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23 Jan 25. The Armada will deploy the Expeditionary Combat Task Group “Dédalo” in Mediterranean waters up to three times during the year 2025 to express Spain’s firm commitment to the Alliance’s Deterrence and Defense Policy. The Task Group will be made up by all the vectors that constitute a naval power capable of projecting a naval force ashore. Namely, an LHD-type amphibious ship and/or LPDs with a reinforced Marine Corps battalion and a complete role-2 medical unit, F100 and FFG frigates, fixed wing aircraft, tactical transport helicopters and an auxiliary oiler and replenishment ship. These deployments will also serve to show the Armada’s capability to lead and project an expeditionary force at sea and from the sea and, where appropriate, integrate and interoperate with other units or naval groups from the rest of Allied countries. Likewise, the “Dédalo” deployments will continue to strengthen the image of the Armed Forces in the international context and value the strategic relationship and close collaboration of the Armada with the National Defense Industry, since all the units to be deployed are of indigenous design and construction, and have a high level of Spanish technology in their equipment and systems. The first two deployments will be before summer, while the third will be as of September.
23 Jan 25. German opposition leader seeks military procurement reform. Germany will eventually have to spend more than 2% of economic output on defence but must first reform its procurement system to get more bang for its buck, opposition leader Friedrich Merz, who is tipped to become the next chancellor, said on Thursday.
“I want us to spend the necessary funds we spend much more efficiently; we can get more for our money and therefore the procurement system needs to be changed,” he told a gathering in Berlin.
Merz dismissed the recent call by new U.S. President Donald Trump for Germany to spend as much as 5% of economic output on defence, saying it would first take huge efforts for Berlin to simply reach the 2% NATO target within its regular budget.
“We will have to do a lot more for our own defence but frankly I don’t think much of these numbers that are thrown into the air,” he said. (Source: Reuters)
22 Jan 25. Britain’s defence minister has warned Russian President Vladimir Putin that “we will not shy away from robust action” after telling Parliament that a Russian spy vessel had been operating in UK waters this week. John Healey said the Russian spy ship, Yantar, had been tracked in the English Channel by a warship after loitering over critical undersea infrastructure. A Royal Navy submarine surfaced near the Yantar to warn that its every move had been monitored, Healey said. “My message to President Putin is clear,” Healy told lawmakers in the House of Commons on Wednesday. “We know what you are doing and we will not shy away from robust action to protect Britain.” “We will continue to call out the malign activity that Putin directs, cracking down on the Russian shadow fleet,” he said. (Source: FT.com)
22 Jan 25. Undersea sabotage remains credible threat despite uncertainty over culpability. On 21 January, the Finnish outlet Helsingin Sanomat (HS) reported that the police have so far found no evidence that the Russian-operated Eagle S oil tanker sabotaged cables in the Baltic Sea on 25 December 2024. On 20 January, the Helsinki District Court ordered the indefinite seizure of the tanker, citing its potential liability for damaging the cables (possibly due to negligence). The HS report aligns with a report by the Washington Post that Western investigators suspect that a series of undersea cable breakages in the Baltic Sea were the result of inexperienced crews operating poorly maintained vessels, rather than sabotage. If so, it is a further sign of the threats stemming from Russia’s unregulated ‘shadow fleet’, which poses a serious environmental hazard due to the risk of oil spillages. However, we assess that Russia engages in ‘hybrid’ operations precisely because it is ultimately highly challenging to form a clear intelligence picture and attribute blame, particularly relating to undersea sabotage. (Source: Sibylline)
20 Jan 25. Germany says it met NATO 2% defence spending target in 2024, short of Trump’s demand.
- Summary
- Announcement comes with Trump about to be inaugurated as next US president
- Trump has proposed NATO members spend 5% of GDP on defence
- Germany faces budget constraints, complicating future military funding
Germany met NATO’s target to spend 2% of its gross domestic product on defence in 2024, the government said on Monday, though well short of incoming U.S. President Donald Trump’s call for as much as 5%.
Under Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s centre-left government, Germany has ramped up military spending since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, both to supply weapons to Kyiv and revamp its own armed forces.
But Germany, Europe’s largest economy, has grappled with budgetary constraints, clouding prospects for further longer-term military funding commitments.
Trump, who was to be inaugurated as president later on Monday, recently said members of the NATO military alliance should even spend 5% of GDP on defence – which would be a huge increase from the current goal and a level that no NATO country, including the United States, currently reaches.
Trump cut defence funding to NATO during the latter part of his first term in 2017-21, and has frequently complained that the U.S. is paying more than its fair share.
He has vowed to ask Europe to reimburse the U.S. for “almost $200 bn” in munitions sent to Ukraine, and has not committed to sending further aid to Kyiv.
Reuters earlier cited German finance ministry sources as saying Germany met the NATO target last year.
A British teenager on Monday pleaded guilty to murdering three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance event last July.
The NATO quota will be met, even though 4.3bn euros of the funds available in 2024 were not used, a Defence Ministry spokesperson said on Monday.
In total, 90.8bn euros had been available, which would have corresponded to a NATO quota of 2.1% of economic output.
Details on all expenses that were counted towards the NATO goal will be published in February, finance ministry sources said.
