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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• First Afghan Air Force C-208 CASEVAC a success AFNS 18 Feb 2013 -- In another historic step for the Afghan Air Force, an AAF Cessna 208 configured for battlefield casualty evacuation successfully transported a seriously injured soldier and three minor casualties from Kandahar, Afghanistan to Kabul International Airport Feb. 11.

Defense Policy / Programs

• ACC continues planning for sequestration impacts AFNS 18 Feb 2013 -- Air Combat Command officials continue to take actions to slow, and within the near-term dramatically restrict, Fiscal 2013 spending in light of pending sequestration and a projected $1.8 billion shortfall in overseas contingency funding.
• 31st MEU leads multilateral NEO USMC News 18 Feb 2013 -- Disaster can strike anywhere and at any moment. In the Asia-Pacific stands a multinational force capable of responding when disaster happens, whether it is a natural event or a civic crisis.
• Minister: Iranian Navy's missile power to foil enemies warmongering plots IRNA 18 Feb 2013 -- Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said on Monday Iranian Navy's missile power will nib in the bud all warmongering plots of enemies.
• Iran to unveil Jamaran 2 warship: Defense minister Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi has announced the upcoming unveiling of the indigenously-built warship, Jamaran 2.
• Iran's Navy establishing base near Pakistan border: Cmdr. Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- The naval base, which is under construction, is situated in the Gwatr Gulf on our country's farthest eastern shores bordering Pakistan.' Iran's Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari.
• Iran to unveil combat, reconnaissance drones soon: Defense min. Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi says the country will unveil a variety of combat and reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) soon, stressing the new drones will play an instrumental role in upgrading Iran's defense power.
• Modernized S-300 Missiles in Air Defense Exercise RIA Novosti 18 Feb 2013 -- Modernized S-300 surface-to-air missiles will shoot down "enemy" fighters in an exercise in Russia's Western Military District, the district's press service said on Monday.
• NATO Secretary General Discusses Cooperation with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov NATO 18 Feb 2013 -- NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen discussed strengthening NATO-Russia cooperation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday 18 February.
• UK blacklists Sri Lanka; sells it arms Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- Britain has raised eyebrows selling millions of pounds of weapons to Sri Lanka over the past year while British Foreign Office blacklists Colombo as a human rights abuser.
• Russian FM Says Moscow Not Smuggling Tank Parts to Syria RIA Novosti 18 Feb 2013 -- Following Finland's seizure last week of tank parts reportedly bound for Syria from Russia, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday that Moscow had not tried to smuggle arms components to Syria via Finland.
• Ukraine to Deliver 110 Battle Tank Engines to Pakistan RIA Novosti 18 Feb 2013 -- Ukraine will deliver 110 tank power plants – engines and related parts – to Pakistan under a $50 million contract, state-run arms exporter Ukrspetsstroi said on Monday.
• UAE signs $1.42bn defense deals Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- The United Arab Emirates has signed 17 defense contracts to purchase military equipment worth USD1.4 billion including US manufactured Predator drones.

Defense Industry

• Russian Terminators at Abu Dhabi Arms Fair Voice of Russia 18 Feb 2013 -- Over 200 best samples of guns and military equipment are represented at the world's largest IDEX-2013 arms fair in Abu Dhabi. The Russian T-90C tank took part in the ceremonial parade on the occasion of opening the fair. Experts also noticed the Russian Terminator, a tank support fighting vehicle.

