New Zealand’s Defence Policy Review will outline some of the modernisation objectives of the country’s armed forces. Pictured above, the New Zealand Army took delivery in May of an initial batch of Bushmaster vehicles from Thales Australia. (CPL Maddy Butcher/New Zealand MoD)
New Zealand is expecting to soon publish its Defence Policy Review (DPR), Minister of Defence Andrew Little told Janes. “I don’t have a precise date for that [publication of the DPR], but I’m expecting it will be published within the next two months,” he said.
Author: Michael
The DRDO and SFC have conducted the flight test of the nuclear-capable Agni Prime missile from Dr Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha, India. The above picture shows the first test launch of the missile in June 2021. (DRDO via Press Information Bureau)
India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Strategic Forces Command (SFC) have conducted the flight test of a new-generation ballistic missile known as Agni Prime on 7 June, the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.
By Stijn Mitzer and Joost Oliemans
The
following list attempts to keep track of military equipment
delivered or pledged to Ukraine by Portugal during the 2022 Russian
invasion of
Ukraine. The entries below are sorted by armament category (with a flag
denoting the country of origin). Due to the confidential nature of Portugal’s arms deliveries they can serve only as a lower bound to the
total
volume of weaponry delivered. This list will be updated as further
military support is uncovered or declared.
Nato members states have been conducting Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) exercises in Slovenia as part of Adriatic Strike 2023, simulating air-ground-integration scenarios and the coordination of air and land operations.
Led by the host country, the exercise is in its eleventh iteration and has seen the use of crewed rotary as well as crewed and uncrewed platforms in the air and armoured vehicles, mortars and artillery on the ground.
However, weather conditions limited the participation of fast jet and rotary platforms, which were grounded due to torrential rain.
Raytheon, Kitware, Parallax, CACI International and the University of Maryland have been selected as performers for the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) ‘In the Moment’ (ITM) program, a program for the development of artificial intelligence (AI) to make difficult medical triage decisions in austere environments and in mass casualty events.
The selection of these performers was announced in a release from DARPA on 6 June, one that detailed the two-phase approach to addressing challeneges in medical triage using an AI algorithm.
A mock-up of the OctoEye360 on display at MADEX 2023. (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)
Germany-headquartered Hensoldt has partnered with South Korea’s LIG Nex1 to market a line of persistent surveillance systems to the region.
The solutions are marketed under the joint venture company known as LNZ Optronics.
The early products that are marketed to the region include the OctoEye360 observation system for submarines, said a company representative who spoke to
Janes
at the MADEX 2023 exhibition held in Busan.
A US Air Force F-35A flies over the Toronto waterfront during the 2021 Canadian International Air Show. (US Air Force)
The Canadian Department of National Defence (DND), which is reviewing its six-year-old defence policy, has received more than 1,500 public comments as part of the process, according to a DND spokesperson.
The DND is “taking into account these submissions in crafting” a defence policy update (DPU), the spokesperson told
Janes
on 8 June. The DPU “is currently under way and we look forward to releasing it in due course”.
South Korea has invested in systems designed to preempt North Korean nuclear launch and attack missiles before they are launched and the leadership and command and control nodes that support Pyongyang’s weapons of mass destruction enterprise. This system is a network of interlinked offensive and defensive missiles and multidomain platforms and ultimately is undergirded by the assurance that South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has sought since winning election: A more robust nuclear guarantee from the United States.
Seen in Romanian service, the C-27J will now be operated by Azerbaijan. (Leonardo)
Azerbaijan has agreed a deal with Leonardo for the procurement of the C-27J Spartan airlifter, the manufacturer announced on 8 June.
The procurement is part of a wider modernisation plan for the Azerbaijan Air Force (AzAF) and Air Defence Force, and was agreed during a visit to the Caucasian country by an Italian delegation.
“The agreement is part of the extensive modernisation programme of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, which are increasingly looking to the products of Italian industry,” Leoanrdo said.
The Sea Ghost (above) can control up to four M-Searcher USVs operating in swarm. (Janes/Chinmay Kohad)
Hanwha Systems displayed its manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T) solution for the Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN) at the MADEX 2023 exhibition in Busan, which concluded on 9 June. The concept features two types of unmanned surface vessel (USV) platforms – the Sea Ghost and the M-Searcher.
The Sea Ghost USV has a length of 12 m and a width of 3.5 m. This vessel is powered by two engines using hybrid propulsion, with two water-jets enabling a cruise speed of 20 kt and a maximum speed of 40 kt.