Know What's Happening in Defense
Know What's Happening in Defense
U.S. IDFC boosts reinsurance guarantees for Hormuz shipping to $40 billion
The U.S. International Development Finance Corp has doubled its reinsurance guarantees for vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz to $40 billion, adding major insurers such as AIG and Berkshire Hathaway. The step is intended to reinforce maritime security amid escalating regional tensions.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Kraken Robotics acquires Colvya Group for $615M
Iran's newly appointed supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei issued his first public address, vowing retaliation against U.S. and Israeli forces. He warned that attacks on U.S. bases will continue unless they are shut down and emphasized Iran's intent to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed as leverage. Khamenei thanked regional proxies—Hezbollah, Iraqi militias, and the Houthis—and hinted at expanding the conflict to new fronts. He also demanded compensation from the U.S. and Israel after the war.
The Hapag Lloyd container ship Source Blessing was hit by projectile fragments in the straight of Hormuz earlier today. Hapag reports that it was not a direct hit, all crew are safe, and they have extinguished the fire on...
The U.S. Army is drafting a new Foreign Military Sales (FMS) weapons catalog that will initially group offerings into four capability buckets: integrated air and missile defense, long‑range fires, drones, and counter‑drone systems. The effort follows President Trump’s February executive...
Iran launched Shahed‑136 drone strikes on Amazon Web Services data centers in the UAE on March 1 and a third site in Bahrain shortly after, causing fires, power outages and prolonged service disruption. The attacks occurred amid an international armed conflict...
Taiwan’s 58th Artillery Command UAV battalion conducted its first immersive FPV drone training in a simulated urban battlefield on March 10, 2026. The exercise paired long‑endurance reconnaissance drones with first‑person‑view attack drones to locate and strike mock enemy forces inside...
U.S. intelligence warns foreign adversaries, especially Iran, are intensifying cyber attacks on critical infrastructure. The 2025 Threat Assessment highlights coordinated efforts by Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea across energy, transport, water, and manufacturing sectors. CISA reports Iranian actors using...
The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and Ursa Major successfully flight‑tested the Affordable Rapid Missile Demonstrator (ARMD), reaching supersonic speed with the Draper liquid rocket engine. The test validated throttleable liquid propulsion and demonstrated that a complete missile system can...
I got asked on the news today is Cybersecurity a field that is being impacted by AI or is it a safe field? I explained how I struggle with this personally as well - there's a lot of fear, uncertainty and...
Four Skydio X10D drone systems were stolen from the 326th Division Engineer Battalion at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, between November 21 and 24, 2025. The Army Criminal Investigation Division announced the loss and posted a $5,000 reward for information leading to...
At the Paris Naval Conference Admiral Daryl Caudle announced two new US Navy surface ship programs – the BBG(X) "Trump‑class" battleship and the FF(X) frigate based on the Coast Guard’s Legend‑class cutter. These vessels complete a four‑pillar force structure that...
The podcast examines the escalating war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, where Israel aims to eliminate Hezbollah’s military and political influence. Hezbollah, after months of attrition, chose to fight openly, framing the conflict as a martyrdom‑driven stand. The Lebanese...
Leaked internal documents from Russia’s Progress helicopter plant show that officials evaluated a production run of up to 48 Ka‑52M attack helicopters for an unnamed foreign client coded “156.” The paperwork details component sourcing, pricing, and a three‑stage financing scheme...
Meta announced the removal of nearly 300 Instagram and Facebook accounts linked to an Iranian influence operation that masqueraded as journalists and commentators. The fake personas collectively attracted about 41,000 followers before disseminating anti‑U.S. and anti‑Israel political messages. Engagement on...
ALL.SPACE announced a strategic partnership with Viasat, securing Category 4 certification for its Hydra electronically steered terminal on the Viasat Global Xpress (GX) Ka‑band network. The certification enables full‑performance operation across Viasat’s high‑capacity steerable beams for on‑move, on‑pause, and halt scenarios....
