Showing posts with label Greece. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Greece. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

DTN News - FINANCIAL NEWS: Global Markets Jump After Greek Vote Eases Fears

Asian Defense News: DTN News - FINANCIAL NEWS: Global Markets Jump After Greek Vote Eases Fears
*Global markets jump as Angela Merkel tells election victor Antonis Samaras she is confident Greece will abide by bailout pledges, and world leaders gather in Mexico for the G20.
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources The Globe & Mail
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - June 20, 2012: Asian stock markets were up sharply Monday after elections in Greece eased fears of global financial turmoil, but analysts warned that the economic crisis shaking the 17 nations that use the euro was far from over. Stock markets rejoiced at the narrow victory by Greek conservatives who favour upholding an austerity program that their recession-mired country entered into in exchange for a financial bailout from international lenders.

Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 1.9 per cent at 8,731.57. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.6 per cent to 19,548.83. Australia’s S&P/ASX200 added 1.8 per cent to 4,129.20 and South Korea’s Kospi rose 2.1 per cent at 1,897.62.

On Wall Street, Dow Jones industrial average futures were up 62 points on Sunday night, suggesting the market could open higher Monday. The euro rose to $1.2700 (U.S.) from $1.2637 late Friday in New York. The U.S. dollar rose to 79.22 yen from 78.71 yen.

The New Zealand and Australian dollars were also higher. Both currencies typically rise when investors have more appetite for risk. The Australian dollar was trading above $1.01 and the New Zealand dollar was trading above 79 cents.

Masahiro Yamaguchi, a manager at Mizuho Securities Co. in Tokyo, said the perk in Tokyo stocks came from a sense of relief that the worst had been avoided in Greece.

“There’s is a rebound simply because the risks are now reduced,” he said. “There’s a sense that, at least, things are okay for now. The solution is far from basic.”

On Sunday, pro-bailout parties in Greece won enough seats to form a coalition government.

Greece has been dependent on rescue loans to operate since May 2010, after it was shut out of international markets following years of profligate spending and falsifying financial data.

The country is mired in a fifth year of recession, with unemployment spiralling above 22 per cent and tens of thousands of businesses shutting down.

Greece had to agree to austerity measures to get its bailout. Measures included deep spending cuts on everything from health care to education and infrastructure as well as tax hikes and cuts in salaries and pensions. Anger at the measures has sent Greeks into the streets in frequent strikes and protests, some of them violent.

Some analysts said the election results could overstate the willingness of Greeks to embrace austerity.

“Overall, the Greek election result, while welcome, does not imply that the Greek people are embracing the tough reforms tied to the bailout package. It merely meant that fear overruled anger,” analysts at DBS Bank Ltd. in Singapore wrote in a market commentary.

No one is sure how bad a Greek exit from the euro would have been. Greece would almost have certainly defaulted on its debt, triggering losses for European banks that own its government bonds. The outcome of the election, however tenuous, gives Greece a chance to breathe life into its moribund economy.

“It will be tough, but Greece will survive because I think the tourist industry and the agriculture sector will help it recover from its dire straits right now,” said Francis Lun, managing director of Lyncean Holdings in Hong Kong.

Japanese vehicle makers soared on hopes that Europe, a huge export market, would avoid deepening economic turbulence. Mazda Motor Corp. jumped 4 per cent and Yamaha Motor Co. gained 4.5 per cent.

Steelmakers and shipyards also gained ground. South Korea’s top shipbuilder, Hyundai Heavy Industries, rose 3.1 per cent. Japan’s JFE Holdings Inc. added 4 per cent and Kobe Steel rose 3.3 per cent.

Samsonite International SA rebounded 5.8 per cent after it issued a statement saying its luggage is safe, following a Hong Kong Consumer Council report last week that found carcinogens in the handles of some models, which caused its shares to dive 16 per cent.

But stock market operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd. fell 2.8 per cent as investors worried a $2.2-billion bid announced last week for the London Metal Exchange was too high.

Benchmark oil for July delivery was up 91 cents to $84.94 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 12 cents to end at $84.03 a barrel in New York on Friday.

  DTN STOCK MARKET


*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources The Globe & Mail
*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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Thursday, April 26, 2012

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: U.S. DoD Awarded Contract $31,073,677 To General Dynamics Land Systems Related To U.S. Army For The Procurement Of 46 Abrams M1A2 System Enhancement Package V2 Vehicles

Asian Defense News: DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS:  U.S. DoD Awarded Contract $31,073,677 To General Dynamics Land Systems Related To U.S. Army For The Procurement Of 46 Abrams M1A2 System Enhancement Package V2 Vehicles
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources DTN News / U.S. DoD issued No. 307-12 April 25, 2012
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - April 26, 2012: General Dynamics Land Systems, Sterling Heights, Mich., was awarded a $31,073,677 firm-fixed-price contract.  The award will provide for the procurement of 46 Abrams M1A2 system enhancement package V2 vehicles. 

