The Admiral Grigorovich (Project 11356M)-class frigate   Admiral Essen  conducts naval exercises in the Black Sea.  (Russian Ministry of Defence)  The Russian Navy has moved three large landing ships, five warships, and several vessels of other classes, including one missile boat, to the Sea of Azov under the pretext of participating in exercises, Ukraine's Minister of Defence Oleksii Reznikov stated during a press briefing on 21 February.    In video footage posted by Ukrainian media outlet MyKerch on its V...

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the deployment of troops to “maintain peace” in the breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine after recognising them as independent on 21 February, warning Kyiv of a “bloodbath” if it resis...

The draft principles of NATO's new force plan were reviewed at the allied defence ministers' meeting in Brussels on 16–17 February. (NATO)  NATO will adapt its force planning procedures in the short term to “dynamically deter” Russia's deployments of military forces along the allies' eastern flank and elsewhere on its territory “as long as required”, according to NATO officials. New principles will underpin the revised force plan.  The draft principles were reviewed by NATO defence ministers at a meeting in Brussels on 16–17 February and will...

China is planning to impose sanctions on Lockheed Martin and Raytheon in response to the US corporations' sales of defence equipment to Taiwan, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said on 21 February.  The move is the latest in a serie...

The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) on 14 February closed the expression of interest (EOI) for the procurement of loitering munitions for the Indian Army.  The MoD issued the EOI for medium-range precision kill systems (MRPKS) in December 2021. Th...

The French Ministry of Defence (MoD) has unveiled a new strategy to control the seabed.  Announced on 14 February by French defence minister Florence Parly, the new ‘Seabed Control Operations' strategy intends to equip the French Navy with the abil...

The US Army told   Janes  that it has received new and renewed interest from allied partner nations in the MD Helicopters, Inc. MD 530 light attack rotorcraft.  (MD Helicopters Inc.)    The US Army has received new and renewed interest from allied partner nations in the MD Helicopters, Inc. (MDHI) MD 530 light attack rotorcraft, a service spokesperson told  Janes  on 17 February.   With the US Army Multi-National Aviation Special Project Office (MASPO) currently providing MD 530s to allied na...

The UK is doubling the number of personnel in the EFP battlegroup it leads in Estonia and sending additional equipment, including Challenger 2 tanks (pictured) and AFVs. (Estonian MoD)  NATO allies announced the further reinforcement of NATO's flanks during a meeting of the alliance's defence ministers in Brussels on 16–17 February as Russia appeared to be continuing rather than drawing down its military build-up against Ukraine.  During a press conference after the meeting on 17 February, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced that B...

 The US Army told   Janes  that it has received new and renewed interest from allied partner nations in the MD Helicopters, Inc. MD 530 light attack rotorcraft.  (MD Helicopters Inc.)                         

The United States is planning to tighten regulations that restrict investments in Chinese enterprises deemed to have links with the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and its supporting military-industrial complex.  The Department of the Treasury's Off...

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and South Korea's Hanwha Systems have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to commercialise naval combat suites globally, with a focus on the Asia-Pacific market.  A spokesperson for Hanwha Systems told Janes...

The US Navy (USN) has disputed claims by Moscow that one of its submarines had entered Russian territorial waters.  According to a Russian Ministry of Defence (MoD) announcement on 12 February, a USN Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarine...

The Ukrainian Navy's sole frigate,  Hetman Sahaydachniy,   is pictured with Gurza-M inshore patrol craft during Exercise ‘Sea Breeze', held in the Black Sea in late July 2020.  (Ukrainian MoD)  The ongoing tensions between Russia, Ukraine, and NATO countries with regards to the increasing Russian Armed Forces buildup along the Ukrainian borders are an extension of the eight-year-long conflict that began with the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014. With the loss of Crimea and control over the Kerch Strait, Ukrai...

The NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA) has signed its fifth agreement with a not-for-profit organisation, enabling it to start procurement activities under the Not-For-Profit Framework (NFPF) initiative, the NCIA announced on 15 Febr...

NATO Cyber Security Centre updates technology at its Security Operations Centre. (Shutterstock)  The NATO Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has completed a project in collaboration with industry partners Cisco, RSA, and EuroOne to replace equipment at its Security Operations Centre in Mons, Belgium.  The project, completed in December 2021, involved the upgrade of two central management systems that work together to help the NCSC monitor NATO networks for threats and flag key issues, the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA), which ru...

China has introduced regulations to govern the testing and evaluation of defence equipment. The new rules are intended to enhance the capability of indigenously developed military technologies and systems.  On 13 February China's official news agen...

The Black Sea Fleet's improved ‘Kilo'-class submarine   Rostov-na-Donu  makes a northbound transit through Istanbul on 13 February en route to the Black Sea.  (Cem Devrim Yaylali)  The Russian Navy has launched missile and naval gunnery exercises that will close off Ukraine's Black Sea coast for six days from 13 February, according to maritime safety notices posted online.  The start of the exercises coincides with growing tension between Moscow and Western countries over Russia's troop buildup around Ukraine.  R...

The Polish Ministry of National Defence launched the Cyberspace Defence Force (Wojska Obrony Cyberprzestrzeni, WOC), the newest component of the Polish Armed Forces, on 8 February.  At the launch ceremony at the Military University of Technology, t...

South Korea's Agency for Defense Development (ADD) announced that it has developed “real-time three-dimensional (3D) target extraction and matching technology” as part of the country's core technology plan aimed at advancing key areas of military c...

South Korean firms S&T Dynamics and Hanwha Defense have collaborated on developing and producing a new 120 mm mortar system for the Republic of Korea Army. (Hanwha Defense)  South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) announced on 4 February the delivery of an initial batch of indigenous 120 mm self-propelled mortar systems to the Republic of Korea Army (RoKA).  According to DAPA, the new mortar system has a range 2.3 times and firepower 1.9 times greater than the system it will replace. It also features improved accuracy...