Showing posts with label Norway. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Norway. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Bids Submitted for Aegis Follow-On System


Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Boeing have submitted proposals to take over support and development of the Aegis combat system, the companies said Dec. 14.
The Combat System Engineering Agent (CSEA) competition also is intended to provide a follow-on system to Aegis, the U.S. Navy's most capable weapon system and the foundation for its fleet air defense, surface warfare and ballistic missile defense (BMD) missions.
Lockheed has held the Aegis development and support contract since 1995, when it acquired Martin Marietta. The system was first developed by RCA starting in the late 1960s. General Electric then bought the company, which in turn was sold to Martin Marietta and subsequently merged with Lockheed.
Aegis, perhaps the world's most effective naval combat system, has been worth many billions of dollars to Lockheed over the years. All 27 Ticonderoga-class cruisers and at least 70 DDG 51 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers have been built with the system. Spain, Norway, Japan and the Republic of Korea operate Aegis warships, and Australia is building a new class of Aegis destroyers.
A combination of radars, computers and weapons, Aegis was first developed to counter massed attacks by Soviet anti-ship missiles, and has evolved into an effective surface warfare system. Although not designed to target ballistic missiles, the system has been modified with more powerful processors as the basis for the Navy's BMD systems, and is the foundation for the Phased Adaptive Approach effort for the land-based missile defense of Europe.
According to the Missile Defense Agency, 24 Aegis ships - five cruisers and 19 destroyers - have BMD capability. That number is to increase to 32 ships by the end of 2013 as more units are upgraded.
The CSEA effort is intended to provide for the design, development and integration of Aegis weapon system and Aegis combat system future capabilities for existing cruisers and destroyers, and potentially create a new system for DDG 51 Flight III ships beginning in 2016.
Dependent on development, Flight III ships may be fitted with a new combat system or continue with Aegis.
The Navy is expected to award the CSEA contract in the fall of 2012.
A separate competition is underway to develop a new phased-array radar for Aegis. The Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR) is to provide new radars to replace existing SPY-1 radars beginning with the U.S. Navy's 2016 Flight III destroyers.
Lockheed, Raytheon and Northrop are working to develop the AMDR, which will be a dual-band system. All three companies are working under Navy contracts to develop an S-band (AMDR-S) radar, with development contracts yet to be issued for the AMDR-X X-band system. The AMDR systems will also include a radar suite controller to integrate the radars.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

New Cluster Munitions Treaty Rejected

A U.S.-led effort to regulate the use of cluster bombs failed to get sufficient support from countries that have signed the Oslo Convention, an international treaty that bans the weapons.
Abu Ali Ahmad, left, shows a friend a crate full of detonated cluster bombs in a field in southern Lebanon in 2006. An effort to regulate the use of cluster bombs failed to get enough support from countries that have signed the Oslo Convention. (File photo / Agence France-Presse)
The protocol was rejected Nov. 25 after several weeks of negotiations between member states of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) in Geneva.
If it had passed, the legally binding protocol would have banned cluster bombs manufactured before 1980 and required safeguards and regulations for those manufactured after that date. China and Russia, who, along with the United States, are major producers of the weapons, supported the effort.
Meanwhile, several of the 111 signatories of the Oslo Convention believed this regulatory approach undermined or at least diluted the outright ban. Human Rights Watch, the International Committee of the Red Cross and other groups opposed the treaty and praised its defeat.
It is unclear when the major users will be brought to the table again, a senior U.S. official said.
Until the last hour of negotiations, amendments were being offered to address the Oslo countries' concerns, but in the end they were insufficient, the U.S. official said.
Part of the U.S. argument for the protocol was that if enacted, it would prohibit more cluster munitions for the United States than the Oslo Convention has prohibited for all of its member states combined.

