Page 9 - Defence

Starburst Accelerator, IIT Madras join hands for €100 million startup hub

This partnership will enable export promotion and provide support for Indian ASD start-ups to explore international markets through the extensive network of Starburst

Russia fires 31 missiles at Kyiv in first attack in 44 days, 13 people hurt

Russia fired 31 ballistic and cruise missiles at Kyiv before dawn on Thursday in the first attack on the Ukrainian capital in 44 days, officials said. Air defenses shot down all the incoming missiles, though 13 people including a child were injured by falling wreckage, they said. Residents of Kyiv were woken up by loud explosions around 5 am as the missiles arrived at roughly the same time from different directions, said Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv City Administration. Ukraine's air force said Russia launched two ballistic missiles and 29 cruise missiles against the capital. An 11-year-old girl and a 38-year-old man were hospitalised, the city administration said. Eight other people sustained light injuries, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Ukraine's Emergency Service said around 80 people were evacuated from their homes. Falling wreckage from the intercepted missiles set fire to at least one apartment building, burned parked cars and left craters in streets and a small par

'Indian Navy's daring rescue ops showcase world-class defence capabilities'

The navy rescued 17 crew members of the vessel MV Ruen during an anti-piracy operation lasting nearly two days, with no casualties reported

North Korea supplied 7,000 containers of munitions to Russia, says Seoul

North Korea has shipped around 7,000 containers filled with munitions and other military equipment to Russia since last year to help support its war in Ukraine, South Korea's defense minister said Monday. Shin Won-sik shared the assessment at a news conference hours after the South Korean and Japanese militaries said the North fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles into its eastern waters, adding to a streak of weapons displays amid growing tensions with rivals. Since the start of 2022, North Korea has used Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a distraction to ramp up its weapons tests and has also aligned with Moscow over the conflict, as leader Kim Jong Un tries to break out of diplomatic isolation and join a united front against the United States. U.S. and South Korean officials have accused North Korea of supplying Russia with artillery shells, missiles and other equipment in recent months to help fuel its war on Ukraine, saying that such arms transfers accelerated after a rar

China's nuclear missile force, army giving Xi sleepless nights: Here's why

Chinese President Xi Jinping purged two defence ministers within a matter of months last year as part of his widening programme to wipe out corruption within the country's armed forces

India, Brazil hold first '2+2' defence ministerial dialogue on tech, energy

India and Brazil on Thursday explored ways to expand cooperation in areas of energy, critical minerals, technology and counter-terrorism at their first '2+2' defence and foreign ministerial dialogue. External affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the talks spanned various key areas of cooperation. "Discussions spanned defence, space, energy, critical minerals, tech, counter-terrorism and regional, multilateral & other issues of mutual interest," he said on 'X'. The dialogue took place in Delhi. It was co-chaired by additional secretary in the external affairs ministry G V Srinivas and joint secretary in the defence ministry Vishwesh Negi. The Brazilian delegation was led by Director at Brazilian foreign ministry Marcelo Camara and Rear Admiral Fernando de Luca Marques de Oliviera.

Denmark to expand conscription, draft women into military in rare move

The goal of the updated strategy, according to Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, is to boost the proportion of young people enlisting in the military

Women scientists played major role in Mission Divyastra's success

The programme project director Dr Shankari S also played a significant role in the mission's success, defence officials said

Houthis may have hypersonic missile, raising stakes in Red Sea crisis

Yemen's Houthi rebels claim to have a new, hypersonic missile in their arsenal, Russia's state media reported on Thursday, potentially raising the stakes in their ongoing attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and surrounding waterways against the backdrop of Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The report by the state-run RIA Novosti news agency cited an unnamed official but provided no evidence for the claim. It comes as Moscow maintains an aggressively counter-Western foreign policy amid its grinding war on Ukraine. However, the Houthis have for weeks hinted about surprises they plan for the battles at sea to counter the United States and its allies, which have so far been able to down any missile or bomb-carrying drone that comes near their warships in Mideast waters. The Houthis' main benefactor, Iran, claims to have a hypersonic missile and has widely armed the rebels with the missiles they now use. Adding a hypersonic missile to their arsenal could pose a more-formidable ...

