Rumors persist that the trinational Future Combat Air System (FCAS) project may fail. France, Germany and Spain want to develop a fully integrated sixth-generation air combat system by 2040. However, 2045 currently seems more realistic, as the CEO of the French aircraft manufacturer involved, Dassault, has recently stated. It consists of a Next Generation Fighter […]
How will President Trump receive the Federal Chancellor?First of all, Merz is a successful businessman. He will go there with confidence. And he also has some good news regarding the increase in German defense spending to five percent. Frankly, I don’t see any advantage for Mr. Trump or his team right now in being dismissive […]
It was a big event at the small military airbase in Wunstorf, Lower Saxony. With a ceremonial roll call and the flyover of an F-35 fighter jet, Lieutenant General Holger Neumann took office as the 17th Air Force Inspector General. The decision to succeed Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz was only made on Friday last week. […]
The “flying donut” is his dream. And Sebastian Klaus came a little closer to it a few weeks ago. His company, Atmos Space Cargo, has sent a transport capsule called “Phoenix1” – shaped like a donut – into space. The purpose of the mission: The transport system should not only take goods into space, but […]
Mr. Kubilius, the EU wants to make more money available for defense, as proposed in the white paper, but has not made a clear proposal as to which projects the money should be used for. Why is that?Defense is really a national prerogative and those opportunities to spend during the next four years of around […]
One topic is likely to be at the top of the agenda for NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte: talks with representatives of the new US administration about the future of NATO – and their withdrawal plans. They are by no means spontaneous but follow the National Defense Strategy (NDS) published in 2022 under POTUS Joe […]
There is currently much speculation as to whether US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have something like a good personal relationship. Susan Stewart, Senior Fellow in the Eastern Europe Research Group at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), believes this is a misconception. The idea that Trump and Putin […]
If you like, Wolfgang Gammel is the practitioner among the AI nerds at Helsing. Someone who not only flies high but also likes to keep his feet on the ground. And perhaps that is why he is exactly the right person for the Munich-based software company’s high-flying plans. Helsing has just unveiled his new AI-supported […]
The Republicans’ little-noticed campaign slogan for foreign policy was “Peace through strength” and was recycled from Ronald Reagan’s campaign. At first glance, it reflects Donald Trump’s “America First” ideology. At second glance, however, Trump’s fantasies of strength are repeatedly mixed with isolationist tendencies. For example, when he spoke during the election campaign about keeping the […]
In mid-August, the Air Force barracks in Cologne-Wahn were briefly closed. The Bundeswehr feared that the drinking water was contaminated. However, the suspicion of an act of sabotage was not confirmed. Nevertheless, fears of possible hybrid attacks of this kind are growing. In Finland, there were a series of break-ins at waterworks in the summer. […]