Days after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Scholz announced a “Zeitenwende” – German for a historic turning point – with a 100bn-euro special fund to modernise the German military.
That fund will run out in 2028 and a total of 80bn euros will be needed to comply with NATO’s target of spending 2% of GDP on defence – a huge leap from the 2025 draft budget, which proposed regular defence spending of 53bn euros.
TROUBLED 2025 BUDGET
The finance ministry on Monday presented preliminary results of the 2024 budget that showed Germany finished the year with a reserve of 10.7 bn euros, but this will not bring additional fiscal room for this year’s budget.
“The preliminary annual financial statement presented today shows we were able to fully preserve the reserves without a supplementary budget for 2024,” Finance Minister Joerg Kukies said.
When the country’s three-way coalition fell apart late last year, the opposition Christian Democrats (CDU) and the Free Democrats (FDP) rejected the government’s supplementary budget for 2024, which had been due to pass parliament in November.
“However, the preliminary financial statement for 2024 does not provide us with any new leeway for the preparation of the 2025 federal budget,” Kukies added.
This is because even if the German government now has 10.7 bn euros in unused funds, the budget gap for 2025 is at 16 bn euros, Kukies said in Brussels, up from the 13 bn euros cited by his predecessor Christian Lindner. (Source: Reuters)
18 Jan 25. The Chief of Staff of the [Spanish] Army (Jefe de Estado Mayor del Ejército – JEME), Army General Amador Enseñat y Berea, has concluded an official visit to Türkiye, which took place between January 12 and 17. During this stay, he has fulfilled a broad agenda aimed at consolidating bilateral relations and exploring new areas of cooperation in the military and technological fields.
In Ankara, the visit began with a ceremony at the Anitkabir, the mausoleum dedicated to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Republic of Türkiye and symbol of its modernisation. General Enseñat paid tribute to Atatürk by laying a wreath, in an act that underlined the respect for the history and values of Türkiye.
Later, he held a meeting with General Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu, Chief of the Turkish Land Forces. This dialogue allowed them to address common challenges in defence and security, as well as to identify areas of mutual interest. In this context, the JEME visited the facilities of leading companies in electronics, electro-optics, land vehicles, defence technology, and missiles and rockets, as well as the UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) brigade of the Turkish Army.
In Adana, the JEME visited the Incirlik air base, where he interacted with the Spanish contingent that is deployed there as part of the A/T (Apoyo a Turquía – Support to Türkiye) operation, where Spain has had a Patriot battery deployed since 2015. This deployment demonstrates the bond of union and solidarity with the Atlantic Alliance, as well as the bilateral commitment to Türkiye.
The visit continued in Izmir, with a meeting at NATO’s Allied Land Command (LANDCOM), being received by Lieutenant General Jez Bennett (Deputy Commander LANDCOM). There, the Spanish contribution to land operations was analysed, as well as future commitments assumed by Spain. General Enseñat took the opportunity to meet with General Zacarías Hernández and the Spanish contingent deployed there.
As the final part of the visit, the JEME was received by the commander of the Aegean Army, Army General İrfan Özsert, at his Headquarters in Izmir. During his visit, he held a working meeting, where they explored opportunities to collaborate in the future.
General Enseñat stressed that this visit has served to demonstrate the commitment to the Atlantic Alliance, materialised, in this case, through the link with such an important strategic partner as Türkiye; to further strengthen relations with this country and explore new areas of cooperation; and, finally, to visit the Spanish contingents deployed in both Adana and Izmir. (Source: joint-forces.com)
17 Jan 25. Bulgaria: New government will highly likely remain pro-EU despite Russia-friendly coalition partner. On 16 January, parliament approved a new coalition government led by centre-right Citizens of European Development of Bulgaria (GERB-SDS). The coalition also includes populist There is Such People (ITN) and the centre-left Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP); it will also receive parliamentary support from a Turkish minority party. The coalition agreement was reached following the October 2024 snap election, the seventh general election since 2021. The first priority of the new government will be presenting and adopting the 2025 budget (which has not yet been agreed upon due to political deadlock). We assess that the newly agreed coalition will temporarily decrease government stability risk; however, the uneasy mix of political parties will render the coalition highly susceptible to collapse. This will likely drive policy stagnation and uncertainty for investors. Regarding foreign policy, we assess that the government will highly likely maintain a pro-EU course, despite the inclusion of the Russia-friendly BSP. The risk of corruption will be the main driver of possible Russian influence. (Source: Sibylline)
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Founded in 1987, Exensor Technology is a world leading supplier of Networked Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) Systems providing tailored sensor solutions to customers all over the world. From our Headquarters in Lund Sweden, our centre of expertise in Network Communications at Communications Research Lab in Kalmar Sweden and our Production site outside of Basingstoke UK, we design, develop and produce latest state of the art rugged UGS solutions at the highest quality to meet the most stringent demands of our customers. Our systems are in operation and used in a wide number of Military as well as Homeland Security applications worldwide. The modular nature of the system ensures any external sensor can be integrated, providing the user with a fully meshed “silent” network capable of self-healing. Exensor Technology will continue to lead the field in UGS technology, provide our customers with excellent customer service and a bespoke package able to meet every need.
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