MBDA To Build Facility To Disarm Cluster Bombs

PARIS - MBDA is set to invest about 15 million euros ($16 million) to set up a plant in central France to disarm cluster weapons as part of a new business pursuit, the European missile maker said Nov. 25.
"MBDA undertakes to establish within two years, and within national territory, a facility to process classified munitions in accordance with the very strict regulations that apply to defense safety; namely operational reliability and respect for the environment," the company said in a statement.
Creation of the munitions processing plant at its Bourges Subdray site follows a Nov. 3 contract from the NATO Maintenance and Supply Agency for the destruction of 36,000 complex munitions, the statement said.
MBDA expects to create 20 new jobs at the facility.
"The demilitarization of complex weapons has become a new strategic activity for MBDA," said MBDA Executive Chairman Antoine Bouvier.
"Customers not only require guaranteed availability and sustained support for their equipment, but also that we ensure the safe end-of-life disposal of their complex weapons, as well," he said.
Under the contract, MBDA is in charge of disposing of more than 1,000 missiles; 22,000 M26 rockets (formerly used in multiple launch rocket systems), each containing 644 submunitions; and 13,000 155mm grenade shells, each containing 63 submunitions, totaling more than 15 million submunitions.
The work is due to be complete by 2017.
MBDA worked with Esplodenti Sabino and Aid of Italy, and NAMMO of Norway to bid for the NATO contract.
The contract follows the Oslo Convention, which outlawed cluster munitions and called on signatory states to dispose of their weapons by 2018.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Norwegian Defense Firms Hacked, Intel Reports

OSLO - The biggest wave of hacking and espionage attacks in Norway's history has hit key defense and energy companies, the National Security Agency (NSM) said Nov. 18.
At least 10 companies have over the past year fallen victim to hackers in a string of attacks believed to be the work of one group, the NSM said in a statement.
"We have to suppose that the actual number (of victims) is much higher, but that many (companies) have not been in contact" with authorities, the agency said.
The security agency said it was difficult to track down the perpetrators, who used servers based abroad for their attacks, refusing to point fingers at any suspects.
"This is the first time that a hacking campaign of this magnitude has been detected in Norway," said NSM spokesman Kjetil Berg Veire.
The hackers in each case tried to gain access to the corporate network by sending seemingly legitimate emails to specific people, along with a well-concealed virus handing them remote access to the computer in question, according to the agency.
But each attack was "tailored" for the specific company, making it possible to escape detection by anti-virus programs, it said.
The main targets of the attacks were companies in the oil, gas and overall energy sector, as well as in defense.
The names of the targeted companies were not divulged.
"The attacks have, on several occasions, come when the companies have been involved in large-scale contract negotiations," NSM said.
The attacks had allowed the hackers to gain access to documents, industrial charts, usernames and passwords.
According to Berg Veire, however, it is impossible to quantify the possible losses, as no overview exists of what had been taken

Friday, November 11, 2011

Norway Should Maintain Submarine Fleet: Study

HELSINKI - Norway's national defense capability would be best served by either extending the life of its submarine fleet or acquiring a next-generation sub, according to a study commissioned by the Ministry of Defense (MoD).
The study, which examined Norway's submarine needs after 2020 when the Navy's Ula-class fleet is due to be renewed, determined that no other military capabilities are suited to replace its submarines. The direct inference is that Norway should replace its submarine fleet with a new-generation of Arctic-class stealth subs.
The study is a collaboration among MoD, the Defense Forces Command and the National Institute of Defense Research. The Ula-class submarines have had midlife upgrades and are due to be phased out after 2020 unless a new investment program is established.
MoD now plans to analyze how the Navy's submarine fleet can be replaced. This investigation will form a central part of a new study to be completed in 2014.
This new study will examine available options, including extending the life of the current Ula-class fleet or acquiring a next-generation submarine after 2020. It is expected that a final recommendation will be submitted to the MoD and parliament in 2017.
The study given to MoD on Nov. 3 considered three primary options before it concluded that maintaining a submarine fleet is in the best interests of national defense and key to the government's High North and Arctic security strategies.
The study contemplated the consequences of halting investment in submarine capability and phasing out the present fleet. The second option considered the impact of a continuation of the submarine fleet. This included the possibility of prolonging the life of the Ula-class subs, a new acquisition program or a combination of the two. A third option explored alternatives to the submarine, such as the expanded use of surveillance technologies, including sensors.
Sweden has had informal discussions on the possibility of selling its next-generation A26 submarine, which is under development, to Norway. Other possible European acquisition options include France's Barracuda-class submarine or the German-designed Type 212 or Type 214 subs.
Norway's submarine capacity was reduced in the late 1990s when the Kobben-class subs were phased out. This left the Navy with six diesel-electric propulsion Ula-class vessels.
The Ula-class boats are primarily active in coastal policing and defense operations, being limited in their diving depth to around 820 feet. All six subs came into active service in 1989-92 and comprise a mix of German, Norwegian and French engineering technologies and weapon control systems, including Kongsberg's MSI-90U torpedo fire-control platforms.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Finland Weighs Surface-to-Surface Missile Options

