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Bizalmatlansági indítványt terjesztett be a parlamentben a Nemzeti Liberális Párt Victor Ponta szociáldemokrata kormányfő és kabinetje ellen, akit korrupció gyanújával állított bíróság elé az ügyészség. A 180 ellenzéki honatya által aláírt indítvány arra szólítja fel a törvényhozókat: válasszanak Ro...

September 21, 2015 (ADDIS ABABA) – South Sudanese armed opposition faction led by former vice-president and first vice-president designate, Riek Machar, has accused forces loyal to president Salva Kiir of committing further violations to the permanent ceasefire deal they signed in August to end the 20-month long civil war in the country.

Soldiers from the South Sudanese army (SPLA) at Jonglei's Bor airport in January 2014 (AFP)

Opposition leader's press secretary, James Gatdet Dak, on Monday said government troops attacked opposition-held territories and civilian settlements including Thoonyor in Leer county of the oil-rich Unity state.

“Soldiers of Salva Kiir have continued to attack our bases in a clear violation of the ceasefire. They attacked areas in Leer county in Unity state including Thoonyor payam, displacing civilians in the area,” Dak said in a statement on Monday.

He however said government forces were repulsed, but declined to provide details of casualties.

Dak also said fighting had been going on in Western Equatoria state in Mundri and Maridi counties, further accusing the government of launching offensive against their bases and civilian settlements.

President Kiir and opposition leader, Machar, signed a peace agreement in August and instructed their forces to stop fighting in observing the ceasefire.

Senior officers from the rival parties have held a week-long workshop in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, on the ceasefire deal and security arrangements, but could not agree on the size and composition of forces and joint integrated police that should remain or be deployed in the national capital, Juba.

Dak blamed the government for the failure to strike a deal, saying the Juba's suggested size of the force in the capital was contrary to the provision in the peace deal.

“The peace agreement clearly provides for demilitarization of Juba and other state capitals. However, the government demands an army division or brigades to be stationed in the capital. This is contrary to the security arrangements provision,” he said.

“The agreement talks of demilitarization, but the regime wants even more forces in the capital,” he added.

He said the opposition wanted a small size of joint integrated police of all categories and armed forces to guide the presidency, barracks, bases and warehouses in the capital.

Observers said the government has taken advantage of the loopholes in the IGAD Plus compromise peace agreement which failed to determine the size and composition of such forces as part of the signed document.

It is not clear when the parties will resume the workshop so as to agree on the security arrangements or whether IGAD mediation will try to come in and impose another compromise, as the implementation of the agreement will likely run behind the schedule.

(ST)

Alors que l'armée burkinabè est arrivée à Ouagadougou mardi pour négocier la reddition des putschistes du RSP, le Premier ministre Isaac Zida a été libéré, selon les informations recueillies par France 24.

Deutschland steht bei der EU seit Jahren am Pranger wegen zu hoher Stickstoffdioxid-Werte in Städten und muss womöglich mit einer EuGH-Klage rechnen. Die Bundesregierung begründet das mit "viel zu hohen" Emissionen neuer Diesel-Autos.

Durch industrielle oder landwirtschaftliche Emissionen verursachte Atemwegsleiden töteten 2012 670.000 EU-Bürger. Männer waren stärker betroffen als Frauen. EurActiv Frankreich berichtet.

Am Wochenende gab es noch Differenzen, zu Wochenbeginn zog die österreichische Regierung wieder an einem Strang: Nach dem Vorstoß der Österreichischen Volkspartei für ein "Asyl auf Zeit" schließt sich auch die sozialdemokratische SPÖ diesem Vorschlag an.

Le Secrétaire général de l'ONU, Ban Ki-moon, appelle les forces de défense et de sécurité au Burkina Faso, et en général toutes les parties prenantes dans le pays, à éviter à tout prix une escalade de la violence et à assurer le respect de la sécurité physique et des droits humains de tous les citoyens burkinabés, a déclaré mardi son porte-parole.

La Représentante spéciale du Secrétaire général sur la violence sexuelle commise en période de conflits, Zainab Hawa Bangura, vient d'effectuer une visite officielle en Guinée, où son bureau apporte une aide logistique et technique à l'enquête en cours sur le massacre de 2009 dans la capitale Conakry.

