The UK Royal Navy (RN) has relocated the first of its newly acquired fleet of AgustaWestland AW101 Merlin HC.3/3A troop transport helicopters to their homebase in Yeovilton following a five-year transition from the Royal Air Force (RAF).
846 Naval Air Squadron (NAS) flew its six helicopters from
Royal Navy begins transferring ex-RAF Merlins to Yeovilton
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Obama to keep 9,800 US troops in Afghanistan through 2015
Key Points
US force levels for Afghanistan in 2016 will also be relooked
A 'regular embassy presence' is still expected by 2017
President Barack Obama has decided to keep 9,800 US troops in Afghanistan through the end of 2015 and then re-evaluate force levels in 2016 before seeking to largely
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Navantia to sign shipbuilding collaboration accord with Colombia's COTECMAR
Key Points
Spain's Navantia is to sign a shipbuilding collaboration agreement with Colombia's COTECMAR
The accord is designed to enable both parties to explore collaboration options relating to current and future Colombian Navy programmes
Spanish shipbuilder Navantia is poised to sign a
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India still faces massive recruitment shortfall
India's military faces a shortage of more than 52,200 personnel, including 11,000 officers, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar told parliament on 20 March.
He said the Indian Army was the worst off with a shortfall of 9,642 officers and 24,356 other ranks, followed by the Indian Navy, which was
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France to receive modified VBCIs, inducts last of 630 vehicles
The French Army is scheduled to receive the first three of 95 up-armoured VBCI (Véhicule Blindé de Combat d'Infanterie) 8x8 armoured vehicles next month. The vehicles will be 29-tonne VCI (Véhicule de Combat d'Infanterie) infantry fighting vehicle variants modified to a gross vehicle
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EU policymakers work towards centralised defence R&D funding
EU policymakers have only a few months to complete their planning for a new pilot programme in 2017 to test the notion of using EU money for dual-use research projects. The experiment raises a host of questions, from how the programme will be governed to whether the EU, for the first time in its
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Canada seeks expanded role against Islamic State via Syrian air campaign
Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper on 24 March asked the House of Commons to extend his government's military operation against Islamic State militants for up to a year, and expand its air campaign element to include Syria as well as Iraq.
Harper said Canadian forces, like the United States,
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Airbus to develop virtual cyber ops centre for UK MoD
Airbus Group Innovations, the corporate research and technology arm of Airbus Group, announced on 23 March that it had won a competed contract from the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) for a cyber protection study in conjunction with the MoD's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl).
The scope
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'Type 093T' sub design breaks cover
A computer-generated image of a Chinese nuclear-powered submarine (SSN) has recently appeared on both news and social media websites. It illustrates a variant of the Type 093/Shang-class SSN carrying a docking hangar for a special forces swimmer delivery vehicle (SDV).
The accompanying text
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Parrikar heading to Tokyo with US-2, closer strategic ties on the agenda
Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar will make a two-day visit to Japan from 30 March that officials in New Delhi describe as part of an ongoing bid to strengthen bilateral strategic and defence ties.
It will be Parrikar's first overseas trip since becoming defence minister in November 2014 and
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British Army completes exercise to validate armour deployability
The British Army held a major month-long divisional exercise in March that was designed to test the ability of the 3rd Division's Lead Armoured Task Force (LATF) to deploy on potential future overseas operations.
With the UK military renewing its focus on global contingency operations capability in
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China's KJ-500 AEW&C platform 'enters service'
Images from Chinese military issue websites indicate the Kongjing 500 (KJ-500) airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft has started to enter service with the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF).
While images of the KJ-500 in the PLAAF paint scheme first appeared in late 2014,
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Western officials discuss stepping up military support for Ukraine
All options, including selective arms transfers, should be in the West's toolbox for reinforcing the Ukrainian military, according to top NATO and European Union military officials, who say Kiev needs new capabilities to counter the country's increasingly well-armed Russian-backed rebel forces.
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UK defence posture overtaken by events, says Defence Select Committee
Crises in Ukraine, Syria, Iraq, Africa, and the Mediterranean region mean the United Kingdom's 2010 defence review has been overtaken by events, meaning the United Kingdom's conventional forces need to be rebuilt, according to a report by an influential UK parliamentary committee.
The House of
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Russia threatens Denmark with nukes over support for NATO missile defences
Russia has threatened that its nuclear forces would target Danish naval vessels if Copenhagen follows through on its plan, first indicated in August 2014, to equip a frigate to support NATO's missile defence shield.
Russian ambassador Mikhail Vanin warned in a Danish newspaper on 22 March: "If
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Russia lays keel for fifth Yasen-class boat
Construction has started on Arkhangelsk , Russia's latest Yasen-class nuclear-powered multipurpose attack submarine.
The keel laying took place on Submariners' Day, 19 March, at Sevmash Shipyard in Severodvinsk near Arkhangelsk, Northern Russia.
The Yasen-class vessels are the first in Russia to
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Report: internal review slams Australian DoD for waste, inefficiency
Australia's Department of Defence (DoD) and its agencies are rife with waste and inefficiency and suffer from a proliferation of structures, processes, and systems with unclear accountabilities, according to a leaked copy of a government review quoted by The Australian newspaper on 25 March.
The
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Lebanon to get Super Tucanos in 2018
The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) will receive six Embraer EMB-314 Super Tucano counter-insurgency aircraft in 2018 as part of the continuing US military assistance programme, American defence officials in Beirut confirmed to IHS Jane's .
The LAF's acquisition of the Super Tucanos, designed for light
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Japan commissions helicopter carrier Izumo
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) commissioned first-in-class helicopter carrier JS Izumo (DDH 183) in a ceremony in Yokohama on 25 March.
The 248 m-long vessel, which displaces 24,000 tonnes at full load, is the largest Japanese military ship built since the Second World War and can
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Iraq to receive additional King Air 350ER ISR aircraft
Iraq will receive an additional Beechcraft King Air 350ER special mission platform under a USD27 million contract set out by the US Department of Defense (DoD) on 24 March.
The contract covers the delivery of one aircraft that has been fitted with an intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance
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