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The government has decided to undertake a major replacement of aging military equipment. In many cases, this is essential, because buying new gear basically halted (with a few exceptions, like ballistic missiles) during the 1990s. So most of the armed forces are using Cold War era gear manufactured in the 1970s and 80s. Fortunately, even older equipment was junked as the armed forces shrank 80 percent in the 1990s. According to the new government plan, in the next decade, at least a third of current gear will be replaced, and in some categories (usually high tech), over 80 percent. President...

A Russian military delegation is inspecting airfields before Moscow sends 10 MiG-29 fighter jets to bolster Lebanon's almost non-existent air force, a challenge to U.S. efforts to build up the Mediterranean country's state institutions to counter Hezbollah. Under a deal announced in December by Lebanese Defense Minister Elias Murr during a visit to Moscow, Russia will provide the MiG-29s from its air force inventory free of charge, including upgrades, under a military assistance program. The Americans have supplied second- and third-hand military equipment including M-60A3 main battle tanks (ex-Jordanian) and M-198 155mm artillery guns, worth $400 million to Lebanon since...

Russia's KBM has been briefing Middle East and other militaries on the Igla man-portable air defense system. The Igla-S, an enhanced version of Igla-9K38, was touted as effective against fighter-jets, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles and cruise missiles. Iran and Syria have received a legacy variant of Igla-S. The Igla-S has been touted as capable of downing a range of U.S. UAVs deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq. "It also has night-firing capability," KBM said. "Igla-S MANPADS is a new-generation system featuring considerably extended firing range and enhanced kill probability against aerial targets and possessing a new quality for this class of...

Russia has provided an "unprecedented" 970 billion roubles (22.6 billion euros, 33.8 billion dollars) to its defence industry this year, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Wednesday. State support for the sector had helped it grow by 3.8 percent since the start of the year despite the economic downturn, Putin said in comments reported by Russian news agencies. "During the recession we have allocated enough money to the military-industrial sector, which is a priority for government support. In 2009 funding reached an unprecedented level for our country: almost 970 billion roubles," Putin said. State aid had taken the form of reduced-rate...

Russia is to build up its navy over the coming decade, President Dmitry Medvedev announced on Monday, as he visited a Russian guided missile cruiser in Singapore. Speaking to sailors on board the Russian Pacific Fleet's Varyag, Medvedev said around half of Russia's military hardware would have to be renewed by 2020. "Yes, an expansion of our naval presence is planned. Russia can only consider itself a full naval power if it has a full fleet that carries out training and combat tasks," he said, according to official Russian news agencies. The Varyag, built in the 1980s under the Soviet...

China has revealed that it has upgraded 200 Russian Kh-31P ARM (anti-radiation missiles) it imported in the 1980s. The Chinese were dissatisfied with the Russian seekers (that detected and homed in on radar transmissions), and developed one of their own. The Chinese seeker detects more radar frequencies (2-18 Ghz) and will hit within 8-10 meters of the radar transmission. The Kh-31 was originally developed as an anti-ship missile. The Russians quickly realized that, with a different seeker, the missile would also work well as an anti-radiation weapon. The anti-ship version has a range of 50 kilometers, while the ARM version...

Russia's army will get new missiles and nuclear submarines from 2010, President Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday, stressing the need to replace the ageing military arsenal. "Next year, the army will get 30 ballistic missiles...five Iskander (missile) systems, some 300 new armoured vehicles, 30 helicopters, 28 fighter planes, three nuclear submarines, a ship, as well as 11 spacecraft," Medvedev said in his annual address to the nation. "These measures will allow our armed forces and our allies to deal with any threat," he told officials in a speech at the Kremlin. Much of Russia's military equipment dates back to Soviet...

A Russian Tu-142M3 reconnaissance aircraft recently crashed twenty kilometers off the Pacific coast, during a training mission. The Tu-142 is an unarmed maritime patrol aircraft that, in the last few years, have resumed long range patrols. Such activity had been halted in the early 1990s. The Tu-142, which was introduced in the 1970s, is the patrol version of the Tu-95 heavy bomber. This aircraft entered service 51 years ago, and is expected to remain in service, along with the Tu-142 variant, for another three decades. But these elderly aircraft are increasingly expensive to maintain, and prone to developing unexpected problems....

