Back door over red carpet: Norway torn on Dalai Lama visit
Oslo (AFP) April 24, 2014 -
A planned visit by the Dalai Lama has Oslo torn between its will to warm up frozen ties with China and warnings from the public not to compromise its stance on human rights.
Rather than rolling out the red carpet, the Norwegian authorities seem more inclined to make the Tibetan spiritual leader enter through the back door when he arrives on May 7 for the 25th anniversary of his Nobel Peace P ...
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Northrop to start low-rate production of mission computers
Woodland Hills, Calif. (UPI) Apr 24, 2013 -
Northrop Grumman is to begin low-rate initial production of its FlightPro Gen III mission computers to support U.S. Marine Corps helicopters.
The systems will be produced under a $10.6 million contract from the U.S. Navy and will be used for UH-1 flight tests, system integration laboratories and training.
"Our enhanced FlightPro Gen III mission computer is the most capable genera ...
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Lockheed touts improvements for SUAS operations
Owego, N.Y. (UPI) Apr 24, 2013 -
Enhanced software and an enhanced ground control system by Lockheed Martin are automating the operations of small unmanned aerial vehicles.
Earlier this year, the Kestrel Fly Light control system and mobile ground control software were demonstrated on the company's Desert Hawk III small unmanned aircraft system, or SUAS, and delivered improved situational awareness to operators and redu ...
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Raytheon awaits FMS order for TOW missiles
Tucson (UPI) Apr 24, 2013 -
Raytheon reports that it expects to deliver nearly 14,000 tube-launched, optically-tracked, wireless-guided missiles to an unidentified country.
The manufacture and delivery of the TOW missiles will come under a U.S. Foreign Military Sales agreement signed by the United States and the customer, which has a value of about $750 million.
Raytheon said it expects to complete an agree ...
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Obama faces emotional trip to South Korea
Tokyo (AFP) April 24, 2014 -
US President Barack Obama will encounter a nation mourning one of its worst maritime disasters and on edge over North Korea's nuclear brinkmanship Friday when he flies to South Korea.
The trip to Seoul was once billed as a routine, informal stop to catch up with old friends, but took on poignant overtones after the sinking of a ferry packed with high school students last week.
US intell ...
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Obama in Tokyo backs Japan in China island row
Tokyo (AFP) April 24, 2014 -
US President Barack Obama vowed Thursday to defend Japan if China attacks over a tense territorial dispute, but also urged Beijing to step in to thwart North Korea's "dangerous" nuclear march.
In Tokyo on the first leg of his Asian tour, Obama stopped short however of fully endorsing Japanese sovereignty over disputed East China Sea islands, keeping one eye on Beijing where his trip is being ...
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The U.S. Army contracts for a laser weapon demonstrator
Bothell, Wash. (UPI) Apr 24, 2013 -
A laser weapon to counter rockets, artillery, mortars and unmanned aerial threats is being designed and built by Lockheed Martin.
The 60-kilowatt electric laser will be integrated in a truck-mounted High Energy Laser Mobile Demonstrator under a U.S. Army contract worth $25 million.
"Lockheed Martin continues to advance its high-energy fiber laser technology to provide a proven, a ...
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Israel halts peace talks after Palestinian unity deal
Jerusalem (AFP) April 24, 2014 -
Israel said Thursday it was halting peace talks with the Palestinians following their unity deal with Hamas, as the faltering US-backed process approached its deadline.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticised the agreement between the rival factions as a move that "kills peace," but senior Palestinian official Saeb Erakat blamed Israeli settlement activity for killing off the process. ...
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Lockheed Martin Demonstrates Enhanced Ground Control System and Software for Small Unmanned Aircraft
Owego NY (SPX) Apr 25, 2014 -
Lockheed Martin's Group 1 family of unmanned aircraft systems is migrating to enhanced automation capabilities using its Kestrel "Fly Light" flight control systems and industry-leading mobile Ground Control Station (mGCS) software. The increased automation allows operators to focus on executing the mission, rather than flying various aircraft.
Earlier this year, Lockheed Martin's Desert Ha ...
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US Military hopes AI autopilot can replace flight crews
Moscow (Voice of Russia) Apr 25, 2014 -
The US Defense Department is developing a method of autopilot that may allow the military to reduce air flight crews to a fraction of their current size. This announcement comes after officials worried that a reduced military would be less effective.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Pentagon's research and development department said Tuesday that, over the next 50 ...
