Saudi Arabia has joined the U.S. Department of Defense’s State Partnership Program, marking a new phase in the two countries’ bilateral defense cooperation. The signing ceremony, held in Riyadh on Thursday, brought together Air Force Gen. Steve Nordhaus, chief of the National Guard Bureau; Gen. Fayyad Al-Ruwaili, Saudi Arabia’s chief of general staff; Maj. Gen....
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Category: Policy Updates
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NZ Invests $1.58B in New Seahawk Helicopters, Airbus Planes
New Zealand has announced a $1.58 billion investment to acquire MH-60R Seahawk helicopters and Airbus A321XLR aircraft. Defence Minister Judith Collins and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters unveiled the investment as part of the government’s commitments outlined in the new Defence Capability Plan. The MH-60R Seahawk is the preferred option to replace the aging SH-2G(I)...
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Salesforce Launches New AI Platform to Boost UK Government Efficiency
Salesforce has launched Agentforce for Public Sector, a new artificial intelligence platform designed to help the U.K. government improve responsiveness, efficiency and productivity. Announced on Tuesday, the platform enables agencies to deploy a “digital workforce of intelligent AI agents” capable of autonomously handling both routine and complex tasks within designated guidelines. “The future of government...
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Australia Launches $150M Grants to Advance Space Research Partnerships
The Australian Space Agency has announced a new round of funding under the government’s Australia’s Economic Accelerator program, offering up to $150 million in grants aimed at fostering collaboration between universities and industry partners. The space sector is one of eight national research priorities identified for this support, which is designed to help fast-track the...
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Canada, Cohere Partner to Deploy Artificial Intelligence in Public Services
Canada and Toronto-based large language model developer Cohere have agreed to explore the deployment of artificial intelligence across federal operations and support the country’s commercial capacity to develop and export homegrown AI solutions. Government officials and Cohere CEO Aidan Gomez formalized the partnership with a memorandum of understanding on Tuesday. “By working with Canadian AI...
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Report: China Using AI Firms for Sophisticated Propaganda Campaigns
The Chinese government is reported to have used local artificial intelligence firms to conduct sophisticated propaganda campaigns, according to researchers at Vanderbilt University who reviewed documents from one such company, GoLaxy. Nextgov/FCW reported that the researchers found that GoLaxy created data profiles on over 2,000 American political and thought leaders and that there was evidence...
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Canada Continues to Protect Interests, Freedom in Arctic With Improved Military Presence
Canada is enhancing its presence in the Arctic by deploying military assets and personnel to protect its regional interests throughout the summer until early fall of 2025. The initiative, supported by the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, Royal Canadian Air Force and Canadian Special Operations Forces Command, will initially deploy the Halifax-class frigate HMCS Regina...
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Italy PM Taps Leonardo, Fincantieri to Shape EU-Backed Defense Investment
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has convened the chief executives of Leonardo and Fincantieri to decide how Italy will use billions of dollars in European Union-backed defense funding, Defense News reported on Friday. The meeting occurred in Rome, with Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, finance and foreign ministers, and others in attendance. It follows Italy’s move...
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Spain Shelves F-35 Plans, Bets on European Fighters
Spain has decided against purchasing the American-made F-35 fighter jet, choosing instead to focus on the Eurofighter Typhoon and the next-generation Future Combat Air System, according to a Wednesday report from Breaking Defense. “[T]he Spanish option involves the current Eurofighter and the FCAS in the future,” a Spanish Ministry of Defense spokesperson told the publication....
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Lithuania, Poland to Work on European Defense Enhancement Projects
Lithuania and Poland have joined the growing number of nations aiming to enhance Europe’s capability to respond to threats. The initiative will cover improving force movement in the region, strengthening NATO’s defense and unifying the alliance’s fuel reserve system. Tomas Godliauskas and Orijana Masale, two of Lithuania’s defense vice ministers, met with Polish counterparts on Thursday...