"When he looked me in the eyes to answer my questions, he sounded like an old uncle telling a story."John Miller, former ABC News reporter
An insight into Osama bin Laden's life through the eyes of people who knew him and met him.
Russia's Biggest Question: Floating Airfields
Russia, perhaps will get a few carriers. In any case, the representatives of the United Shipbuilding Corporation have repeatedly asserted that the design of a new heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser must begin.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
I knew bin Laden
Threat Lies Within, Not Across Our Border: Pakistan
If things were not quite so serious, we could imagine we are living in a black comedy of some kind. In the latest episode, six terrorists, according to an official count by the interior minister, were able to enter one of the most important bases in the country, apparently by strolling across a small drain and some bushes towards its rear. And after doing so, they apparently managed to make their way towards a hanger where navy aircraft, including P-3C Orion aircraft, used to gather surveillance and intelligence against submarines, were parked and managed to destroy at least one of them.
Spin It: Russian Helicopter Industry
by Kirill Belov
What has been one of the most successful in recent years, domestic engineering industries relating to its defence and civilian sectors? How to track the development of new rotorcraft and ordering available helicopters?
Before the exhibition HeliRussia-2011 Russian helicopter decided to report on progress. Gathered at a press conference in agency "Interfax" industry generals, headed by the Deputy Minister of Industry and Commerce Dennis Manturov provided reporters a detailed report on the state of affairs in the field of rotorcraft technology.
The Arms Race Is Slowing
World military spending in 2010 totaled 1.63 trillion dollars.
Annual growth - 1.3 per cent (20.6 billion dollars).As stated in the report of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the lowest figure over the past ten years.During 2001-2009 years the average annual growth was 5.1 percent.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Sputnik Declassified
Sergei Korolev, the engineer behind the 184-pound Soviet Sputnik satellite, was not credited by name until after his death.
The Army's Wernher von Braun, seen here with a model rocket, was prevented from making America's first attempt to put a satellite in orbit and was forced to defer to a team from the Naval Research Laboratory. When the Navy's Vanguard failed, he put America in space with Explorer in January, 1958.
Bin Laden, Basayev and Terrorism's Scourge
When Osama bin Laden was killed, I was in Washington and got to watch President Barack Obama’s televised announcement and witness Americans’ jubilation with the news first hand. Two themes struck me particularly: Justice is served, and there is no mission impossible for the United States. Crowds outside the White House in Washington and near Ground Zero in New York were chanting, “U-S-A!”
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Debate On Solid Vs Liquid Propelled Missiles: Russia
Defense is ready to begin funding work on the creation of a new heavy liquid strategic missile that will replace the stand in the armies of more than 30 years of complexes of RS-20 "Satan" and SS-18 “Stiletto ".
To learn how to create a new missile, the correspondent of Izvestia interviewed, Honorary General Designer of MIC NPO Mashinostroyenia, Ph.D. Herbert Efremov
Of Communists, Couriers And Covert Actions
The ongoing debate about Osama bin Laden’s death reminded me of other moments of crisis in Pakistan’s short history. There are many but one occurred exactly sixty years ago, when on March 9, 1951 the Pakistan government brought charges of sedition and of plotting a military coup against certain leaders of its own military and members of the Communist Party of Pakistan (CPP). This incident is now remembered as the Rawalpindi conspiracy case. What is sometimes forgotten is how the secretary general of the CPP, Syed Sajjad Zaheer, after having avoided arrest, was eventually taken into custody. Respected journalist, (late) Hasan Abidi, was, as a young man, assigned by the CPP to be Sajjad Zaheer’s courier. Abidi was arrested around April 20, and, after being tortured at the Lahore Fort for a week, he gave the police Zaheer’s address. Surprisingly, when the police arrived at the given address on April 28, 1951, Zaheer was still there and he was subsequently arrested.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
MiG Failed But Not Forgotten: MMRCA Defeat…
As part of the tender for the purchase of India's MMRCA fighters took a step toward completion: selected two interim winner. "King for a day now consolidate efforts in the final. Loser it is time to think about how and what to do next. Date decided did not pull the cat's tail. Three weeks had passed since the reported extension of "deal of the century" - MMRCA tender to supply 126 medium fighter for the Indian Air Force as the new leadership of South Asian hegemon boldly cut the list of contenders for the tasty $10 billion from six to two points
Tank Overhaul: The Sherman
The American M4 Sherman is the best known, most widely used tank of the Second World War. It is also the most controversial. Was it the all-American tank that won the war or a completely under-designed death trap?
