Entries for the 'Procurement' Category

On Tuesday April 10th, UK Prime Minister David Cameron and his Japanese counterpart Yoshihiko Noda are expected to sign a memorandum of understanding giving way to future defence partnership.

An international arms transfers report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) shows that India is the world’s largest recipient of arms, followed by South Korea, China and Pakistan.

The UK government might make a U-turn on the ongoing procurement project of the new Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft, which includes the equipment of aircraft carriers with appropriate catapults.

According to the Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun, Japan is going to ease its decades-old ban on weapons exports to boost its defence economy.

China yesterday announced an increase of its defence spending this year by 11.2 per cent, triggering international concerns about the country’s military intentions.

According to a report on international arms production by the Stockholm Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the world’s 100 largest arms dealers excluding China have sold weapons and military services for $411bn in 2010.

Turkey will buy 100 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, Turkish Defence Minister Ismet Yilmaz officially confirmed to reporters of the Turkish daily Milliyet.

According to a French defence official, France may sell Mirage F-1 fighter jets to Libya. France is currently replacing its Mirage fleet by Dassault’s Rafale aircraft.

The delays to US defence procurement projects intended to save money within overall spending cuts commitments could raise costs in the long-run, defence experts in Washington D.C. highlighted.

Two weeks before the presidential elections in Russia, Prime Minister and presidential candidate Vladimir Putin announced an increase in defence spending.

India and Saudi Arabia have decided to set up a joint committee on defence cooperation, as announced on the sidelines of the visit of a high-level delegation of Indian defence policy-makers, led by Defence Minister A.K. Antony, to Riyadh on Tuesday.

In the scope of its Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) system, NATO will purchase five US-built Global Hawk drones from Northrop Grumman.

Defence Minister Giampaolo Di Paola announced today to a joint defence committee of both houses of Parliament that Italy will reduce its order of F-35 by one-third as part of defence spending cuts.

Following the recent Indian award of a $20bn contract for fighter jets to the French company Dassault, UK-based defence contractor BAE Systems is considering reducing the price of its Eurofighter Typhoon.

Rosoboronexport, Russia’s state defense corporation signed a deal in December, selling Syria 36 Yak-130 advanced training fighter planes for $550 million. The Jets intended for Syria will be manufactured separately from those commissioned in Russia.

Former Deputy of Defence William Lynn may soon to be the new chairman and CEO of DRS technology subsidiary for Finmeccanica.

Fabrice Bregier, Chief Operating Officer of Airbus announced at a press conference yesterday that the company expects to finalise the agreement for an interim service contract for the A400M air-lifter in the coming weeks.

British Defence Minister Philip Hammond voiced concern at Capitol Hill on January 5th, at the potential effects of the new US military strategy and budget plan proposing $487 billion in cuts over the next decade.

One of the major innovations of the new US Defense Strategic Review is the emphasis on challenges in the Asia-Pacific region and the goal to foster progress in the Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa.

The US Air Force (USAF) has temporarily stopped the production of 20 A-29 Super Tucano light turboprop training and attack aircraft for the Afghan Air Force.

Only 10 EU member states have so far implemented the EU’s defence procurement directive, as confirmed by the European Commission Directorate General for Internal Market and Services (DG MARKT) yesterday.

NATO is currently collecting bids from international defence contractors to strengthen its cyber-defence capabilities.

Japan decided to replace its aging F-4 fighter aircraft fleet with the US-built F-35 Joint Strike Fighter stealth jet, as announced by the Japanese government yesterday.

The European Parliament adopted a resolution concerning a stronger harmonisation of European defence policies last week.

The UK is to seek new military alliances and will no longer invest in large-scale military missions, declares Chief of Staff Gen. Sir David Richards in his annual “state of the union” address on December 14th.

Lockheed Martin, Boeing and Raytheon have submitted their bids for getting a follow-up contract for the ‘Aegis’ combat system.

The 2012 US defense authorisation bill contains provisions for stricter cost controls for the purchase of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF).

New UK Defence Secretary Phillip Hammond announced yesterday that the agreed increase in spending for military equipment as of 2015 will not be affected by further budget cuts.

The White House has announced that it will close possible loopholes for the Pentagon to shift different parts of its budget and circumvent cuts to its base budget as of 2013.

The Netherlands are aiming to strengthen cooperation with other European countries and play a pioneering role in multinational defence projects.