Le Représentant spécial du Secrétaire général de l'ONU pour la Libye, Bernardino Leon, a annoncé mardi la finalisation d'un projet d'accord de paix dans le cadre du dialogue inter-libyen entamé en janvier 2015 sous l'égide de l'ONU, tout en soulignant qu'il appartient désormais aux parties de signer un accord final.

September 21, 2015 (BOR) - Forgiveness, trust building and reconciliations were among the key pillars for peaced discussed during this year's international peace day marked in South Sudan's Jonglei state capital, Bor on Monday.

Jonglei governor John Kong speaking in Twice East county July, 24, 2015 (ST)

The event, organised by South Sudan council of churches with support from the United Nations Development programme (UNDP), was attended by several government officials, humanitarian agencies' representatives and the local residents.

The international peace day, is globally celebrated on 21 September each year. In South Sudan this year, South Sudan council of churches organised peace day celebrations in the provincial capitals of Torit, Yambio, Malakal, Kuajok, Rumbek, Juba and Bor.

The United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-Moon, in a statement, called for human rights to peace, demanding an end of impunity that prevailed around the world.

He urged South Sudan's warring parties to lay down their weapons and observe global ceasefire.

Alois Sikuka, a security specialist at UNDP, conveyed Ki-Moon's message to the public.

“Stop the killings and the destructions and create space for lasting peace”, partly noted the UN secretary general's statement read to the public gathered in Bor.

Sikuka also urged the people of South Sudan to work for sustainable peace collectively.

“Here in South Sudan, that we now have peace agreement that has been signed, the observance of international day of peace provides valuable opportunity to remind ourselves that only join efforts can lead to sustainable peace in the country," he said.

Further added the UN official, "The task of implementing the agreement and working toward lasting peace can only be achieved through long term collaborations among all South Sudanese citizens and institutions across existing device”.

The governor of Jonglei state John Kong, advised the public to desist from words likely to derail peace, citing the use of hate speeches and comments capable of slowing down the government's efforts to achieve total peaceful co-existence among communities.

“This problem started with a words, bad words that brought people to fighting”, said Kong, in reference to the start of the South Sudanese crisis in mid December 2013.

"Even when there is ceasefire, if bad words are being used, ceasefire will not work. That is why we are here to support our president, in his efforts of making peace”, he added.

Kong advised the population to work for the interest of South Sudan and not individually.

James Aguer, a council of churches official, said peace would transform South Sudan's negative culture of war.

“We have great concerns about fundamental challenges that could prevent us from achieving the nation we desire, let each and every one plays his or her role in making peace, transforming the negative culture of war, hatred and mistrust into culture of love, forgiveness, reconciliation, peace and unity”, Aguer told the gathering in Bor.

“Peace is the most precious thing in the life of every human being. We people of the RPSs, we were having and still have so many definite ideas about the nation we hope to build. We have a vision that our nation shall be a country of peace, unity, togetherness and love for all and not tribalism”, he said.

(ST)

A szexuális élet az ifjúságkutatás mostoha területe, pedig ez a fiatalság egyik legfontosabb témája. A szexuális élet és a tanulmányi eredmények közötti összefüggést mutatott ki az a vizsgálat, amelyet Dégi Csaba és Faludi Cristina, a BBTE Szociológia és Szociális Munkásképző Tanszékének oktatói kés...

Les 28 ministres de l’Intérieur de l’Union européenne se réunissent, mardi, à Bruxelles avec comme objectif principal, la répartition demandée par la Commission européenne de 120 000 personnes. Cet ordre du jour est d’ailleurs présenté comme crucial par les 28 chefs d’États et de gouvernements qui se réunissent, quant à eux, mercredi.

En Russie, débute ce mardi des audiences publiques du procès de Nadejda Savtchenko. La pilote d'hélicoptère ukrainienne est accusée d'avoir dirigé les tirs de l'armée contre deux journalistes russes décédés dans le Donbass, début 2014. Elle a été capturée par les séparatistes du Donbass et livrée aux autorités russes. Son procès n'est pas organisé à Moscou, mais dans une petite ville frontalière du sud de la Russie.

September 21, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The director of Emergency Management & Humanitarian Work at the Sudanese Ministry of Health tendered his resignation and withdrew from a committee tasked with receiving wounded Yemenis after verbal altercations between the health minister of state Sumaya Idriss and staff at southern Khartoum hospital following the arrival of a second plane carrying Yemenis injured in the ongoing conflict.

