DefenceTalkUS Defense Secretary Mark Esper accused Russia Wednesday of violating the Open Skies Treaty designed to improve transparency and confidence between the militaries of the two superpowers. Esper told a congressional hearing Russia had been blocking the United States from conducting flights over the Baltic Sea city of Kaliningrad and near Georgia that are permitted […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-accuses-russia-of-breaking-open-skies-treaty-74645/

DefenceTalkTurkish drone strikes in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province killed 19 government soldiers on Sunday, a war monitor reported, as tensions soared between Damascus and Ankara. The 19 died in strikes on a military convoy in the Jabal al-Zawiya area and a base near Maaret al-Numan city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The report […]https://www.defencetalk.com/turkish-drones-kill-19-syrian-government-soldiers-as-tensions-soar-74502/

DefenceTalkWith both Russia and China making great advances in their strategic weapons arsenals, the U.S. must update its nuclear triad or risk the prospect of existing systems needing to be dismantled due to age — an outcome tantamount to disarmament, a top Navy official said. “When we talk about the modernization of the triad, what […]https://www.defencetalk.com/stratcom-commander-failing-to-replace-nuclear-triad-akin-to-disarmament-74371/

DefenceTalkTwo Russian warships armed with cruise missiles were today transiting the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul on their way to Mediterranean waters, as tensions spiralled between Turkey and Russia following the deaths of at least 33 Turkish soldiers in Syria, the military said. The two Russian frigates — the Admiral Makarov and the Admiral Grigorovich — […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russian-warships-transit-bosphorus-as-turkey-tensions-soar-74356/

DefenceTalkTurkey warned on Friday it was opening the gates for refugees to flee to Europe after an air strike blamed on Damascus killed 33 Turkish soldiers in Syria. The international community voiced fears of a rapidly-rising risk of escalation after the attack by Russian-backed Syrian forces in the province of Idlib, where President Bashar al-Assad […]https://www.defencetalk.com/fears-of-escalation-after-33-turkish-troops-killed-in-syria-74352/

DefenceTalkSpace systems underpin virtually every weapon system in the Defense Department’s arsenal, a senior DOD official told Congress. But many systems were designed for an era when there were few threats in space, Dr. James H. Anderson, performing the duties of deputy undersecretary of defense for policy, said today at a hearing of the House […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-will-not-let-china-russia-deny-its-space-superiority-74348/

DefenceTalkGeneva: The US is following an egocentric foreign policy that is leading to global arms control agreements being devalued, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday. It is vital “to stop the degradation of international arms control”, Lavrov told the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, urging Washington to resume talks on halting nuclear proliferation […]https://www.defencetalk.com/egocentric-us-is-wrecking-global-arms-control-says-russia-74271/

DefenceTalkTurkey said Thursday it wanted no “face-off” with Moscow over Syria’s offensive near the two countries’ border but said it might receive US defence missiles to protect Turkish forces. Tensions have mounted in the last three months between rebel-backer Turkey and Syria ally Moscow over President Bashar al-Assad’s offensive in northwest Idlib, the last-rebel held […]https://www.defencetalk.com/turkey-says-might-receive-us-missiles-over-syria-threat-74143/

Russia’s Defense Ministry plans to sign a new contract in the summer for the delivery of several dozen Sukhoi Su-34 frontline bombers to the Aerospace Force with their combat capabilities expanded under the Sych experimental design work, a source in the defense industry told TASS on Wednesday. “The Defense Ministry plans to sign a contract […]

Washington is trying to use allegations that a Russian inspector satellite was “chasing” a US reconnaissance satellite as an excuse to fuel an arms race in space, which could lead to the destruction of the existing security balance in space, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Monday. “We would like to point out that the movement […]