DTN News - AZERBAIJAN DEFENSE NEWS: Azerbaijan Spent $1.6 Bln On Israeli Arms In 2011

DTN News - AZERBAIJAN DEFENSE NEWS: Azerbaijan Spent $1.6 Bln On Israeli Arms In 2011
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Ria Novosti 
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 31, 2012: Azerbaijan purchased a variety of weaponry, including aerial drones and an advanced anti-missile capable radar, from Israel under a $1.6 bln contract signed in 2011, the APA news agency said on Tuesday, citing data provided by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

According to the SIPRI Arms Transfers Database, Baku bought an unknown number of Gabriel anti-ship missiles, five Heron and five Searcher UAV’s, a Barak-8 air defense system with 75 missiles, and an EL/M-2080 Green Pine radar. Israel uses Green Pine for its national missile defense system.

Analitika.az website speculated that the purchases could be linked to a cooling in relations with Iran, after ties between Baku and Tehran deteriorated recently.

Last month, police in Azerbaijan said they had arrested an unspecified number of people linked to Iran and to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah on suspicion of planning attacks in the country.

Tehran later accused Azerbaijan, which borders Iran and has friendly relations with the United States and Israel, of colluding with Israeli intelligence services in the killing of an Iranian nuclear scientist in January.

At the end of February, the Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Tehran Javanshir Akhundov to explain the arms deal with Israel and to provide assurances that the Israeli weaponry would not be used against Iran.

Akhundov reportedly said the weapons were bought “to liberate occupied Azerbaijani land,” most likely hinting at the ongoing conflict with Armenia over the disputed region of Nagorny Karabakh which was seized from Azerbaijan by Armenian forces during a war in the 1990s.

Baku and Tehran attempted to soothe building tensions during a visit by Azerbaijan Defense Minister Safar Abiyev to Iran earlier in March when both sides made public assurances of good neighborly relations.

Israel has persistently denied any connection between current tensions in the Persian Gulf and military supplies to Azerbaijan. Israeli experts point out that such transactions take months, or even yearsto complete.

Related News

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• Israel to Sell Arms to Azerbaijan
• Azerbaijan says it Uncovered Iran-linked Terrorist Group

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Ria Novosti
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News 
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
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DTN News: Israel Signs $1.1 Billion Defense Deal With India

DTN News: Israel Signs $1.1 Billion Defense Deal With India *Source: DTN News / Int'l Media (NSI News Source Info) JERUSALEM, Israel - November 11, 2009: India and Israel agreed to jointly develop a new long range, land-based air defense system to replace the aging Pechora (SA-3 GOA) missiles currently in service with the Indian Air Force. Covering a range of 70 km, the new missile will almost double the range of the 60km vertically launched Barak 8 shipborne missile (also known as Barak NG) currently being developed for the Indian and Israeli Navies under a US$480 million five year program launched in early 2006. The new missile system will be based on the medium-range naval air defense missile currently under development for the Indian and Israeli Navies. The naval application of the missile will be integrated with the MF-STAR phased array shipborne radar, which Elta claims to be superior to the SPY-1 AEGIS radar. Overall, the MF-STAR / Barak 8 combination is claimed to be superior to the leading US made systems such as AEGIS or Patriot PAC-3 missile systems. (Image: A view of the Barak 8, developed for shipborne defense as well as ground based air defense applications. Photo: IAI) Barak 8 missile utilizes a fully active seeker, the missile is not dependent on the launcher for targeting and guidance, and can perform at much longer ranges, offering effective protection from aerial threats, manned, unmanned as well as guided weapons. Covering both low and high altitudes, the missile is designed for operation on-board ships as well as for terrestrial applications. Barak 8 system is designed to engage multiple targets simultaneously with deadly effectiveness. The missile uses vertical launched missile is designed to offer 360 degrees protection, utilizing an advanced active radar seeker. The missile is equipped with a two-way datalink, supporting mid-course updating and terminal updating and validation. To extend its datalink and C3 coverage over a wide area, the system will integrate surface based radars and communications elements with airborne manned and unmanned elements, maximizing its operability and range over all types of terrain. MR-SAM is expected to streamline with the original Barak 8 schedule, adding about $300 million to the program development cost. In its decision last week the Indian Government earmarked a total funding of about Rs10,000 crore (about US$2.5 billion) for the medium range surface-to-air missiles (MR-SAM) project. The program will include the deployment of up to nine air defense squadrons. The MR-SAM development will be conducted under the bilateral agreement signed between the two countries, which will guide the scope of collaboration formulating between DRDO and IAI defined in a memorandum of agreement signed in New Delhi, June 2007. The Indian Air Force plans to re-equip nine air defense squadrons with the new missile, each including two batteries comprising a multi-mission radar system performing target acquisition and guidance, command-and-control element and three container-launchers each mounting eight missiles. Prime contractor for the program will be the Indian DRDO, with IAI missile and space group acting as leading subcontractor with IAI's Elta Systems providing the radar and Israel's RAFAEL producing the interceptor missiles. According to the bilateral agreement, the Indians will be able to locally produce and support the systems. Barak 8 is expected to be part of a new offensive and defensive system suite under development at IAI's Missiles and Space division. This new family of weapons will also comprise the latest generation Gabriel 5 anti-ship missile, an integrated combat management system and multi-function EL/M-2248 MF-STAR shipborne phased array radar system.

