Bangladesh "needs" SSKs like I need another stroke. India getting into this with an old Kilo effectively gifted as a "trainer" shows the vying for influence going on. The "Great Game" continues....
ALERT The Winds of War Blow in Korea and The Far East
- Thread starter northern watch
- Start date
Bangladesh "needs" SSKs like I need another stroke. India getting into this with an old Kilo effectively gifted as a "trainer" shows the vying for influence going on. The "Great Game" continues....
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Duan Dang
@duandang
8h8 hours ago
China Maritime Safety Administration announces another military exercise in the north Yellow Sea from August 1 to 4.
@duandang
8h8 hours ago
China Maritime Safety Administration announces another military exercise in the north Yellow Sea from August 1 to 4.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
See post 4552, I would not be surprised if a "Tienamenn Square" in Hong Kong happens
northern watch
TB Fanatic
U.S. set to push security strategy as Chinese manoeuvres rattle region
Martin Petty
July 31, 2019 / 4:17 AM / Updated 6 hours ago
MANILA (Reuters) - Recent incidents involving Chinese ships in Southeast Asian waters are testing regional faith in Beijing’s sincerity about maritime peace, and aiding a renewed U.S. push to build alliances with countries unnerved by China’s assertiveness.
Chinese manoeuvring in energy-rich stretches of the South China Sea, including a standoff in Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone, will figure on Friday when top diplomats of Southeast Asian bloc ASEAN attend a security gathering with world powers.
Among those is a United States that has laid out an “Indo-Pacific Strategy” challenging Chinese maritime hegemony and seeking stronger ties with nations pushing back against Beijing.
Vietnam has done just that, demanding earlier this month that China remove a survey ship and escorts from its waters near an offshore oil block.
Within hours, the U.S. State Department rebuked China for “bullying behaviour” and “provocative and destabilising activity”.
“The U.S. role is undeniable and very important and they need to put more pressure on China,” said Hai Hong Nguyen, a research fellow at Queensland University of Technology in Australia.
“The international community needs to do that too. All the claimants need to internationalise it.”
Vietnam’s call to rally the international community was a departure from its usual cautious responses to China, which seeks to settle rows bilaterally.
Vietnam also appears to have tacit support from Russia, whose state oil firm Rosneft, is operating an oil block within what China says is its historic jurisdiction.
Two days after a Chinese coastguard ship was tracked near the oil block on July 16, in what U.S. thinktank Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) called a “threatening manner”, the Vietnamese arm of Russia’s Sputnik state news agency said President Vladimir Putin sent a personal message of gratitude to Rosneft Vietnam for developing the block.
Russia will be among the 27 countries at Friday’s ASEAN Regional Forum meeting in Bangkok.
Also present will be foreign ministers of Japan, the United States, China and Australia, plus those of the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam, which have recently been impacted by Chinese vessels, including the coastguard and a fishing militia.
The Philippine foreign minister on Wednesday confirmed a diplomatic protest to China over Chinese vessels surrounding the tiny Philippine-held Thitu island.
‘GREY ZONE TACTICS’
The same Chinese Haijing 35111 coast guard ship that showed up near Rosneft’s operation off Vietnam was also tracked near an oil rig on Malaysia’s continental shelf during May, according to the AMTI thinktank.
Meanwhile in June, a Chinese fishing boat sank a Filipino vessel, leaving 22 crew stranded near the Reed Bank, the site of gas deposits inside the Philippine EEZ. China said it was an accident.
On Monday, Philippine Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana confirmed that five Chinese warships passed through Manila’s 12-mile territorial sea this month without notifying the government, calling that “a failure to observe protocol or common courtesy”.
According to South China Sea expert Carl Thayer, the recent increase in Chinese assertiveness is no coincidence, but a response to the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy, and an increase in flyovers by U.S. bombers and U.S. navy patrols in the South China Sea, through which $3.4 trillion of goods pass annually.
Thayer suggested China was actively preventing Southeast Asian neighbours from developing offshore energy reserves without its participation, and discouraging foreign partnerships.
“China’s use of grey zone tactics will inevitably cause regional states to take countermeasures and push back,” he wrote. “This carries the risk that confrontations at sea will escalate.”
Defending Beijing’s position, China’s ambassador to the Philippines, Zhao Jianhua, said on Tuesday that China was committed to international law and “working very hard” with ASEAN to create a maritime code of conduct within three years.
“No matter how strong China may become, China will never seek hegemony or never establish spheres of influence,” he said.
China’s one key ally is Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who despises the United States, and whose foreign policy was praised by China’s Global Times newspaper last week as “peaceful, cooperative and restrained”.
But Duterte’s U.S.-allied defence top brass appear uncomfortable with the position and surveys show Filipinos vastly favour the United States over China.
According to Manila-based author and analyst Richard Heydarian, Duterte is increasingly isolated in defending China.
“From the very front lines, Hong Kong and Taiwan all the way to the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and definitely Vietnam - you’re seeing a robust pushback by a lot of smaller countries,” he said.
“Definitely, Washington has that strategic room for manoeuvre,” he said.
Additional reporting by Khanh Vu in HANOI and Matthew Tostevin in BANGKOK; Editing by Michael Perry
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-asean-thailand-southchinasea-idUKKCN1UQ0WW
Martin Petty
July 31, 2019 / 4:17 AM / Updated 6 hours ago
MANILA (Reuters) - Recent incidents involving Chinese ships in Southeast Asian waters are testing regional faith in Beijing’s sincerity about maritime peace, and aiding a renewed U.S. push to build alliances with countries unnerved by China’s assertiveness.
Chinese manoeuvring in energy-rich stretches of the South China Sea, including a standoff in Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone, will figure on Friday when top diplomats of Southeast Asian bloc ASEAN attend a security gathering with world powers.
Among those is a United States that has laid out an “Indo-Pacific Strategy” challenging Chinese maritime hegemony and seeking stronger ties with nations pushing back against Beijing.
Vietnam has done just that, demanding earlier this month that China remove a survey ship and escorts from its waters near an offshore oil block.
Within hours, the U.S. State Department rebuked China for “bullying behaviour” and “provocative and destabilising activity”.
“The U.S. role is undeniable and very important and they need to put more pressure on China,” said Hai Hong Nguyen, a research fellow at Queensland University of Technology in Australia.
“The international community needs to do that too. All the claimants need to internationalise it.”
Vietnam’s call to rally the international community was a departure from its usual cautious responses to China, which seeks to settle rows bilaterally.
Vietnam also appears to have tacit support from Russia, whose state oil firm Rosneft, is operating an oil block within what China says is its historic jurisdiction.
Two days after a Chinese coastguard ship was tracked near the oil block on July 16, in what U.S. thinktank Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) called a “threatening manner”, the Vietnamese arm of Russia’s Sputnik state news agency said President Vladimir Putin sent a personal message of gratitude to Rosneft Vietnam for developing the block.
Russia will be among the 27 countries at Friday’s ASEAN Regional Forum meeting in Bangkok.
Also present will be foreign ministers of Japan, the United States, China and Australia, plus those of the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam, which have recently been impacted by Chinese vessels, including the coastguard and a fishing militia.
The Philippine foreign minister on Wednesday confirmed a diplomatic protest to China over Chinese vessels surrounding the tiny Philippine-held Thitu island.
‘GREY ZONE TACTICS’
The same Chinese Haijing 35111 coast guard ship that showed up near Rosneft’s operation off Vietnam was also tracked near an oil rig on Malaysia’s continental shelf during May, according to the AMTI thinktank.
Meanwhile in June, a Chinese fishing boat sank a Filipino vessel, leaving 22 crew stranded near the Reed Bank, the site of gas deposits inside the Philippine EEZ. China said it was an accident.
On Monday, Philippine Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana confirmed that five Chinese warships passed through Manila’s 12-mile territorial sea this month without notifying the government, calling that “a failure to observe protocol or common courtesy”.
According to South China Sea expert Carl Thayer, the recent increase in Chinese assertiveness is no coincidence, but a response to the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy, and an increase in flyovers by U.S. bombers and U.S. navy patrols in the South China Sea, through which $3.4 trillion of goods pass annually.
Thayer suggested China was actively preventing Southeast Asian neighbours from developing offshore energy reserves without its participation, and discouraging foreign partnerships.
“China’s use of grey zone tactics will inevitably cause regional states to take countermeasures and push back,” he wrote. “This carries the risk that confrontations at sea will escalate.”
Defending Beijing’s position, China’s ambassador to the Philippines, Zhao Jianhua, said on Tuesday that China was committed to international law and “working very hard” with ASEAN to create a maritime code of conduct within three years.
“No matter how strong China may become, China will never seek hegemony or never establish spheres of influence,” he said.
China’s one key ally is Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who despises the United States, and whose foreign policy was praised by China’s Global Times newspaper last week as “peaceful, cooperative and restrained”.
But Duterte’s U.S.-allied defence top brass appear uncomfortable with the position and surveys show Filipinos vastly favour the United States over China.
According to Manila-based author and analyst Richard Heydarian, Duterte is increasingly isolated in defending China.
“From the very front lines, Hong Kong and Taiwan all the way to the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and definitely Vietnam - you’re seeing a robust pushback by a lot of smaller countries,” he said.
“Definitely, Washington has that strategic room for manoeuvre,” he said.
Additional reporting by Khanh Vu in HANOI and Matthew Tostevin in BANGKOK; Editing by Michael Perry
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-asean-thailand-southchinasea-idUKKCN1UQ0WW
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Holger Zschaepitz
@Schuldensuehner
8h8 hours ago
#China's profit warnings signal more gloom for the economy. Highest ratio of firms forecasting earnings decline since 2016
@Schuldensuehner
8h8 hours ago
#China's profit warnings signal more gloom for the economy. Highest ratio of firms forecasting earnings decline since 2016
northern watch
TB Fanatic
zerohedge @zerohedge · 33m33 minutes ago
CHINA URGES WESTERN NATIONS TO STOP INTERFERENCE IN H.K.:XINHUA
CHINA URGES WESTERN NATIONS TO STOP INTERFERENCE IN H.K.:XINHUA
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Stratcom: China Rapidly Building Up Nuclear Forces
Beijing doubled warhead arsenal and will double again in 10 years
Bill Gertz - August 1, 2019 5:00 AM
Free Beacon
OMAHA—China is aggressively building up nuclear warfighting forces as part of a larger effort to expand power over Asia and globally, according to senior officials of the U.S. Strategic Command.
