14 avril 2023 | International, C4ISR

Space domain awareness, protection requires more space-based systems

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  • UK to boost defense budget by $21.9 billion. Here’s who benefits — and loses out.

    20 novembre 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

    UK to boost defense budget by $21.9 billion. Here’s who benefits — and loses out.

    By: Andrew Chuter LONDON — The British government has approved the largest rise in its defense budget since the end of the Cold War, with £16.5 billion (U.S. $21.9 billion) in additional funding made available for spending on shipbuilding, space, cyber, research and other sectors over a four-year period. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the increase could transform the military and bring to an end an era of retreat in the armed forces. “For decades, U.K. government has pared and trimmed our defense budget. If we go on like this, we risk waking up to discover our armed forces have fallen below the minimum threshold of viability. I have refused to pick up the scalpel yet again. I've decided the era of cutting must end, and end now,” the prime minister told Parliament in a statement. The retreat to which Johnson referred is made up of capability cuts, program delays and cancellations, reductions in research and development, and slashed personnel numbers amid defense budgets that have regularly failed to match ambitions. Winners and losers Among the efforts likely to benefit from the commitment of new money are the Tempest future combat air program; a number of shipbuilding projects, including a fleet of logistics ships; and various space and cyberspace assets. Specifically, the spending commitment will finance the country's order of eight Type 26 and five Type 31 frigates, which are under construction in Scotland, where the U.K. government faces renewed calls for independence. Johnson said he is also committed to the embryonic Type 32 next-generation frigate and the building of a multipurpose research ship. Also included in Britain's transformation plans are the creation of a Space Command capable of launching a rocket from a site in Scotland by 2022 as well as a new agency focused on artificial intelligence. But Johnson also warned some programs would not receive equal attention. “We will need to act speedily to remove or reduce less relevant capabilities — and this will allow our new investment to be focused on the technologies that will revolutionize warfare,” he said. Johnson gave no clues to where the ax might fall, but new armored vehicle programs, of which the British Army have several currently running, are often cited by analysts as a potential target for cuts. “Now is the right time to press ahead because emerging technology on the horizon will make the returns from defense investment infinitely greater,” he told Parliament. “We have a chance to break free from the vicious circle where we ordered ever deceasing numbers of evermore expensive pieces of military hardware, squandering billions of pounds along the way.” The government said military modernization will be underpinned by a record investment of at least £1.5 billion extra and £5.8 billion in total on military research and development, including a commitment to further invest in the future combat air system. “This reverses the systematic decline in this crucial area in the last 30 years,” according to the Prime Minister's Office. What's been the reaction? Commitment to the major hike in extra spending came after the Treasury gave in to pressure from Johnson to provide extra funding for the armed forces over a four-year period rather than accept the chancellor's preference for a one-year funding settlement. The announcement is being termed as the first phase of an integrated defense review being conducted to coordinate defense, security, foreign and development policies. The review was expected to already be published, but with plans in flux and the new factor of additional cash, a more detailed review will not likely be public until next year. The Royal United Services Institute think tank in London said that over the next four years, the “additional cash represents a real-term increase of between 10 percent and 15 percent in the defense budget: equivalent to some £4 billion more annually than had been promised.” RUSI also noted the announcement, “provided little clarity on the foreign policy ambition, and it appears likely that we will have to wait until the new year for the full integrated review to be revealed. In the meantime, the [Ministry of Defence] will be under considerable pressure to ensure that its ambitions do not again outrun its (now significantly enhanced) means.” Analysts here say that despite the new spending commitment, the MoD will still have to cut a number of programs to balance it's books. The National Audit Office, the government's financial watchdog, has repeatedly warned the 10-year equipment plan is unaffordable, saying it could be too costly by as much as £13 billion. The current annual defense budget is about £40 billion. The new spending pledge will see the defense budget account for 2.2 percent of gross domestic product, meeting NATO guidelines. Johnson, who is currently self-isolating, having recently come into contact with a lawmaker who has subsequently tested positive for COVID-19, said he had taken the decision to raise spending in the teeth of the pandemic because the “defense of the realm must come first.” “The international situation is more perilous and more intensely competitive than at any time since the Cold War, and Britain must be true to our history and stand alongside our allies,” he said. A statement from the Prime Minister's Office said the increase will cement the U.K.'s position as the largest defense spender in Europe and the second largest in NATO, after the U.S. The announcement drew an immediate and welcoming response from acting U.S. Defense Secretary Christopher Miller. “The [Department of Defense] applauds the announcement by the U.K. to significantly increase defense spending. The U.K. is our most stalwart and capable ally, and this increase in spending is indicative of their commitment to NATO and our shared security,” he said. “With this increase, the U.K. military will continue to be one of the finest fighting forces in the world. Their commitment to increased defense funding should be a message to all free nations that the most capable among us can — and must — do more to counter emerging threats to our shared freedoms and security.” The move was also welcomed locally by ADS, a major industry lobby group. “This investment will boost our national security, help the U.K. address new and rapidly evolving threats by developing innovative world-class equipment, and support our economic recovery. The commitment to key projects will embed high-value design and manufacturing skills in all regions and nations of the U.K. for decades to come,” said Paul Everitt, the ADS chief executive. But Everitt also said the money must be quickly spent with the U.K.'s prosperity a priority. “It is important that the procurement regime delivers quickly and in a manner that prioritizes U.K. industrial impact, aiding planning and clarity and helping to build back better,” he said. The £16.5 billion in extra spending is over and above the government's pledge to increase defense spending by 0.5 percent above inflation for every year of the four years remaining of the existing Parliament. The government said that on existing forecasts, this is an overall cash increase of £24.1 billion over four years. Johnson told Parliament that would represent spending of £190 billion over the next four years. But how will the government's massive spending in the fight against COVID-19 impact these spending plans? Media and analysts here reckon Britain's huge overseas development budget is likely to take a hit to make these new efforts a reality. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/11/19/uk-to-boost-defense-budget-by-219-billion-heres-who-benefits-and-loses-out/

