Defence
The recent strikes on Saudi airports show that the kingdom still has some way to go when it comes to security
Saudi Arabia’s airports are under renewed Houthi bombardment, forcing the kingdom to test its global alliances and re-evaluate whether its lavish Vision 2030 megaprojects have come at the expense of national security.
Latest in Monocle Radio
Latest
Why the world’s elite special forces are training with horses and donkeys
Modern warfare relies on the latest technologies but in Austria a training base teaches soldiers how to handle pack animals, proving that there’s plenty of life in the old war horse yet.
Sweden’s first psychological defence strategy readies citizens for the worst
The first-ever national strategy of its kind makes a bid to strengthen resilience against foreign interference and disinformation.
The Dutch seek to ‘dronify’ their military with lessons from Ukraine
The Dutch armed forces are aiming to become Europe’s most innovative military. The Netherlands’ grand ambitions relies on an expansion of drones and, if the chief of defence has his way, robots too.
Edge Group, the defence conglomerate driving the UAE’s fast-growing arms industry
As the Iran war tests the Gulf nations, the UAE is shedding its reliance on Western defence systems. We visit the firm at the heart of this transformation.
How the world’s middle powers are adapting to a new era of weaponised interdependence
As geopolitics continue to shift in response to increasingly volatile great powers, regional players are rethinking self-agency.
Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s a rapidly evolving space race
The space race is back – and this time it’s an even more hotly contested arena. Can the world’s powers navigate this increasingly crowded orbit?
Balancing ethics and efficiency: What is AI’s place in modern wars?
The Pentagon-Anthropic dispute strikes at the heart of the moral minefield that is AI weapons systems.
Is Finland in trouble? Ukraine’s wayward drones expose Europe’s hidden weakness
Ukrainian drones that strayed from their Russian targets and crashed in Finland raise grave concerns for Europe’s defensive readiness. Can the bloc learn its lesson before it’s too late?
Ukraine’s most valuable export? Drone-fighting know-how
Ukraine has moved with velocity from being a battlefield casualty of drone technology to being a major tutor in the global campaign against it.
Meet the Kurdish peshmerga fighters waiting to enter the war against Iran
In the past, Monocle visited the Iran-Iraq border and met Iranian Kurdish fighters. These fighters were training to fight against the Iranian government.
