A Forecast International blog about the arms trade, geopolitics, defense and security, and military spending.
Japanese media revealed on July 6 that Japan plans to transfer its Abukuma-class destroyer escorts to the Philippines, potentially marking the first such export in modern Japanese history. Media reports …
Japan Closes In On First Major Warship Export Read More
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) has released an updated version of the defense portion of the reconciliation bill, negotiated jointly by members of the House and Senate …
Updated Reconciliation Bill Cuts Border Funds, Increases Munitions Investment Read More
A fragile ceasefire appears to be holding between Iran and Israel following a period of escalating violence, culminating in a covert U.S. strike on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. In the days …
Tentative Ceasefire Takes Hold Following Iran’s Retaliatory Strikes Read More
Just over a week after Israel began Operation Rising Lion, a major air campaign against Iran, the U.S. carried out its own series of strikes on Iran on Saturday night, …
Operation Midnight Hammer: U.S. Strikes Iranian Nuclear Sites Read More
Canada plans to meet NATO’s goal of spending two percent of GDP on defense this year, seven years earlier than planned, Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a speech Monday. …
Canada Plans to Hit NATO Defense Spending Target Early, Shift Focus from U.S. Read More
President Trump’s fiscal year 2026 defense budget request cuts over $25 billion in acquisition funding from the Department of Defense’s base budget, primarily for procurement programs, shifting those expenses to …
FY26 Base Budget Cuts $25 Billion for Acquisition, Relies on Reconciliation Bill to Fill Gaps Read More
On Monday, June 2, the British government released a new Strategic Defence Review (SDR), the first such review implemented by a Labor government since 1998. It arrives at a time …
Transformative or Mirage? Examining the U.K. Strategic Defense Review Read More
Lockheed Martin has been awarded a $1 billion contract modification to continue its support for the U.S. Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) hypersonic weapons program, the Department of Defense announced. …
Lockheed Martin Awarded $1 Billion U.S. Navy Contract for Hypersonic Missile Work Read More
Ukraine’s intelligence services conducted an unprecedented attack over the weekend on the Russian Aerospace Forces, striking dozens of parked Russian strategic bombers with first-person view (FPV) drones launched from modified …
Ukraine Strikes Russian Bomber Fleet in Elaborate Drone Plot Read More
The White House made headlines recently by declaring its FY26 defense budget request would break the trillion-dollar mark, but the president’s claims don’t quite hold up to scrutiny. While the …
A Trillion-Dollar Defense Budget That Isn’t Read More