Defense Innovation Unit and the U.S. Navy have awarded Anduril a contract to prototype the Dive-XL autonomous submarine under the Combat Autonomous Maritime Platform (CAMP) program. Anduril must conduct a long‑range, operationally representative demonstration within four months, using a vehicle...
Survival Dispatch News released episode 716 of its "America on High Alert" podcast, warning that Iranian sleeper cells are active within the United States. The episode is accompanied by a daily Situation Report (SITREP) that details emerging threats and intelligence...
The article outlines three possible paths for Vladimir Putin’s succession as the Ukraine war winds down: an intelligence‑driven transition led by senior siloviki, a military‑driven takeover, or an unexpected heir chosen behind the scenes. It highlights the prominence of FSB...
One Stop Systems (OSS) secured $10.5 million in new awards from the U.S. Navy and a prime defense contractor to supply rugged NVMe storage units for the P‑8A Poseidon aircraft. The contracts cover hot‑swappable, high‑capacity flash canisters designed for secure, rapid...
U.S. Navy intelligence chief Rear Admiral Mike Brookes told Congress that China is transitioning from a diesel‑electric‑heavy submarine force to an all‑nuclear fleet, expanding shipyard capacity and developing a smaller Type 041 "Zhou‑class" attack sub. The plan includes next‑generation Type 095 SSGNs...
He thinks this is a game. I warned early and often: IRAN RISK IS NOT PRICED IN Trump says "we could do a lot worse" to Iran. "We could take them out by this afternoon. In fact, within an...
JUST IN: 🇺🇸 United States says Navy is not ready to escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. It would be 'suicide'. So the war wages on while Trump sends ameteur AI videos from the WH to evoke fake gamer...
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued Emergency Directive 26‑03, warning that attackers are exploiting a critical authentication‑bypass flaw (CVE‑2026‑20127) in Cisco Catalyst SD‑WAN devices used across federal networks. The vulnerability carries a CVSS score of 10, potentially granting...
The author argues that NAVSEA’s handling of the Constellation‑class frigate program turned a heritage‑based adaptation of the Franco‑Italian FREMM into a de‑facto clean‑sheet design, eroding cost, schedule and governance controls. The shift occurred between mid‑2022 and mid‑2023 when senior ownership...
The article contrasts the $11.3 billion cost of the first six days of the unauthorized Iran strike with the National Science Foundation’s $8.75 billion budget, arguing that the war is illegal and strategically flawed. It condemns executive overreach, calling the generals involved...
The Blind Spot is hosting former aerospace & defence journalist Nick Cook, author of The Hunt for Zero Point, for an exclusive dinner in West London on March 25. Expect conversation on advanced military tech, disclosure developments, audience Q&A, and book...
Security professionals excel at rigorously vetting technical indicators but often neglect the same discipline when assessing people or organizations. This bias leads to unverified negative rumors influencing decisions, which can cause false positives, wasted resources, and damaged stakeholder trust. The...
Up until roughly the 1970s, most civilian technological progress was downstream of military technological progress. The trend has since inverted. Today most of the modern (e.g. Ukraine) military playbook comes from consumer tech from the past two decades. With AI entering...
Disagree. They have shown themselves and the world they have a solid deterrent, tbh. A nuke isn’t anywhere as usable as the deterrent they now provably possess and can improve on, and does not come with problems and existential fears of...
Estonian defence startup Frankenburg Technologies secured a €30 million Series A round led by Plural, with participation from SmartCap, to expand missile manufacturing across Europe. The capital will fund modular, containerised production hubs in the UK and Germany, each designed to output...
Looks like #China is about ready to enter the discussion on the War. You figured that was coming.....
I was assured by numerous naval sources that the Navy would be ready. I didn’t think the Navy would be ready. But I did think it would take less than a full month.
Security vendors Splunk and Zoom released emergency patches this week to remediate multiple critical and high‑severity vulnerabilities across their product lines. Zoom fixed a critical privilege‑escalation flaw in Workplace for Windows and three high‑severity defects in its Windows client software....