Last month, a Russian Il-76 transport crashed after taking off from a Siberian airport. The aircraft had just unloaded a cargo. This accident was no surprise, in general, because of growing problems with the aging Il-76 fleet. For example, a month ago, all Il-76s were grounded because the engine fell off one of them while it was preparing to takeoff. All Russian Il-76s remained grounded until recently, when it was determined that the problem was not common to all Il-76s. The recent crash led to another mass grounding, and growing unease among the many foreign nations that use the Il-76.....

A Russian military plane crashed into the sea during a training exercise in Russia's Far East region, leaving all 11 crew members missing and presumed dead, officials said on Saturday. The Tupolev Tu-142 plane disappeared from radar as it was coming to the end of a training mission on Friday over the Tatarski Strait that divides Russia's Far East island of Sakhalin from the mainland, the defence ministry said. "Given the conditions under which the catastrophe took place, we can presume that all the crew aboard the Tu-142 were killed," a source in the emergencies ministry told the RIA Novosti...

Cold War: The White House has announced our absence at ceremonies marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Meanwhile, Russia has been practicing a nuclear invasion of an abandoned Poland. The Berlin Wall has been a famous backdrop for American presidents sounding the battle cry of liberty in the struggle against tyranny. It was there that John F. Kennedy expressed our solidarity with the encircled residents of that outpost of freedom with his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner." And it was there that Ronald Reagan, with a defiant "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall," voiced our...

Russian defense officials announced that the failed Bulava ballistic missile test last July, was due to a defect in the first stage steering system. This was fixed, and another test will take place before the end of the month. So far, the Bulava has been test fired eleven times. Only one of those tests was an unqualified success, and six were absolute failures. But the Russian government insists that development will continue, and succeed. The inept development of the new Bulava SLBM (Sea Launched Ballistic Missile) for the new Boeri class SSBN (nuclear submarine carrying SLBMs) has become a growing...

Malaysia admitted that it is getting rid of its MiG-29 fighters because the aircraft are too expensive to maintain. It costs about $5 million a year, per aircraft, to keep them in flying condition. Three years ago, Malaysia bought two more MiG-29s, in addition to the 18 it got in the 1990s. Two of those were lost due to accidents. Malaysia has since ordered 18 Su-30 fighters, and will apparently order more to replace the MiG-29s. Malaysia also bought eight F-18Ds in the 1990s, and is getting rid of those as well. Russia has offered better prices on maintenance contracts...

While Russian admirals have been talking about building six aircraft carriers in the next decade, the president of Russia has recently ordered them to concentrate on smaller ships for the Black and Baltic Seas. The Black Sea fleet has been continually declining since the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991. That decline is the result of new countries (like Ukraine and Georgia) inheriting old Soviet ships and bases. That was the dissolution deal. Whatever Soviet weapons or bases were normally were, belonged to one of the 14 new nations. Most of Russia’s high seas ships were based in northern Russia (the...

On October 8 Nikolai Patrushev, the Secretary of the Russian Security Council and the former Director of the Federal Security Service (FSB), signaled planned changes to the country’s nuclear doctrine. He explained in Novosibirsk that this will be reflected in the new military doctrine titled: “The New Face of the Russian Armed Forces until 2030,” currently being developed by the General Staff and expected to be approved by the end of the year. “In respect to the possibility of preventive or nuclear strikes we will formulate some provisions that will be somewhat different from those contained in the current doctrine,”...

In Russia, the fifty man crew for the first Yasen (Graney) class SSGN (nuclear powered cruise missile sub) arrived at the Sevmash shipyards where their boat is being built. The crew was put together four years ago, and has been training ever since. The crew will continue training, increasingly on the first boat of the class (the Severodvinsk), which will be launched in a few months and enter service within two years. Last July, construction began on a second Yasen class SSGN. Russia plans to complete six boats of this class within the next six years. Construction of the first...

