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Daily News
by Gail Helmer
Jane's News Briefs
Thursday, June 7, 2001Jane's Defence Weekly
German arms industry losing groundSenior German corporate officials warned the German parliament last week that the already beleaguered arms industry will suffer serious setbacks in maintaining international partnerships and retaining technical skills under the current and foreseen defence budgets.
South Africa postpones acquisition hearings
The public hearings into South Africa's multi-billion-dollar acquisition programmes have been postponed until 11 June. The postponement is at the request of the Department of Defence's senior counsel, who argued that his team needed more time to prepare.
GCC army chiefs say joint defence force in 2 years
Plans by the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) states to expand their joint Peninsula Shield defence force will be completed within two years, according to Saudi Arabian Chief of Staff Gen Saleh bin Al-Muhaya.
Russia regains satellite imaging capability
Russia's brief gap in operating a photo-reconnaissance satellite came to an end on 29 May with the launch of Cosmos 2377 from Plesetsk.
Dutch, US move on Antilles airfields pact
The Dutch Parliament voted on 29 May in favour of a government-to-government agreement between the Netherlands and the USA that covers the use of two airfields in the Netherlands Antilles, off the coast of Venezuela, as forward operating locations by US armed forces.
USAF evaluating 'smart' kit for 'dumb' bombs
The US Air Force (USAF) has begun an effectiveness evaluation of Leigh Aerosystems' LongShot wing adapter kit that adds precision guidance and standoff-range to 'dumb' bombs up to 1,000 lb (453kg).
France to resume deliveries of Leclercs to UAE
France's Giat Industries is to shortly resume deliveries of its Leclerc main battle tank to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after settling a dispute with Abu Dhabi over the terms of the initial 1993 contract covering the sale of 390 Leclercs and 46 armoured recovery vehicles.
Warsaw approves six-year defence plan
The Polish Parliament has approved a 2001-06 defence plan stipulating that Warsaw will spend no less than 1.95% of its Gross National Product on defence, with further funds to be allocated for the acquisition of 60 fighters.
Jane's Defence Upgrades
Pechora-2 development complete, upgrade showcased in Moscow.
The mobile Pechora-2, a modernised version of the S-125M Neva-M (SA-3A goa) surface-to-air missile system developed for Egypt, has recently been presented to Moscow to the military attaches of a number of countries that currently operate Pechora systems.
Sub-launched missiles complete Israeli ?triad?
The Israeli Defence Force has unofficially confirmed to JDU that the Israeli Navy has equipped its three German-built Type 800 Dolphin class submarines with surface-to-surface missiles. No details have been released, beyond an assertion that Israel has now mastered cruise-missile technology.
PCO unveils new LWS
The Polish company of PCO based in Warsaw, has developed a new universal self-covering laser warning system (LWS), called the SSP-1 OBRA-3. The system builds on the company?s experience in the design, development and production of the SSC-1 OBRA and WPL-1 Bobrawa LWS for the home and export markets.
RAAF Hornet EW upgrade stalled.
Insufficient funding has forced the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) to delay the planned electronic warfare (EW) upgrade to the service?s 71 Boeing F/A ?18A/B Hornet strike fighters.
TECHNOLOGY INSERTION: Denmark?s Stanflex ships to receive C3 I Insertion.
The Royal Danish Navy?s Flyvefisken-class Standard Flex 300 (Stanflex) vessels are to be given a Command, Control, Communications and Information (C3I) systems upgrade (a project to be known as C-Flex), to allow the integration of cutting edge weapon systems writes Philip Sen.
BACKGROUND BRIEF: DCX spotlights US Army ?legacy force? upgrades.
In two weeks of mock battles stretching across 1,200 square miles of harsh desert terrain, the US Army?s Digitisation Capstone Exercise (DCX) served to spotlight what is likely the single greatest assemblage of ground and air ?legacy force? systems. Scott R Gourley describes the milestone exercise, which involved a ?blue force? structure of two brigade combat teams and approximately 7,500 soldiers from the Army?s 4(superscript: th) Infantry Division, was held in April at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin, California.
Jane's Foreign Report
Sharon's plan
What Israel's prime minister intends to do next As FOREIGN REPORT went to press, there was a temporary lull in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This was due in part to fears of Israeli reprisals for recent bomb explosions carried out by Islamist extremists. The president of the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Arafat, was trying to reduce the level of violence, if not to end it. His fears were justified; a well-placed Israeli source told FOREIGN REPORT that a reprisal could come "in three hours or three weeks". We have learnt what is envisaged.
The Bush-Putin summit
THE Russian and American presidents are holding their first summit next week. Their meeting is the culmination of intricate diplomatic moves for the past six months. FOREIGN REPORT reveals each side's calculations, and what each hopes to achieve from this summit. Although Vladimir Putin would never admit it publicly, the election of George W. Bush as American president represented a setback for Russia. Since he took over the Kremlin from Boris Yeltsin, the Russian leader pursued two key objectives in his relations with the United States. Firstly, he wanted to prevent the Pentagon from embarking upon its National Missile Defence (NMD) programme, which threatens to make Russia's nuclear arsenal redundant and, with it, Moscow's last remaining claim to superpower status. Secondly, Putin also hoped to attract Western financial aid but, unlike Yeltsin, on Russia's own terms.