Dan’s subhead: “Gulf War Three is not going well for the United States”. I believe Dan Drezner knows more than I do about what is currently going on with the Epstein-Netanyahu-Trump War on Iran, so I turn the microphone over to...
Iran says it hit an American tanker. If true…. Iraq has spent the last few days upping the danger for ships. The global risk keeps increasing for ships, crew, and cargo. The Strait of Hormuz and no safe movement...
U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Wright said Iran‑related naval operations in the Strait of Hormuz will last weeks, not months, and that a U.S. Navy escort for commercial tankers is expected by the end of the month. Washington is working with allied...
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps struck the Thai‑flagged cargo vessel Mayuree Naree in the Strait of Hormuz, killing three crew members and igniting fears over neutral shipping in a key oil chokepoint. In response to the resulting price surge, President...
The U.S. Army will field the new M111 hand grenade, the first major ordnance update since the Vietnam era. It replaces the asbestos‑lined MK3A2, addressing long‑standing health hazards and limited tactical flexibility. Designed for urban combat, the blast‑over‑pressure grenade reduces...
The UK government has unveiled a £50 million defence growth deal for Scotland, funding two Defence Technical Excellence Colleges and £10 million for innovation facilities at the Arrol Gibb Innovation Campus and Clyde Engineering and Innovation Centre. The programme aims to create...
At 1:15 a.m. EST on Feb 28, the U.S. and Israel launched massive airstrikes on Iran, prompting a flood of real‑time OSINT dashboards such as WorldView that stitch together satellite, traffic and social feeds. Built in days by an ex‑Google Maps manager...
Energy Secretary Wright says U.S. ‘not ready’ to escort tankers through Strait of Hormuz yet. CNBC
Interesting interview with Oleksandr Kamyshin. He says 11 countries in the Middle East, Europe, and U.S.A have requested official assistance for Shaheds recently. Also Ukraine offered last year.
Representative Thomas Massie reminded the House that the Constitution vests war‑making authority in Congress, a point the GOP‑dominated chamber rejected by 212‑219. President Trump ordered strikes against Iran in coordination with Israel without a formal declaration, congressional authorization, or clear evidence...
The U.S. Department of Justice has charged former DigitalMint ransomware negotiator Angelo Martino with conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by extortion. Martino allegedly supplied BlackCat (ALPHV) operators with confidential negotiation details and received a 20% cut of ransom payments...
Attackers are weaponizing phishing campaigns to overload Security Operations Center (SOC) analysts, turning the investigation process into an informational denial‑of‑service (IDoS) attack. By flooding the SOC with thousands of low‑sophistication emails, they force analysts to triage quickly, allowing a few...
The Strait of Hormuz remains essentially closed to ship traffic because of Iran's attacks. Every Iranian attack is a negotiation. Iran knows it has leverage and is trying to end this war on favorable terms. Only way out is for...
The UK Royal Navy’s Astute‑class submarine HMS Anson arrived at HMAS Stirling on 23 February, marking the first time a UK nuclear‑powered attack submarine received maintenance in Australia. The deployment supported the AUKUS partnership, which aims to develop a new generation...
The thing with this war is that there's no easy off-ramp for Trump. Simply declaring "mission accomplished" won't cut it if Iran keeps attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has leverage Venezuela and others didn't have and it's...
Taiwan's legislature is set to empower the Cabinet to sign Letters of Offer and Acceptance for four U.S. weapons systems—M109A7 self‑propelled howitzers, Javelin anti‑armor missiles, TOW 2B missiles and HIMARS—completing a US$11.1 billion arms package announced in December. The three systems have...
In this episode, Santi Ruiz talks with former Deputy National Security Advisor Nadia Shadlow about how the U.S. National Security Strategy (NSS) is crafted. Shadlow explains that the NSS is a multi‑party, coalition‑building document that articulates a president’s strategic goals,...
NEW ODD LOTS - CYBERWAR AND AI Legendary hacker @msuiche talks to me and @TheStalwart about cyber warfare in the age of AI. We talk: - Iran's capabilities - The intersection of kinetic & digital warfare - The impact of AI on coding, hacking, SaaS...