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev criticised on Monday the pace of military-industrial modernisation, saying it is affecting the quality of Russian weapons and harming national prestige. "Considerable funds have been invested over the past few years to develop the military-industrial complex. So far the results are mediocre," Medvedev said on Russian television. "Unfortunately we carry on filling in holes and the objectives for technological modernisation have not been achieved," the Russian president added. "The quality of military production for the Russian army and foreign exports is causing justified concern from clients," added Industry Minister Viktor Khristenko, speaking at a meeting on...

The government is very touchy about its nuclear weapons, apparently because it's only the nukes that can dissuade a foreign nation threatening invasion. The Russian armed forces can do it, as it has shrunk 80 percent since the end of the Cold War in 1991, and fallen apart as well. Lack of money means that Russian military technology has not kept up. This includes the nuclear weapons. While Russia got the new Topol M ICBM into service since 1991, this was a Cold War era project, meant to replace the older, and much less effective and reliable ICBMs. But while...

Russia has told the developers of the new Bulava SLBM (Sea Launched Ballistic Missile) that they have until the end of the year to make the missile work. Otherwise, the project will be cancelled, heads will roll (OK, people will be fired) and the older R-29RM Sineva SLBM will replace the Bulava. It's already been suggested that the 40 ton R-29RM be used in the new Borei SSBNs. Sineva is the last liquid fuel Russian SLBM in service, and is used in the current Delta class SSBNs. Liquid fuel missiles are more complex than solid fuel missiles, even though they...

Russia said on Saturday it had started talks with France for an unprecedented deal to buy a new helicopter-carrying assault warship from NATO-member France. The Russian government daily Rossiiskaya Gazeta reported last month that the ship, which can carry 16 heavy helicopters, 470 airborne troops and other gear, costs 700 million euros (995 million dollars).

Top secret military documents may have been destroyed or damaged during a fire at a Russian military base on Sunday that killed five soldiers....fire seriously affected the secret part, which contained documents of special importance to the state

Two Russian military jets collide Two Russian Su-27 fighter jets have collided during rehearsals for a flying display at a big air show near Moscow. "The jets collided about 5km (3 miles) from Zhukovsky airfield," RIA news agency quoted a witness as saying. Two pilots from the elite Russian Knights aerobatic team parachuted to safety, Russian media said. But the fate of a third pilot is unclear, with unconfirmed reports that he died in the accident, RIA-Novosti and Interfax news agencies said.

R-77, R-73 Missile Upgrades Emerge Aug 13, 2009 Douglas Barrie/London Maxim Pyadushkin/Moscow Russia's leading guided-weapons manufacturer will wheel out revised--if long- touted--versions of its two key air-to-air missile products this month, as it tries to bolster its position in the export arena. Tactical Missile Corp.--also known as TRV--will formally unveil its so-called RVV-SD and RVV-MD missiles for the first time at the Moscow air show later this month. The RVV-SD is an improved version of the R-77 (AA-Adder), while the RVV-MD is a variant of the R-73 (AA-11 Archer). The radar-guided R-77 has been sold widely, with China and India...

WASHINGTON — A pair of nuclear-powered Russian attack submarines has been patrolling off the eastern seaboard of the United States over recent days, a rare mission that has raised concerns inside the Pentagon and intelligence agencies about a more assertive stance by the Russian military. The episode has echoes of the cold war era, when the United States and the Soviet Union regularly parked submarines off each other’s coasts to steal military secrets, track the movements of their underwater fleets — and be poised for war. But the collapse of the Soviet Union all but eliminated the ability of the...

The head of the institute developing a sea-based version of Russia's newest strategic missile has quit following repeated failures of the weapon in testing, officials said Wednesday. Yury Solomonov, head of the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology, was the most senior official to date to take responsibility for the string of failures of the Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile, currently in development. "After the latest unsuccessful launch of the Bulava rocket, Yury Solomonov has submitted a resignation letter," Interfax-AVN, a news agency specializing in military affairs, quoted a source in the country's space industry as saying. The source said his resignation...