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Faithless Warriors
By Said Nazir
In the wake of 9/11, a number of militant outfits emerged in the federally administered tribal areas, claiming that their purpose was to maintain peace and purge vulgarity, social injustices and crime from the lawless tribal society. Armed with their own interpretation of Sharia, they quickly gathered recruits from all walks of life. Men and women alike flocked to their banners, and their adherents soon included politicians, lawyers, teachers, students and medical practitioners.
Yes, the Afghans Hate Us
Along the road between Jalalabad and Asadabad, two cities in eastern Afghanistan, an American truck is broken down as Afghan vehicles approach. A U.S. soldier steps out to stop oncoming traffic and begins to scream obscenities and, with his rifle butt, hit cars (including mine) that don’t move back fast enough. This will block the road for almost an hour and brew distrust and even hatred between American troops and the local population. Isolated incident? Unfortunately no.
Russian Army Waiting For A Fifth-generation ICBM
Defense Ministry decided on the development of a new heavy liquid ballistic missile, which should replace the world's most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), P-36M (according to western classification SS-18 Mod.1, 2,3 Satan - "Satan" ).
This was reported by a former Chief of Staff of the Strategic Missile Forces Viktor Esin. "Satan" - the foundation of our land group's strategic nuclear deterrent forces. Today on constant alert is 58 such missiles deployed on their 580 nuclear warheads.The machine is immune to electromagnetic pulse and can be started from the mine, even if a nuclear warhead explodes in proximity. It will break through any missile defense system and will deliver payload to the target, even in another hemisphere it has: 10 nuclear warheads (megaton class) each having individual guidance. This is quite enough to wipe out the city in one strike, and even the whole country. However, by 2020 practically all existing missiles will serve their period, and will have to change them. Therefore has accepted the solution to develop new ICBM..
Monday, May 16, 2011
Controversy Around Tank: T-90 & T-95
by Ilya Kramnik
Permanent scandal is shaking the Russian defense industry and military officials of the Russian Federation in connection with the purchase of new armored vehicles, had reached its climax after the announcement of Land Forces Commander Alexander Postnikov of obsolescence of proposed designs. After that search for common ground has become inevitable. How it will be successful and where are the roots of today's critical situation in the domestic tank manufacturing? 
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Bin Laden: Exposing Pakistan's Paradoxes
by Asad Hashim
"Pakistan, it would seem, is one of the few countries that can get more out of its international partners by pointing a gun to its own head."
It had to be Abbottabad.That is to say, while it is unsurprising to a degree that Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda's leader and the most wanted man in the world, was found in Pakistan, it is particularly telling that when he was eventually tracked down (and killed), it was not to a cave in a remote tribal agency, but a fortified compound - not two kilometres from Pakistan's military academy, in the heart of a city that is home to three regimental headquarters of the Pakistani army.
YF-23 Black Widow Declassified
"Web of Secrecy - YF-23 Black Widow II - Declassified" tells the story of the YF-23 fighter jet that was conceived, designed and built during the Cold War when the two superpowers were embroiled in an invisible conflict of arms escalation and air superiority.
India Accepts PAF a Leading Force
by Raja G Mujtaba
“Since the last Indo-Pak air war of 1971, the Pakistan Air Force has, with steely determination, built up numbers, lethal capabilities and a combat force now counted as one of the most disciplined and well-trained air forces in the world,” according to the writer. Similar views have also been published by India Today.
Chinese Aircraft Carrier: The History Of Discovery And Development Prospects
Modern China, successfully implementing a programme of economic development, known as the "programme of four upgrades", begun in 1978. Realizing the mark of the first decade of the 21st century strategy "Go outside" [1], the country goes to the level of world powers. 
Friday, May 13, 2011
Pakistan’s New Friend Russia
How the world changes. In the 80s, the US was allied with America fighting the USSR and Islamabad was instrumental in the implosion of the Soviet Union. The Kremlin admitted defeat and retreated from Afghanistan. The ingrates in Washington abandoned Pakistan and on the eve of the victory celebration sanctioned Pakistan for ephemeral faults and perceived crimes.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Learn to be Taliban: K is for Kalashnikov
The curriculum celebrated martyrdom and dehumanised invaders.
Imagine that you learnt the alphabet and numbers with images of Kalashnikovs and tanks instead of apples and oranges.
