French Russian Mistral Deal

No Plans to Suspend Mistral Deal over Syria – France

Mistral

France will not use a $1.2 billion contract to build Mistral class amphibious assault ships for the Russian Navy to put pressure on Moscow over the Syrian issue, the country’s foreign minister said on Wednesday.
The West is pushing for President Bashar al-Assad’s ouster, while Russia and China are trying to prevent outside interference in Syria, saying the Assad regime and the opposition are both to blame for the bloodshed. Russia and China have blocked three UN resolutions on Syria.

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Russian subs, dubious dangers

The national news media has largely ignored a story that has gotten a lot of attention among conservatives -- that a Russian attack submarine surreptitiously spent a month in the Gulf of Mexico. This is taken by some to prove that Vladimir Putin is a dangerous enemy and confirm Mitt Romney's view of Russia as our "number one geopolitical foe." But let's be serious.
In the first place, the story may be inaccurate. UPI reports, "Military experts in Russia and Europe told the Moscow Times they doubted the sub could have spent so much time under the nose of the U.S. Navy because the Akula is not a particularly quiet piece of machinery." 


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Russia to Build New Space Plant

Sergei Shoigu. Photo courtesy RIA Novosti.

A space satellite manufacturing plant will be built in the town of Shchyolkovo, just outside the Russian capital, Moscow Region Governor Sergei Shoigu said on Wednesday.
"It will be a new production facility," he said, adding that a research hub will also be created there.
The plant will build about six communication and observation satellites a year, Shoigu said.


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Russian plant to manufacture helicopters for China

MOSCOW (BNS): A Russian plant will build Mi-171E multirole helicopters for China under a recent contract signed between the two countries, according to a media report.

The Russian Helicopters' Ulan Ude plant will manufacture the military transport choppers for China, Ria Novosti news agency reported on Tuesday quoting a top defence industry official.

"One of the largest helicopter export contracts on the delivery of Mi-171E helicopters to China will be carried out by the Ulan Ude aircraft plant," the source said.


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China buys Russian military helicopters for $1.3bln

Russian Mi-171E helicopter / Image from wikimedia.org

TAGS: Russia, India, China, USA, Trade

China has bought Russian Mi-171E helicopters and other military equipment worth $1.3 billion over the last six months, with more purchases to follow.
­The equipment was sold by Rosoboronexport, Russia’s state arms exporter. In the coming years the Chinese army plans to buy more Mi-171E helicopters and engines for SU-27/30 fighter planes from Russia, writes Vedomosti Newspaper.
In July China and Russia signed a $600mln deal for 55 Mi-171 helicopters to be delivered by 2014, according to Vyacheslav Dzirkalen, head of Russia’s Federal service for military and technical cooperation
In February China bought 140 AL-31 engines for the SU 27/30 fighter jets, and for its domestically designed fighter planes, worth $700 million.
Russian military exports in 2013 amounted to $13 billion, with 15 percent being exports to China.


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Russian General Denies Being Killed in Syria

A military general called a news conference at the Defense Ministry on Wednesday to deny a claim by a Syrian rebel group that he had been killed in clashes outside Damascus.
Major-General Vladimir Kuzheyev worked for some time as an adviser to Syria's Defense Ministry on military schools, but he moved to Moscow after being transferred to the military reserves, Interfax reported.
"I am grateful to the media for their great interest in poor little me. As a human being, it was very unpleasant for me to hear about my supposed death in Syria," Kuzheyev told reporters, adding that his phone has been ringing nonstop with calls from worried family and friends.
"I want to confirm that I am alive and well, I am in good health and live in Moscow," he said.
He said the claim of his death was a provocation against Russia and him personally.
Syrian rebels calling themselves the "Hawks Special Operations Battalion, a division of the Military Leadership of Damascus City and Province" told Al-Arabiya television, Reuters and other news organizations that they had killed a Russian general. The news outlets identified the general as Vladimir Petrovich Kochyev or Vladimir Petrovich Kodzhiyev.

Read more: http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/russian-general-denies-being-killed-in-syria/466290.html#ixzz22yPUI0Rr
The Moscow Times

Russian Drones Lag U.S. Models by 20 Years

The Russian military will acquire long-range, presumably jet-powered strike drones to help replace its arsenal of decrepit Cold War-era Tupolev heavy bombers, according to Moscow’s long-range aviation commander, Lt. Gen. Anatoly Zhikharev.
Just one problem: The new drones won’t be ready for combat until 2040 at the earliest, Zhikharev told Russian news agency RIA Novosti. That’s a full two decades after the U.S. plans to deploy its own jet-propelled, armed unmanned aerial vehicles.
Remember when U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney called Russia America’s “number-one geopolitical foe?” Romney subsequently dialed back that rhetoric. But the two-decade gap between U.S. and Russian drone technology is still a useful reminder that Moscow does not pose a major military threat to any country that isn’t its immediate neighbor.
Zhikharev’s admission of the drone gap comes at a desperate time for the once-mighty Russian aerospace industry. Political pressure is building for the Kremlin to acquire modern weaponry on par with that of the U.S., European and the most advanced Asian militaries. This summer, newly reelected Russian president Vladimir Putin vowed to equip the air force with a new manned bomber, a new early-warning radar plane and several types of drones. “This is a most important area of development in aviation,” Putin said of UAVs.

