UK Defence Forum

............

UK to Step up Africa Peacekeeping, Sir Michael Fallon Says

An extra 100 military personnel will be sent to South Sudan as the UK looks to "step up" its United Nations peacekeeping commitments, the defence secretary has said.

Sir Michael Fallon said the government would make a "bigger commitment to peacekeeping, particularly in Africa".

The UK needed to help states "on the brink of failure", or face instability that leads to extremism, he added.

Read More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-37304422?o ... ce=twitter

The Armchair Soldier wrote:UK to Step up Africa Peacekeeping, Sir Michael Fallon Says

An extra 100 military personnel will be sent to South Sudan as the UK looks to "step up" its United Nations peacekeeping commitments, the defence secretary has said.

Sir Michael Fallon said the government would make a "bigger commitment to peacekeeping, particularly in Africa".

The UK needed to help states "on the brink of failure", or face instability that leads to extremism, he added.

Read More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-37304422?o ... ce=twitter

General question - are the operational costs for such peace keeping activities covered by the DfID/foreign aid budget? I imagine that we have hundreds, if not several thousand, personnel on peace keeping/humanitarian related deployments at any given time - the costs must soon stack up

Neither of those, it come from the foreign office who have a Conflict, Security and Stability Fund, there is over a billion pounds allocated to stuff like this.

shark bait wrote:Neither of those, it come from the foreign office who have a Conflict, Security and Stability Fund, there is over a billion pounds allocated to stuff like this.

Thanks. Does it cover all of the operational costs including cost of employing personnel deployed?

Likewise, the costs associated with disaster relief (e.g. RFA/RN in the Caribbean after hurricane season)?

As we are - errr -not in Libya, this might still make sense posted here:

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/06/21/polit ... index.html

The Pentagon comment [pls see below, repeated from the linked story] does not acknowledge the newly created situation where, even though the Tripoli to Sirte hold of the Gvmnt has been strengthened, and the other Gvmnt in the East is far away, there has been a third "force" created in the middle that not only has more hitting power on the ground than any other (at least what the other two can field) PLUS has taken control of the oil terminals, ie. the cash flow for the whole of Libya (exclusing handouts).

"Asked about Waldhauser's comment that there's no overall strategy, Cook said, "It's clear, as I think Gen. Waldhauser acknowledged, it's a complicated situation right now. And the most important thing in terms of our policy, and we believe for the region's policy, is for that government to take shape, take hold. And we'd like to, of course be in a position to strengthen it as needed, going forward, along with our partners in the region.""

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/brita ... 1931687346

Thank you for your help, it is 45°C in the shade

Frenchie wrote:http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/brita ... 1931687346

Thank you for your help, it is 45°C in the shade

Of both mentioned assets "British forces - which could include Chinook helicopters and the army’s Watchkeeper surveillance drones in what would be their first deployment overseas - would benefit French forces stretched to their limit across a vast area" we have aplenty, so a rational thing to do (along with heavy airlift, even though for the latter also the NATO pool should be used).
- next, we need a few French Brequet Arlantique IIs up in Scotland, for the next two years

ArmChairCivvy wrote:- next, we need a few French Brequet Arlantique IIs up in Scotland, for the next two years

It's not me who decides but it would be with pleasure

As an aside to the main topic here 1 Rifles have just deployed to Kenya. The big news about this that no one noticed is that they had to leave behind the volunteers from 6 Rifles that were supposed to deploy with them because there was no money to pay them, nor even to feed and transport them.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-t ... nce-summit

The Chinook have already been deployed in the Sahel as part of the Netherlands' participation in the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Mali.

The Dutch Chinooks had to be removed in January 2017, due to "excessive wear" due to the sand, after having ensured 2,500 hours of flight.

So they may come back in bad state, thank you very much

Frenchie wrote: may come back in bad state, thank you very much

There is no better helicopter in hot and high conditions either, its a massive increase in capability.

Timmymagic wrote:

Frenchie wrote: may come back in bad state, thank you very much

There is no better helicopter in hot and high conditions either, its a massive increase in capability.

The sand of the Sahelo-Saharan band is thin like flour, it infiltrates everywhere and erodes all that is mechanical, it will take you a few months to put them back in working order. Like I said previously, the Dutch Chinooks flew 2,500 hours before leaving for repairs.