Tortured Logic: United States didn't need to waterboard anyone to get Osama bin Laden.
by MATTHEW ALEXANDER
Did torture work? This is the question everyone is asking after Osama bin Laden's death and the revelation that his fate was sealed by the identification of a courier whose nom de guerre emerged from the interrogation of top al Qaeda operatives who were known to have been subjected to waterboarding and similar techniques. "Did brutal interrogations produce the intelligence that led to the killing of Osama bin Laden?" a May 3 New York Times story asked.
War Dog: There's a reason they brought one to get Osama bin Laden.
by REBECCA FRANKEL
Dogs have been fighting alongside U.S. soldiers for more than 100 years, seeing combat in the Civil War and World War I. But their service was informal; only in 1942 were canines officially inducted into the U.S. Army. Today, they're a central part of U.S. efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan -- as of early 2010 the U.S. Army had 2,800 active-duty dogs deployed (the largest canine contingent in the world). And these numbers will continue to grow as these dogs become an ever-more-vital military asset.
Feting Gagarin and 50 Years of Space Exploration
April 12 marked the 50th anniversary of the first manned spaceflight, thrusting two Russians — astronaut Yury Gagarin and rocket designer and engineer Sergei Korolyov — into the global aerospace hall of fame.
Gagarin was literally the human face of Soviet socialism, an icon of hope in an era of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev’s domestic “thaw” and warmer relations with the West. He went down in history as the first human in space and was followed by German Titov, the first man to spend more than 24 hours in space.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
CIWS Systems Worldwide
Document describes the various Close-in weapon systems operational worldwide. It describes the respective qualities, lethality & ease of integration of each weapon. In the case of lethality Russian CIWS namely Tulamashzavod AK-630 stands unchallenged; in the case of cross-platform ability & as a totally independent system with modern FAPDS rounds the German Rheinmetall 35 x 228 DM 33 stands unchallenged…lastly the most widely used system US Phalanx with its seamless integration with onboard naval machinery is the most economical system on the scene; but wait Chinese have come up with a decent CIWS system ready to influence the defence market!!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Teacher & Warrior: A-4 SkyHawk
by Kirill Belov
Honored assault and combat-capable aircraft Israeli Air Force A-4 Skyhawk getting ready for retirement. Who will replace them on the battlefield and in training flights?
Andzrail made the final decision to remove from the ranks of its American ground attack aircraft Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. One of the symbols of the Israeli Air Force will relinquish its seat light training aircraft impact and the more modern colleague for combat training cohort.
Bin Laden Death Points to Way Out of Trap
The death of Osama bin Laden offers President Obama an opportunity to emphasize negotiations with the Taliban and escape the trap that is Afghanistan, but the impact on global terror and the threat from transnational jihadist groups will be limited.
Almost 10 years ago, when 3,000 people were killed on Sept. 11, Osama bin Laden set a snare for the U.S. His death on Sunday may not resolve all of the security challenges for the U.S., but it does offer a way out of the trap that is Afghanistan.
Modern Marvels: Bunkers
TitanII ICBM can be launched within two minutes by a crew of two operating deep In the bunker. A Soviet missile sent to destroy the bunker would take 30minutes by that time 103ft TitanII would be thundering toward its Soviet target
From the earliest bunkers of WWI through the ultra-futuristic ones of tomorrow's wars, we trace the story of defensive fortifications. In the constant struggle to hold off ever more potent forms of attack, bunkers function in a variety of forms. Three mammoth block structures comprise a submarine bunker at Lorient, France, able to house 20 subs. We visit Churchill's Cabinet War Room and Hitler's Berlin bunker, as well as backyard Cold War bunkers and those that protect nuclear weapons themselves.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Concrete Proposals to Make NATO's Future Nuclear Policy Work
With NATO again debating its future nuclear policy—including the role of its tactical nuclear forces—it should focus on concrete measures to maintain a credible nuclear deterrent in the medium term and avoid abstract debates over complete disarmament or the need to keep nuclear weapons indefinitely. Policy makers should seriously consider a fuller range of options to develop a credible nuclear deterrent and to explore Russia’s interest in reducing short-range nuclear forces alongside other categories of weapons. Although quick breakthroughs on a new round of arms control arrangements are highly unlikely, it is worth making a concerted effort to reach an agreement on NATO’s nuclear posture before the next NATO summit in 2012.