Injured Yemeni in Khartoum hospital (Ashorooq TV)

Sudan has so far received three planes carrying 285 wounded and 130 of their family members amid reports on a fourth one in transit.

According to an informed source who spoke to Sudan Tribune the crisis erupted last Wednesday between the state minister and senior officials at the ministry and medical personnel at the hospital who were called in after the take-off of a civilian plane carrying new batch of wounded Yemenis without coordination with Sudanese authorities.

The source said that the medical staff rejected the manner by which the state minister addressed them and a clash ensued after which Idriss directed all the medical staff to be thrown outside the hospital.

But the director of Emergency Management & Humanitarian Work Ahmed Mohamed Zakaria and director of the hospital management at the Ministry of Health in Khartoum state Youssef Tibin rejected the order saying it goes against the rules and regulations.

The staff eventually left the hospital on their own and were joined by the hospital director Dr. Mahjoub Fudaili in an act of solidarity.

On Thursday morning, Zakaria who heads the ministry's largest department, officially announced his resignation and withdrawal from the committee on wounded Yemenis.

The source said Zakaria's resignation will negatively impact the process of receiving wounded Yemenis as he was handling this dossier since its inception and worked through the challenges of accommodating the injured and requesting private hospitals to take in some with the Saudi government picking the tab.

(ST)

Opinión - 22/9/2015
Iliana Olivié
Los ODS son el resultado de un proceso masivo de consultas liderado por las Naciones Unidas, un hecho que en sí mismo les da protagonismo en la agenda global.

Le procès d'Hissène Habré se poursuit à Dakar. Une pause de cinq jours sera marquée à partir de mercredi pour cause de fête musulmane de la Tabaski. Lundi, Olivier Bercault ancien chercheur pour l'ONG Human Rights Watch a été appelé à la barre comme témoin. Il a été l'un de ceux qui ont retrouvé les archives de la police politique et raconte l'atmosphère toujours pesante dans laquelle les enquêteurs et les victimes vivaient et travaillaient, même dix ans après la chute d'Hissène Habré.

By Juma Mabor Marial

Sometimes, one gives up on public affairs when the nation has ended up on a road to nowhere. This is the conclusion I made when I stopped writing and concentrated on my private businesses. I deliberately stopped writing to avoid putting myself into loggerhead with those who thought I might have been infringing on their authority.

But even as I was busy with my private businesses, I didn't neglect my civic duties of sharing with colleagues and other like-minded intellectuals the challenges and wrong path our nascent country was taking. I didn't however shared a lot on the on-going conflict and it dynamics or the peace negotiations basically on the assessment I had made and against the experiences and the difficulties those who contributed faced as most of them were easily branded as rebels sympathizers or government mouth-piece. It was and it is still a risky venture to undertake and that is why I decided to remain neutral at least until the objectivity and rationalism is restored.

This may not be the topic of discussion but I thought about this disclaimer because I wish to once again share with the public my reaction to the recent State of the Nation/Union Address by the President of South Sudan, General Salva Kiir. For some of us who may not be familiar with the meaning and objectives of the State of the Nation/Union Address, I want to share a little bit on the theory before we could move on to the content and analyst the strengths and weaknesses of the recent State of the Nation/Union Address by the President.

A State of the Nation/Union Address (SoN/UA/) is a political model in which the President reports on the status of the nation. The address not only reports on the condition of the nation but also allows the President to outline his or her national agenda and national priorities. It is here that the President can recommend any measures that he or she believes are necessary and expedient.

The SoN/UA is often broadcast to inform the nation about its present economic, political, and social condition. It is also a vehicle for the President to summarize the accomplishments and plans of his/her programme of government both for a particular year and until the end of his/her term of office.

In the United States of America, the President address a joint session of the United States Congress, typically delivered annually. The address not only reports on the condition of the nation but also allows the President to outline his or her legislative agenda (for which they need the cooperation of Congress) and national priorities. The address fulfills rules in Article II, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution, requiring the President to periodically give Congress information on the "state of the union" and recommend any measures that he or she believes are indispensable and convenient. During most of the country's first century, the President primarily only submitted a written report to Congress. With the advent of radio and television, the address is now broadcast live across the country on most networks.

