ALERT The Winds of War Blow in Korea and The Far East

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Global: Military-Info
@Global_Mil_Info
North Korea announced that they conducted a successful ground solid-fuel engine test. It is being developed for a new type of intermediate hypersonic missile.

It does seem like North Korea is increasing military related drills and exercises, especially before the upcoming South Korean elections in April.

KCNA also released footage of their recent MLRS salvo.
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1770267243215020401
View: https://twitter.com/Global_Mil_Info/status/1770267243215020401?s=20
 
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Ian Ellis
@ianellisjones

Second spike—China sends 36 PLA aircraft around Taiwan, following the largest violation of 2024 yesterday

China has intensified military activity in March, launching a series of recently reported exercises:

- PLA Navy & Air Force held combined drills with the Coast Guard in “several maritime regions, enhancing joint strike capabilities”
- PLAN destroyer detachment from Eastern Theater Command conducted “combat training” in the East China Sea
- PLAN frigate detachment from Eastern Theater Command conducted “day & night real combat training”
- PLAAF bombers (H-6K) & fighter jets carried out “far-sea training” in the Western Pacific
- A group of 3x PLAN amphibious landing ships held live-fire drills in the South China Sea
- PLAAF aviation brigade from Southern Theater Command conducted flight exercises
- Port drills including J-15 launches from aircraft carrier CNS Shandong (17) in Hainan
- 72nd Group Army transport company tests “heavy equipment transport drivers”
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1770986158773698762
View: https://twitter.com/ianellisjones/status/1770986158773698762?s=20
 
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Ian Ellis
@ianellisjones

South Korea’s military held large-scale reinforcement drills on border islands in the Yellow Sea—training to deploy forces in the event of a North Korean attack.

Marines from Northwestern Defense Command landed on Baengnyeong with tanks, helicopters, & amphibious assault vehicles. Army special forces conducted simultaneous maneuvers with attack & transport helicopters on both Baengnyeong & Yeonpyeong.

The islands near the Northern Limit Line (the de facto inter-Korean maritime border), serve as critical areas for intercepting any potential North Korean naval activities or attempted landings toward vital areas like the port city of Incheon. (NK News)
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1771353927314792931
View: https://twitter.com/ianellisjones/status/1771353927314792931?s=20
 
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Indo-Pacific News - Geo-Politics & Defense
@IndoPac_Info
Tension rises between #China and #Philippines over disputed reefs

China claims to have ‘thwarted’ Philippine marine expedition to strategic rocks in South China Sea.

China has protested against a marine research expedition launched by Filipino scientists in Sandy Cay, a group of rocks seen as strategically important for both countries within the Spratly islands in the South China Sea.

The event could potentially reignite one of the most contentious issues over sovereignty between Beijing and Manila in recent years.

“34 individuals from the Philippines ignored China’s warning and illegally landed on Tiexian Reef on Thursday,” Chinese coast guard spokesperson Gan Yu said in a statement.

Tiexan Reef is the Chinese name for Sandy Cay, a group of cays – or low reefs – situated just 2 nautical miles (3 kilometers) from Philippines-occupied Thitu island, known as Pag-asa island in Tagalog.

Chinese law enforcement officers “investigated and handled the case in accordance with the law,” Gan Yu said without giving further details.

“The Philippines’ actions infringe on China’s territorial sovereignty, violate the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, and undermine peace and stability in the South China Sea,” Gan said. “We urge the Philippines to immediately stop the infringement.”

The Chinese coast guard “will continue to carry out rights protection and law enforcement activities” in the area, the spokesman added.

Ray Powell, director of the SeaLight project at U.S. Stanford University, told Radio Free Asia that as of Friday morning, as many as 15 Chinese vessels including the 100-meter China Coast Guard (CCG) 5204 were seen crowding the area between Sandy Cay and Thitu island.

Marine research

The Philippines on Thursday said three groups of its scientists launched a marine research to study underwater reef biodiversity in the area and its current status.