Vice Admiral David Kriete, deputy commander of the command, said he is concerned by China's rapidly growing nuclear arsenal when combined with other alarming activities in the South China Sea and elsewhere.
"China is and has been for the last couple of decades on a very clear trajectory where they're increasing the numbers of nuclear weapons that they field, they're increasing the number of and diversity of the delivery systems," Kriete said in a press briefing.
"They are working on fielding a triad—ballistic missile submarines, strategic bombers, and land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles."
In addition to a delivery system, Beijing is expanding its nuclear weapons production capabilities that will "allow them to continue on this trend or actually increase it in the future should they so choose," the three-star admiral said.
Regional missile systems that do not have the same range as strategic missiles are being fielded.
Kriete also questioned China's declared no-first-use policy, the statement that Chinese military forces would not be the first to use nuclear arms in a conflict.
"When it comes to the no-first-use policy, I have read about this no-first-use policy," he said. "Beyond that statement, they don't talk much about it, so I'm not exactly sure what it is."
Kriete said the nuclear buildup should be viewed within the context of China's regional and global expansion.
"China's leadership has made it clear in recent years that they have goals of becoming a regional power and exerting—economic and military—over the western Pacific at some point in the future," he said. "And then obtaining some level of global influence at some point after that."
Chinese military activities in the western Pacific are supporting those goals.
Also troubling are China's militarization of disputed islands in the South China Sea.
China has reclaimed some 3,200 acres of islands and last year was detected deploying anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles on them, along with electronic warfare capabilities.
Kriete said Stratcom is not focused on deterring regional conflicts with China but supports the Indo-Pacific Command in its efforts to do so.
"At the same time we'll work on that strategic deterrent effect vis a vis China as well as Russia and some other countries," he said.
China's buildup of nuclear forces includes several new mobile nuclear missiles, including the DF-41 that is being deployed with multiple warheads. New ballistic missile submarines are being deployed along with a new strategic bomber.
China is believed to have more than 200 warheads for strategic weapons.
However, Chinese secrecy has prevented knowing the precise numbers of warheads, which could be as high as 1,500.
China also is nearing deployment of a hypersonic glide vehicle—a maneuvering ultra-high-speed missile that can defeat missile defenses.
The admiral stressed that the United States does not want a war with China or any other country but needs to be prepared to do so.
"We really want a peaceful coexistence in a lot of places around the world, and I think there are ways to achieve that," he said. "The strength that we show through our military force in the region and really domestically back home is an important part of that face that we show to China and other countries around the world."
Another official, Rear Adm. Michael Brookes, director of intelligence for the command, said China's nuclear forces modernization is a concern.
"China has long had a no-first-use policy, and yet they've doubled their nuclear arsenal in about the last decade, and they're on track to double it again in the next decade," Brookes said during a Stratcom conference on deterrence.
"It's a little bit concerning the breathtaking pace of change with regard to their arsenal," he said.
Combined with the nuclear buildup, Chinese leaders "appear to have a disinterest, at least at this time, to submit to any arms control regime."
The Trump administration has said it is seeking to include China in a three-way or bilateral arms control regime. Beijing's military has rejected entering into any negotiation on its nuclear forces over concerns that the talks would undermine its deterrent value.
Brookes said another concern regarding the Chinese nuclear buildup, as well as Russia's nuclear modernization, are worries about their buildup of cyber warfare, space warfare and electronic warfare capabilities that could impact U.S. nuclear deterrence.
These weapons "fan the flames of competition" and jeopardize "the U.S.'s ability for indications and warning and C2 [command and control] of our nuclear forces," Brookes said.
"That's viewed as somewhat destabilizing and inflammatory," the intelligence director said.
The Stratcom officials' comments reflect warnings issued in May by Army Lt. Gen. Robert Ashely, who warned that China also is stepping up nuclear testing by operating a test facility year round.
Ashely called the nuclear modernization "the most rapid expansion and diversification of its nuclear arsenal in China's history."
China's nuclear forces remain couched in secrecy. China operates large-scale underground nuclear storage and production facilities in a tunnel system dubbed the Great Underground Wall.
The system is estimated to include more than 3,000 miles of tunnels and underground plants.
On the topic of extending the New START arms treaty past its 2021 deadline, Kriete said Russia is building new strategic weapons and capabilities that are not covered by the treaty and that pose risks to deterrence.
Moscow has announced the development of a nuclear-powered cruise missile, hypersonic glide vehicles, and a nuclear-tipped underwater drone.
North Korea and Iran also are worried about their nuclear forces.
Stratcom is also assisting with the development of a new warfighting command, the Space Command, that will take over military space and defense responsibilities from Strategic Command. The new command could be stood up in the coming weeks, Kriete said.
Regarding U.S. nuclear forces modernization, Kriete said the military is moving ahead with a new Ground Based Strategic Deterrent—a nuclear missile to replace aging Minuteman III ICBMs.
Kriete said there are no current plans to deploy the new ICBM in a road-mobile launcher, but he did not rule out that mobile basing for U.S. strategic missiles could be used in the future.
https://freebeacon.com/national-security/stratcom-china-rapidly-building-up-nuclear-forces/
Beijing doubled warhead arsenal and will double again in 10 years
Bill Gertz - August 1, 2019 5:00 AM
Free Beacon
OMAHA—China is aggressively building up nuclear warfighting forces as part of a larger effort to expand power over Asia and globally, according to senior officials of the U.S. Strategic Command.
Vice Admiral David Kriete, deputy commander of the command, said he is concerned by China's rapidly growing nuclear arsenal when combined with other alarming activities in the South China Sea and elsewhere.
"China is and has been for the last couple of decades on a very clear trajectory where they're increasing the numbers of nuclear weapons that they field, they're increasing the number of and diversity of the delivery systems," Kriete said in a press briefing.
"They are working on fielding a triad—ballistic missile submarines, strategic bombers, and land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles."
In addition to a delivery system, Beijing is expanding its nuclear weapons production capabilities that will "allow them to continue on this trend or actually increase it in the future should they so choose," the three-star admiral said.
Regional missile systems that do not have the same range as strategic missiles are being fielded.
Kriete also questioned China's declared no-first-use policy, the statement that Chinese military forces would not be the first to use nuclear arms in a conflict.
"When it comes to the no-first-use policy, I have read about this no-first-use policy," he said. "Beyond that statement, they don't talk much about it, so I'm not exactly sure what it is."
Kriete said the nuclear buildup should be viewed within the context of China's regional and global expansion.
"China's leadership has made it clear in recent years that they have goals of becoming a regional power and exerting—economic and military—over the western Pacific at some point in the future," he said. "And then obtaining some level of global influence at some point after that."
Chinese military activities in the western Pacific are supporting those goals.
Also troubling are China's militarization of disputed islands in the South China Sea.
China has reclaimed some 3,200 acres of islands and last year was detected deploying anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles on them, along with electronic warfare capabilities.
Kriete said Stratcom is not focused on deterring regional conflicts with China but supports the Indo-Pacific Command in its efforts to do so.
"At the same time we'll work on that strategic deterrent effect vis a vis China as well as Russia and some other countries," he said.
China's buildup of nuclear forces includes several new mobile nuclear missiles, including the DF-41 that is being deployed with multiple warheads. New ballistic missile submarines are being deployed along with a new strategic bomber.
China is believed to have more than 200 warheads for strategic weapons.
However, Chinese secrecy has prevented knowing the precise numbers of warheads, which could be as high as 1,500.
China also is nearing deployment of a hypersonic glide vehicle—a maneuvering ultra-high-speed missile that can defeat missile defenses.
The admiral stressed that the United States does not want a war with China or any other country but needs to be prepared to do so.
"We really want a peaceful coexistence in a lot of places around the world, and I think there are ways to achieve that," he said. "The strength that we show through our military force in the region and really domestically back home is an important part of that face that we show to China and other countries around the world."
Another official, Rear Adm. Michael Brookes, director of intelligence for the command, said China's nuclear forces modernization is a concern.
"China has long had a no-first-use policy, and yet they've doubled their nuclear arsenal in about the last decade, and they're on track to double it again in the next decade," Brookes said during a Stratcom conference on deterrence.
"It's a little bit concerning the breathtaking pace of change with regard to their arsenal," he said.
Combined with the nuclear buildup, Chinese leaders "appear to have a disinterest, at least at this time, to submit to any arms control regime."
The Trump administration has said it is seeking to include China in a three-way or bilateral arms control regime. Beijing's military has rejected entering into any negotiation on its nuclear forces over concerns that the talks would undermine its deterrent value.
Brookes said another concern regarding the Chinese nuclear buildup, as well as Russia's nuclear modernization, are worries about their buildup of cyber warfare, space warfare and electronic warfare capabilities that could impact U.S. nuclear deterrence.
These weapons "fan the flames of competition" and jeopardize "the U.S.'s ability for indications and warning and C2 [command and control] of our nuclear forces," Brookes said.
"That's viewed as somewhat destabilizing and inflammatory," the intelligence director said.
The Stratcom officials' comments reflect warnings issued in May by Army Lt. Gen. Robert Ashely, who warned that China also is stepping up nuclear testing by operating a test facility year round.
Ashely called the nuclear modernization "the most rapid expansion and diversification of its nuclear arsenal in China's history."
China's nuclear forces remain couched in secrecy. China operates large-scale underground nuclear storage and production facilities in a tunnel system dubbed the Great Underground Wall.
The system is estimated to include more than 3,000 miles of tunnels and underground plants.
On the topic of extending the New START arms treaty past its 2021 deadline, Kriete said Russia is building new strategic weapons and capabilities that are not covered by the treaty and that pose risks to deterrence.
Moscow has announced the development of a nuclear-powered cruise missile, hypersonic glide vehicles, and a nuclear-tipped underwater drone.
North Korea and Iran also are worried about their nuclear forces.
Stratcom is also assisting with the development of a new warfighting command, the Space Command, that will take over military space and defense responsibilities from Strategic Command. The new command could be stood up in the coming weeks, Kriete said.
