Author: Defenceline Webdesk

Managing bilateral relations with China has long been a topic of intense discussion and debate among top U.S. officials. From the beginning of the 21st century until the mid-2010s, the dominant approach favored a policy of “shared responsibility” for handling international affairs. However, over the last decade, an approach of strategic competition or great power competition has prevailed, across the tenures of both Presidents Donald Trump (2017–2021 and 2025–2029) and Joe Biden (2021–2025). Strategic competition is not new in the history of U.S. foreign policy, as it was the dominant approach during the Cold War. Back then, Washington considered it…

MAUI — In large part as a response to increased demand by US allies for “sovereign” military space capabilities, space tracking firm LeoLabs is shifting its services-focused marketing strategy to offer its newest radar — the highly mobile Scout-S — directly to governments, according to senior company officials. “So, a key thing that’s changed for us is where historically we’ve always focused on operating the assets and [providing] the products, due to our hybrid business model, we’ll make Scout available both as a system — where we will operate it with customers on their behalf, but also provide provide them…

For more than 40 years, the U.S. Arctic Research Commission has advised Congress and the president on what to study in the frigid and dynamic far north, from the environment to military security. It’s typically done so without making waves, led by people well-versed in science and public policy.That was until December, when President Donald Trump appointed a Texas venture capitalist and MAGA influencer with no formal background in science as the commission’s chair. Since then, Thomas Dans has traveled the globe generating headlines. Serving as the administration’s main voice on the Arctic, he’s advanced some of the president’s wildest…

A Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) RQ-4B Global Hawk is presumed to have crashed into the Sea of Japan (East Sea) on September 15 after experiencing communication problems and disappearing from radar. It’s the first such incident involving a JASDF Global Hawk, a high-altitude, unmanned surveillance aircraft manufactured by U.S. defense firm Northrop Grumman. The aircraft, assigned to the 502nd Squadron of the Airborne Warning and Control Wing at Misawa Air Base in Aomori Prefecture, took off from the base at around 10:20 a.m., according to the JASDF. Problems connecting with the aircraft’s communications equipment began after 12:55 p.m. Three…

WASHINGTON — According to a Congressional Budget Office report published today, combat operations in Iran have cost the Defense Department around $38 billion as of August 1, and will continue to cost the department around $2-3 billion per month if the operations continue.  As the report lays out, the largest chunk of change was for the $21.7 billion it will cost the DoD to replace expended munitions — including $13.1 billion for interceptors, $7.3 billion for land-attack cruise missiles and $1.2 billion for “other munitions.” And those munitions will not be replaceable anytime soon, according to the findings. “The U.S.…

Last week, Indian analysts and officials alike highlighted how the Pakistan Navy’s (PN) growing submarine fleet presents significant challenges to the Indian Navy (IN) both operationally and strategically. Araudra Singh of India’s World provided the strategic outlook. His examination covered how the PN’s Hangor-class (Type 039B) submarine and CM-302 supersonic-cruising anti-ship missile (AShM) each pose a distinct problem for India. The former was framed as a potential nuclear attack risk via Babur-3 submarine-launched cruise missiles (SLCM). The latter was framed as an anti-access and area-denial (A2/AD) threat that the IN has not yet established it can defend against. Operationally, retired…

It’s been five years since the leaders of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States announced AUKUS, a security partnership designed to deepen technology and capability-sharing among the three countries. While its much-publicized Pillar I component – centered on Australia’s acquisition of conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines – is reported to be “on track,” the lesser-known Pillar II component has come under mounting criticism for “failing” to deliver fast enough. As a framework for the joint development and fielding of advanced military capabilities, Pillar II was initially pegged by some analysts to be the “more consequential” arm of the AUKUS partnership…

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — With no sight of a fiscal 2027 defense budget until December at earliest, Anduril officials are warning that production work on FQ-44 Fury drones won’t be able to commence until funding is approved by Congress. In June, the Air Force awarded production contracts to Anduril and General Atomics to build the service’s first round of Collaborative Combat Aircraft. But while Anduril has invested its own funds into building a new production facility and started buying items with long lead times, it will need Congress to pass FY27 appropriations before it can start work on the FQ-44…

Japan is one of the most energy-insecure countries in the world relative to the size of its population and economy. Liquified natural gas (LNG) accounts for 30 percent of its electricity generation, and Japan imports more than 97 percent of its total LNG. Japan’s supplies of crude oil and coal are almost 100 percent imported. Successive energy shocks produced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have raised household costs and depressed growth. The International Energy Agency forecast that Japanese electricity prices for the second half of 2026 will surge 40 percent year-on-year, compared…

Extending situational awareness to weapons is enabling attacks from longer ranges, reattack and wave-off capabilities. At AFA, Breaking Defense spoke with Twenty-Six Defense, the next evolution of Elbit America, about building and upgrading weapons to meet the challenges of modern warfare. Source link