Frenchie wrote:The sand of the Sahelo-Saharan band is thin like flour, it infiltrates everywhere and erodes all that is mechanical, it will take you a few months to put them back in working order. Like I said previously, the Dutch Chinooks flew 2,500 hours before leaving for repairs.

Hopefully they'll be of great use, its always seemed to be a gap in French capabilities since the Super Frelon retirement. Any hope of a European Heavy Lift Helicopter is I suspect long since dead particularly after the A-400 problems.

I hope that the Military Programming Act that will be presented in February will provide us heavy helicopters, I doubt it but I hope. If not I hope that we will have a hundred NH90, with a more effective operational conditioning, which will be reformed, it is a great challenge fixed by the President, 25% availability is not satisfactory, the Tigre is in the same case.

About the A400M, it is solving its problems, according to the DGA, the 12th and 13th aircraft can carry 37 tonnes of freight and refuelling combat aircrafts, it can carry out all missions related to transport, ask assault (I'm not sure of the translation de "poser d'assaut") on rough ground, parachute airdropping by the two side doors and medical evacuation operations.

In parallel, Airbus will be conducting tests to develop helicopter refueling capabilities.

I've no doubt A400 will come good. The RAF certainly think it will, and I do too.

What I mean about the A400 problems is more the commercial problems for Airbus. I suspect there is no appetite for another multinational collaborative programme for at least a while.

The combat aircraft of the future (2040), is now under the cooperation with maintenance of French national skills, but accepting a mutual dependence with our European partners, Germans and British included, but the sensors (radar, optics, electronic warfare) will remain in the framework of pure French national sovereignty, not shareable, where guarantees of integrity, freedom of use or maintenance of operational superiority prevail. Ditto for the hard core of communications and networks or stealth.
So there will be no transfer of skills from Dassault to Airbus.

Let's see if these pass "on the home front":
"In addition to Hezbollah, the draft order also proscribed Ansaroul Islam and Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam Wal-Muslimin (JNIM) as terrorist organisations.

Ansaroul Islam and JNIM are militant Islamist groups active in West Africa - both have claimed responsibility for attacks in the region."
- would be strange for them not to, if we every now and then are sending military assets into the region

(Forces TV) 22 July 2019

More than 300 British troops are currently deployed in South Sudan, the world's youngest country, as part of Operation Trenton. In March 2020, the whole op will come to an end and British troops will leave. But is now the right time?

ArmChairCivvy wrote:we every now and then are sending military assets into the region

Admittedly we only have 3 Chinooks (and some force protection/ training elements?) in this geography, but our planners might just as well note that Trump is writing "farewell cards" all over the place; hence the BBC has reported on France stepping up:
"The nations [Macron hosting heads of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mauritania, the G5 group] appealed to the US to continue its "crucial" logistical support. Mr Macron said he would try to persuade President Donald Trump to stay as "if the Americans decided to leave Africa, this would be very bad news for us".

The New York Times reported last month the Pentagon was considering reducing troop levels in Africa or even withdrawing completely."

UK military gears up for deployment in Mali

Britain is significantly stepping up its military support in West Africa to help combat the world's fastest growing Islamist-led insurgency.

Over the past month, British troops have been helping train local forces to fight extremism in the Sahel.

The region, a semi-arid stretch of land just south of the Sahara Desert, has been a frontline in the war against Islamist militancy for almost a decade.

Later this year, 250 British soldiers will join a UN mission in Mali.

It has been described as the most dangerous peacekeeping operation in the world.

Read More: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-51699107

I wonder if the Germans or Dutch could lend us a dozen or so Boxers for that mission, pretty please.

Peace keeping is a misnomer as the other side has not agreed to peace or a truce "They may be part of a peacekeeping mission, but the British will be conducting long-range reconnaissance patrols into hostile territory."
- does not sound like a SIG type of job either
- but the article implies that SIG(s) have been involved in training the troops that will use the intelligence from our recce activities?

The most requested assets is always special forces capable soldiers, ISTAR, logistics and medical a template for “global” engagement with allies on display. Good luck to them all.

(Forces TV) 20th April 2020

Growing concern about the rise of violent terrorist groups in west Africa has prompted British forces to step up training and mentoring of regional partners. UK troops also prepared for a 250-strong deployment to Mali later this year. Earlier this year, we went to Senegal to see UK servicemen training African partners to fight on the frontline against terror.