The lead scientist, Jonathan Anticamara, was quoted in local media as telling a press conference that this is the first time such research is being conducted in all four parts of Sandy Cay.

“The research will have different components such as for environmental assessment, biochemical assessment, basic water parameters, and fish visual census, among others,” Anticamara was quoted as saying.

Initial findings on Sandy Cay 1 and 2 would be presented as soon as Friday.

Philippine coast guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela told the same press conference that it was the government who invited the scientists to carry out the research and authorities have dispatched four law enforcement vessels to accompany them in case Chinese vessels block them from Sandy Cay.

“Simple observations and measurements of their current status, which do not affect their natural state, do not affect the dispute overall since scientific activities are not a legal basis for either asserting or contesting sovereign claims,” said Jay Batongbacal, director of the University of the Philippines Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea.

However, Beijing views the scientific expedition differently.

The think tank South China Sea Probing Initiative called it a “provocation” and questioned whether there was a connection between the research and the visit to Manila by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on March 19.

China has repeatedly accused Washington of interfering in the South China Sea dispute and criticized the U.S.’s assistance to the Philippines.

Sovereignty rights

Sandy Cay is contested by China, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan.

Under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Sandy Cay is a rock that is permanently above water and therefore is entitled to a territorial sea of 12 nautical miles from its banks.

Whichever country controls Sandy Cay would have legal sovereignty rights over any other feature located within its territorial sea, such as Subi Reef - a Chinese artificial island that Beijing has fully militarized with missiles and an airstrip.

Legal experts say if China gains sovereignty over Sandy Cay, it would validate both its claim and occupation of Subi Reef, just 10 nautical miles away.

But Sandy Cay also lies within the territorial sea of Philippines-controlled Thitu island, the largest island of a municipality in the province of Palawan.

With both China and the Philippines vying to assert sovereignty over the area, the situation could become precarious.

Filipino fishermen accused Chinese coast guard and maritime militia vessels of maintaining a constant presence in the area, blocking their access to Sandy Cay.

“It is not Philippine activities which complicate the situation, but rather China’s overreaction and increasing need to establish absolute control over everything in the South China Sea to pursue to excessive and illegitimate claims,” Batongbacal from the Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea told RFA.

In 2016, a landmark arbitral tribunal brought by the Philippines ruled against all China’s claims in the South China Sea but Beijing has rejected the verdict, calling it “illegal, null and void.”

 
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scmp.com
China warns Philippines against ‘escalating situation’ in South China Sea
5–6 minutes

South China Sea: Beijing warns Philippines against ‘escalating situation’ after latest Second Thomas Shoal face-off

Beijing on Sunday warned Manila to stop provocations and not to “escalate the situation” after the latest encounter between the Chinese coastguard and a Philippine supply vessel near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea.

The fresh warnings from China’s defence ministry came after the Philippines accused its coastguard of blocking a supply boat off the Second Thomas Shoal and firing water cannons at it.

The hour-long incident on Saturday injured members of crew and caused “significant damage” to the vessel, the Philippine coastguard said.

The Philippine military also released footage of a white ship repeatedly dousing another vessel sailing alongside it with a water cannon. One clip showed two white ships simultaneously firing water at the same vessel.

China and Philippines blame each other for latest South China Sea collision

5 Mar 2024

[The two coastguard ships collided on Tuesday morning near Second Thomas Shoal. Photo: X/ MenchOsint]

Chinese defence ministry spokesman Wu Qian said China sternly warned the Philippines “to stop making any remarks that may intensify conflicts and escalate the situation, and stop all infringement and provocations”.

“If the Philippines repeatedly challenges China’s bottom line, China will continue to take resolute and decisive measures to firmly safeguard its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests,” Wu said.

The ministry echoed a Chinese coastguard statement that the Philippine convoy “forcibly intruded into the area despite the Chinese side’s repeated warnings and route controls”. The Chinese carried out “control, obstruction and eviction in accordance with law”, the statement added.

Wu said China’s coastguard had “resolutely foiled the Philippines’ provocative attempt” to deliver supplies to its warship grounded at the Renai Reef, the Chinese name for the shoal.

