Raw Intel

It may have taken over 1/3 of his first – and perhaps only – Administration for President Biden to publish his National Security Strategy, but it finally hit earlier this month – so let’s look at it. What I’d like to do is not dig into the details, as to be blunt – it isn’t the details that matter. Though it sounds cynical perhaps, it really isn’t. The primary purpose to have a National Security Strategy is to say you have one. It isn’t meaningless, but this political document (and it is political, heck its title is officially “National Security Strategy” but on the Whitehouse website the file is stored under, “Biden-Harris-Administrations-National-Security-Strategy-10.20…

As important as it is to count the number and type of warships the People's Republic of China (PRC) is building for their navy is, how productive their shipyards are, and even the negative impact of their crashing demographics - there are other things that are arguably more important to track in order to see what the challenge will be before it comes over the horizon. That is what we have been doing for the last 18-years of the "Long Game" series on the PRC - looking further than the threat of the next few POM cycles. The PRC is playing a long game, we should do our best to understand it. Where a warship has an effective life of 30-yrs or a bit more, there are assets tha…

Americas General Atomics won a $30 million modification, which exercises options to provide maintenance, supply chain and spares management, logistics, and sustainment support for the MQ-9 Reaper aircraft, and dual control mobile ground control stations to ensure they are mission capable for the Marine Corps. Work will be performed in Oahu, Hawaii (35%); Yuma, Arizona […]View the full article

Americas A Utah National Guard AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter involved in a landing exercise crashed at the South Valley Regional Airport on Monday, February 12, at approximately 1:20 PM. While both pilots (one is from the 419th Fighter Wing) onboard sustained injuries, they are reported to be in stable condition. No other casualties were reported. […]View the full article

Americas Sikorsky won a $72 million delivery order for the procurement of 98 rotary blades in support of the CH-53 K aircrafts. The delivery order does not include an option period. All work will be performed in Stratford, Connecticut. Work is expected to be completed by December 2028. This announcement involves Foreign Military Sales (FMS) from Israel. Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity. Northrop Grumman has announced a significant stride in the flight-testing and production of the US Air Force’s futuristic B-21 Raider. Since its unveiling in December 2022, the company reports that the stealth bomb…

Americas Global military spending reached $2.718 trillion in 2024, marking a 9.4 percent increase over 2023, the largest annual rise since the end of the Cold War, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) reported. This marks the 10th consecutive year of rising spending worldwide, particularly in Europe and the Middle East. The top five spenders last year were the US, China, Russia, Germany, and India. “As governments increasingly prioritize military security, often at the expense of other budget areas, the economic and social trade-offs could have significant effects on societies for years to come,” said Xiao Liang, Researcher with the SIPRI Military …

Israel’s Elbit Systems Ltd. has reported a sharp rise in second-quarter revenues and earnings, citing strong domestic and international demand for its defense technologies. The Israeli defense company posted revenues of $2.0 billion for the quarter ended June 30, 2025, up 21% from the same period last year. According to the company’s earnings release, GAAP […] The post Israeli defense giant reports 21% revenue growth first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) has delivered another batch of Su-34 fighter-bombers to the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) as part of ongoing efforts to meet the State Defense Order, according to statements issued by UAC and Rostec. The aircraft, which have undergone full ground and flight factory testing, were formally accepted by VKS crews. “As […] The post New Su-34 fighter-bombers delivered to Russian military first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Ukraine’s Brave1 defense-technology initiative has expanded its “Army of Drones. Bonus” (ePoints) program, a digital incentive system that allows frontline units to exchange verified drone strikes for drones, electronics, and other urgently needed equipment. Brave1, the government-run tech accelerator responsible for fast-tracking new defense capabilities, says the program is reshaping how Ukraine’s armed forces engage […] The post Ukrainian frontline units trade drone kills for more drones first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

China’s Ministry of National Defense issued a sharp warning to Taiwan after the island’s army held a ceremony to induct newly delivered U.S.-made M1A2T main battle tanks. The comments were delivered by Senior Colonel Jiao Bin, spokesperson for the ministry, during a press briefing on November 7. The question referred to remarks by Taiwan’s leader […]View the full article

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has released a new recruitment video featuring a robotic dog armed with an assault rifle. The promotional clip, published this week by the SBU, includes footage from tactical training exercises in which a quadrupedal unmanned ground vehicle, resembling a robotic dog, is seen maneuvering indoors and firing a rifle. […]View the full article

Russia launched its Oreshnik Intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) against Ukraine late on January 8, hitting an area near Lviv close to the European Union and NATO border. The Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said the nationwide alert began at 11:30 p.m. after they detected ballistic launches from Russia’s Kapustin Yar range. According […]View the full article

Russia has revealed an updated winged glide bomb for combat aircraft, showing an evolution of the UMPK-500 guidance kit into a new variant designated UMPB-5, according to photos and video circulating in recent days. The munition, formally described in Russian sources as a unified modular gliding bomb, represents a further development of Russia’s family of […]View the full article

A Polish-Ukrainian defense joint venture is preparing to launch production of the Ukrainian-designed Bogdana 155mm self-propelled howitzer in Poland, according to a report by the Polish business newspaper Puls Biznesu. The company PK MIL SA, established by Ponar Wadowice and the Kramatorsk Heavy Machine Tool Building Plant, is currently completing the formal procedures required to […]View the full article

The United States Army and the United States Navy successfully launched a common hypersonic missile from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, on March 26, 2026. The launch was carried out by the Army’s Portfolio Acquisition Executive Fires in partnership with the Navy’s Portfolio Acquisition Executive Strategic Systems Programs, continuing the services’ effort to field […]View the full article

Elbit Systems inaugurated a new unmanned aerial systems production facility in Chitila, Romania on April 27, 2026 — and marked the occasion by flying the Watchkeeper XR over Romanian skies for the first time, turning a ribbon-cutting into a live capability demonstration for Romanian government and military officials watching from the ground. The Chitila facility […]View the full article

Japan’s Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi met Wednesday with the CEO of GCAP’s joint venture design company to declare the three-nation next-generation fighter program “an extremely important project that will determine Japan’s future air capabilities,” Nikkei reported. The meeting, held at the Japanese parliament, brought Koizumi together with Marco Zoff, chief executive of Edgewing, the private […]View the full article

Germany and Ukraine signed agreements that include €750 million ($870 million) for 200 Bohdana self-propelled artillery systems on Zetros chassis, and those systems now have a confirmed name and barrel specification: defense analyst Jeff, reporting from Eurosatory 2026 in Paris on Tuesday, wrote that a representative from Ukrainian Armoured Vehicles [was likely referring to Ukrainian […]View the full article

U.S. Marines on a remote Pacific island just proved they can shoot down cruise missiles using a weapon system built around the same technology that has protected Israeli cities from rocket attacks for over a decade. Marines from III Marine Expeditionary Force successfully fired the Medium-Range Intercept Capability, or MRIC, system on June 30 during […]View the full article

A patch of forest and lakeshore in northern Michigan has become one of the most important pieces of real estate in the U.S. military’s race to catch up with China on drone warfare. Camp Grayling and the National All-Domain Warfighting Center, a sprawling military training complex in Michigan’s northern Lower Peninsula, has been selected by […]View the full article