European defence ministers agreed on a range of projects for pooling defence capabilities at their Brussels meeting on November 30th.

An amendment to the 2012 defence authorisation bill, approved by the Senate on November 30th, allows for an exchange of different types of F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft between the US and the UK.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Gen. Martin Dempsey, new US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned of the consequences of the foreseen spending cuts ($450bn over the next 10 years) on US Army operability.

Switzerland awarded the contract for the replacement of its fleet of Northrop Gruman F-5 fighter aircraft to Swedish defence group Saab, ordering 22 Gripen fighters.

According to Stéphane Beemelmans, Secretary of State in the German Ministry of Defence, Germany and France should cooperate on unmanned armed vehicles (UAV) projects.

The Franco-British summit will be dedicated to different aspects of the countries’ defence cooperation at the end of this week.

Ahead of NATO’s Chicago Summit in May 2012, the Alliance has launched an initiative for concrete pooling of defence resources.

In the framework of the East Asia Summit on Bali, the US and Indonesia announced the planned purchase of 24 F-16 fighter aircraft by the Indonesian government.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin chaired a meeting last week in Severodvinsk on state defence-industry contracts and safterward told reporters: "We will be fully re-equipping our Army and Navy."

The German government is scheduled to buy a 7.5% stake of the EADS in 2012 in order to allow carmaker Daimler to make 15% cuts in the airbus. The deal worth €1.2 bn is a step closer to Daimler’s goal of selling out EADS to focus on the car industry.

Claude-France Arnould, Head of the European Defence Agency, told reporters yesterday that Europe must have its own space-based Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities in order to minimise collateral damage and civilian lives during interventions.

China’s conference, "PLA in the Next Decade," held on Monday revealed plans to modernise and change the top leadership reshaping the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) in 2012.  

Defence contractor Lockheed Martin UK will be awarded the contract for a ₤1bn (1.15bn Euro) upgrade of the British army’s Warrior armoured vehicle, as announced by Prime Minister David Cameron and Defence Secretary Philip Hammond.

The German government is planning to reduce its fighter jet and helicopter orders from the European aerospace company EADS.

A news analysis by the Financial Times revealed today that recent job cuts in Western defence companies such as BAE Systems are not primarily due to budget cuts in defence spending, but rather due to be defence hardware being increasingly built in the country of the client government.

A recent report by Eurocontrol, a European organisation for the safety of air navigation, demonstrates considerable gaps between the US and European countries in terms of the total number of fighter aircraft and density in military traffic in 2010.

Worldwide arms sales decreased in 2010 due to national governments’ struggle with the economic crisis.

Japan may choose a European defence fighter for its renewal of the country’s fighter aircraft fleet.

An Op-Ed by Shada Islam

It’s no surprise: China’s rise has meant intensified scrutiny of its military budget. Alarm bells have gone off in Asia, America and, to a lesser extent, in Europe at Beijing’s decision to raise the national defence budget by almost 13 per cent.

An independent study claims that over $30bn have been wasted on contracts in Afghanistan and Iraq due to the Pentagon’s bad management and a lack of competition. In a final report the Commission on Wartime Contracting alerted the US Congress that “waste and fraud have undermined American diplomacy, fomented corruption in host countries and tarnished the US image abroad.”

Following a study from the Defense Business Board in April pointing out some malfunctioning in the management of estimated $400bn annual contracts due to the lack of business background of military officers, Pentagon acquisition Chief Ashton Carter plans to professionalise the US Defense Department’s acquisition corps.

A report written by Howard Mathers, the chairman of the British MoD’s defence nuclear environment and safety board has been released, unveiling the MoD’s struggle to maintain the safety of the UK’s nuclear bombs and submarines due to defence cuts.

During a visit to the Royal Air Force Chinook base at Odiham, British Secretary of Defence Liam Fox announced a £1bn deal with Boeing for the delivery of 14 Chinook transport helicopters including development and support for 5 years.

Due to substantial US defence spending cuts, leading defence contractors and investors have revised down their market outlook. During a conference in New York, Jim Albaugh, Chief Executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, backed up by Charles Mathis, Chief Financial Officer of Force Protection, told investors that “the Department of Defense is going to have to take out between $800bn and $1,000bn over the next 10 years

According to a report released on August 10 from Moody’s Investor Service, a credit rating agency which performs international financial research and analysis on commercial and government entities, the US debt ceiling act signed beginning of August puts significant pressure on defence companies.

