate things (no school for girls or jobs for women or entertainment for anyone) that most Pakistanis oppose. At the same time the military feasts off the corruption their power enables them to indulge in. The Pakistani military is supposed to exist to defend Pakistan, but to a growing number of Pakistanis their military is an uncontrollable beast that just feeds off Pakistan.

Several years of fighting in the Pakistani tribal territories has created over half a million refugees and a lot of unhappy civilians. After September 11, 2001, Pakistan had an opportunity to renounce its two decades of support for Islamic terrorism. But the Pakistani generals tried to have it both ways. That approach failed. Now, once NATO leaves Afghanistan, Pakistan will have to deal with Pushtun Islamic radicals (mainly Taliban) on both sides of the border by themselves. Even with a determined effort to eliminate this scourge, it will take a decade or more to deal with it.

Pakistani government incompetence is getting more publicity than the senior officials are comfortable with. Wikileaks documents proved very embarrassing, as they detailed government support for the "secret" American UAV operations over the tribal territories. The officials publicly opposed these UAV operations. Wikileaks also documented a lot of the corruption in Pakistan, and now some retired generals are arguing via the media about rigged elections in the 1990s. This is nothing new for most Pakistanis, but the perpetrators going public about it is. The generals are saying they rigged elections "for the good of the country." But they used the power they obtained to get rich and get away with murder.

Despite the continuing terrorist threat from Pakistan, India is focusing on the military threat from China. The Indian Ocean is of particular concern, with more Chinese warships showing up along with the huge number of Chinese merchant ships already there. So over the next decade, the Indian Navy will receive an average of five new ships a year. This will include aircraft carriers and nuclear subs. While the Chinese fleet is larger, the Chinese have more immediate naval threats (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, America) off their Pacific coast. Thus the Indian buildup is meant to be sufficient to handle anything the Chinese might be able to spare for Indian Ocean mischief.

May 22, 2012: Three senior Pakistani naval officers were punished, for incompetence, because of command failures that enabled a terror attack on a naval base exactly a year ago. At the time six Taliban gunmen got onto a major naval base in Karachi, Pakistan, killed ten people and destroyed two American made P-3C maritime reconnaissance aircraft (worth over $100 million each). All the attackers were killed, but it took the military 17 hours to do so. It was early the following day before the sound of gunfire ended. What was most disturbing about this was that this heavily guarded base was supposed to have a degree of security similar to that provided for the bases where nuclear weapons are stored. While the six Taliban who attacked the naval base were killed, that in itself was scary, as the attackers did not seem concerned about surviving. The attack was later described by the Taliban as an act of revenge for the death of bin Laden. While the navy had three more P-3Cs, the loss of two of them greatly reduced the ability to patrol the long Pakistani coast.  The attackers were believed to have had inside help, but the military has not released any information on that (and rarely does.)

In Indian Kashmir, three Islamic terrorists were picked up by sensors as they sought to sneak in from Pakistan. An army patrol was sent to intercept and the resulting gun battle left one terrorist dead and the other two apparently headed back into Pakistan.

Gunmen attacked a political rally in Karachi, Pakistan, leaving 11 dead. Karachi, Pakistan's largest city (18 million), has ethnic and religious violence that is again growing, causing hundreds of casualties a week and chaos in some neighborhoods. The violence has been high all this year, although in the last month the security forces thought they had put a lid on it. The lid is rattling.

In Pakistan's North Waziristan a U.S. UAV killed four Islamic terrorists with a missile.

Indian police attacked a meeting of Maoists in eastern India (Jharkhand), and captured some weapons and equipment, but the twelve Maoist gunmen got away. The police acted on a tip.

May 21, 2012: Indian police arrested two Islamic terrorists in Punjab, and seized three bombs, two timers, three detonators, two Chinese pistols and 11 rounds of ammunition. The explosives came from Pakistan.

May 20, 2012: Pakistan blocked national access to Twitter for most of the day, apparently because of blasphemous (to some Moslems) activity on Twitter. Every day, if not every hour, there is something on Twitter that Islamic conservatives would consider blasphemous. What the Pakistani government particularly dislikes about Twitter is that it is a speedy conduit of reports on bad behavior by the Pakistani government. Shutting Twitter down for a sustained period would be enormously unpopular. Over the past two decades the military has backed off on its efforts to enforce censorship because of public anger. At this point, the government has lost control of most media. Some journalists can be bought or intimidated, but most roam free, sniffing out government misbehavior.

May 19, 2012: In Indian Kashmir, Islamic terrorists made two grenade attacks, wounding four policemen and ten civilians.

May 18, 2012:  Maoists in eastern India (Chhattisgarh) attacked the home of a senior politician and were driven off. One bodyguard was killed. 

May 17, 2012: Another sign of peace returning to Indian Kashmir is the army announcement that some of the minefields, surrounding eight of its camps, would be removed. This is mainly because there are far fewer Islamic terrorists operating in the area now.

In Pakistan, four pilots were killed when two military aircraft collided during a training exercise. Because if its large number of older Russian and Chinese designed warplanes, Pakistan has a much higher accident rate than Western air forces, or even neighboring India (which also has a lot of Russian warplanes).

May 13, 2012: Maoists in eastern India (Chhattisgarh) ambushed a police patrol and killed six policemen and a civilian driver.