Yes, it's an article from 2020 that shows the bad faith of the opponents of the Rafale sale, which is so strong that it's likely they're being paid by the Rafale's competitors. That's why I posted the article, because the bias was obvious.
Dassault Rafale - Updates and Discussion
- Thread starter Domobran7
- Start date
Unlike Poland, Serbia is a bit special due to all the issues in the 90s. Their interests are not aligned with that of the West. Plus Korea is fine, it's still a country that's fully aligned with the West, unlike future partners the Serbians may potentially choose, like India or China.
Poland is not really a "Western" country. Its a former soviet bloc country. West typically means "Western Europe", North America, Australia, New Zealand and perhaps.... Japan.
Poland absolutely counts as a Western country now. It's in the European Union, it's in NATO, it's very strongly pro-America... And it's got tons of ancient cultural links with Western European countries, notably France (there's a reason why there are many Franco-Polish figures, from Marshal Poniatowski to Frederic Chopin to Marie Curie).
Culturally, Poland has historically been aligned with Western Europe much more than with Eastern Europe since the early medieval era. That's why they're a Catholic country that uses the Latin alphabet, and not an Orthodox country that uses the Cyrillic alphabet.
There's a new F-50 single seat version being developed. If I'm not mistaken, it'll be of the Gripen C/D and Tejas Mk1A class.
Yeah, if it's in the LCA Mk1A class, it won't be a threat to Mk2.
Poland and SoKo are effectively West-aligned Western countries. I'd actually argue France is less Western than SoKo is, politically speaking. Meaning, the US and UK would very much prefer Poland buying the FA-50 over the Rafale.
Iraq: PM Al-Sudani’s visit to the U.S. and Rafale file update
Iraqi PM Al-Sudani's visit to the U.S. discussed bilateral defense and economic ties, including the potential procurement of Rafale fighter jets. Get insights into the outcomes and challenges.
www.tacticalreport.com
Tactical Report is weird and I don't trust it.Iraq: PM Al-Sudani’s visit to the U.S. and Rafale file update
Iraqi PM Al-Sudani's visit to the U.S. discussed bilateral defense and economic ties, including the potential procurement of Rafale fighter jets. Get insights into the outcomes and challenges.
Why would they go to the US to discuss Rafale? I'm sure they know it's not an American product.
Anušić zahvalio Plenkoviću, mnogi zapljeskali. Milanović nije bio među njima
Prvih šest od ukupno 12 naručenih francuskih višenamjenskih borbenih aviona tipa Rafale F3-R doletjet će iza 12.30 sati iz Bordeauxa na pistu vojarne 'Pukovnik Marko Živković' u Velikoj Gorici
www.tportal.hr
There's a few of them about now, bulgarianmilitary.com is another. 'Bul' is the only relevant part of it.
The Rafale enters service in the Croatian Air Force
The first six Rafale operated by the Croatian Air Force were welcomed at the Zagreb operational base by the President of the Republic of Croatia Zoran Milanović, the Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and the Minister of Defense Ivan Anušić.Saint-Cloud, France, April 25, 2024 – Following the acquisition of 12 Rafale from the French Air and Space Force in November 2021, the first six Rafale of the Croatian Air Force – Hrvatsko ratno zrakoplovstvo i protuzračna obrana (HRZ i PZO) – operated by its pilots trained in France, arrived today at the 91 operational base, near Zagreb. They were welcomed by the President of the Republic of Croatia Zoran Milanović, the Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and the Minister of Defense Ivan Anušić, during a ceremony.
Coming from the Dassault Aviation site in Mérignac, these six Rafale will join the 191 Squadron of the Croatian Air Force. The next Rafale will arrive from the end of 2024, to form a complete squadron by mid-2025.
“The mastery with which the Croatian Air Force carried out this first ferry testifies to the excellence of its pilots and personnel, and brilliantly illustrates the quality of Croatia’s cooperation with France. Dassault Aviation is fully committed to completing the full integration and logistic support of the Rafale into the Croatian Air Force, which will contribute to ensuring Croatia’s sovereignty and enable it to successfully carry out its operational missions within NATO”, declared Éric Trappier, Chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation.
©Dassault Aviation – N. Bakhos
Give or take 1 or 2, Croatia has as many Rafale as Brazil has Gripen 
and by 2025 it will have more.
and by 2025 it will have more.