HELSINKI - Finland's armed forces are examining costs and needs for surface-to-surface tactical missiles (SSMs) as part of the Army's $60 million SSM modernization program, which centers on purchasing new ordnance for guided rocket launchers and 155mm artillery systems.
The main focus is on advancing a procurement solution that will add new strength to the Army's battlefield weapons arsenal, and that can guarantee economy of purchase and deployment. The Finnish military's armory includes the M270 armored and self-propelled multiple-launch rocket system (local designation: 298 RsRakH 06), Euro-Spike anti-tank missiles and Czech-produced RM-70 multiple rocket launcher (local designation: 122 RakH 89).
The SSMs being considered would be launched from heavy rocket launchers. The SSM type review and inspection process is expected to continue into 2013, with a decision on whether to purchase in 2014 or 2015.
A big component of the SSM project would be upgrades to the rocket launchers' computer software support programs, which would enable launchers to use new types of modern ordnance with a range of 200 to 300 kilometers.
The Finnish armed forces have engaged in several notable and capital-intensive strategic defense programs since 2008. In 2009, the Ministry of Defence approved a $700 million budget to cover the cost of a new Norwegian Advanced Air-to-Surface Missile air defense and radar platform supplied by Norway's Kongsberg and the U.S.'s Raytheon.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Norway pulls Falcons back

HELSINKI - Norway has withdrawn its F-16 fighter squadron from NATO's Operation Unified Protector (OUP). The return of the F-16s ends Norway's direct involvement in the operation and the enforcement of NATO's no-fly zone over Libya.
Danish F-16 fighters are seen at the Italian military airport of Sigonella in March. Norway has withdrawn its F-16 fighters from NATO's Libya operation, but Denmark's fighter jets have continued bombing missions. (Mario LaPorta / AFP via Getty Images)
The Norwegian Air Force's squadron, comprising six F-16s, flew 596 missions, almost 10 percent of the total by NATO-aligned aircraft, since March. The aircraft dropped 542 bombs and logged about 2,000 hours of flight time over the four-month period, according to Norwegian Ministry of Defense figures.
The number of missions flown by the aircraft declined in June when two F-16s were recalled to Norway from Souda Airbase in Crete. Britain compensated for the partial withdrawal, sending an extra four Panavia Tornado GR.4 ground-attack jets to replace the F-16s.
By contrast, Denmark's F-16 fighter squadron, which joined the operation in early April, dropped some 705 bombs, including seven precision bombs, on Libya, according to the latest data from the Danish Ministry of Defense.
In recent weeks, six Danish Air Force F-16s have been engaged in bombing missions on targets located between Zlitan and the Libyan capital Tripoli. Targets have included military depots and support facilities.
The Libyan mission cost the Danes up to $16 million a month, a figure that excludes capital outlay to replace precision missiles, bombs and other munitions. The Danes' core arsenal includes GBU-49 type 500-pound bombs and 1-ton bunker killer BLU-109 warheads.
The Zlitan area, which lies 160 kilometers east of Tripoli, has seen increased fighting between rebel groups and forces loyal to the Libyan leader, Moammar Gadhafi, in recent weeks.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Moscow To NATO: Do Not Extend Missile Shield

