DefenceTalkArab nations have offered to help pay for any US military intervention in Syria, Secretary of State John Kerry told lawmakers Wednesday as he sought support for missile strikes. “With respect to Arab countries offering to bear the cost and to assist, the answer is profoundly yes, they have. That offer is on the table,” […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russia-tells-us-it-needs-un-approval-for-syria-strike-48960/

DefenceTalkWashington is weighing expanding support for Syrian rebels by having the Pentagon take charge of arming the opposition instead of a clandestine effort by the CIA, officials said Wednesday. “It’s under consideration,” said a US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “If and how (it would be done) are both questions being discussed,” the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-may-take-charge-of-arming-syrian-rebels-us-officials-48958/

DefenceTalkPresident Vladimir Putin on Wednesday revealed Russia had suspended deliveries of sophisticated S-300 missile systems to Syria even though some components had already been handed over. Western governments have repeatedly condemned Russia for signing a contract to supply President Bashar al-Assad’s regime with the S-300 air-defence systems which are among Russia’s most prized military exports. […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russia-suspends-syria-s-300-missile-deliveries-putin-48952/

DefenceTalkTurkey deployed tanks and anti-aircraft guns to reinforce its military units on the Syrian border, as the U.S. considers strikes against Syria. Convoys carrying tanks and rocket-launchers headed to border areas in Hatay, Gaziantep and Sanliurfa provinces today and yesterday, according to Hurriyet newspaper and Anatolia news agency. Tanks, missile launchers and anti-aircraft guns on […]https://www.defencetalk.com/turkey-reinforces-syria-border-as-erdogan-backs-us-attack-48948/

DefenceTalkAs the Syrian civil war drags into its third year with mounting casualties and misery among the civilian population, and the large-scale use of chemical weapons, interest in the possibility of military intervention by the United States and its allies is growing despite U.S. wariness of becoming involved in a prolonged sectarian quagmire. Without presuming […]https://www.defencetalk.com/airpower-options-for-syria-assessing-objectives-and-missions-for-aerial-intervention-48921/

DefenceTalkMaoist rebels killed four paramilitary troops and injured two others by setting off a landmine on a highway in eastern India on Tuesday, police officials said. The powerful blast sent the soldiers’ vehicle flying through the air, with photographs showing the upturned, mangled van lying in a crater in Orissa state’s Koraput district, located 366 […]https://www.defencetalk.com/maoist-rebels-kill-four-troops-in-india-landmine-blast-48912/

DefenceTalkBritish military officers will join the Prime Minister for talks later, to discuss the UK’s response to last week’s chemical weapons attack in Syria. The National Security Council, which also includes the Defence Secretary and intelligence chiefs, will meet at 12. David Cameron set out the options he is considering for action against Syria in […]https://www.defencetalk.com/uk-sets-out-options-for-syria-action-48893/

DefenceTalkThe United States provided Iraq with intelligence on preparations for an Iranian offensive during the Iran-Iraq war even though it knew Baghdad would respond with chemical weapons, Foreign Policy magazine reported Monday. Citing declassified CIA documents and interviews with former officials, the magazine reviewed the US record as Washington weighs military action against Syria for […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-gave-iraq-intel-in-1980s-ignored-chemical-attacks-report-48910/

DefenceTalkMilitary action against the Syrian regime would be a “tragic mistake”, Russia said Sunday, warning the West not to preempt the results of a UN probe into alleged deadly chemical attacks. Moscow warned there was a danger of history repeating itself a decade after the US-led invasion of Iraq, which it opposed, and urged the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russia-warns-us-against-syria-military-action-48875/

DefenceTalkRussia warned the United States on Sunday against repeating past mistakes, saying that any unilateral military action in Syria would undermine efforts for peace and have a devastating impact on the security situation in the Middle East. The Russian Foreign Ministry said its statement was a response to U.S. actions to give it the option […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russia-warns-us-not-to-repeat-in-syria-past-mistakes-in-region-48861/