S.African Military in "Critical Decline"

[Hakan]

Exclusive: South African military in 'critical decline', review says

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(Reuters) - South Africa's cash-strapped armed forces are in a "critical state of decline" that will take at least a decade to fix even with urgent action, according to a military strategy review seen by Reuters.

It said "neglect" of defense capability could impact everything from border security to trade and constrain Pretoria's continental peace-keeping and diplomatic ambitions.

A regular contributor to United Nations peace missions in Africa, South Africa currently has troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan, and its ships and frigates support anti-piracy efforts off Mozambique.

However, the 2014 South African Defense Review, seen by Reuters on Tuesday, says such deployments are under threat.

"Even with an immediate intervention, it could take at least five years to arrest the decline and another five years to develop a limited and sustainable defense capability," the review said.

The long-term strategy document, which was approved this month by cabinet, is the first major assessment of the military capability of Africa's biggest economy since one in 1998.

"The longer the neglect is perpetuated, the greater the effort, time and cost that would be necessary to arrest the decline and restore the minimum capabilities required to safeguard South Africa's borders, protect its maritime trade routes, conduct peace missions and humanitarian interventions," it added.

As specific examples, the report cited a lack of proper ammunition, ageing military transport planes and "block obsolescence" of the army's prime mission equipment, such as infantry trucks.

The required ammunition stock for the national reserve is supposed to supply an army mechanized brigade for 90 days in a mixture of high, medium and low intensity operations, but current ammunition levels can "by no means" support this level.

The mainstay of South Africa's military transport aircraft is the ageing Lockheed C-130 Hercules, which first entered service in the United States in the 1950s. The country has been shopping around for larger transport aircraft since cancelling a $5.2 billion contract to buy eight new Airbus A400M military transport planes in 2009.

"Currently the fleet is unable to meet the lift requirements for supporting the external operations and any surge in this requirement will result in an even greater reliance on contracted airlift services," the review said.

Military analysts say the logistical short-comings were brought into sharp relief during a nine-hour firefight with rebels in the Central African Republic last year in which 13 South African soldiers were killed.

However, the report also said a lack of funding was preventing modernization of the 97,000-strong armed forces, including regulars, reserves and civilian staff.

Without more money, the military would be unable to support Pretoria's diplomatic and commercial expansion in Africa, where old colonial powers such as France, and new economic ones such as China, are flexing their muscles, it added.

"There must either be a greater budget allocation or a significantly scaled-down level of ambition and commitment," it said.

As a solution, the review suggested massive investment in heavy-combat capability, to augment peace-keeping in high-risk situations, as well as enhancing missile, air-lift and joint sea lift capabilities. It did not specify what heavy-combat capability should be, but experts said it could include attack helicopters and tanks.

This could almost double the military budget to 74 billion rand ($6.8 billion) by 2030 from around 40 billion rand in 2013 - equivalent to around 1 percent of GDP, a ratio well below other developed and developing nations.

Attaining the highest level of military security would mean regular annual funding of 116 billion rand or 3.3 percent of GDP, the review added.

Under apartheid, South Africa had one of the most feared and well-funded armed forces on the continent, but since the end of the Cold War and white-minority rule in the early 1990s, Pretoria has cut military spending dramatically in favor of health, housing, education and social security.

Exclusive: South African military in 'critical decline', review says| Reuters

Good info on older S.African Vehicles​

 

[Reashot Xigwin]

The country military in decline since Mandela reform the SADF into SANDF.

Here's a good video to watch:

 

[AUSTERLITZ]

Who will they fight,SA really doesn't need a powerful military.

 

[Skull and Bones]

They have the luxury to have a weaker army.

 

[Winchester]

Pretoria has cut military spending dramatically in favor of health, housing, education and social security.

 

[C130]

Who will they fight,SA really doesn't need a powerful military.

Zimbabwe

 

[Bouncer]

Having lived in SA for a while, its a pity what this country is becoming. There is a general decline in almost every field.

 

[Ahmed Jo]

Who will they fight,SA really doesn't need a powerful military.

Really? What alliances do they have with powerful nations that will protect them? None. A resource rich country like S. Africa does need a strong military. You never know what might happen.

 

[deltaforce81]

Very sad to see such mis-management

Having lived in SA for a while, its a pity what this country is becoming. There is a general decline in almost every field.

They could have easily become ad advanced economy. So sad

 

[Bouncer]

Really? What alliances do they have with powerful nations that will protect them? None. A resource rich country like S. Africa does need a strong military. You never know what might happen.

Plus they are a regional power in Africa. And to maintain this status they need a strong military. SA military forces are/were involved in many peacekeeping missions around Africa.

 

[mike2000]

South Africa doesnt needs a large/strong army per se. They have no immediate threat from anyone in the region. They just need to keep a little deterence and thats all, for no country in the region even comes close to their capabilities.
The only thing they need is some power projection capabilities for peace keeping missions/piracy along their coasts, all of which they already have.
They should focus on improving their economy/living standards . This is what other south Asian countries who are way way poorer/in conflicts than any southern Africa country should be doing as well, instead of overspending on buying weapons abroad to show who is more powerful than the other.

So as the article say: ' Pretoria has cut military spending dramatically in favor of health, housing, education and social security'.

This is indeed a welcome news. South Asia should do the same. Kudos.