After a brief decline five years ago, the world arms market surged again in the period 2005 to 2007, the latest for which comprehensive data are available. By 2007, international weapons deals totalled some $60 billion, a 10-percent increase over 2006. Read more

What a difference six months can make. In just half a year, U.S-Russian relations have risen from their a 15-year nadir, up through waning degrees of discomfort, all the way to the level of a genuine strategic partnership. Read more

On June 11 the very first production-standard F-35B - a new vertical-takeoff "jump jet" fighter built by number-one U.S. defence firm Lockheed Martin - took off for its successful maiden flight. "Relaxed," is how test pilot Graham Tomlinson described the brief sortie. Read more