Jane's Defense News

China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed on a draft framework for a code of conduct (COC) in the South China Sea (SCS) in a bid to ease regional tensions over territorial disputes in the area. "We are pleased to announce that the senior officials have completed

EVENT On 17 May, the Constitutional Court ruled against two clauses included in the 2016 Legislative Act for Peace, which establishes the mechanism for the approval of legislation needed to implement the peace agreement signed between the government and the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de

The export version of China's Harbin Aviation Industries (Group) Company (HAIG) Z-19 Black Whirlwind armed reconnaissance/attack helicopter has made its maiden flight. Called the Z-19E, the new variant took to the skies on 18 May over the city of Harbin in China's northeastern province of

The first of 309 Piranha 5 armoured personal carriers (APCs) for the Royal Danish Army was rolled out on 17 May in a ceremony at the facilities of manufacturer General Dynamics European Land Systems - Mowag (GDELS-Mowag) in Kreuzlingen, Switzerland. The Piranha 5 was selected by the Danish Defence

Key Points A SDSM-led government is likely to remain in power in the six-month outlook challenged by the VMRO-DPMNE, which will be in opposition. Nationalist protests, mainly in the capital Skopje, are likely within the next six months. Relations with Albania and Bulgaria are likely to deepen,

The US Navy's (USN's) Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) awarded General Atomics a USD195.2 million contract modification for manufacture, assembly, test, and checkout of the advanced arresting gear (AAG) for the future nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN 80) on 18 May 2017. The

EVENT On 18 May, Medellín's Public Prosecutor's Office warned its counterparts in other cities that five official vehicles stolen from its premises may be used to perpetrate terrorist improvised explosive device (IED) attacks on government and police buildings elsewhere in Colombia. The

Sales in Indra's defence and security sector increased by 11% in the first quarter of 2017, making it the best performing division for the group. The Spanish IT and systems group reported an overall growth of 2% in business revenue to EUR638.5 million (USD699.5 million) on 11 May, while profits

A Royal Jordan Armed Forces (RJAF) F-16 fighter used a Matra missile to shoot down an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) near the Syrian border, a recently retired senior RJAF officer has told Jane's . The Jordanian Armed Forces announced on 10 May that an F-16 had shot down a UAV in an unidentified

The US State Department has approved the sale of 60 Lockheed Martin PAC-3 and 100 Raytheon GEM-T missiles for the Patriot air defence systems in service with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Defense Security Cooperation Agency DSCA announced on 11 May. The DSCA said the proposed sale is

Iran is providing "explosive boat technology", unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and missile support to Yemen's rebels, US Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on 11 May. The rebels are believed to have used an unmanned boat loaded

Animal Liberation Front activists claimed responsibility for hacking the website of the Branfere zoo.

In Leipzig, anarchists claimed responsibility for setting fire to the electricity wires of two railway lines to oppose Deutsche Bahn's plans to evict squatters from one of its unused buildings on 20 March.

In Taunusstein, anarchists claimed responsibility for throwing paint at the Zum Taunus restaurant on 24 March, claiming that AfD members were its regular clients.

Hostility from most of Afghanistan's tribes to the Islamic State means its prospects for gaining a major foothold in the country remain minimal, although estimates of the number of Islamic State fighters in the country vary widely. More importantly, the Islamic State faces a major adversary in the

ACCORDING to media reports on 8 May, 20 Islamic State militants were killed, three suicide vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices (SVBIEDs) and a stash of weapons were destroyed when army forces, supported by the United States-led coalition, advanced and combed an area 100km from Haditha in

The Australian government has secured the purchase of additional land to substantially increase the size of the ship and submarine building facility at Osborne, Adelaide, for the country's AUD89 billion (USD66 billion) naval shipbuilding programme. Minister for Defence Industry Christopher Pyne

Boeing has been awarded a USD488.1 million Foreign Military Sales (FMS) contract to remanufacture 38 WAH-64D Apache Longbow AH1 attack helicopters to the latest AH-64E Apache Guardian standard for the United Kingdom. The contract, which was announced by the US Department of Defense (DoD) on 11 May,

Chile's state-run shipyard ASMAR Astilleros commenced the construction of a new icebreaker in a ceremony on 9 May. The vessel is scheduled to be completed within four years at a cost of USD217 million, according to the Chilean Ministry of Defence. The new icebreaker will measure approximately 125 m

In Santiago, the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) claimed responsibility for placing an improvised explosive device (IED) outside a dealership of commercial vehicles on 5 May.