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29 Nov 21. AI weapons pose threat to humanity, warns top scientist. Stuart Russell will use BBC’s Reith Lectures to press for ban on autonomous lethal systems. The computer scientist Stuart Russell met with officials from the UK’s Ministry of Defence in October to deliver a stark warning: building artificial intelligence into weapons could wipe out humanity. But the pioneering artificial intelligence researcher, who has spent the past decade trying to ban AI from being used to locate and kill human targets, was not able to extract any promises from those present at the meeting. This week, Russell, a British professor at the University of California in Berkeley who co-wrote one of the seminal textbooks on AI more than 25 years ago, will use BBC radio’s annual Reith Lectures to press his case further. His calls for an international moratorium on autonomous lethal weapons have been echoed across the academic community. Last week, more than 400 German AI researchers published an open letter to the German government asking it to stop the development of these systems by its armed forces. “The killing of humans should never be automated based on algorithmic formulas,” the letter said. “Such dehumanisation of life and death decision-making by autonomous weapons systems must be outlawed worldwide.” Russell, who regularly meets governments internationally, said the US and Russia, together with the UK, Israel and Australia, were still against a ban.
“There is still a communication failure, a lot of governments and militaries are not understanding what the objection is,” Russell said in an interview with the Financial Times. “Put very simply, we don’t sell nuclear weapons in Tesco — and with these weapons it will be exactly like that. AI lethal weapons were “small, cheap, and easily manufactured”. With no checks, they could soon be as ubiquitous as automatic rifles, more than 100m of which are in private hands. In the second of his four Reith lectures on “Living with Artificial Intelligence”, to be broadcast on BBC radio from Wednesday, Russell warned that AI weapons were no longer science fiction, but were developing apace, completely unregulated. “You can buy them today. They are advertised on the web,” he said. In November 2017, a Turkish arms manufacturer called STM announced the Kargu, a fully autonomous killer drone the size of a rugby ball, which could perform targeted hits based on image and face recognition. The drone was used in Libyan conflicts in 2020 to selectively home in on targets, despite an arms embargo on weapon sales to Libya, according to the United Nations. “STM is a relatively small manufacturer in a country that isn’t a leader in technology. So you have to assume that there are programmes going on in many countries to develop these weapons,” Russell said. He also described the Israeli government’s Harpy — a 12-foot-long fixed-wing aircraft that carries a 50-pound explosive payload, and its descendent, the Harop. The planes can be flown remotely or can run autonomously after a geography and target is specified by a human operator. The Harop may have been sold to India, and Azerbaijan, where it was spotted in a video produced by the army. A press release from the Israeli Aerospace Industries that year said “hundreds” of these had been sold.
Russell warned that the proliferation of AI weapons posed an imminent and existential threat. “A lethal AI-powered quadcopter could be as small as a tin of shoe polish . . . about three grammes of explosive are enough to kill a person at close range. A regular container could hold a million lethal weapons, and . . . they can all be sent to do their work at once,” he said, in his lecture. “So the inevitable endpoint is that autonomous weapons become cheap, selective, weapons of mass destruction.” In the absence of diplomatic action, academics are banding together to design their ideal version of an AI weapons ban treaty. In 2019, a handful of computer scientists, engineers and ethicists met to hash it out, at the Boston home of MIT professor Max Tegmark, who is co-founder of the Future of Life Institute. The two-day meeting included roboethicist Ron Arkin from Georgia Tech; Paul Scharre, a former US Army officer who studies the future of war; and Russell, among others. Eventually, they agreed that specifying a minimum weight and explosive size should be compulsory, so autonomous weapons cannot be wielded as swarms. “What you’re trying to avoid is two blokes in a truck launching a million weapons,” Russell said. Ultimately, he believes the only way to convince governments like the US, Russia and UK still resisting a ban is to appeal to their sense of self-preservation. As he said: “If the technical issues are too complicated, your children can probably explain them.” (Source: FT.com)
26 Nov 21. Italy, France deepen economic, defense cooperation. Italian Premier Mario Draghi said that a bilateral treaty signed on Friday with French President Emmanuel Macron to strengthen bilateral cooperation would in turn strengthen the European Union, including such areas as defense, aerospace and technology. The treaty deepens cooperation “in crucial sectors, from security to justice, from research to industry,’’ Draghi told a press conference. That includes spending to create “a true European defense” that Draghi said “obviously is complementary to NATO” and doesn’t substitute the alliance.
“To be sovereign, Europe needs to know how to defend its borders. We need to create a real defense,” he said.
Draghi also cited the intent to strengthen investments in such key sectors as semiconductors, as the global supply chain is hard hit by shortages from Asia, as well as in more sustainable energy sources, as countries seek to slow the pace of global warming.
The two countries also signed an agreement on space launchers that will increase European competitiveness, consolidating Italian-French cooperation for future Ariane 6 and Vega 6 launchers, according to a separate statement.
Macron said the agreement does not substitute France’s longtime friendship with Germany, which has been considered key to economic prosperity and security in postwar Europe. But he said the two friendships are different.
“In France, we say that when things get complicated with Germany, we turn toward Italy,” Macron said.
Among the treaty’s provisions is the creation of a Franco-Italian civil service and operation center to support law enforcement. In addition, a minister from one country will attend a Cabinet meeting of the other every three months.
“Beyond consolidating bilateral relations, the agreement intends to encourage and accelerate the process of European integration,’’ Draghi said. (Source: Google/AP/https://ca.news.yahoo.com/)
25 Nov 21. British armoured division returns to Germany amid Ukraine tensions. About-turn just over a year since UK pulled out in move designed to help bolster Nato. The British army is to base hundreds of armoured vehicles in Germany, just over a year after marking its official withdrawal from the country, in a move designed to help bolster Nato as tensions with Moscow over Ukraine remain high. Under plans described as a “radical” restructuring of British land forces, the UK government announced on Thursday that a Nato base at Sennelager, near the German city of Paderborn, would become one of three new “regional land hubs” for the British army, alongside Oman and Kenya. The move represents a U-turn just over a year after the UK ended a permanent military presence on German soil that had been maintained since the end of the second world war. The closure of the last British army military headquarters in Bielefeld last February was the culmination of a decade-long withdrawal of 20,000 British service personnel from the country.
“We are putting a substantial number of our armoured vehicles forward in order to be able to move more quickly should they be required anywhere on the continental [European] land mass,” Lieutenant General Ralph Wooddisse, commander field army, said. One government official would not be drawn on exact numbers but said the plans envisaged basing “hundreds” of tanks and armoured vehicles at Sennelager. The decision comes with Nato allies becoming increasingly concerned that Moscow is planning an invasion of Ukraine. Kyiv has said Russia has massed as many as 114,000 troops to the north, east, and south of the Donbas, a mostly Russian-speaking region where Russian-backed separatists have fought government forces since a pro-western revolution in Ukraine in 2014. Earlier this year, US President Joe Biden halted plans by his predecessor Donald Trump to withdraw thousands of US troops from Germany. The plans to send British armour back to Germany form part of an overhaul of the army described as the most “radical” transformation in more than 20 years. “We cannot afford to be slave to sentiment,” UK defence secretary Ben Wallace said, as he announced troops numbers would be cut by 9,000 troops to just 73,000 over the next four years — the smallest the army has been in centuries.
The cuts will also see 33 army bases closed around Britain, including the Alanbrooke Barracks in North Yorkshire. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had promised during the 2019 election campaign that a Conservative government would “not be cutting our armed services in any form”. Tobias Ellwood, the Tory MP and former army officer who chairs the House of Commons defence select committee, criticised the cuts. “Our world is becoming more dangerous, more complex. This is not the time to cut the defence budget or reduce our tanks, our armoured fighting vehicles and our troop numbers as we are doing,” he said. But Wallace insisted the restructuring was designed “to transform the army into a more agile, integrated, lethal, expeditionary force”. The army would be “leaner but more productive”, he added, as he confirmed plans for a new 1,200-strong “Ranger regiment” modelled on the US army’s elite Green Berets. The regiment will be made up of four battalions, which will embed with foreign forces and focus on counter-insurgency operations in regions such as east Africa. Wallace said this would mean more personnel are deployed around the world for longer. Wallace said there would also be a larger proportion of troops based in each of the devolved nations. (Source: FT.com)
25 Nov 21. British Army unveils most radical transformation in decades. The British Army has unveiled ‘Future Soldier’ today, its most radical transformation programme in over 20 years. Following on from the Integrated Review and the significant increase in defence spending announced by the Government last year, Future Soldier demonstrates how the Army is modernising to address next-generation threats across the globe. This will be bolstered by an additional investment of £8.6bn in Army equipment over the next ten years. This will bring the total equipment investment to £41.3bn for that period. Alongside investment in our people, infrastructure, emerging technologies, and cyber capabilities, Future Solider will position the Army as a globally engaged fighting force that benefits the whole of our Union.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “Future Soldier is reinforced by the ambition outlined in the Defence Command Paper to transform the Army into a more agile, integrated, lethal, expeditionary force. We have underpinned this generational work with an extra £8.6bn for Army equipment, bringing the total investment to £41.3bn. Our Army will operate across the globe, equipped with the capabilities to face down a myriad of threats from cyber warfare through to battlefield conflict.”
Commander Field Army Lt Gen Ralph Wooddisse said: “Future Soldier is the next evolutionary step for the British Army; the most radical change for the British Army in 20 years. It will mean changes to the way we operate our structure, technology, and workforce. This will make us leaner, more agile and adaptable. Future Soldier is about ensuring the British Army is a competitive and resilient organisation able to meet the challenges of modern warfare.”
Ranger Regiment
One of the most significant changes is the creation of a new Ranger Regiment. Standing up from 1 December 2021, the Regiment will embody the Army’s new expeditionary posture. It will form part of the newly established Army Special Operations Brigade and will be routinely deployed alongside partner forces around the world to counter extremist organisations and hostile state threats.
This shift to a globally engaged posture will mean more personnel are deployed for more of the time, with a new network of Land Regional Hubs based on existing training locations in places such as Oman and Kenya.
The Ranger Regiment’s cap badge will take its inspiration from the Peregrine Falcon and everyone will wear a metal badge, irrespective of rank.
Modernised Warfighting
Another key pillar of Future Solider is ensuring the Army is a central contributor to NATO warfighting by delivering a fully modernised warfighting division by 2030, with capabilities designed to detect and defeat at greater range and accuracy.
New equipment such as Ajax, Boxer, Challenger 3, AH-64E Apache, long range precision fires and un-crewed aerial systems will be introduced, while much of the fighting force will fall under new self-sufficient Brigade Combat Teams.
To ensure land forces adapt at a rapid pace to challenge future threats, a new Experimentation and Trials Group will be established in 2022, leading on trialling new technologies and integrating them into how soldiers will fight and operate. The Army will also benefit from a significant share of the £6.6bn R&D investment.
Commander of the Field Army, Lieutenant General Ralph Wooddisse CBE MC said: “Future Soldier is the next step in the evolution of the British Army; it is the most radical change for the British Army in 20 years. It will change the way we fight and operate, and make us more lethal, agile and lean. It will be underpinned by changes to structure, technology, and workforce. Future Soldier is fundamentally about ensuring the British Army is a competitive and resilient organisation able to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow, wherever they may be.”
Our people
Creating an Army fit for the future will see some restructuring and reorganisation of units over the next four years, which will be supported by a rebalancing of personnel across the United Kingdom. The Regular Army will stand at 73,000 strong by 2025 and combined with an Army Reserve of 30,000, the British Army will stand at over 100,000.
The proportion of the Army based in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland
will be sustained or increased by 2025, and this will be reinforced by around £3.35bn from the Defence Estate Optimisation budget and a further £1.2bn of Army investment in remaining sites.
