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The event brought together defense experts to discuss the innovative  Top Attack Projectile (TAP).
The TAP, a revolution in projectile technology
At the heart of the  French Defense Innovation Forum, the  TAP  stood out as a jewel of military engineering. Designed under the auspices of the French Ministry of the Armed Forces, this project has generated great interest among engineers and industrial leaders.
Tank armor has evolved significantly, driven by reactive armor.

Finland threatened to completely close its border with Russia, accusing its neighbor of taking advantage of the influx of refugees to cause instability, although Moscow denied it.

Tensions on the Russian-Finnish border have escalated in the past few weeks, as illegal migrants poured in. According to Helsinki estimates, in November alone, more than 600 illegal migrants arrived from Russia at the country’s border to find their way into the European Union.

The addition of MANTIS Weapon Systems to Slovakia marks a crucial point in NATO defense and alliances.
The relevance of the MANTIS in Slovakia’s defensive strategy
The delivery of the MANTIS Weapon Systems to Slovakia symbolizes a strategic change in the defensive tactics of NATO’s eastern flank. This advance not only strengthens Slovak air defense but also reflects the cohesion and adaptation to new geopolitical challenges in the Alliance.

The Kremlin warned that Russia would respond if Europe established a “military Schengen area” after NATO’s logistics command mentioned the idea.

Lieutenant General Alexander Sollfrank, leader of NATO’s logistics command, said on November 23 that he wanted the “military Schengen area” to be established, referring to the area that allows the armed forces to move freely. Similar to the Schengen area in Europe.

Unfavorable weather and Russia’s fortified defenses may make Ukraine hesitant to send a series of Abrams tanks aided by the US to the front line.

Images appeared on social networks in early November showing Ukrainian soldiers holding the insignia of the National Guard’s rapid reaction brigade next to an M1A1 Abrams main tank painted blue and black. The vehicle was parked in a muddy area and was not in combat mode.
This is the first sign that the Ukrainian army began deploying Abrams tanks near the front line since receiving 31 units from the US in September.

Prime Minister Modi took a flight on the Tejas light fighter produced by India and praised the domestic defense industry.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 25 posted a message supporting the domestic defense industry with a picture of him sitting on a Tejas light fighter. He shared that the flight on a domestic military aircraft “aroused pride and optimism about the nation’s potential”.
Mr. Modi experienced flying on a two-seat Tejas when visiting the facility of Hindustan Aeronautical Sciences Company (HAL) in Bengaluru, Karnataka state, southern India.

Photo by Libkos/Getty Images
Russia overnight launched what Ukrainian officials describe as the largest drone attack on their country so far, with 75 one-way attack drones being launched, mainly against the capital, Kyiv, and the surrounding region. The drone assault has been seen as the opening salvo in Russia’s expected winter campaign attacking Ukrainian energy infrastructure, to inflict maximum disruption on its civilian population as the winter weather begins to bite.

Russia unleashed a record number of Shahed drones, primarily targeting Kyiv, with 71 out of 75 downed.

A science fiction concept of a man with a torch looking at an alien UFO. Floating above a field on a spooky foggy night in the countryside.(Getty Images).
As the military’s youngest branch, U.S. Space Force is still finding its footing. That includes everything from trying to get its uniforms right (a work in progress) to laying out its specific doctrine on topics.

(Apple TV+).
After a long wait, audiences are finally getting a new World War II series from the team behind Band of Brothers and The Pacific. It’s been years in the works, but Masters of the Air is set to premiere late January 2024. So far though footage and glimpses of the series have been limited to just one teaser trailer from Apple TV+.

But until the show premieres in two months, there are some tantalizing looks behind the scenes already out.

You don’t have to spend long in the realm of watch collecting to learn that the Omega Speedmaster was the first watch that NASA declared as “flight-qualified for all manned space missions.” This was on March 1, 1965. Since then, Omega has done everything it can to ensure that people know it. From marketing of the Speedmaster as the “Moon Watch” for being the first watch worn on the moon to the “Moonswatch” collaboration with sister brand Swatch, Omega embraces its watch’s unique status.