Other Conflicts

• Assad says confident of winning Syria conflict Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says he is confident that the country's Army will win the conflict against the foreign-backed militants who are fighting the government.
• Syria ready for talks with opposition: Reconciliation Minister Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- Syrian Minister for National Reconciliation Ali Haidar has reiterated the Syrian government's readiness to hold talk with all opposition groups.
• EU Renews Syria Sanctions, Makes Amends To Protect Civilians RFE/RL 18 Feb 2013 -- The European Union has renewed sanctions against Syria, while amending them to enable member states to provide more 'nonlethal' support to help protect civilians.
• Independent UN panel urges action amid ongoing human rights abuses in Syria conflict UN News Centre 18 Feb 2013 -- A United Nations independent panel investigating human rights violations in Syria today called for urgent action to ensure justice for the crimes committed, adding that it will submit a list of names next month of those believed to be most responsible for the atrocities.
• UN Rights Inquiry Alleges Syrian War Crimes VOA 18 Feb 2013 -- A United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Monday alleged possible crimes of war by both pro- and anti-government supporters in Syria.
• British personnel to join EU Mali mission UK MOD 18 Feb 2013 -- The UK will contribute 40 people to the European Union Training Mission in Mali, the Defence Secretary has announced.
• EU approves 500-strong military mission in Mali Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- The European Union (EU) has formally given the go-ahead to the launch of a 500-strong military mission in Mali to support France in its war on the West African country.
• The regional threat posed by Mali's militants IRIN 18 Feb 2013 -- Militant Islamists fleeing northern Mali under pressure from French forces could undermine security in neighbouring countries from where some of the fighters are believed to hail. They could also attract the support of sympathetic militias in the region, and even target countries with large expatriate communities, analysts say.
• Rising insecurity in northern Kenya IRIN 18 Feb 2013 -- Over the past two months, an estimated 1,000 families have been forced from their homes in Baringo, a district in Kenya's northern Rift Valley, because of recurrent conflict between the local Tugen and Pokot communities.

News Reports

• P5+1 offer should match Iran package: Mehmanparast Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- Iran Foreign Ministry spokesman says any new offer from the P5+1 group of world powers in forthcoming talks with Tehran should match Iran's comprehensive package of proposals.
• Israel's PM Again Asks for International Action on Iran VOA 18 Feb 2013 -- Israel is drawing a parallel between North Korea and Iran, saying nuclear proliferation by rogue states could turn the Middle East into a "tinderbox."
• EU agrees to expand sanctions on North Korea over nuclear test Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- The European Union nations have approved a fresh series of sanctions on North Korea in response to the country's latest nuclear test.
• Israeli parliament to probe Prisoner X death Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- The intelligence subcommittee of the [Knesset] foreign affairs and defense committee decided to hold an intensive inquiry into all aspects of the affair of the prisoner found dead in his cell.'
• Assange believes freedom lies in winning Australian senate seat Iran Press TV 18 Feb 2013 -- Wikileaks founder Julian Assange believes that he can extricate from his prolonged asylum inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London if he wins a seat in Australia's upper house of parliament.
• Armenian President Set To Win Reelection As Polls Close RFE/RL 18 Feb 2013 -- Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian appears set to win reelection.
• Candidate Claims Fraud in Armenia Presidential Poll RIA Novosti 18 Feb 2013 -- Mass violations have occurred during voting in Armenia's presidential election, a spokesman for one of the candidates claimed on Monday, the Novosti-Armenia news agency reported.
• Chavez Returns to Venezuela From Cuba – Twitter, Local Press RIA Novosti 18 Feb 2013 -- Reports that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has returned home after more than two months of cancer treatment in Cuba surfaced Monday via the president's Twitter account and local media.
• Government Office In Peshawar Attacked, Fatalities Reported RFE/RL 18 Feb 2013 -- Militants disguised as policemen have attacked the compound of a senior government official in Pakistan's northwestern city of Peshawar, killing at least five people.
• Pakistan's Hazara Killings Bring Sunni Extremist Group Into Focus RFE/RL 18 Feb 2013 -- Pakistan's failure to contain a hard-line Sunni group in an insurgency-plagued southwestern province threatens to come back to haunt it, leaving upcoming national elections at risk.
• Russian Officials Say City Survived 'Space Attack VOA 18 Feb 2013 -- The governor of Russia's meteorite-hit Chelyabinsk region wants world leaders to come to his remote region to discuss how the international community can defend against such threats in the future.