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The incident “was entirely caused by the Philippines’ provocation”, and China’s handling of the incident was “reasonable, legal, and professional”, he added.

The Philippines earlier described the manoeuvres undertaken by the Chinese side as “irresponsible and provocative”.

It was the second such encounter this month in the South China Sea, the strategic, resource-rich waterway over which Beijing makes vast territorial claims.

It follows several similar confrontations in the past year as Philippine vessels conducted resupply missions to the Second Thomas Shoal, where Manila has stationed a small number of troops on a warship it deliberately grounded in 1999 to reinforce sovereignty claims.

The shoal is part of the Spratly Islands – called Nansha in Chinese – where Manila and Beijing are among the rival claimants. The Philippines has outposts on nine reefs and islands in the Spratlys, including Second Thomas Shoal – which it calls Ayungin.

Wu said China was willing to properly resolve the dispute with the Philippines through dialogue and negotiation, but the Philippines had “betrayed its promise” and tried to reinforce its position by turning the warship into a permanent facility.

This “China will never sit idly by and ignore”, he said.

04:30

Philippines sets up ‘game changer’ monitoring station on island in disputed South China Sea

Philippines sets up ‘game changer’ monitoring station on island in disputed South China Sea

State broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) released a video clip of the encounter on social media on Saturday. The footage showed a person on a Philippine vessel waving what the post said was a “white flag”.

China’s actions were so “complete” and “decisive” that “the personnel on board the Philippine supply boat even waved a white flag”, an unnamed “expert” told the Global Times, a nationalist Chinese paper affiliated with the People’s Daily – the mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party.

Collin Koh, senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, said Beijing was trying to push a narrative of Philippine “surrender” as public emotions ran high.

“The [China] side would like to argue that the Filipinos were waving a ‘white flag’. The way I see it, it’s merely waving a piece of white fabric, perhaps a white shirt, to call on the CCG to desist,” Koh said, referring to the China Coast Guard.
 
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Indo-Pacific News - Geo-Politics & Defense
@IndoPac_Info
Tensions Simmer Between #SouthKorea and #China as Seoul Pivots to Global Role

South Korea's increasingly outspoken stands on issues including Taiwan and the South China Sea are raising tensions between Beijing and Seoul.

Most recently, South Korea pushed back at China's criticism of Taiwan's participation at the Summit for Democracy that wrapped up in Seoul on Wednesday. Taiwan's Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang spoke virtually on Monday, addressing the risks posed by cyberattacks to elections worldwide.

The event was held to "enhance democracy" and "not meant to target a particular country," South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk said at a news briefing on Tuesday. South Korea's one-China policy remains unchanged, Lim continued.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian had said Monday at a news conference that Beijing "firmly opposes the ROK [Republic of South Korea] inviting the Taiwan authorities" to the event.

At an earlier news briefing on March 12, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin urged South Korea to refrain from taking a position against China on the South China Sea and to "avoid adding unnecessary burden" to their bilateral relations.

He went on to say Seoul "has changed its prudent and neutral position that it had adhered to for years and alluded to or blamed China on the South China Sea issues on multiple occasions."

South Korea's Lim had said at a press briefing on March 7 that Seoul was "deeply concerned" about Chinese coast guard ships using water cannons against a Philippine vessel and that the action "heightens tensions" in the region.

Lim's remarks were welcomed in Taiwan, where Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jeff Liu told VOA via email this week that the ministry expresses "its appreciation and gratitude" to countries such as South Korea for sharing their concerns over the situation in the South China Sea.

He continued, Taiwan "supports freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea."

Regarding Taiwan's participation at the summit, Liu told VOA it has become "China's standard response" to oppose Taiwan whenever it is "active, prominent, acknowledged, or honored internationally."

China considers the self-governing island of Taiwan as its own territory.

Patrick Cronin, chair for Asia-Pacific Security at Hudson Institute, said China wants to remind Seoul not to become "too assertive" in its remarks, but that Beijing has learned to avoid imposing pressure "it knows will be counterproductive."