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Syria reaches oil deal with ally Russia

Qadri Jamil, Syria's deputy prime minister for economic affairs, listens during a news conference in Moscow August 3, 2012.

Credit: Reuters/Maxim Shemetov

By Thomas Grove

MOSCOW | Sat Aug 4, 2012 12:20am IST

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Syria has reached an agreement with ally Russia to secure much-needed fuel as a delegation of ministers sent by President Bashar al-Assad asked Moscow to help alleviate the effects of sanctions on the war-torn country.
The trip was a rare foreign visit made by high-level Syrian officials, whose circles of support are shrinking as violence mounts between rebel fighters and forces loyal to Assad, who the West and Arab countries say must leave power.
Under the deal, Syria will export its crude oil to Russia in exchange for refined oil products, which Damascus sorely needs to keep its economy and military running.
"Russia wants to help the Syrian people," Syrian Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Qadri Jamil told reporters in Moscow on Friday.
"We will deliver our oil and receive gasoline and fuel oil; it will be a barter," he said, adding that Syria is producing about 200,000 barrels per day.

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Russia to Set Up Naval Infrastructure in Arctic – Patrushev

Northern Sea Route


Russia will create several infrastructure hubs along the Northern Sea Route in the Arctic to be used as temporary stations for Russian warships and border guard vessels, Security Council chief Nikolai Patrushev said on Monday.
The authorities have drafted a list of “key double-purpose sites in remote areas of the Arctic seas along the Northern Sea Route” to enable “temporary stationing of Russian Navy warships and vessels operated by the Federal Security Service’s Border Guard Department,” Patrushev said during a meeting with officials in Siberia.
The Northern Sea Route stretches along Russia’s Arctic coast from Murmansk on the Barents Sea to the Bering Strait in the Far East.

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Russian-Indian INDRA Military Drills to Begin on Sunday

INDRA-2010 Military Drills


Russia and India will begin joint INDRA-2012 anti-terrorism military exercises in the Siberian republic of Buryatia on Sunday, a spokesman for Russia’s Eastern Military District said.
The drills will be held at the Burduny training range until August 16.
On Sunday, Russian and Indian troops will arrive at the training range and begin preparing for an active phase of the exercises, which will begin on August 13, the spokesman said.
Some 500 servicemen – about 250 on each side – will take part in the drills, which will be conducted using Russian-made combat vehicles.

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Russia’s Baltic Fleet to Hold Large-Scale Drills in Kaliningrad Exclave

Su-27 fighter


Russia’s Baltic Fleet battleships and combat aircraft will take part in large-scale tactical drills in the country’s westernmost exclave of Kaliningrad on August 8 to land marines in rough terrain, the press office of the Western Military District reported.
The drills will be held at the Baltic Fleet’s Khmelyovka firing range ahead of the celebration of the Russian Air Force centennial on August 12 and will involve 500 servicemen, warships, support vessels, combat aircraft and gunships.

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Russian Navy’s Destroyer Admiral Chabanenko Prepares for EAGLE 2012

Crew of Northern Fleet (NF) destroyer (large ASW ship) Admiral Chabanenko prepares for the Northern Eagle 2012 joint naval exercise. The maneuvers will take place in the Norwegian and the Barents seas late in Aug. It will be attended by Russian, Norwegian, and US warships.
Prior to the exercise, on Aug 18, crews of Russian Navy’s destroyer Admiral Chabanenko, US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, and Norwegian offshore patrol frigate Nordkapp will meet in port of Bodø, Norway. The host party prepared eventful cultural program for Russian and American sailors.
To practice interaction among ships, four areas were assigned in the Barents and the Norwegian seas. Under way from Bodø to Severomorsk, crews will hold joint antiaircraft drills, repel attacks of small-size fast-speed sea targets, render assistance to a vessel in distress, rescue a man at sea, practice joint maneuvering day and night, and establish communication amid participating ships.


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Russian Air Force to mark 100th anniversary

Russian military aircraft in formation. A file photo.

ST PETERSBURG, RUSSIA (ITAR-TASS): To mark the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Russian Air Force, a land-based exhibition of combat aircraft will be held at the St Petersburg and the Baltimore airfield here.

On August 11, Su-34 multi-purpose bomber, the Su-27, MiG-29SMT and MiG-31 fighters, the Su-24 bomber, the MiG-25 reconnaissance plane, the An-12, An-26, An-30 and An-72 airlifters, and the Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters will be displayed in St Petersburg, the press service of the Western Military District said.