After visiting breakaway South Ossetia on July 13 and Russian troops based deep inside Georgia, President Dmitry Medvedev traveled to Novorossiysk to inspect Russia's main deepwater Black Sea port and nearby military facilities. Medvedev visited the Black Sea fleet flagship cruiser Moskva, attended a meeting of the military top brass and inspected troops in the 7th airborne (VDV) division based in Novorossiysk (RIA Novosti, July 14). Russian President Dmitry Medvedev talks to 7-th Airborne Assault Division soldiers at the Rayevsky firing range in Novorossiysk on July 14, 2009 In South Ossetia Medvedev visited the Russian military HQ and base in...

Defence ministry said on Thursday the missile blew up in mid-flight, following a similar failed test in December. The missile, which can carry nuclear warheads, veered off course after the first stage of the rocket malfunctioned, said the ministry, quoted by the Ria Novosti agency. It was launched by Russia's Dmitri Donskoi submarine in the White Sea on Wednesday. "A committee of inquiry has been set up to determine the causes" of the incident, the defence ministry's press service added. Several such tests have already ended in failure, including one in December 2008 launched by the same submarine in the...

MOSCOW, July 14 (RIA Novosti) - Russia has successfully test-launched a Sineva sea-based ballistic missile, a source in the Defense Ministry confirmed on Tuesday. "The launch was conducted on Monday from a Delta IV class strategic nuclear-powered submarine in service with Russia's Northern Fleet," the source said. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Monday that Russia had successfully test-launched a ballistic missile from a strategic submarine, but did not specify the type of missile or the name of the submarine. "The target was hit and the pieces of the missile landed in the designated area," the president said at a...

The Obama administration plans to spend more money than ever on secret military projects, commonly referred to as the Defense Department’s “black budget.” Just over $50 billion will be allocated, which representing a 3% increase over last year’s total and the highest amount any administration has budgeted for classified programs. To give it some perspective, the U.S. black budget will consume more money than all defense spending in Russia, the U.K., France or Japan. All in all, about 7.5% of the Pentagon’s total spending is now classified. Although the total amount for the black budget is revealed, its specifics are...

Russia shows military power in Soviet-style parade by Stuart Williams Fri May 8, 10:51 pm ET MOSCOW (AFP) – Russia was Saturday to show off its military might at a Red Square parade to mark its victory in World War II, in the latest revival of a Soviet-era tradition amid renewed tensions with NATO. Ten thousand soldiers and 100 key items of military hardware were to be on display at the parade, which features heavy weaponry in a revival of large-scale show of power ordered by former president Vladimir Putin last year. "Our armed forces... must be capable of reliably...

Russian army scraps new uniforms By Steven Eke BBC Russian affairs analyst Russian soldiers rehearse for Victory Day (24 April 2009) Senator Viktor Ozerov said uniforms were not a priority for the army A plan to replace Soviet-era Russian military uniforms with ones by a leading fashion designer has been abandoned because of a lack of money. The plan to bring in the new uniforms, designed by Valentin Yudashkin, was supported by Russian PM Vladimir Putin. There is now only enough money to pay for uniforms for soldiers taking part in the forthcoming Victory Day parade. Everyone else, it seems,...

Russia has stationed its forces just 25 miles (40 kilometers) from the Georgian capital, in violation of the EU-brokered cease-fire that ended last year's brief war. And in recent weeks, it has sent even more troops and armored vehicles to within striking distance of the city ahead of street protests against Georgia's president.

MOSCOW (AFP)--New rockets will by 2016 account for at least 80% of the strategic missile forces in Russia as it replaces its Soviet-era arsenal with new nuclear-capable missiles, the military said Friday. "Plans for the development of the Russian strategic rocket forces through 2016 foresee a decrease in quantity and a transformation in quality at the same time, (said) " Nikolai Solovstov, the commander of Russia's strategic missile forces....

Two Russian planes flew within 500 feet of U.S. Navy ships participating in military drills with South Korea, military officials said. After trying unsuccessfully to contact the pilots, U.S. fighter jets met up with the Russian planes and flew with them until they left the area, CNN reported. One incident occurred Monday, when Russian Ilyushin IL-38 maritime patrol aircraft flew over the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis while it was in international waters in the Sea of Japan. The Russian aircraft flew within 500 feet of the carrier, which was lower than other Russian flyovers in the past year,...