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Australia to buy 58 US F-35s for $11.6bn
Sydney (AFP) April 23, 2014 -
Australia will purchase 58 more F-35 Joint Strike Fighters at a cost of Aus$12.4 billion ($11.6 billion) in a major upgrade to defence capabilities, the government said.
The new aircraft will bring Australia's total JSF force to 72 aircraft, with the first due to arrive in Australia in 2018 and enter service in 2020.
"The F-35 will provide a major boost to the Australian Defence Force's ...
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International customer signs agreement with USG for Raytheon's TOW missiles
Tucson AZ (SPX) Apr 25, 2014 -
An international customer signed an agreement with the U.S. Government for a foreign military sale (FMS) of tube-launched, optically tracked, wireless-guided (TOW) missiles to be supplied by Raytheon in a deal valued at approximately $750 million.
Raytheon plans to deliver nearly 14,000 TOW missiles to the customer over a three-year period beginning in 2015. A resulting order is expected t ...
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Russia starts border army drill after Ukraine attacks rebels
Slavyansk , Ukraine (AFP) April 24, 2014 -
Russia ordered new military exercises on the border of Ukraine Thursday and warned of "consequences" after Kiev launched a deadly assault against pro-Kremlin rebels occupying the flashpoint town of Slavyansk, in an escalation of the crisis.
But Ukraine's president vowed to see through the military operation, telling Russia to "stop interfering" in the former Soviet republic, and declaring th ...
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High Gain Amplifiers for Commercial and Military Radar Released by Pasternack
Irvine CA (SPX) Apr 25, 2014 -
Pasternack Enterprises has released a new portfolio of L and S band high gain amplifiers covering 1.2 - 1.4 GHz and 3.1 - 3.5 GHz specifically used for commercial and military radar applications as well as observation satellites and communications systems.
Pasternack's new high gain amplifier modules are optimized for 1.2 - 1.4 GHz and 3.1 - 3.5 GHz radar applications, packaged in hermetic ...
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US Navy deploys Standard Missile-3 Block IB for first time
Tucson AZ (SPX) Apr 25, 2014 -
In partnership with the Missile Defense Agency, the U.S. Navy deployed the second-generation Standard Missile-3 Block IB made by Raytheon for the first time, initiating the second phase of the Phased Adaptive Approach.
"The SM-3 Block IB's completion of initial operational testing last year set the stage for a rapid deployment to theater," said Dr. Taylor W. Lawrence, president of Raytheon ...
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N. Korea seals nuclear test tunnel: Seoul official
Seoul (AFP) April 24, 2014 -
North Korea has apparently sealed a tunnel at its nuclear test site, a government official said Thursday ahead of US President Barack Obama's arrival in Seoul for a two-day visit.
South Korea's defence ministry warned earlier this week that the North could be preparing to carry out a fourth nuclear test, citing increased activity at the Punggye-ri site.
"It is believed that North Korea h ...
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Sweden to arm fighter jets with cruise missile 'deterrent'
Stockholm (AFP) April 24, 2014 -
The Swedish government defended plans Thursday to equip fighter jets with cruise missiles capable of striking targets in Russia, days after announcing a military spending hike linked to the Ukraine conflict.
"In the future the ability to combat longer range targets can be important," Defence Minister Karin Enstroem told public broadcaster Sveriges Radio, adding that the missiles would have " ...
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Raytheon touts ballistic missile defense weapon
Tucson (UPI) Apr 24, 2013 -
The second generation Standard Missile-3 Block IB missile made by Raytheon has been deployed for the first time by the U.S. Navy.
Raytheon, in headlining the missile's deployment, said the event marks the start of the second phase of the U.S. Phased Adaptive Approach to countering ballistic missile threats.
"The SM-3 Block IB's completion of initial operational testing last year ...
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China frees Japan ship after $28 mn paid in 1930s row
Shanghai (AFP) April 24, 2014 -
China on Thursday released a seized Japanese ship after its owner paid $28 million in compensation, a court said, in a business dispute dating to the 1930s which underlines tensions between the countries.
The Shanghai Maritime Court announced Saturday it had impounded a large freighter owned by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines in accordance with the law, as the Japanese company had failed to compensate a ...
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Dispute islands 'within scope' of US-Japan alliance: Obama
Tokyo (AFP) April 23, 2014 -
The islands at the centre of a corrosive row between Tokyo and Beijing are covered by the US-Japan defence alliance, Barack Obama told a newspaper ahead of his arrival in Tokyo Wednesday.
Obama, whose tour of Asia will also take in South Korea, the Philippines and Malaysia, is the first sitting US president to explicitly affirm that hostile action against the island chain would spark an Amer ...
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