Americas
Argentina has officially signed an agreement to acquire four P-3 aircraft from Norway. The signing ceremony, held on October 17, marks a pivotal moment in Argentina’s efforts to enhance its maritime defense and resource protection. The signing event, attended by key officials from both Argentina and Norway, saw the presence of Argentina’s Minister of Defense, Minister Jorge Taiana, and Juan Mercatelli, Commander of Naval Aviation and Rear Admiral of the Navy. On the Norwegian side, Magnus Hansvold, Director of the Norwegian Defense Materiel Agency (NDMA), and Halvor Sætre, the Norwegian Ambassador to Argentina, were present.
he Israeli government has suspended all sales and supplies of defense and security hardware and related services to Colombia. The move followed a heated exchange on X, formerly known as Twitter, between Colombian President Gustavo Petro and Israeli Ambassador in Bogota Gali Dagan about the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip.
Middle East and Africa
The Indian Army is closely analyzing how Hamas infiltrated Israel, particularly its use of paragliders, according to a report by The Hindu, citing unnamed defense sources. The Palestinian militant group carried out a surprise attack on Jerusalem earlier this month, raising questions about Israel’s intelligence-gathering capabilities. Hamas bypassed the highly-defended Israeli border by crossing through the air, effectively making their way to enemy territory “unobstructed.”
The German government has reportedly relocated several Bundeswehr special units to Cyprus in order to prepare for possible operations in the Middle East after an attack of the terrorist group Hamas on Israel on October 7 hast escalated the conflict in the region. The operations could include the liberation of German hostages and other citizens who have to flee the escalating situation in the Gaza Strip and possibly from Lebanon, which borders Israel.
Europe
The UK is sending the Terrahawk Paladin platform to Ukraine, an air defense system that can track and destroy drones and protect critical national infrastructure. Manufactured by UK-based MSI-Defence Systems, the containerized system is mounted on a NATO-standard Demountable Rack Offload and Pickup System (DROPS). The DROPS module can be deployed on the ground along with a remote control and rapidly be mounted on a military support vehicle or trailer-based system.
Asia-Pacific
The Malaysian government has allocated a budget of $507 million to procure three more follow-on vessels to the country’s Keris-class littoral mission ship (LMS). This allocation was announced by the country’s prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, in his parliamentary address on October 13. Anwar, who is also the country’s finance minister, disclosed the allocation as part of his tabling of the country’s proposed national budget for 2024.
Today’s Video
WATCH: UK delivers Terrahawk Paladin air defense system to Ukraine