As part of the Effective Procurement Methods initiative, launched on July 7th; the European Defense Agency is considering to resorting to off-the-shelf procurement. "Through the EPM initiative, we are trying to develop together with the member states and other relevant stake-holders ways to identify and shape existing common demand".

British Labour politician and shadow secretary for defence, Jim Murphy said that greater European defence co-operation is "critical", especially in the procurement of new weapons and in training. In a speech to industrialists at the Paris air show on Monday, Murphy said: "Europe must decide if it is serious. European governments have to be more honest with each other and about their capacity within NATO.

Shortly before the start of the G8 summit in Deauville, French president Nicolas Sarkozy and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev have reached agreement on a major arms deal between the two countries.

Speaking last week during a visit in Beijing, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani announced closer military cooperation between China and Pakistan. Islamabad offered a deal to China to build a naval base at the south western city of Gwadar and to maintain a regular military presence there.

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said US strategy changes are likely to reduce defence procurement in the next decade.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev fired a number of domestic weapons plants chiefs, as well as several defence ministry officials on 17 May, due to an industry failure to meet the Kremlin’s deadline in delivering new weapon systems.

Greek Defence Minister Evangelos Venizelos confirmed the pull-out of German shipbuilding group HDW from a deal to build two submarines at a shipyard in Greece.

European aerospace and defence group EADS announced a net loss of € 12m in the first quarter of 2011. The slight loss, due to foreign exchange factors, stands in sharp contrast to last year’s profit of more than € 100m.

The Taiwanese navy has equipped its warships with a new missile type able to reach supersonic speed, authorities announced.

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has certified the Airbus A400M’s turboprop engine. In an announcement on 6 May, the engine producer consortium Europrop International stated that the turboprop engine marks the first of its kind which has gained certification from the EASA.

After a long running race between the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company (EADS) and the Boeing Company, the latter received a $35 billion contract from the US Air Force to build the next generation aerial refuelling tanker aircraft. The Pentagon decided that Boeing’s bid was more than 1% below that of its rival that builds Airbus planes.

NATO has announced a succession of development and implementation contracts for command and control equipment, which will allow for increased interoperability in European air commands. The deals, signed with Siemens, STM and ThalesRaytheonSystems, will also provide the initial operational capacity onto which the future missile defence architecture will be integrated.

A group of former British Chiefs of the Defence Staff, in a letter to the UK’s Daily Telegraph, have called the cancellation of the Nimrod MRA4 surveillance aircraft programme “perverse”, amidst claims it will endanger Britain’s nuclear deterrent. The project, which has already cost the UK €4.6 billion, was cancelled as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR), both to save costs and open up competition for a potential un-manned capability.

The German government has ratified their portion of the A400M budget, confirming the order of 53 of the military transport aircraft at an estimated cost of €3.5 billion. However, financial constraints and a radical decrease in troop numbers after the recent military reform package has lowered demand, meaning that up to 13 of the aircraft may be sold on to third party buyers.

France and Russia have signed a deal for the construction of upto four Mistral-class transport ships, despite strong concerns from NATO allies in the Baltic. The warships, which have been sold for an undisclosed amount, are capable of carrying upto 450 soldiers and a full compliment of support helicopters and armour, which will give Russia a level of amphibious capability unseen since the end of the Cold War.

US aviation giant and key defence prime Boeing have announced 1,100 lay-offs, primarily from its C-17 military cargo plane programme. The news comes after the budget cuts announced by the Pentagon earlier this month, which has reduced the demand for the military logistics aircraft. In related news, US avionics firm General Electronics have announced a joint aviation project with Aviation Industry Corp of China (Avic), despite the ongoing French scandal about industrial espionage in the Chinese sector.

The European Defence Agency (EDA) will host a multinational working group on the 8th of February, to assess the viability of forming a shared helicopter resource pool for European expeditionary and disaster response roles. The proposals build upon European ambitions to increase the deployability of existing helicopter platforms, which is chronically low. According to Andy Grey, the Helicopter Project Officer at the EDA, out of 1,500 military support helicopters in Europe, only 50 are deployed in-theatre.