Anyway, some more details I was able to collect:
defenseissues.wordpress.com
Dassault Rafale in Croatia
First six Croatian Rafales entered Croatia on noon of 25th April 2024. With their arrival ended the 32 year era of MiG-21s in Croatian Air Force, and from this moment Rafales took over protection o…
defenseissues.wordpress.com
1st May they made a fly-off along all Croatia to commemorate Operacjia Bljesak.
en.wikipedia.org
Operation Flash - Wikipedia
France's Dassault Rafale Is One Badass Fighter For a Reason
The Dassault Rafale, known for its versatility across multiple combat roles, continues to be a significant player in the global defense market, underscoring Dassault Aviation's robust position in European military aviation.Summary: Croatia has recently bolstered its air force by integrating the first batch of six Dassault Rafale fighters, with plans to complete the squadron by 2025. This acquisition enhances Croatia's defense capabilities within NATO and signifies a strengthening of Franco-Croatian military cooperation.
- The deal, which encompasses 12 aircraft in total, is part of a broader regional trend, with Serbia also expressing interest in Rafales to modernize its aging fleet. Beyond the Balkans, the Rafale is gaining attention in the Middle East, with Oman contemplating the purchase of up to 24 jets.
- The Dassault Rafale, known for its versatility across multiple combat roles, continues to be a significant player in the global defense market, underscoring Dassault Aviation's robust position in European military aviation.
Dassault Rafale Fighter Expands Global Reach from the Balkans to the Middle East
Croatia added the first of two batches of Dassault Rafale fighters to its air force at the Zagreb operational base this month. Croatian President Zoran Milanovic, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, and Minister of Defense Ivan Anusic welcomed the arrival of six aircraft.The NATO member-state closed a deal in November to acquire a full dozen of the aircraft. The initial six, operated by pilots trained in France, arrived in their new homeland and will soon join the 191st Fighter Squadron of the Croatian Air Force.
The next batch of aircraft is expected to arrive in 2025 and will complete a full squadron.
"The mastery with which the Croatian Air Force carried out this first ferry testifies to the excellence of its pilots and personnel, and brilliantly illustrates the quality of Croatia's cooperation with France,” said Eric Trappier, chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation. “Dassault Aviation is fully committed to completing the full integration and logistic support of the Rafale into the Croatian Air Force, which will contribute to ensuring Croatia's sovereignty and enable it to successfully carry out its operational missions within NATO."
Regional Arms Race in the Balkans
Croatia is not the only Balkan nation seeking to acquire the French-made fighter. Serbia announced last month its plans to purchase 12 new Rafale fighters in a deal reportedly worth 3 billion euros ($3.2 billion). As previously reported, Belgrade seeks to modernize its air force, which currently consists of Soviet-made MiG-29 fighters and other aging Yugoslav-era combat aircraft.However, the deal has not been confirmed by French officials.
Dassault occupies 5.6% of the European military fixed-wing aircraft market. According to GlobalData's The Global Military Fixed Wing Aircraft Market 2023-2033 report, the company has undertaken major programs, including Rafale aircraft for France, Greece, and Croatia.
Dassault Rafales in the Middle East?
According to other reports, multiple Middle Eastern nations are considering the Rafale as well, especially since the United States is unlikely to allow the sale of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II to any nation in the region other than Israel.Oman, which is strategically located near the Arabian Sea and borders Yemen, is the latest Middle Eastern state to eye the Rafale. The Arab nation seeks to acquire 18 to 24 of the French-made fighter jets.
The French Burst of Fire
The Dassault Rafale – which means "gust of wind," or "burst of fire" in a more military sense – was conceived for use by France’s air and naval services as an "omnirole" fighter, meaning that it would replace seven types of combat aircraft in operation at the time of its development.The new aircraft was developed to carry out a wide range of missions, including air-defense/air-superiority, anti-access/area denial, reconnaissance, close air support, dynamic targeting, air-to-ground precision strike/interdiction, anti-ship attack, nuclear deterrence, and even buddy-buddy refueling.
The requirements for these many roles were taken into account during the aircraft's early development. Engineers sought to create an aircraft that was able to go above the needs for each type of mission and serve as a force multiplier.
The Rafale is slated to be the French armed forces' prime combat aircraft until at least 2050.