DefenceTalkWestern backers of Ukraine on Wednesday discussed supplying it more air defences as a “top priority” as Kyiv urged bolstered protection against Russia’s missile barrages. Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said just three words when asked what he hoped for from a meeting with Kyiv’s supporters at NATO headquarters in Brussels: “Air defence systems.” NATO […]https://www.defencetalk.com/ukraine-seeks-more-air-defence-from-western-backers-79510/

DefenceTalkFrance will deploy more troops and equipment to Romania in the coming weeks and step up its presence elsewhere in eastern Europe as war grinds on in Ukraine, Defence Minister Sebastian Lecornu said Tuesday. The decision, by President Emmanuel Macron, “to bolster our defensive position on Europe’s eastern flank” will be made as part of […]https://www.defencetalk.com/france-to-step-up-military-deployments-in-eastern-europe-79504/

DefenceTalkGermany said Monday it was rushing long-promised air defence systems, capable of protecting an entire city, to Ukraine after Russia unleashed a barrage of missile strikes on the country. Calling the latest attacks “despicable”, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock wrote on Twitter that “we are doing everything to strengthen Ukraine’s air defences”. Chancellor Olaf Scholz […]https://www.defencetalk.com/germany-says-air-defence-shield-to-reach-ukraine-in-days-79486/

DefenceTalkBerlin will provide Ukraine more armored vehicles and rocket launch systems but not the battle tanks sought by Kyiv for its counter-offensive against Russia, Germany’s defence minister said Thursday. Germany will supply two Mars II multiple-rocket launch systems, 200 missiles and 50 armored “Dingo” troop carriers, Christine Lambrecht said. Soviet-made BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles will […]https://www.defencetalk.com/germany-to-send-more-weapons-to-ukraine-but-not-tanks-79415/

DefenceTalkThe Russian military said Tuesday it had launched “massive strikes” on all front lines in Ukraine, after Kyiv’s forces made dramatic advances in a counter-offensive. “Air, rocket and artillery forces are carrying out massive strikes on units of the Ukrainian armed forces in all operational directions,” the Russian defence ministry said in its daily briefing […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russia-says-delivering-massive-strikes-on-ukraine-front-lines-79394/

DefenceTalkWestern governments are mobilizing their arms manufacturers to ramp up production and replenish stockpiles heavily diminished by supplying Ukraine’s six-month-old battle against Russia’s invasion. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced this week a meeting of senior national armaments directors from allied countries to make long-term plans for supplying Ukraine and rebuilding their own arms reserves. […]https://www.defencetalk.com/western-arms-production-to-ramp-up-as-ukraine-burns-through-stockpiles-79388/

DefenceTalkWith Ukraine dependent on Western military aid following Russia’s invasion and Moscow burning through stocks and under sanctions, both sides fear exhausting their shells, bombs and missiles, experts say. Moscow’s economic exclusion means it is “having to buy artillery rounds from North Korea”, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters recently, pointing to deals for “millions […]https://www.defencetalk.com/both-sides-in-ukraine-war-face-ammunition-squeeze-79369/

DefenceTalkChinese president Xi Jinping has set a timeline for his nation’s military to be capable of taking Taiwan by 2027 — just five years from now. Recent events in the Taiwan strait have some questioning the strategic situation and prospects of a near-term invasion.  Colin H. Kahl, the undersecretary of defense for policy, said that […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-may-draw-lessons-from-russian-failures-in-ukraine-79362/

DefenceTalkUkrainian forces pressed their counter-offensive to retake the Russian-occupied southern region of Kherson, while a team of UN experts were en route to inspect the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant which was targeted by fresh shelling over the weekend. The coastal region of Kherson and its capital city of the same name have been contested by Russian […]https://www.defencetalk.com/ukraine-launches-offensive-in-south-iaea-team-head-to-nuclear-plant-79266/

DefenceTalkUkraine on Wednesday accused Russia of rocket strikes that killed 13 civilians in areas near a Russian-held power plant, where renewed fighting has raised fears of a nuclear disaster. The overnight strikes in the Dnipropetrovsk region in central Ukraine also injured 11 people, with five reported to be in a serious condition. “It was a […]https://www.defencetalk.com/13-killed-in-russian-strikes-near-nuclear-plant-79190/