DefenceTalkThe US Congress adopted a massive US defense spending bill for 2015 Friday which includes emergency funding for military operations against Islamic jihadists in Iraq and Syria, as requested by President Barack Obama. The legislation passed 89 votes to 11 in the Senate one week after it sailed through the House. It outlines $584.2 billion […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-congress-passes-584-billion-defense-bill-61154/

DefenceTalkIndia announced Thursday it would lift the cap on foreign direct investment in the defence sector to 49 percent and announced a 12-percent rise in military spending as part of efforts to modernize its armed forces. In his first budget, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley raised defense spending for the current financial year to 2.29 trillion […]https://www.defencetalk.com/india-increases-defence-spending-invites-foreign-investment-60106/

DefenceTalkNATO European allies must dedicate more money to defense spending, and all are ready to do their part in the follow-on operation in Afghanistan, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said at NATO headquarters in Brussels today. The secretary spoke at a news conference after meetings with alliance defense ministers. Russia’s actions in and around Ukraine were […]https://www.defencetalk.com/hagel-urges-european-nato-members-to-boost-defense-budgets-59777/

DefenceTalkThe SA National Defence Force (SANDF) needs a bigger budget, Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula said on Wednesday. “I don’t think government has a choice at this point. We had to conduct this Defence Review in order to have an appreciation of the organisation we have, its capabilities vis-à-vis the missions assigned to it,” she said […]https://www.defencetalk.com/south-africa-needs-bigger-defense-budget-says-minister-59401/

DefenceTalkSweden announced Tuesday that it will increase its annual defence spending over the next 10 years, citing the crisis in Ukraine and an “unsettling” development in Russia. The right-wing government said that spending would rise gradually until 2024, when the annual defence budget increase would be around 5.5 billion kronor (604 million euros, $835 million), […]https://www.defencetalk.com/sweden-to-boost-military-spending-over-ukraine-crisis-59377/

DefenceTalkThe 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review isn’t like previous reviews, a senior Defense Department official said here yesterday. Christine E. Wormuth, deputy undersecretary of defense for strategy, plans and force development spoke at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The QDR is a congressionally mandated review of DOD strategy and priorities. It is intended to […]https://www.defencetalk.com/2014-qdr-presumes-future-includes-more-risk-less-money-58994/

DefenceTalkChinese state-run media said Thursday the nation’s defence budget would keep expanding but was not evidence of a mounting threat, after the government announced a 12.2 percent rise for 2014. “China has no intention of overturning the current international security pattern,” the Global Times, which is close to the ruling Communist Party, said in an […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-will-not-stop-increasing-military-spending-media-58954/

DefenceTalkThe Pentagon is in fear of losing its edge in technology it has held onto for so long and is now factoring this important aspect into its budget. Worry over significant cuts in defense spending might wear down the US military, making its technological edge over Russia and China a fact of the past. This […]https://www.defencetalk.com/budget-plan-pentagon-panics-over-possibly-losing-tech-edge-to-russia-china-58948/

DefenceTalkThe Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 budget proposal supports the Department’s 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) that is being released in conjunction with the budget. The 2014 QDR updates the Defense Strategic Guidance released in January 2012. This updated strategy focuses on defending the homeland against all strategic threats including violent extremism, building security globally, and […]https://www.defencetalk.com/summary-of-the-dod-fiscal-2015-budget-proposal-58940/

DefenceTalkChina plans to raise its defense budget by 12.2 percent to 808.2 billion yuan (about 132 billion U.S. dollars) in 2014, according to a draft budget report submitted to the national legislature for review on Wednesday. In 2013, the country spent 720.197 billion yuan on national defense, a 10.7-percent increase from the previous year. Double-digit […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-defense-budget-to-increase-12-2-pct-in-2014-58944/