OSLO - Russia cautioned the U.S. and its NATO allies Aug. 8 against plans to extend an anti-missile shield into northern European seas.
On a visit to Norway, Russia's ambassador to NATO Dmitry Rogozin deplored the lack of any firm guarantees from the alliance that American ships fitted with anti-missile technology would not be deployed in northern waters.
"The very fact of deploying U.S. military missile defense infrastructure in the Northern seas is a real provocation with regard to the process of nuclear disarmament", said Rogozin at a press conference.
"Why is no one giving guarantees that a U.S. fleet equipped with Aegis interceptor systems won't be deployed in the Northern seas?" he said.
"I'm sure that if there were no such plans in reality, then I would have been given a very definite negative answer. I didn't get any firm answer to this question," he said, adding that Russia had repeatedly asked the U.S. for answers.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev agreed at a NATO summit in November to explore the possibility of cooperating on a system to protect Europe's population from the threat of ballistic missiles from countries such as Iran.
Fearing that the system would undermine its nuclear deterrent, Moscow has since been demanding a legally binding guarantee that the missile shield would not be aimed at Russia.
Rogozin also called on Norway's foreign affairs minister, Jonas Gahr Stoere, to oppose the plan.
"The countries that are going to join in participating in these plans are going to share the responsibility like the initiators of that project," he said, warning Europe "not to hide behind the back of the United States."
Despite the lack of consensus, NATO adopted a plan to forge ahead with the shield in June.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who is overseeing continuing talks between NATO defense ministers and Russia, said he was optimistic that a deal on guarantees could be reached in time for the next NATO summit hosted by the United States in May 2012.
The missile shield project will not be completed before 2018, NATO officials estimate.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Norway Withdraws Jets from Libya Ops: Military

OSLO - Norway on Aug. 1 withdrew as planned its final four F-16 fighter jets that have been taking part in the NATO-led mission over Libya, the Norwegian military said.
The Norwegian planes, which landed at their bases in Bodoe in the north of Norway and in Oerland in the central west of the country, carried out 583 missions, out of a total of 6,493 flown by NATO since March 31, and dropped 569 bombs, military spokesman Petter Lindqvist told AFP.
On June 10, the center-left government, split over Norway's prolonged participation in the bombing, announced it would gradually withdraw its six F-16 fighter jets stationed at the Souda base on the Greek island of Crete.
The government explained that its small air force could not sustain a large air contribution for a long period of time.
Only eight of NATO's 28 member states have flown bombing missions since the alliance took command of the operation on March 31: Norway, Britain, France, Canada, Belgium, Denmark, Italy and the United States.
London has increased its contribution by adding four Tornado jets, effectively making up for the loss of the Norwegian planes.
NATO officials say Norway's departure will not affect the tempo of air operations, which have averaged more than 100 sorties per day including around 50 missions aimed at hitting targets.
The Scandinavian country, shocked by a bombing and shooting spree committed by a far-right extremist, will continue its involvement in the operation with 10 officers posted at the Libya air command centre based in Italy.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Turkey Still Hopes To Order First F-35

ANKARA - Although Turkey still plans to buy about 100 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, it has not formally committed to the U.S.-led program. To do so, it needs to submit a purchase order for a first batch of six aircraft before the end of this year.
"We will have talks [with the Americans] in the months ahead in an effort to resolve some matters," said Murad Bayar, chief of the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries, the government's defense procurement agency. "If we manage to reach an agreement, we expect to order the first six aircraft this year. We expect to reach a deal."
The F-35, whose production is led by Lockheed Martin, will be built by a consortium of nine countries, including Turkey. Other members of the consortium are Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, Australia, Norway and Denmark.
A few years ago, when Turkey's planned buy of about 100 jets was expected to cost approximately $10 billion, Turkish companies grabbed project work worth up to $5 billion. But the unit price has gone up over the past two years, exceeding $12 billion, according to Turkish officials.
Now Turkish companies seek to raise their share to around $6 billion to stay near the planned 50 percent figure. In addition, the U.S. remains reluctant to share millions of lines of source code that make the plane's flight possible. But Turkey wants access to part of the source code related to operational needs.
But placing an order for the first six aircraft before the end of this year is related mostly to early deliveries, around 2014 and 2015, and failure to do so would not undermine participation in the program, Bayar said.
"If we don't place the first purchase order by the year end, it would not necessarily mean that we have failed to agree. It may mean that we, at this point, may not have the finances," Bayar said. "Anyway, we hope that none of this happens."
The F-35 comes in three variants for conventional takeoff and landing, short takeoff and vertical landing, and for aircraft carrier operations.