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Russian military aircraft flew just 500 feet over two U.S. Navy ships this week as the ships participated in a joint military exercise with South Korea in the Sea of Japan, according to U.S. military officials.

Russia to build nuclear-powered 60,000-ton aircraft carrier 19:02 | 27/ 02/ 2009 MOSCOW, February 27 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's new-generation aircraft carrier will be nuclear powered and have a displacement of up to 60,000 metric tons, a United Shipbuilding Corporation executive said on Friday. Vice Adm. Anatoly Shlemov, the company's head of defense contracts, said the new carrier was still at the drawing board stage, but its blueprint and basic specifications have already been defined. He said the carrier will serve as a seaborne platform for new-generation fixed- and rotary-winged aircraft, in particular, a fifth-generation fighter that will replace the...

Russia is to reduce its defence budget for the current year by 15 per cent in response to the financial crisis, the head of the State Duma's defence committee said on Thursday, Interfax reported. "A decision was made for a reduction of 15 per cent and it is highly likely that this is not the last decision on the budget," said Mikhail Babich. Capture the Season's Best Memories Get a free Sony Cybershot 10MP camera and Sony 9" Digital Picture Frame! ElectronicsSource.us.com He added that spending on new weapons would remain unchanged.

MOSCOW - Russia will respond to any attempts to militarize the Arctic, the head of the country's armed forces was quoted as saying on Monday during a visit to Abu Dhabi. "Overall, we are looking at how far the region will be militarized. Depending on that, we'll then decide what to do," Interfax news agency quoted General Nikolai Makarov, the head of the General Staff, as saying.

Russia close to selling S-300 anti-air missiles to Iran for its nuclear sites February 15, 2009, 9:56 PM (GMT+02:00) Military sources report that Iran's defense minister Mostafa Najar travels to Moscow Monday, Feb. 16 to tie up the last ends of Tehran's purchase of a brigade of advanced Russian S-300 air defense missiles to guard its nuclear sites. Our Iranian sources report that Najar will be the guest of the Russian defense ministry and the giant missile manufacturers Almaz Antey and visit the new missile's production and testing sites. Its components are produced in dozens of factories across Russian –...

BANGALORE, February 12 (RIA Novosti) - Russia is planning to increase arms exports by 6% to $8.5 billion in 2009, a senior government official said on Thursday. "Despite the financial crisis, we are planning to boost our arms exports in 2009. I believe I would not be mistaken if I were to mention a figure of around $8.5 billion," said Alexander Fomin, deputy director of the Federal Service on Military-Technical Cooperation. Fomin, who is currently leading a Russian delegation at a major air show in Bangalore, India, also said Russia's arms exports exceeded $8 billion in 2008. "Our plan for...

OMSK (Siberia), February 6 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Omsk engine design and production bureau has started large-scale production of engines for missiles deployed on the Iskander-M tactical missile systems, a senior company official said on Friday. (Iskander (SS-26 Stone) tactical missile system. INFOgraphics) The Iskander-M system (NATO reporting name SS-26 Stone) is equipped with two solid-propellant single-stage 9M723K1 guided missiles with "quasi-ballistic" capability. "The company has received a large defense ministry order to manufacture engines for Iskander-M systems. The first batch must be supplied by the end of February," said Valery Kovalchuk, the bureau's deputy general director. Kovalchuk said that...

NEW DELHI, January 27 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian and Indian navies have started joint naval exercises in the Arabian Sea off the Indian coast, an Indian military source said on Tuesday. INDRA is a biennial Russian-Indian exercise aimed at practicing cooperation in enforcing maritime law and countering piracy, terrorism and drug smuggling. INDRA-2009 is the fourth such exercise since 2003 and will involve a number of live-fire drills. "The first stage of a PASSEX type exercise involves practicing combat interoperability and communications drills," the source said. Russia's Pyotr Veliky missile cruiser from the Northern Fleet and the Indian guided-missile...

