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25 May 20. Dominic Cummins – an observation from BATTLESPACE. One night only! Book tickets now for once in a lifetime opportunity to see the maestro policy maker in action! We waited half an hour of jaw clenching drama to see the Mighty Dom leap onto the stage and then, the sigh from the audience was painfully audible!
He was portrayed as the hard man who oversaw and planned Brexit, he would give £350m back to the NHS, he masterminded the 2019 Boris Johnson election win, he then became Mr Johnson’s top advisor and is now the scourge of civil servants and ministers alike, pouring scorn on current policy, individuals alike, along with criticism of the management of the economy, in short he knows best and will cleanse the Augean stables in a day! He demeans minsters and civil servants alike, His deliberate scruffy style and top of the range shades were all part of his image, different, but tough!
What we saw was a balding middle-aged man in scruffy trousers and shirt, take the stage at one of the world’s top venues and after the silence the boos would have been audible.
He had obviously had no media training to manage this conference which was too long and lacked any form of contrition. More importantly he had no presence which the likes of Bernard Ingham and Alistair Campbell portrayed – he was softly spoken, portraying himself more of a junior bank manager who has made a mistake on a customer account rather than the top government advisor to the charismatic Boris Johnson who has just been swept to power in a huge election victory. He stuttered his way through his version of events, his eyes darting everywhere, scratching himself on occasion, leaving himself wide open for challenges on a number of his admitted acts.
He answered all the questions with a total lack of contrition and left the stage with more questions to be answered than answered. One in particular from a policeman on radio 4 Today who said that in fact he may have committed a motoring offence by driving when he believed he was unfit. The next appearance on this stage will be his resignation.
However, what he did yesterday was to destroy the ‘Mighty Dom’ myth which has transposed government and Number 10 in particular since his Brexit lead. He fell into his own trap, bullies are in fact cowards and when confronted with their sins, they crumble at the same time as claiming they have done nothing wrong. In Greek mythology the Aegis golden shield was used in naval battles to shield the sins and omissions of the enemies of Zeus back on to them.
In the trade these people have the nomenclature ‘Right People,’ they always believe they are right and have a staunch unshakeable belief in these beliefs. The way they are dealt with is to confront their untruths and find the inconsistencies which is what happened on Monday evening, hence his collapse of personality and the rapid eye movements when questions were posed.
There will be two effect from this, one ministers and the armed forces in particular, one of his main targets, will now be able to challenge his draconian policies on an even playing field having seen how he reacts to public speaking and secondly, more importantly, the decline of the ‘Mighty Dom,’ will put a spotlight on the probity of Boris Johnson’s choice of senior advisor and cast a spotlight on Boris’s own performance and how he will succeed without his bully boy? Will the king have any clothes after yesterday, particularly if Dominic Cummins stays in post?
Kier Starmer can start measuring up for the redecoration of Number 10 after he sweeps to power at the next election , the starting gun for which was fired yesterday, The Tories dire performance over COVID-19 and the Prime Minister’s own performance, aided by advice from Dominic Cummins, will see them swept from office on a tide of needless dead bodies.
29 May 20. The European Union’s defense ambitions are still showing signs of life. A new budget proposal for the European Union shows that the bloc’s defense plans are back on the table as the continent pushes to revive its economy following the coronavirus crisis.
Two flagship programs to that end — the European Defence Fund and the Military Mobility initiative — are set to receive €8bn (U.S. $9bn) and €1.5bn (U.S. $1.7bn), respectively, in the seven-year plan beginning in 2021, according to a proposal unveiled this week by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Those figures are lower than the initial proposal of €13bn and €6.5bn for the two budget lines. But they represent an uptick compared with recent negotiation positions that envisioned defense-related spending slashed even more.
Defense spending remains an unbeloved subject in many European countries, and it is notable that there is no dedicated political narrative around building military prowess in the context of the bloc’s recovery plan, dubbed Next Generation EU during a May 27 speech by von der Leyen.
Still, the fact that the European Defence Fund — designed to foster intra-continental defense cooperation — remains in the mix is in itself a statement, according to analysts. Defense-spending advocates in Europe believe a robust military can strengthen the EU’s hand in trying to assert its role on the world stage with other players like China and Russia.
