Rapid Fire Dec. 11, 2012: Who’s Big in Brazil?

* Brazilian news weekly Istoé published an article [in Portuguese] claiming that Brazil’s Air Force is partial to Super Hornets in the ongoing FX-2 competition for 36 fighters. President Rousseff is in France for two days, though discussing the stalled decision to buy Rafales is not officially on the agenda according to the AFP [in French]. Both countries are facing markedly slower economic growth this year. * South Korea and Turkey have a tight defense relationship but that does not make the Turkish T-129 attack helicopter a guaranteed success in South Korea. Hürriyet. * Russia’s Military Industrial Commission is weighing the pros and cons of military imports vs. local development and production. Dmitry Gorenburg at Harvard University has the highlights of a report whose authors like how the French defense ministry is supporting that country’s industry. * A bipartisan group of 22 members of the US House of Representatives sent a letter to President Obama and the congressional leadership to voice their support for “significant defense savings”, though they reject sequestration’s arbitrary nature. * The Diplomat interviewed Congressman Randy Forbes [R-VA, HASC member] on a number of issues including the continued relevance of aircraft carriers and the US posture in […]