Defence`s Feeds

EVENT The jihadist group Al-Mourabitoune has claimed responsibility for a suicide vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (SVBIED) attack on 18 January in the northern Malian town of Gao, which killed at least 60 people and injured more than 100 others. The group said the attack was due to

The Indian Army (IA) plans to deploy about 464 newly ordered T-90MS main battle tanks (MBTs) along India's western and northern borders with Pakistan, military officials told IHS Jane's on 19 January. The T-90MS MBTs, which are being acquired in kit form from Russia for INR134.80 billion (USD2

The Indonesian government has appointed Air Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto as the new air force (Tentara Nasional Indonesia - Angkatan Udara: TNI-AU) chief, replacing Air Chief Marshal Agus Supriatna, who has been at the helm since January 2015. AM Tjahjanto was sworn in by Indonesian president Joko Widodo

Key Points The Indonesian government has approved the acquisition of five new Airbus A400M multirole aircraft The acquisition is a significant step in the Indonesian Air Force's modernisation efforts Indonesia has approved a sum of USD2 billion for the acquisition of five Airbus A400M Atlas

Israel declared the top tier of its air defence umbrella operational on 18 January, when the first Arrow-3 interceptors were formally handed over to the Israeli Air Force (IAF) in a ceremony. Made by Israel Aerospace Industries and Boeing, the Arrow-3 is designed to intercept incoming ballistic

Key Points ONR is co-ordinating a science and technology effort intended to provide the US amphibious community with more small autonomous vehicles Funding of USD41 million is anticipated over five years and the first study contracts will be awarded in September 2017 Amphibious assaults could be

A MAN was wounded after being shot in both legs by unidentified gunmen during a paramilitary-style attack in the Turf Lodge area of west Belfast in Northern Ireland on 17 January, the Belfast Telegraph reported. No further details were reported and no immediate claim of responsibility was made.

The Joint Program Office (JPO) for the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) plans to truncate testing in a "risky" effort to remain on schedule, as ongoing problems threaten to delay the start of Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E), the Pentagon has

Rolls-Royce has reached penalty agreements with authorities in Brazil, the United Kingdom, and United States totalling GBP671 million (USD813 million) to bring to an end bribery and corruption investigations concerning the UK aerospace and energy group's activities in a number of international

Americas

• Tuesday saw Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg sit down with soon-to-be-President Donald Trump, to discuss matters including Air Force One and the F-18 Super Hornet. In relation to AF1, Muilenburg cited “great progress” on the simplifying of requirements, process, and certification for the new presidential aircraft. Talk surrounding the Super Hornet stemmed from suggestions made by Trump that extra procurements of an upgraded version of the fighter could compete with the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

• A 62-page report by the Pentagon’s chief weapons tester has released sort of good news in relation to the F-35: that there has been progress toward fixing a safety issue with the aircraft’s ejection seat. The Martin-Baker manufactured US16E seat and escape system was found to pose a significant risk of neck damage or death during ejection of pilots in the lowest weight range, resulting in pilots weighing under 136 lb being barred from flying the aircraft. But a three-part solution posed by the company to protect a lightweight pilot’s head and neck during ejection is currently being tested with light-weight pilots. This includes a lighter helmet to ease strain on the neck during the first phase of an ejection, a lightweight switch on the seat to delay deployment of the main parachute, and a fabric panel sewn between the parachute risers that will protect the pilot’s head from moving backward during the parachute opening, called a “head support panel” or HSP.

Middle East North Africa

• C-130 aircraft operated by Egypt will be fitted with electronic intelligence (ELINT) systems. Sierra Nevada Corp. won a Pentagon contract to provide the capability on one of the Egyptian Air Force’s 22 C-130H or three C-130H-30 Hercules aircraft, and could do so by either fitting integrated mission equipment or with a roll-on/roll-off (RO/RO) mission compartment. It is possible that some C-130 aircraft have already been fitted with similar ELINT equipment following a US DSCA notification to Congress in 2003, however it remains unknown whether the plan was officially implemented.