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Air Force to Get 400 Modernized Mi-8 Helicopters by 2020

Mi-8 helicopter


The Russian Air Force will take delivery of up to 400 modernized Mi-8 battlefield support helicopters by 2020, service spokesman Col.Vladimir Drik said on Thursday.
“By the end of the year, up to 50 of the latest Mi-8 models will operate, and by 2020 the air force plans to have more than 400 new Mi-8s,” he said.
The latest modernized Mi-8AMTSh and Mi-8MTV5-1 helicopters will appear at the "Common Sky" air force centenary celebration, which will be held on August 12 at Zhukovsky southeast of Moscow.


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Iran to Drop $4-bln Claim if Russia Delivers S-300 Missiles: Envoy

S-300 air-defense system


Iran will withdraw its $4-billion lawsuit against Russia if it delivers S-300 air-defense systems to the Islamic republic, the Iranian ambassador to Russia said on Wednesday.

Iran sued Russia’s state-run arms corporation Rosoboronexport in the international arbitration court in Geneva last April.

Ambassador Mahmoud-Reza Sajjadi said in an interview with the Russian Izvestia daily that Iran demanded $900 million in compensation over Russia’s failure to deliver the systems, but the court added another $3 billion to the compensation.


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Russia Could Deploy Unmanned Bomber After 2040 - Air Force

Tu-160


Russia could deploy a "sixth-generation" pilotless strategic bomber aircraft after 2040, Long-Range Aviation Commander Lt . Gen. Anatoly Zhikharev said on Thursday.
"That could be around 2040-2050," Zhikharev said.
Russia's Tupolev design bureau is currently developing a new-generation strategic bomber aircraft, PAK DA, due to be in service around 2025. The new aircraft will replace the existing fleet of Tu-160, Tu-95MS and Tu-22M3 bombers.
The future development of Russia's long-range aviation in Russia has been the subject of some debate in recent months.


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Why The U.S. Army Is A Major Buyer Of Russian Helicopters

August 4, 2012: The U.S. Army has ordered another ten Mi-17 helicopters from Russia, for the Afghan Air Force. These Mi-17s will cost $17.2 million each. There is resistance in Congress to this purchase, because Russia is also supplying weapons to Syria, where the dictatorship is fighting a bloody insurrection by most of its population.
The U.S. Department of Defense has, for nearly a decade, obtained Mi-17 helicopters for Afghanistan, and then Iraq, as part of American military aid. The U.S. has already bought, upgraded, and delivered nearly a hundred Russian Mi-17s for this program. The Russian choppers have Western electronics installed and are often rebuilt to make them more reliable and durable.
The cost of these Mi-17s varies widely. Some second hand ones from Eastern European nations cost less than a million dollars each. Iraq recently obtained 22 Mi-17 helicopters from Russia for about $3.7 million each. At one point the U.S. bought 24 refurbished Mi-17s for $4.4 million each. The most expensive purchase was for 22 Mi-17s equipped for night operations and with American electronics. These cost nearly $15 million each.


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A New Terrorist Battleground

A nineteenth-century map of Kazan. For the past two decades, Russian and Western experts, human-rights activists and journalists have become accustomed to the political violence of the North Caucasus. No matter how sad it is to receive news of new terrorist bombings or sabotage acts from Dagestan, Ingushetia and Chechnya, these acts are perceived as somehow inherent to the region. But a recent tragedy in the Volga region suggests that this sort of violence—and the Islamist terrorists that practice it—may not be confined to the Caucasus.

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One Sailor Killed, 4 Injured as Shell Explodes in Baltic Fleet

 
ASW Perekop (archive)

One Navy serviceman was killed and four injured when a shell detonated during an exercise in Russia’s Baltic Fleet, the Prosecutor’s Office said on Wednesday.

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Putin Criticizes NATO Withdrawal From Afghanistan

ULYANOVSK — NATO forces should stay in Afghanistan until they have finished their job to ensure stability, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday, criticizing the planned withdrawal of most combat troops by 2014.
Putin reiterated Kremlin concerns that the pull-out of the U.S.-led alliance, due to start next year, will leave Central Asia vulnerable to militant violence and drug trafficking.
"It is regrettable that many participants in this operation are thinking about how to pull out of there. They took up this burden and should carry it to the end," Putin said at a meeting with paratroopers in Ulyanovsk.
"If there is no order in Afghanistan, it will not be calm on our southern borders. The current [Afghan] leadership will have difficulties keeping the situation under control. NATO member states are present there, and are performing this function," he said.
"We need to help them [NATO]. We should not be fighting there again. Let them sit there and fight."
The Soviet Union fought a disastrous war in Afghanistan in the 1980s, and Russia ruled out sending troops to aid the U.S.-led invasion after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Read more: http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/putin-criticizes-nato-withdrawal-from-afghanistan/463029.html#ixzz22VHEH0W5
The Moscow Times