Work will be performed in Lima, Ohio, Scranton, Pa., Anniston, Ala., and Tallahassee, Fla., with an estimated completion date of Nov. 30, 2014. 

One bid was solicited, with one bid received. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-12-C-0198).

The M1 Abrams entered U.S. service in 1980, replacing the M60 tank. It served for over a decade alongside the improved M60A3, which had entered service in 1978. The M1 remains the principal main battle tank of the United States Army and Marine Corps, and the armies of Egypt, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Australia, and Iraq in 2010.

Three main versions of the M1 Abrams have been deployed, the M1, M1A1, and M1A2, incorporating improved armament, protection and electronics. These improvements, as well as periodic upgrades to older tanks, have allowed this long-serving vehicle to remain in front-line service. The M1A3 is currently under development.

The M1A2 was a further improvement of the M1A1 with a commander's independent thermal viewer, weapon station, position navigation equipment, and a full set of controls and displays linked by a digital data bus. These upgrades also provided the M1A2 with an improved fire control system. The M1A2 System Enhancement Package (SEP) added digital maps, FBCB2 capabilities, and an improved cooling system to compensate for heat generated by the additional computer systems. The M1A2 SEP also serves as the basis for the M104 Wolverine heavy assault bridge.

Further upgrades included depleted uranium armor for all variants, a system overhaul that returns all A1s to like-new condition (M1A1 AIM), a digital enhancement package for the A1 (M1A1D), and a commonality program to standardize parts between the U.S. Army and the Marine Corps (M1A1HC).

The M1A2 SEP TUSK Abrams and a modernized M1 Abrams were included in the Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) Analysis of Alternatives (AOA). Vehicles included in the AOA were determined to be inferior to the planned GCV. The U.S. Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Chiarelli commended the M1 Abrams program and recommended a similar approach for the GCV program. The Ground Combat Vehicle family of vehicles is the planned successor to the M1 as well as many other U.S. Army vehicles. However, the Army anticipates that the M1A1 will remain in U.S. service until at least 2021, and the M1A2 to beyond 2050.

M1 Abrams ~ Operators (Source - Wikipedia)
  •  Australia – Australian Army: 59 M1A1SAs (hybrids with a mix of equipment used by US Army and Marine Corps tanks, without depleted uranium layers in armor) tanks were bought from the United States in 2006, to replace the Leopard AS1 in 2007.
  •  Egypt – Egyptian Army: 1,005 M1A1s. Tanks co-produced by the US and Egypt for the Egyptian army. Another 125 Tanks have been ordered.
  •  Iraq – Iraqi Army: 140 M1A1Ms (downgraded, without depleted uranium layers in armor) on order, to be delivered by 2011. Iraq was leasing 22 US Army M1A1s for training in 2008. The first 11 tanks were delivered to the Iraqi Army in August 2010.
  •  Kuwait – Kuwaiti Army: 218 M1A2s (downgraded, without depleted uranium layers in armor)
  • US Army
1,547 M1A2 and M1A2SEP variants
4,393 M1A1 variants
2,385 M1 (reserve storage)
  • US Marine Corps
403 M1A1

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources DTN News / U.S. DoD issued No. 307-12 April 25, 2012
*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 
©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS 

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Asian Defense News: DTN News - ISRAELI DEFENSE NEWS: The Israeli Red Flag

Asian Defense News: DTN News - ISRAELI DEFENSE NEWS: The Israeli Red Flag
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Strategy Page
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 24, 2012: For the third time in the last six months the Israeli Air Force has hosted foreign fighter pilots for tactical training. Israeli fighter pilots are considered the best trained in the world, and Israel maintains a special training program, complete with pilots trained and equipped to operate as likely foes would, to train their own pilots. The latest nation to send fighters and pilots for training is Poland, flying F-16s in for that purpose. Previously, Italy had sent Typhoons and Tornados and Greece F-16s.
The Israeli training center is based on the one pioneered by the U.S. Air Force Red Flag program and the U.S. Navy's Top Gun training. Using American aircraft for "aggressor (or dissimilar) training" began in the 1960s. The original "Top Gun" fighter pilot school was established in 1969, by the U.S. Navy, in response to the poor performance of its pilots against North Vietnamese pilots flying Russian fighters. What made the Top Gun operation different was that the training emphasized how the enemy aircraft and pilots operated. This was called "dissimilar training". In the past, American pilots practiced against American pilots, with everyone flying American aircraft and using American tactics. It worked in World War II because the enemy pilots were not getting a lot of practice and were using similar aircraft and tactics anyway. Most importantly, there was a lot of aerial combat going on, providing ample opportunity for on-the-job training. Not so in Vietnam, where the quite different Russian-trained North Vietnamese were giving U.S. aviators an awful time. The four week Top Gun program solved the problem. The air force followed shortly with its Red Flag school.