• The Israeli Air Force has tested a new self-protection system on its Lockheed Martin C-130Js to protect from surface-to-air missiles. Once equipped with the updated self-protection package, the air force’s new transporters will be able to operate in areas where terrorist groups have ready access to shoulder-launched heat-seeking missiles. At present, Israel operates four C-130Js, with plans to purchase three more.

Europe

• Airbus announced the successful refueling of an H225M Caracel helicopter with the help of two C295W medium transports. Contacts during the test were executed at speeds of 105 to 115 knots, with the company reporting that all crews reported a smooth operation. Air-to-air refueling of the multi-role combat helicopter can be performed during forward flight or while hovering.

• Russia has test-fired a Topol-M ICBM, one of the first ballistic missiles to be developed after the fall of the Soviet Union. Capable of being deployed from missile silos or APU launchers mounted on the 16-wheeled MZKT-79221 universal transporter-erector-launcher, the test was carried out to confirm the weapon’s stability. The weapon’s developers claim their product is able to bypass any current or planned US missile defense system, and can make evasive maneuvers to avoid missile interceptors during flight.

• Leonardo has been contracted to provide new jet trainer aircraft to the Italian Air Force as well as develop a new helicopter for the Italian Army. The company stated that the two contracts with the Italian National Armaments Directorate of the Italian Defense Ministry have a combined value of more than $530 million. Under the first award, Leonardo is to deliver five M-345A trainers to the air force and will work alongside the fleet of 18 twin-engine M-346s already ordered and currently used by the Italian air force for the advanced phase of pilot training. The second contract is for the development, production and testing of three reconnaissance and escort helicopter prototypes, of which 48 units will be eventually produced to replace the current fleet of AW129s.

Asia Pacific

• South Korea is shopping for 12 new naval helicopters as its Defense Acquisition Program Administration earmarks $768 million for the acquisition. A decision will be made by the end of 2018 with AgustaWestland’s AW-159, the Sikorsky MH-60R, and NHIndustries’ NH-90 are all in the running. Deliveries will take place between 2020-2022 and the choppers will be deployed on next-generation frigates to counter North Korean submarines and surface vessels.

Today’s Video

Refueling the C295:

Making a comeback?
(click to view full)

The Russian Ministry of Defense plans to replace nearly half of the Russian Army’s hardware by 2015, according to Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov. Ivanov said military spending over the next 8 years was planned at $189 billion, and that official Russian military spending had quadrupled from 2001 to reach $31 billion this year.

Ivanov said weapons purchases would include “17 intercontinental ballistic missiles, 4 military spacecraft with the same number of launch rockets for them,” as well as new bombers, ships, and other heavy equipment. The ICBMs are believed to be the new SS-27 Topol-M, and other plans reportedly include 50 new bombers, 31 ships of varying sizes, and fully re-arming 40 tank, 97 infantry and 50 parachute battalions. Some outside observers doubt Russia’s ability to fulfill these plans, however, given a closed military procurement system, that’s very resistant to scrutiny, in a country with a record of corruption. See Defense-Aerospace: “Russia to Spend $189bn on Weapons by 2015” | “Russia’s Defense Minister Unveils Plans to Overhaul Military.”

Update

January 19/17: Russia has test-fired a Topol-M ICBM, one of the first ballistic missiles to be developed after the fall of the Soviet Union. Capable of being deployed from missile silos or APU launchers mounted on the 16-wheeled MZKT-79221 universal transporter-erector-launcher, the test was carried out to confirm the weapon’s stability. The weapon’s developers claim their product is able to bypass any current or planned US missile defense system, and can make evasive maneuvers to avoid missile interceptors during flight.

Alix Valenti

Senior Fellow

Alix Valenti is an independent consultant and a freelance journalist focusing on issues of governance, defence and security.

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She holds a PhD in development planning from University College London, and her thesis focused on understanding the impact of international statebuilding on state-citizen relations through an analysis of social cohesion in post-conflict urban spaces. She lived in Timor Leste for ten months to carry out her PhD field research, interviewing government officials, staff members of INGOs and CSOs, and community leaders as well as community members.

