Månad: juni 2021

Ett nytt luftvärnssystem är på väg att införas och de första komponenterna levererades till Sverige under våren. Luftvärnssystem 103 Patriot är den svenska benämningen på Patriot PAC-3, den senaste varianten av patriotsystemet.

Försvarsmakten kommer att använda två typer av robot när Luftvärnssystem 103 Patriot införs. Den ena är Lockheed Martins PAC-3 MSE. De används främst för att bekämpa ballistiska robotar och kryssningsrobotar.

– Den är optimerad för att skjuta ner ballistiska robotar och det här är en förmåga som inte funnits tidigare, säger Joakim Lewin, chef systemanskaffning armémateriel.

Den andra roboten som levereras är Patriot GEM-T, tillverkad av Raytheon.

– Den är mer av en avancerad robot för att bekämpa flygfarkoster av olika slag, säger Joakim Lewin. Läs pressmeddelande

Google-översättning ( Utgivarna)

[…] Förra onsdagen seglade den brittiska HMS Defender från Odessa (Ukraina) till Batumi (Georgien) och korsade en kort tid kort territorialvattnet på Krim. Ur västerländsk synpunkt är dessa ukrainska vatten.

Ryssland tolkade den brittiska passagen som en provokation och försökte dra nytta av den offentligt. Moskva meddelade omedelbart att varningsskott hade avfyrats mot det brittiska skeppet och att flygplan hade släppt bomber i fartygets väg.

Den brittiska marinen förnekade att varningsskott hade skjutits eller bomber släppts och betonade att Defender hade uppfört sig i enlighet med internationella avtal. […]

Den brittisk-ryska frågan fick en intressant  uppföljning förra helgen när konfidentiella dokument från den brittiska flottan hittades vid en busshållplats i Kent. Några av dokumenten handlade om brittiska truppers möjliga närvaro i Afghanistan efter Nato-operationernas slut där. Andra tidningar handlade om förväntade ryska reaktioner om ett brittiskt fartyg seglade nära Krim. En förbipasserande hittade de klassificerade dokumenten och överlämnade dem till BBC.

Den brittiska flottan visste naturligtvis mycket väl att rutten skulle uppfattas av Ryssland som en provokation. Vapnen på fartygets däck var därför täckta med pressening och helikoptern var parkerad i fartygets hangar, enligt dokumenten. I början av förra veckan hade det brittiska militärmötet diskuterat uppdraget med namnet ’Op Ditroite’.

En av de frågor som ställdes vid British Forces Headquarters i Northwood var: ”Vad vet vi om en möjlig ’mottagningskommitté’ ”? Dokumenten visade att man ansåg att flytta från en defensiv hållning till ”operativ aktivitet” skulle leda till ”mer regelbunden interaktion” med de ryska väpnade styrkorna.

Britterna betraktade två rutter. En nära kusten och en sydligare på ett stort avstånd från kusten. Den obestridda vägen avvisades eftersom Ryssland kunde tolka bristen på provokation som en svaghet och / eller som bevis för att Storbritannien fortfarande accepterade annekteringen. Läs artikel

NATO leaders at the Brussels summit on Monday agreed to maintain funding for the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul after the Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan ends.

Addressing a press conference after the summit, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the RS mission is ending but NATO will continue supporting Afghanistan in four ways: funding Afghan forces, out-of-country training for Afghan forces, a continued civilian presence, and maintaining ”critical infrastructure” such as the Kabul airport.

“NATO and allies are now working on how to ensure the continued operation of an international airport in Kabul. There were meetings also on the sidelines of the summit today. Turkey of course plays a key role in those efforts. We are working on exactly how to do it but there is a strong commitment from NATO and from NATO allies to ensure that we can operate an international airport,” he said. Läs artikel

The leaders of China and Russia on Monday announced the extension of a 20-year-old friendship treaty, hailing increasingly close ties and the ”stabilizing role” of their relationship.

The Kremlin published a joint statement from Russia and China to mark two decades since the treaty was signed, as Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping held a televised meeting by video link. […]

”As the world has entered a period of turbulence and change, and humanity faces various risks, close Sino-Russian cooperation brings positive energy to the international community,” Xi said, according to a transcript released by the Kremlin. Läs artikel

When Azerbaijan launched an offensive in the Fall of 2020 to retake the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabagh from Armenia, the United States, NATO, and the European Union played no role in ending the conflict. All that came from Brussels and Washington were pious statements about regrettable civilian casualties and the need for a peaceful solution.

Intervention to end the fighting was left to Russia. After Azerbaijan had reconquered much of the territory, Russia imposed an armistice agreement backed by Russian peacekeepers. Under this agreement, Armenia handed back more Azerbaijani territory outside Nagorno-Karabagh itself; with a Russian peacekeeping force now guaranteeing the security and de facto continued independence of the remainder of Armenian Nagorno-Karabagh. At the same time, Russia’s defensive alliance with Armenia, and the presence of Russian forces in that country, guarantees the settlement against any attempt by Turkey to intervene on the side of Azerbaijan. Läs artikel

People often accuse me of being a ‘Populist’ because some of the things I say are popular. Well, today I am going to be an Unpopulist. I think the Royal Navy’s antics in the Black Sea last week were little short of crazy.

