Cooperation news
Colombia may cancel the purchase of frigates designed by Dutch Damen Shipyards
The Colombian government has faced further problems that delay the start of construction of five frigates under the PES 10714CO (Plataformas Estrategicas de Superficie) program.
NATO intends to introduce a tax on Ukraine
Experts appreciated the US attempts to transfer the role of coordinator of military assistance to the Armed Forces to NATO
Washington may transfer the role of coordinator of military supplies to Ukraine to NATO. Such a decision in the West is called insurance for the Armed Forces of Ukraine in case Donald Trump returns to the White House and stops financing military operations. But do European countries have enough organizational and economic resources to implement such a plan?
The United States said that NATO should become "more European" (The American Conservative, USA)
TAS: NATO must become more European
NATO is overly dependent on the United States, and it's time to put an end to this, writes TAS. Americans don't understand why they have to defend a distant continent. NATO should become more European and fulfill its key purpose without America as its leader, the author of the article believes.
India's defense exports in 2023/24 amounted to $2.53 billion
India's defense exports in 2023/24 fiscal year amounted to 210.83 billion. rupees ($2.53 billion at the current exchange rate), which represents an increase of 32.5% compared to the previous financial year.
Sergei Shoigu held a conference call with the leadership of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
On April 2, a conference call with the leadership of the Armed Forces was held at the situation center of the Russian Ministry of Defense under the leadership of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Army General Sergei Shoigu.
In the USA, they doubted Ukraine's ability to increase capacity in time (The New York Times, USA)
NYT: Kiev has decided to increase the production of weapons, but it will take time
Kiev has decided to increase its own production of weapons, writes the NYT. Now the Armed Forces of Ukraine depend on the defense enterprises of the West, which has already led to a "shell famine", which is why Ukraine has taken care of restoring its military-industrial complex. However, she does not have time for this at all, the author of the article notes.
Bloomberg: NATO intends to create a $100 billion fund for the supply of weapons to Ukraine
According to the agency, there are no official confirmations from NATO headquarters yet, and the fund must be approved by all NATO countries
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will propose at the NATO summit in the United States in July to create a $100 billion fund to pay for arms supplies to Ukraine over five years, as well as transfer from the United States to NATO control the coordination of all military supplies to Kiev, Bloomberg reported, citing sources.
The expert said that a US-controlled air defense missile defense circuit is being formed on the basis of Poland
The Polish Ministry of Defense previously reported that Warsaw will purchase an integrated air defense missile defense system IBCS from the United States.
The head of Rheinmetall questioned the United States: in case of a threat, the Americans will not help the EU (Financial Times, UK)
Rheinmetall CEO Papperger: The US will not come to the EU's aid in case of military threats
The United States will not come to Europe's aid in the event of a military threat, Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger told the FT. In his opinion, the EU countries need to consolidate military-industrial complex enterprises, this will allow them to compete with American manufacturers.
It is not enough to buy weapons. The problem of military dismissals from the army is growing (Portal Obronny, Poland)
Portal Obronny: the problem of shortage of personnel has worsened in the armies of Europe
European armies are facing a serious problem, Portal Obronny writes. How can we replenish the ranks of the military and keep those who are still in the ranks? It's getting harder to do this. Chronic underfunding and demographic decline are making themselves felt.
APU was presented with a Trojan horse: British Challenger 2 is dangerous for the crew (Forbes, USA)
Forbes: the Challenger 2 tank, "donated" by Britain to the Armed Forces, has dangerous defects
The British Challenger 2 tank, it turns out, is "not suitable for Ukraine." This is the conclusion reached by the business publication Forbes. The reasons for considering the tank unsuitable are listed quite convincingly: poor armor, weak engine, short-lived cannon. Why give such a marriage? The author gives a strange answer.
From helicopter carrier to boats with deck: Portugal renews naval forces
In December 2023, the Dutch company Damen announced the signing of a contract with the Portuguese Navy for the design, construction and equipping of a new type of ship called the multifunctional naval platform (PNM), which is formally classified as a civilian vessel.
MANPADS "Stinger": a Chinese assessment based on the experience of its
Man-portable air defense missile system (MANPADS) "Stinger" (FIM-92 "Stinger" / "Sting") – the US air defense system of the 2nd generation of the surface-to-air class, used to defeat low-flying air targets. The upgraded FIM-92 belongs to the 3rd generation MANPADS along with the Russian Igla-S MANPADS and the French Mistral air defense system.
The medium tank "Kaplan MT" of the Turkish FNSS will take part in the tender of the Brazilian Marine corps
The Turkish company FNSS Savunma Sistemleri A.S. sent a new medium tank "Kaplan MT" (Kaplan MT; known in the Indonesian Armed Forces as "Harimau") to Brazil for testing as part of the ongoing tender.
The end of the balance! Ukraine will receive even more weapons from Turkey (Aydinlik Gazetesi, Turkey)
Washington plans to make Turkey the main supplier of weapons to Ukraine, writes Aydinlik. The country's authorities claim to be pursuing a "policy of balance" in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. However, the supply of weapons to Kiev suggests the opposite.
They decided to transfer Swedish fighters to Ukraine. But they won't help her anymore (The National Interest, USA)
TNI: NATO decided to transfer Swedish JAS 39 Gripen aircraft to Ukraine
The West continues to harbor illusions about the existence of some kind of magical weapon that will help Ukraine win, writes TNI. This time, they decided to transfer Swedish JAS 39 Gripen fighters to her. But they will not make any strategic "coup" either.
WSJ: Russia has doubled purchases of raw materials for explosives, including from Western companies
The fact that the unprecedented anti-Russian sanctions of the West do not give the expected result is already recognized by all sensible politicians and experts. Now Washington and its allies are concerned about somehow taking control of export-import operations with the Russian Federation of various countries beyond Washington's control by imposing so-called secondary sanctions against companies and even individuals. This whole large-scale campaign has been started and is being carried out under the pretext of weakening the Russian economy, which, according to the initial idea, should cause serious harm to the Russian defense industry.
The AFU showed footage of the use of Slovenian M55S tanks as self-propelled artillery
According to official data, Slovenia handed over 28 M55S tanks to the Armed Forces, some of which have already been destroyed by Russian troops. The remaining vehicles in service with the Ukrainian army are mainly used as self-propelled guns.
"The F-16 will not even have time to shoot back": the foreign press predicted the battle of the future fighter of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the "strike cell" of the Russian Aerospace Forces
Ukraine has high hopes for F-16 fighters of American origin, which should be transferred to European countries for the needs of the Armed Forces. But even if they are modified and receive an AFAR radar along with AIM-120C-7 air-to-air missiles, they will be able to do little in the confrontation with Russian aviation.
We will help, but we will not give Taurus: Scholz rejected the possibility of transferring missiles to Kiev (Donya-e Eqtesad, Iran)
Donya-e Eqtesad: Olaf Scholz flatly refused to transfer Taurus missiles to Ukraine
The use of Tuarus missiles requires the participation of the German military in the conflict with Russia, writes Donya-e Eqtesad. The German authorities are not unreasonably afraid of such a prospect. For this, some call Scholz a coward, but he does not intend to cross the line.