This means:
Scotland: Scotland will be home to more units and a greater proportion of the Army’s workforce than today. Glencorse Barracks in Edinburgh will be retained, while Kinloss and Leuchars will continue to grow. The £355m investment in the Army estate will deliver over a £1bn of economic benefits to Scotland.
Wales: The number of soldiers in Wales is set to increase with the return of the ‘Welsh cavalry’, The Queen’s Dragoon Guards, and a new Reserve company of The Royal Welsh established in North Wales. The retention of Brecon and growth in Wrexham locations are part of a £320m investment.
Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland will keep the same number of Army units but host a greater proportion of the Army’s workforce.
Reservists will play a pivotal role in the modern Army, taking principal responsibility for Homeland Protect and Resilience operations.
Opportunity for serving personnel
Future Solider will drive forward changes to make the Army a great place for all, and for the first-time soldiers commissioning from the ranks will not be limited on how far they can be promoted – increasing the opportunity for a Private soldier to leave the Army as a General. Under the transformation programme, plans are also being developed to launch a Soldier Academy that mirrors the prestige of Sandhurst and new career management system that is fit for the digital age is also being developed.
Finally, a Force Mental Health Team will be established within the Field Army, who will help support the promotion of mental health and wellbeing and provide a deployable healthcare capability in support of persistent engagement. (Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
25 Nov 21. ‘Emotional intelligence’ key for Army’s new Rangers units. Troops hoping to join new special operations regiment will have to show personal characteristics beyond those required by regular soldiers Britain’s new special operations units will assess applicants on their “emotional intelligence”, the commander has revealed. Troops hoping to join the Army’s new Ranger Regiment will have to demonstrate personal characteristics beyond those required by regular soldiers. Resilience, calmness and self-awareness will be tested on a two-week assessment cadre that will include “protracted periods of time under duress,” said Brigadier Gus Fair, the first commander of the Army’s new Special Operations Brigade, has said. Comprising four battalions, each of about 300 soldiers, the Ranger Regiment will officially stand up on December 1, and will form the core of the specialist brigade, accompanying troops from other countries into action against terrorists and hostile state threats.
Two other new brigades are expected to be announced in parliament on Thursday by Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, when he gives more details on Army restructuring and basing plans.
The Security Force Assistance Brigade will train partner nations’ military units, but will not go into battle with them, while a new Deep Strike Reconnaissance Brigade will use drones, artillery and missiles to destroy targets at ranges up to 100 miles.
Emotional intelligence, also known as emotional quotient or EQ, is said to be the ability to understand, use and manage one’s emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathise with others, overcome challenges and defuse conflict.
Brig Fair said that he was looking for “EQ, not just IQ” in the new force.
Drawn from across the Army, he said the Rangers would not take talent to the detriment of other units, adding: “This should have a positive pull-through effect.”
Equally, the new units will not be competing with special forces for applicants
“We’ve got an interest in continuing to prime that pump,” Brig Fair said. “In many respects, we will be one of the main feeds into the UK special forces group.”
Officers will rotate through the special operations brigade in the same way as the current special forces units, typically on two-year postings. Soldiers will be able to stay for longer and perhaps their entire careers.
After the two-week initial assessment, applicants will then have to prove a high level of soldier skills over two months.
Only then will they officially join the Rangers and be able to wear the new gunmetal grey beret, which has a cap badge based on a peregrine falcon, a bird of prey said by the Army to operate “in all environments including deserts, mountains and cities”.
After being “badged”, new recruits will undergo a further eight months of specialist training before being ready for deployments overseas.
The four infantry regiments currently acting as the building blocks for the special operations brigade will be officially renamed on December 1, as first to fourth battalions of the Ranger Regiment.
Each has been given a specific regional focus: Europe, the Middle East, and west and east Africa.
Troops from the forerunner units trained local forces in Kuwait, Iraq and Nigeria in 2018 to test the concept.
‘Authority and resilience’
Brig Fair said that the Ranger Regiment model of partnering with military, police and other security forces in areas of crisis would be different to Nato’s recent experience in Afghanistan.
In future operations, UK Ranger units will ensure they “don’t undermine sovereign ownership of the mission,” he said.
“From the outset, [Afghanistan] was a Nato mission. It became an Afghan mission [but] arguably we’d already laid the ground-work; we’d undermined their institutional authority and resilience.”
He said that the Rangers would “very firmly” ensure the host country was the “focal point”. The situation in Afghanistan evolved to the point western forces were the “supported element” with partnering seen as “incidental”.
In a letter to the Army, General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, the Chief of the General Staff, said that the Army’s modernisation project, of which the three new brigades are a part, “is an exciting and bold blueprint for a transformed Army, making it the most capable Army of its size anywhere in the world.” (Source: Daily Telegraph)
23 Nov 21. British Army to leave Canada after 50 years for new base in Middle East. Modernisation plans will include developing training area in Oman, which will also position British hardware closer to potential adversaries. The British Army is to leave Canada after 50 years, with its biggest training base set to move to the Middle East. The British Army Training Unit Suffield (Batus) in Alberta, western Canada, has been in operation since 1972, training thousands of British soldiers in live firing exercises.
More than 1,000 vehicles, including tanks and helicopters, are regularly used by regiments for weeks at a time at the 2,700 kilometre-square base, seven times the size of Salisbury Plain.
However, Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, is expected to announce later this week that plans to modernise the Army will include developing a training area in Oman.
The move to use the Omani desert, near Duqm airbase and port, as the main training ground for tanks and other armoured vehicles will mean the Batus camp, home to more than 400 permanent British staff, and the smaller Wainwright training area nearby, will close.
Defence sources said the shift to the Gulf would enable British forces to position hardware closer and more visibly to partner nations, such as Ukraine and Bahrain, and potential adversaries, such as Iran.
This would reduce the time necessary to respond to any crisis in the region and allow the Government to showcase British military technology to boost potential arms sales.
A defence source close to the plans told The Telegraph: “If you only have 148 tanks and 22 of them are stuck in Canada, that’s 22 tanks that are not at readiness and not available to do anything operational.
“If they are training in Poland or Duqm, the logic is that they are having a more operational and deterrent effect.”
Big tank exercises planned for the next two years
An MoD spokesman said Batus would not close before 2023, as big tank exercises were already planned over the next two years.
Beyond that, small numbers of military personnel would still be located in Canada, as defence attaches, liaison officers and on exchange with Canadian units.
The announcement is set to form part of a broader plan outlining how the Army will adapt to take advantage of digital technology while still maintaining forces available to Nato for battlefield scenarios.
Soldiers have been told to expect an announcement imminently about new structures and unit roles.
The announcement will include an update on the Ranger Regiment, detailing which units will form the new force and the selection and training courses required to join.
The Rangers were announced in March, and will be formed from four existing battalions before recruiting more widely from the Army.
Ben Barry, of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said the new Rangers would be described as a special operations brigade and modelled on the US Green Berets.
As with their US counterparts, Mr Barry said the British troops could “work with resistance forces”, for example operating for months alongside Syrian or Afghan fighters against terrorist groups.
Risk in shrinking the Army
They will be supported by a security force assistance brigade, another new formation to be made up of existing units and designed to train and advise partner forces, but not be as exposed to as much potential harm as the Special Operations brigade.
However, Mr Barry said there was a risk in shrinking the Army and making it more specialised at the same time.
“If this Special Operations brigade becomes another elite organisation requiring people to compete to be selected into it like Airborne Forces and the Army component of 3 Commando Brigade, this becomes yet another elite force which, by definition, will compete against the other elite forces for highly motivated, self-starting people in an Army that’s getting smaller.
“There’s a danger it will be difficult to find the people it needs, and if it does find the people it needs it will suck out of the conventional units the self-motivated people that are so important to keeping the unit going.”
The Army plans to reorganise to enable it to fight a major war, after decades in which it became specialised in fighting insurgencies in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 forced defence chiefs to refocus on building a “heavy metal” warfighting division of tanks and armoured vehicles.
British forces are stationed in Poland as part of Nato’s mission to deter Russia, and training with tanks already takes place there.
The announcement of the move of the training base to Oman comes amid increasing tensions with the Kremlin as a result of the migrant crisis on the Polish border with Belarus. (Source: Daily Telegraph)
24 Nov 21. Incoming German government commits to NATO nuclear deterrent. Germany’s incoming government has affirmed its commitment to NATO’s nuclear deterrent, including the role accorded to Berlin in the strategy, according to a coalition agreement unveiled Nov. 24 by Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and the liberal Free Democrats (FDP).
The much-anticipated pact offers a flavor of what the new government, to be led by the SPD’s Olaf Scholz, finance minister in the outgoing government, aims to do in the fields of defense and foreign policy. European Union and NATO watchers will find themselves reassured, as the document hits all the right notes on fostering cooperation through those channels while preparing for a “systemic contest” with authoritarian states.
“The good news is that we are at least staying the course,” said Christian Mölling, a senior analyst at the Berlin-based German Council on Foreign Relations, referring to earlier fears by allies that Germany could axe key tenets of its foreign policy doctrine after 16 years of Chancellor Angela Merkel. That was especially the case following anti-nuclear positions in parts of the Greens and the SPD that had allies fearing a shifting stance in Berlin toward atomic deterrence.
Mölling said the compromise of the coalition agreement goes something like this: It includes a commitment to NATO’s nuclear-sharing arrangement, by which German pilots would deliver nuclear bombs stored on German soil in a hypothetical war, while declaring the objective of Berlin becoming an “observer” to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
The two poles encapsulate a conundrum the Greens, in particular, have had to square for themselves, with party defense spokesman Tobias Lindner previously advocating that a position combining both aspects is possible.
Whatever comes of Germany’s aspirations toward a global nuclear weapons-prohibition regime remains to be seen, however. Mölling describes the relevant passage as “scaleable,” meaning it relies to various degrees on decisions made by allies and conditions outside of Berlin’s control.
Mention of Berlin’s NATO nuclear-sharing commitment, on the other hand, is a more binding objective, Mölling said, noting the agreement makes the replacement of the country’s aging Tornado aircraft with an equally nuclear-capable type an explicit goal for the new government.
The new agreement, which each of the three parties will vote on in the coming weeks, also ushers in a new political stance for the Bundeswehr, Germany’s military, on armed drones.
Such weapons “can contribute to the protection of our soldiers” on global deployments, the document declares, using a formulation that has taken years to ripen in a society that is as military-skeptic as it is debate-friendly.
The passage is the “best outcome that the armed forces could have hoped for,” said Ulrike Franke, a London-based drone researcher at the European Council on Foreign Relations.
German military leaders have argued for years that armed drones could make the difference in dicey battlefield situations when troops are facing a direct threat. Opponents have argued that a history of faulty military decision-making on drone strikes, most recently by U.S. commanders in Kabul, tells a different story.
According to Franke, some details still need to be worked out in Germany’s future use of the weapons.
“What exactly are the ‘binding rules or conditions’ mentioned in the agreement?” she asked. “The Bundeswehr does not, or should not, have a problem with transparency, but too restrictive rules could create difficulties during missions,” Franke said.
In the past, the idea of individual parliamentary approval for armed drone operations was on the table in the German drone debate, she noted. “The Bundeswehr is likely to want to have as much flexibility as possible.” (Source: Defense News)
24 Nov 21. Fury as new Army regiment’s cap badge ‘identical’ to apartheid terror squad. Officers say design for Ranger Regiment cap matches that of the Selous Scouts, which fought black insurgent armies in former Rhodesia.
The Army is facing a backlash among officers over a new cap badge “identical” to those worn by an apartheid terror squad.
Multiple officers privy to discussions about the beret for the newly formed Ranger Regiment have raised serious concerns that the badge may have been designed based on the one worn by the Selous Scouts, the disbanded special forces regiment from the Rhodesian Army.