  • India commissions Russian-built warship amid enduring ties with Moscow

    19 décembre 2024 | International, Naval

    India commissions Russian-built warship amid enduring ties with Moscow

    India has been trying to diversify its weapons portfolio, as Russian-made equipment permeates the country's armed forces.

  • Support growing for review of Ligado interference information

    14 mai 2020 | International, C4ISR

    Support growing for review of Ligado interference information

    Aaron Mehta As the Department of Defense and its allies attempt to stop Ligado from moving forward with plans the Pentagon says will harm the Global Positioning System, consensus is growing around the idea of an independent review of the testing the Department had completed for interference. The dispute stems from the Federal Communications Commission's decision to approve Ligado's request to use L-Band spectrum, first reported by C4ISRNET April 10. Now the question is whether Pentagon tests showing that Ligado's plan would interfere with GPS signals vital to military, commercial and civilian technologies are still relevant, given mitigation plans from the company. A May 6 Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the issue underlined a fundamental disconnect between the two sides over technical testing of Ligado's capabilities, a he-said-he-said situation where both sides claim the data shows the other is comprehensively wrong. That disconnect is an issue for Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., the chairman of the SASC and a vocal supporter of the Pentagon's position. “What I took away from our hearing last week was that the results of DoD's testing just don't match up with the testing the FCC relied on to make their decision; in fact, I'm concerned they were looking at different things,” Inhofe told C4ISRNET this week. “It seems to me the FCC didn't really give DOD's analysis — which was done in conjunction with eight other federal departments — fair consideration,” Inhofe continued. “While I trust the Pentagon's conclusions, I think we'll all sleep better at night if we have more independent testing done to verify just how Ligado's plan will affect our GPS signals.” While not saying who should do the verification, Inhofe's comments match up with calls from a trio of non-defense trade groups that in the last few days have specifically called for the National Academy of Sciences — a non-profit, non-governmental research institute that can play a role as a neutral arbiter — to take a fresh look at the data gathered by both the Pentagon and Ligado and weigh in. On May 8, Securing America's Future Energy and the Intelligent Transportation Society of America tweeted that NAS should specifically lead a new round of testing, while Dana Goward, president of the non-profit Resilient Navigation and Timing Foundation, also supported the idea in a May 11 op-ed for C4ISRNET. “Congress must select a technically competent and impartial entity such as the National Academy of Sciences to fill this role. This entity must review the work that has been done and conduct any further analysis needed to inform policy makers,” Goward wrote. “The technologies involved are mature. Testing methodologies are well established. This will not be an onerous task.” Pausing the FCC's decision while launching a review of the testing data would likely require approval from the Commerce committees. House Energy and Commerce Committee ranking member Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., suggested further work would be redundant. “We must ensure that this decision maintains our national and economic security, which is why this technology was tested, modified, and tested again, several times before the FCC reached its decision,” Walden said in a statement to C4ISRNET. The Pentagon, thus far, has been reluctant to agree to further technical testing, with Dana Deasy, the department's Chief Information Officers, shooting down the idea in a May 6 call with reporters. However, Defense leaders are now open to an independent review of existing test data, according to Lt. Col. Robert Carver, a department spokesman. He said in a statement the Pentagon would “support an impartial third party, one with demonstrated expertise in GPS testing, conducting a thorough examination of all data collected during the preceding decade of testing. “We emphasize any such examination must be conducted by a party with unquestioned capability, capacity and experience in this arena. We believe a painstaking examination of existing test data will confirm the results of all previous tests, including the limited tests funded by Ligado, that Ligado's proposal will result in interference to GPS even at the one-decibel level,” Carver said. “Any testing, or evaluation of prior testing, must address protection of the GPS service, the frequency band assigned to it, and all receivers intending to use that service." A Ligado spokesperson declined to comment. In the meantime, the department continues to push through the formal process to request the FCC change its mind. That would be a tough path forward for any vote that passed unanimously with five votes, as it would require three members of the commission to change their mind. It may be even more difficult given the comments from Deasy, Inhofe and others indicating the FCC purposefully kept DoD out of the loop as it was making its decision. In a statement after the hearing, an FCC spokesman blasted “all of the untrue statements” made by officials, called claims of unanimous opposition in the government “blatantly false,” and saying assertions that DoD was blindsided are “preposterous.” “The bottom line here is that the FCC made a unanimous, bipartisan decision based on sound engineering principles,” the spokesman said. “We stand by that decision 100% and will not be dissuaded by baseless fearmongering." Joe Gould in Washington contributed to this report https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/2020/05/13/support-growing-for-review-of-ligado-interference-information/

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