The new proposal of €8bn for the European Defence Fund may not seem like much, given the high, upfront costs for multinational military equipment projects, said Sophia Besch, a senior research fellow at the Center for European Reform. “But it’s a win for the [European] Commission in the current political context,” she added.
“COVID-19 has shifted the priorities, and even before the crisis there were signs that defense was losing ground in the traditional budget battles,” Besch said. Given that, the new proposal is “better than nothing,” she argued.
At the same time, the de facto reduction would make it harder to prove for the commission that the intended effects can be achieved with the amount envisioned, Besch predicted.
Funding through the European Defence Fund and its associated channels ensures that certain projects in many member states can happen at all, said Yvonni-Stefania Efstathiou, an Athens, Greece-based defense analyst specializing in the emerging European defense-cooperation framework PESCO, or Permanent Structured Cooperation.
“Allocations to the EDF have the potential of triggering more defense cooperation, as those funds will be used to finance collaborative research and common capability development projects,” she said.
What is still missing, however, is an overarching context of where the EU wants to go with its defense ambitions, she argued. “The impact of these funds will be limited unless there is also progress on the common definition of strategic priorities and military requirements.”
The cut to the budget line for military mobility means member states stand to pay more of their own money for updating bridges, roads and rail networks to ensure military equipment can quickly move along the continent in the event of a standoff with Russia.
The work is seen as a critical interface between the EU and NATO, and alliance officials previously expressed hope for a funding injection that could speed projects along, especially in Eastern Europe.
“Unless we have the full costings of how much bridges and roads will cost, it is hard to evaluate whether the funds are sufficient,” Efstathiou said. “What is easy to predict, however, is the dissatisfaction of the Eastern European states.” (Source: Defense News)
29 May 20. On 18 March the UK Defence Secretary announced the COVID Support Force (CSF) to assist public services with their response to the coronavirus outbreak. Initially, there were 20,000 UK Armed Forces personnel stood at readiness, with up to 4,000 committed on most days.
Due to the public’s adherence to the lockdown measures and the increasing ability of other government Departments to maintain essential services, from 20 May the MOD has begun to rebalance the CSF. It has been determined, in co-ordination with colleagues across government, that 7,500 personnel should now be kept at readiness to fulfil current tasks and respond to future demand. This number will be kept under review as we continue our fight against COVID-19.
Military reservists remain a key part of the CSF. Used in a range of activities, from providing medical and logistical support to deploying their own professional skills, such as accounting and construction, only those with specialist skills that can meet current requests from other government departments are currently being called out.
The CSF was established in late March in anticipation of a sharp increase in requests for Military Assistance to the Civilian Authorities (MACA) as the government stepped up its response to the global pandemic. Approximately 20,000 personnel with appropriate planning, logistical and medical expertise have been held at higher readiness since then, with around 4,000 personnel deployed on any given day.
Due to the public’s adherence to lockdown measures and the ability of other government departments to maintain essential services, demand for the CSF has stabilised and there is currently no need for so many troops to be held at such high readiness. The force will now undergo a conditions-based re-balancing, which has been planned in consultation with other government departments. It is currently determined that 7,500 personnel must remain at higher readiness to fulfil current CSF tasks and respond to all future requests. This will be kept under review as work to tackle the coronavirus pandemic continues and numbers will continue to reduce and increase as demand dictates.
The CSF will continue assisting civilian authorities wherever required and no personnel will be withdrawn from tasks while the demand remains. This week, the CSF will deliver testing kits to care homes using 20 specially designated vehicles, having already delivered more than 29,000 to 190 facilities. Defence medics will still provide direct medical assistance while other personnel will deliver PPE, maintain the national testing capacity and conduct a vast array of other duties. The 12,500 being released will be returning to a range of normal duties, including preparations to deploy on future operations at home and overseas.
In response to the evolving national situation, the Aviation Task Force’s assets will also be restructured and 2,000 of the reservists who volunteered for mobilisation but are no longer required to fulfil MACA tasks are being engaged about the processes for demobilisation. This will be taken forward with a view to mitigating the impact both to them and their employers. They are testament to the nation’s resolve in this crisis and the MOD is grateful for their enduring commitment. (Source: U.K. MoD)
28 May 20. An already struggling Turkish economy faces post-pandemic program delays. Despite official optimism, the economic outlook for Turkey after the coronavirus pandemic subsides is grim, with top procurement programs experiencing major major delays, economy and procurement officials told Defense News on condition of anonymity.