The former unit fought black insurgent armies in the Sixties and Seventies as part of their quest to keep white-minority rule over what is now Zimbabwe.
One defence source told The Telegraph: “An officer said he had seen an email saying that it was actually based on the Selous Scouts. It’s almost identical to the Rhodesian Selous Scouts, which is controversial due to their involvement with an apartheid regime.
“There’s obvious differences but it’s f—— close and clearly based on it.”
The source added: “It sounds bad to me. Having a cap badge in this day and age with any connection to a racist regime whatsoever seems outrageous.”
It is understood that numerous officers have raised concerns with the new badge’s “connection to the Selous Scouts”, however they believe that the opportunity to prevent it from going into circulation will have passed as it will have already had the Queen’s approval.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said that the badge for the Ranger Regiment, which was established as part of the Army’s Future Soldier concept, had taken its “inspiration and spirit” from the peregrine falcon.
The MoD added that the bird was “the most geographically dispersed bird of prey globally, operating in all environments including deserts, mountains and cities, and notably loyal to its partner”.
Everyone serving in the Ranger Regiment will wear a metal badge, irrespective of rank.
It will be made in a gunmetal grey colour that has been chosen for the Regimental beret and Stable Belt, taking inspiration from the peregrine falcon’s grey plumage.
The Selous Scouts’ metal badge was also designed on a bird of prey, the osprey, which was shown in an incoming strike pose with the banner beneath its claws.
Comparison with Selous Scouts ‘inaccurate’
The Ranger Regiment was born out of the Army’s pledge to turn infantry soldiers into elite fighters to tackle “high-threat” missions abroad.
It will be part of a Special Operations Brigade that will work in support of Special Forces in high-threat environments.
Over the next four years, a share of £120 million will be invested into the unit, which will undertake roles traditionally carried out by the Special Air Service and Special Boat Service, such as training, advising, enabling and accompanying partner forces from foreign countries.
An Army spokesman said: “The Ranger Regiment cap badge has been designed around the peregrine falcon. Any comparison or association to the osprey depicted in the Selous Scouts’ cap badge is completely inaccurate.
“The Ranger Regiment is very proud of its new cap-badge which takes inspiration and spirit from the peregrine falcon; fast, agile and fiercely loyal to its partner, it operates around the world in all environments including deserts, mountains and cities.” (Source: Daily Telegraph)
24 Nov 21. Royal Navy escort fleet to ‘return above 19’ warships by 2026. The Royal Navy fleet will grow to more than 19 frigates and destroyers by 2026, aiming for 24 escort vessels by 2030. It currently has 18. In written evidence submitted by Admiral Tony Radakin to the Defence Select Commitee the former First Sea Lord said: “Hull numbers will dip to 17 by the end of 2023”, later adding “alongside making best use of the force we have, driving up relative availability, we remain committed to growing the escort force and further increasing the absolute number of days available for operations we provide to the nation. We anticipate returning above 19 FFDD by the end of 2026 as new ships are brought into service.
The projected in service dates for these ships, and the time required for sea trials and commissioning activity, have been modelled against the out of service dates of the Type 23 force, to ensure that we always have sufficient units to deliver on our Defence Plan commitments, whether that be protecting our nuclear deterrent or delivering presence around the globe.
Furthermore, the additional availability that the IR provided in the OPV force, through the extension of the Batch 1 OPVs in Home Waters, has allowed us to use the Batch 2 OPVs to deliver some tasks overseas to which a Frigate or Destroyer would have been attributed previously. The excellent availability we are getting from these new ships, forward deployed with a sustainable crewing model, is supporting our presence around the globe whilst we transition to the future frigate force.
As new ships are brought into service, they will require less maintenance than those they replace, reaping the benefits of modern technology and further improving relative availability. We are also committed to several initiatives, under Projects RESOLUTION (Submarines) and RENOWN (Surface Ships), to shorten refits and speed up routine maintenance of the existing fleet. The collective effect of all these measures will be a much more available Fleet, delivering a better return on the investment the Ministry of Defence has made in the Royal Navy, and providing more days on operations for the nation.”
How many escorts will the Royal Navy eventually have?
Earlier this year, the Prime Minister confirmed plans to increase the size of the Royal Navy escort fleet to 24 vessels. (Source: News Now/https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/)
23 Nov 21. Post-AUKUS, France turns to Indonesia, eyes Rafale jet sale. France will try to cement deeper ties in the Indo-Pacific region when its foreign minister arrives in Indonesia on Tuesday as it counters the loss of a strategic defence deal with Australia in September.
Paris accused its allies of stabbing it in the back when Australia opted for nuclear-powered submarines to be built with U.S. and British technology instead of a multi-billion dollar French submarine programme.
Canberra pressed ahead with a trilateral alliance (AUKUS) excluding France, which it said was crucial to tackle the perceived Chinese threat in the region.
France’s partnership with Australia dating back to 2016 was considered the cornerstone of its Indo-Pacific policy and since losing that deal, Paris has been on the offensive to strengthen its ties in the region with high-level meetings ranging from Japan to India and Vietnam.
“This trip is about reaffirming France’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific … and to intensify the relationship with Indonesia,” a French diplomatic source told reporters in a briefing ahead of Jean-Yves Le Drian’s two-day visit.
Key to developing that relationship will be closer military cooperation. Indonesia wants to boost its defence capabilities, including with the possible purchase of submarines, warplanes and warships, amid ongoing tensions with China in the disputed South China Sea.
France has been negotiating with Jakarta for several months the sale of 36 Rafale fighter jets. It signed a letter of intent in June, although officials do not expect a deal to be agreed before the end of the year due to financing issues.
“The French are doubling down on other Indo-Pacific relations, including Indonesia, in a sense to compensate for losing the Australians,” an Indo-Pacific diplomat said.
Highlighting just how angry Paris is with Canberra, a two-minute video announcing Le Drian’s trip to Indonesia outlined its Indo-Pacific strategy naming numerous regional countries with the exemption of Australia. (Source: Google/Reuters)
22 Nov 21. Working together to prevent the proliferation of small arms.
Statement by Ambassador James Roscoe at the Security Council open debate on small arms.
Many thanks indeed Mr President and it’s very good to welcome you and Minister Bhattacharyya to the Council today. It’s good to see you. As you said in your statement Mr President, the diversion and misuse of small arms and light weapons costs hundreds of thousands of lives each year. And as the latest Secretary-General’s report makes clear, once again illicit small arms undermine security and sustainable development, drive conflict and fuel crime and terrorism. So this is very much the business of this Council.
I want to turn first to the important role this Council can play in supporting efforts to address illicit flows of small arms and light weapons. Mexico has rightly brought attention to our arms embargoes. In order to be effective, it is vital that embargoes are properly implemented and enforced. And Ms Devoto spelt out I thought very clearly the advantages of doing so, of properly implementing them, and the cost where we don’t.
We thank the various panels of experts for the important oversights and implementation they provide. Additionally, weapons and ammunition management support is being provided in a range of settings also on the Council’s agenda. This assistance should draw on recognized sources of best practice such as the modular Small Arms Control Implementation Compendium and the international ammunition technical guidelines. By restricting illicit weapon flows, arms embargoes can also present space and opportunity to strengthen state security institutions more widely which is why this Council should think very carefully before we lift them. And where appropriate, the Council should support this through mandating missions to provide security reform assistance and should lift embargoes only when states are fully ready to take responsibility for preventing small arms diversion and misuse.
Mr President, as in all areas sustainable peace requires the full and active participation of women, and this applies equally to the response to small arms trafficking – the Secretary-General’s report makes clear the horrific impact of the misuse of these weapons, particularly on women and girls, and we fully support the report’s recommendations to the Council in this area.
The Council should mandate the UN to do more in these areas, as well as to identify and transfer best practice, and to better gather, pool and share disaggregated data on small and illicit arms and their effect in conflicts on the Council’s agenda. However, activity mandated by the Council should recognise the varying situations and the fine political balances within peace operations rather than being too directive.
Mr President, effective control of small arms and light weapons must play an important part of our wider approach to conflict prevention. The UK is pleased to support UNIDIR in the project to integrate conventional arms control into the UN’s conflict prevention work as we’ve heard today. We’ve completed a new risk analysis toolkit that will strengthen understanding of the risks and impact of arms, and how conventional arms control can contribute to UN conflict prevention, management and resolution.
But states must also recognise their responsibilities in this area as other speakers have said. Small arms trafficking networks operate internationally, and all states can support conflict-affected regions by implementing their own robust export control and customs systems. The Arms Trade Treaty is a key multilateral tool to ensure a well-regulated, legal trade in conventional arms, and to address illicit transfers. And we continue to encourage all states to ratify and to accede to the treaty.
For our part, the UK will continue to support other policy initiatives in this area such as the Group of Governmental Experts on Problems Arising from the Accumulation of Conventional Arms and Ammunition Stockpiles in Surplus as they seek to establish better standards for the safe storing of ammunition.
And we will also continue to partner with other states to strengthen arms control frameworks through national legislation, to implement better stockpile management procedures, and to tackle the grave challenges recognized by our briefers today.
Mr President, our peacekeepers, the UK peacekeepers on patrol in Mali, have seen how just a limited number of small arms can be used to terrorise and abuse communities. Where they can, they have confiscated and destroyed such weapons but it would be much more effective to work together to prevent them falling into the wrong hands in the first place. This Council should do all in its power to work to ensure this. As Ms Devoto has said, the tools, the knowledge and the experience are all there. What we require is political will. Thank you Mr President. (Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
19 Nov 21. NATO chief seeks to hold Germany to its commitments as cornerstone of nuclear strategy. Germany has a special responsibility to maintain its role as a linchpin of the alliance’s nuclear deterrent and to keep its defenses strong, NATO’s top official said Friday ahead of talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel.
“This means providing more and new capabilities: soldiers that are well-trained and well-equipped, planes that can fly and ships that can sail,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said during a speech in Berlin.
The alliance’s nuclear-sharing strategy includes storing U.S. nuclear weapons at various sites in Europe, including at least one base in Germany. Stoltenberg called the strategy “our ultimate security guarantee.”
“The nuclear weapons we share in NATO provide European allies with an effective nuclear umbrella,” Stoltenberg said.
In a nuclear crisis, German fighter planes could be asked to carry bombs, but those aircraft are nearing the end of their service and it’s unclear whether a new German government will be on board with a replacement.
The expected incoming government will include the Social Democratic Party, with its softer stance on Russia, and the Green Party, whose platform strongly opposes nuclear weapons.
That has elevated concerns that Germany could seek a way out of its traditional nuclear-sharing role. In the past, both the SDP and the Greens also have demanded that the U.S. remove the B-61 nuclear gravity bombs stored at Buechel Air Base. (Source: https://www.stripes.com/)
22 Nov 21. Defence chief gets £120,000 BONUS despite spending BILLIONS on tanks that can’t be used because they deafen soldiers.
- Sir Simon Bollom, 61, oversaw £5.5bn in spending on infamous Ajax tanks
- The ‘dud’ armoured vehicle’s defects caused injuries in a staggering 310 soldiers
- Sir Simon’s department manages all purchases of armed forces’ ships, submarines and aircrafts
A defence chief accused of squandering billions of pounds on faulty tanks has received a £120,000 bonus on top of his £280,000 salary.
Sir Simon Bollom, 61, head of defence equipment and support at the Ministry of Defence (MoD), oversaw £5.5bn in spending on the infamous Ajax tanks, which could not be used after they were found to deafen soldiers.
Ex-RAF officer Sir Simon, whose organisation purchases all the armed forces’ ships, submarines and aircrafts, was also paid £300,000 last year, reported the Daily Star on Sunday.
It comes after House of Commons watchdog the Public Accounts Committee branded the MoD department as ‘broken’ and said the Bristol-based team ‘continually fails to learn from his mistakes.’