John S. McCain III served as a representative and senator from Arizona for over 35 years. He also served 23 years in the Navy, spending nearly six of those years as a prisoner of war in the infamous “Hanoi Hilton.” McCain was the Republican nominee in the 2008 presidential election, losing to Barack Obama. Following his death in 2018, the late senator was honored with a new terminal at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport named after him as well as the USS John S. McCain (DDG-56), which also honors his father and grandfather.

The cultural lead-up to World War I was naive at best and bloodthirsty at worst. People who had never faced combat convinced themselves that future wars would be short, civilized, and restrained. And some even saw war and other violent conflicts as a sort of societal hygiene. Darwin’s “survival of the fittest” meant, to them, that war would burn off the weak while leaving the strong even stronger.

In the early 1960s, Operation Mongoose became the CIA’s audacious secret plan to topple Cuban leader Fidel Castro and counter the rising tide of communism. Officially greenlit on November 30, 1961, the operation aimed to incite a “revolutionary” atmosphere in Cuba that would ultimately lead to Castro’s downfall. Set against the backdrop of the Cold War, America desperately sought to gain the upper hand, setting the chessboard for high-stakes maneuvers like Operation Mongoose.
The tactical genius behind Operation Mongoose was Edward Lansdale, a U.S.

Below is the introduction to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s latest book, “The Wuhan Cover-Up: And the Terrifying Bioweapons Arms Race,” which details how a cartel of run-amok military, intelligence, public health, biopharmaceutical, tech and media interests successfully positioned biosecurity at the forefront of U.S. foreign policy. The book, available now for pre-order, will ship on Dec. 5.

By Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
On my seventh birthday, January 17, 1961 — three days before my uncle, John F.

Military members are seeking backpay and restoration of benefits

Public Domain

Nicholas Bassen, an Army sergeant who was discharged in 2022 for not getting a vaccine, wants compensation of at least $120,000.
The suits, filed in recent months, argue that when Congress compelled the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to rescind its COVID-19 vaccine mandate, lawmakers carefully chose their wording.

Image by Daniel Juřena

Insider reported:
The deployment of AI-controlled drones that can make autonomous decisions about whether to kill human targets is moving closer to reality, The New York Times reported.
Lethal autonomous weapons, that can select targets using AI, are being developed by countries including the U.S., China and Israel.
The use of the so-called “killer robots” would mark a disturbing development, say critics, handing life and death battlefield decisions to machines with no human input.

Photo by Ozge Elif Kizil/Anadolu via Getty Images
Russia is throwing “waves” of soldiers toward the embattled Ukrainian city of Avdiivka, in the east of the country, suffering heavy losses in the process. Launched in October, the latest Russian efforts to capture the strategically important city have so far achieved little. New details about the operation are provided in a report from the battlefield by AFP.

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(Task & Purpose composite image).
Over the past four decades, the Rambo movies have featured scenes that defy logic. Rambo has been able to outrun a napalm gravity bomb — twice; he crashed a tank into a Russian helicopter without suffering so much as a scratch, and he dug an elaborate set of booby-trapped tunnels because that’s what Hollywood thinks veterans do during their weekends and time off.
But the most unrealistic scene in the entire Rambo trilogy takes place in the original movie: First Blood.

Photo by Mohammed Talatene/picture alliance via Getty Images
After almost seven weeks of being held captive, the first group of Israeli hostages have been released by Hamas, after a four-day truce came into effect in Gaza this morning. The 13 hostages are all women and children; they have also all been officially identified. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed this evening that all the released hostages were now back in Israel.

BREAKING: All 13 Israeli hostages are in Israeli territory, IDF and Shin Bet say pic.twitter.

A new deck of cards has been released by the US Army Training Doctrine Command to increase recognition of Nato platforms.
The post US Army release Nato Proliferation Playing Cards to prevent friendly fire appeared first on Army Technology.

CDM Founder L Todd Wood direct from Tel Aviv discusses Hamas hostage release and prospects for further conflict.
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If you’re anything like me, the idea of lining up at 4:00 in the morning in the freezing cold, at a big box store that doesn’t open for three hours, just to score a sick Black Friday deal on a television sounds absolutely awful. Now, if it was for a hard-to-find bourbon, that’s a different story… but I digress.
This year, skip the lines and the waits and hit these amazing Black Friday deals from the comfort of your own couch. Grab a hot toddy and start your shopping.