Defence exports to more than double to Rs 40,000 cr by 2026: Anurag Thakur

Swedish think-tank SIPRI's recent report revealed India was world's biggest arms importer in 2019-23, with a 9.8 per cent share of all arms imports

Govt signs contract worth Rs 8,073 crore with HAL to buy 34 helicopters

Following the approval of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), the Ministry of Defence signed two contracts for a combined value of Rs 8073.17 crore with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Bengaluru, on Wednesday, an official statement said.The contracts were signed for the acquisition of 34 Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH) Dhruv Mk III along with Operational Role Equipment for the Indian Army (25 ALHs) and Indian Coast Guard (09 ALHs) under the Buy (Indian-IDDM--Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured) category, marking a significant move towards indigenisation in defence manufacturing.According to the Ministry of Defence, the ALH Dhruv Mk III UT (Utility), the Indian Army version, is designed for Search & Rescue, Troop Transportation, Internal Cargo, Recce/and casualty evacuation, etc. It has proven its performance in high-altitude regions like Siachen Glacier and Ladakh.The ALH Mk III MR (Maritime Role), the ICG version, is designed for maritime surveillance ..

India remains world's top arms importer, Pakistan ranks 8th: SIPRI report

India remained the world's top arms importer, but its imports declined by 11 per cent between 2013-17 and 2018-22, according to a report released on Monday by Stockholm-based defence think-tank SIPRI. The decline was linked to a complex procurement process, efforts to diversify arms suppliers and attempts to replace imports with local designs, the report said. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said the five largest arms importers in the world during 2018-22 were India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Australia and China. The five largest arms exporters were the United States, Russia, France, China and Germany. The imports by Pakistan, the world's eighth-largest arms importer during 2018-22, increased by 14 per cent, with China as its main supplier, the report said. It said France's arms exports increased by 44 per cent between 2013-17 and 2018-22 and most of these exports were to countries in Asia and Oceania and the Middle East. The report said India received 30

Very important milestone: Prez Murmu on first flight test of Agni-5

President Droupadi Murmu on Monday congratulated DRDO scientists for the first flight test of indigenously developed Agni-5 missile under Mission Divyastra, calling it a "very important milestone" in India's march towards greater geo-strategic role and capabilities. In her message on 'X', the supreme commander of the armed forces said, "The state-of-the-art technology developed indigenously is a firm step in the direction of India becoming Atmanirbhar." "The flight test of Agni V under Mission Divyastra marks a very important milestone in India's march towards greater geo-strategic role and capabilities...I convey my heartiest congratulations to the Team DRDO for this major achievement. I am sure they will keep moving apace in their quest for excellence and self-reliance," she said. The weapon system is equipped with indigenous avionics systems and high-accuracy sensor packages ensuring that the re-entry vehicles reach the target points within the desired accuracy. Based on Multipl

US, French military shoot down Houthi drones after attack on warships

The Houthis have been attacking ships in the Red Sea since November in what they say is a campaign of solidarity with Palestinians during the war in Gaza

Xi calls for coordination of military, preparation for conflicts at sea

He said, it was necessary to build cyberspace defence system and improve the ability to maintain national network security

Maldives-China defence pact to obtain non-lethal weapons, training: Muizzu

The Maldives will get free "non-lethal" military equipment and training from China's military under a newly inked agreement with Beijing, President Mohamed Muizzu has said, underlining that it would further strengthen the Indian Ocean island nation's independence and autonomy. Muizzu also met Major General Zhang Baoqun, Deputy Director of the Office for International Military Cooperation of China, and President of the Export-Import Bank of China, Ren Shengjun separately. Earlier on Monday, the Maldives Ministry of Defence announced that a military assistance agreement has been signed by Defence Minister Mohamed Ghassan Maumoon and Major General Zhang. However, it did not reveal any additional details. This is the first time Maldives has signed a deal with China for military cooperation of this level. Previously, China had been exclusively known for its assistance towards urban and economic development of the Maldives, news portal Sun.mv said. Speaking late on Tuesday evening with .

BJP's manifesto on defence

From an arms importer, India now ranks among the top 25 arms-exporting nations. BJP's 2024 manifesto must include a coherent policy to increase defence exports

'Leap forward in self-reliance': Adani Defence unveils ammo, missile sites

The inauguration coincided with the fifth anniversary of Operation Bandar, the Indian Air Force (IAF) bomb strikes on a terrorist camp inside Pakistani territory

Used AI to help find targets for airstrikes in West Asia, says Pentagon

Machine learning algorithms that can teach themselves to identify objects helped to narrow down targets for more than 85 US air strikes on Feb. 2

Adani Group unveils defence complex, $362 million investment plan

The plans highlight the ports-to-power conglomerate's ambitions in the lucrative defence sector where manufacturing is largely dominated by government-owned companies