Colonel Richard Kemp, an ex-infantry Commander, told the paper: ‘Bonuses for public sector employees in the MoD should only be given out sparingly, especially as they’re usually reserved for high-level civil servants.
‘They should only be used to recognise contributions above and beyond the contractual remit of the individual.
‘Given the abysmal failure of Ajax, it seems that a bonus for the person responsible might be over-generous use of taxpayers’ funds.’
Figures from the MoD show how Sir Simon has been paid £120,000 in bonuses since 2018.
They were signed off by MoD bosses despite 13 of the largest projects running behind by a cumulative total of 21 years.
The list of delays includes the Ajax tanks, which must now be re-designed due to their excessive noise and vibration.
An MoD spokesman told Daily Star on Sunday: ‘Performance-related payments are based on meeting a number of challenging targets alongside assessment from the DE&S Board Chair and MoD Permanent Secretary.’
Mail Online has contacted the MoD for comment.
A staggering 310 soldiers have been urged to seek medical attention after testing the ‘dud’ Ajax tanks.
The injuries were caused by the noise of its engine and vibrations during trials of the multi-billion pound scheme.
Mail Online revealed in September how soldiers who suffered hearing loss and joint pain in the Army’s crisis-hit vehicles could claim hundreds of thousands of pounds in compensation, according to lawyers.
They claimed the MoD could be forced to pay the huge bills if troops can prove they have lost out on lengthy careers.
Ajax also struggled to fire accurately on the move and to reverse over obstacles – although there has been progress in these areas according to defence officials. Trials of the vehicle, which were paused earlier this year, have resumed with manufacturers General Dynamics providing test drivers. (Source: Adrian Graves/Daily Mail)
18 Nov 21. F-35 faces stiff competition as European nations decide on future fighters. Politics, diplomacy complicate decisions by Finland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland when it comes to the F-35 versus other American and international competitors.
Over the next few years, a trio of European nations will make major decisions on their future fighter aircraft, meaning a potential impact on the long-term American/European fighter market — and whether European manufacturers can rack up wins against the nearly undefeated F-35 — looms.
As always, the usual considerations — how much capability can be acquired at what price, what is the long-term cost of ownership, which of the manufacturers can offer the most workshare and domestic politics — will come into play. But the three nations in question all have unique attributes that could pose challenges to the US fifth-gen fighter.
The Czech Republic may view the F-35 as simply too expensive given its relatively limited budgets. Finland, which is expected to make a selection before the end of the year, has close political ties to neighboring Sweden and its Saab offering, and may view that as an option less likely to anger Russia. And Switzerland, which already selected the F-35 in June, faces an internal push to go back on that decision and pick something cheaper.
If the stealthy American jet comes out on top in these procurements, then it will solidify a stranglehold as the leading Western-made fighter. If not, then the European offerings and the F-35’s rival product from Boeing, the F/A18E/F Super Hornet, may be able to steal a win away from what has, to this point, been a juggernaut.
No Longer Czech Mates
The Czech government is seeking a new fleet of aircraft for when their current lease of 12 JAS-39C and two JAS-39D Gripens expires in 2027, although there is a two-year extension option on that deal. The two main bidders are the incumbent, Saab, which are offering Prague 24 of either its JAS-39C/D or the new-generation E/F models, and Lockheed, which is offering a high and low price point: the same F-16V Block 70/72 jets already procured by neighboring Slovakia and Bulgaria, or the F-35A conventional model.
Due to production rates and other factors, the two packages are priced close to one another, with the company offering 18 of either the F-16s or F-35s. Lockheed pins the F-35 at $78.9m per jet. While a competitive price (and roughly US $11m less per unit than the price agreed to on the Polish F-35 procurement), an F-35 pick over the Gripen means the Czechs would buy capability over capacity while also absorbing the costs of switching suppliers from Sweden to the US.
A considerable complication, according to more than one analyst, is switching from Swedish to US infrastructure. One former Czech air force officer experienced in working with the Gripen noted that “the price of changing out numerous security protocols and the integration of a new system for secure datalinks would prove to be prohibitive.”
The American-made jets do have one thing in their favor: a recent political downturn in relations between the Czech Republic and Russia. In April, the Czech government announced that two Russian intelligence officers from the FSB were suspects in an explosion at an arms storage facility in the Czech village of Vrbětice in 2014. Two Czech nationals were killed in the blast, which destroyed ammunition that was supposed to be shipped to Ukraine. (In a strange coincidence, the two FSB agents wanted for this sabotage were also the pair of suspects identified as being responsible for the high-profile March 2018 assassination attempt against Sergei Skripal in England.)
A tit-for-tat set of expulsions of diplomats between the two nations resulted in the number of Russian personnel stationed in Czech Republic reduced by more than 80 persons. Prague also officially charged Russia as being responsible for the explosion and barred a Russian consortium led by Rosatom from participating in a tender for the Czech Dukovany nuclear power station.
The sum total of these incidents has heightened the sense in Prague that Russia is less than a friendly regional power. An Atlantic Council assessment called the incident “an opportunity for Prague to not only decontaminate and reassess its relations with Moscow, but also issue a wake-up call to countries that still tend to overlook Russia’s malign behavior in their own backyards.” Potentially, this could push the Czechs towards a closer relationship with Russia’s most powerful rival, the US — and to pick an American-made fighter.
A Neutral Fighter Buy
But the competition that may have the most far-reaching implications is Finland’s HX fighter tender, scheduled to be announced by the end of 2021. The 64 aircraft buy is also one of the largest acquisitions of its kind in all of Europe — eclipsed only by upcoming decisions to be made by Canada and India.
Finland is officially neutral and not a NATO member, although it maintains close relations with the alliance. Its air force currently operates a fleet of 55 F/A-18C and 7 F/A-18D jets, making Boeing the incumbent; the Chicago-based firm is offering a combination package of F/A-18E/F and EA-18G models. However, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) offer for Finland actually priced the two Boeing aircraft as several million dollars per unit higher than the F-35, likely rendering their chances moot. That leaves the F-35 up against the European powers: the Dassault Rafale from France, the Eurofighter, and perhaps most notably, the Saab Gripen from neighboring Sweden.
Finland has a long border, and an even longer and unhappy history, with Russia. So whatever aircraft Finland acquires must be effective against both Russian air defenses and Moscow’s latest fighter aircraft, which makes survivability the number one concern. In that regard, both Lockheed and Saab likely think they have an edge due to the F-35’s stealth and the Gripen’s ability to conduct dispersed operations from highway airstrips, which company officials note means the plane frees Finland up from relying on air bases likely to be early targets in any Russian conflict.
Saab is trying to stack the deck as well, but noting that the electronic warfare system in the Gripen-E is not the focus of Russian counter-EW technologies, as Moscow has instead been pouring R&D into countering American systems. They are also offering a package that includes not just 64 Gripen-Es, but a pair of GlobalEye airborne surveillance platforms.
Unsurprisingly, given the almost $12bn price tag for the competition, political maneuvering is happening behind the scenes. On Oct. 30, the Finnish paper Helsingin Sanomat ran an extensive analysis of the HX program, calling out the need for a thorough cost evaluation for whichever aircraft is selected. European analysts looking at the competition point out this could be a response to a report from the Pentagon-funded RAND Corporation, released in early October. That document emphasized the need for closer US-Finland ties, which is being interpreted as a sign there is high-level US government pressure being exerted on Helsinki to select the F-35 over other options.
Will the Swiss Save Some Cheddar?
Politics are playing out more openly in Switzerland, which is a unique case, as it made its official selection of the F-35 over the summer. The small, neutral nation is one of the wealthiest per-capita states in Europe, but the decision to select the US jet has nonetheless been met by denunciations that the aircraft is overkill for Switzerland’s requirements.
The F-35 was selected from a field of competitors that included Eurofighter, the Dassault Rafale and the current supplier for the Swiss Air Force, Boeing, which bid the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. But some Swiss lawmakers, even among those who believe in the need for a modern air force, have pledged to support a referendum that would reverse the F-35 selection.
The anti-F-35 coalition is mixed. Some are lawmakers who believe the cost is too high — an unnecessary “Ferrari” option, as one Swiss MP described it — while others have raised concerns about whether the Swiss government’s pricing analysis of the F-35 was correct or downplayed costs.
There is also a strong pro-European factor. Most of the French-speaking cantons in Switzerland predictably favored the Rafale. As Priska Seiler Graf, a Swiss MP who also expressed concerns about the cost, has stated, “We should seek a European solution… . [W]e don’t want to be dependent on the United States.”
Finally, there are anti-war groups like Group for Switzerland Without an Army (GSoA), which wants no investment in a new jet at all and is leading the ground game against it.
That coalition seems headed towards gathering the 100,000 signatures needed to initiate a new vote on the plane. (GSoA said last month that they will hit their threshold of required signatures by early next year if not this year, having already collected 25,000 signatures by the end of September.) If that happens, it would trigger a new nationwide vote on whether to move ahead with the fighter procurement.
How it is worded will be very important. If the vote is to continue with any fighter procurement, then it may pass with a thin margin. If the vote is specifically to move forward with the F-35, opponents believe it may well be enough to scuttle the deal.
Multiple analysts, including those with ties to the air defense industry, privately say that the movement against the F-35 will most likely garner the 100,000 signatures required to call a referendum. But overturning the selection is more difficult for the “Stop The F-35” initiative, as Swiss law requires a “double majority.” Meaning that a majority of voters, as well as a majority of cantons, must vote to overturn the sale — an eventuality that was originally rated as being unlikely to come to pass.
In September this Swiss national newspaper, Tages Anzeiger, ran an assessment of the program’s chances and stated that prior to the F-35 selection announcement, the Swiss public’s approval for proceeding with any fighter procurement was a razor-thin 50.1%. That figure might have been well below the 50%margin, the paper said, if earlier it had been revealed that the F-35 would be the aircraft selected in the final round.
The paper also echoed other opposition voices against the sale, with the headline charging that if the Swiss Air Force ends up flying the F-35, “the CIA is always in the cockpit” and that the actions of the aircraft and its pilots would always be under US government surveillance.
Asked for comment, a Lockheed spokesman said the company is “honored to be selected by Switzerland and look forward to partnering with the Swiss government, public, air force and industry to deliver and sustain the F-35 aircraft. With the selection, Switzerland will become the latest nation to join the F-35 program, joining several European nations in further strengthening global airpower and security.” (Source: glstrade.com/Breaking Defense.com)
16 Nov 21. EDA Steering Board discusses defence innovation. Outcome of EDA Ministerial Steering Board meeting. Defence Ministers met today at EDA’s Ministerial Steering Board under the chairmanship of the Head of the Agency, High Representative Josep Borrell. The main points on their agenda were the approval of the Agency’s 2022 general budget of €38m, the negotiating mandate for the Agency for an Administrative Arrangement with the US Department of Defence and a discussion on how to reinforce EDA’s role in fostering defence innovation.
Defence innovation and EDA’s future role
Ministers had a debate on defence innovation at EU level, based on a Food-for-Thought paper prepared by the Agency. It followed a call from the Foreign Affairs Council (conclusions of May 2021) to reinforce EDA’s role in fostering defence innovation, including disruptive technologies, and the Council invitation issued to the Head of Agency to present possible options in this respect before the end of this year. Among the potential options discussed by the Ministers was also that of establishing a Defence Innovation Hub within the Agency. It was agreed that, based on today’s debate, the Head of Agency will finalise and present its options in the coming weeks for further discussion at the Agency’s upcoming Steering Board meeting in R&T directors’ composition in December.