Regarding U.S. nuclear forces modernization, Kriete said the military is moving ahead with a new Ground Based Strategic Deterrent—a nuclear missile to replace aging Minuteman III ICBMs.
Kriete said there are no current plans to deploy the new ICBM in a road-mobile launcher, but he did not rule out that mobile basing for U.S. strategic missiles could be used in the future.
https://freebeacon.com/national-security/stratcom-china-rapidly-building-up-nuclear-forces/
northern watch
TB Fanatic
@IntelCrab · 9m9 minutes ago
Retweeted Zachary Cohen
DPRK tested yet another MLRS/SRBM system today.
Retweeted Zachary Cohen
DPRK tested yet another MLRS/SRBM system today.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Zachary CohenVerified account @ZcohenCNN · 23m23 minutes ago
New: US military intel tracked a projectile launch from North Korea early Friday am (local time), a senior US official tells @barbarastarrcnn.
Initial assessment is that it appears to be similar to the short range ballistic missile fired earlier this week, the official said.
New: US military intel tracked a projectile launch from North Korea early Friday am (local time), a senior US official tells @barbarastarrcnn.
Initial assessment is that it appears to be similar to the short range ballistic missile fired earlier this week, the official said.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
How much longer before a miscalculation
Hongkong, Taiwan and this nut job. The whole place is fixing to blow
ELINT News Retweeted
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
S.KOREA'S MILITARY CONFIRMS N.KOREA FIRED TWO SHORT-RANGE PROJECTILES INTO EAST SEA BEFORE DAWN ON FRIDAY
5:08 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
Hongkong, Taiwan and this nut job. The whole place is fixing to blow
ELINT News Retweeted
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
S.KOREA'S MILITARY CONFIRMS N.KOREA FIRED TWO SHORT-RANGE PROJECTILES INTO EAST SEA BEFORE DAWN ON FRIDAY
5:08 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
danielboon
TB Fanatic
ELINT News Retweeted
Yonhap News Agency
@YonhapNews
U.S. aware of N.K. 'missile' launches, consulting closely with allies: official
U.S. aware of N.K. 'missile' launches, consulting closely with allies: official | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr
5:55 PM · Aug 1, 2019· https://t.co/15c4nSm6O6
Yonhap News Agency
@YonhapNews
U.S. aware of N.K. 'missile' launches, consulting closely with allies: official
U.S. aware of N.K. 'missile' launches, consulting closely with allies: official | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr
5:55 PM · Aug 1, 2019· https://t.co/15c4nSm6O6
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Wow
EndGameWW3 Retweeted
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
JAPAN CABINET APPROVES PLAN TO REMOVE SOUTH KOREA FROM TRADE 'WHITE LIST' - SOURCE
9:17 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
EndGameWW3 Retweeted
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
JAPAN CABINET APPROVES PLAN TO REMOVE SOUTH KOREA FROM TRADE 'WHITE LIST' - SOURCE
9:17 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Cheong Wa Dae holds meeting of ministers on N. Korea's rocket launch | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr
8:23 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
https://t.co/u5OTPd74wM
en.yna.co.kr
8:23 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
https://t.co/u5OTPd74wM
danielboon
TB Fanatic
EndGameWW3 Retweeted
zerohedge
@zerohedge
Trade war #2
JAPAN REMOVES S.KOREA FROM TRUSTED EXPORT WHITE LIST: KYODO
9:17 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
zerohedge
@zerohedge
Trade war #2
JAPAN REMOVES S.KOREA FROM TRUSTED EXPORT WHITE LIST: KYODO
9:17 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Vincent Lee
@Rover829
·
10m
Reuters: #Japan cabinet approves plan to remove #SouthKorea from trade "white list" - source
Vincent Lee
@Rover829
·
4m
Reuters: #Japan's cabinet approves plan to remove #SouthKorea from trade "white list" - Industry Minister Seko
ELINT News Retweeted
Vincent Lee
@Rover829
Reuters: #Japan industry minister Seko: removal from White List to take effect Aug 28
9:23 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
Vincent Lee
@Rover829
·
1m
Replying to
@Rover829
Reuters: #Japan industry minister Seko: Japan has briefed #US about list decision; trade control step not a countermeasure, done from standpoint of #Japan's national security
@Rover829
·
10m
Reuters: #Japan cabinet approves plan to remove #SouthKorea from trade "white list" - source
Vincent Lee
@Rover829
·
4m
Reuters: #Japan's cabinet approves plan to remove #SouthKorea from trade "white list" - Industry Minister Seko
ELINT News Retweeted
Vincent Lee
@Rover829
Reuters: #Japan industry minister Seko: removal from White List to take effect Aug 28
9:23 PM · Aug 1, 2019·
Vincent Lee
@Rover829
·
1m
Replying to
@Rover829
Reuters: #Japan industry minister Seko: Japan has briefed #US about list decision; trade control step not a countermeasure, done from standpoint of #Japan's national security
northern watch
TB Fanatic
U.S. Defence Secretary says he favours placing intermediate-range missiles in Asia
Idrees Ali
August 3, 2019 / 6:07 AM / Updated 9 hours ago
SYDNEY (Reuters) - U.S. Defence Secretary Mark Esper said on Saturday that he was in favour of placing ground-launched, intermediate-range missiles in Asia relatively soon, a day after the United States withdrew from a landmark arms control treaty.
Esper’s comments are likely to raise concern about an arms race and could add to an already tense relationship with China.
“Yeah, I would like to,” Esper said, when asked whether he was considering placing such missiles in Asia.
“I would prefer months ... but these things tend to take longer than you expect,” he told reporters travelling with him to Sydney when asked about a timeline for when the missiles could be deployed.
The United States formally left the Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty with Russia on Friday after determining Moscow was violating the treaty, an accusation that the Kremlin has denied.
On Friday, senior U.S. officials said that any deployment of such weaponry would be years away.
Within the next few weeks, the United States is expected to test a ground-launched cruise missile, and in November, the Pentagon will aim to test an intermediate-range ballistic missile.
Both would be tests of conventional weapons - and not nuclear.
The 1987 pact banned ground-launched nuclear and conventional ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 310 to 3,400 miles (500-5,500 km).
U.S. officials have been warning for years that the United States was being put at a disadvantage by China’s development of increasingly sophisticated land-based missile forces, which the Pentagon could not match due to the U.S. treaty with Russia.
The United States has so far relied on other capabilities as a counterbalance to China, like missiles fired from U.S. ships or aircraft. But advocates for a U.S. land-based missile response say that is the best way to deter Chinese use of its muscular land-based missile forces.
“I don’t see an arms race happening, I do see us taking proactive measures to develop a capability that we need for both the European theatre and certainly this theatre,” Esper said, referring to the Asia-Pacific region.
While no decisions have been made, the United States could theoretically put easier-to-hide, road-mobile conventional missiles in places like Guam.
Esper did not say where in Asia he was considering placing missiles, but he is expected to meet senior regional leaders during his visit to Asia.
ASIA TRIP
In a sign of the importance Asia - and countering China - has for the Pentagon, Esper is visiting the region just two months after his predecessor made a similar trip.
In Australia, Esper and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will take part in talks with their Australian counterparts.
The meetings come amid heightened Western concern about Chinese influence in the Pacific.
In addition to China, the talks and much of Esper’s trip, are likely to be dominated by discussion on what the departure of the U.S. from the INF treaty means for Asia and recent missile tests by North Korea.
U.S. President Donald Trump sought on Friday to play down North Korea’s three tests in eight days of short-range missiles, saying they did not break any agreement he had with Kim Jong Un.
Asian allies will also have questions for Esper on a U.S.-led maritime force in the Strait of Hormuz.
Washington in June first proposed some sort of multinational effort open to all allies and partners to bolster maritime security in the Gulf after accusing Iran of attacking oil tankers around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime chokepoint.
On Thursday, Japan said it would not send warships to join the U.S-led coalition but it may send patrol aircraft.
“I think we’ll have some announcements coming out soon in the coming days, where you’ll see countries begin to sign up,” Esper said, referring to contributions from other countries on the maritime initiative.
Reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by Tom Hogue and Hugh Lawson
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-u...rmediate-range-missiles-in-asia-idUKKCN1UT09C
Idrees Ali
August 3, 2019 / 6:07 AM / Updated 9 hours ago
SYDNEY (Reuters) - U.S. Defence Secretary Mark Esper said on Saturday that he was in favour of placing ground-launched, intermediate-range missiles in Asia relatively soon, a day after the United States withdrew from a landmark arms control treaty.
Esper’s comments are likely to raise concern about an arms race and could add to an already tense relationship with China.
“Yeah, I would like to,” Esper said, when asked whether he was considering placing such missiles in Asia.
“I would prefer months ... but these things tend to take longer than you expect,” he told reporters travelling with him to Sydney when asked about a timeline for when the missiles could be deployed.
The United States formally left the Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty with Russia on Friday after determining Moscow was violating the treaty, an accusation that the Kremlin has denied.
On Friday, senior U.S. officials said that any deployment of such weaponry would be years away.
Within the next few weeks, the United States is expected to test a ground-launched cruise missile, and in November, the Pentagon will aim to test an intermediate-range ballistic missile.
Both would be tests of conventional weapons - and not nuclear.
The 1987 pact banned ground-launched nuclear and conventional ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 310 to 3,400 miles (500-5,500 km).
U.S. officials have been warning for years that the United States was being put at a disadvantage by China’s development of increasingly sophisticated land-based missile forces, which the Pentagon could not match due to the U.S. treaty with Russia.
The United States has so far relied on other capabilities as a counterbalance to China, like missiles fired from U.S. ships or aircraft. But advocates for a U.S. land-based missile response say that is the best way to deter Chinese use of its muscular land-based missile forces.
“I don’t see an arms race happening, I do see us taking proactive measures to develop a capability that we need for both the European theatre and certainly this theatre,” Esper said, referring to the Asia-Pacific region.
While no decisions have been made, the United States could theoretically put easier-to-hide, road-mobile conventional missiles in places like Guam.
Esper did not say where in Asia he was considering placing missiles, but he is expected to meet senior regional leaders during his visit to Asia.