Anyone else listen to “Guns and Ships” every time they have to get hyped for a run or a workout? Or, like, just has to get out of bed?
Look, the author is a father with a toddler, now. It takes a lot of hype even to brush my teeth.
But that song, while a fun introduction to the Franco contribution to the Revolutionary War, actually way undersells how important French spite was to the American Revolution. About 10,000 French troops and dozens of ships fought directly with American forces in the War for Independence.

George Clooney is one of America’s most iconic Hollywood stars. The Kentucky native has won two Academy Awards and branched out from acting to also producing. With his fame, Clooney is a spokesperson for brands including Fiat, Nespresso, and Omega. He famously wears an Omega Speedster chronograph which is prominently featured in the 2010 Italian film The American. Clooney also uses his fame to promote charitable causes including the Red Cross and relief for victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Combining the two, Clooney sold the watch off his wrist to raise funds for a veterans charity.

Ukrainian drone operators model the future of warfare. Since drones went mainstream in the Russo-Ukraine War, hundreds of thousands of them have clashed over the frontlines. But Ukrainian drone makers face a real shortage of capacity against Russia, just like the rest of their force.
So operators are coming up with innovations that let them do more with less, including sending out reusable drones to relay signals for kamikaze ones.

The Russian state agency TASS reveals the development of an advanced “flying wing” drone by Russia, intended for special military operations in Ukraine.
Deployment of the new drone on the battlefield
The Vostok Design Office, responsible for this innovation, has indicated that the drone will have an approximate wingspan of 3 meters. Its first test flight is expected to be in February 2024.
The name of this new air unit is kept secret. Its main functions will be surveillance and increasing the precision of artillery fire.

In 1863, the Civil War was reaching its height and both sides were losing thousands of men they couldn’t afford to lose. Their recruits not only fell in battle, they succumbed to disease, malnutrition, and above all, desertion. President Abraham Lincoln was struggling to keep what was left of the Union together, but he was stuck between the Army’s demand for more soldiers and politicians complaining about an unpopular draft.   
Lincoln began looking for new recruits wherever he could find them. This included former slaves, free Black men, and even Confederate prisoners.

Israeli MoD Director General Eyal Zamir signed the final contract for the AWS sale to Germany on 23 November. (IAI)
The Israeli Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced on X (formerly Twitter) on 23 November that its Director General, Eyal Zamir, signed the final contract for the USD3.6 billion sale of the Arrow Weapon System (AWS) to Germany earlier the same day. In addition to the AWS and Arrow 3 missiles, the contract includes an initial package of spare parts and training of Luftwaffe crews.

The Shahed 136 is of great concern for air-defence planners and industry since its debut in Ukraine in 2022. Skyfortress has developed a solution that can detect and track these loud and slow munitions without the use of active systems such as radars or electro-optical sensors. (Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images)
Representatives from Skyfortress – a Ukrainian non-governmental organisation – have disclosed details of work to develop and install an acoustic sensor network for the detection and tracking of aerial threats.

Fritze & Winn, NatDefMag
Although microelectronic components underpin nearly all military systems, the Defense Department often struggles to upgrade them when modernizing its defense…

Saballa, Defense Post
The U.S. Army has deployed a new artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled tool to support electronic warfare missions.

Sarah Sicard, Observation Post
May is military appreciation month — a time to reflect with gratitude on the men and women who have served this country.

Benjamin Goirigolzarri, Proceedings
In the South China Sea, China’s maritime insurgency strategy seeks to deny its neighbors their sovereign rights under the internationally recognized law…

Ellie Cook, Newsweek
While the U.S.

Belgium has set up a new F-35 conversion unit at Luke AFB in Arizona, where it will join other international operators in training its ground and air crews on the type. (US Air Force)
Belgium has set up a new conversion unit in the United States to train its personnel on the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF).
The Belgian Ministry of Defence (MoD) said on 23 November that the first elements of the Belgian F-35 Conversion Unit (BEL F-35 CU) arrived at Luke Air Force Base (AFB) in Arizona at the end of July.

The two agencies will task the optical telescope, developed by Spaceflux, from the Space Operations Centre at RAF High Wycombe. (Spaceflux)
The UK Space Agency and Space Command have contracted UK company Spaceflux to develop and operate a new space domain awareness (SDA) sensor to monitor objects in geostationary orbit (GEO).