AA talks with US, cooperation with third parties
Ministers approved a mandate for EDA to start negotiations with the US Department of Defence on the conclusion of an Administrative Agreement (AA). The exact scope and modalities of the AA will be defined during the talks. In the joint statement adopted at the last EU-US summit in June 2021, a commitment was made by both sides “to work towards an Administrative Arrangement, with discussions, including on modalities and conditions for a closer and mutually beneficial cooperation, beginning as soon as possible.” So far, EDA has concluded AA with four non-EU countries (Norway, Switzerland, Serbia, Ukraine) as well as two organisations (OCCAR, European Space Agency).
The Steering Board also approved a document laying down the revised and updated principles for EDA cooperation with third parties.
2022 Budget
Ministers adopted the proposal made by the Head of the Agency, setting the EDA’s 2022 general budget at €38m (compared to €37.5 in 2021). The budget reflects the continuous high demands on the Agency to support Member States in the development of defence capabilities as well as the implementation of EU defence initiatives such as CARD, the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) and the European Defence Fund (EDF).
Three-Year Planning Framework
Ministers approved EDA’s Three-Year Planning Framework 2022-2024 (together with its staff establishment plan) which provides a coherent and comprehensive overview of the Agency’s activities structured around the three chapters reflecting its core taskings: – prioritising and planning defence cooperation; – supporting technology and capability development; – facilitating the interface with wider EU policies. Each chapter of the Planning Framework elaborates on key activities which EDA is undertaking, providing an overview of the nature, scope and expected impact of the Agency’s activities in support of overarching policy objectives and the added value for Member States.
Military Mobility technical arrangements signed
In the margins of the Steering Board meeting, Ministers signed two so-called ‘Technical Arrangements on Cross-Border Movement Permission’ to improve Military Mobility in Europe.
“With today’s signing of the two technical arrangements, a huge step forward has been made to improve Military Mobility in Europe”, commented EDA Chief Executive Jiří Šedivý. At the occasion of the signature ceremony, Belgian Defence Minister Ludivine Dedonder said: “Belgium is one of Europe’s main entrance points and therefore plays an important role as a transit country for military mobility. As part of its global approach, Belgium would like to join a structured cooperation aimed at harmonising and simplifying the procedures for Armed Forces’ rapid deployment in Europe”.
Initiated by the European Action Plan on Military Mobility, these two technical arrangements – covering air and surface movements respectively – have been prepared under EDA auspices since 2018, involving all EU Member States as well as Norway. The arrangements focus on providing permission for air and surface movements, including the transport of dangerous goods. Using annual permissions through a simplified and standardised process based on harmonised data, Member States will be able to provide movement permission within five working days. The technical arrangements will also allow participant countries to reduce their administrative burden and use staff resources in the most efficient way.
A total of 23 Member States and Norway signed the surface arrangement, while 22 and Norway signed the air arrangement. The signing kicks off their practical implementation: the signatories will now assess possible activities at national level to make optimal use of these arrangements. (Source: EDA)
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25 Nov 21. British armoured division returns to Germany amid Ukraine tensions. About-turn just over a year since UK pulled out in move designed to help bolster Nato. The British army is to base hundreds of armoured vehicles in Germany, just over a year after marking its official withdrawal from the country, in a move designed to help bolster Nato as tensions with Moscow over Ukraine remain high. Under plans described as a “radical” restructuring of British land forces, the UK government announced on Thursday that a Nato base at Sennelager, near the German city of Paderborn, would become one of three new “regional land hubs” for the British army, alongside Oman and Kenya. The move represents a U-turn just over a year after the UK ended a permanent military presence on German soil that had been maintained since the end of the second world war. The closure of the last British army military headquarters in Bielefeld last February was the culmination of a decade-long withdrawal of 20,000 British service personnel from the country. “We are putting a substantial number of our armoured vehicles forward in order to be able to move more quickly should they be required anywhere on the continental [European] land mass,” Lieutenant General Ralph Wooddisse, commander field army, said. One government official would not be drawn on exact numbers but said the plans envisaged basing “hundreds” of tanks and armoured vehicles at Sennelager. The decision comes with Nato allies becoming increasingly concerned that Moscow is planning an invasion of Ukraine. Kyiv has said Russia has massed as many as 114,000 troops to the north, east, and south of the Donbas, a mostly Russian-speaking region where Russian-backed separatists have fought government forces since a pro-western revolution in Ukraine in 2014. Earlier this year, US President Joe Biden halted plans by his predecessor Donald Trump to withdraw thousands of US troops from Germany. The plans to send British armour back to Germany form part of an overhaul of the army described as the most “radical” transformation in more than 20 years. “We cannot afford to be slave to sentiment,” UK defence secretary Ben Wallace said, as he announced troops numbers would be cut by 9,000 troops to just 73,000 over the next four years — the smallest the army has been in centuries. The cuts will also see 33 army bases closed around Britain, including the Alanbrooke Barracks in North Yorkshire. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had promised during the 2019 election campaign that a Conservative government would “not be cutting our armed services in any form”. Tobias Ellwood, the Tory MP and former army officer who chairs the House of Commons defence select committee, criticised the cuts. “Our world is becoming more dangerous, more complex. This is not the time to cut the defence budget or reduce our tanks, our armoured fighting vehicles and our troop numbers as we are doing,” he said. But Wallace insisted the restructuring was designed “to transform the army into a more agile, integrated, lethal, expeditionary force”. The army would be “leaner but more productive”, he added, as he confirmed plans for a new 1,200-strong “Ranger regiment” modelled on the US army’s elite Green Berets. The regiment will be made up of four battalions, which will embed with foreign forces and focus on counter-insurgency operations in regions such as east Africa. Wallace said this would mean more personnel are deployed around the world for longer. Wallace said there would also be a larger proportion of troops based in each of the devolved nations. (Source: FT.com)
25 Nov 21. British Army unveils most radical transformation in decades.
The British Army has unveiled ‘Future Soldier’ today, its most radical transformation programme in over 20 years
Following on from the Integrated Review and the significant increase in defence spending announced by the Government last year, Future Soldier demonstrates how the Army is modernising to address next-generation threats across the globe.
This will be bolstered by an additional investment of £8.6bn in Army equipment over the next ten years. This will bring the total equipment investment to £41.3bn for that period.
Alongside investment in our people, infrastructure, emerging technologies, and cyber capabilities, Future Solider will position the Army as a globally engaged fighting force that benefits the whole of our Union.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “Future Soldier is reinforced by the ambition outlined in the Defence Command Paper to transform the Army into a more agile, integrated, lethal, expeditionary force. We have underpinned this generational work with an extra £8.6bn for Army equipment, bringing the total investment to £41.3bn. Our Army will operate across the globe, equipped with the capabilities to face down a myriad of threats from cyber warfare through to battlefield conflict.”
Commander Field Army Lt Gen Ralph Wooddisse said: “Future Soldier is the next evolutionary step for the British Army; the most radical change for the British Army in 20 years. It will mean changes to the way we operate our structure, technology, and workforce. This will make us leaner, more agile and adaptable. Future Soldier is about ensuring the British Army is a competitive and resilient organisation able to meet the challenges of modern warfare.”
Ranger Regiment
One of the most significant changes is the creation of a new Ranger Regiment. Standing up from 1 December 2021, the Regiment will embody the Army’s new expeditionary posture. It will form part of the newly established Army Special Operations Brigade and will be routinely deployed alongside partner forces around the world to counter extremist organisations and hostile state threats.
This shift to a globally engaged posture will mean more personnel are deployed for more of the time, with a new network of Land Regional Hubs based on existing training locations in places such as Oman and Kenya.
The Ranger Regiment’s cap badge will take its inspiration from the Peregrine Falcon and everyone will wear a metal badge, irrespective of rank.
Modernised Warfighting
Another key pillar of Future Solider is ensuring the Army is a central contributor to NATO warfighting by delivering a fully modernised warfighting division by 2030, with capabilities designed to detect and defeat at greater range and accuracy.
New equipment such as Ajax, Boxer, Challenger 3, AH-64E Apache, long range precision fires and un-crewed aerial systems will be introduced, while much of the fighting force will fall under new self-sufficient Brigade Combat Teams.
To ensure land forces adapt at a rapid pace to challenge future threats, a new Experimentation and Trials Group will be established in 2022, leading on trialling new technologies and integrating them into how soldiers will fight and operate. The Army will also benefit from a significant share of the £6.6bn R&D investment.
Commander of the Field Army, Lieutenant General Ralph Wooddisse CBE MC said: “Future Soldier is the next step in the evolution of the British Army; it is the most radical change for the British Army in 20 years. It will change the way we fight and operate, and make us more lethal, agile and lean. It will be underpinned by changes to structure, technology, and workforce. Future Soldier is fundamentally about ensuring the British Army is a competitive and resilient organisation able to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow, wherever they may be.”
Our people
Creating an Army fit for the future will see some restructuring and reorganisation of units over the next four years, which will be supported by a rebalancing of personnel across the United Kingdom. The Regular Army will stand at 73,000 strong by 2025 and combined with an Army Reserve of 30,000, the British Army will stand at over 100,000.
The proportion of the Army based in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland
will be sustained or increased by 2025, and this will be reinforced by around £3.35bn from the Defence Estate Optimisation budget and a further £1.2bn of Army investment in remaining sites.
This means:
Scotland: Scotland will be home to more units and a greater proportion of the Army’s workforce than today. Glencorse Barracks in Edinburgh will be retained, while Kinloss and Leuchars will continue to grow. The £355m investment in the Army estate will deliver over a £1bn of economic benefits to Scotland.
Wales: The number of soldiers in Wales is set to increase with the return of the ‘Welsh cavalry’, The Queen’s Dragoon Guards, and a new Reserve company of The Royal Welsh established in North Wales. The retention of Brecon and growth in Wrexham locations are part of a £320m investment.
Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland will keep the same number of Army units but host a greater proportion of the Army’s workforce.
Reservists will play a pivotal role in the modern Army, taking principal responsibility for Homeland Protect and Resilience operations.
Opportunity for serving personnel
Future Solider will drive forward changes to make the Army a great place for all, and for the first-time soldiers commissioning from the ranks will not be limited on how far they can be promoted – increasing the opportunity for a Private soldier to leave the Army as a General. Under the transformation programme, plans are also being developed to launch a Soldier Academy that mirrors the prestige of Sandhurst and new career management system that is fit for the digital age is also being developed.
Finally, a Force Mental Health Team will be established within the Field Army, who will help support the promotion of mental health and wellbeing and provide a deployable healthcare capability in support of persistent engagement. (Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
25 Nov 21. ‘Emotional intelligence’ key for Army’s new Rangers units.
Troops hoping to join new special operations regiment will have to show personal characteristics beyond those required by regular soldiers
Britain’s new special operations units will assess applicants on their “emotional intelligence”, the commander has revealed.
Troops hoping to join the Army’s new Ranger Regiment will have to demonstrate personal characteristics beyond those required by regular soldiers.
Resilience, calmness and self-awareness will be tested on a two-week assessment cadre that will include “protracted periods of time under duress,” said Brigadier Gus Fair, the first commander of the Army’s new Special Operations Brigade, has said.
Comprising four battalions, each of about 300 soldiers, the Ranger Regiment will officially stand up on December 1, and will form the core of the specialist brigade, accompanying troops from other countries into action against terrorists and hostile state threats.
Two other new brigades are expected to be announced in parliament on Thursday by Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, when he gives more details on Army restructuring and basing plans.
The Security Force Assistance Brigade will train partner nations’ military units, but will not go into battle with them, while a new Deep Strike Reconnaissance Brigade will use drones, artillery and missiles to destroy targets at ranges up to 100 miles.
Emotional intelligence, also known as emotional quotient or EQ, is said to be the ability to understand, use and manage one’s emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathise with others, overcome challenges and defuse conflict.
Brig Fair said that he was looking for “EQ, not just IQ” in the new force.
Drawn from across the Army, he said the Rangers would not take talent to the detriment of other units, adding: “This should have a positive pull-through effect.”
