EUROPE
30 Jun 05. The positive findings of a report from the Public Accounts Committee
on Urgent Operational Requirements (UORs) have been welcomed by the
Secretary of State for Defence, John Reid. Secretary of State, John Reid said: “I am very pleased that this report shows how impressively MOD staff have performed in delivering this urgently needed equipment, and how well it has performed on operations. Not all Urgent Operational Requirements are needed in full before an operation begins. But 93% of such requirements were delivered in full or in part ahead of the start of war fighting, and 98% of them used were assessed as effective or highly effective – facts to which the PAC report perhaps did not give sufficient prominence. Examples of the excellent systems provided and used by our forces include Stormshadow missiles and the MAMBA weapon locating radar. “I am also pleased to report that we have already implemented most of the NAO’s recommendations and will continue to build on the strengths of the current UOR process.” Playing an important part in preparing for battle and allowing commanders rapidly to procure equipment for specific operations, UORs have been a major feature of recent UK operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The key facts are that 93% of UORs were delivered in full or in part in time for the start of war fighting. Some 98% of equipment procured through the UOR process, and used on operations, was assessed as effective or highly effective. This includes MAMBA artillery locating radar, Stormshadow missiles, the Minimi machine gun, the underslung grenade launcher for SA-80 assault rifles, and head-mounted night vision goggles.
29 Jun 05. French defence and aerospace group Thales, French naval shipbuilder DCN and UK defence group BAE Systems submitted a report on Friday to the governments of their respective countries, regarding the possibility of cooperation on the production of aircraft carriers. Denis Ranque, the chairman of Thales, has called for closer links between French and UK projects, saying that there are an increasing number of points that are the same in both programmes. The report relates to cooperation and to studies into design. BAE Systems is currently working with Thales UK on two future aircraft carriers for the UK Royal Navy, while DCN and Thales are working on projects for the French navy. (Source: Abstracted from Les Echos)
24 Jun 05. Text of article entitled “Three billion purchase for TSK” by Barkin Sik, published Turkish newspaper Milliyet website on 23 June. Defence Industry Executive Committee [SSIK] has given the go ahead for huge projects aimed at modernizing the Turkish Armed Forces [TSK]. The projects for an intelligence gathering satellite, a submarine with a air-independent propulsion system, and an assault landing ship with a floodable hold are go (? to go ahead), and the project to purchase 20 fire-fighting helicopters for the Forestry Ministry has been merged with the TSK general purpose helicopter project. The SSIK meeting was attended by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Chief of Staff Gen Hilmi Ozkok and Defence Minister Vecdi Gonul. It lasted around four-and-a-half hours. The meeting ended with the following decisions being made: The mobile surgical hospital project for the Medical Command will be resumed. The project had been cancelled. We are going to have an intelligence satellite. The navy is going to get a submarine with an air-independent propulsion system (2+2), its A-Class submarines are to be upgraded, it will get an assault landing ship with a helipad and a floodable hold capable of carrying one unit and all its equipment. The navy will also get a submarine rescue vehicle, a sat boat [as received], plus an emergency and diver training boat in case of incidents similar to those that affected the Russian submarine Kursk, which sank. The air force is to get an intelligence satellite and electronic warfare system. The reconnaissance satellite, plann