Friday, June 10, 2011

Danish Planes in Libya Running Out of Bombs: Report


COPENHAGEN - The Danish military forces operating in Libya are running out of bombs for their F-16 fighter jets and have asked the Netherlands to help replenish their stock, a report said June 9.
"The Danish F-16s are about to run out of bombs to continue to attack Libya," the Politiken daily said, citing unnamed defense sources.
"The Danish military has therefore asked Holland for help," it added.
A spokesman for the Danish military's logistics division did not confirm the report but said his department was speaking to other coalition partners about supplies.
"It is our job to always support operations in the short, medium and long-term and we always have a close cooperation with our F-16 partnership countries, in particular Norway and the Netherlands," Anders Paaskesen of the Danish Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organisation told AFP.
Denmark was one of the first countries to offer air assets for the international air campaign to protect Libyan civilians from Moammar Gadhafi's forces.
Its fighter jets have been participating in the mission since March 20.
Denmark has six F-16 jets stationed at the Signonella base of the Italian island of Sicily, four of which are operational at any given time.
Since operations began, the Danish jets have carried out 274 sorties and dropped 494 precision bombs, Inge Borggaard of the Air Force Tactical Command told AFP.

Rise in F-35 Acquisition Cost Marginal: Minister


HELSINKI - The Norwegian government must deliver "exact and transparent figures" on the costs of buying 56 F-35 Lightning IIs lest it face a revolt from opposition benches, the opposition Christian Democrats warned June 7.
"I can only wonder why the Norwegian government is so eager to purchase four F-35 training aircraft at the same time as the U.S. government is postponing its purchases. If the government cannot be transparent about the costs, then we would support a motion to postpone the project," Christian Democrat leader Dagfinn Hoybrathen said during a parliamentary hearing into the costs involved in the Next-Generation Fighter Acquisition Program.
At the hearing, Defense Minister Grete Faremo said the jets' acquisition cost had increased $180 million, to $5.71 billion, since Norway announced it would purchase the F-35 in 2008. She called this a relatively small increase.
Faremo said that total is based on an expected unit flyaway cost of $102 million.
Norway expects to pay up to $13.3 billion for the full complement of 56 aircraft. This price not only includes logistics and weapons, but also a value for uncertainty and potential escalating price risks linked to the project.
Faremo said the government was unable to present a definite cost figure for the total program. Some supplementary costs would not be known until next year, including funding to reorganize the Norwegian Air Force's structures and build one or more new air bases.
But Conservative Party representatives described the government figures as vague and confusing.
"What makes this so difficult is that so much is being postponed until next year. The fighter acquisition program's total cost estimates now vary from between $26.7 billion to $40 billion," said Ivar Kristiansen, the Conservatives' senior representative on the Storting's Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee.
The defense minister confirmed that Norway would formally order four trainer F-35s worth $886 million this fall for delivery in 2016. The other 52 aircraft are to be delivered after 2018.
The operating and maintenance life-cycle cost, spanning 25 to 30 years of projected service for the F-35s, is estimated at $26.8 billion, the minister said.
"Let me again emphasize that we have common interests with the U.S. government to support the measures taken to reduce both acquisition and operating costs related to the F-35," said Faremo.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

