The U.S. Navy expects the stealthy destroyer USS Zumwalt, with its new launchers for Intermediate-Range Conventional Prompt Strike (IRCPS) hypersonic missiles, to be formally returned to service by September. Upgrade work on the ship, which started back in 2023, is some 10 months behind schedule. One contributing factor in the delay was the first full shutdown of the notoriously complex Integrated Power System (IPS) since the ship was delivered to the Navy six years ago.
...
USS Zumwalt‘s formal return to the fleet as the Navy’s first vessel equipped to fire hypersonic missiles will be an important milestone. However, signs still very much point to IRCPS being a relatively limited and costly capability, likely to be held in reserve for very high-priority targets, at least in the near term.

https://www.twz.com/sea/uss-zumwalt-set-to-return-to-fleet-after-long-anticipated-hypersonic-missile-upgrade

French and German leadership trying hard to demonstrate unity on key issues of European security and beyond. Following the latest round of consultations, they've reaffirmed commitment to a host of joint projects: the Germans are getting engaged in ‘forward deterrence’ in practical terms; and, as usual, they will be providing assistance to Ukraine (and Lebanon). They believe in NATO as well. They are cautiously criticising Iran and even promise to definitely participate in ensuring the safety of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. As soon as conditions allow©.

The most interesting thing, of course, is the forward deterrence. Which is by no means ‘extended’, but ‘forward’. And very much nuclear.

French Rafale jets from the strategic squadron – though without nuclear weapons – have already arrived at a German airbase and flown alongside German Eurofighters. The Germans, meanwhile, have promised to take part in the next round of French ‘Poker’ series exercises practising the use of nuclear weapons; these take place four times a year.

This is more or less what this forward deterrence will look like in the coming years: French nuclear-capable aircraft will periodically fly to allied airbases, whilst allies will periodically take part in French nuclear-related exercises.

As for non-nuclear strategic capabilities, or Deep Precision Strike (DPS) in the current euromilspeak, what catches the eye is the explicit reference to the involvement of British partners and the particular focus on ballistic effectors with a range of ~2,500 km, developed by the Franco-German company ArianeGroup. We know what this is all about; the B-STRIKE 2500 system has been actively promoted for some time now. We’ll see when things move beyond cartoons©.

The question remains as to whether, sooner or later, the French will want to restore a land-based component to their nuclear forces, thereby re-establishing the nuclear triad. For now, this seems unlikely, but it is possible in the medium term. And mobile launchers can also be conveniently deployed to allied countries.

For Russia, the task is to watch and get on with our own tasks. It cannot be ruled out that, at a certain stage, there will be a need to once again reassess the structure of nuclear arsenal, the modes of combat duty for nuclear forces, and the doctrinal foundations of nuclear deterrence. The same applies to air and space defence.

Strategic cooperation
Building on the joint declaration of President Macron and Chancellor Merz of 2nd March 2026 and pursuant to the establishment of the German-French “Nuclear Steering Group” under the joint chairmanship of the French President and the German Chancellor, with the participation of Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Ministries of Defence, Germany and France will further develop their strategic cooperation and their common strategic culture. Our confidential consultations will focus on the articulation of conventional, Deep Precision Strike and missile defence capabilities with nuclear deterrence, in order to increase our ability to manage escalation beneath the nuclear threshold and to develop the necessary conventional capabilities.

This unprecedented bilateral cooperation will contribute to strengthening deterrence in Europe and enhancing Europe’s security as a whole in full compliance with our international legal obligations. It will add to, not substitute for, NATO’s nuclear deterrence and NATO’s nuclear sharing arrangements, to which Germany contributes.

Today, the deployment of Rafale aircraft from the French Strategic Air Forces to the German 31 Tactical Air Wing “Boelcke” at Nörvenich marks the first operational step in Franco-German strategic cooperation It will be followed by further steps this year, including German conventional participation in a French nuclear exercise.

https://www.elysee.fr/en/emmanuel-macron/2026/07/17/conclusion-of-the-franco-german-defence-and-security-council-1

Northrop Grumman is rewriting the rules of space operations with the Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV), a groundbreaking spacecraft that functions like a metaphorical Swiss Army Knife ® for satellites. It is capable of performing numerous operations for satellites in orbit, including inspection, life extension, repairs, upgrades, debris removal and drepositioning.

https://www.northropgrumman.com/what-we-do/space/space-logistics-services/space-swiss-army-tool

❗️Chief engineer of Zaporozhye nuclear power plant Alexander Yakovlev has been killed by a drone strike this morning, Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev said.

Northrop Grumman is an aerospace and defense technology systems company, and it’s growing. The company is expanding its campus next to Hill Air Force Base. On Tuesday, it broke ground on a new facility in Utah to accelerate the development of the Sentinel Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (nuclear missile).

https://www.abc4.com/news/northern-utah/northrop-grumman-facility-missile-utah/

Through the Nuclear Looking Glass
Michael Albertson
Current History (2026) 125 (872-873): 43–45.
https://doi.org/10.1525/curh.2026.125.872-873.43

The transition from the highly structured, cooperative era of post–Cold War arms control to the fragmented and unpredictable nuclear landscape of 2026 is examined through a blend of personal memoir and strategic analysis. By contrasting the intimate, respectful colleague relationship of early inspections with the increasingly free-for-all approach to nuclear controls, the analysis illustrates the erosion of the traditional rules-based order. Outdated arms control models fail to account for the rise of China and the dissolution of US-Russia cooperation has created a “through the looking glass” reality where negotiation seems unlikely. To address this, “achievable reality” solutions should be pursued, utilizing non-military inducements and the influence of non-nuclear states to force a new diplomatic opening. The survival of global security depends on the ability to abandon obsolete twentieth-century habits in favor of practical, multi-vector solutions grounded in the geopolitical realities of the present.

https://online.ucpress.edu/currenthistory/article/125/872-873/43/218581/Through-the-Nuclear-Looking-Glass

Victus Haze goes a step further and is “interesting because [the two firms will] be taking turns for various roles throughout the mission [to] practice tactics and operational concepts for dealing with on-orbit threats,” Even Rogers, founder and CEO of True Anomaly, told Breaking Defense. “And so, we change, we switch roles, but we don’t have a designated role, it just depends on the mission we’re doing.”

