Rapid Fire March 20, 2013: MBDA Shrunk by Third in a Decade
- Senator Kelly Ayotte [R-NH] tried but failed to scrap MEADS funding (alternatively for termination or development) with an amendment to the Senate’s continuing resolution/minibus HR 933 bill. The CR contains language at odds with the FY authorization law as well as the House’s version of HR 933. MEADS has been one of several groundhog day items of contention in Congress these past couple of years, but it is not big enough to stand in the way of finalizing the bill.
- MBDA’s saw stable revenue of 3 billion euros in 2012, but bookings amounted to only 2.3 billion euros (about $3B), even if the missile maker’s exports have been growing. Their backlog is now below 10 billion euros, down from almost 15 billion euros in 2003. Press release | La Tribune [in French].
“[T]he military budget, roughly in line with the growth of China’s GDP and inflation, has not diverted massive funding away from important civilian projects necessary for maintaining economic development.”
- CSIS PacNet looks at [PDF] the debate in South Korea about the need for nuclear weapons – whether US tactical ones or new weapons developed at home – to bargain with and deter North Korea.
- Added to our document repository: BAE Systems’ 2012 annual report and several reports from the US DoD Inspector General.