ASIA TRIP
In a sign of the importance Asia - and countering China - has for the Pentagon, Esper is visiting the region just two months after his predecessor made a similar trip.
In Australia, Esper and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will take part in talks with their Australian counterparts.
The meetings come amid heightened Western concern about Chinese influence in the Pacific.
In addition to China, the talks and much of Esper’s trip, are likely to be dominated by discussion on what the departure of the U.S. from the INF treaty means for Asia and recent missile tests by North Korea.
U.S. President Donald Trump sought on Friday to play down North Korea’s three tests in eight days of short-range missiles, saying they did not break any agreement he had with Kim Jong Un.
Asian allies will also have questions for Esper on a U.S.-led maritime force in the Strait of Hormuz.
Washington in June first proposed some sort of multinational effort open to all allies and partners to bolster maritime security in the Gulf after accusing Iran of attacking oil tankers around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime chokepoint.
On Thursday, Japan said it would not send warships to join the U.S-led coalition but it may send patrol aircraft.
“I think we’ll have some announcements coming out soon in the coming days, where you’ll see countries begin to sign up,” Esper said, referring to contributions from other countries on the maritime initiative.
Reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by Tom Hogue and Hugh Lawson
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-u...rmediate-range-missiles-in-asia-idUKKCN1UT09C
I was wondering when this was going to come up......
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Patrick Cronin
@PMCroninHudson
1h1 hour ago
PLA musters in Shenzhen in preparation for a crackdown in Hong Kong
@PMCroninHudson
1h1 hour ago
PLA musters in Shenzhen in preparation for a crackdown in Hong Kong
northern watch
TB Fanatic
U.S. designates China as currency manipulator for first time in decades
August 5, 2019 / 6:38 PM / Updated an hour ago
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government has determined that China is manipulating its currency and will engage with the International Monetary Fund to eliminate unfair competition from Beijing, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement on Monday.
The move brings already tense U.S.-Chinese relations to a boil and fulfills U.S. President Donald Trump’s promise to label China a currency manipulator for the first time since 1994.
The U.S. action follows China allowing its yuan to weaken past the key 7-per-dollar level on Monday for the first time in more than a decade. Beijing later said it would stop buying U.S. agricultural products, inflaming a yearlong trade war with the United States.
The sharp 1.4% drop in the yuan comes days after U.S. President Donald Trump stunned financial markets by vowing to impose 10% tariffs on the remaining $300 billion of Chinese imports from September 1, abruptly breaking a brief ceasefire in a bruising trade war that has disrupted global supply chains and slowed growth.
The news knocked the dollar .DXY sharply lower and bolstered the price of gold XAU=.
The Treasury Department said a statement from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) on Monday made clear that Chinese authorities had ample control over the yuan exchange rate.
The PBOC said Monday it would “continue to ... take necessary and targeted measures against the positive feedback behavior that may occur in the foreign exchange market.”
“This is an open acknowledgement by the PBOC that it has extensive experience manipulating its currency and remains prepared to do so on an ongoing basis,” the Treasury statement said.
It said China’s actions violate its commitment to refrain from competitive devaluation as part of the Group of 20 industrialized countries. Treasury said it expected China to adhere to those commitments and not target China’s exchange rate for competitive purposes.
U.S. law sets out three criteria for identifying manipulation among major trading partners: a material global current account surplus, a significant bilateral trade surplus with the United States, and persistent one-way intervention in foreign exchange markets.
After determining a country is a manipulator, the Treasury is required to demand special talks aimed at correcting an undervalued currency, with penalties such as exclusion from U.S. government procurement contracts.
The U.S. Treasury had designated Taiwan and South Korea as currency manipulators in 1988, the year that Congress enacted the currency review law. China was the last country to get the designation, in 1994.
In May, the Treasury had refrained from declaring China a currency manipulator based on new tougher criteria measuring a country’s global current account surplus, along with persistent one-way intervention and a large bilateral trade surplus with the United States.
In the report, however, Treasury kept China on an enhanced monitoring list due to a “misalignment and undervaluation of the RMB relative to the dollar.”
Reporting by Andrea Shalal, David Lawder, Lesley Wroughton and Makini Brice; Editing by Sandra Maler and Lisa Shumaker
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-u...lator-for-first-time-in-decades-idUKKCN1UV2DS
August 5, 2019 / 6:38 PM / Updated an hour ago
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government has determined that China is manipulating its currency and will engage with the International Monetary Fund to eliminate unfair competition from Beijing, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement on Monday.
The move brings already tense U.S.-Chinese relations to a boil and fulfills U.S. President Donald Trump’s promise to label China a currency manipulator for the first time since 1994.
The U.S. action follows China allowing its yuan to weaken past the key 7-per-dollar level on Monday for the first time in more than a decade. Beijing later said it would stop buying U.S. agricultural products, inflaming a yearlong trade war with the United States.
The sharp 1.4% drop in the yuan comes days after U.S. President Donald Trump stunned financial markets by vowing to impose 10% tariffs on the remaining $300 billion of Chinese imports from September 1, abruptly breaking a brief ceasefire in a bruising trade war that has disrupted global supply chains and slowed growth.
The news knocked the dollar .DXY sharply lower and bolstered the price of gold XAU=.
The Treasury Department said a statement from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) on Monday made clear that Chinese authorities had ample control over the yuan exchange rate.
The PBOC said Monday it would “continue to ... take necessary and targeted measures against the positive feedback behavior that may occur in the foreign exchange market.”
“This is an open acknowledgement by the PBOC that it has extensive experience manipulating its currency and remains prepared to do so on an ongoing basis,” the Treasury statement said.
It said China’s actions violate its commitment to refrain from competitive devaluation as part of the Group of 20 industrialized countries. Treasury said it expected China to adhere to those commitments and not target China’s exchange rate for competitive purposes.
U.S. law sets out three criteria for identifying manipulation among major trading partners: a material global current account surplus, a significant bilateral trade surplus with the United States, and persistent one-way intervention in foreign exchange markets.
After determining a country is a manipulator, the Treasury is required to demand special talks aimed at correcting an undervalued currency, with penalties such as exclusion from U.S. government procurement contracts.
The U.S. Treasury had designated Taiwan and South Korea as currency manipulators in 1988, the year that Congress enacted the currency review law. China was the last country to get the designation, in 1994.
In May, the Treasury had refrained from declaring China a currency manipulator based on new tougher criteria measuring a country’s global current account surplus, along with persistent one-way intervention and a large bilateral trade surplus with the United States.
In the report, however, Treasury kept China on an enhanced monitoring list due to a “misalignment and undervaluation of the RMB relative to the dollar.”
Reporting by Andrea Shalal, David Lawder, Lesley Wroughton and Makini Brice; Editing by Sandra Maler and Lisa Shumaker
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-u...lator-for-first-time-in-decades-idUKKCN1UV2DS
northern watch
TB Fanatic
North Korea fires projectiles, marking the 4th launch in the last 2 weeks
By elizabeth mclaughlin and conor finnegan
ABC News
August 5, 2019, 6:42 PM ET
For the fourth time in less than two weeks, North Korea has fired projectiles into the Sea of Japan, a U.S. official said.
The two projectiles, fired on Tuesday morning local time, were assessed to be similar to the short-range ballistic missiles tested by North Korea last week, the official said.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs told Yonhap news agency that the projectiles were fired from areas near the South Hwanghae Province.
"We continue to monitor the situation and are consulting closely with our South Korean and Japanese allies," a senior U.S. administration official told ABC News in a statement.
The latest test comes as U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper is in the region for meetings this week with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts and the U.S. and South Korea began joint military exercises on the Korean peninsula.
A spokesperson for North Korea's Foreign Ministry decried the exercises, which are computer-based and have been scaled down in size from previous years, as "an undisguised and a flagrant violation" of agreements between the U.S. and North Korea.
"Although the U.S. and South Korean authorities are playing all sorts of tricks to justify the joint military exercise, its aggressive nature can neither be covered up nor whitewashed in any manner," the spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Last Thursday, North Korea launched at least one short-range ballistic missile into the Sea of Japan, assessed to be similar to the missiles tested earlier that week.
President Donald Trump downplayed that launch, saying, "Short-range missiles, we never made an agreement on that. I have no problem. We'll see what happens. But these are short-range missiles. They are very standard."
https://abcnews.go.com/Internationa...y?id=64790333&cid=clicksource_76_null_bsq_hed
By elizabeth mclaughlin and conor finnegan
ABC News
August 5, 2019, 6:42 PM ET
For the fourth time in less than two weeks, North Korea has fired projectiles into the Sea of Japan, a U.S. official said.
The two projectiles, fired on Tuesday morning local time, were assessed to be similar to the short-range ballistic missiles tested by North Korea last week, the official said.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs told Yonhap news agency that the projectiles were fired from areas near the South Hwanghae Province.
"We continue to monitor the situation and are consulting closely with our South Korean and Japanese allies," a senior U.S. administration official told ABC News in a statement.
The latest test comes as U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper is in the region for meetings this week with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts and the U.S. and South Korea began joint military exercises on the Korean peninsula.
A spokesperson for North Korea's Foreign Ministry decried the exercises, which are computer-based and have been scaled down in size from previous years, as "an undisguised and a flagrant violation" of agreements between the U.S. and North Korea.
"Although the U.S. and South Korean authorities are playing all sorts of tricks to justify the joint military exercise, its aggressive nature can neither be covered up nor whitewashed in any manner," the spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Last Thursday, North Korea launched at least one short-range ballistic missile into the Sea of Japan, assessed to be similar to the missiles tested earlier that week.
President Donald Trump downplayed that launch, saying, "Short-range missiles, we never made an agreement on that. I have no problem. We'll see what happens. But these are short-range missiles. They are very standard."
https://abcnews.go.com/Internationa...y?id=64790333&cid=clicksource_76_null_bsq_hed
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TB Fanatic
ELINT News
@ELINTNews
3m3 minutes ago
#UPDATE: The missile’s flew 450km and reached an apogee of 37km.
Likely KN-23 SRBM’s then?