In several countries, state of the nation address are criticized by various sectors for being too ostentatious and flashy, with politicians and media personalities treating the event as a red carpet fashion show. One Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago blasted the organizers and called the event a "thoughtless extravagance" where "peacocks spread their tails and turn around and around, as coached by media in a feeding frenzy."

This criticism is too heavy to be replicated in South Sudan or one risked other consequences, but let us now moves back to the situation and critically looks at the state of the union address of our President. Unlike in the United States of America and many other countries of the world, the State of the Nation/Union Address of the President of the Republic of South Sudan is not delivered through the legislature or given on a specified calendar date. This may be by design or default.

It is unfortunate that, the few technocrats that controls the timetable of the President sits and decides any weekend that the President should address the nation on this date and rush the announcement to the media thus obliging everyone to anxiously wait for what the surprise state of the nation address would deliver. This can of course not be blamed on these secretaries in the office of the President but it should be blamed entirely on the framers of the Transitional Constitution and the legislators for not having thought it important to incorporate a specific calendar date for the state of the nation address as an integral provision of the supreme law and other enabling legislations.

Their attempt to cater for this event is vaguely articulated under article 78 of the Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan, 2011 which states that ‘the President may personally or by a message, address the national legislature or either of its houses. The national legislature or either of its two houses shall accord priority to such request over any other business. The President may also request the opinion of the national legislature or either of its two houses on any subject matter'.

This is the highest ambiguity that any constitution would allow because the letter and spirit of this provision is to the extent that, its gives the President the privilege and the freedom to call on parliament any time he deems fit and appropriate to address the nation, i.e. If the state of the nation address is to be given through the parliament. Again, if one look at article 101 (t) of the Transitional Constitution on the functions of the President, this is where you would find the proviso on the annual state of the nation address but whether this one is being implemented is another glaring question because for instance, how many state of nation address did the President made since South Sudan gained independence, one would likely suggest four on approximate but whether they were four or more is another area that need research. But that is not the issue of contention here; the question is the substance of what the context of the State of the Nation/Union Address that the President has been giving and is yet to be giving entails.

Having said this, one would not be surprise by the substance of what the content of the address entails as it is prima facie a rush and unplanned event where some note takers thinks it is just but a bullet point exercise that is not worth wasting time to prepare. Throughout his state of the nation address, the President has continued to keep the nation (citizens) glued to the televisions and their ears fixed on the radios waiting for something that never come at the end of the day.

In his recent state of the nation address, the President was expected to inform the nation (citizens) about the relationship with the foreign and diplomatic community and affirm whether the gaps that were apparent have been bridged after he signed the peace agreement, people were also eagerly waiting to hear the security status of the country and what are the developmental and infrastructural plans for the country, the commitment to peace agreement and the challenges and achievements that the government is able to report. He was also expected to talk about the economy.

The President didn't do much in all the above areas except that he spent his entire time talking about the Compromised Peace Agreement that he had signed and reiterates his insistency on a number of reservations that he made when he signed the pact. This is not a bad elaboration to have been made by H.E. because, as the head of state, he must share his commitment on the peace by enlightening the citizens on the deal and ask them to support him in the implementation in order to have a sustainable peace in the country.

The President scored highly on this item and he was applauded crossed the country and around the world for this statesmanship. Those who assisted him from his office on the literature and philosophy in giving the world and the people the assurances of his commitment to peace were equally appreciated. However, it was unfortunate to realize that, the state of the nation address was only organized to talk about the signed peace agreement and left out other crucial issues like the state of our foreign relation as a country, our development master plan, the achievements that the President and his government might have made despite the strife in the country, the infrastructural plans, the economic status and the challenges that the nation faced as a result of the conflict and other external factors.

Precisely, the President was expected to assure the citizens that his decision to append his signature on the Compromised Peace Agreement (CPA) has improved the foreign relations of South Sudan and her international friends, he was also expected to give a rough summary of what his government has achieved despite the on-going conflict, talk about the northern corridor project, the EAC engagement, the cooperation agreement with Sudan, the implementation by his government of the GPAA peace agreement, the improvement on the healthcare, education and infrastructural development. The President should have also taken it as his government achievement the declaration of cease-fire even if it is being sabotaged by the enemies of peace. He should have informed the nation of his government short and long-terms plans. The recently pasted vision 2040, what it entails in terms of development, infrastructure, education, healthcare systems, democracy, security and other well-fare issues.