I struggle to find a parallel that would be as mad. You need several things: a place where the Navy involved has no good reason to be, thousands of miles from its normal habitat; a quarrel in which that Navy’s country has no direct interest; a dispute over who owns a piece of land, in which those who live there take one view and a nearby country takes the other. Läs artikel

With Afghan troops in retreat and soon to lose vital American air support, Taliban commanders are voicing exuberance about quickly seizing full control of the country and re-establishing their version of an Islamic state. […]

They are now present in almost every province and are encircling several major cities — a strategy the militants employed in the mid-1990s when they overran most of Afghanistan until ousted by a US-led invasion after the 2001 September 11 attacks. […]

Despite the talk of a swift military victory, a Taliban spokesman said decisions on the war’s future course ultimately rested with the leadership. “It’s natural that military commanders want to use force,” said the spokesman. “But decisions are made at the top… so any rulings made by the leadership council will be implemented, and the commanders will follow.”

Away from the frontline, the Taliban are increasingly overseeing civil projects inside their territory.

Misbah and his troops have run their hospital for two years, where they distribute medicine to nearby residents and treat wounded jihadists and civilians alike. Injured Taliban fighters are often moved in and out of the hospital, however, to avoid air strikes.

The facility also hosts first aid classes conducted by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which also offers similar courses to government forces in Ghazni.

“With this training we can help the wounded on the battlefield,” said Taliban fighter Hafizullah, as ICRC medics passed on instructions to militants nearby. The ICRC often works with both sides in conflict zones in order to have access to civilian populations. Läs artikel

Ships and aircraft participating in one NATO’s signature maritime exercises head to the waters of the high north for Dynamic Mongoose 2021 (DYMO 21). The exercise, sponsored by NATO’s Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM), based at Northwood, U.K, will take place between June 29 and July 9.

Vice Admiral Didier Piaton of the French navy, the MARCOM deputy commander, said MARCOM is organizing planning and conducting the exercise in the maritime joint environment. “It’s important to our nations and our navies to maintain and enhance our collective skills in maritime warfare,” he said.

Dynamic Mongoose exercises are held annually in the North Atlantic, in which NATO trains and practices anti-submarine warfare (ASW) skills under various circumstances. MARCOM also leads the annual ASW exercise Dynamic Manta in the Mediterranean. Together, they represent NATO’S premier deep water, high-end ASW and anti-surface warfare exercises.

Ships from NATO Standing Maritime Group 1 (SNMG1), under the command of Commodore Bradley Peats, Royal Canadian Navy, will participate along with submarines from the U.S. and Norway. Peats commands SNMG1 ships from Canada, Denmark, Netherlands, Norway and the U.K. from his flagship, HMCS Halifax (FFH 330). Läs artikel

In 2016, the Pentagon was confident enough in the troubled F-35 program that it extended the fighter’s projected service life from 2064 to 2070. Now, some of the $80-million aircraft may be written off well before then, despite spending 15 years in development and less than a decade in service.

A few weeks ago, a top general indicated that the Air Force is considering retiring older F-35s instead of retrofitting them with the many upgrades and fixes that have piled up throughout the fighter’s short time in service. The Marine Corps may also be forced to retire some of its F-35s in a few years. A recent Pentagon report warned that the aircraft’s many structural problems, some of which are still unresolved, could mean that older aircraft could cease to be airworthy as soon as 2026. Worse, it’s still not clear whether upgrades which were applied to later production models have actually improved their durability. Many of the Marines’ F-35s could end up serving out less than a quarter of their anticipated lifespan. […]

According to a former employee, the F-35 project has become as much a jobs program as a national defense priority. And the Project On Government Oversight has extensively reported on Lockheed Martin’s incompetence and corruption throughout the two-decade-long program. If Lockheed Martin were a serious organization as it was during the Cold War, it wouldn’t operate like this. And if the Department of Defense were run by serious people, it wouldn’t allow defense contractors to engage in fraud, waste, and abuse on this scale. Lockheed Martin might be drawing the most fire right now over the F-35, but the company’s behavior is emblematic of a defense establishment with severely distorted priorities. Läs artikel

Sveriges största militära insats utomlands pågår i Mali, ett land där militärkupperna avlöst varandra. Diana Janse, som så sent som i mars var svensk ambassadör i Mali, ifrågasätter nu att Sverige ska stötta juntaledare och utbilda regimens soldater.

– Detta är vårt största militära engagemang utomlands. Vi saknar en bra debatt om vad vi gör, vad vi försöker uppnå, vad vi kan göra bättre och kanske inte göra alls, säger Diana Janse till DN. […]

– Sverige bör överväga att ta hem styrkan i Takuba. Det är inte rimligt att svenska specialförband stöttar och utbildar militärjuntans soldater. Vi bör också fundera på hur vår samverkan med Frankrike fungerar, säger Diana Janse. Läs artikel