“The pandemic caught Turkey off guard … when the economy was already sending distress signals,” said one senior economy official. “The post-pandemic fiscal constraints will scrap or delay public spending, including on defense programs.”
A procurement official said that even before the spread of COVID-19, there were challenges in financing defense programs.
“The treasury was unable to allocate funds as early as in 2019,” the official said. “The post-[coronavirus] economic downturn will bring new curbs on defense spending, except equipment we regularly procure for combat zones.
“The government will have to reprioritize investment projects and possibly put off most of them.”
The official added that the acquisition of smart and conventional ammunition, armed and unarmed drones, and armored vehicles will remain unaffected. Turkey needs those items for its military campaign against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq and Syria. Turkey also sends drones and other military equipment to the Government of National Accord based in Tripoli, one of the warring sides in the Libyan civil war.
Before the pandemic, the official unemployment rate in Turkey was 12.8 percent. Economists warn that number may double as thousands of small and medium-sized businesses face closure.
In August 2018, the price of Turkey’s credit default swaps, or CDS — an insurance scheme against debt default — rose to an all-time high since 2009. In May 2019, the price of Turkey’s CDS again rose sharply as investors started to price in a default. On Jan. 10, 2020, Turkey’s CDS price measured at 269 basis points, safer than 566 points in 2018 but much worse than 142 points in 2010.
One fundamental problem for Ankara is big foreign exchange liabilities in an economy not quite prepared for a sharp slowdown. After an increase of 20 percent within a year, these gross liabilities have reached $300 bn. That puts Turkey’s net foreign liabilities at $175bn (after foreign assets of $125 bn are deducted from total liabilities). Mismanagement and a palliative desire to keep the national currency afloat has caused the Central Bank to burn through $65bn in reserves since January 2019.
Japan’s MUFG Bank forecasts depreciation of the Turkish lira that will make any foreign currency-based acquisition expensive and often unaffordable for the Ankara government. Foreign currency earnings are also expected to be hit hard this year. In 2019 Turkey earned $34.5bn from tourism. This year, it may stand at a mere $15 bn, a third of the official target of $45bn.
But in public, Turkish officials sound optimistic about a viable post-pandemic defense industry.
“Our companies keep their production cycles,” said Ismail Demir, Turkey’s top defense procurement official. “They continue to receive orders.”
According to Murat Ikinci, general manager of STM, a government-controlled defense technologies business, the company maintains deliveries of naval platforms and drone systems as planned before the pandemic. “We also keep offering cybersecurity solutions to the government sector,” Ikinci said.
Temel Kotil, CEO of Turkish Aerospace Industries, said his company’s work on a fifth-generation, indigenous fighter jet continues without interruption. TAI is struggling to design, develop and produce a new-generation fighter aircraft. Even before the COVID-19 outbreak, TAI had planned for a maiden flight of the aircraft in 2025 or 2026, despite originally aiming for 2023.
“If ever materialized, that aircraft would likely not be in the air before the end of the decade,” said a senior aerospace industry official. “The program is simply not progressing due to numerous [technological] question marks. Fresh fiscal constraints will further delay that program.”
Another potential victim is a multibillion-dollar, indigenous program for the serial production of the Altay, a new-generation tank. BMC, a Turkish-Qatari investment, is to produce the Altay, but it is yet to secure the cash flow from the government needed to start serial production, industry sources say.
“What would cost the Turkish government three liras in September 2016 will cost 7-7.5 liras at the end of this year. This [difference] is not easy to finance,” the senior economy official said. (Source: Defense News)
28 May 20. Italy defense minister commits to F-35 after calls to suspend program. Italy’s defense minister has thrown his weight behind the F-35 program to counter demands from within his coalition government to suspend purchases of the aircraft to help Italy’s coronavirus-stricken economy.
Lorenzo Guerini said he “confirmed that the program would continue,” after calls from Italy’s Five Star party to halt F-35 purchases for a year as Italy seeks cash to help rebound from the virus, which has killed 33,000 in Italy.
In an interview with Italian publication Formiche, Guerini said defense spending was often slashed during economic crises, but claimed cuts to Italy’s planned 90-aircraft buy would hurt high-tech jobs and damage an industrial sector which “offers very significant economic returns to our nation.”