NATO, Russian Jets Hold First Ever Joint Exercise

WARSAW - NATO and Russian fighter jets held their first ever joint exercise June 7, teaming up in a bid to prevent attacks such as the Sept. 11, 2001, strikes on the United States, a NATO official confirmed.
Col. Sylwester Bartoszewski, supervisor of Vigilant Skies 2011, explains the first of two planned exercises of Polish F-16s and Russian Sukhoi jets on June 7 in Warsaw. NATO and Russian fighter jets held their first ever joint exercise. (Janet Skarzynski / AFP via Getty Images)
"Today was an important step for NATO-Russia relations, and therefore in my opinion, also an important step for the world because the threat of terrorism is a common one," Georges D'hollander, general manager of the NATO Consultation, Command and Control Agency told reporters in Warsaw on June 7 after the first of two planned exercises were completed.
"This is a confidence-building initiative which originated by the decision of the NATO-Russia Council," D'hollander added, at once stressing its "important political dimension."
The unprecedented exercise began the morning of June 7 with the departure of a Polish CASA 295M aircraft from Krakow simulating a hijacked civilian aircraft. Two Polish F-16s from the Krzesiny air base near Poznan, central Poland, later intercepted the "renegade" aircraft and then handed the mission over to two Russian Sukhoi jets that guided the plane to the northern Polish city of Malbork.
"This was the first time in history when there was co-operation between Russian and NATO fighters in this kind of a scenario," NATO exercise director Czech Colonel Petr Mikulenka told reporters in Warsaw.
The aircraft were taking part in the four-day NATO-Russia "Vigilant Skies 2011," event that began Monday involving flights over Poland and the Black Sea.
On June 8, three Turkish F-16s and two Russian Sukhois will intercept a rogue plane over the Black Sea.
"The aerial exercises are to test the NATO-Russia Council Cooperative Airspace Initiative (CAI), aimed at preventing a new 9/11 by "sharing information on movements in NATO airspace and Russian airspace, and by coordinating interceptions of renegade aircraft," according to a NATO statement.
The initiative hopes to "improve air safety for the thousands of passengers using international flights between NATO airspace and Russian airspace each day, and the millions of inhabitants on the ground."
The new airspace security system "provides a shared NATO-Russia radar picture of air traffic and allows early warning of suspicious air activities through commonly agreed procedures."
"In situations when an aircraft starts behaving erratically, the air traffic coordination system offers increased information sharing and communication to ensure rapid, joint responses to terrorist threats," a NATO statement said.
The system has two coordination centers, one in Warsaw and another in Moscow, with local coordination sites in Russian cities of Kaliningrad, Rostov-on-Don and Murmansk as well as Warsaw, Bodo in Norway and Ankara in Turkey.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Norway Army Faced Cyber Attack After Libya Bombing

OSLO - The Norwegian military said May 19 that it had been the victim of a serious cyber attack at the end of March, a day after Norwegian F-16 fighter jets for the first time carried out bombings in Libya.
"The army is regularly the target of cyber and virus attacks, but not as extensive as this," Hilde Lindboe, a spokeswoman for Norwegian Defence Information Infrastructure (INI), told AFP.
On March 25, a day after Norwegian F-16s first took part in the NATO-led bombing in Libya, around 100 military employees, some of them high-ranking, received an email in Norwegian with an attachment that, once opened, let loose a virus made to extract information from the host computer.
"From what we have seen, no sensitive information has been obtained," Lindboe said.
According to INI, only one computer containing non-classified information was contaminated.
The Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) has opened an investigation to determine who launched the attack, but authorities say it is too soon to say whether there was a link to the Libya bombings.
Norway has six F-16s stationed on the Greek island of Crete as part of the NATO campaign against leader Moammar Gadhafi's forces, authorized by U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973 to protect the Libyan population.
The Scandinavian country has however said it plans to curb its military role in Libya if the campaign lasts longer than June 24.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Canada Opposition Unhappy With F-35's Costs