Russia may be flexing its military muscle once again, sending warships into international waters and dispatching long-range bombers on reconnaissance trips, but the former superpower remains a paper tiger, according to a respected London think-tank. The recent naval manoeuvres in the Mediterranean and Latin America were symbolic gestures – the former maritime giant was able to deploy only a small number of ships, while the rest of the fleet was anchored at home without enough money to keep it at sea, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) says. The Russian Navy's heavy A-Cruiser 'Pyotr Veliky' In February last year...

MOSCOW, January 28 (RIA Novosti) - A pair of Russian Tu-95 Bear strategic bombers have carried out a routine patrol flight over the Arctic Ocean off Alaska, an Air Force spokesman said on Wednesday. "Two Tu-95MS strategic bombers took off from an airbase in eastern Russia on Tuesday and successfully carried out a patrol mission over the neutral waters of the Arctic Ocean and near Alaska," Lt. Col. Vladimir Drik told RIA Novosti. The spokesman said that during the 10-hour mission, the crews practiced instrumental flight maneuvers in arctic climate conditions. "On route, the bombers were accompanied for 10 minutes...

The Russian Air Force will receive around 20 modernized Su-25 Frogfoot attack aircraft and new MiG-29SMT Fulcrum fighters in 2009. Su-25 aircraft has been in service with the Russian Air Force for over 25 years. The Su-25 Frogfoot is a single-seat, twin-engine combat aircraft developed by the Sukhoi to provide close air support for ground troops. "About 10 modernized Su-25 attack aircraft and over 10 MiG-29SMT fighters will be delivered to the Air Force in 2009," Lt. Col. Vladimir Drik said. In 1999, Russia began to upgrade part of its aging Su-25 fleet. The Air Force received the first 6...

MOSCOW, January 22 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian Navy is to receive two corvettes equipped with stealth technology in 2010 and 2011, a spokesman for the United Shipbuilding Corporation said on Thursday. St. Petersburg's Severnaya Verf shipyard started construction of the Soobrazitelny in 2003 and the Stoiky in 2006. Designed by the Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau, they will be the second and third in the Project 20380 series, after the Steregushchy, which was put into service in 2007. Russia plans to have up to 20 vessels of this class to ensure the protection of its coastal waters, as well...

MOSCOW, January 15 (RIA Novosti) - The state will earmark 4 trillion rubles ($125 billion) for arms procurements by 2011, including 1 trillion rubles ($31 billion) in 2009, the Russian prime minister said on Thursday. Vladimir Putin said the modernization of defense related enterprises would continue despite the global financial crisis. "The modernization of defense industry enterprises as well as the development of modern weapons should continue," he said. He added that federal defense programs need to be reviewed and "streamlined," in particular with regard to production volumes. Russian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said earlier on Thursday the state had...

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's military leaders approved a plan by the navy on Sunday to station warships permanently in friendly ports across the globe. Underfunded since the 1991 break up of the Soviet Union , the Russian navy has been reasserting itself over the last year by chasing Somali pirates around the coast of east Africa and steaming across the Atlantic to visit allies in South America. "The General Staff has given its position on this issue and it fully supports the position of the (Navy's) main committee," deputy chief of staff Colonel-General Anatoly Nogovitsyn told RIA Novosti news agency....

MOSCOW (AFP) — A test-firing of a new Russian sea-based missile capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads ended in failure Tuesday when the weapon disintegrated after launch, the Interfax news agency reported. "After its firing from the submarine Dmitry Donskoy, the Bulava missile self-liquidated and exploded in the air," a military source told the agency. Interfax said this was the eighth test launch of the Bulava and the fifth time the firing has been unsuccessful. No damage or casualties were caused by the rocket's explosion, the source said. Navy spokesman Igor Dygalo did not directly comment on the report but...

Not since 1984, just before the fall of the Soviet Union, has Russia ventured to launch dozens of nuclear bombers for an exercise in which Tu-95 Bear bombers will fire live cruise missiles. Exercise Stability 2008 will take place Oct.-6-12 over sub-Arctic Russia uncomfortably close to the US state of Alaska, and Belarus. DEBKAfile's military sources report that the exercise is part of a month-long war game described by Russian air force spokesman Col. Vladimir Drik as "practicing the strategic deployment of the armed forces including the nuclear triad." As part of the exercise, our sources reported exclusively on Oct.1,...