Italy has currently taken delivery of 15 F-35 aircraft including 12 F-35A’s and three F-35B’s. Final assembly of the aircraft occurs at Italy’s own facility at Cameri Air Base in the north of the country, which is due to become a maintenance hub for the aircraft.
Guerini hails from the center-left Democratic Party, which is a minority partner with the Five Star party in a coalition government formed last year. Previously, Five Star had governed alongside the anti-migrant League party.
Five Star has had a turbulent relationship with the F-35 program. Prior to first entering government in 2018 it vowed to scrap the program altogether, before giving ambiguous signals about the aircraft once it was in power.
Italy’s coronavirus outbreak, which started in late February and prompted a strict, nationwide shut-down, has only now eased, with most restrictions on movement dropped on May 18.
But after two months of lockdown the economy is in tatters, from manufacturing to services to tourism, which accounts for 13 percent of GDP. The government has been slow off the mark to pay furlough wages and economists see GDP shrinking by up to ten percent this year.
In late March, 50 Five Star members of parliament signed a motion backing a suspension of ongoing F-35 purchases for one year to free cash for health spending. “We would also consider renegotiating and resizing this program,” one Five Star member in the group said at the time.
In his interview, Guerini backed F-35 but also supported Italy’s historical alliance with the United States and NATO, which was thrown into doubt by an April poll asking Italians which countries they considered “Friends”.
Some 52 percent indicated China, followed by Russia on 32 percent and the United States on 17 percent. Compared to a similar survey carried out in 2019, China leaped 42 percent, Russia by 17 percent, while the U.S. dropped 12 percent.
Asked which country Italy should ally with in the future, 36 percent said China while only 30 percent said the United States.
The survey followed very visible visits by Chinese and Russian doctors to Italy to help during the virus outbreak.
Last year, Italy announced plans to sign up to China’s controversial Belt and Road global trade routes plan, incurring criticism from U.S. diplomats, who warned the program was designed to help China more than its partners. (Source: Defense News)
28 May 20. NATO pilots report ‘professionalism’ from Russians over Baltic. NATO pilots currently flying the alliance’s Baltic Air Policing (BAP) mission have reported that their Russian counterparts are displaying “professional” and “co-operative” behaviour during Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) interceptions in international airspace over the region. The Spanish Air Force, which is leading the current Baltic Air Policing detachment with four Hornets, has reported no aggressive flying from Russian pilots they have so far encountered.
Speaking to reporters during NATO’s first ever ‘virtual press tour’ on 28 May, the commander of the lead Spanish detachment said that it has been the experience of his Boeing EF-18 Hornet crews that, when intercepting and shadowing Russian aircraft during Alpha-Scrambles (QRA responses specifically to Russian air activity), those pilots have not displayed any of the aggressive flying that has been previously reported across the Baltic and in other theatres.
“We have flown a number of Alpha-Scrambles [since beginning the current detachment on 1 May], and all the Russian pilots have been fully co-operative in their behaviour, and we have seen professional conduct from the Russian side,” Lieutenant Colonel Jesus Gutierrez Gallego said.
The Colonel’s comments were backed up by a NATO official at the same event, who noted that across the wider BAP mission that also currently includes French Dassault Mirage 2000s and British Eurofighter Typhoons, the experience of the Russian pilots had been largely positive, although not always. “Generally, the intercepts have been very professional. There have been some exceptions, but we have not been seeing any pattern [of aggressive behaviour from Russian pilots],” the official said. (Source: Jane’s)
27 May 20. EU keeps defence fund alive with 8bn euro proposal. The European Commission proposed on Wednesday spending 8bn euros ($8.81bn) of its next budget on a new European Union defence fund, keeping alive a Franco-German plan to deepen military cooperation despite the economic impact of COVID-19. Unveiled as part of the EU executive’s proposals for the bloc’s seven-year budget from 2021, the fund would allow EU states’ militaries to develop weapons, deploy together and streamline military systems in Europe. Though the amount is much less than the 13bn euros the Commission had initially proposed, the defence fund, if agreed by EU governments, could generate investment worth much more by enticing defence contractors to help finance deals through it.
The fund would mark the biggest step forward in EU defence integration since the late 1990s, when Britain and France helped launch closer military cooperation in the bloc.
Following Britain’s 2016 vote to quit the EU, France and Germany seized on European defence as a way to promote integration. They agreed a new pact with other EU governments.