While the Space Force has given the two players a set of objectives to fulfill and set mission boundaries, he explained, the on-orbit game play is not scripted and neither company knows exactly how the other’s spacecraft will act.

Brian Rogers (no relation), Rocket Lab’s vice president of global launch services, said that the design of Victus Haze thus is very different than most RPO demonstrations up to now, which instead have involved highly scripted maneuvers using “cooperative” satellites as the target.

Still, citing Space Force sensitivities, both executives were coy about the precise activities, beyond imaging each other’s spacecraft, involved in the future Victus Haze mission sets. But public releases have described some early successes in the friendly cat-and-mouse game.

...

While the exercise isn’t hostile, the TacRS program and its Victus demonstrations are being managed by the Space Force’s new Combat Power Program Acquisition Executive office, headed by Col. Bryon McClain, responsible for space warfare. According to the service’s fiscal 2027 budget documents, TacRS falls under “the Combat Power mission area[,] which provides the systems required to protect and defend space-based capabilities and ensure space superiority by enabling and executing combat operations in space.”

https://breakingdefense.com/2026/07/space-tag-jackal-puma-spacecraft-to-chase-each-other-victus-haze-demo/

Weitreichende Raketen: Deutschland und Frankreich kooperieren | FAZ
https://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/unternehmen/weitreichende-raketen-deutschland-und-frankreich-kooperieren-accg-201024079.html

The Space Development Agency announced contracts worth $1.75 billion to build 36 satellites in support of the Pentagon’s Golden Dome missile defense shield.

The satellites will be part of Tranche 3 of SDA’s missile defense, warning, and tracking layer, a constellation of satellites in low-Earth orbit. L3Harris and Sierra Space both received contracts to build 18 satellites each and deliver them in time for a potential launch in late 2028.
...
The Space Force awarded initial contracts for Tranche 3 last December to Lockheed Martin, Rocket Lab, Northrop Grumman, and L3Harris for a total of 72 satellites. This additional batch of 32—which SDA calls Accelerated Missile Defense Tranche 3, or AMDT3—brings the total tranche to 104 spacecraft.
...
SDA said in its statement that L3Harris’ satellite design will be based off the Hypersonic Ballistic Tracking and Space Sensor. L3Harris and Northrop Grumman each built one HBTSS prototype for the Missile Defense Agency, both of which launched as part of the first batch of SDA missile defense satellites.
...
Sierra Space’s satellites will be missile warning/missile tracking spacecraft. The company said in a statement that the satellites will be based on its “Horizon” spacecraft. The company is already on contract to build 18 satellites for Tranche 2 of SDA’s tracking layer.

https://www.airandspaceforces.com/sda-awards-contracts-for-36-golden-dome-missile-tracking-satellites/

France and Poland held their first nuclear steering group meeting in Paris on Friday, 10th July.

https://www.elysee.fr/en/emmanuel-macron/2026/07/10/france-and-poland-held-their-first-nuclear-steering-group-meeting-in-paris

Ariane Group decided to share a glossary on missile technology.

https://x.com/i/status/2076724145937588683

Joint Declaration on the Establishment of the Integrated Anti-Ballistic Missile Coalition
Published 13 July 2026

A statement from the leaders of Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

We, the leaders of Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine and the United Kingdom recognizing the growing threat posed by ballistic missiles and the increasing importance of defence capabilities for the security of the European continent, announce today the initiation of the establishment of a purely defensive Anti-Ballistic Missile Coalition. We express our support for its Flagship Project to work at pace to develop an Anti-Ballistic capability.

We believe that the protection of Europe requires a global solution of integrated missile defence architecture to deter and defeat future missile threats - developed through collective effort, technological openness, and trusted industrial cooperation. It will complement existing ballistic missile defence systems, including sovereign European solutions already acquired, or to be acquired by participating countries. By bringing together our defence industrial base, our research, and our operational experience, we aim to build a shared antiballistic missile capacity for Europe and support relevant contributory activities. We do this not against any people, but in defence of our own.

We acknowledge the unique experience of Ukraine, gained in defence against Russia’s war of aggression.

Through this Declaration, we aim to establish common operational requirements, joint technical working groups, clear governance mechanisms, and a roadmap towards the Coalition's first operational capabilities – in line with our respective constitutional arrangements and international obligations.

We will seek to support joint research and development activities under the Flagship Project, including by exploring appropriate opportunities for funding and promote enhanced data and information exchange.

The founding members of the Coalition are Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

The Coalition remains open to other nations that share its principles and objectives.

https://www.government.se/statements/2026/07/joint-declaration-on-the-establishment-of-the-integrated-anti-ballistic-missile-coalition/

GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Statement under Agenda Item 6. Statements by observer organizations in accordance with General Assembly decision 79/512 Third Session of the Open-Ended Working Group on the Prevention of an Arms Race in All its Aspects Delivered by Prof. Thomas González Roberts Geneva, July 10, 2026

Three-Dimensional Deterrence:
Escalation Management and War
Termination in a Two-Peer Nuclear
Environment

https://cgsr.llnl.gov/sites/cgsr/files/2026-06/Keay_3D_Deterrence_Final.pdf