OTTAWA - Canada significantly overpaid for new fighter jets jointly developed with the United States and its allies, a parliamentary watchdog said March 10.
Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page said in a report that Canada should expect to dole out as much as C$29.3 billion ($30 billion) for the purchase and maintenance of 65 F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter over 30 years.
The estimate is nearly double the amount suggested by the government, and opposition parties pounced on the report to criticize Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservatives.
The Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jet, set to replace a large part of the U.S. and Canadian warplane fleets, has become the most expensive weapons program ever, drawing increased scrutiny at a time of tight public finances.
The fifth-generation fighter was built with features designed to help avoid enemy radar and ensure supremacy in the skies for decades.
But it has been criticized for a series of cost overruns and delays, and now there is potential competition from China, which in January unveiled its first radar-evading combat aircraft.
At the same time, the contract awarded in 2001 had been planned to last 10 years, but has been extended to 2016 because of testing and design issues.
The United States is covering 90 percent of its development costs but has participation from Britain, Italy, Turkey, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Australia and Canada.
Other nations, including Israel and Singapore, have signed contracts to buy the plane.
Canada's main opposition Liberals, which committed to the F-35 program when in power in 1997, are now using the lack of open competition to replace Canada's aging fleet of fighter jets to press for a change in government.
Jay Paxton, spokesman for Defense Minister Peter MacKay, however stood by the government's procurement cost projections of C$9 billion ($9.2 billion) to buy and C$250-300 million ($256-308 million) annually to maintain over 20 years.
"The F-35 is the only jet that can meet the needs of the Air Force, as noted by Mr. Page," Paxton added. "Simply put, this is the best plane for the best price."

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Better Ties For Norway, Russia Cause NATO Strains

Helsinki - Norway's government and military have reaffirmed their shared ambition to deepen the NATO-aligned country's political relationship and defense cooperation with neighbor Russia following high-level talks Feb. 16 in Oslo.
But the intensifying nature of Norway's military cooperation with Russia is causing something of a rift within NATO, according to a new batch of WikiLeaks documents accessed by Norwegian media groups Aftenposten and Bergens Tidende, and published Feb. 13.
Reports published by Aftenposten, and based on cables and memos from U.S. government and military sources, suggest that two camps have developed within NATO on the sensitive issue of how to organize a long-term defense and security strategy in Europe.
According to Aftenposten and Bergens Tidende, the U.S. documents refer to the emergence of a so-called pro-Russian "gang of five" headed by France and Germany, and which includes Norway, the Netherlands and Spain. This grouping is frequently supported by Portugal on key policy areas dealing with Russia, the memos claim.
This five-nation grouping, claims Aftenposten, is at odds with the U.S.-led camp, which remains distrustful of improving bilateral relations between NATO countries, such as Norway and Germany, with Russia. The U.S. camp, according to the memos reviewed, includes the Baltic states, Britain, Bulgaria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Poland and Romania.
The Norwegian government has made no secret of its strategic intention to use improved political and military relations with Russia as a tool to support lasting defense and security measures in the High North and Arctic Ocean.
The reinforcement of bilateral relations between Norway and Russia were high on the agenda when Gen. Nikolay Makarov, the chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian federation, paid a two-day visit to Norway on Feb. 15. The visit included separate meetings with the chief of Norway's defense, Gen. Harald Sunde, and Grete Faremo, Norway's defense minister.
"We discussed current and future prospects for cooperation between the Norwegian and Russian militaries, as well as political developments in the Arctic and other issues, including cooperation in Afghanistan; all issues of common interest to our two countries," Faremo said.
Norway's military command is preparing to take part in the POMOR 2011 joint naval exercises with Russia in May. These will involve special forces units, helicopters and fighter jets.
"Norway and Russia have good bilateral relations," Faremo said. "We share the same challenges in the High North. It is in the interest of both countries to cooperate closely and to keep the area stable. This also includes protecting the environment, managing a sustainable fishing industry and taking care of other natural resources."
Norway's goodwill strategy resulted in an historic maritime delimitation treaty with Russia, which was approved by the Norwegian parliament on Feb. 8. The treaty, which was under negotiation for 40 years, establishes the maritime boundary between Norway and Russia in the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean.