http://www.janes.comA special collection of articles covering Proliferation and Procurement.en-gbCopyright: (C) Jane's Information Group. All rights reserved.http://www8.janes.com/public/images/janes_rss.gifhttp://www.janes.comVisit http://www.janes.comhttp://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41519.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWUK support services company VT Group is keen to acquire the UK Ministry of Defence's (MoD) Defence Support Group (DSG) should it be put up for sale under UK government moves to shrink defence procurement costs. With an annual turnover in excess of GBP200 million and 3,800 personnel, DSG provides in-house maintenance, repair, overhaul, upgrade and support services for the UK armed forces' air and land systems. Lester added that the value of DSG's price tag would probably fall "within quite a ... - 2009/11/20 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41508.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWAccording to officials from the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), up to 250 examples of the JF-17 (also known as the FC-1 or 'Thunder') will be inducted into the air force in the next six to eight years, giving the aircraft a key position as the main second-line fighter to replace older Chinese F-7 fighters and A-5 ground attack aircraft. The JF-17, the unveiling of which was scheduled to take place at the PAF-run Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) north of Islamabad, joins the eight JF-17s built in... - 2009/11/20 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41499.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWThe Indonesian government has commenced a programme to draw up a comprehensive list of armed forces requirements over the next decade and beyond in a move partly aimed at boosting domestic defence industry development. Commodore Sudi Haryono, director for technology and industry in the Indonesian Ministry of Defence's Directorate General of Defence Facilities, told Jane's on 19 November that the inventory is expected to be completed in the next few months. "For equipment in the inventory that... - 2009/11/20 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41501.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWThe impact of India's updated defence procurement procedures (DPPs) on indigenous defence production will be limited unless the Ministry of Defence (MoD) allows local industry more time to draw up detailed manufacturing proposals, according to a senior academic at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) in New Delhi. In announcing the update in late October, the Indian MoD said the changes have the "potential to revolutionise the Indian defence industry" because it will enable "... - 2009/11/20 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41495.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWSaudi Arabia is looking to reclaim momentum in defence research and development as one of the world's leading arms buyers by incorporating joint ventures in support of its major procurement programmes. BAE Systems was awarded a three-year, GBP500 million service support contract in October for the Saudi Typhoon fleet, which is eventually to number 72 aircraft - 48 of which will be assembled in Saudi Arabia at the Alsalam facility. The company - a joint venture between Boeing, Saudi Arabian ... - 2009/11/20 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41514.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWUK military chiefs now aim to use a portion of this money to buy "up to 30" more Boeing CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift helicopters by the middle of the next decade, to bring the UK Chinook fleet to "around 70" airframes. Under 'Vision 2020' a major shake-up in the basing of all the UK's military helicopters will occur and the Royal Air Force's (RAF's) AgustaWestland Merlin HC.3/3A transport helicopters would be transferred to the Royal Navy. Under 'Vision 2020' the basing of all UK helicopters ... - 2009/11/20 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41488.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWBAE Systems' protest over a lucrative vehicle contract that it lost in August to Oshkosh Defense has taken another step as government auditors called US Army officials to testify at a recent hearing. The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) held a two-day closed hearing beginning on 9 November to investigate further the army's award of its Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) 'rebuy' programme to Oshkosh, BAE Systems representatives told reporters on 18 November. - 2009/11/19 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41479.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWThe United Arab Emirates (UAE) will purchase two Saab 340 airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft for a total of SEK1.5 billion (USD21 million), the company announced at the Dubai Air Show on 17 November. The Saab purchase fills a long-standing capability shortfall of the UAE Air Force and Air Defence; strategic air-defence requirements including airborne intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) emerged in the mid-1990s but were delayed over funding issues. - 2009/11/19 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41493.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWA majority of the European Defence Agency's (EDA's) 26 member nations have agreed to pool their military air transport assets to boost Europe's airlift capabilities, after nearly two years of preparation. The envisaged European Air Transport Fleet (EATF) aims to achieve initial operating capability by as early as 2014, EDA Chief Executive Alexander Weis told reporters in Brussels after the signing ceremonies. The work groups will also study how the EATF should liaise with other air transport ... - 2009/11/19 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41502.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWAfter the Strategic Airlift Capability (SAC) was conceived, approved and funded in just three years, the SAC's 12 nations are now scrambling to train the HAW's operational and technical staff and to fill administrative posts. Borch's agency exploits the same complementarities where possible with other allied agencies too, such as BICES (Battlefield Information Collection and Exploitation Systems), NC3A (the NATO Consultation, Command and Control Agency) and NCSA (NATO Communication and ... - 2009/11/19 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41469.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWWhile details of the latest talks were not available, Tauscher has previously hinted that the command centre for a revised ballistic missile defence (BMD) system could be based in the Czech Republic. A defence co-operation work group headed by Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Alexander Vershbow arrived in Prague on 6 November to discuss the inclusion of the Czech Republic in the revised architecture of the proposed BMD shield. "The Czech Republic, within the ... - 2009/11/18 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41460.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWInitiatives to transform Australia's Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) into a more businesslike and commercially orientated entity were unveiled on 13 November by DMO Chief Executive Officer Stephen Gumley. The DMO is responsible for acquiring and sustaining equipment for the whole of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and has AUD100 billion (USD92 billion)-worth of programmes and sustainment under its management. Existing DMO agreements will be progressively revamped by 2011 from memoranda... - 2009/11/17 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jiwk/history/jiwk2009/jiwk20769.htm@current&Prod_Name=JIWKOn 16 November, Peruvian President Alan García held an emergency National Security Council meeting to discuss the case of a Peruvian military NCO detained for allegedly spying for Santiago. The case of Víctor Ariza Mendoza, a Peruvian air force NCO arrested in October and accused of spying for Chile and treason, has dominated the news agenda in Peru, threatening to worsen already delicate relations between the two countries. Peruvian President Alan García speaks about alleged Chilean spying ... - 2009/11/17 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jiwk/history/jiwk2009/jiwk20771.htm@current&Prod_Name=JIWKA leaked report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has revealed new fears about the extent of Iranian uranium enrichment activities. The IAEA report into Iran's disclosure about its enrichment facility near the city of Qom was leaked to the media on 16 November, just as pressure is increasing on Tehran to respond to the international community's latest offer to enrich uranium on Iran's behalf. Nevertheless, the leaking of this report will place further pressure on Iran to ... - 2009/11/17 00:00:00http://www8.janes.com/JDIC/JMSA/documentView.do?docId=/content1/janesdata/mags/jdw/history/jdw2009/jdw41462.htm@current&Prod_Name=JDWRussian President Dmitry Medvedev and his US counterpart, Barack Obama, discussed the replacement for the START I nuclear arms reduction treaty at the sidelines of a conference in Singapore on 15 November, with both leaders insisting that a deal can be reached despite recent difficulties. Obama and Medvedev agreed a replacement for START I in July, but specific figures and details of the composition and structure of the nuclear arsenals were to be finalised through the remainder of the year. - 2009/11/16 00:00:00