In this episode of The Weekly Defence Podcast, we talk to our Asia-Pacific editor about the coup in Myanmar and all the other key defence news from his region; and in an interview with UK-based urban combat training specialists, 4GD, we discuss newly launched capabilities which will add to their Smart Facility training environment.

Newsround [00:35]

Russian state media report that the Sprut-SDM1 self-propelled anti-tank gun will be adopted into service with the Russian Airborne Forces by 2023.

The Visegrad Group of Central and Eastern European nations have embarked on their first ever joint military procurement programme.

While the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia are starting small with a project to buy training ammunition under the auspices of the NATO procurement agency, they want to move on to grander things.

In the US, the air force continues to investigate advanced propulsion systems for sustained supersonic combustion.

In focus

News Editor Ben Vogel discusses a report from Shephard contributor Cem Devrim Yaylalı about the Turkish-Qatari armoured vehicle JV BMC, which displayed some new hardware in late January.

New equipment included a brand new prototype 8x8 APC and a heavily modified Leopard 2A4 MBT. 

Land Reporter Flavia Camargos Pereira talks about a new phase of the European Defence Agency CBRN SaaS project which aims to develop a 24/7 rapidly deployable CBRN surveillance capability for a number of countries.

At the end of January, the Biden administration imposed a temporary freeze on US arms sales to Saudi Arabia, and also announced a review of FMS deals for the UAE of hardware such as loitering munitions and F-35 fighters.

On 1 February a diplomat from the UAE declared that the freeze on arms sales is false. Air Editor Tim Martin sheds more light on the matter. 

Deep Dive -News from the Asia Pacific [21:28]

In Myanmar, the military launched a coup d’état on 1 February by taking control of the country and declaring a year-long state of emergency. The coup follows alleged voting irregularities in the Myanmar’s November election.

Asia-Pacific Editor Gordon Arthur reports on this and other key defence news from his region.

Interview – 4GD [42:48]

Military Training Editor Trevor Nash is on the line with Rob Taylor, Director of 4GD, a UK- based training company specialising in close-combat training for an insight on the company’s new launch of two news systems ECFECTUS and ACIES, responsible for collection and analysis and integrated- reality single synthetic training environment respectively. 

This episode was produced by Noemi Distefano with music and sound mixing by Fred Prest.