The U.S. Army has awarded Teledyne FLIR Defense a $15 million contract to deliver more than 150 clip-on thermal weapon sights to a NATO ally. The ThermoSight HISS-XLR optical attachment allows snipers to detect man-size targets over 2,000 meters away. It can be mounted on any MIL-STD-1913 rail interface in front of existing scopes and...
Category: North America
US-Led Partnership Moves to Unplug Social Media-Based Russian Disinformation Campaign
U.S. law enforcers have seized two domain names and issued search warrants on 968 accounts allegedly created on the social media platform X by Russian actors as an artificial intelligence-powered bot farm for a global disinformation campaign. According to a statement from the Department of Justice on the cases’ affidavits opened on Tuesday, the bot...
Spire Global Secures Ship Tracking Data Services Deal From Canada
Canada has awarded Spire Global a $1.03 million contract to provide automatic identification system data services for various government agencies and departments. Under the agreement, the company will share its global ship tracking data with the Canadian government and provide users with enhanced visibility in open oceans and high-traffic zones. Spire will also use its...
Australian Defence Force to Acquire Switchblade Loitering Munition; Pat Conroy Quoted
Australia expects to receive an order of Switchblade 300 precision loitering munitions in 2024 and deploy the weapon into service in 2025 to boost the Australian Defence Force’s drone warfighting capabilities. The acquisition of the munitions, manufactured by U.S. company AeroVironment, adds to the different drone types in the ADF arsenal that can be armed...
US Treasury Wants Expanded Restrictions on Real Estate Ownership Around Military Sites
The United States may tighten restrictions on foreign ownership of real estate near military installations. On Monday, the Department of the Treasury issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would expand the jurisdiction of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. CFIUS has the authority to deny the purchase or lease of properties around...
US OKs $2B Loan for Poland’s Defense Modernization Program
The United States has signed an agreement to provide Poland with a $2 billion loan to support the European country’s defense modernization program. The deal will bolster the defense and deterrence of NATO’s eastern flank, the Department of State said on Monday. The Foreign Military Financing direct loan will fund Warsaw’s efforts to beef up...
US Discusses Possible National Security Space Cooperation With France, Italy and Luxembourg
Reps. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., and Adam Smith, D-Wash., led a U.S. delegation on a trip to France, Italy and Luxembourg to discuss cooperation on the National Security Space initiative. In a statement following the trip, the two lawmakers said that with the increasing number of threats targeting the United States, the government needs to collaborate...
US to Send More Powerful Fighter Jets to Japan Bases Amid Increasing Regional Tension
The U.S. Department of Defense will deploy newer fighter jets to Japan as part of a $10 billion modernization plan designed to enhance regional deterrence and maintain stability in the Indo-Pacific. It recently unveiled the capability modernization plan for multiple military installations across Japan. According to DOD, the Air Force will send 36 F-15EX Eagle...
More Arms Contracts Loom With Additional $2.3B US Military Aid to Ukraine; Lloyd Austin Quoted
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has announced that the United States is increasing its military assistance to Ukraine by $2.3 billion, according to an Associated Press report on Austin’s meeting with visiting Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov at the Pentagon on Tuesday. The increased aid will source $150 million from the presidential drawdown authority allowing the...
Taiwan to Acquire AeroVironment Switchblade 300 Loitering Munition From US
The United States has approved Taiwan’s request to purchase loitering munition systems. The proposed foreign military sale, estimated to be worth $60.2 million, will supply Taipei with AeroVironment’s Switchblade 300 advanced weapon system to strengthen the East Asian nation’s capability to defend itself against regional threats. The Switchblade 300 can be transported in a backpack...