Over the last 40 years the two training programs have developed differently, and the entire concept of "dissimilar training" has changed. The navy kept Top Gun as a program to hone a fighter pilot's combat skills. The air force made their Red Flag program more elaborate, bringing in the many different types of aircraft involved in combat missions (especially electronic warfare). But after the Cold War ended it became increasingly obvious that none of America's potential enemies was providing their fighter pilots with much training at all.

In other words, the dissimilar training for U.S. fighter pilots was not as crucial as it had been during the Cold War. Actually, it had been noted that flying skills of Soviet pilots was declining in the 1980s, as economic problems in the USSR caused cuts in flying time. During that period American pilots were actually increasing their flying time. Moreover, U.S. flight simulators were getting better. American pilots were finding that even the game oriented combat flight simulators had some training value.

So in the late 1990s, Top Gun and Red Flag found their budgets cut. But the programs remain, as does the memory of why they were set up in the first place. If we find that, say, China is continuing to improve its combat aviation, and gives its fighter pilots more flying time and their politicians maintain a bellicose attitude towards the U.S., there will be a need to increase American Top Gun training. Because of the new Chinese "dissimilar training" effort, the U.S. Top Gun and Red Flag schools are being restored to their former prominence, and Israel has become one of the best Red Flag operations outside the United States. The Chinese move is certainly a very meaningful one, as it shows that they are serious about preparing their pilots to fight and defeat Taiwanese and American pilots. Dissimilar training is how that is done and for most nations Israel is the nearest place to get it.

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Strategy Page
*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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Tuesday, March 29, 2011

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: Probe into German-Greek Arms Deals Reveals Murky Side Of Defense Sales

Asian Defense News: DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: Probe into German-Greek Arms Deals Reveals Murky Side Of Defense Sales
(NSI News Source Info)

ATHENS, Greece,

-
March 29, 2011:
Despite being heavily in debt, Greece keeps spending on arms. A probe into its accounts has led to an investigation into submarine deals with Germany and alleged corruption in the grey areas of the EU's defense sector.

Greek financial investigators have ascertained that more than $140 million in bribes were paid by a German submarine maker to local politicians and officials to facilitate a lucrative defense contract.


The deal focused on the purchase of four submarines, a $1.5 billion controversial contract that had drawn heated political debate.

Sources told the Greek Kathimerini newspaper that "numerous bribes were paid before the contract was signed," alleging that some of the ways in which the final bill was inflated involved requests by the Greek navy and Defense Ministry for extra equipment on the submarines.

The first submarine, named Papanikolis, was commissioned for development by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft in Kiel, Germany, with the remaining three scheduled for construction at Greece's Hellenic Shipyards, west of Athens.

Shortly after the Papanikolis was built in 2001 and launched three years later, Greek navy experts determined a host of technical problems with the T-214 diesel-electric submarine. The most severe: excessive rolling in bad weather conditions when the submarine surfaced for sea keeping in high seas.

After months of haggling over its involvement in the unprecedented European Union bailout to save Greece from defaulting, Germany finds itself at the center of another financial tangle with the debt-ridden Mediterranean nation - this time involving defense contracts Greece could ill afford and the shadowy deals behind them.

At the same time that German Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet was approving 22.4 billion euros ($29.7 billion) in aid to Greece, prosecutors in Germany began investigating whether defense contractors had paid millions of euros in bribes to Greek officials in connection with the sale of two German submarines in a deal worth more than a billion euros.

The investigation, which began in May, is focussing on the deal - part of a larger, complicated decade-old contract to provide Greece with a total of six submarines - struck between Berlin and Athens in March as Greece lurched toward bankruptcy. The investigation is also looking at similar defense deals struck between Germany and Portugal, another EU member state teetering on the brink of financial collapse.

German firm at the heart of bribery allegations

German submarine U34, Class 212Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: A German company is suspected of being involved in bribery

The probe is looking into allegations that Ferrostaal AG, one of the German companies helping to build the submarines, was involved in bribery. Ferrostaal executives are suspected by Munich prosecutors of authorizing payments worth millions of euros to politicians to win the initial deal in 2000 through a Greek company called Marine Industrial Enterprises.

According to records unearthed by the German investigation, Ferrostaal allegedly used false consulting contracts to cover up the bribes before distributing payments to "officials and decision-makers" in Greece. The prosecutors also allege that Ferrostaal accepted fees from other companies for bribes paid on their behalf, in effect operating a policy of subcontracted bribery.

While no charges have been brought in the on-going investigation into the submarine deal, several Ferrostaal executives stepped down in May and three company representatives have been indicted, along with individuals in Portugal linked to the Portuguese deals. The company itself could face fines in excess of 120 million euros if found guilty of bribing officials in Greece and Portugal.