Bin Laden and the Human Rights Cult
by Dmitrybabich
I am not going to dwell here on the intricacies of Bin Laden’s liquidation. War is war, and a success of today may augur a defeat tomorrow. I would only stress an obvious similarity between the conspiracy theories surrounding several “miraculous” survivals of bin Laden and his Chechen analogs in the 1990s and 2000s.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Brazil Spoke About His Own Hypersonic Missile
Brazil has been developing its own version of a hypersonic flying vehicle capable of speeds in excess of six Mach numbers (6,9 thousand kilometers per hour), according to Flightglobal. Creating a missile with an index of 14-X started in 2006. The first flight of the Brazilian unit, equipped with a hypersonic ramjet engine, is scheduled for 2013. The new device is created as a technology demonstrator and, if tests are successful, based on it will develop new hypersonic missile. 
Russia Reports France Threat Against Obama Brought US Into Libya War
A shocking report written by the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the meetings held between President Medvedev and US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates this past week says that America’s war on Libya was “forced” onto it after French President Nicolas Sarkozy [photo top right with Libyan leader Gaddafi] threatened President Barack Obama with “total exposure” if the US didn’t attack.
Most Terrible War of 21st Century: Iran & Israel
Israel says Iranian nuclear program is a threat to its national security and has repeatedly declared its readiness to strike by Air Force against Iranian nuclear facilities even in United States. According to the report of the American Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), this will result in brutal war in human history, in which will die almost 20 million Iranians, and Israel would lose about 800 thousand people killed.
Kremlin Got Tip on Bin Laden’s Death
Vladimir Putin was the first international leader to call George W. Bush after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Now President Barack Obama has returned the favor, notifying the Kremlin that U.S. forces killed 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden before making the public announcement.
"We appreciate it that the Russian authorities were sufficiently informed before the official statement by U.S. President Barack Obama," the Foreign Ministry said Monday in a brief statement.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
The Chinese Are Coming!
In 1966, Hollywood produced a Cold War comedy about a Russian submarine becoming stranded on the shoals of a small New England town. It was a good movie and it nicely captured the misplaced hysteria of the era about Soviet military intentions. It was calledThe Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming!and I recommend you get it from Netflix.
Osama Bin Ladin: US Angered by Pakistani Intelligence
Pakistani military and intelligence officials should answer many questions to prove that they did not know where Osama bin Laden had been hiding before he was killed in a U.S. raid on Monday, a senior U.S. senator said.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Brides of Al Qaeda
“Who is it?” asks 12-year-old Khadijah as she unlocks the door to her home. Her accent differs from that of a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa native’s — and after she pulls open the door, her unique features further pique my curiosity. Where are Khadijah and her family really from?
Khadijah is one of the thousands of people in Pakistan whose lives have been influenced by the war in neighbouring Afghanistan, a country that has seen nothing but conflict for three decades. Khadijah is actually the granddaughter of Sufi Hameed Gul, who is famous in this small town of Regi, situated some 12 kilometres from the provincial capital of Peshawar. Although he is a respectable religious cleric, Sufi Hameed Gul’s fame stems from the fact that he is the father in-law of two former Guantanamo detainees.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Non Cost Victory (NCV)- Latest Generation of Weapons
Today the development of special weapons in the West has received much attention. Costs justify themselves!! For example, graphite bombs have been very effective to incapacitate power plants in Serbia. One NATO aircraft flying an average intensity was enough to knock out two-thirds power of the state.
By geophysical NCV are understood any means, with the aid of which it is possible to act for military purposes on the processes, which take place in the solid, liquid and gaseous shells (lithosphere,hydrosphere and the atmosphere) of our planet.
Active Denial System
Nasr Missile: A ban or a boon?
by Zahir Kazmi
Hatf-IX (Nasr) missile test on April 19th brings two critical security issues into focus and these are the utility of so-called tactical nuclear weapons (TNWs) for deterrence and the concept of deterrence itself. Our use of Cold War literature and related lexicon in South Asian thinking is like carrying the latest map of New York to find our way in Rawalpindi’s maze. It gets you nowhere. Let me explain why.
With the new START in force and in the spirit of Lisbon Treaty, ambassadors from 10 European countries submitted a non-paper to NATO’s Secretary General on April 14th. They sought increased transparency and confidence with regard to TNWs in Europe. Their basic argument is flawed as there is nothing tactical about nuclear weapons.
