GRAZ, Austria — The European Commission this week unveiled the results of its 2025 European Defence Fund call for proposals, selecting 57 collaborative research and development projects for a combined €1.07 billion ($1.26 billion) in EU funding − a package that makes clear where the bloc’s defense priorities lie: drones, autonomy, and an increasingly institutionalized partnership with…
VIENNA — Germany is formalizing a system under which its defense industry will receive unprecedented access to combat performance data from its own weapons fighting in Ukraine, as part of a sweeping €4 billion ($4.72 billion) defense package signed in Berlin on…
Japan’s imminent easing of arms export rules has sparked strong interest from Warsaw to Manila, Reuters reporting found, as President Donald Trump wavers on security commitments to allies and the wars in Iran and Ukraine strain U.S. weapons supplies.
Prime Minister Sanae…
WARSAW, Poland — Estonia’s government has decided to put on hold its planned acquisition of new infantry fighting vehicles.
The Baltic nation will instead direct the funds toward drones, counter-drone measures and air-defense systems, while squeezing more service life out of the country’s existing fleet of second-hand CV90 vehicles.
Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur announced the move…
Lebanon and Israel talks set to begin in Washington
April 15, 2026
BEIRUT, Lebanon — The first direct talks between Israel and Lebanon are set to begin today in Washington, marking a rare diplomatic engagement between two parties technically at war since 1948.
The U.S.-brokered talks will be conducted through their respective ambassadors…
WARSAW, Poland — Swedish company Swebal is building the first trinitrotoluene (TNT) factory to be opened in Sweden since the end of the Cold War, aiming to expand the European-made supply of a key explosive input used to make ammunition.
Meanwhile, the continent’s only…
CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand — The Australian army has test-fired its first-ever locally assembled Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System, or GMLRS, a key step toward eventually producing long-range strike weapons locally rather than importing them.
The milestone occurred at the Woomera Test Range in South Australia, with the rocket fired from an M142 HIMARS launcher.
It was the third live-fire event…
ISTANBUL — As the United States under President Donald Trump rethinks its security guarantees to Europe, Turkey is making the case for closer integration into the continent’s defense architecture.
Speaking at a conference marking the 74th anniversary of Turkey’s entry…
A U.S. naval blockade of Iran is a major, open-ended military endeavor that could trigger fresh retaliation from Tehran and put tremendous strain on an already fragile ceasefire, experts say.
President Donald Trump, in a social media post after no deal emerged from peace…
WARSAW, Poland — Drawing on lessons from the Iran war, a study shows how Russia could force Lithuania into capitulation in 90 days with no soldiers crossing the border.
Drafted by the Baltic Defense Initiative, a small think tank based in Vilnius, the scenario exposes specific vulnerabilities of the Lithuanian defense posture, with the aim to plug gaps as soon as possible.
Fast-forward almost…