Alix has ten years of experience working as a consultant for ICF International, carrying out especially evaluations and impact assessments of European migration regulations for the European Commission Directorate General of Migration and Home Affairs (HOME). As a full-time member of staff, she managed large teams, including country experts, and carried out stakeholder consultations in the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Spain. As a sub-contractor, she has continued to focus on stakeholder consultations in France, Italy and Switzerland.

Over the past two years, Alix has also been working as a freelance defence and security journalist. She writes articles on naval procurement and security in the Asia Pacific for defence magazines such as Armada International, Asian Military Review and Asia Pacific Defence Reporter. She also writes on military procurement in the US for Special Operations International, and on country security (France, Papua New Guinea) for Jane’s Intelligence Review.

Written by Marcin Grajewski,

EPRS – EP-EUI Policy Roundtable: Global Economic governance: what role for the EU ?

Economic decisions taken at inter- and supranational level have recently come under fire from populists and protectionists. However, with better coordination between Member States, the European Union could play a stronger role in representing the needs of its citizens in global economic governance. Concerted pressure from EU and euro area countries acting together in fora such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), or the G20, would help to make the world’s economic decision-making system more transparent and accountable, according to politicians and analysts speaking at a conference organised by the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS). The event, entitled ‘Global economic governance: what role for the EU?’, took place in the European Parliament Library Reading Room on 12 January 2017.

The damaging financial crunch of 2008 and the ensuing recession have forced the IMF, the G20 informal group of the world’s biggest economies, the World Bank, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Basel Committee of central banks, and other institutions, to act urgently to try to restore economic growth and ward off any repetition of such economic disaster. But the crisis, which has destroyed tens of millions of jobs and thrown millions into poverty, has undermined popular trust in traditional elites. The conference heard that public opinion has turned against globalisation and in favour of trade protectionism.

Sylvie Goulard, MEP (FR/ALDE), Member of the EP’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

Sylvie Goulard, member of the EP’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, said citizen’s growing distrust in the economic governance system has been exacerbated by its confusing and complicated nature. ‘I was not in a position to tell my voters: who decides on the economy, who is really taking a decision. Is it parliament or is the financial industry itself that frames the activity? Many citizens in the EU and elsewhere feel that they do not choose the people who are making decisions.’ Sylvie Goulard added that the IMF, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Basel Committee, and the World Trade Organization (WTO) all have a different status, based on different governance powers – while the G20 is not very democratic. ‘When the system is complicated, it should at least be transparent.’

According to many analysts, some of these global institutions could be more effective if reformed, notably to reflect the growing role of emerging markets, such as China or India, in the world economy. However, Elena Flores, Director for International economic and financial relations and global governance at the European Commission, pointed out that some EU and euro zone countries are sceptical of such reforms. The Member States also often fail to act together, weakening Europe’s hand in international negotiations. ‘The EU could really play a much stronger role than the one it plays today if it were more unified,’ Flores said. The Commission has long advocated a single representation for the euro area on the IMF board, but without success to date. Flores remarked that the euro area’s global role could also be boosted if internal reform led to the completion of economic and monetary union. Flores added that, when the EU and euro zone countries act together, they are more successful in promoting their ideas, such as economic policy coordination, economic peer review or combatting macroeconomic imbalances at the international fora.

Difficulties in global decision-making may grow after the inauguration of Donald Trump, an advocate of economic protectionism, as US President in January, remarked Bernard Hoekman, Robert Schuman Chair at the European University Institute in Florence. Hoekman noted that ‘we are heading towards an administration in the US, which is much less inclined to pursue (…) multilateral cooperation’. Hoekman added that populism and protectionism are also fuelled by the pressure that technological change and innovation is putting on many traditional jobs.

Joachim Koops, Dean of Vesalius College Brussels and Director of the Global Governance Institute

Speaking on the EU’s track record in economic decision-making, Joachim Koops, Dean of Vesalius College Brussels and Director of the Global Governance Institute, said the Union, along with the IMF, should critically examine its role in imposing reforms on crisis-stricken Greece. ‘For the first time, the global and regional organisations worked together in an unprecedented way … They had divergent views on how to handle the economic crisis and rebuild the Greek economy,’ he said. ‘That has had an impact on populist movements and knock-on effects on elites in other countries. Many discussions in the previously pro-EU elites in Britain referred to Greece as one element in their shift in opinion in favour of Brexit’, he added.

