Defense

PARIS — The Netherlands has ordered Skyranger anti-drone cannons from Germany’s Rheinmetall for less than €1 billion (US$1.2 billion), below the budget flagged to parliament in January. The Dutch will buy mobile versions of the Skyranger air-defense system as well as systems for stationary use, the Ministry of Defence said late Thursday. The first Skyrangers will be handed over late 2028…

The House on Wednesday passed a major defense policy bill that would authorize $900.6 billion in discretionary spending for the Pentagon in fiscal 2026. The National Defense Authorization Act will now head to the Senate for final passage, after its 312-112 approval in the House. The NDAA also aims to pressure Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to release more information on controversial strikes on…

PARIS — Norway’s Kongsberg and Germany’s Helsing are teaming up to provide Europe with a sovereign satellite constellation for space-based intelligence, surveillance and targeting by the end of the decade, the companies said in a joint statement on Wednesday. The plan is to deploy a satellite fleet with interconnected communications for defense use by 2029, with Germany’s Hensoldt…

ROME — Italy has juggled its definition of what constitutes defense spending to beef up its budget by €14 billion ($16.3 billion) this year, but has failed to explain how it did it, one of Italy’s leading economists has complained. Carlo Cottarelli said that Italy raised its spending, on paper, from around 1.5% of GDP in 2024 to 2% in 2025 “without a clear explanation” of how it did…