A dog's dinner in Delhi
INDIA is belatedly making efforts to revamp its military apparatus by appointing a chief of defence staff (CDS) to head the projected strategic nuclear command. Part of his job will be to make buying weapons and using them cheaper and easier. He will also have to reduce the inter-service rivalry and squabbling that have so far prevented any appointment to the position. As the senior chief of staff, the navy commander, Admiral Sushil.
Kumar, was on the point of promotion to CDS in early May when the air force opposed his appointment on the grounds that since it controlled all of India's nuclear weapons and alone understood the dimensions of air power, it needed "functional insularity and independence". This raises some profoundly worrying questions about control over India's nuclear deterrent. FOREIGN REPORT seeks some answers.
Himalayan upheaval
Nepal's third king in four days, Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah, will need all the decisiveness with which he is credited to handle the civil unrest and political and security challenges gripping his impoverished Himalayan kingdom after almost the entire royal family was murdered in a bizarre shoot-out. Thousands of people in Kathmandu, the capital, demonstrated against Gyanendra's coronation and claimed that his son, Prince Paras, was part of an elaborate plot surrounding the mysterious shooting of King Birendra, his uncle, his wife and eight family members at a palace dinner last Friday. Paras, his heir to the throne, and his mother, Princess Komal - now queen - were injured in the firing, but their lives are not in danger. However, to survive and ensure the monarchy's future, the 53-year-old king will also have to control Paras, who is widely disliked for his non-royal behaviour, use of fast cars and insistence on his royal status.
Jane's Intelligence Watch Report and Jane's Terrorism Watch Report
Cyprus
- The UK has denied a report in a UK magazine that Royal Air Force spy planes equipped with US satellite surveillance equipment and based in Akrotiri, Cyprus were flying intelligence missions over Iraq, Cyprus Mail reported on 1 June. An article in the May 8-14 issue of Flight International weekly aerospace news magazine said that BAC Canberra PR9 spy planes based in Akrotiri were equipped with highly sensitive US satellite connections to transmit detailed images to remote stations. The magazine attributed its information to US Air Force Reconnaissance specialists. The system in question, dubbed SYERS (Senior Year Electro-Optical Relay System), was developed for use on the US Air Force Lockheed Martin U-2 in the mid-1980s. The UK is the only country cleared by the US to received the SYERS system, the magazine noted.
Israel - Institute for Intelligence and Special Tasks [ha-Mossad le-Modiin ule-Tafkidim Meyuhadim (Mossad)]
- Mossad chief Ephraim Halevy is opposing the publication of a book written by a former Mossad agent who was based in Tehran, Iran and who has detailed Israel's relations with Iran during the regime of the Shah, Ha'aretz reported on 5 June. Although the publication of the book has been cleared by the military censor and a ministerial committee, Halevy said he is doing everything in his power to stop its publication. The book's author, Eliezer Zafrir, headed Mossad's office in Tehran in 1979 -- the Shah's last year in power and the year that saw the rise of Ayatollah Khomeini to power amid street battles between anti-Shah demonstrators and Iranian security forces believed to have been aided by Israel.
Israel - Hamas
- Hamas, which claimed responsibility for 1 June's suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, said it is heeding a ceasefire call by Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat, New York Times reported on 5 June. Arafat called a meeting of his Fatah leadership and Hamas representatives late on 4 June. In a statement, militants from both groups said they would halt attacks as of midnight local time to give Israel a chance to "stop assassination and stop killing and destruction."
The Philippines - Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG)
- Government troops clashed with ASG rebels on the lower slopes of a mountain on Basilan island, losing two soldiers, BBC reported on 5 June. The fighting erupted amid reports that the rebels have made contact with a government negotiator in an attempt to end the standoff. The army said that it believed all the remaining hostages were still alive. (see TWR of 4 June)
Uganda
- Three bombs exploded in different areas of the capital Kampala on the night of 4 June, injuring 17 people, BBC reported on 5 June. Two of the homemade pipe bombs had been planted in taxi cabs, while the third exploded at a taxi stand. Police have arrested four people in connection with the explosions.
Uzbekistan - Hezb-i-Tahrir
- A court in the capital Tash kent has found 11 people guilty of belonging to the outlawed Islamic group Hezb-i-Tahrir. which seeks to establish an Islamic state in Uzbekistan, BBC reported on 4 June. One of the accused - deputy leader of the group Nurulloh Mussaiev - was sentenced to 20 years in jail, while another, a Kazakh citizen. got 18 years. Some of the members acknowledged membership of the group but two policemen and a woman denied all charges.
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