Boosting defence industry makes NATO stronger and our people safer
https://video.innovationhub-act.org/w/6s7BnVbYpKWbTVKrH4ozA1
#DefenceIndustry
Trump forces Europe to reconsider its security and economic future
By Laura Tingle
As the world's elite gathered in Davos, European leaders confronted a reality in which they might need to defend themselves, and potentially against, the United States.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01-24/davos-donald-trump-zelenskyy-russia-war-technology/106252046
#WorldPolitics #DefenceandNationalSecurity #UnrestConflictandWar #BusinessEconomicsandFinance #ForeignAffairs #DefenceForces #ScienceandTechnology #DefenceIndustry #LauraTingle
A look at the 'Golden Dome' and why Trump wants one in Greenland
By Annika Burgess
Donald Trump wants a US "Golden Dome" missile defence system to be built in Greenland. This is what it involves and why some experts are skeptical of the plan.
#DefenceandNationalSecurity #WorldPolitics #DefenceIndustry #AnnikaBurgess
China's air force 'a potentially revolutionary threat' to Indo-Pacific, report says
By Patrick Martin
Certain capabilities of China's air force now seriously challenge those of the US and other Western countries, with experts saying that it could tip the balance of any war over Taiwan in Beijing's favour.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01-21/chinese-air-force-rivals-us-taiwan-conflict/106212470
#Weapons #WorldPolitics #DefenceForces #DefenceIndustry #AerospaceIndustry #AirForce #PatrickMartin
🔴 LIVE STREAM: Ukraine War 🔴 LIVE STREAM: 🇬🇧 Give AI Sky Sentinel Anti-Drone Turrets, New Bohdanas, 🇺🇦 Scaling 📅 2025-12-28 18:35 UTC (Starts in 53m) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BFbzsaZihI #MilitaryAid #UkraineWar #MilitaryAid #AdvancedWeapons #DefenceIndustry #Geopolitics #livestream
Japan okays record defence budget amid rising tensions with China
Japan's cabinet approves a record defence budget plan aiming to fortify its strike-back capability and coastal defence amid rising regional tensions.
US approves largest ever weapons spending for Taiwan
The United States has approved its largest ever weapons package for Taiwan which is under increasing military pressure from China.
#WorldPolitics #DefenceandNationalSecurity #DefenceIndustry #DefenceForces #ForeignAffairs
Highway proposal to ease AUKUS traffic fears scrapped after study
By Rhiannon Shine
A proposal for a new highway in Perth's south to help alleviate traffic issues ahead of an influx of AUKUS sailors is scrapped after a study finds it is not needed.
#Roads #Infrastructure #DefenceIndustry #UrbanDevelopmentandPlanning #RhiannonShine
Treasurer approves Hanwha's double stake in Australian shipbuilder
By Stephen Dziedzic
Jim Chalmers said there will be "strict conditions" on the South Korean defence conglomerate's stake in the strategic shipbuilder, in a nod to the diplomatic and security sensitivities surrounding the bid.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-12/hanwha-austal-bid-approve-jim-chalmers/106134860
#DefenceIndustry #FederalGovernment #GovernmentandPolitics #ForeignAffairs #FederalParliament #StephenDziedzic
Hundreds of unexploded bombs are found every year. Here's what to do if you see one
By Tobi Loftus
The Australian Defence Force's bomb disposal squad responds to about 500 unexploded ordnance incidents a year, with many of the devices washing up on beaches.
Government unveils Department of Defence overhauls amid delays, blowouts
By Stephen Dziedzic and Olivia Caisley
Three groups within Defence will be rolled into one entity as part of a sweeping restructure of the department.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-01/government-to-unveil-defence-department-overhaul/106086340
#DefenceandNationalSecurity #FederalGovernment #GovernmentandPolitics #ForeignAffairs #FederalParliament #DefenceIndustry #DefenceForces #StephenDziedzic #OliviaCaisley
Hackers steal weapons files after 'staycation' in ADF supply chain
By Annika Burgess
Information relating to Australian military programs has been compromised in cyber attacks on defence industry contractors, exposing security vulnerabilities along supply chains.