Greece's economic crimes unit is also probing the transaction as part of its investigation into all weapons deals made by Athens over the past decade, deals said to be in the region of 16 billion euros in total, to determine whether Greece overpaid or agreed to deals for military equipment it didn't need.

Greece is the largest importer of conventional weapons in Europe and its military spending, the highest in the European Union, is widely accepted as one of the main reasons for the parlous state of its finances.

EU urged to clamp down on defence sector corruption

Angela Merkel Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Merkel's government has denied exploiting Greece

The revelations and investigations in the deals between Germany, Greece and Portugal have also prompted members of the European Parliament to call for the EU to launch its own probe, with some officials accusing Germany of making their military dealings with Greece a condition for its involvement in the country's bailout and profiting from Athens' profligacy.

German government officials have vehemently denied that Germany took advantage of Greece's spending habits to land lucrative defense deals and have dismissed claims that its involvement in the rescue package, in which Germany was the largest EU contributor of financial aid, was dependent on agreements being signed.

"This is a very difficult matter," Dr. Christian Moelling, a European defense expert from the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, told Deutsche Welle. "If Greece wants to spend the money, then of course it can but at the moment it is spending EU money...or, in fact, mostly Germany's money."

"The problem is that this submarine deal is an old deal. It was signed in 2000 before Greece had this level of financial problems. As with any deal, it is very hard to get out of the contract and the private actors in this deal have every right to get their money."

As well as the submarine deals themselves, it is thought that "offset contracts" were also signed to the tune of one billion euros. Offsets are arrangements made by purchasing governments with their suppliers, requiring the contractors to reinvest a percentage of the value of the deal in the importing country.

Offset deals under scrutiny in addition to illegal payments

A German airforce Tornado Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Buying military hardware sometimes comes with extras

"The arms trade is already an incubator of corruption with such large sums of money flowing around, and all that secrecy," Nick Whitney, a European defence expert at the European Council for Foreign Relations, told Deutsche Welle. "It's so easy to avoid clear accountability about what you've bought, and why. The best antidotes are transparency, and competition. But if you add offsets to the deal, it only gets murkier."

"The temptation to look for offsets - compensation for a big export of state capital - is understandable for some countries especially if you don't have an armaments industry of your own, and so can't expect to get compensated on a 'swings and roundabouts' basis."

Dr. Moelling describes offsets as side deals. "Direct offsets are deals which happen thus: the purchaser will say, for example, 'we want to buy your fighter aircraft but we also want you to provide us with the industrial capability to build the missiles which goes with it.' The seller will perhaps build the factory, pass on the technical knowledge or include the license to build the missiles in the deal for the plane."

"Indirect offsets work in much the same way but the additional deal will include something not attached to original product; we buy the plane, you build a hospital," he added. "These offsets often go beyond just the supplying company and can include participation by the supplier's government. In the case of the submarines, this would be the German government."

Grey area of EU defense sector open to abuse

Under many trade agreements and in most industries, offsets are illegal but the EU allows them in defense procurement where member states can invoke a "national security" exemption. Opponents of offset agreements say they are negotiated among companies with government favoritism and violate the EU's internal market competition rules.

Suitcase full of cashBildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Defense deals within the EU are sweetened by offsets

"In the civilian field, offsets are illegal but in the defense sector, they are legal," Dr. Moelling added. "In the EU, article 346 of the current treaty says that any agreement can be overruled if it is claimed to be in the national security. The problem is that there are many different opinions on offsets in the EU. Germany says they are not helpful as they blur the actual price of products. Greece meanwhile has a very active offset policy while other countries have no official policy. Offests aren't part of any typical market so they're very hard to monitor and are highly politicized."

"The European defense agency recently brokered an agreement amongst European member states to limit offset to 100 percent of the value of the arms contract," Nick Witney said.

"Previously, many member states were looking for a lot more. Austria was the most striking case - they used to demand 300 percent offset. In such circumstances, weapon-buying becomes the least important part of the transaction - the big money is in the offset. So any pretence that you are buying the best weapon at the best price for your military needs goes out of the window - noone can really disentangle why you've bought what you've bought."

The EU has been called upon to tackle the "national security" exemption invoked by member states when dealing in offsets. The EU is planning to introduce a new "defense procurement directive" which will restrict the areas in which governments can use the exemption and demand that the offsets they are involved in are necessary for the protection of security interests and do not break competition rules.

"It's not only on the weapons side of the deal that competition gets distorted," Witney added. "If the arms seller agrees to buy 1,000 trucks from you in compensation, what's that done to all the rules of the single market about fair trade in trucks? The treaties make clear that, although 'national security' gives member states latitude to ignore single market rules in their arms purchases, they must not in doing so distort competition in non-military goods."



*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News

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