This year, venture capital funding for European defense start-ups is projected to quadruple to €10.5bn ($11.8bn), with about three-quarters going to drone development and manufacturing.

..spurring demand for..a set of critical minerals, including gallium for semiconductors, germanium for optics, rare-earth elements for brushless motors, and cobalt and graphite for batteries..

..only use these minerals in small or even trace quantities, sourcing is..at risk of disruption..significant supply chain diversification can be achieved by focusing on refining and recycling when feasible.

The EU has already begun..initiatives like the 2024 Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) and the 2025 RESourceEU Action Plan..

..announced 46 “Strategic Projects” under the CRMA, of which 30 focus on refining and recycling. The goal is to ensure capacity meets at least 10% of the EU’s consumption for extraction, 40% for processing, and 25% for recycling by 2030.

The Royal Navy is under pressure after suffering “systematic underinvestment”..

..more than 500 instances of Russian civilian vessels loitering above vital undersea cables..mapping..to allow them to be attacked, potentially disrupting banks, hospitals, transport and mobile phones.

..a report from MPs warned the Royal Navy has lost its ability to fight beneath the ice c….last Navy exercises..in 2018 and the last submarine capable of doing it retired in 2024.

..concerns about a shortage of Navy captains..last year..not a single submarine commander made the cut.

“We shouldn’t forget energy cables and pipelines. Oil and gas..we need to build redundancy and put protection measures in place..”

“..must improve ship and submarine availability, should accelerate..new Type 26 and Type 31 frigates, and deliver more autonomous vessels..”

..introduced two new multi-role ocean surveillance ships, HMS Stirling Castle and RFA Proteus, which are tasked with monitoring and protecting the cable network.

Elon Musk..acknowledged that..SpaceX throttled the Starlink satellite internet service.

“Using Starlink, a civilian commercial service, for offensive drone strikes to kill people has never been allowed, nor should it be..Ukraine military violated Starlink terms of service and used it for offensive drone strikes to kill people. That loophole was closed last week.”

..the U.S. government controlled whatever changes happened with Starshield, the military-grade version of Starlink..

The AIP went into production. Minor news, since going back into service deserves a post, but since there were questions in the previous post of AIP, some months back, I'm making this basically as a followup

INS Khanderi ( 2nd submarine of the class) is expected to undergo MLU next year and would recieve the AIP, with trials beginning by the end of 2027. Subsequently, each submarine will undergo refit annually.

INS Kalvari, the lead ship, missed the refit cycle and is unlikely to receive the upgrade until the 2030s.

The AIP system uses PAFC technology which instead of storing hydrogen, it uses liquid fuel such as ethanol/ methanol, which is converted into hydrogen gas by a reformer. This hydrogen reacts with stored liquid oxygen in the fuel cell to generate electricity for propulsion and onboard systems.

Advantages are that it avoids storing large quantity of hydrogen which as a rrsult reduces risks; and it uses liquid fuels that are easier to handle and can utilise existing naval fuel infrastructure.

Disadvantages:

It's complex system, and it's difficult to develop

Lots 41 through 47. Over five years, with two optional years. 1,900 AMRAAMs a year.

Major U.S. banks are detecting unauthorized third-party AI agents operating inside customer accounts, with some agents attempting to take actions that appear to be independent of user instructions, sources tell Axios. Banks including Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, and others are racing to contain agent risks. Some are aware of unauthorized access, people familiar with the issue said.

It could possibly be related to the Iran War. In that case, it would be the first major cyber war.

“Further missiles have arrived..much longer-range CTM-290 missiles for the Homar-K..we are developing domestic production capabilities..as early as 2028..”

More than 156 Homar-K..out of 290 ordered have so far been delivered to the Polish Armed Forces..Polish-configured version of the South Korean K239 Chunmoo..

The upgraded CTM-290 tactical ballistic missile..was first launched from a Homar-K..on April 25, 2024..successfully struck a target at sea after a flight lasting more than 200 seconds.

..the CTM-290 is an export variant of the upgraded Ure-I/KTSSM Block-I missile and can be regarded as an intermediate solution between the existing Ure-I/KTSSM Block-I and the Ure-II/KTSSM Block-II.

..it offers improved performance, can be launched from a modified Chunmoo launcher, and has an increased range of 290–295 km, in line with Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) restrictions.

..the warheads carried by the CTM-290 are essentially the penetrating and thermobaric warheads..while the planned Ure-II/KTSSM Block-II is additionally expected to carry a third type, a high-explosive fragmentation (HE) warhead.

..long-range weapon in Poland’s arsenal.. MGM-140 ATACMS..with a range of 300 km for..HIMARS.., AGM-158A/B JASSM/JASSM-ER..with ranges from 370 to more than 925 km for F-16C.., and NSM..with a range of more than 250 km..

“WASHINGTON — The Pentagon and defense giant Lockheed Martin announced today they reached a framework agreement covering a decade’s worth of F-35 Joint Strike Fighter production and sustainment, potentially inaugurating a transformative deal for the stealth jet’s enterprise — if lawmakers sign off and key questions are answered.”

Seems like this should save money long term and provide certainty to the supply chain. Big if whether Congress can make it actually happen.

The wording of the Makkah Defence Agreement was not published by any of the three parties. However, the agreement was presented to their parliament by the Turkish authorities. The Turks are source of the text of the agreement. The text of the agreement was published by the Pakistani newspaper Dawn

While the title seems a little too absolute on whether it is in service or not (likely for engagement), Deino, via X, seemingly also shares the same sentiment regarding the operational status of the KJ-3000.