While the United States, the world’s biggest military power, has 30 weapons systems, the EU has 178. The bloc has 17 types of battle tank, compared to just one in the United States.
Military cooperation could also help advances in technology for pandemics, officials say, including in chemical and biological research such as hi-tech, resistant clothing.
The Commission proposed just 1.5bn euros – much less than previously – for modernising Europe’s disjointed transport systems to move troops east in the case of conflict with Russia. The U.S.-led NATO alliance sees the ability to move quickly across Europe as vital to overcome border delays and rebuild bridges too weak for tanks. (Source: Reuters)
27 May 20. Three European air forces approve performance benchmarks for next-gen fighter jet. The air forces of Germany, France and Spain have agreed on a set of performance benchmarks to help their governments guide the development of a next-generation fighter jet set to fly in 2040, the German military announced Tuesday in a statement.
The document, approved earlier this month, is meant to help officials identify what features from a collection of 10 possible system architectures are worth keeping when the time comes to settle on a path forward for the Next-Generation Weapon System, or NGWS.
That system, with the manned next-gen fighter at its heart, is slated to become the central element of the Future Combat Air System, or FCAS, the most ambitious and expensive weapons program in mainland Europe. As envisioned, a small fleet of attack and surveillance drones, or “remote carriers,” would accompany each jet, and all elements would be interlinked by an artificial intelligence-powered “combat cloud,” according to a project description.
The 10 different system architectures for NGWS currently in the mix lean in different directions — for example, when it comes to armaments, maneuverability and range of the main jet and its companion drones, the German Bundeswehr statement explained.
The three air force top officials — Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz of Germany, Gen. Philippe Lavigne of France and Javier Fernandez of Spain — also agreed on a “Common Understanding Connectivity,” a guide for connecting national systems into the future FCAS scenario.
The document will enable the program’s partner nations to “synchronize” their respective development programs, according to the German statement.
The industry leads for the Future Combat Air System program, Airbus of Germany and Dassault of France, unveiled a mock-up of the future fighter jet at the Paris Air Show last year. The plan is to begin testing a prototype in 2026.
Earlier this year, France and Germany formally kicked off the next phase of the overall program, with each government contributing $85m toward the development of technology demonstrators.
German lawmakers, who fear an overtly strong French industry influence in the FCAS program, have linked the project to progress on the Main Ground Combat System, another highly visible bilateral program aimed at building a common battle tank.
France has the lead on the next-generation fighter, while Germany leads the tank project.
The German parliament’s strategy of keeping a close watch on the aerial program by approving only relatively small tranches of money has Dassault CEO Eric Trappier worried about the ability to hit deadlines, French newspaper La Tribune reported last week. Speaking before a French Senate committee in mid-May, Trappier proposed a Franco-German programming law to ensure a more rapid development pace, according to the newspaper. (Source: Defense News)
27 May 20. F-35 doesn’t fly: the systems of Danish fighter are not functioning properly. Next year, the first new Danish F-35 fighter aircraft will be ready. But serious technical problems remain with the new fighter aircraft, learned BulgarianMilitary.com citing Danish news agency Arbejderen. This also was stated in the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) latest report on the development of the F-35 (Joint Strike Fighter) fighter aircraft.
“After several years of development and testing, the system is not functioning properly. Inaccurate and lack of data has led ALIS (the fighter aircraft’s IT system, ed.) to keep aircraft on the ground,” writes the US National Audit Office among others.
The report concludes that there have been eight years of delays in developing the software for the F-35 aircraft and that the IT system is based on up to 15 years of knowledge.
It has serious consequences for the aircraft. In fact, fighter jets have only been fully operational for 31.6 percent of the time, GAO concludes.
According to the GAO, planes are only “safe” 59.5 percent of the time, and GAO reports of planes going on the wings, although the systems warn of serious errors.
As of September last year, there were 4700 deficiencies reported in the fighter aircraft’s IT system – of which 34 percent were already identified in 2017 or earlier. More than a fifth (22 percent) of reports are considered critical, the Norwegian media ABC News reports.
The report from the US National Audit Office has sparked debate in Norway, which has already received six F-35 fighter jets.
According to the Office of the Auditor General, aircraft manufacturer Lockheed Martin’s production does not meet the quality requirements set for reliable aircraft.