 

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Filed under: BLOG, Events Tagged: EPRS Events, events, global governance, international relations, Marcin Grajewski

The SENER engineering and technology group will be at the LNG Bunkering Summit 2017 to present its revolutionary design for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering vessel.

American Mk.17 Battle Rifle

Mehrali Watandost, one of Afghanistan’s most popular actors, has died. For 23 years, he played the role of the iconic character, Nazir, in the Afghan radio drama, “New Home, New Life” which is broadcast in Pashto and Dari on the BBC. Since launching in 1994, the show has never been off the air and Watandost’s distinctive voice and the funny, eccentric character he played were at the heart of the drama’s success. AAN guest author Shirazuddin Siddiqi* who worked with Watandost on the show recalls a man who brought wisdom and humour to the airwaves.

Afghanistan has lost one of its brightest cultural stars. The actor, Mehrali Watandost, was born around 1950 in Butkhak district, east of Kabul, and had a modest upbringing. After completing primary school in Butkhak and secondary school in Nangarhar where his family had moved to, he got a junior job with the Directorate of Information and Culture in the province.

The group included several nationally-recognised cultural personalities, already chosen to work on the new programme as writers and editors. Those wanting to act in the drama, however, had to undergo studio auditions. Many aspiring Afghan actors flocked to the casting venue, among them, Watandost. British drama expert, Dan Garrett, who led the audition and later the training of successful writers and actors, recalls his dilemma – how on earth was he going to chose from “so many hopefuls.”

A star is born

Scripts had been circulated before each applicant was summoned to the studio and it was late in the day, Garrett remembers, when a “craggy-faced man came up to the microphone and filled our ears with a distinctive sound that instantly made my ears prick up… the voice a producer listens out for.” It was Watandost. He was peering and moving the script around in an effort to read it and Garrett asked if he had perhaps forgotten his glasses. “No,” he explained, “I left them in Afghanistan and have been unable to replace them.” Garrett lent him a pair of glasses and when the green button was pressed ­­– the cue for the actor to speak – the man behind the microphone brought “the script to life.” It was clear to all those listening, Garrett said, “We had a star.”

On the basis of this audition, Watandost was offered a role in the new radio soap opera, “New Home, New Life”. Since 1994, it has been broadcast in Pashto and Dari on the BBC World Service. The programme is set in a typical Afghan village and makes use of popular drama to explore topical, practical issues that might enable listeners to manage and improve their daily lives: it might feature something as simple as using the water from the mill to not only grind wheat, but also generate electricity. Tougher issues have also featured. A particularly upsetting storyline involving a girl married to assuage a blood feud – she was married to her family’s enemies in what is called a baad marriage ­– was so compelling it persuaded the then ruler of Afghanistan, Taleban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar, to ban the practice.

Watandost’s remarkable acting talent turned Nazir, the character he played for 23 years, into a personal friend for millions of Afghans. Photo: AEPO (2016)

Watandost was chosen to play the role of Nazir (‘watchman’) who served the powerful village land-owner and chieftain, Jabar Khan. Watandost reportedly wept tears of joy when he was offered the role, not least because it meant he would work closely with the already well-known actor, Fazl Muhammad Fazli, who would play his on-air employer. Thus begun nearly 23 years of Watandost’s contribution to Afghan radio drama, a contribution that brought with it great admiration from Afghans of all walks of life.

Listeners propose marriage

Nazir was the most cunning person in the village. A simple village man with a very eccentric approach to everything, whatever he did would go wrong and made listeners laugh. Watandost knew the character as well as he knew his own self and how to play every nuance of every story he was involved in. He managed to develop the role in a way that reached the hearts of many Afghans, crossing social and cultural boundaries. Before long, many listeners to “New Home, New Life” described the watchman as being like a family member, with some even reporting difficulty in sleeping if they did not hear Watandost’s distinctive voice that touched young and old, men and women, rural and urban alike.

