Editorial Team

THE HAGUE, Netherlands  –  French armored-vehicle specialist Arquus and German commercial-vehicle giant Daimler Truck have formed a new partnership that aims to replace thousands of aging logistics trucks in French service. The deal, announced this morning, brings together two firms that already supply large fleets across NATO, yet have never before joined forces on a single French program.

The Army is moving fast to fold a new hypersonic strike option into its tactical fires family. Budget lines for fiscal year 2026 outline Project HX3, a pathway that funnels $25 million toward Castelion’s Blackbeard Ground Launch missile and an autonomous launcher called Common Autonomous Multi-Domain Launcher. Defense officials confirm the objective: prove a mature design in the first calendar quarter of 2026 and push ten flight-test rounds through a HIMARS rail before the fiscal year ends.

The U.S. Navy will run its third Large Scale Exercise (LSE 25) from late July into August. This iteration brings Canadian, Japanese, and NATO representatives into the control architecture for the first time. They will sit beside U.S. commanders to test global decision-making under pressure.

The Pentagon has filed its fiscal 2026 request with Congress. Defense officials confirm the document sets aside $47.3 billion for 19 new battle-force ships, more than tripling last year’s ship total.

The Royal Australian Navy has added a new hull to its order of battle. On 28 June the service commissioned HMAS Arafura, first of the Arafura-class offshore patrol vessels, during a ceremony at Fleet Base West near Fremantle. Defense officials confirm the ship is now on the active list under pennant 203 and ready to start work while post-commissioning trials continue.

Soldiers at Fort Sill fired a Stryker-mounted laser in a real tactical drill for the first time. The short event lasted only minutes, yet it closed a twenty-year gap between early laboratory trials and practical field use. Defense officials confirm that the 4th Battalion, 60th Air Defense Artillery Regiment knocked out multiple small drones without a single conventional round. Our analysis shows that the Army now treats directed-energy hardware as a live combat tool rather than a science project. 

The Army has given the green light to start low-rate production of its Indirect Fire Protection Capability Increment 2 system this October. Defense officials confirm that the signed acquisition decision memorandum cleared the final gate after a quick turn-around review on 28 June. According to industry sources, Dynetics, a Leidos company, received the first production task order hours later. The order covers eight launchers, two battle management kits, and initial spares worth about $385 million.

Germany has opened a new front in its security agenda. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, during a 48-hour visit to Israel, said Berlin will build a joint cyber research center with Israeli partners and anchor a nationwide “Cyber Dome” to shield critical networks from hostile states and criminal syndicates.