ELINT News
@ELINTNews
7m7 minutes ago
#BREAKING: Japanese Defence Minister says North Korean missiles pose ‘grave threat’
@ELINTNews
3m3 minutes ago
#UPDATE: The missile’s flew 450km and reached an apogee of 37km.
Likely KN-23 SRBM’s then?
ELINT News
@ELINTNews
7m7 minutes ago
#BREAKING: Japanese Defence Minister says North Korean missiles pose ‘grave threat’
northern watch
TB Fanatic
First Squawk
þ @FirstSquawk
6m6 minutes ago
South Korea says North Korea Projectiles flew at Altitude of 37KM and flew about 450km
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
57m57 minutes ago
U.S PRESIDENT TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS MONITORING NORTH KOREAN SITUATION CLOSELY, OFFICIAL SAYS
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
2h2 hours ago
South Korea's National Security Advisor Holds Meeting on North Korea Launching Projectiles
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
2h2 hours ago
Japan's Govt says No North Korean Ballistic Missiles have entered EEZ
þ @FirstSquawk
6m6 minutes ago
South Korea says North Korea Projectiles flew at Altitude of 37KM and flew about 450km
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
57m57 minutes ago
U.S PRESIDENT TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS MONITORING NORTH KOREAN SITUATION CLOSELY, OFFICIAL SAYS
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
2h2 hours ago
South Korea's National Security Advisor Holds Meeting on North Korea Launching Projectiles
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
2h2 hours ago
Japan's Govt says No North Korean Ballistic Missiles have entered EEZ
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TB Fanatic
SNA Japan
@ShingetsuNews
48m48 minutes ago
Japan issues a diplomatic protest against Russian military exercises near the Southern Kurils. The firing drills will take place near Kunashir August 5 to 10 Yoshihide Suga describes the build up of Russia's military presence on the Northern Territories as unacceptable. (JB)
@ShingetsuNews
48m48 minutes ago
Japan issues a diplomatic protest against Russian military exercises near the Southern Kurils. The firing drills will take place near Kunashir August 5 to 10 Yoshihide Suga describes the build up of Russia's military presence on the Northern Territories as unacceptable. (JB)
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Jim Rickards
@JamesGRickards
4h4 hours ago
Latest warnings from Chinese leaders use phrases like "playing with fire" reserved as warnings of military action. The decision to invade Hong Kong has not been made but it has been approved based on local actions starting now. No one should be surprised if it occurs this month.
@JamesGRickards
4h4 hours ago
Latest warnings from Chinese leaders use phrases like "playing with fire" reserved as warnings of military action. The decision to invade Hong Kong has not been made but it has been approved based on local actions starting now. No one should be surprised if it occurs this month.
jward
passin' thru
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...u-s-south-korea-over-drill-kcna-idUSKCN1UW2CR
North Korea's Kim says missile launches are warning to U.S., South Korea over drill: KCNA
Joyce Lee, Hyonhee Shin
3 MIN READ
SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country’s latest launch of tactical guided missiles was a warning to the United States and South Korea over their joint military drills that began this week, state media KCNA reported on Wednesday.
Tuesday’s missile launch, the North’s fourth in less than two weeks, came amid stalled denuclearization talks with Washington and U.S.-South Korea military exercises, although Washington and Seoul played down the tests.
Kim said the latest missile test was “an occasion to send an adequate warning to the joint military drill now underway by the U.S. and South Korean authorities”, according to KCNA.
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The “new-type tactical guided missiles”, launched from the western area of North Korea, flew across the peninsula over the capital and the central inland region to “precisely hit the targeted islet” in the sea off the North’s east coast, KCNA said. Its report confirmed the South Korean military’s analysis of their trajectories on Tuesday.
The launches “clearly verified the reliability, security and actual war capacity” of the weapon, KCNA said, echoing analysts who said the launches showed North Korea’s confidence in its missile technology.
The United States and South Korea kicked off their largely computer-simulated Dong Maeng - or “alliance” - exercises this week as an alternative to previous large-scale annual drills that were halted to expedite denuclearization talks.
North Korea decries such exercises as a rehearsal for war aimed at toppling its leadership.
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, on his first tour of Asia, said during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo that North Korea remained of great concern.
Esper said on Tuesday the United States won’t overreact to the missile tests.
Lee Sang-min, a spokesman for South Korea’s Unification Ministry that handles inter-Korean ties, urged the North to stop the tests and explore confidence-building measures such as returning to a joint military committee.
Slideshow (6 Images)
Leif-Eric Easley, who teaches international security at Ewha University in Seoul, said South Korea and the United States had reduced and refocused their joint military exercises to allow space for diplomacy with North Korea.
“But Pyongyang shows no appreciation for this, keeping its own exercise schedule unchanged, conducting provocative weapons tests, and dialling up its rhetoric,” he said.
Denuclearization talks are yet to resume after being stalled since a second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Kim broke down in February. The two leaders agreed to revive them during their impromptu meeting at the Demilitarized Zone between the two Koreas in June.
U.S. national security adviser John Bolton highlighted on Tuesday Kim’s pledge to Trump not to resume tests of intercontinental-range missiles that threaten the United States.
Reporting by Joyce Lee and Hyonhee Shin; Additional reporting by Idrees Ali in TOKYO; Editing by Sandra Maler and Paul Tait
Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
North Korea's Kim says missile launches are warning to U.S., South Korea over drill: KCNA
Joyce Lee, Hyonhee Shin
3 MIN READ
SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country’s latest launch of tactical guided missiles was a warning to the United States and South Korea over their joint military drills that began this week, state media KCNA reported on Wednesday.
Tuesday’s missile launch, the North’s fourth in less than two weeks, came amid stalled denuclearization talks with Washington and U.S.-South Korea military exercises, although Washington and Seoul played down the tests.
Kim said the latest missile test was “an occasion to send an adequate warning to the joint military drill now underway by the U.S. and South Korean authorities”, according to KCNA.
ADVERTISEMENT
The “new-type tactical guided missiles”, launched from the western area of North Korea, flew across the peninsula over the capital and the central inland region to “precisely hit the targeted islet” in the sea off the North’s east coast, KCNA said. Its report confirmed the South Korean military’s analysis of their trajectories on Tuesday.
The launches “clearly verified the reliability, security and actual war capacity” of the weapon, KCNA said, echoing analysts who said the launches showed North Korea’s confidence in its missile technology.
The United States and South Korea kicked off their largely computer-simulated Dong Maeng - or “alliance” - exercises this week as an alternative to previous large-scale annual drills that were halted to expedite denuclearization talks.
North Korea decries such exercises as a rehearsal for war aimed at toppling its leadership.
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, on his first tour of Asia, said during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo that North Korea remained of great concern.
Esper said on Tuesday the United States won’t overreact to the missile tests.
Lee Sang-min, a spokesman for South Korea’s Unification Ministry that handles inter-Korean ties, urged the North to stop the tests and explore confidence-building measures such as returning to a joint military committee.
Slideshow (6 Images)
Leif-Eric Easley, who teaches international security at Ewha University in Seoul, said South Korea and the United States had reduced and refocused their joint military exercises to allow space for diplomacy with North Korea.
“But Pyongyang shows no appreciation for this, keeping its own exercise schedule unchanged, conducting provocative weapons tests, and dialling up its rhetoric,” he said.
Denuclearization talks are yet to resume after being stalled since a second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Kim broke down in February. The two leaders agreed to revive them during their impromptu meeting at the Demilitarized Zone between the two Koreas in June.
U.S. national security adviser John Bolton highlighted on Tuesday Kim’s pledge to Trump not to resume tests of intercontinental-range missiles that threaten the United States.
Reporting by Joyce Lee and Hyonhee Shin; Additional reporting by Idrees Ali in TOKYO; Editing by Sandra Maler and Paul Tait
Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
DEFCONWarningSystem
Verified account @DEFCONWSALERTS
Aug 5
China warned Tuesday it would take
countermeasures if the United States goes ahead with plans to deploy ground-based missiles in the Asia-Pacific region.
Verified account @DEFCONWSALERTS
Aug 5
China warned Tuesday it would take
countermeasures if the United States goes ahead with plans to deploy ground-based missiles in the Asia-Pacific region.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Global: MilitaryInfo
@Global_Mil_Info
9h9 hours ago
#BREAKING: A senior Chinese official in charge of Hong Kong affairs warned that Beijing would intervene if the local government proved unable to contain the violent protests - @WSJ
@Global_Mil_Info
9h9 hours ago
#BREAKING: A senior Chinese official in charge of Hong Kong affairs warned that Beijing would intervene if the local government proved unable to contain the violent protests - @WSJ
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TB Fanatic
ELINT News
@ELINTNews
6m6 minutes ago
#UPDATE: 2 unidentified projectiles launched from Hamhung into the Sea of Japan/East Sea, awaiting range and apogee.
I’m going to assume it will be either the new guided artillery rockets or KN-23 SRBM’s.
@ELINTNews
6m6 minutes ago
#UPDATE: 2 unidentified projectiles launched from Hamhung into the Sea of Japan/East Sea, awaiting range and apogee.
I’m going to assume it will be either the new guided artillery rockets or KN-23 SRBM’s.
northern watch
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Kyle Bass
Verified account @Jkylebass
16h16 hours ago
chinese thugs harass US Diplomat and his family in HK. US State department calls it “thuggish” behavior. We need a complete disconnect with china.
Verified account @Jkylebass
16h16 hours ago
chinese thugs harass US Diplomat and his family in HK. US State department calls it “thuggish” behavior. We need a complete disconnect with china.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Instant News Alerts
@InstaNewsAlerts
8h8 hours ago
#BREAKING Trump says US 'not ready' to make trade deal with China. (AFP)
@InstaNewsAlerts
8h8 hours ago
#BREAKING Trump says US 'not ready' to make trade deal with China. (AFP)
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Yonhap News AgencyVerified account @YonhapNews · 3m3 minutes ago
(URGENT) U.S. says it is aware of report of N.K. missile launch
(URGENT) U.S. says it is aware of report of N.K. missile launch
danielboon
TB Fanatic
ELINT News
@ELINTNews
#BREAKING: US Official confirms North Korea has launched multiple short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM’s), but it is unclear at this time how many have been launched- via
@LucasFoxNews
5:57 PM · Aug 9, 2019·
·
18m
Replying to
@ELINTNews
and
@LucasFoxNews
Though North Korea has denied agreeing to only conduct short range testing, it seems this is what they continue to do. Interesting.