#CyberSecurity #DefenceIndustry #DefenceForces #AnnikaBurgess
Rheinmetall’s Rocket Ride: From €93 to €1,840 on Taxpayer-Fueled War Profits
Rheinmetall’s: €1,000 to €19,785 on Ukraine War – How Taxpayers Fund the Ultimate Laundromat
On 1 March 2022, as Russian columns rolled toward Kyiv, Rheinmetall AG shares closed at €93.44 on the Xetra exchange. Fast-forward to 5 November 2025: €1,840.00 – a blistering 1,952% gain that turned every €1,000 pocket change into €19,785. While families across Europe ration heating and governments slash pensions, one Düsseldorf postcode has never had it so good. The secret? A fearmongering perpetual-motion machine that transforms taxpayer euros into corporate super-profits, one artillery shell at a time.
This is not conspiracy. It is accounting.
Step 1: Scare the electorate
Politicians thunder about “Russian tanks 500km from Berlin”. NATO ups its target to 3.5% GDP. Germany alone unlocks €100bn Sondervermögen plus annual €80bn+ budgets. No public tender required – “emergency clauses” wave through framework deals worth tens of billions.
Step 2: Hand the cash to Rheinmetall
June 2024: largest contract in company history – €8.5bn for 155mm artillery rounds, paid upfront by Berlin, destined for Ukraine. Q1 2025 order backlog: €63bn. CEO Armin Papperger brags “customers buy whole factories”. Translation: governments pre-pay for plants that churn shells billed at €3,000–€6,000 apiece – margins north of 21%.
Step 3: Launder every penny
No suitcase cash, no Swiss accounts. The cleanest grift in history:
- German Treasury wires billions to Rheinmetall AG (DE0007030009)
- Rheinmetall books “defence sales” – €9.75bn in 2024 alone, +36% YoY
- EBITDA margin 21.71%; operating profit €1.48bn
- Dividends soar; insiders sell at €1,900+
- Zero VAT on “military exports”, full state risk guarantees if Russia sues
Result? Taxpayer nickel → corporate dime → shareholder dollar, rinsed spotless through the Bundestag ledger.
Past scandals prove the playbook works.
- 2012: banned in India for bribery; paid €46m German fine in 2024 for Greek submarine kickbacks
- 2008 South Africa: 51% “local” stake masked full control; ongoing probes
- 2025: zero money-laundering convictions – because the laundry IS the state budget
The human cost is measured in ledgers and lives.
Each €3,000 shell fired near Pokrovsk was pre-paid by a German nurse’s income tax or a French teacher’s pension contribution. Rheinmetall’s Unterlüß mega-factory – built on the same soil where Nazi forced labourers died making 88mm rounds – now runs three shifts, employing 3,000 at premium wages. Stock buybacks? €500m authorised. CEO bonus? Tied to “Nomination” – the €15bn pipeline of future call-offs.
Critics who cry “money laundering” are half-right. Classic laundering hides dirty money. This is reverse laundering: dirty geopolitics washed into pristine quarterly results. Brussels’ €1bn ammunition subsidy pool? Rheinmetall grabbed the lion’s share. EU “Ukraine Facility” loans? Collateralised by future shell profits.
Even the factories are taxpayer gifts.
- Weiden: €200m state subsidies for Lynx IFV line
- Unterlüß: €300m public funds for 700,000 rounds/year
- Ukraine JV: Berlin guarantees every bomb built behind the Dnieper
Shareholders laugh all the way to Monaco. Institutional holders – BlackRock (7.2%), Vanguard, Norwegian Sovereign Wealth – pocket dividends funded by widows in Kherson. Retail bag-holders on X celebrate “5Y +2,152%” while their own sons dodge conscription.
Is it legal? Impeccably.
Framework agreements bypass competitive bids. “National security” clauses bury details. EU auditors wave through “military exemption”. Papperger himself boasts: “We deliver certainty – governments deliver cash.”
The fearmongering flywheel spins faster:
- Trump threatens NATO pullout → panic buying
- Putin rattles sabre → emergency clauses
- Stock hits €2,008 (Oct 2025 high) → analysts hike targets to €2,500
Loop complete.