After that the President should have talked about the challenges that his government is facing in its attempt to deliver services to the nation and this is where it would have been convenient for him to justify his calls for the nation to support him in the implementation process so that the country can return to stability and redefine its destiny. Again because the organizers of this event thought it was just a breakfast activity, they made the President, someone I have always considered a Wiseman and hold with highest respect repeat himself over and over again on one item called the implementation of the peace agreement.

My ultimate discontentment came about when the President came to the end of his address with regard to the state of our economy and informed the nation that and I quote; ‘I know some of you wanted me to talk about economy, but I decided not to talk about it purposely because I know, even if I talk about it [economy], we will just be discussing it here, but there is nothing that can be done about it'. This is where he scored NIL, as a President, you are like a doctor, a teacher, a father in the house and everything. You may be aware of the difficulties and the challenges just like all of us knows that the economy of the country has nearly collapsed but the last person to declare that is the President because like a doctor, you cannot tell the patient that the disease is incurable less you risk them taking their lives before you leave that room, as a father, you cannot tell your children that, I know you are hungry but there is no food and therefore, you have to live with it.

I know the President was giving this statement from the position of honesty but what he should have known is that there is more to his office than just being honest, he didn't have to express himself in the negative but rather, he should have turn it positive by informing the nation that, he is aware of the economic difficulties the country is facing as a consequent of the conflict and the only way out would be for all the citizens to join him in implementing the agreement that he has signed with the rebels as this will enhance improvements in the economic sector.

This statement would not mean doing something about it but rather, it will help in restoring hopes among the citizens and that is why the Presidents are called the fathers of the nations because they are the symbols of hope for the nation even in situations where the people are in despair. The President should have realized what his actions and his statements could do when he signed the peace agreement on 26th August, 2015, the market reacted positively to this development and a dollar that was exchanging at 17 SSP in the black market lowered to 11 SSP just in a matter of hours, this is doing something about fragile economic situation because economy usually reacts to political developments. His statement that there was nothing that could be done about the worsening economic situation open flood gates for unscrupulous business practitioners to abuse the market and after that day, the dollar that was trading at 14 SSP shot up to 16 SSP while the local shopkeepers increased their prices by 40 % and when asked about why they are doing that, they would simply reply, ‘there is nothing we can do about it'.

It is not surprising though that our President is not known for motivating the citizens in the situation of despair for instance, when the first graduation ceremony was made in the University of Juba early this year, the President told the grandaunts that they should not hope for being absorb into the government since there are very few positions in the government. This was not to encourage them to be job creators because he felt short in declaring that aspects, instead, he was telling them that there was nothing his government could do about the high rate of unemployment even as most of them graduates into the job market.

Summed up together, it is unfortunate to conclude that, the recent State of the Nation/Union Address by the President just like many other statements that he gives in public occasions failed to meet the threshold requires by an ideal state of the union practice. Most importantly, the President and those who organizes these functions with him must also understand that the hopes and expectations of the people of South Sudan are usually anchored upon their office and anytime they come out to say something in form of the state of the nation address, people eagerly anticipates a solution to a number of challenges that are facing them and for the President to declare that there is nothing that can be done about something like economy is suicidal and to some larger extent an absolute declaration of despair.

Finally, I can't blame the President so much because he cannot do all by himself but my disappointment goes to those who are in his office, they should be the ones to read the minds of the public and advice the President to tailor his state of the nation address in such a comprehensive manner as to cover all the aspects regarding the country's political and socio-economic situation. They should also advice the president to usually gives assurances and guarantees where the citizens are about to give up. These are the tasks for which they are being paid and maintained otherwise, if they allow the President to speaks the way he did in the recent state of the nation address, then, they could be deliberately sabotaging his relationship with the citizens or altogether ineptitude. I don't know which one of these is relevant but a serious investigation must be made on those two scenarios.

The author is an advocate. He is reachable at jummabor@gmail.com

Americas

• The US Air Force has begun removing nuclear weapons capability from 42 B-52H Stratofortresses, in line with regulations set out under the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), signed in April 2010. Thirty operational and a dozen mothballed Stratofortresses will be converted to solely conventional bombers, with work having already begun to this effect and due for completion by 2017. Both Russia and the US have until February 2018 to comply with the treaty’s terms. Despite the conversion, planned work to upgrade the fleet of B-52H bombers will form part of a modernization effort to keep nuclear-capable B-2 and B-52s flying into the 2030s and 2040s respectively, with this forecast by the GAO [p. 11] back in July to value $24.4 billion over the FY2015-2024 period.