The French Direction Générale de l'Armement (DGA) has placed an order for 200 Meteor radar-guided, beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles, in an assertive move likely to defy gloomy defence market predications for 2011. In a statement issued on the 3rd, "Defense Minister Alain Juppé welcomes the order for 200 Meteor long-range air-to-air missiles to equip the Rafales of the Air Force and Navy", that will support the next generation of French air-to-air capabilities.

The Foreign Ministers of France, Germany and Poland have taken the un-usual step of sending a trilateral letter to Catherine Ashton, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, urging her to strengthen the EU’s military capabilities. In the letter, dated the 6th of December, the Troika calls for Ashton to personally oversee a re-focus on Europe’s military ambitions, "with you, Madam High Representative, in the lead."

Germany has formally announced an end to conscription into the Bundeswehr (German Army), as part of ongoing measures to increase power projection capabilities abroad whilst slashing budgets at home.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul has continued to object to the specific wording and construction of NATO’s missile defence statement in the upcoming New Strategic Concept, due to be unveiled at the Lisbon Summit later this week.

The future of the troubled Airbus A400M program was secured today, with Ministers from seven European Departments of Defence finalising a 3.5 billion euro bail-out. The agreement will see the production of 170 of the heavy transport aircraft.

Britain’s first Strategic Defence Review in over a decade, designed to dictate the form and function of the UK armed forces, has been over-shadowed by the need to deal with the constraints of the current financial situation and controversy over capability gaps in the new aircraft carrier program.

A panel of high-ranking UK officials discuss the upcoming Strategic Defence and Security Review. Against a backdrop of the financial crisis, panellists and participants discussed what to expect from this exercise after 9/11, two wars, and an ever changing European defence project.

During this innovative online experiment, leading think-tanks got together with the SDA to organise a 5-day brainstorm that was supported by NATO and the EU. The recommendations that emerged from this brainstorming event have been sent around the world.

In November 2009, high-level representatives from EU institutions, member state governments, NGOs, think-tanks, industry, and the media, gathered to discuss how the combination of civilian and military power is the key to the European Union’s “smart power”. The Security & Defence Agenda and the CEIS (European Strategic Intelligence Company) are pleased to present the main findings of the conference.

Ballistic missile threats have continued to grow during 2009. North Korea and Iran have both demonstrated short as well as intermediate range missiles, highlighting a potential threat to the United States and Europe.

Following the US Administration’s change of policy, what is the political outlook for the new US anti-missile system, in terms of both public opinion in the US and Europe and also in light of NATO's new Strategic Concept? Is there potential for a linked missile defence system for the US and Europe, and if so, what practical steps now need to be taken?

Headline-grabbing reports of piracy off the coast of Somalia may have prompted calls for more EU action but the interests of individual member states take precedence while the presence of national industrial champions means defence procurement remains fragmented in Europe. There have been piecemeal attempts to co-ordinate European efforts but none have so far added up to a comprehensive naval strategy.

Co-organised with the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), this evening event examined Nick Witney's recent report entitled 'Re-energising European Security and Defence Policy.' Describing his report as a rather unflattering account of the first 10 years of ESDP, Nick Witney explained that his criticism was directed mainly at the member states for failing to reform their militaries, rather than those in Brussels. The discussion also focused on transatlantic cooperation, effective spending strategies, and defence industry priorities.

Some 120 experts gathered in Brussels to discuss the chief ESDP weaknesses to be tackled and debate what the impact will be of France's return to NATO. Though the debate almost got sidetracked by discussions of the skirmishes in Georgia, participants discussed whether the French Presidency's agenda was too ambitious, and many voices agreed that the Presidency's call for informal high-level meetings between NATO and EU leaders was a way forward.

The event focused on current developments in the field of security and defence technology including transatlantic interoperability, funding and civ-mil cooperation.

On 14 April, the Security & Defence Agenda together with the Atlantic Council of the United States organised a transatlantic roundtable on the question of EU-US defence cooperation. With two panels and 14 high-level speakers both in Brussels and in Washington, the debate proved to be highly fruitful and a start for more transatlantic dialogue on this subject.

The Security & Defence Agenda is pleased to present you the report of its 2008 International Conference "NATO in the Next Decade - The Outlook for European Security and Defence". The event was co-organised with the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Hewlett Packard, Lockheed Martin and NATO.