@ELINTNews
#BREAKING: US Official confirms North Korea has launched multiple short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM’s), but it is unclear at this time how many have been launched- via
@LucasFoxNews
5:57 PM · Aug 9, 2019·
·
18m
Replying to
@ELINTNews
and
@LucasFoxNews
Though North Korea has denied agreeing to only conduct short range testing, it seems this is what they continue to do. Interesting.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Is China Hoarding Food, Gold & Other Commodities In Anticipation Of A Global Collapse?
by Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Friday 08/09/2019 - 16:25
Authored by Michael Snyder via The End of The American Dream blog,
Does China believe that we are on the verge of a major global crisis? The communist Chinese government has always been very big into planning, and it appears that they have decided that now is the time to hoard food, gold and other commodities.
Of course in recent days the fact that China is completely cutting off U.S. agricultural imports has made headlines all over the globe, but at the same time China is dramatically increasing the amount of food that it is importing from the rest of the world. The end result is actually a substantial surge in Chinese imports, and this is starting to show up in the official numbers. For example, we just learned that Chinese soybean imports in July were actually up 8 percent compared to last year…
China’s soybean imports in July rose 8% from a year earlier, to their highest level in almost a year, customs data showed on Thursday, as importers increased their purchases of Brazilian beans on higher crush margins.
As I discussed the other day, China had already been drastically reducing soybean imports from the United States even before this recent announcement that U.S. agricultural imports were being cut off completely. So American farmers were definitely not benefiting from this Chinese import boom, and now that China has decided not to buy any of our crops it is going to be a “devastating blow” for our farmers…
With China officially pulling out of buying U.S. agricultural products, American farmers are losing one of their biggest customers. It could be a devastating blow in an already tough year for crops and commodity prices. It may also dent U.S. gross domestic product and hurt companies like Deere, whose business is directly tied to farming in the Heartland.
“Sales have already been lower this crop year because of the existing tariffs. If we went all the way to no China exports whatsoever, that would of course result in even larger market and price impacts,” said Pat Westhoff, director of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri. “Cutting China completely out of the market would be a very big deal.”
Needless to say, China has had to turn to other sources to supply their needs, and last month we learned that China had decided to substantially increase wheat and soybean imports from Russia…
China has approved wheat imports from the Russian region of Kurgan, the Chinese customs office said on Friday, bringing Russia a step closer to its goal of dramatically increasing grain exports.
It also approved soybean imports from all parts of Russia, the General Administration of Customs said in a separate statement on its website, having all but halted U.S. soy imports as the trade dispute between Beijing and Washington deepened.
This is yet another sign that Russia and China are drawing closer, and this is something that we have been anticipating.
Meanwhile, China is also hoarding gold. In fact, July was the eighth month in a row in which the Chinese increased their reserves…
China bought nearly 10 tons of gold in July, marking the eighth consecutive month the country increased its reserves, Bloomberg reported Wednesday morning.
The purchase is another signal from China that it’s gearing up for a prolonged trade conflict with the US. Gold serves as a historic safe-haven investment, and its price typically rises when markets and other currencies see increased volatility or prolonged weakness.
In addition, Bloomberg is reporting that Chinese commodity purchases of all types were very, very strong in July…
Commodity purchases by China rebounded strongly in July. Imports of soy to coal and crude oil gained, signaling demand in the world’s biggest buyer remains solid even as a trade spat with the U.S. escalates.
So why are the Chinese suddenly stocking up on everything?
Well, the truth is that the answer to that question is quite obvious. The trade war between the United States and China is rapidly escalating, war in the Middle East could erupt at any time, the global economy has been steadily slowing down, crops are failing all over the planet, and everywhere we look we seem to see rising political instability.
In fact, we even see it in China’s own backyard. After weeks of unprecedented political protests in Hong Kong, it looks like we could be right on the verge of a brutal crackdown. The following comes from the New York Post…
After eight weeks of huge Hong Kong street protests against Beijing’s rule, the People’s Republic is massing police and soldiers just across the border.
Message: If the protesters don’t quit, a bloodbath is coming.
Beijing has also started denouncing the protests as the work of American provocateurs. That’s so the regime can paint its Tiananmen Square-style crackdown as a battle against “foreign influence,” not a smashing of Chinese people who decided all on their own that they’d rather be free.
The relative stability that we have been enjoying for the past several years is ending, and it appears that the months ahead could potentially be quite chaotic.
Normally I would never suggest that anyone should emulate the Chinese government, but in this case they appear to be doing the wise thing. Now is the time to get prepared for what is coming, because the road ahead promises to be quite tumultuous.
Most people don’t realize it, but U.S. relations with China have already passed the point of no return. Things are going to become increasingly tense between our two nations, and that is going to have very serious implications for all of us.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019...ther-commodities-anticipation-global-collapse
by Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Friday 08/09/2019 - 16:25
Authored by Michael Snyder via The End of The American Dream blog,
Does China believe that we are on the verge of a major global crisis? The communist Chinese government has always been very big into planning, and it appears that they have decided that now is the time to hoard food, gold and other commodities.
Of course in recent days the fact that China is completely cutting off U.S. agricultural imports has made headlines all over the globe, but at the same time China is dramatically increasing the amount of food that it is importing from the rest of the world. The end result is actually a substantial surge in Chinese imports, and this is starting to show up in the official numbers. For example, we just learned that Chinese soybean imports in July were actually up 8 percent compared to last year…
China’s soybean imports in July rose 8% from a year earlier, to their highest level in almost a year, customs data showed on Thursday, as importers increased their purchases of Brazilian beans on higher crush margins.
As I discussed the other day, China had already been drastically reducing soybean imports from the United States even before this recent announcement that U.S. agricultural imports were being cut off completely. So American farmers were definitely not benefiting from this Chinese import boom, and now that China has decided not to buy any of our crops it is going to be a “devastating blow” for our farmers…
With China officially pulling out of buying U.S. agricultural products, American farmers are losing one of their biggest customers. It could be a devastating blow in an already tough year for crops and commodity prices. It may also dent U.S. gross domestic product and hurt companies like Deere, whose business is directly tied to farming in the Heartland.
“Sales have already been lower this crop year because of the existing tariffs. If we went all the way to no China exports whatsoever, that would of course result in even larger market and price impacts,” said Pat Westhoff, director of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri. “Cutting China completely out of the market would be a very big deal.”
Needless to say, China has had to turn to other sources to supply their needs, and last month we learned that China had decided to substantially increase wheat and soybean imports from Russia…
China has approved wheat imports from the Russian region of Kurgan, the Chinese customs office said on Friday, bringing Russia a step closer to its goal of dramatically increasing grain exports.
It also approved soybean imports from all parts of Russia, the General Administration of Customs said in a separate statement on its website, having all but halted U.S. soy imports as the trade dispute between Beijing and Washington deepened.
This is yet another sign that Russia and China are drawing closer, and this is something that we have been anticipating.
Meanwhile, China is also hoarding gold. In fact, July was the eighth month in a row in which the Chinese increased their reserves…
China bought nearly 10 tons of gold in July, marking the eighth consecutive month the country increased its reserves, Bloomberg reported Wednesday morning.
The purchase is another signal from China that it’s gearing up for a prolonged trade conflict with the US. Gold serves as a historic safe-haven investment, and its price typically rises when markets and other currencies see increased volatility or prolonged weakness.
In addition, Bloomberg is reporting that Chinese commodity purchases of all types were very, very strong in July…
Commodity purchases by China rebounded strongly in July. Imports of soy to coal and crude oil gained, signaling demand in the world’s biggest buyer remains solid even as a trade spat with the U.S. escalates.
So why are the Chinese suddenly stocking up on everything?
Well, the truth is that the answer to that question is quite obvious. The trade war between the United States and China is rapidly escalating, war in the Middle East could erupt at any time, the global economy has been steadily slowing down, crops are failing all over the planet, and everywhere we look we seem to see rising political instability.
In fact, we even see it in China’s own backyard. After weeks of unprecedented political protests in Hong Kong, it looks like we could be right on the verge of a brutal crackdown. The following comes from the New York Post…
After eight weeks of huge Hong Kong street protests against Beijing’s rule, the People’s Republic is massing police and soldiers just across the border.
Message: If the protesters don’t quit, a bloodbath is coming.
Beijing has also started denouncing the protests as the work of American provocateurs. That’s so the regime can paint its Tiananmen Square-style crackdown as a battle against “foreign influence,” not a smashing of Chinese people who decided all on their own that they’d rather be free.
The relative stability that we have been enjoying for the past several years is ending, and it appears that the months ahead could potentially be quite chaotic.
Normally I would never suggest that anyone should emulate the Chinese government, but in this case they appear to be doing the wise thing. Now is the time to get prepared for what is coming, because the road ahead promises to be quite tumultuous.
Most people don’t realize it, but U.S. relations with China have already passed the point of no return. Things are going to become increasingly tense between our two nations, and that is going to have very serious implications for all of us.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019...ther-commodities-anticipation-global-collapse
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General John Hyten: Arms fall short for war with China
By Bill Gertz - - Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Washington Times
Air Force Gen. John Hyten, nominee for vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, this week outlined U.S. military concerns about weapons shortfalls that increase risks for any future conflict with China.
Gen. Hyten, currently commander of U.S. Strategic Command, said in a prepared statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee made public Tuesday that China’s missile forces pose the most significant threat to U.S. forces.
The IndoPacific Command annually provides the chairman of the Joint Chiefs with a list of shortfalls of military forces and weapons needed to win a conflict against Beijing.
According to the four-star general, current shortfalls exist in numbers of critical munitions, undersea warfare dominance forces and the ability to counter China’s growing missiles and other weapons designed to keep U.S. forces out of the area. The military calls these Chinese forces “anti-access, area-denial” forces, such as missiles and submarines.
Additionally, the ability to resupply U.S. forces in Asia during a conflict with China would be difficult.
“Conflict with China poses formidable challenges to the joint logistics enterprise,” Gen. Hyten said, adding that military leaders are “actively working to mitigate the risk to our logistics enterprise through strategic positioning.”