Equally, the new units will not be competing with special forces for applicants
“We’ve got an interest in continuing to prime that pump,” Brig Fair said. “In many respects, we will be one of the main feeds into the UK special forces group.”
Officers will rotate through the special operations brigade in the same way as the current special forces units, typically on two-year postings. Soldiers will be able to stay for longer and perhaps their entire careers.
After the two-week initial assessment, applicants will then have to prove a high level of soldier skills over two months.
Only then will they officially join the Rangers and be able to wear the new gunmetal grey beret, which has a cap badge based on a peregrine falcon, a bird of prey said by the Army to operate “in all environments including deserts, mountains and cities”.
After being “badged”, new recruits will undergo a further eight months of specialist training before being ready for deployments overseas.
The four infantry regiments currently acting as the building blocks for the special operations brigade will be officially renamed on December 1, as first to fourth battalions of the Ranger Regiment.
Each has been given a specific regional focus: Europe, the Middle East, and west and east Africa.
Troops from the forerunner units trained local forces in Kuwait, Iraq and Nigeria in 2018 to test the concept.
‘Authority and resilience’
Brig Fair said that the Ranger Regiment model of partnering with military, police and other security forces in areas of crisis would be different to Nato’s recent experience in Afghanistan.
In future operations, UK Ranger units will ensure they “don’t undermine sovereign ownership of the mission,” he said.
“From the outset, [Afghanistan] was a Nato mission. It became an Afghan mission [but] arguably we’d already laid the ground-work; we’d undermined their institutional authority and resilience.”
He said that the Rangers would “very firmly” ensure the host country was the “focal point”. The situation in Afghanistan evolved to the point western forces were the “supported element” with partnering seen as “incidental”.
In a letter to the Army, General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, the Chief of the General Staff, said that the Army’s modernisation project, of which the three new brigades are a part, “is an exciting and bold blueprint for a transformed Army, making it the most capable Army of its size anywhere in the world.” (Source: Daily Telegraph)
23 Nov 21. British Army to leave Canada after 50 years for new base in Middle East. Modernisation plans will include developing training area in Oman, which will also position British hardware closer to potential adversaries. The British Army is to leave Canada after 50 years, with its biggest training base set to move to the Middle East.
The British Army Training Unit Suffield (Batus) in Alberta, western Canada, has been in operation since 1972, training thousands of British soldiers in live firing exercises.
More than 1,000 vehicles, including tanks and helicopters, are regularly used by regiments for weeks at a time at the 2,700 kilometre-square base, seven times the size of Salisbury Plain.
However, Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, is expected to announce later this week that plans to modernise the Army will include developing a training area in Oman.
The move to use the Omani desert, near Duqm airbase and port, as the main training ground for tanks and other armoured vehicles will mean the Batus camp, home to more than 400 permanent British staff, and the smaller Wainwright training area nearby, will close.
Defence sources said the shift to the Gulf would enable British forces to position hardware closer and more visibly to partner nations, such as Ukraine and Bahrain, and potential adversaries, such as Iran.
This would reduce the time necessary to respond to any crisis in the region and allow the Government to showcase British military technology to boost potential arms sales.
A defence source close to the plans told The Telegraph: “If you only have 148 tanks and 22 of them are stuck in Canada, that’s 22 tanks that are not at readiness and not available to do anything operational.
“If they are training in Poland or Duqm, the logic is that they are having a more operational and deterrent effect.”
Big tank exercises planned for the next two years
An MoD spokesman said Batus would not close before 2023, as big tank exercises were already planned over the next two years.
Beyond that, small numbers of military personnel would still be located in Canada, as defence attaches, liaison officers and on exchange with Canadian units.
The announcement is set to form part of a broader plan outlining how the Army will adapt to take advantage of digital technology while still maintaining forces available to Nato for battlefield scenarios.
Soldiers have been told to expect an announcement imminently about new structures and unit roles.
The announcement will include an update on the Ranger Regiment, detailing which units will form the new force and the selection and training courses required to join.
The Rangers were announced in March, and will be formed from four existing battalions before recruiting more widely from the Army.
Ben Barry, of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said the new Rangers would be described as a special operations brigade and modelled on the US Green Berets.
As with their US counterparts, Mr Barry said the British troops could “work with resistance forces”, for example operating for months alongside Syrian or Afghan fighters against terrorist groups.
Risk in shrinking the Army
They will be supported by a security force assistance brigade, another new formation to be made up of existing units and designed to train and advise partner forces, but not be as exposed to as much potential harm as the Special Operations brigade.
However, Mr Barry said there was a risk in shrinking the Army and making it more specialised at the same time.
“If this Special Operations brigade becomes another elite organisation requiring people to compete to be selected into it like Airborne Forces and the Army component of 3 Commando Brigade, this becomes yet another elite force which, by definition, will compete against the other elite forces for highly motivated, self-starting people in an Army that’s getting smaller.
“There’s a danger it will be difficult to find the people it needs, and if it does find the people it needs it will suck out of the conventional units the self-motivated people that are so important to keeping the unit going.”
The Army plans to reorganise to enable it to fight a major war, after decades in which it became specialised in fighting insurgencies in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 forced defence chiefs to refocus on building a “heavy metal” warfighting division of tanks and armoured vehicles.
British forces are stationed in Poland as part of Nato’s mission to deter Russia, and training with tanks already takes place there.
The announcement of the move of the training base to Oman comes amid increasing tensions with the Kremlin as a result of the migrant crisis on the Polish border with Belarus. (Source: Daily Telegraph)
24 Nov 21. Incoming German government commits to NATO nuclear deterrent. Germany’s incoming government has affirmed its commitment to NATO’s nuclear deterrent, including the role accorded to Berlin in the strategy, according to a coalition agreement unveiled Nov. 24 by Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and the liberal Free Democrats (FDP).
The much-anticipated pact offers a flavor of what the new government, to be led by the SPD’s Olaf Scholz, finance minister in the outgoing government, aims to do in the fields of defense and foreign policy. European Union and NATO watchers will find themselves reassured, as the document hits all the right notes on fostering cooperation through those channels while preparing for a “systemic contest” with authoritarian states.
“The good news is that we are at least staying the course,” said Christian Mölling, a senior analyst at the Berlin-based German Council on Foreign Relations, referring to earlier fears by allies that Germany could axe key tenets of its foreign policy doctrine after 16 years of Chancellor Angela Merkel. That was especially the case following anti-nuclear positions in parts of the Greens and the SPD that had allies fearing a shifting stance in Berlin toward atomic deterrence.
Mölling said the compromise of the coalition agreement goes something like this: It includes a commitment to NATO’s nuclear-sharing arrangement, by which German pilots would deliver nuclear bombs stored on German soil in a hypothetical war, while declaring the objective of Berlin becoming an “observer” to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
The two poles encapsulate a conundrum the Greens, in particular, have had to square for themselves, with party defense spokesman Tobias Lindner previously advocating that a position combining both aspects is possible.
Whatever comes of Germany’s aspirations toward a global nuclear weapons-prohibition regime remains to be seen, however. Mölling describes the relevant passage as “scaleable,” meaning it relies to various degrees on decisions made by allies and conditions outside of Berlin’s control.
Mention of Berlin’s NATO nuclear-sharing commitment, on the other hand, is a more binding objective, Mölling said, noting the agreement makes the replacement of the country’s aging Tornado aircraft with an equally nuclear-capable type an explicit goal for the new government.
The new agreement, which each of the three parties will vote on in the coming weeks, also ushers in a new political stance for the Bundeswehr, Germany’s military, on armed drones.
Such weapons “can contribute to the protection of our soldiers” on global deployments, the document declares, using a formulation that has taken years to ripen in a society that is as military-skeptic as it is debate-friendly.
The passage is the “best outcome that the armed forces could have hoped for,” said Ulrike Franke, a London-based drone researcher at the European Council on Foreign Relations.
German military leaders have argued for years that armed drones could make the difference in dicey battlefield situations when troops are facing a direct threat. Opponents have argued that a history of faulty military decision-making on drone strikes, most recently by U.S. commanders in Kabul, tells a different story.
According to Franke, some details still need to be worked out in Germany’s future use of the weapons.
“What exactly are the ‘binding rules or conditions’ mentioned in the agreement?” she asked. “The Bundeswehr does not, or should not, have a problem with transparency, but too restrictive rules could create difficulties during missions,” Franke said.
In the past, the idea of individual parliamentary approval for armed drone operations was on the table in the German drone debate, she noted. “The Bundeswehr is likely to want to have as much flexibility as possible.” (Source: Defense News)
24 Nov 21. Fury as new Army regiment’s cap badge ‘identical’ to apartheid terror squad. Officers say design for Ranger Regiment cap matches that of the Selous Scouts, which fought black insurgent armies in former Rhodesia.
The Army is facing a backlash among officers over a new cap badge “identical” to those worn by an apartheid terror squad.
Multiple officers privy to discussions about the beret for the newly formed Ranger Regiment have raised serious concerns that the badge may have been designed based on the one worn by the Selous Scouts, the disbanded special forces regiment from the Rhodesian Army.
The former unit fought black insurgent armies in the Sixties and Seventies as part of their quest to keep white-minority rule over what is now Zimbabwe.
One defence source told The Telegraph: “An officer said he had seen an email saying that it was actually based on the Selous Scouts. It’s almost identical to the Rhodesian Selous Scouts, which is controversial due to their involvement with an apartheid regime.
“There’s obvious differences but it’s f—— close and clearly based on it.”
The source added: “It sounds bad to me. Having a cap badge in this day and age with any connection to a racist regime whatsoever seems outrageous.”
It is understood that numerous officers have raised concerns with the new badge’s “connection to the Selous Scouts”, however they believe that the opportunity to prevent it from going into circulation will have passed as it will have already had the Queen’s approval.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said that the badge for the Ranger Regiment, which was established as part of the Army’s Future Soldier concept, had taken its “inspiration and spirit” from the peregrine falcon.
The MoD added that the bird was “the most geographically dispersed bird of prey globally, operating in all environments including deserts, mountains and cities, and notably loyal to its partner”.
Everyone serving in the Ranger Regiment will wear a metal badge, irrespective of rank.
It will be made in a gunmetal grey colour that has been chosen for the Regimental beret and Stable Belt, taking inspiration from the peregrine falcon’s grey plumage.
The Selous Scouts’ metal badge was also designed on a bird of prey, the osprey, which was shown in an incoming strike pose with the banner beneath its claws.
Comparison with Selous Scouts ‘inaccurate’
The Ranger Regiment was born out of the Army’s pledge to turn infantry soldiers into elite fighters to tackle “high-threat” missions abroad.
It will be part of a Special Operations Brigade that will work in support of Special Forces in high-threat environments.
Over the next four years, a share of £120 million will be invested into the unit, which will undertake roles traditionally carried out by the Special Air Service and Special Boat Service, such as training, advising, enabling and accompanying partner forces from foreign countries.
An Army spokesman said: “The Ranger Regiment cap badge has been designed around the peregrine falcon. Any comparison or association to the osprey depicted in the Selous Scouts’ cap badge is completely inaccurate.
“The Ranger Regiment is very proud of its new cap-badge which takes inspiration and spirit from the peregrine falcon; fast, agile and fiercely loyal to its partner, it operates around the world in all environments including deserts, mountains and cities.” (Source: Daily Telegraph)
24 Nov 21. Royal Navy escort fleet to ‘return above 19’ warships by 2026. The Royal Navy fleet will grow to more than 19 frigates and destroyers by 2026, aiming for 24 escort vessels by 2030. It currently has 18. In written evidence submitted by Admiral Tony Radakin to the Defence Select Commitee the former First Sea Lord said: “Hull numbers will dip to 17 by the end of 2023”, later adding “alongside making best use of the force we have, driving up relative availability, we remain committed to growing the escort force and further increasing the absolute number of days available for operations we provide to the nation. We anticipate returning above 19 FFDD by the end of 2026 as new ships are brought into service.
