Military & Security

DPA: German intelligence services spied on top French officials and the European Commission on behalf of the American spy agency NSA, according to the Süddeutsche Zeitung. Germany’s BND foreign intelligence agency helped the National Security Agency (NSA) carry out “political espionage” by surveilling “top officials at the French …

 Egor Popov, Yelizaveta Kuznetsova, Kommersant Russia’s civil aviation industry, whose main project is the regional aircraft Sukhoi Superjet-100 (SSJ-100), is to receive record state support, with the government promising anti-crisis funding of more than 127 billion rubles ($2.5 billion). According to observers, the financing will help to support …

By Zackary Keck The Buzz Russia has launched what it claims to be the “quietest submarine in the world.” This week, Admiralty Shipyards—a Russian defense company— held a ceremonial launching for its newest Varshavyanka-class diesel-electric submarines. Dubbed the Krasnodar, the vessel is the fourth of a planned six …

By Siarhei Bohdan Belarus Daily Speaking last week at a Moscow conference on global security, Belarusian Defence Minister Andrei Raukou said that Minsk views the increasing number of NATO forces on its borders as a challenge to the military security of the country. He did not explain how his …

Voice of Warsaw: The Polish government will negotiate the purchase of Raytheon’s Patriot system for its planned missile defense shield with the American government, President Bronislaw Komorowski said following a meeting with PM Ewa Kopacz and Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak. On Tuesday the government decided to choose the …

Gareth Jennings, Linköping IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly Saab is touting its Gripen combat aircraft to Austria as a possible replacement for that country’s early model Eurofighter Typhoons, a senior company official disclosed on 27 April. Speaking at the Linköping production facility in Sweden, the head of Saab’s Aeronautics …

Victor Barreira, Lisbon  IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly The Brazilian Army could soon award Iveco Veículos de Defesa a contract to deliver additional VBTP-MR Guarani 6×6 amphibious armoured vehicles, a military source close to the programme told IHS Jane’s . The service is currently considering buying about 1,700 serial …

By JO BIDDLE AND DAN DE LUCE AFP The United States and Japan unveiled new rules for defense cooperation in a historic move that will give Japanese forces a wider global role amid concerns over China’s rising sway. Under the revised guidelines, Japan could come to the aid …

By Amanda Macias Business Insider America’s most expensive weapons system ever built is on track for “initial combat use” by September 2016. Business Insider recently toured Lockheed Martin’s massive production facility in Fort Worth, Texas, where the three F-35 Lightning II variant aircrafts are designed and manufactured. The $400 …