Regarding China’s large missile forces, Gen. Hyten said threat to U.S. forces and bases from missiles is “substantial and growing.”
“The People’s Liberation Army Rocket Forces have a growing inventory of medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles that threaten U.S. bases in the region, including those in South Korea, Japan, and Guam, as well as naval forces operating inside the Second Island Chain,” he said, referring to the line of islands stretching from North Asia to Southeast Asia. “Many are purpose-built for specific targets, such as aircraft carriers or air bases, and PLA Rocket Forces maintain a high degree of combat readiness.”
Chinese military technology also is “constantly evolving” with increased range, greater survivability, accuracy and lethality, he said.
Recent congressional funding will provide focus and urgency to counter the threat, “but we have a long way to go to deter and counter ballistic missiles and future hypersonic weapons,” he noted.
The military is investing in early-phase missile defense, increased missile interceptor capability and improved land and space sensors.
“China has quickly closed the gap with respect to protection of forces from the threat ballistic and cruise missiles pose to our land- and sea-based assets,” Gen. Hyten said.
To counter the Chinese military, Gen. Hyten said, American military forces need to build up capabilities in undersea warfare, critical munitions and long-range weapons such as air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles, surface-to-surface missiles and anti-ship missiles.
The military also needs to develop intermediate-range cruise missile and low-cost, high-capacity cruise missile defenses, hypersonic weapons and air and surface cargo lift capabilities. Also needed are cyberwarfare capabilities, air-to-air refueling systems and hardened communication and navigation systems, Gen. Hyten said.
“In addition to improving the current systems stated above, we must enhance our logistics and [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and posture] in the key areas of responsibility,” he said.
China’s naval buildup includes a massive shipbuilding program that by 2030 will include nearly 100 more warships than the U.S. Navy, which currently keeps about 60%t of its forces in the Pacific.
To counter China’s submarine buildup, the Navy is building unmanned underwater vehicles and improving submarine forces.
“In addition to a suite of asymmetric solutions, we are advancing undersea mining capabilities to counter Russian and Chinese advancements in undersea warfare,” Gen. Hyten said.
Asymmetric and irregular war fighting capabilities also are being prepared for use against the Chinese military.
“We will prioritize the ability to exploit subsurface advantages and, when required, use standoff air and surface long-range fires to hold surface combatants at risk,” Gen. Hyten said.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/jul/31/john-hyten-joint-chiefs-nominee-warns-of-china-war/
By Bill Gertz - - Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Washington Times
Air Force Gen. John Hyten, nominee for vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, this week outlined U.S. military concerns about weapons shortfalls that increase risks for any future conflict with China.
Gen. Hyten, currently commander of U.S. Strategic Command, said in a prepared statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee made public Tuesday that China’s missile forces pose the most significant threat to U.S. forces.
The IndoPacific Command annually provides the chairman of the Joint Chiefs with a list of shortfalls of military forces and weapons needed to win a conflict against Beijing.
According to the four-star general, current shortfalls exist in numbers of critical munitions, undersea warfare dominance forces and the ability to counter China’s growing missiles and other weapons designed to keep U.S. forces out of the area. The military calls these Chinese forces “anti-access, area-denial” forces, such as missiles and submarines.
Additionally, the ability to resupply U.S. forces in Asia during a conflict with China would be difficult.
“Conflict with China poses formidable challenges to the joint logistics enterprise,” Gen. Hyten said, adding that military leaders are “actively working to mitigate the risk to our logistics enterprise through strategic positioning.”
Regarding China’s large missile forces, Gen. Hyten said threat to U.S. forces and bases from missiles is “substantial and growing.”
“The People’s Liberation Army Rocket Forces have a growing inventory of medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles that threaten U.S. bases in the region, including those in South Korea, Japan, and Guam, as well as naval forces operating inside the Second Island Chain,” he said, referring to the line of islands stretching from North Asia to Southeast Asia. “Many are purpose-built for specific targets, such as aircraft carriers or air bases, and PLA Rocket Forces maintain a high degree of combat readiness.”
Chinese military technology also is “constantly evolving” with increased range, greater survivability, accuracy and lethality, he said.
Recent congressional funding will provide focus and urgency to counter the threat, “but we have a long way to go to deter and counter ballistic missiles and future hypersonic weapons,” he noted.
The military is investing in early-phase missile defense, increased missile interceptor capability and improved land and space sensors.
“China has quickly closed the gap with respect to protection of forces from the threat ballistic and cruise missiles pose to our land- and sea-based assets,” Gen. Hyten said.
To counter the Chinese military, Gen. Hyten said, American military forces need to build up capabilities in undersea warfare, critical munitions and long-range weapons such as air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles, surface-to-surface missiles and anti-ship missiles.
The military also needs to develop intermediate-range cruise missile and low-cost, high-capacity cruise missile defenses, hypersonic weapons and air and surface cargo lift capabilities. Also needed are cyberwarfare capabilities, air-to-air refueling systems and hardened communication and navigation systems, Gen. Hyten said.
“In addition to improving the current systems stated above, we must enhance our logistics and [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and posture] in the key areas of responsibility,” he said.
China’s naval buildup includes a massive shipbuilding program that by 2030 will include nearly 100 more warships than the U.S. Navy, which currently keeps about 60%t of its forces in the Pacific.
To counter China’s submarine buildup, the Navy is building unmanned underwater vehicles and improving submarine forces.
“In addition to a suite of asymmetric solutions, we are advancing undersea mining capabilities to counter Russian and Chinese advancements in undersea warfare,” Gen. Hyten said.
Asymmetric and irregular war fighting capabilities also are being prepared for use against the Chinese military.
“We will prioritize the ability to exploit subsurface advantages and, when required, use standoff air and surface long-range fires to hold surface combatants at risk,” Gen. Hyten said.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/jul/31/john-hyten-joint-chiefs-nominee-warns-of-china-war/
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Hong Kong Airport Cancels Flights as Protesters Flood In; Thousands of demonstrators fill airport to condemn police handling of long-running protests
Monday, August 12, 2019, 9:20 AM ET
By Natasha Khan, Wenxin Fan and Preetika Rana
Wall Street Journal
HONG KONG—A large crowd of antigovernment demonstrators shut down Hong Kong's airport and stranded thousands of passengers Monday, as officials in Beijing said they saw emerging signs of terrorism in the city's increasingly violent protests.
Hong Kong's airport authority canceled more than 130 flights Monday afternoon after thousands of demonstrators thronged the arrival and departure halls, joining a sit-in at the terminal that has run since Friday. They gathered to protest what they say was police brutality over a bloody weekend that saw some of the worst unrest in more than two months of demonstrations.
By 8 p.m., a few hours after the cancellations were announced, most had dispersed.
The size of the crowd overwhelmed the airport, one of the world's busiest, handling more than 400,000 flights and 75 million passengers last year. It underscored protesters' continued ability to disrupt the city, ratcheting up pressure on authorities, who have warned the unrest may tip the economy into recession and damage business confidence in the international finance and trading hub.
The protest, while disruptive, was peaceful—a contrast to battles Sunday night across the city in which police stations were besieged, dozens of protesters were arrested following charges by police wielding batons and one woman sustained a serious eye injury after she was shot with a projectile.
Chinese officials focused on what they called " deranged acts " by protesters, including throwing gasoline bombs, that they said marked the emergence of "the first signs of terrorism" in the partly autonomous Chinese city.
"Radical Hong Kong protesters have repeatedly used extremely dangerous tools to attack police officers," Yang Guang, a spokesman for the Chinese government's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office said in a news briefing on Monday, according to Chinese state media. "The first signs of terrorism are starting to appear."
Mr. Yang said such violence must be severely punished, "without leniency, without mercy."
The societal divide in Hong Kong shows no signs of healing as the city remains gripped in its worst political crisis in decades. The protest movement that began over a bill that would allow suspects to be tried in mainland China has snowballed into a wider movement demanding more accountability from police and for the government to respond to their issues.
In the past two months, the momentum of the protest has in part been sustained by public reaction to police use of force against street demonstrators. A protester who died in a fall while unfurling a banner and the first use of tear gas and rubber bullets by police, to clear a rally in early June, led an estimated two million people onto city streets.
Since then, a spiraling cycle of violence between thousands of radical protesters and police has spread across the city, descending into battles in many urban districts. Hundreds of protesters have been arrested, and more than 1,800 rounds of tear gas have been used, along with scores of rubber bullets and beanbag rounds.
In recent public appearances, Hong Kong's leader, Carrie Lam , has said the government can't accede to the protesters' demands. Those include an independent inquiry into police handling of the protests.
Hong Kong's No. 2 ranking official, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung, said Monday that the unapproved rally at the airport had struck at a transit hub for the Asia-Pacific. "It is our artery," he said, adding that "people should cherish the future of Hong Kong, which is the collective hard work of everyone over many years."
Hong Kong's airport authority canceled all check-in service for outbound flights as of 3.30 p.m., with more than 130 flights canceled. Inbound flights that had yet to take off were canceled for the rest of the day, with other flights diverted. More than 200 flights were canceled a week earlier because of a citywide strike , as protests bite into the city's economy, especially tourism and retail.
A large number of protesters started gathering in the early afternoon, quickly filling both arrival and departure halls, where they later marched in circles and chanted slogans. Hundreds used trolleys to block entrances to the departure hall—as it was one of their goals to paralyze the airport—agitating passengers who had to make a detour. "Blame the government," read a cardboard sign put out by protesters.
Ken Wong, an 18-year-old secondary school student who said he would stay at the airport as late as possible, said that after the violence and arrests of the weekend, the airport had become the new front line for its safety. If police tried to forcefully clear them from the terminal, it would drive tourists away, he said.
The flight cancellations were announced in midafternoon, and more than half the protest group had left by 6:45 p.m., with others still leaving. The hundreds that remained were lying on the floor or lobbying arriving passengers.
Some of the protesters and travelers alike made their way on foot, as there were long lines for buses and the train, with confused passengers trying to make alternative plans.
At an empty Hong Kong Airlines counter, Jerry Huang, a businessman from Taiwan, expressed frustration at not knowing when he would get home.
