Americas
Emirati defense contractor EDGE Group has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Brazilian Navy to jointly develop and deploy naval anti-drone systems. The agreement will provide the framework for developing autonomous surface and aerial defense systems that meet the needs of Brasília’s naval forces. Brazilian Navy Admiral Edgar Luiz Siqueira Barbosa and EDGE Managing Director and CEO Hamad Al Marar formalized the agreement at the Euronaval defense exhibition in Paris.
The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded RTX’s BBN Technologies to develop a tool to boost its digital defenses. The contract supports DARPA’s Compartmentalization and Privilege Management (CPM) program, which aims to prevent the escalation of initial cyber threats into a full-blown attack while maintaining system efficiency. BBN supports this goal through its development of the Analysis and Restructuring for Containment (ARC) tool, which hinders the escalation of threats and their lateral movement within the software system.
Middle East & Africa
The US has awarded Elbit Systems a $127-million follow-on contract to supply Iron Fist Active Protection Systems (APS) for its Bradley infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs). The Israel-based defense contractor will supply the APS to General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems (GD-OTS), which will conduct the upgrades of the US Army’s Bradley M2A4E1 IFVs over a period of 34 months. In May 2024, Elbit received a $37-million contract to deliver the same APS for the Bradley IFVs as part of General Dynamics’ ongoing project to upgrade the US Army IFVs for eight years.
Europe
The Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) has signed a deal for 12 Airbus H225M Caracal helicopters. The agreement, inked at the Euronaval trade show in Paris, sees the Netherlands become the latest nation to embrace the combat-proven platform. The H225M was chosen following an extensive evaluation process, beating out rival bids to secure the coveted contract. Airbus Helicopters CEO Bruno Even hailed the decision, stating, “We are very proud to see the Royal Netherlands Air Force and COMMIT renewing their trust in Airbus Helicopters. The H225M was selected by the Netherlands in June 2023 after a call for tender and an exhaustive evaluation, after which the Airbus helicopter was considered the best option for the very demanding special forces operations.”
Asia-Pacific
North Korea staged GPS jamming attacks on Friday and Saturday, an operation that was affecting several ships and dozens of civilian aircraft in South Korea, Seoul’s military said. The jamming allegations come about a week after the North test-fired what it said was its most advanced and powerful solid-fuel ICBM missile, its first such launch since being accused of sending soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine. The South fired its own ballistic missile into the sea on Friday in a show of force aimed at demonstrating its resolve to respond to “any North Korean provocations.”