“Specifically, only about 3,000 of the over 10,000 key processes in aircraft production meet the predefined design standards needed to ensure product quality. Moreover, the over 500 aircraft delivered do not meet the program’s reliability and maintenance goals,” GAO writes.
The US arms company Lockheed Martin began producing the first parts of the new Danish F-35 fighter aircraft in January. The first Danish fighter planes are scheduled to be delivered to Luke Air Force Base in the USA, where the Danish pilots will be trained to fly the new fighter aircraft.
In 2016, a majority of the Parliament (the former Left government, the Social Democracy, the Danish People’s Party, the Liberal Alliance and the Radical Left) agreed to buy 27 pieces at a cost of a total of DKK 56bn for procurement and operations.
The technical problems have caused the fighter aircraft to be upgraded with a new software system. This means that costs are rising.
Costs are rising
Defense Minister Trine Bramsen has just delivered his annual report on the procurement of the new fighter aircraft to the Danish Parliament.
This shows that a number of the costs associated with the acquisition of the new fighter aircraft are increasing more than expected.
“It should be noted that the latest reported operating cost estimates from the US F-35 program show an increasing trend,” writes the Secretary of Defense, among others.
Apart from the fact that the fighter’s IT system is full of errors and is outdated and needs to be replaced, the expansion of Flyvestation Skrydstrup will be almost twice as expensive as expected. This is partly due to the fact that the flight station must meet a number of strict requirements before the fighter planes are allowed to land. In addition, it costs far more money than expected to try to dampen the noise nuisance of the fighter aircraft.
The Minister of Defense expects the price of the construction project to be DKK 1.1bn [$161m] against the original DKK 650m [$96m].
This is “a large and complicated construction, where very specific requirements for the facilities and safety of F-35 fighter aircraft apply, and where most of the contracts have not yet been concluded. The construction project is therefore subject to uncertainty. noise compensation, which is expected to amount to DKK 250m,” [$37m] writes the Minister of Defense.
On the other hand, it has been found that the fighter aircraft frame is getting cheaper and that the fighter factory is now starting to benefit from economies of scale because many allied countries have ordered the fighter aircraft. Therefore, the total cost of the fighter jets will not rise, the defense minister predicts.
When the expansion of Skrydstrup Flight Station is completed in 2023, the first F-35 fighter aircraft will land in Denmark. The last fighter aircraft are expected to be delivered to Denmark in 2026.
The Parliament is just now in the process of considering a 61-page bill from the Minister of Defense, which will give green light to expand the Skrydstrup flight station so that it meets the new requirements.
The United States has set a number of requirements for how Air Force Skrydstrup should be set up before the new Joint Strike Fighter fighter jets are allowed to land in Denmark.
New fighter planes are waning more
It’s not just the costs that are rising. So does the CO2 emissions.
The new F-35 fighter planes are significantly lower than the current F-16 fighter aircraft.
The F-35 fighter jets use 60 percent more fuel and emit 60 percent more CO2 per average flight hour than the up to 45-year-old F-16 aircraft that the F-35 aircraft must replace.
This is reported by the Norwegian Ministry of Defense to the Parliament. Norway received the first F-35 aircraft in 2018 and, like Denmark, has F-16 aircraft.
A broad political majority has otherwise decided that by 2030, Denmark must reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 70 percent. Defense Minister Trine Bramsen (S) has stated on several occasions that the Defense must participate in this work. (Source: News Now/https://bulgarianmilitary.com/)
22 May 20. Joint statement about the Open Skies Treaty by Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxemburg, France, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, Spain, Sweden and Finland. We regret the announcement by the US Government of its intention to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty, although we share their concerns about implementation of the Treaty clauses by Russia.
The Open Skies Treaty is a crucial element of the confidence-building framework that was created over the past decades in order to improve transparency and security across the Euro-Atlantic area.
We will continue to implement the Open Skies Treaty, which has a clear added value for our conventional arms control architecture and cooperative security. We reaffirm that this treaty remains functioning and useful. The withdrawal becomes effective within six months.
Regarding issues on Treaty implementation, we will continue to engage Russia as was previously decided among NATO Allies and other European partners to address outstanding issues such as the undue restrictions to flights over Kaliningrad. We continue to call on the Russian Federation to lift these restrictions and continue our dialogue with all parties. (Source: defense-aerospace.com/via Belgian delegation to Nato)
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