India, Israel To Expand Defence Ties

India, Israel To Expand Defence Ties

(NSI News Source Info) BANGALORE - February 14, 2009: Away from prying eyes, kickback allegations and political sensitivities, India and Israel continue to quietly expand their already expansive defence ties, with joint R&D projects ranging from missile systems to ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) platforms as well as arms deals. "We have a very special defence relationship with India.

It's now moving towards joint development of equipment. There are several new projects in the pipeline,'' Major-General Ehud Shani (retd), the chief of Israeli defence export and cooperation agency Sibat, told TOI on Thursday. India is already the largest customer of Israeli weapon systems, notching up imports worth over a whopping $8 billion since the 1999 Kargil conflict.

From UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) and anti-missile defence systems to night-vision capabilities and advanced radar systems, India has bought them all from Israel.

So, it's no wonder that Israeli companies are present in full strength in the ongoing Aero India-2009, displaying even their latest offerings like the G-550 "conformal'' AWAC (airborne warning and control system) at the show here. But with both India and Israel careful about keeping their defence ties under wraps, the Israeli companies are not conducting high-voltage publicity campaigns like others to grab eyeballs. The third-generation G-550 AWAC, however, is one of the main attractions of Aero India.

Only two of these AWACS, with a Gulfstream business jet as the basic platform, have so far been inducted into the Israeli air force, said Yair Ramati of the Israel Aerospace Industries. India, in turn, will get the first of its three `Phalcon' AWACS, ordered for IAF under a $1.1-billion deal in March 2004, before the middle of this year, said Israeli officials.

The AWACS, coupled with the nine more Israeli EL/M-2083 Aerostat radars being ordered to add to the two already inducted, will give India potent "eyes in the skies'' to detect enemy air intrusions much earlier than ground-based radars.

"Israel specializes in ISR platforms, the need for which has become even greater after 26/11. It is one of the few countries which gives us top-notch defence technology without strings attached, even though it charges quite a bit,'' said an Indian defence ministry official.

Major examples of the increasing focus on the joint Indo-Israeli projects are the ones to develop a supersonic 70-km range Barak-2 medium range surface-to-air missile (MR-SAM) for the Indian Navy at a cost of Rs 2,606 crore and its longer range 120-km variant (LR-SAM) for IAF for Rs 10,000 crore.

IAF, incidentally, plans to induct nine air defence squadrons of LR-SAM initially. The two projects had run into some rough weather because of the kickbacks case being investigated by CBI into the original Rs 1,160-crore Barak-I deal.

Though the Left has been demanding scrapping of the two projects, the UPA government has pushed ahead with the projects.

India Buying Israeli Barak Missiles

India Buying Israeli Barak Missiles

(NSI News Source Info) January 26, 2009: India is buying another 300 Israeli Barak missiles, at a cost of about $1.6 million each, for the Barak anti-aircraft missile/aircraft systems it has already bought. The Barak missiles weigh 216 pounds each (with a 48 pound warhead) and have a range of ten kilometers.

Barak is an Israeli surface-to-air missile designed to be used as a point-defense missile on warships, defending against aircraft, anti-ship missiles, and UAVs. The Barak SAM is designed to replace gun-based CIWS platforms, such as the Phalanx CIWS, with a more flexible SAM model. In January 2007, after several months of intense negotiations, India and Israel signed a US$330 million deal to co-develop an all new generation of the Barak SAM, which was to be known as the Barak II. The new missile, which will be based on the original Barak, is expected to feature a more advanced seeker, in addition to an extended range. The joint development offer was first made by Israel during Indian Navy Chief Admiral Arun Prakash's visit to Tel Aviv in 2004.

The missiles are mounted in an eight cell container (which requires little maintenance) and are launched straight up. The radar system provides 360 degree coverage and the missiles can take down an incoming missile as close as 500 meters away from the ship. Each Barak system (missile container, radar, computers and installation) costs about $24 million. Israel weapons have a solid reputation for reliability and effectiveness. Israeli success in several wars adds to the appeal of their armaments. U.S. and Israeli arms manufacturers often work together, which also gives Israel an edge when selling their equipment. The Barak II was originally bought because of delays in producing the similar Indian Akash system, which has been in development since the 1980s. Akash was recently declared ready for service, and actually purchased by the Indian Air Force. The Barak system was also purchased to do what the Indian made Trishul was designed to do. Barak works, but Trishul is made-in-India, and that counts for a lot. Trishul has been in development for over twenty years. First test firing took place in 1991, and the manufacturer declared test firings completed by 1998.

The armed forces, however, rejected the missile, as not ready for service. So development continued, until 2003, when the project was cancelled. But the project, which has cost nearly $200 million so far, had political friends. Development was allowed to continue, even though neither the army or the navy wants it. The missile has a range of some nine kilometers, and has suffered mainly from reliability problems, particularly with its guidance system.