Jane's Defence Weekly - Asia/Pacific

Asia/Pacific

Malaysia commissions second Scorpene
The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) officially commissioned its second and final Scorpene-class submarine, KD Tun Abdul Razak , on 5 November in Cartagena, Spain....
06-Nov-2009

NATO defends co-operation with Afghan forces despite Helmand attack
NATO has defended its efforts to prevent Taliban infiltration of the Afghan army and police following the deaths of five British soldiers in Helmand at...
06-Nov-2009

Thailand increases indigenous defence manufacturing
Thailand has increased indigenous defence manufacturing targets in response to the growing costs of military procurement, the director general of the Thai Ministry of ...
06-Nov-2009

Australia and US update submarine co-operation agreement
Australia and the US have updated a key submarine agreement that provides for industrial and naval co-operation on issues that include the support of ...
06-Nov-2009

North Korea tries to engage US in bilateral talks
North Korea announced it has completed the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel rods to extract weapons-grade plutonium in an attempt to convince the US...
05-Nov-2009

Australia requires help for future submarine
The design and development of Australia's future submarine programme would be at the margins of the country's present scientific and technological capacity and would ...
05-Nov-2009

Indian Army receives first batch of Yukthirath PPVs
The Indian Army took delivery of its first 14 Indian Ordnance Factory (IOF)-manufactured 'Yukthirath' improved mine-protected vehicles (MPVs) on 30 October, according to a...
04-Nov-2009

Cambodia to raise FY10 defence budget by 23%
The Cambodian government has proposed to raise its Fiscal Year 2010 (FY10) defence budget to USD274 million, an increase of nearly 23 per cent ...
03-Nov-2009

USAF issues light-attack aircraft RfI for Afghanistan
The US Air Force (USAF) has issued a request for information (RfI) to find an advanced flight trainer and light-attack aircraft for the Afghanistan ...
03-Nov-2009

Indian Hip-H helicopter crashes in Kashmir
An Indian Air Force (IAF) Mil Mi-17-1V 'Hip-H' transport helicopter crashed in the mountainous Kashmir region on 30 October, according to local media reports. ...
02-Nov-2009

Japanese destroyer suffers damage following collision
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) destroyer JS Kurama collided with the South Korean container ship Carina Star on 27 October, causing a fire...
30-Oct-2009

Singapore deploys ARTHUR detachment to guard Afghan base
Singapore has deployed two of its ARTHUR (ARTillery HUnting Radar) weapon location systems to a conflict zone for the first time, Jane's has learned....
30-Oct-2009

Belarus joins CSTO Rapid Reaction Force
Belarus formally joined the Rapid Reaction Force of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) on 20 October. The move follows the 7,000-troop, six-nation deployment ...
30-Oct-2009

Malaysian MiGs to go by end of 2010
The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) is initiating a phased reduction of its MiG-29 fighter fleet that will see the aircraft phased out of ...
30-Oct-2009

Controversy mounts over use of EOD 'dowsing rods' in Thailand
Controversy is mounting over the effectiveness of remote substance detectors widely used by the Royal Thai Army (RTA) and Royal Thai Police (RTP) bomb squads,...
30-Oct-2009

Wedgetail EWSP suite trials get under way
Trials of the electronic warfare self-protection (EWSP) suite of Australia's troubled AUD3.8 billion (USD3.5 billion) Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) programme are...
30-Oct-2009

India-US exercises reinforce emerging strategic relationship
The Indian and US armies have successfully concluded their largest joint manoeuvres to date, using mechanised forces in northern India to augment interoperability for counter-insurgency...
30-Oct-2009

*Indian Army may turn to 1950s-vintage artillery
The Indian Army's artillery directorate is considering the acquisition of additional Soviet-designed 130 mm M-46 field guns, developed in the 1950s, from surplus stocks within...
30-Oct-2009

UK joint fires group used in Afghanistan
Artillery, Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) and attack helicopter fires in Afghanistan's Helmand province have been co-ordinated by a British Army Joint Fires ...
30-Oct-2009

Australian policy revision to highlight 'new approach' to procurement
Australia's updated defence industry policy, which is scheduled to be published before the end of 2009, will be shaped by three key themes - a...
30-Oct-2009

Collins-class successors could cost $33bn
The proposed replacement of Australia's six Collins-class submarines with a 12-strong fleet of what are likely to be the world's largest conventional submarines could ...
29-Oct-2009

*Terrex ICV enters production for Singapore
The Terrex 8x8 infantry carrier vehicle (ICV) made by Singapore Technologies Kinetics (STK) has entered production for the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). The company...
29-Oct-2009

Japan advances BMD project with SM-3 interception
A Japanese ship reversed the Maritime Self-Defense Force's (JMSDF's) last ballistic missile defence (BMD) setback with a successful exo-atmospheric Standard Missile (SM-3) interception of ...
29-Oct-2009

Lack of Collins-class readiness probed by Canberra
The Australian government has ordered a review into the operational readiness of the Royal Australian Navy's (RAN's) Collins-class submarines, with only two of the ...
28-Oct-2009

DMO reveals expected Australian JSF costs
The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters (JSFs) that Australia is set to buy are expected to have a per-unit flyaway cost ...
28-Oct-2009

RAN combat helicopter contender offers early delivery
The acquisition of the MH-60R combat helicopter for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) could see the first aircraft delivered as early as the fourth...
28-Oct-2009

Australian contenders step up to supply protected vehicles for ADF
The Australian Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) has received responses from 12 indigenously based defence companies bidding to supply Protected Mobility Vehicles - Light for ...
28-Oct-2009

MiG-27M crashes during training flight in India
An Indian Air Force (IAF) MiG-27M 'Flogger' ground attack aircraft crashed during a routine training flight in the northeast of the country on 23 ...
26-Oct-2009

Three ISAF helicopters crash in Afghanistan
The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan has lost three helicopters in two separate crashes, resulting in the deaths of at least 14 ...
26-Oct-2009

Obama visit may advance Taiwan's bid for Black Hawks
Taiwan's Defence Minister, Kao Hua-chu, has stated that he expects Washington to approve Taipei's long-standing bid to purchase 60 Sikorsky Black Hawk helicopters before ...
26-Oct-2009

*Boeing offers Apache and Chinook helicopters to India
Boeing has submitted two procurement proposals to the Indian Air Force (IAF), offering its AH-64D Apache and the CH-47F Chinook for the country's attack and...
23-Oct-2009

ISAF remains in limbo amidst uncertainty over Washington's Afghan strategy
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan faces prolonged uncertainty about the future of its mission, following the announcement of a presidential run-off vote...
23-Oct-2009

Seoul faces US pressure on contribution to Afghan mission
South Korea is under growing pressure from the United States to increase its contribution to the international efforts in Afghanistan. Although no formal ...
23-Oct-2009

Taliban attacks 'soft targets' in retaliation for Waziristan offensive
A week after Pakistan's military ordered some 30,000 soldiers to launch a long-awaited ground campaign on 17 October to destroy sanctuaries used by Taliban ...
23-Oct-2009

Indonesia orders eight Super Tucanos
Indonesia has ordered eight Embraer EMB-314 Super Tucano trainer/light-attack aircraft, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) told Jane's on 15 October. Although an ...
23-Oct-2009

defence weekly