Yet cracks appear.
- July 2025: €46m bribery settlement re-opened old wounds
- Whistle-blower leaks show 12% “consultant fees” on Ukraine deals
- Hungarian prosecutors eye Rheinmetall’s Budapest shell plant for “irregular subsidies”
Still, the machine hums. Q3 2025 guidance: sales +28%, defence margin 15%. Translation: another €2bn+ from public coffers before Christmas.
What would stop it?
A single Bundestag vote to cap margins at 8%. A brave prosecutor to call framework deals “state aid in camouflage”. Or peace – the one scenario Papperger never models.
Until then, every European who pays tax is an involuntary Rheinmetall shareholder. Your €50 monthly solidarity surcharge? That’s 16 more shells. Your cancelled hospital wing? That’s one more Panther tank.
The chart on your screen – that glorious green candle from €93 to €1,840 – is not a success story. It is an invoice. And the bill is addressed to you.
👉 Share your thoughts in the comments, and explore more insights on our Journal and Magazine. Please consider becoming a subscriber, thank you: https://dunapress.org/subscriptions – Follow J&M Duna Press on social media. Join the Oslo Meet by connecting experiences and uniting solutions: https://oslomeet.org
References
- Historical Share Price: Yahoo Finance RHM.DE – 1 Mar 2022 close €93.44; 5 Nov 2025 €1,840. https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/RHM.DE/history/
#DefenceIndustry #Rheinmetall #taxpayerMoney #TaxpayerLaundering #warProfiteering #WarProfiteers
Steel maker defends Israeli trade amid ongoing pro-Palestine protests
By Penny Burfitt
Bisalloy Steel's Unanderra site has been the target of multiple pro-Palestine pickets, and has defended its trade with "several Israeli" companies during its 2025 annual general meeting.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-09/steel-company-bisalloy-defends-israel-trade/105983828
Anti-corruption commission watchdog inquiring into NACC chief Brereton
By Olivia Caisley
The inspector of the National Anti-Corruption Commission is inquiring into the agency's head, Paul Brereton, in relation to several complaints including from a former employee.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-06/nacc-inspector-inquiring-brereton-complaints/105980792
#FederalGovernment #FederalParliament #DefenceForces #DefenceIndustry #Corruption #OliviaCaisley
Eight arrested as pro-Palestinian protesters clash with police at defence expo
By Miriah Davis
Dozens of demonstrators from Palestine Action Group rallied outside the Sydney International Convention Centre on Tuesday morning.
Drone terror in Europe sends Australian defence tech soaring
By Eliza Goetze
As European countries rush to shore up their defences amid relentless fighting in Ukraine and a growing Russian "shadow" threat, companies here are capitalising on the age of drone warfare.
#DefenceIndustry #Drones #StockMarket #War #CompanyNews #ElizaGoetze
Trump says AUKUS is going 'full steam ahead' after backflip speculation
By Olivia Caisley
The US president's comments, made during his first in-person meeting with Anthony Albanese, put an end to months of speculation the US would back out of the agreement.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10-21/trump-aukus-albanese-firm-support-pact/105915668
#FederalGovernment #FederalParliament #DefenceandNationalSecurity #GovernmentandPolitics #DefenceIndustry #DefenceForces #WorldPolitics #Navy #SecurityIntelligence #ForeignAffairs #AerospaceIndustry #OliviaCaisley
Maker of missile found in outback 'directly linked' to human rights harm
By Peta Doherty
Traditional owners win a decision against a multinational weapons manufacturer after finding one of the company's missiles at a heritage site in the remote South Australian outback.
#IndigenousAustralians #Aboriginal #Weapons #DefenceIndustry #IndigenousPolicy #HumanRights #PetaDoherty
Historic squadron rebooted ahead of Albanese-Trump meeting
By Olivia Caisley
The federal government has re-established the Number 12 Squadron in SA at the same time as Australia's anti-submarine capability is expanding with the arrival of new aircraft.
#FederalGovernment #FederalParliament #DefenceForces #DefenceIndustry #DefenceandNationalSecurity #OliviaCaisley
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