Although he only played Nazir in Pashto, the mix of common-sense and humour that Watandost brought to the role was appreciated by Afghans across the linguistic and ethnic divide that still besets the country. As his popularity grew, the production team even received messages from listeners offering their sisters and daughters in marriage to Nazir. In 1996, when rumours spread in Upper Village (where the “New Home, New Life” drama is based) that Jabar Khan might be making arrangements for Nazir’s marriage, the mailbox contained samples of cloth from fans for his and his wife-to-be’s wedding outfits. The relationship between Nazir and Jabar Khan was one of the key dramatic relationships in the soap opera. Yet, even after the actor playing Jabar Khan, Fazli died, in 2005, Nazir’s role survived because of the character’s popularity. New themes emerged in his relationship with Jabar Khan’s son, Sarwar Khan.

Walajan Rafiq (right) plays Baba Aslam, a village elder, with Watandost (left). Photo: AEPO (2016)

Former researcher for “New Home, New Life” Shireen Sultan remembers that during the evaluation trips she made to provinces across Afghanistan “everybody – old, young, religious, educated, uneducated, leaders, women,” listened to Nazir’s wisdom and humour with a keen interest. On one occasion, when a young girl in a remote village repeatedly asked questions about him, her friends explained to Shireen, laughing, that she wanted to “marry Nazir.”

After he heard that Watandost had died, the National Unity Government’s Chief Executive Dr Abdullah described how Watandost had brought a “smile on people’s lips” at a time of “conflict and killing,” adding that there was hardly an Afghan who was not familiar with Nazir’s character. He called the actor’s passing an “irrecoverable loss for Afghan culture.”

Watandost made a significant contribution to “New Home, New Life” becoming a formidable force in ensuring that Afghans across the country and in exile retained a sense of social and cultural identity. Before 2001, surveys showed the soap opera had near universal listenership among Afghans inside and outside the country; those who had access to radio either knew the show or listened to it. Even in today’s crowded media market, in which hundreds of TV, radio and print outlets compete for audiences, drama has retained its popularity; recent surveys indicate that 5.2 million adult Afghans (i.e. not including those under 15) still regularly tune in.

When the production of “New Home, New Life” moved to Kabul in October 2002, Watandost continued to live in Peshawar, explaining that he could not afford the cost of living in the Afghan capital. He would come up to Kabul at weekends to record his role, but stayed on in Peshawar where he was also able to maintain his cooperation with music production outfits for which he wrote lyrics and sometimes composed songs.

Watandost’s family said he had been watering flowers in his home in Peshawar when he fell down some stairs and died. He was given a modest funeral by family and friends in Behsud district in Nangarhar on 12 January 2017. He will rest in peace, no doubt, but he has left the “New Home, New Life” writers with an impossible dilemma: what to do with the role he played so successfully for 23 years? To millions of his fans, he will be irreplaceable.

Mehrali Watandost

Born: 1950 Butkhak, Kabul

Died: 8 January 2017, Peshawar, Pakistan

Buried: 12 January 2017, Behsud District, Nangarhar

 

* Shirazuddin Siddiqi is BBC Media Action’s Country Director for Afghanistan, but has written this piece in his personal capacity. He was working with the “New Home, New Life” team in various capacities from 1994 until 2012 when the Afghan Education Production Organisation (AEPO) which produces “New Home, New Life” transitioned out of the BBC and relaunched itself as a local Afghan institution. The drama has continued to air on the BBC.

Following the presentation of the European Defence Action Plan by the European Commission and the launch of the preparatory action on defence research, the Commission and the European Defence Agency will present the progress achieved in the setting up of the EU's first defence research programme in the SEDE meeting on 25 January.
Further information
European Defence Action Plan
Fact Sheet on Security and Defence
Source : © European Union, 2017 - EP

The Royal Australian Navy's Aircraft Maintenance and Flight Trials Unit (AMAFTU) is to conduct seven first-of-class flight tests before September.

Italy is participating in the Aster 30 Block 1 New Technology (B1NT) programme, developed by MBDA and Thales consortium, Eurosam.

Engineering company Amec Foster Wheeler has secured a contract to deliver research and technology (R&T) services for the UK Ministry of Defence's (MoD) naval nuclear propulsion programme (NNPP).