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French defence minister Florence Parly has let slip that Paris is this month deploying “a robust package of advanced air defence warning”, including radars, to Saudi Arabia to counter low-altitude drone and cruise missile attacks of the type that struck Aramco refining facilities on 14 September. She made her comments in a statement to journalists on the fringes of the annual Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain.However, it was also clear from her comments that Parly had not been briefed on where exactly the gaps remained in the Saudi air defence system.

The General Headquarters of the UAE Armed Forces signed more than 40 deals over the three days of the Dubai Airshow at Dubai World Central airport in November, spending some Dh17.6bn ($4.8bn) in the process, much of it with local suppliers. The biggest deals were signed early on, including a Dh3.5bn helicopter maintenance contract with the local Global Aerospace Logistics (GAL) on the opening day and a Dh3.6bn ammunition contract with Halcon Systems on day two.

The UAE Air Force and Defence Command has requested a further ten Chinook CH-47F cargo helicopters to add to its fleet, at a cost of around $830m. The order was approved by the US State Department on 7 November. The helicopters will be built by Boeing Helicopters Aircraft Company, with engines made by Honeywell Engine Company. The deal includes ten US contractors travelling to the UAE for five years of delivery, training and support. The UAE Air Force already has 20 Chinooks in place.

A director and shareholder of Doha-based defence consultancy Digital Soula Systems (DSS) has filed an action at a court in California against the State of Qatar, the Qatar Armed Forces (QAF) and the country’s Ministries of Defence and Economy and Commerce. Tarek Fouad alleges breach of contract and non-payment for advice on the acquisition of a command, control, communications, computers and intelligence (C4I) system, known as the Falcon Project, for Joint Operations Command.

An agreement between Bahrain and the United States Army to purchase the Patriot air and missile defence system was announced by the manufacturer, Raytheon Company, on 13 August. This follows an announcement in May that the US State Department had approved a possible sale of $2.5bn worth of Patriot missile systems and related support to the country.The US government will now start contract negotiations with Raytheon to produce an undisclosed quantity of systems and missiles. Bahrain will join Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE and Qatar in having Patriot air defences.

Three years into an ambitious plan to transform the Ministry of Defence (MoD)’s operational effectiveness, the programme is running into trouble as the initial enthusiasm dissipates. The transformation programme is an important element in the Vision 2030 strategy, as Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS – also defence minister ) regards the MoD as being in the vanguard of his plans.

The UAE’s plans to develop a new generation of military surveillance capabilities suffered a setback on 11 July, when an Arianespace Vega rocket carrying its French-built Falcon Eye 1 satellite deviated from its course two minutes after launch and was lost. Arianespace said there had been a “launcher anomaly… leading to the premature end of the mission”. The launch had been postponed twice due to poor weather conditions and high winds over the French Guiana Space Centre in South America.

Riyadh’s strategy of developing its own defence industry expertise has suffered a setback after South Africa’s troubled Denel group reportedly rejected a rescue offer by the state-owned Saudi Arabian Military Industries (Sami), which last year proposed a $1bn investment in the company. Sami has not ruled out setting up partnership ventures with Denel in the future but, in the meantime, it has been developing its ties with another South Africa defence firm, Paramount Group.

In its annual report for 2018, published on 17 June, Airbus’s Saudi-based subsidiary GPT Special Project Management said its contract to supply communications equipment and services to the Saudi Arabian National Guard (SANG) is due to expire at the end of this year and it “has no intention to seek new business with other customers”. As a result, the subsidiary is expected to cease all operations as of 31 December.

Saudi Arabian Military Industries (Sami), the defence arm of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s favoured investment vehicle the Public Investment Fund (PIF), stepped up its deal-making activity in late June, with a string of acquisitions and joint ventures. The deals are significant given the opposition that Saudi Arabia continues to face with its defence procurement efforts with suppliers in Europe and North America and indicate that Riyadh is accelerating its efforts to develop its indigenous defence industry.

Western allies of Saudi Arabia and the UAE are having to get creative in order to continue delivering weaponry to the Gulf. The United States and United Kingdom governments are both seeking loopholes to be able to fulfil previously agreed contracts. However, some deals continue to be held up, notably in France where another shipment of arms destined for Saudi Arabia has failed to leave port.In late May, Washington used what one administration critic described as an “obscure loophole” to push through a string of arms deals worth more than $8bn with the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

Spain’s Indra has completed the installation of its Airdef air defence system with the Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO), involving the installation of a number of command and control centres and radars to cover the sultanate’s airspace. The company said Muscat has recently ordered additional equipment to support and strengthen the system.

Qatar has gained approval from the United States to buy a further 24 AH-64E Apache Attack helicopters and related equipment for an estimated cost of $3bn. The package includes 2,500 AGM-114R Hellfire missiles, 28 M230 30mm automatic chain guns, M230 automatic guns, 52 T700-GE-701D engines (allowing for two per aircraft and four spares), target acquisition and designation sights, pilot night vision sensors and fire control radars.

Saudi cargo ship the Bahri Yanbu left the Spanish port of Santander on 13 May heading for Genoa, Italy with a delivery of munitions (previously loaded in Belgium) and ceremonial military equipment from Spain. However, the ship had earlier failed to stop as expected at the French port of Le Havre, following court action by local rights group Action des Chrétiens pour l’Abolition de la Torture (ACAT), which had objected to the supply of more Caesar artillery pieces from defence firm Nexter.

The UAE has gained approval from Washington to buy $2.7bn worth of Patriot missile equipment, including 452 PAC-3 missile segment enhancement (MSE) missiles and related equipment. The MSE is an upgrade on previous Patriot missiles, offering greater range and mobility. The main contractors are Raytheon Corporation and Lockheed Martin.