• Canadian Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau has announced that his party would not sign a contract for F-35 Joint Strike Fighters if it were to win next month’s federal election, instead opting for a competition to replace the Canadian fleet of CF-18 Hornet fighters. The acquisition of the F-35 has become a highly politicized issue in recent years, with the ruling Conservative party signing a contract for 65 F-35s in 2010 before abandoning the deal in 2012 following a probe into the decision. Last week news broke that a contract to acquire the F-35 would rise above previous cost estimates owing to a low Canadian dollar.

Europe

• The UK’s Defence Ministry is reportedly looking into options for an improved Main Battle Tank (MBT), including assessing an option to procure new vehicles to replace the 227 Challenger 2 MBTs in service. A response to the Russian T-14 Aramata MBT unveiled in May, the Challenger 2 is now coming under scrutiny as officials examine whether the tank is capable of matching the new Russian design. Despite some scepticism over Russian descriptions of the vehicle’s capabilities, the T-14 has shaken up the British Army sufficiently to speed up a possible Life Extension Program (LEP) for the Challenger 2 or the procurement of a completely new fleet.

• Airbus Defence & Space is marketing the Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Litening 5 targeting pod as an option for future Eurofighter Typhoon customers. The pod will be installed on a company aircraft to demonstrate the improved capability. The system is reported to have already been purchased by a European Eurofighter operator. The Litening 5 was unveiled at the Paris Air Show earlier this year and uses two FLIR systems and a CCD HD-TV camera to improve target acquisition at long ranges. The pod is expected to becoming operational by the end of next year.

• The British Ministry of Defence will help the country’s defense industry sell its wares abroad, according to the Conservative government’s Defence Secretary Michael Fallon. The Eurofighter will be one of two strategic export campaigns set to receive MoD assistance, with the other being complex weapon systems; likely a nod to arms behemoth BAE Systems and missile house MBDA . The UK government usually assists industry through an organization known as the UK Trade and Investment Defence and Security Organisation (UKTI DSO), working closely with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, with the MoD usually fire-walled from export campaigns.

Middle East North Africa

• Tunisia is upgrading its fleet of F-5E/F Tiger II fighters with new avionics, with a $32.5 million Foreign Military Sales contract awarded to Northrop Grumman by the US Air Force. Tunisia requested avionics upgrades for a dozen F-5 aircraft in September 2013, including Northrop Grumman’s LN-260 navigation system. The estimated cost detailed in the DSCA request was valued at $60 million, including logistics support and training. The contract awarded to Northrop Grumman does not detail the inclusion of logistics support or training, potentially accounting for the discrepancy between the contract value and DSCA estimate.

• Egypt is reportedly in talks with Russia over a possible sale of 46 MiG-35 fighters, with the potential deal estimated to value $2.2 billion. The manufacturer has been struggling in recent years, suffering from slack demand; the MiG-35 has yet to secure an order from either the Russian Defense Ministry or a foreign customer. However, a flurry of interest in the MiG-35 from a diverse range of nations, including Vietnam and India, as well as Russia, could see contracts in coming months.

• A Republican Congressman is calling on the Obama administration to sell armed unmanned aerial vehicles to Jordan, following the decision in October to deny a Jordanian request for unarmed MQ-1 Predator UAVs. China reportedly stepped into the breach in May to offer an alternative to the spurned Jordanians, now thought to be the Caihong-5, unveiled at the end of August. Rep. Duncan Hunter is calling on the President to sell the Gulf state Predator and Reaper UAVs to help in the country’s fight against ISIS, using an exception clause in the Missile Technology Control Regime agreement to enable the sale.

Asia & Pacific

• China and Pakistan have reportedly signed an agreement to prevent technology from the co-developed JF-17 fighter making its way into US and Indian hands. Chinese engineers are also said to be reducing the aircraft’s radar signature through using a divergent supersonic air intake with the JF-17’s Klimov RD-93 engine, with the majority of high-end technology equipping the jet coming from China, including radar, avionics and weapons.

