Russia to build two early warning radars in 2013

Via Globaltimes.cn

Russia will start to build two new early warning radar stations in 2013, Deputy Defense Minister Oleg Ostapenko said Thursday.

According to Ostapenko, the new radar stations will be built in Yeniseisk of the East Siberian Krasnoyarsk Territory and in Barnaul of the South Siberian Altai Republic.

He also revealed the construction of another radar station which is located in Armavir of the Rostov region in Southern Russia has been nearly completed.

This radar station will be put into operation soon. State- commissioned trials are in their final stages, Ostapenko said, adding the station is due to be put on full combat alert soon.

Russia abandoned the radar in Azerbaijan's Gabala on Dec. 24 due to expiration of a 10-year lease agreement with Baku.

Iranian Navy begins major war games

Source: Tehran Times

TEHRAN – Iran started on Friday a major naval exercise in an area covering about one million square kilometers from the east side of the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf of Oman to the northern Indian Ocean.

The six-day maneuvers, entitled Velayat-90, will be conducted in international waters and the country’s territorial waters with the participation of various units of the Iranian Navy, including submarines, warships, destroyers, missile systems, and special forces.

Iranian naval forces will practice tactics of detecting, identifying, and destroying mock enemy forces during the war games.

On the first day of the exercise, the Jamaran destroyer closely monitored the activities of mock enemy vessels and transmitted information to the headquarters of the exercise and Iranian warships, submarines, missile-launching destroyers, hovercraft, and other naval vessels carried out tactical maneuvers and spread out across the theater of operation to deal with mock enemy forces.

The commander of the Iranian Navy, Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, said on Tuesday that the drills would be held to test the country’s new defense and missile systems, combat vessels, submarines, drones, and torpedoes, and provide naval forces with the opportunity to perform combat and reconnaissance missions, repel mock attacks, and practice countering electronic warfare measures.

He also said that Tareq and Ghadir submarines and new domestically manufactured hovercrafts and drones would be used during the war games, adding that a number of Iranian naval units, including submarines, warships, destroyers, and missile systems would act as mock enemy vessels.

Ra’d missile to be test-fired

The spokesperson for the war games, Rear Admiral Amir Rastgari, told the Persian service of the Fars News Agency on Friday that the Ra’d (Thunder) missile will be test-fired during the exercise.

The Ra’d is Iran’s newest domestically manufactured medium-range surface-to-air missile, which was put on display for the first time during a ceremony in Septembe

Russian Shipbuilders Say Mistral Contract ‘In Force’

Source : RIA Novosti

MOSCOW, December 21 (RIA Novosti) – Russia's United Shipbuilding Corporation said on Friday the contract to build two Mistral class amphibious assault ships remains ‘in force,’ dismissing media reports that the country’s Defense Ministry has dropped the construction plans.

“We have not been informed of any such decision by the Russian Defense Ministry. Currently, the contract remains in force, as before,” a spokesman for Russia's United Shipbuilding Corporation said.

The spokesman also confirmed that the construction of the first two Mistral ships in France will be continued.

Russian business daily Vedomosti on Friday cited a government source saying that the Russian Defense Ministry has decided to abandon plans to build two Mistral class amphibious assault ships under French license in Russia.

Russia and France signed a $1.2-billion contract for two French-built Mistral class ships, including the transfer of sensitive technology, in June 2011.

The first ship, the Vladivostok, is being built at a DCNS shipyard in Saint-Nazaire and should be delivered in 2014, while the second, the Sevastopol, is scheduled for delivery in 2015.

Two more ships were expected to be 80% built in Russia, 20% in France.

A Mistral-class ship is capable of carrying 16 helicopters, four landing vessels, 70 armored vehicles, and 450 personnel.

The French-built ships are expected to be assigned to Russia’s Pacific fleet.