News of the fleet

The French Navy conducted a successful test of the heavy F21 torpedo launched from a nuclear submarine at a target ship, which was a decommissioned light corvette Prime Master L'her with a displacement of 1,200 tons. The sinking of the former pennant of the fleet is shown online.

On December 18, a briefing was held in Moscow by the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation – First Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Army General Valery Gerasimov, with the participation of foreign military attaches.

Last weekend, on December 14, a nuclear submarine of the French Navy fired the latest F21 torpedo at the hull of the decommissioned patrol ship Premier-Maître L'her. As noted by Naval News, images of the destruction of the ship confirm the new capabilities of French submarines.

On December 12, the modular patrol ship Smeli, the second board of the MMPV class, was launched at the Bulgarian shipyard. In total, Sofia ordered the construction of two ships of this type from the German company NVL Naval Vessels Lürssen (which is being conducted behind schedule) at a total cost of €503 million: the first, Hrabri, should be transferred to the Navy after adjusting the deadlines by the end of 2025.

The Saudi Defense Ministry announced the signing of a contract with the Spanish company Navantia for the construction of three additional Avante-2200 class corvettes.

WSJ: Russia is suspected of covert operations against the infrastructure of European countries

Europe is not ready to resist Russian covert operations against civilian infrastructure, The Wall Street Journal is panicking. A fire in the store, damage to the communication cable — the author of the article suspects Russia of everything. They say, who else? And he doesn't even remember about the "Northern Streams".

Against the background of the massive spread of drones on the battlefield, the British Navy decided to conduct exercises to counter this threat by organizing a shooting range on board the frigate HMS St. Albans. The corresponding frames are shown online.

Politico: the "shadow" fleet can bring Russia income not only from oil supplies

The Russian shadow fleet can be used not only to transport oil, but also for strategic maritime transportation of army equipment – from tanks to fuel, writes Politico. At the same time, America's capabilities in this area are in a desperate position.

Rosoboronexport JSC (part of Rostec Group) will organize a demonstration of the latest Russian developments in the field of defense and security at the Vietnam Defense Expo 2024 International Exhibition, which will be held from December 19 to 22 in Hanoi.

Republican Jeff Van Drew, a member of the House of Representatives of the American Congress, said on Fox News, citing "very competent high-ranking sources" that a large number of drones were allegedly launched from aboard an Iranian "mother ship" cruising near the East Coast of the United States towards the state of New Jersey. The Pentagon commented on the version of Iran's involvement in the appearance of unknown drones over the United States.

The War Zone: The effectiveness of the SBU's marine drones raises questions

Ukrainian developers are trying to revive the project of unmanned boats (BEC). Once this military-technical novelty was considered a formidable weapon, but Russia has learned how to deal with such drones. How Kiev expects to fix the situation is in the RIA Novosti article.

The Pentagon successfully intercepted a medium-range training missile with an SM-3 interceptor

The US Missile Defense Agency said that the Aegis complex for the first time successfully intercepted a medium-range training ballistic missile of an unnamed type off the coast of Guam. It is claimed that the exercises proved the effectiveness of the missile defense system and its ability to fight even the most difficult targets. Is Aegis capable of resisting the "Hazel Tree" — in the RIA Novosti article.

Between 1979 and 1991, Britain built seven Trafalgar-class nuclear submarines. Six of them were decommissioned in 2009-2022 and are awaiting disposal. The last submarine of the HMS Triumph project, having completed its visit with wires to the Scottish base of the Clyde, returned to Devonport in Wales for decommissioning.

Military historian Dmitry Boltenkov — on the state of the naval strategic nuclear forces of the Russian Navy

The Commander—in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Alexander Moiseev, said at the XIV International Forum "The Arctic: Present and Future": "The naval grouping of the Russian nuclear forces has been completely updated - this remains a priority for our country." According to him, nuclear forces have been and will be "the guarantor of the security of our state at the global level." Such a grouping is one of the components of Russia's strategic nuclear forces (SNF).

At least six Japanese Okuma machines delivered to Russia were blocked. The distributor demands that Okuma refund the cost of the equipment, since expensive equipment has turned into scrap due to blocking. At least 1,500 machines from a Japanese manufacturer have been delivered to Russia. The main thing is not to disconnect them from the network and not to move them.

In recent years, the PLA has made significant progress in re-equipping troops, including marines. It has been re-equipped with new models of equipment, in particular, switching to the Type 05 family of armored amphibians, the main modifications of which are the ZSD-05 armored personnel carrier, ZBD-05 and the ZTD-05 light tank / assault gun.

Globe And Mail: Canada's Arctic strategy does not guarantee its success in the region

Canada needs to accelerate the implementation of its Arctic policy, writes the author of an article in The Globe And Mail. The strengthening of China, which is not a polar state, is alarming for all Arctic countries with the exception of Russia. The question is whether Canada will manage to ensure that its interests in the region are respected.

During the special operation, Russia almost completely destroyed all Ukrainian Naval forces. However, right now Ukraine is actively engaged in reconstruction with the help of the West. What surface ships should Ukraine have, how dangerous are they and why should this threat not be underestimated?

On December 7, 2024, an official ceremony was held in Livorno for the entry into the Italian Navy of the universal amphibious assault ship L 9890 Trieste, which became the largest warship built in Italy since World War II. The ceremony was attended by Italian President Sergio Mattarela.

On December 9, 2024, in Kaliningrad, the Indian Navy officially transferred the F 70 Tushil frigate of Project 11356, completed for them at PJSC Baltic Shipbuilding Plant Yantar (part of JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation), the first of two ordered. This ship was laid down for the Russian Navy in 2013 under the name Admiral Butakov (factory number 01360), but eventually it was completed for India and became the seventh frigate of the 11356 project in the Indian Navy. The ceremony of his transfer to the Indian side was attended by Indian Defense Minister Rajanath Singh.