The projected in service dates for these ships, and the time required for sea trials and commissioning activity, have been modelled against the out of service dates of the Type 23 force, to ensure that we always have sufficient units to deliver on our Defence Plan commitments, whether that be protecting our nuclear deterrent or delivering presence around the globe.
Furthermore, the additional availability that the IR provided in the OPV force, through the extension of the Batch 1 OPVs in Home Waters, has allowed us to use the Batch 2 OPVs to deliver some tasks overseas to which a Frigate or Destroyer would have been attributed previously. The excellent availability we are getting from these new ships, forward deployed with a sustainable crewing model, is supporting our presence around the globe whilst we transition to the future frigate force.
As new ships are brought into service, they will require less maintenance than those they replace, reaping the benefits of modern technology and further improving relative availability. We are also committed to several initiatives, under Projects RESOLUTION (Submarines) and RENOWN (Surface Ships), to shorten refits and speed up routine maintenance of the existing fleet. The collective effect of all these measures will be a much more available Fleet, delivering a better return on the investment the Ministry of Defence has made in the Royal Navy, and providing more days on operations for the nation.”
How many escorts will the Royal Navy eventually have?
Earlier this year, the Prime Minister confirmed plans to increase the size of the Royal Navy escort fleet to 24 vessels. (Source: News Now/https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/)
23 Nov 21. Post-AUKUS, France turns to Indonesia, eyes Rafale jet sale. France will try to cement deeper ties in the Indo-Pacific region when its foreign minister arrives in Indonesia on Tuesday as it counters the loss of a strategic defence deal with Australia in September.
Paris accused its allies of stabbing it in the back when Australia opted for nuclear-powered submarines to be built with U.S. and British technology instead of a multi-billion dollar French submarine programme.
Canberra pressed ahead with a trilateral alliance (AUKUS) excluding France, which it said was crucial to tackle the perceived Chinese threat in the region.
France’s partnership with Australia dating back to 2016 was considered the cornerstone of its Indo-Pacific policy and since losing that deal, Paris has been on the offensive to strengthen its ties in the region with high-level meetings ranging from Japan to India and Vietnam.
“This trip is about reaffirming France’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific … and to intensify the relationship with Indonesia,” a French diplomatic source told reporters in a briefing ahead of Jean-Yves Le Drian’s two-day visit.
Key to developing that relationship will be closer military cooperation. Indonesia wants to boost its defence capabilities, including with the possible purchase of submarines, warplanes and warships, amid ongoing tensions with China in the disputed South China Sea.
France has been negotiating with Jakarta for several months the sale of 36 Rafale fighter jets. It signed a letter of intent in June, although officials do not expect a deal to be agreed before the end of the year due to financing issues.
“The French are doubling down on other Indo-Pacific relations, including Indonesia, in a sense to compensate for losing the Australians,” an Indo-Pacific diplomat said.
Highlighting just how angry Paris is with Canberra, a two-minute video announcing Le Drian’s trip to Indonesia outlined its Indo-Pacific strategy naming numerous regional countries with the exemption of Australia. (Source: Google/Reuters)
22 Nov 21. Working together to prevent the proliferation of small arms.
Statement by Ambassador James Roscoe at the Security Council open debate on small arms.
Many thanks indeed Mr President and it’s very good to welcome you and Minister Bhattacharyya to the Council today. It’s good to see you. As you said in your statement Mr President, the diversion and misuse of small arms and light weapons costs hundreds of thousands of lives each year. And as the latest Secretary-General’s report makes clear, once again illicit small arms undermine security and sustainable development, drive conflict and fuel crime and terrorism. So this is very much the business of this Council.
I want to turn first to the important role this Council can play in supporting efforts to address illicit flows of small arms and light weapons. Mexico has rightly brought attention to our arms embargoes. In order to be effective, it is vital that embargoes are properly implemented and enforced. And Ms Devoto spelt out I thought very clearly the advantages of doing so, of properly implementing them, and the cost where we don’t.
We thank the various panels of experts for the important oversights and implementation they provide. Additionally, weapons and ammunition management support is being provided in a range of settings also on the Council’s agenda. This assistance should draw on recognized sources of best practice such as the modular Small Arms Control Implementation Compendium and the international ammunition technical guidelines. By restricting illicit weapon flows, arms embargoes can also present space and opportunity to strengthen state security institutions more widely which is why this Council should think very carefully before we lift them. And where appropriate, the Council should support this through mandating missions to provide security reform assistance and should lift embargoes only when states are fully ready to take responsibility for preventing small arms diversion and misuse.
Mr President, as in all areas sustainable peace requires the full and active participation of women, and this applies equally to the response to small arms trafficking – the Secretary-General’s report makes clear the horrific impact of the misuse of these weapons, particularly on women and girls, and we fully support the report’s recommendations to the Council in this area.
The Council should mandate the UN to do more in these areas, as well as to identify and transfer best practice, and to better gather, pool and share disaggregated data on small and illicit arms and their effect in conflicts on the Council’s agenda. However, activity mandated by the Council should recognise the varying situations and the fine political balances within peace operations rather than being too directive.
Mr President, effective control of small arms and light weapons must play an important part of our wider approach to conflict prevention. The UK is pleased to support UNIDIR in the project to integrate conventional arms control into the UN’s conflict prevention work as we’ve heard today. We’ve completed a new risk analysis toolkit that will strengthen understanding of the risks and impact of arms, and how conventional arms control can contribute to UN conflict prevention, management and resolution.
But states must also recognise their responsibilities in this area as other speakers have said. Small arms trafficking networks operate internationally, and all states can support conflict-affected regions by implementing their own robust export control and customs systems. The Arms Trade Treaty is a key multilateral tool to ensure a well-regulated, legal trade in conventional arms, and to address illicit transfers. And we continue to encourage all states to ratify and to accede to the treaty.
For our part, the UK will continue to support other policy initiatives in this area such as the Group of Governmental Experts on Problems Arising from the Accumulation of Conventional Arms and Ammunition Stockpiles in Surplus as they seek to establish better standards for the safe storing of ammunition.
And we will also continue to partner with other states to strengthen arms control frameworks through national legislation, to implement better stockpile management procedures, and to tackle the grave challenges recognized by our briefers today.
Mr President, our peacekeepers, the UK peacekeepers on patrol in Mali, have seen how just a limited number of small arms can be used to terrorise and abuse communities. Where they can, they have confiscated and destroyed such weapons but it would be much more effective to work together to prevent them falling into the wrong hands in the first place. This Council should do all in its power to work to ensure this. As Ms Devoto has said, the tools, the knowledge and the experience are all there. What we require is political will. Thank you Mr President. (Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
19 Nov 21. NATO chief seeks to hold Germany to its commitments as cornerstone of nuclear strategy. Germany has a special responsibility to maintain its role as a linchpin of the alliance’s nuclear deterrent and to keep its defenses strong, NATO’s top official said Friday ahead of talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel.
“This means providing more and new capabilities: soldiers that are well-trained and well-equipped, planes that can fly and ships that can sail,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said during a speech in Berlin.
The alliance’s nuclear-sharing strategy includes storing U.S. nuclear weapons at various sites in Europe, including at least one base in Germany. Stoltenberg called the strategy “our ultimate security guarantee.”
“The nuclear weapons we share in NATO provide European allies with an effective nuclear umbrella,” Stoltenberg said.
In a nuclear crisis, German fighter planes could be asked to carry bombs, but those aircraft are nearing the end of their service and it’s unclear whether a new German government will be on board with a replacement.
The expected incoming government will include the Social Democratic Party, with its softer stance on Russia, and the Green Party, whose platform strongly opposes nuclear weapons.
That has elevated concerns that Germany could seek a way out of its traditional nuclear-sharing role. In the past, both the SDP and the Greens also have demanded that the U.S. remove the B-61 nuclear gravity bombs stored at Buechel Air Base. (Source: https://www.stripes.com/)
22 Nov 21. Defence chief gets £120,000 BONUS despite spending BILLIONS on tanks that can’t be used because they deafen soldiers.
• Sir Simon Bollom, 61, oversaw £5.5bn in spending on infamous Ajax tanks
• The ‘dud’ armoured vehicle’s defects caused injuries in a staggering 310 soldiers
• Sir Simon’s department manages all purchases of armed forces’ ships, submarines and aircrafts
A defence chief accused of squandering billions of pounds on faulty tanks has received a £120,000 bonus on top of his £280,000 salary.
Sir Simon Bollom, 61, head of defence equipment and support at the Ministry of Defence (MoD), oversaw £5.5bn in spending on the infamous Ajax tanks, which could not be used after they were found to deafen soldiers.
Ex-RAF officer Sir Simon, whose organisation purchases all the armed forces’ ships, submarines and aircrafts, was also paid £300,000 last year, reported the Daily Star on Sunday.
It comes after House of Commons watchdog the Public Accounts Committee branded the MoD department as ‘broken’ and said the Bristol-based team ‘continually fails to learn from his mistakes.’
Colonel Richard Kemp, an ex-infantry Commander, told the paper: ‘Bonuses for public sector employees in the MoD should only be given out sparingly, especially as they’re usually reserved for high-level civil servants.
‘They should only be used to recognise contributions above and beyond the contractual remit of the individual.
‘Given the abysmal failure of Ajax, it seems that a bonus for the person responsible might be over-generous use of taxpayers’ funds.’
Figures from the MoD show how Sir Simon has been paid £120,000 in bonuses since 2018.
They were signed off by MoD bosses despite 13 of the largest projects running behind by a cumulative total of 21 years.
The list of delays includes the Ajax tanks, which must now be re-designed due to their excessive noise and vibration.
An MoD spokesman told Daily Star on Sunday: ‘Performance-related payments are based on meeting a number of challenging targets alongside assessment from the DE&S Board Chair and MoD Permanent Secretary.’
Mail Online has contacted the MoD for comment.
A staggering 310 soldiers have been urged to seek medical attention after testing the ‘dud’ Ajax tanks.
The injuries were caused by the noise of its engine and vibrations during trials of the multi-billion pound scheme.
Mail Online revealed in September how soldiers who suffered hearing loss and joint pain in the Army’s crisis-hit vehicles could claim hundreds of thousands of pounds in compensation, according to lawyers.
They claimed the MoD could be forced to pay the huge bills if troops can prove they have lost out on lengthy careers.
Ajax also struggled to fire accurately on the move and to reverse over obstacles – although there has been progress in these areas according to defence officials. Trials of the vehicle, which were paused earlier this year, have resumed with manufacturers General Dynamics providing test drivers. (Source: Adrian Graves/Daily Mail)
18 Nov 21. F-35 faces stiff competition as European nations decide on future fighters. Politics, diplomacy complicate decisions by Finland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland when it comes to the F-35 versus other American and international competitors.
Over the next few years, a trio of European nations will make major decisions on their future fighter aircraft, meaning a potential impact on the long-term American/European fighter market — and whether European manufacturers can rack up wins against the nearly undefeated F-35 — looms.
As always, the usual considerations — how much capability can be acquired at what price, what is the long-term cost of ownership, which of the manufacturers can offer the most workshare and domestic politics — will come into play. But the three nations in question all have unique attributes that could pose challenges to the US fifth-gen fighter.
The Czech Republic may view the F-35 as simply too expensive given its relatively limited budgets. Finland, which is expected to make a selection before the end of the year, has close political ties to neighboring Sweden and its Saab offering, and may view that as an option less likely to anger Russia. And Switzerland, which already selected the F-35 in June, faces an internal push to go back on that decision and pick something cheaper.