• China may have tested a hypersonic aircraft, with this thought to be a different design to the WU-14 hypersonic glide vehicle tested for for the fifth time in August. Reports indicate that this mysterious new aircraft may have been manned, with state-owned AVIC seemingly leaking news of the test on its company website before the page was swiftly removed.

Today’s Video

• The Caihong-5:

B-52H: flyin’ low,
dyin’ slow…
(click to view full)

Officially, it’s the B-52H Stratofortress. Unofficially, it’s the BUFF (Big Ugly Fat F

• cker). Either way, this subsonic heavy bomber remains the mainstay of the U.S. strategic fleet after more than 50 years of service. A total of 102 B-52H bombers were delivered from FY 1961-1963, and 94 were still on the books as of May 2009, flying mostly from Barksdale AFB, LA and Minot AFB, ND. Of these, 18 are slated for retirement, leaving a planned fleet of 76. By the time that fleet retires in the 2030s, many will be around 70 years old.

The B-52H can’t be flown against heavy enemy air defenses, but a steady array of upgrades have kept the aircraft relevant to follow-on strikes and current wars, where its long time on station and precision weapons have made the BUFF beautiful. Those changes have included advanced communications, GPS guided weapons, advanced targeting pods, and more. The USAF isn’t done yet adding new features, and maintenance remains a challenge for an aircraft fleet that’s always older than its pilots. All of these things require contracts, and the B-52H fleet has several of them underway. So, how does 2010’s 8-year, $11.9 billion umbrella contract fit in…?

• CONECT, ESP, SWING: How Does This One Fit In?
  
• Contracts & Key Events
  
• Additional Readings
  

CONECT, ESP, SWING: How Does This One Fit In?

USAF bombers:
B-52H, B-1B & B-2A
(click to view full)

At the moment, there are at least 3 major contracts underway for the B-52H fleet.

The CONECT (Combat NEtwork Communications Technology) contract was issued in April 2005, and could be worth up to $500 million. CONECT offers a series of upgrades that tie the B-52s into the USAF’s current communications networks. Its most significant combat improvement is the ability to receive new missions in flight, and re-target weapons in the middle of a mission. Ultimately, however, CONECT is an interim contract en route to deeper modernizations. First flight of a refurbished B-52 took place in May 2009. The program accomplished its first test flight on Jan 17/10, and plans further tests in 2011.

Execution of CONECT’s development would remain under the current contract until it’s done, but full production, or any future communications upgrades would apparently fall under the $11.9 billion September 2010 IDIQ.

B-52H: choices, choices…
(click to view full)

The 12-year, $150 million SWING (Smart Weapons Integration Next Generation) contract came into force in June 2006. Under this contract, Boeing performs work to integrate new ordnance on the B-52 fleet, from MALD unmanned decoys, to Sniper ATP surveillance and targeting pods, to AGM-158 JASSM missiles and beyond. Most of this work is software related, and the most important aspect of SWING was adding the Universal Armament Interface as a sort of weapons Application Programming Interface, in order to make integration of future weapons much easier.

Work under the SWING contract will continue in parallel with the new September 2010 contract.

In June 2009, the US Air Force issued the latest B-52 Engineering Sustainment Program (ESP) contract for the fleet, with a 10-year, $750 million ceiling.

There are some important things missing from ESP, however, such as spare parts, modernizations or fleet-wide changes outside of CONECT or SWING, etc. All of those things will fall under the September 2010 contract instead, and so will some previous ESP efforts.

The Sept 2010 contract’s initial spending surprisingly modest – the $600,000 minimum order, as the 1st payment for a $2.3 million order of 16 Evolutionary Data Link (EDL) Phase III kits, plus some basic engineering support through the end of February 2012. As noted above, the $11.9 billion is really a ceiling amount for a lot of other efforts, which may or may not go forward. If they do go forward, however, there’s an umbrella contract ready with all the terms worked out.

B-52H: gas guzzler
(click to view full)

Several well-known upgrades are under consideration for the B-52 fleet, but haven’t been approved and funded yet. USAF spokesman Lt. Col. Jack Miller has told DoD Buzz that it could cover things like:

“Combat Networks Communication Technology (CONECT) production, Extremely High Frequency (EHF) engineering development and production, Strategic Radar Replacement development and production, Tactical Data Link engineering studies, MIL-STD-1760 Internal Weapons Bay production, trade studies, and other programs critical to maintaining B-52 mission capability out to the year 2040.”

