Defense Technology International - October 2007 - (Page 64) REVIEW INSIDE WHAT’S CONTENTS BOOK Nasr’s excellent book, now in paperback. 14 According to Nasr, the violence in Iraq THE SHIA REVIVAL Panoramic imaging systems give Israeli tanks full situ- represents an overdue Sunni-Shi’ite civil eye site 34 ational awareness. war more than it does some Islamic terrorBY VALI NASR ist W.W. Norton, 2006 Next-generation landing craft are fast, versatile master plan or any coherent resistance 36 and do more than beach landings. to occupying armies, despite how U.S. com310shore and more pp., $14.95 manders characterize the conflict in order to On his birthday42 Apr. 28, 2003, deposed on Advanced electronic-warfare systems will add years of promote politically motivated war stratenew life service to venerable gies. “It is clear today that America cannot Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, then in hiding EA-6B. from U.S. troops, recorded a final messageis fast, costly and diverse—a look take comfort in an imagined future for the MRAP procurement big deal 46 at designs that won, Middle East, and cannot force the realizafor broadcast to his mostly Sunni followers, and lost. tion of that future,” Nasr writes. “Such an calling on them to resist foreign forces. The are being developed that approach guided the path to war in Iraq and message included a parting shot at Iraq’s tread lightly 54 Computerized prostheses limbs. mimic movements has proven to be unworkable. . . . The realroughly 13 million Shias, whom Hussein ac- of real ity that will shape the future of the Middle cused of aiding the invaders. He compared East is not the debates over democracy or the Shi’ite community to the 13th-century globalization that the Iraq war was supposed Shia vizier, Ibn Al-Alqami, who supposedly allowed a Mongol army into Baghdad, precipitating a mas- to have jump-started but the conflicts between Shias and 16 caliphate. hard knocks sacre that ended the Sunni MRAP procurement leaves a lot to be learned, and Sunnis that it precipitated. In time we will come to see this 46 much to be desired. Hussein’s diatribe was indicative of centuries-old divisions as a central legacy of the Iraq war.” within Islam between law-and-order Sunnis and their dic- modular design If Nasr is right—and his argument seems convincing—then mix-and-match 18 German MRAP vehicle has a for changing mission needs. tators, and the fiery Shi’ite minority that has long resisted the U.S.-led counter-insurgency is essentially an intervention Sunni dominance. For decades, Shias—who like “low church”but in a civil war. rule it’s a schizophrenic intervention, at one moBut a U.S. trade entry denied 20 Namibia builds a good MRAP Christians embrace a more personal, emotional and sacrificial ment targeting Shia armed groups, the next moment targetbars it from procurement. faith—were effectively suppressed, even in nations such as ing Sunni insurgents, all the while propping up an ineffectual in of the combat aircraft program will Iraq where theyitem big-ticket accounted for a majorityIndia’s population. government that is doing nothing to facilitate compromise 22 Offsetsboost to its defense industry. give a This was in part due to European preference for the orderly and is largely ignored by all combatants. Sunnis during the period Anglo-French contractors are finalizing ship build 100 years ago when many of today’s No amount of high-tech gear and no temporary troop intask force 24 plans born under colonial rule. carriers. Middle East governments werefor both countries’ aircraftBut crease will do anything but encourage a strategically clueless the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq shattered the old bonds, unleash- army that has witlessly stumbled into a religious conflict that eye high-speed 26 Cisco and EADSsubject of Vali has been hundreds of years in the making. � ing ippentthewave of Shia fervor. That’s the for the military. internet protoa all up time col capabilities REVIEWED BY DAVID AXE FEATURES GLOBAL DISPATCHES foul play long view hit radio 28 30 32 Boeing lost a Navy contract; now it’s being asked to share technology with the winner. Saab forecasts the technologies needed to meet world conditions in 2037. ADVERTISERS IN THIS ISSUE Thales passive-surveillance radar processes signals transmitted by FM radio towers. NOV ISSUE IN PRINT Land: Armor Vehicle Sights Sea: Offshore Patrol Vessels Air: Distributed Simulation Training 8 Israel to spend $60 billion in defense plan; Special: Defense Procurement in India; U.N. eyes UAVs; ITT to buy EDO. focus on Indo-Russian cooperation 12 Growing arsenal of non-lethal weapons could affect combat tactics. SpaceX pioneers low-cost rockets and affordable satellite-launch capabilities. UPCOMING: DEPARTMENTS around the world science watch ONLINE tech watch EVENT Dubai, Nov 11-15, UAE Join the DTI community on seeks more efficient management and utilization of the net 58 Militarybandwidth. I/ITSEC, Nov 26-29, Orlando, FL AviationWeek.com - including defense limited blogs, forums, galleries, comments, cutting edge ratings/recommendations, andU.K. wants high-speed patrol vehicles; orbitmore. 60 ing robots will fix satellites; ID with veins. Visit: www.aviationweek.com/aw/community AAI Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 AGI, Analytical Graphics Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 AM General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3rd Cover American Airlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 AUSA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 AVIATION WEEK AviationWeek.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 AWIN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 World Aerospace Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 AVIATION WEEK Conferences & Exhibitions A&D Finance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 A&D Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 DTAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 Avionics Outlook Management Forum . . . . . . 59 Blackwater USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2nd Cover Ceradyne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51 Defence Technology Exchange 2007 . . . . . . . . . . . 39 DTI, Defense Technology International . . 28 64 . . 55, EDO Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 on the record in review insight Alexandre de Juniac, head of Thales Air Systems, has big plans for radars. 64 66 The Shia Revival: Age-old conflict between Shia and Sunnis sparked civil war in Iraq. When it comes to close air support, we keep relearning old lessons. ON THE COVER: Force Protection Cougar on test track. Photo by Alex Lorman. www.aviationweek.com/dti DTI’s complete archives are available free at: aviationweek.com/dti 64 DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL OCTOBER 2007 DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL SEPTEMBER 2007 6 FLIR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Herley Industries Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 IAI/Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. . . . . . . .15 ILS, Inventory Locator Service . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 International Military & Government LLC . 23 I/ITSEC 2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 L-3 Communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 MSA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21, 31 Performance-Based Logistics Program (UTCE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 RAFAEL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 54 Raytheon Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4th Cover SAIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Selex Communications, a Finmeccanica Co. . . 11 Tadiran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Thales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 VT Miltope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 www.aviationweek.com/dti � 3449848387 3536781877 CMYK http://www.aviationweek.com/dti http://AviationWeek.com http://AviationWeek.com http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/community http://www.aviationweek.com/dti http://www.aviationweek.com/dti
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