If the stealthy American jet comes out on top in these procurements, then it will solidify a stranglehold as the leading Western-made fighter. If not, then the European offerings and the F-35’s rival product from Boeing, the F/A18E/F Super Hornet, may be able to steal a win away from what has, to this point, been a juggernaut.
No Longer Czech Mates
The Czech government is seeking a new fleet of aircraft for when their current lease of 12 JAS-39C and two JAS-39D Gripens expires in 2027, although there is a two-year extension option on that deal. The two main bidders are the incumbent, Saab, which are offering Prague 24 of either its JAS-39C/D or the new-generation E/F models, and Lockheed, which is offering a high and low price point: the same F-16V Block 70/72 jets already procured by neighboring Slovakia and Bulgaria, or the F-35A conventional model.
Due to production rates and other factors, the two packages are priced close to one another, with the company offering 18 of either the F-16s or F-35s. Lockheed pins the F-35 at $78.9m per jet. While a competitive price (and roughly US $11m less per unit than the price agreed to on the Polish F-35 procurement), an F-35 pick over the Gripen means the Czechs would buy capability over capacity while also absorbing the costs of switching suppliers from Sweden to the US.
A considerable complication, according to more than one analyst, is switching from Swedish to US infrastructure. One former Czech air force officer experienced in working with the Gripen noted that “the price of changing out numerous security protocols and the integration of a new system for secure datalinks would prove to be prohibitive.”
The American-made jets do have one thing in their favor: a recent political downturn in relations between the Czech Republic and Russia. In April, the Czech government announced that two Russian intelligence officers from the FSB were suspects in an explosion at an arms storage facility in the Czech village of Vrbětice in 2014. Two Czech nationals were killed in the blast, which destroyed ammunition that was supposed to be shipped to Ukraine. (In a strange coincidence, the two FSB agents wanted for this sabotage were also the pair of suspects identified as being responsible for the high-profile March 2018 assassination attempt against Sergei Skripal in England.)
A tit-for-tat set of expulsions of diplomats between the two nations resulted in the number of Russian personnel stationed in Czech Republic reduced by more than 80 persons. Prague also officially charged Russia as being responsible for the explosion and barred a Russian consortium led by Rosatom from participating in a tender for the Czech Dukovany nuclear power station.
The sum total of these incidents has heightened the sense in Prague that Russia is less than a friendly regional power. An Atlantic Council assessment called the incident “an opportunity for Prague to not only decontaminate and reassess its relations with Moscow, but also issue a wake-up call to countries that still tend to overlook Russia’s malign behavior in their own backyards.” Potentially, this could push the Czechs towards a closer relationship with Russia’s most powerful rival, the US — and to pick an American-made fighter.
A Neutral Fighter Buy
But the competition that may have the most far-reaching implications is Finland’s HX fighter tender, scheduled to be announced by the end of 2021. The 64 aircraft buy is also one of the largest acquisitions of its kind in all of Europe — eclipsed only by upcoming decisions to be made by Canada and India.
Finland is officially neutral and not a NATO member, although it maintains close relations with the alliance. Its air force currently operates a fleet of 55 F/A-18C and 7 F/A-18D jets, making Boeing the incumbent; the Chicago-based firm is offering a combination package of F/A-18E/F and EA-18G models. However, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) offer for Finland actually priced the two Boeing aircraft as several million dollars per unit higher than the F-35, likely rendering their chances moot. That leaves the F-35 up against the European powers: the Dassault Rafale from France, the Eurofighter, and perhaps most notably, the Saab Gripen from neighboring Sweden.
Finland has a long border, and an even longer and unhappy history, with Russia. So whatever aircraft Finland acquires must be effective against both Russian air defenses and Moscow’s latest fighter aircraft, which makes survivability the number one concern. In that regard, both Lockheed and Saab likely think they have an edge due to the F-35’s stealth and the Gripen’s ability to conduct dispersed operations from highway airstrips, which company officials note means the plane frees Finland up from relying on air bases likely to be early targets in any Russian conflict.
Saab is trying to stack the deck as well, but noting that the electronic warfare system in the Gripen-E is not the focus of Russian counter-EW technologies, as Moscow has instead been pouring R&D into countering American systems. They are also offering a package that includes not just 64 Gripen-Es, but a pair of GlobalEye airborne surveillance platforms.
Unsurprisingly, given the almost $12bn price tag for the competition, political maneuvering is happening behind the scenes. On Oct. 30, the Finnish paper Helsingin Sanomat ran an extensive analysis of the HX program, calling out the need for a thorough cost evaluation for whichever aircraft is selected. European analysts looking at the competition point out this could be a response to a report from the Pentagon-funded RAND Corporation, released in early October. That document emphasized the need for closer US-Finland ties, which is being interpreted as a sign there is high-level US government pressure being exerted on Helsinki to select the F-35 over other options.
Will the Swiss Save Some Cheddar?
Politics are playing out more openly in Switzerland, which is a unique case, as it made its official selection of the F-35 over the summer. The small, neutral nation is one of the wealthiest per-capita states in Europe, but the decision to select the US jet has nonetheless been met by denunciations that the aircraft is overkill for Switzerland’s requirements.
The F-35 was selected from a field of competitors that included Eurofighter, the Dassault Rafale and the current supplier for the Swiss Air Force, Boeing, which bid the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. But some Swiss lawmakers, even among those who believe in the need for a modern air force, have pledged to support a referendum that would reverse the F-35 selection.
The anti-F-35 coalition is mixed. Some are lawmakers who believe the cost is too high — an unnecessary “Ferrari” option, as one Swiss MP described it — while others have raised concerns about whether the Swiss government’s pricing analysis of the F-35 was correct or downplayed costs.
There is also a strong pro-European factor. Most of the French-speaking cantons in Switzerland predictably favored the Rafale. As Priska Seiler Graf, a Swiss MP who also expressed concerns about the cost, has stated, “We should seek a European solution… . [W]e don’t want to be dependent on the United States.”
Finally, there are anti-war groups like Group for Switzerland Without an Army (GSoA), which wants no investment in a new jet at all and is leading the ground game against it.
That coalition seems headed towards gathering the 100,000 signatures needed to initiate a new vote on the plane. (GSoA said last month that they will hit their threshold of required signatures by early next year if not this year, having already collected 25,000 signatures by the end of September.) If that happens, it would trigger a new nationwide vote on whether to move ahead with the fighter procurement.
How it is worded will be very important. If the vote is to continue with any fighter procurement, then it may pass with a thin margin. If the vote is specifically to move forward with the F-35, opponents believe it may well be enough to scuttle the deal.
Multiple analysts, including those with ties to the air defense industry, privately say that the movement against the F-35 will most likely garner the 100,000 signatures required to call a referendum. But overturning the selection is more difficult for the “Stop The F-35” initiative, as Swiss law requires a “double majority.” Meaning that a majority of voters, as well as a majority of cantons, must vote to overturn the sale — an eventuality that was originally rated as being unlikely to come to pass.
In September this Swiss national newspaper, Tages Anzeiger, ran an assessment of the program’s chances and stated that prior to the F-35 selection announcement, the Swiss public’s approval for proceeding with any fighter procurement was a razor-thin 50.1%. That figure might have been well below the 50%margin, the paper said, if earlier it had been revealed that the F-35 would be the aircraft selected in the final round.
The paper also echoed other opposition voices against the sale, with the headline charging that if the Swiss Air Force ends up flying the F-35, “the CIA is always in the cockpit” and that the actions of the aircraft and its pilots would always be under US government surveillance.
Asked for comment, a Lockheed spokesman said the company is “honored to be selected by Switzerland and look forward to partnering with the Swiss government, public, air force and industry to deliver and sustain the F-35 aircraft. With the selection, Switzerland will become the latest nation to join the F-35 program, joining several European nations in further strengthening global airpower and security.” (Source: glstrade.com/Breaking Defense.com)
16 Nov 21. EDA Steering Board discusses defence innovation. Outcome of EDA Ministerial Steering Board meeting. Defence Ministers met today at EDA’s Ministerial Steering Board under the chairmanship of the Head of the Agency, High Representative Josep Borrell. The main points on their agenda were the approval of the Agency’s 2022 general budget of €38m, the negotiating mandate for the Agency for an Administrative Arrangement with the US Department of Defence and a discussion on how to reinforce EDA’s role in fostering defence innovation.
Defence innovation and EDA’s future role
Ministers had a debate on defence innovation at EU level, based on a Food-for-Thought paper prepared by the Agency. It followed a call from the Foreign Affairs Council (conclusions of May 2021) to reinforce EDA’s role in fostering defence innovation, including disruptive technologies, and the Council invitation issued to the Head of Agency to present possible options in this respect before the end of this year. Among the potential options discussed by the Ministers was also that of establishing a Defence Innovation Hub within the Agency. It was agreed that, based on today’s debate, the Head of Agency will finalise and present its options in the coming weeks for further discussion at the Agency’s upcoming Steering Board meeting in R&T directors’ composition in December.
AA talks with US, cooperation with third parties
Ministers approved a mandate for EDA to start negotiations with the US Department of Defence on the conclusion of an Administrative Agreement (AA). The exact scope and modalities of the AA will be defined during the talks. In the joint statement adopted at the last EU-US summit in June 2021, a commitment was made by both sides “to work towards an Administrative Arrangement, with discussions, including on modalities and conditions for a closer and mutually beneficial cooperation, beginning as soon as possible.” So far, EDA has concluded AA with four non-EU countries (Norway, Switzerland, Serbia, Ukraine) as well as two organisations (OCCAR, European Space Agency).
The Steering Board also approved a document laying down the revised and updated principles for EDA cooperation with third parties.
2022 Budget
Ministers adopted the proposal made by the Head of the Agency, setting the EDA’s 2022 general budget at €38m (compared to €37.5 in 2021). The budget reflects the continuous high demands on the Agency to support Member States in the development of defence capabilities as well as the implementation of EU defence initiatives such as CARD, the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) and the European Defence Fund (EDF).
Three-Year Planning Framework
Ministers approved EDA’s Three-Year Planning Framework 2022-2024 (together with its staff establishment plan) which provides a coherent and comprehensive overview of the Agency’s activities structured around the three chapters reflecting its core taskings: – prioritising and planning defence cooperation; – supporting technology and capability development; – facilitating the interface with wider EU policies. Each chapter of the Planning Framework elaborates on key activities which EDA is undertaking, providing an overview of the nature, scope and expected impact of the Agency’s activities in support of overarching policy objectives and the added value for Member States.
Military Mobility technical arrangements signed
In the margins of the Steering Board meeting, Ministers signed two so-called ‘Technical Arrangements on Cross-Border Movement Permission’ to improve Military Mobility in Europe.
“With today’s signing of the two technical arrangements, a huge step forward has been made to improve Military Mobility in Europe”, commented EDA Chief Executive Jiří Šedivý. At the occasion of the signature ceremony, Belgian Defence Minister Ludivine Dedonder said: “Belgium is one of Europe’s main entrance points and therefore plays an important role as a transit country for military mobility. As part of its global approach, Belgium would like to join a structured cooperation aimed at harmonising and simplifying the procedures for Armed Forces’ rapid deployment in Europe”.
Initiated by the European Action Plan on Military Mobility, these two technical arrangements – covering air and surface movements respectively – have been prepared under EDA auspices since 2018, involving all EU Member States as well as Norway. The arrangements focus on providing permission for air and surface movements, including the transport of dangerous goods. Using annual permissions through a simplified and standardised process based on harmonised data, Member States will be able to provide movement permission within five working days. The technical arrangements will also allow participant countries to reduce their administrative burden and use staff resources in the most efficient way.
A total of 23 Member States and Norway signed the surface arrangement, while 22 and Norway signed the air arrangement. The signing kicks off their practical implementation: the signatories will now assess possible activities at national level to make optimal use of these arrangements. (Source: EDA)
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