The Strategic Radar Replacement Program he mentions would install advanced new radars that could greatly improve the B-52’s ground and aerial surveillance capabilities, identifying targets at long ranges. New radar technologies could also assist with low-level flight, and reduce long-term maintenance costs.

Another oft-discussed upgrade is the on-again, off-again Stand Off Jammer program, which would turn some B-52s into very powerful, very long range, very long endurance electronic warfare aircraft that could blind even sophisticated enemy air defenses; locate, classify, analyze, or jam radar or radio signals; or even prevent remote detonation of IED land mines in a given area. B-52 SOJ has been started twice, and suspended twice for lack of funding.

While the USAF has done some necessary re-wiring work, a deep re-wiring akin to the C-5 AMP program is logical at some point, especially in conjunction with upgraded power generation on board to handle all of the new electronics. Any B-52 SOJ program would almost have to do this, and a radar improvement contract may require it as well, but it’s certain that the whole fleet will need this sooner or later. It’s very time-consuming work, but the good news is that some modern ultra-high capacity wiring has also become self-diagnosing, removing one of the biggest maintenance headaches in any airplane.

In a similar vein, but with even more immediate benefits, there has long been talk of re-engining the B-52H fleet, swapping out the ancient and hard to maintain JT3D/TF33 engines with modern turbofans that would dramatically improve performance, fuel efficiency, strike range, and maintainability. The USAF has experience with the benefits and pitfalls of these conversions, having made these kinds of upgrades to its KC-135 tanker fleet to produce the KC-135R, moved forward with re-engining the related E-8C JSTARS fleet of land battle surveillance and control aircraft, and endured the challenges of the C-5M RERP Super Galaxy program for some of its huge aerial transports.

Of course, before major steps like these can be taken, the USAF will need engineering studies. ESP doesn’t cover that, but as Lt. Col. Miller noted, the September 2010 contract does. It would also cover integration and installation of these upgrades into the B-52 fleet, as decisions are made to go forward with specific items.

Contracts & Key Events

B-52H and B-17:
only as old as I feel…
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September 22/15: The US Air Force has begun removing nuclear weapons capability from 42 B-52H Stratofortresses, in line with regulations set out under the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), signed in April 2010. Thirty operational and a dozen mothballed Stratofortresses will be converted to solely conventional bombers, with work having already begun to this effect and due for completion by 2017. Both Russia and the US have until February 2018 to comply with the treaty’s terms. Despite the conversion, planned work to upgrade the fleet of B-52H bombers will form part of a modernization effort to keep nuclear-capable B-2 and B-52s flying into the 2030s and 2040s respectively, with this forecast by the GAO [p. 11] back in July to value $24.4 billion over the FY2015-2024 period.

Sept 29/10: Boeing in Wichita, KS receives a sole-source indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract to support the USAF’s B-52H fleet, including modernization work. It could be worth up to $11.9 billion over an 8-year period, but no funds have been committed yet by the ASC/WWVK at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, OH. “Individual delivery orders will be issued through three contracting activities” (FA8628-10-D-1000). See also: Boeing.

Additional Readings

• USAF Factsheets – B-52H Stratofortress

• Air Force Technology – B-52H Stratofortress Long-Range Multirole Bomber, USA

• DoD Buzz (Oct 7/10) – Why the B-52 Got $11.9 Billion

• ARINC (March 31/10) – ARINC Will Deploy Its Airborne SMARRT System for Battlefield Awareness at JEFX 2010 Exercises . Good example of the types of ongoing improvements under consideration.

• DID – CONECT: B-52H Receiving a Communications Upgrade.

• DID (Jan 13/10) – Boeing Wins $750M to Support the B-52H Fleet. This is ESP.

• DID (July 10/06) – MUSTANG Aims to Check-Out B-52s Faster

• DID (June 29/06) – $150M to Integrate New Weapons on the USA’s B-52 Bombers (updated). This is SWING.

• Mechanical Engineering – CIME (Jan 1/90) – The B-52 – engineered to endure

THREE Saudi nationals, two United States citizens, and a United Kingdom national - kidnapped by Ansar Allah militants in March for allegedly entering Yemen without proper visas - were released by the group on 20 September, Reuters reported. The hostages were flown to Oman's capital Muscat following