Today’s defence-related news includes coverage of UK support to a Danish-led maritime operation to remove chemical weapons materials from Libya.
Libya
The Daily Telegraph reports that a Royal Navy ship has helped destroy the last of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s chemical weapon programme to ensure it does not fall into the hands of terrorists. RFA Mounts Bay supported a Danish-led mission, escorting a transport ship through the Mediterranean from Libya as it carried the last batch of known materials which could be used in the manufacture of chemical weapons. The full story can be seen here.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said:
RFA Mounts Bay will help ensure chemical weapons precursors do not fall into the hands of extremist groups, including Daesh. This contribution underlines our support to the Libyan Government of National Accord.
HMS Forth
The Herald and The Times report that HMS Forth, a new offshore patrol vessel has arrived in Scotstoun where it is being fitted out with complex combat systems before being handed over in 2017. The papers say the ship is the first complex warship to be fully assembled in Glasgow since HMS Duncan in 2010, but unlike previous ships it’s digital blueprint allowed Navy officials to ensure their exact specifications were being met before work began.
Vice Admiral Simon Lister, Chief of Materiel (Fleet) for the MOD’s Defence Equipment and Support organisation, said:
The cutting-edge technology of the Royal Navy’s versatile new Offshore Patrol Vessels will enable these warships to carry out a wide range of tasks, from disaster relief missions to maritime security, all the while protecting the UK’s interests at home and around the globe.
Supported by a rising Defence budget, the rollout of HMS Forth reflects the success of the OPV programme, safeguarding the vital capability and skills that will be used in the delivery of the Royal Navy’s Type 26 Frigates.
Lariam
There are various follow-up articles on the anti-malarial drug Lariam and comments made by former Army Chief Lord Richard Dannatt yesterday. Our position is below.
A MOD spokesperson said:
The vast majority of deployed personnel already receive alternatives to Lariam and, where it is used, it is only prescribed after an individual risk assessment.
But we have a duty to protect our personnel from Malaria and, as the last Defence Committee report concluded, in some cases, Lariam, will be the most effective way of doing that.
Daesh
The reported death of Daesh propaganda chief Abu Muhammad al-Adnani is covered in The Times and The Guardian.
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