"This is what they want," he said of the protesters. "It's fine that they block the road, but we need to fly for urgent matters. How can they win support with such actions?"
The crowds held pictures of the woman injured on Sunday, chanting "an eye for an eye" and reiterating their five demands for the government, which include an independent inquiry into police handling of the unrest.
Emphasizing the wider divisions, more impromptu protests were held across the city Monday. Among them, a group of pastors condemned the police for using violence, while workers at a public hospital staged a two-hour strike.
More than 200 doctors, nurses, paramedics and pharmacists gathered at the hospital, some with bandages over an eye, as a show of solidarity with the injured protester. They held signs that said, "Police attempt to murder Hong Kong citizens."
"The police have gone wild. This is our way of sending them a message," said Tommy Chan, a 31-year-old nurse who bandaged his left eye. "We're so angry," he said. "The police should protect us, not inflict permanent harm." Mr. Chan said he hadn't participated in any street protests but that he supports the demonstrators.
On Monday police showed off an armored truck equipped with a water cannon that could be used to disperse crowds. Pro-democracy legislators immediately said it would be dangerous and lethal to use water cannons in a city as densely populated as Hong Kong.
Joyu Wang, Mike Bird and Chun Han Wong contributed to this article.
Write to Natasha Khan at natasha.khan@wsj.com , Wenxin Fan at Wenxin.Fan@wsj.com and Preetika Rana at preetika.rana@wsj.com
https://www.wsj.com/articles/hong-kong-airport-cancels-flights-as-thousands-converge-11565599227
Monday, August 12, 2019, 9:20 AM ET
By Natasha Khan, Wenxin Fan and Preetika Rana
Wall Street Journal
HONG KONG—A large crowd of antigovernment demonstrators shut down Hong Kong's airport and stranded thousands of passengers Monday, as officials in Beijing said they saw emerging signs of terrorism in the city's increasingly violent protests.
Hong Kong's airport authority canceled more than 130 flights Monday afternoon after thousands of demonstrators thronged the arrival and departure halls, joining a sit-in at the terminal that has run since Friday. They gathered to protest what they say was police brutality over a bloody weekend that saw some of the worst unrest in more than two months of demonstrations.
By 8 p.m., a few hours after the cancellations were announced, most had dispersed.
The size of the crowd overwhelmed the airport, one of the world's busiest, handling more than 400,000 flights and 75 million passengers last year. It underscored protesters' continued ability to disrupt the city, ratcheting up pressure on authorities, who have warned the unrest may tip the economy into recession and damage business confidence in the international finance and trading hub.
The protest, while disruptive, was peaceful—a contrast to battles Sunday night across the city in which police stations were besieged, dozens of protesters were arrested following charges by police wielding batons and one woman sustained a serious eye injury after she was shot with a projectile.
Chinese officials focused on what they called " deranged acts " by protesters, including throwing gasoline bombs, that they said marked the emergence of "the first signs of terrorism" in the partly autonomous Chinese city.
"Radical Hong Kong protesters have repeatedly used extremely dangerous tools to attack police officers," Yang Guang, a spokesman for the Chinese government's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office said in a news briefing on Monday, according to Chinese state media. "The first signs of terrorism are starting to appear."
Mr. Yang said such violence must be severely punished, "without leniency, without mercy."
The societal divide in Hong Kong shows no signs of healing as the city remains gripped in its worst political crisis in decades. The protest movement that began over a bill that would allow suspects to be tried in mainland China has snowballed into a wider movement demanding more accountability from police and for the government to respond to their issues.
In the past two months, the momentum of the protest has in part been sustained by public reaction to police use of force against street demonstrators. A protester who died in a fall while unfurling a banner and the first use of tear gas and rubber bullets by police, to clear a rally in early June, led an estimated two million people onto city streets.
Since then, a spiraling cycle of violence between thousands of radical protesters and police has spread across the city, descending into battles in many urban districts. Hundreds of protesters have been arrested, and more than 1,800 rounds of tear gas have been used, along with scores of rubber bullets and beanbag rounds.
In recent public appearances, Hong Kong's leader, Carrie Lam , has said the government can't accede to the protesters' demands. Those include an independent inquiry into police handling of the protests.
Hong Kong's No. 2 ranking official, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung, said Monday that the unapproved rally at the airport had struck at a transit hub for the Asia-Pacific. "It is our artery," he said, adding that "people should cherish the future of Hong Kong, which is the collective hard work of everyone over many years."
Hong Kong's airport authority canceled all check-in service for outbound flights as of 3.30 p.m., with more than 130 flights canceled. Inbound flights that had yet to take off were canceled for the rest of the day, with other flights diverted. More than 200 flights were canceled a week earlier because of a citywide strike , as protests bite into the city's economy, especially tourism and retail.
A large number of protesters started gathering in the early afternoon, quickly filling both arrival and departure halls, where they later marched in circles and chanted slogans. Hundreds used trolleys to block entrances to the departure hall—as it was one of their goals to paralyze the airport—agitating passengers who had to make a detour. "Blame the government," read a cardboard sign put out by protesters.
Ken Wong, an 18-year-old secondary school student who said he would stay at the airport as late as possible, said that after the violence and arrests of the weekend, the airport had become the new front line for its safety. If police tried to forcefully clear them from the terminal, it would drive tourists away, he said.
The flight cancellations were announced in midafternoon, and more than half the protest group had left by 6:45 p.m., with others still leaving. The hundreds that remained were lying on the floor or lobbying arriving passengers.
Some of the protesters and travelers alike made their way on foot, as there were long lines for buses and the train, with confused passengers trying to make alternative plans.
At an empty Hong Kong Airlines counter, Jerry Huang, a businessman from Taiwan, expressed frustration at not knowing when he would get home.
"This is what they want," he said of the protesters. "It's fine that they block the road, but we need to fly for urgent matters. How can they win support with such actions?"
The crowds held pictures of the woman injured on Sunday, chanting "an eye for an eye" and reiterating their five demands for the government, which include an independent inquiry into police handling of the unrest.
Emphasizing the wider divisions, more impromptu protests were held across the city Monday. Among them, a group of pastors condemned the police for using violence, while workers at a public hospital staged a two-hour strike.
More than 200 doctors, nurses, paramedics and pharmacists gathered at the hospital, some with bandages over an eye, as a show of solidarity with the injured protester. They held signs that said, "Police attempt to murder Hong Kong citizens."
"The police have gone wild. This is our way of sending them a message," said Tommy Chan, a 31-year-old nurse who bandaged his left eye. "We're so angry," he said. "The police should protect us, not inflict permanent harm." Mr. Chan said he hadn't participated in any street protests but that he supports the demonstrators.
On Monday police showed off an armored truck equipped with a water cannon that could be used to disperse crowds. Pro-democracy legislators immediately said it would be dangerous and lethal to use water cannons in a city as densely populated as Hong Kong.
Joyu Wang, Mike Bird and Chun Han Wong contributed to this article.
Write to Natasha Khan at natasha.khan@wsj.com , Wenxin Fan at Wenxin.Fan@wsj.com and Preetika Rana at preetika.rana@wsj.com
https://www.wsj.com/articles/hong-kong-airport-cancels-flights-as-thousands-converge-11565599227
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ELINT News
@ELINTNews
28m28 minutes ago
#UPDATE: Chinese media making it quite clear that its ‘police forces’ stationed in Shenzhen are ready to intervene in Hong Kong if necessary
@ELINTNews
28m28 minutes ago
#UPDATE: Chinese media making it quite clear that its ‘police forces’ stationed in Shenzhen are ready to intervene in Hong Kong if necessary
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AFP news agency
þVerified account @AFP
3h3 hours ago
Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific has warned staff they could be fired for supporting "illegal protests", as the firm comes under pressure from Beijing over pro-democracy demonstrations
AFP news agency
Verified account @AFP
10h10 hours ago
#UPDATE Cathay Pacific shares plunge after Beijing bans airline staff supporting Hong Kong protesters from flights going through the mainland
AFP news agency
Verified account @AFP
11h11 hours ago
Would China risk another Tiananmen in Hong Kong?
Analysts tell @AFP the catastrophic economic and political consequences will deter Beijing from any overt boots-on-the ground intervention
AFP news agency
þVerified account @AFP
14h14 hours ago
Empty hotel rooms, struggling shops and even disruption at Disneyland: months of protests in Hong Kong have taken a major toll on the city's economy, with no end in sight
þVerified account @AFP
3h3 hours ago
Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific has warned staff they could be fired for supporting "illegal protests", as the firm comes under pressure from Beijing over pro-democracy demonstrations
AFP news agency
Verified account @AFP
10h10 hours ago
#UPDATE Cathay Pacific shares plunge after Beijing bans airline staff supporting Hong Kong protesters from flights going through the mainland
AFP news agency
Verified account @AFP
11h11 hours ago
Would China risk another Tiananmen in Hong Kong?
Analysts tell @AFP the catastrophic economic and political consequences will deter Beijing from any overt boots-on-the ground intervention
AFP news agency
þVerified account @AFP
14h14 hours ago
Empty hotel rooms, struggling shops and even disruption at Disneyland: months of protests in Hong Kong have taken a major toll on the city's economy, with no end in sight
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EndGameWW3 Retweeted
Lucas Tomlinson
@LucasFoxNews
U.S. official confirms North Korea fired off two more short-range ballistic missiles for the sixth time in three weeks
9:53 PM · Aug 15, 2019
Lucas Tomlinson
@LucasFoxNews
U.S. official confirms North Korea fired off two more short-range ballistic missiles for the sixth time in three weeks
9:53 PM · Aug 15, 2019
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First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
JAPAN PM ABE, AFTER NORTH KOREA PROJECTILE LAUNCH, SAYS TO COORDINATE WITH U.S. AND OTHERS AND ENSURE SAFETY OF OUR CITIZENS
9:54 PM · Aug 15, 2019·
First Squawk
@FirstSquawk
JAPAN PM ABE, AFTER NORTH KOREA PROJECTILE LAUNCH, SAYS TO COORDINATE WITH U.S. AND OTHERS AND ENSURE SAFETY OF OUR CITIZENS
9:54 PM · Aug 15, 2019·