Babcock and Hanwha Aerospace have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore global business development projects.
The post Signal: Babcock and Hanwha Aerospace sign MOU appeared first on Army Technology.

The Bundestag’s budget committee has approved funding for the procurement of 50 Dingo 2 A4.1 armoured vehicles for the Bundeswehr. (Bundeswehr/Ralph Zwilling)
The budget committee of the Bundestag, Germany’s parliament, on 16 November approved funding for the procurement of 50 Dingo 2 A4.1 armoured vehicles for the Bundeswehr, the German Federal Ministry of Defence announced on its website the next day.
The ministry gave a value of approximately EUR150 million (USD163.

The reports from Kuwait’s Defense Market by GlobalData reveal ambitious budget plans and advanced procurement policies.
The post Kuwait’s $8.1bn surge and strategies reshape the military landscape appeared first on Army Technology.

The contract modification has an estimated completion date of Q4 2025 and will support the US Army’s battlefield recovery capability.
The post US DoD awards $36m modification to US Army’s HERCULES programme appeared first on Army Technology.

Brazil has now received back into service all five E-99A aircraft upgraded to the E-99M standard, including the first in a full operating configuration. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)
The Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira: FAB) has received back into service its first Embraer E-99A (EMB-145SA) airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) platform to be upgraded to the full operating capability (FOC) standard.

The ACR is deploying a battery of DANA vz 77 SPHs to Lithuania in 2024. (ACR)
The Army of the Czech Republic (ACR) announced on its website on 21 November that it is deploying a battery of DANA vz 77 152 mm 8×8 self-propelled howitzers (SPHs) to Lithuania. The Czech Army’s 3rd Task Force, including a DANA battery from the ACR’s 131st Artillery Battalion, will be deployed in Lithuania during the first half of 2024 as part of the German-led enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) NATO battlegroup in the Baltic country.

Editor’s note: Congressional representatives asked George Washington to designate a national day of thanksgiving in honor of the new United States Constitution, which had come into operation in 1789. Washington observed the day “by attending services at St. Paul’s Chapel in New York City, and by donating beer and food to imprisoned debtors in the city.” Thanksgiving Proclamation [New York, 3 October 1789] By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation.

On this episode of Horns of Dilemma, Sheena Greitens moderated a panel discussion about the Russo-Ukrainian war and broader challenges to European security. The conversation featured Gen. Vince Brooks, U.S. Army ( Ret.

With the ceasefire agreement, Israel can rescue hostages and calm public opinion, while Hamas has more time to reorganize its forces.

On November 22, the Israeli government announced a 4-day ceasefire agreement in exchange for the freedom of about 50 hostages from the Gaza Strip. On the same day, Hamas confirmed the “humanitarian ceasefire,” adding that 150 Palestinians would be released from Israeli prisons under the agreement.
The move is considered a major breakthrough that can contribute to reducing conflict tensions after more than 6 weeks of fighting.

Russian officials announced that the MiG-35 light fighter is participating in the war in Ukraine to test, perfect features, and attract orders.

“The MiG-35 fighter is participating in all operations in the special campaign. Many test flights will need to be conducted before the Russian Ministry of Defense makes a final decision,” Sergei Korotkov, general engineer of Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), said today.
The statement was made when Mr. Korotkov was asked whether the Russian Air Force had ordered many MiG-35 aircraft.

Four US bases in Iraq and Syria were attacked by pro-Iranian militias with rockets and UAVs for several hours but caused no casualties.

Reuters quoted an anonymous US official as saying that two bases of this country’s forces and the international coalition in northeastern Syria on November 23 were attacked with rockets and suicide drones (UAVs).
On the same day, the US Al-Assad air base west of the capital, Baghdad and another base in northern Iraq were also attacked by UAVs.

Airbus demonstrated its Auto’Mate A4R autonomous aerial refuelling of drones using an A310 MRTT and DT-25 target drone UAVs during two trials in March. The test campaign has now been completed. (Airbus)
Airbus Defence and Space has completed trials of its autonomous air-to-air refuelling (AAR) of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the company announced on 22 November.
Trials that were launched in March involved a modified A310 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft and DT-25 target drone UAVs.