Americas
Raytheon won a $293 million deal with a $33,700,000 initial task order for sustainment, support, research, development, and supplemental objectives related to the Silent Knight radar systems in support of US Special Operations Command Program Executive Office-Fixed Wing, Special Operations Forces Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics-KF. Fiscal 2024 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $977,000 are being obligated at time of award to the initial task order. The work will be performed in McKinney, Texas, and is expected to be completed by June 14, 2030.
NATO countries have “comfortably exceeded” a target of placing 300,000 troops on high-readiness as the alliance grapples with the threat from Russia, a senior alliance official said Thursday. NATO leaders agreed in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 to massively ramp up the number of forces that alliance commanders can deploy within 30 days. “The offers on the table from allies comfortably exceed the 300,000 that we set,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
Middle East & Africa
Iraq’s foreign minister on Thursday, receiving his Iranian counterpart in Baghdad, warned of the dangers of conflict expanding in southern Lebanon and its repercussions across the Middle East. Near-daily cross-border fire between Lebanese-based militants and Israeli forces have occurred since Palestinian group Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, triggering the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. The exchanges between Israel and Lebanon’s powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah group, an ally of Hamas, have intensified in recent weeks, sparking fears of wider war.
Europe
The US government has cleared the sale of the latest variant of the RTX AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) to Norway. Announced by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on 11 June, the approval for the AIM-120C-8 covers 300 missiles and related equipment, spares, support, and training for an estimated $1.94 billion. “The proposed sale will improve Norway’s capability to meet current and future threats by supplementing and replacing its AIM-120B AMRAAMs with the latest version of the AIM-120C. Norway already has AMRAAMs and F-35As in its inventory and will have no difficulty absorbing these articles into its armed forces. The newly acquired missiles will be used for ground-based air defence in the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS), but may be subject to dual use with the F-35A,” the DSCA said.
Asia-Pacific
The future of the KF-21 Boramae, a next-generation fighter jet under development by South Korea and Indonesia, hangs in the balance. Seok Jong-gun, chief of South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), has cast doubt on continued cooperation with Indonesia due to allegations of technology theft and financial difficulties. In an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo, Seok stated that DAPA would “reexamine whether to cooperate in joint development” if the accusations of Indonesian engineers stealing sensitive KF-21 technology prove true. In January, reports surfaced of a data leak involving a 3D design modeling program for the KF-21. The investigation into the alleged leak is currently being handled by South Korean law enforcement.