Elisabetta Belloni First Woman to Head Italy's Secret Service - Department of Information Security
Italy has for the first time appointed a woman, career diplomat Elisabetta Belloni, to head the country's secret service.
Belloni, who has already been the first woman to hold key foreign ministry posts, will now lead Italy's Security Intelligence Department (DIS), reporting directly to the cabinet.
The DIS's brief includes handling intelligence and security matters at home and abroad as well as counter-espionage and cybersecurity.
Belloni came to public prominence when she led the foreign ministry's crisis unit between 2004 and 2008, taking responsibility for operations involving Italians injured or killed abroad, whether in attacks or natural disasters.
She was the first woman to hold that position.
May 12, 2021
Portugal to Train Mozambique Forces
Portugal is to train Mozambican troops in an agreement aimed at boosting ongoing fight against an Islamist insurgency in the north of the southern African country.
The agreement was signed in Lisbon by Mozambican Defence Minister Jaime Neto and his Portuguese counterpart João Gomes Cravinho.
The training is part of a five-year plan that will see Portugal increase its number of troops in Mozambique to 80 to train Mozambican soldiers, share intelligence and help the country use drones to track the militants' movements.
The European Union (EU) could also send between 200 and 300 soldiers to Mozambique on a training mission.
Recent attacks by jihadists on the coastal town of Palma have led to deaths and triggered an exodus that included workers on a liquefied natural gas project, led by the French oil and energy company, Total.
Insurgents have been carrying out intermittent attacks against some districts of Cabo Delgado province, some of them close to the border Tanzania since late 2017.
May 09, 2021
Centre Approves Key Appointments in Department of Military Affairs
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), headed by the Prime Minister, has cleared the appointment of senior military officers as additional secretary and joint secretaries in the department of military affairs (DMA) under the Defence Ministry.
In an order issued late, the ACC approved the appointment of Lieutenant General Anil Puri as additional secretary in the DMA. It also cleared Major General K Narayanan, Rear Admiral Kapil Mohan Dhir and Air Vice Marshal Hardeep Bains for the posts of joint secretary in the department.
May 06, 2021
India, UK Agree on Co-production of Military Hardware; Technology Collaboration for Combat Aircraft
In a major move, India and the UK vowed to expand bilateral defence cooperation, including through technology collaboration in developing combat aircraft and complex weapons, during a virtual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his British counterpart Boris Johnson.
A 10-year roadmap unveiled at the summit for boosting overall India-UK ties mentioned that the two countries will strengthen cooperation to take "decisive and concerted actions" against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities.
It said the two leaders agreed that there is a promising new era ahead for India-UK collaboration on key military technologies including combat aircraft, maritime propulsion system and complex weapons, harnessing the strengths of Indian and British industries, government laboratories and academia.
May 05, 2021
Armed Forces Use Lease Route to Cut Red-tape, Stay Prepared for Adversaries
Rather than getting caught in the laborious defence acquisition process, the armed forces are using the financial powers of vice-chiefs to lease out critical weapon platforms from strategic allies like the United Sstates, France and Russia. The vice-chiefs have the power to purchase Rs. 300 crore worth of equipment as part of capital purchases as well as half of Rs. 500 crore can be used for emergency requirements for the service but outside capital outlay.
According to South Block officials, the leasing of two Predator unmanned aerial vehicles from the US, a nuclear power submarine Akula class to replace the presently leased INS Chakra from Russia, and the proposal to lease a Airbus 330 multi-role transport tanker from France are examples in this direction.
While the leasing process allows the armed forces to train on a platform that it plans to acquire, it also short-circuits the labyrinth of acquisition process like acceptance of necessity, request for information, request for proposal, defence acquisition committee, finance ministry approvals and finally the Cabinet Committee of Security (CCS).
Rolls-Royce Partners with Hindustan Aeronautics for Warship Engines
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Rolls-Royce signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a support system in India for the highly regarded Rolls-Royce MT30 marine engines.
The HAL-Rolls-Royce partnership will provide packaging, installation, marketing and services support for the MT30 engine, creating a business case for the Indian Navy to consider using the engine for powering and propelling its warships.
The Indian Navy, one of the world's major warship builders, has not used the MT30 for even a single warship. Most Indian frigates and destroyers are propelled by Ukrainian Zorya turbines or by American General Electric LM-2500 gas turbines.
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