This Discussion Paper in two parts brings together the views of high level experts from both sides of the Atlantic on NATO and ESDP relations. Contributors include David Leakey, Daniel Korski, Ambassador Stewart Eldon, and Alyson Bailes.

Romania will be hosting the next NATO Summit in Bucharest on 2-4 April this year. On 12 March the Security & Defence Agenda hosted Romania’s Ambassador to NATO Sorin Dumitru Ducaru, US Ambassador to NATO Victoria Nuland and Belgium’s Ambassador to NATO Baron Frans van Daele.

Javier Solana, Head of the European Defence Agency, announced today that the EDA Steering Board has appointed Alexander Weis of Germany as the Agency’s Chief Executive from 1 October, succeeding Nick Witney, who has led the Agency since its creation in July 2004.

In mid-January 2007, US officials formally proposed establishing a ballistic missile defence (BMD) radar system, operated by US personnel, in the Czech Republic.

Although the latest SDA roundtable looked at two issues – Theatre Missile Defence (TMD) and Territorial Missile Defence – the debate that flowed around them soon became one and the same. Several speakers argued they could not be separated, while others said that a focus on the defence of populations (Territorial Missile Defence) would dilute the current TMD programme.

Japan’s defence ministry is considering adopting the Eurofighter as its next-generation fighter jet, a potentially momentous move for a country that has until now only purchased fighters from the US, its closest military ally.

The EU has no plans to participate in a US anti-missile system but its member states are free to join, the bloc's foreign and security affairs chief said on Thursday (2 march) in an attempt to ease Russian concerns over the project.

Speaking at the latest SDA Dinner, EU Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry Günter Verheugen placed cooperation at the top of his priority list. All of the major players had to work together if Europe was to develop a defence and security culture, and thereby guarantee the protection of the EU’s borders and critical infrastructure. At the same event, Dr. Thomas Diehl, CEO of the Diehl Stiftung, said industry was ready to meet the challenges of the 21st century. To do this, however, he wanted a level-playing field for the EU’s defence and security companies, internally and externally. Regarding the internal level playing field, intra-EU export regulations and offsets were addressed.

The event launched the debate on the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB). Speakers discussed why the EDTIB is needed for ESDP to be effective, what industrial capacities will be needed in the future, the particular characteristics of the defence sector, and the importance of security of supply and industrial sustainability.

On June 13, 2006, European Defence Agency Chief Executive Nick Witney and Security & Defence Agenda Director Giles Merritt co-chaired an expert level seminar focussing on the nature and the drivers shaping the future military environment. The meeting came at a time as the EDA is undertaking detailed analysis, using a range of conceptual approaches, aimed at developing an initial long-term vision for European capability and capacity needs. Experts examined questions arising from consideration of European internal and global security in the coming decades. Major factors influencing future capability needs identified include continued EU geographical proximity to sources of instability, new military and technological challenges, greater EU Member State cooperation, global economic, demographic and political change, civil-military co-operation and a further shift towards crisis prevention and management.

Returning to address the NDA after 12 months, European Defence Agency Chief Executive Nick Witney concluded that something had to be done and done quickly. After admitting that time was not on his side, Witney was strongly supported by industry. Witney also shared the platform with representatives from the Commission, the member states and think tanks. No one doubted that the Agency and the Commission were taking positive steps but many speakers saw the need for greater political backing if a genuinely transparent and competitive European defence equipment market was to be created.

If maritime security was indeed the EU security policy’s Achilles heel, there was complete agreement on how to respond – it was through more effective cooperation between all parties. Not all questions were answered but there was complete harmony in several areas – this was a policy where only global solutions would be effective, all actors had to be involved and the political will to succeed was paramount.

Speaking at the latest New Defence Agenda (NDA) hosted press dinner, Nick Witney, Head of the European Defence Agency Establishment Team, provided a wide-ranging overview of the role the agency might be playing in the coming years. Looking at the reason why an agency was required, Witney said that Europe needed to raise its game on defence. The root problem was fragmentation - insufficient coordination of defence requirements across the EU and hence no unity of supply.

The New Defence Agenda’s first roundtable of 2004 saw a packed house and three hours of intense debate surrounding the future of the European Defence Agency. Perhaps those who came expecting to hear revolutionary talk were disappointed, as although speakers reinforced the Agency’s importance, they emphasised that it is just one step along the way to a common European defence policy.