A Forecast International blog about the arms trade, geopolitics, defense and security, and military spending.
On August 31st, the Japanese government submitted its FY2027 defense budget request. Formulated amidst both mounting global security challenges and uncertainty surrounding the resilience of the alliance structures that …
Japan Confronts the “New Ways of War” in FY2027 Budget Read More
China is becoming a more prominent supplier of military equipment to Central Asia, with recent aircraft sales to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan adding to a growing portfolio of defense exports to …
China’s Defense Ties to Central Asia Grow With Aircraft Sales Read More
Chinese Project 093B (Shang III) Submarines – Source: Chinese Government Media Last week, the U.K.’s International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) think tank issued a landmark report concluding that between …
Production and Power: China Outpaces U.S. in Nuclear Submarine Construction Read More
Throughout the month of December and into January, Reuters and other news sources dropped a steady drum-beat of news on potential Pakistani arms export deals, most of which center around …
Pakistan’s Flurry of Arms Sales Read More
A high-stakes competition is underway for South Korea’s first large-scale electronic warfare (EW) aircraft program, a project valued at 1.78 trillion won ($1.31 billion). Two domestic consortia are vying for …
Competition Heats Up for South Korea’s Electronic Warfare Aircraft Program Read More
With its latest budgetary earmark announced on February 1, India’s defense establishment can expect another year of limited military modernization. The FY25-26 allocation is set at INR6.81 trillion ($77.8 billion), …
India’s Defense Budget Rise Insufficient to Meet Strategic Requirements Read More
Japan’s Ministry of Defense has submitted a budget request of ¥8.54 trillion ($59.76 billion) for fiscal year 2025 (FY25). The requested total marks a 7.5 percent increase over the current …
No Going Back: Japan Continues to Hike Defense Spending Read More
Kazakhstan has received a new batch of Su-30SM fighter jets from Russia, as seen in recent posts on the Kazakh Ministry of Defense’s Telegram page. Several posts from August 17-18 …
New Batch of Su-30s Delivered to Kazakhstan Read More
China’s aircraft carrier program was already lagging due to an economic slowdown when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Technical issues with the design of the next group of carriers only exacerbated …
China’s Aircraft Carrier Program to Take Battle Beyond Its Shores Read More
The Tajik parliament has ratified a defense cooperation agreement with Turkey covering the provision of security assistance to the Central Asian country. Tajikistan and Turkey originally inked the military cooperation …
Tajikistan Ratifies Turkish Military Assistance Agreement Read More