He recalled that when South Korea installed the U.S. Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD) in 2017, Beijing responded by suspending Chinese group tours to South Korea and closed South Korean Lotte supermarket chains in China.

Cronin pointed out that the Yoon administration in Seoul has declared its wish to play a more central role in the global struggle for freedom and value-based diplomacy.

In the preface to South Korea's National Security Strategy issued in June 2023, President Yoon Suk Yeol said, "As a global pivotal state ground in the spirit of freedom and solidarity, the Republic of Korea endeavors to actively address the rapidly evolving security environment."

Yoon has been more vocal about defending Taiwan and opposing Chinese assertive behavior in the South China Sea than was his predecessor, Moon Jae-in.

In an interview with Reuters ahead of an April 2023 state visit to Washington, Yoon expressed his opposition to attempts to use force to change the status quo between China and Taiwan. China's Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong said Yoon's remarks were “totally unacceptable” a few days later.

In November, before Yoon made a state visit to London, he emphasized the importance of maintaining a rules-based order in the South China Sea and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Those remarks appeared in an interview with The Telegraph, a British newspaper.

Daniel DePetris, a fellow at the Washington-based think tank Defense Priorities, said Seoul's verbal defense of the Philippines is "notable" not only because of what it says about its relations with China but what it says about smaller powers around China.

In an email to VOA on Tuesday, he said Seoul's remarks show that "small and mid-tier states along China's periphery are deepening their own security political relations to better balance Chinese power."

Robert Manning, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center's Reimagining U.S. Grand Strategy Project, told VOA on Wednesday via email that China's remarks urging Seoul to avoid adding unnecessary burden to their bilateral ties "appears a thinly veiled threat in response to the consistent pro-Western posture of the Yoon administration on not just the South China Sea, but global issues such as Ukraine."
 
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The Spectator Index
@spectatorindex
BREAKING: The Financial Times reports President Biden and Japan's PM Kishida will 'announce plans to restructure the US military command in Japan' and 'bolster their security ties to respond to what they view as a growing threat from China'.
1:57 PM · Mar 24, 2024
·
243K
Views
 
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Housecarl

On TB every waking moment
jward said:
The Spectator Index
@spectatorindex
BREAKING: The Financial Times reports President Biden and Japan's PM Kishida will 'announce plans to restructure the US military command in Japan' and 'bolster their security ties to respond to what they view as a growing threat from China'.
1:57 PM · Mar 24, 2024
·
243K
Views
Click to expand...

Hummm...."two key" or "roll their own"?.....
 
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Aditya Raj Kaul
@AdityaRajKaul
#BREAKING: First Visuals from the suicide bombing against Chinese Nationals in Besham City of Shangla District of Malakand, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan. Five Chinese Nationals (Engineers) killed in the attack as per initial details. Difficult for Pakistan to downplay the news.
 
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Housecarl

On TB every waking moment
Posted for fair use......

Russian veto brings an end to the UN panel that monitors North Korea nuclear sanctions​

By Edith M. Lederer | AP
March 28, 2024 at 4:17 p.m. EDT

UNITED NATIONS — A veto Thursday by Russia ended monitoring of U.N. sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear program, prompting Western accusations that Moscow is seeking to avoid scrutiny as it allegedly violates the sanctions to buy weapons from Pyongyang for its war in Ukraine.

Russia’s turnaround on the U.N. monitoring reflects how Moscow’s growing animosity with the U.S. and its Western allies since the start of the Ukraine war has made it difficult to reach consensus on even issues where there has been longstanding agreement.

The veto came during a vote on a U.N. Security Council resolution that would have extended the mandate of a panel of experts monitoring sanctions on North Korea for a year, but which will now halt its operation when its current mandate expires at the end of April.

The vote in the 15-member council, with 13 in favor, Russia against, and China abstaining, has no impact on the actual sanctions against North Korea, which remain in force.

Russia had never before tried to block the work of the panel of experts, which had been renewed annually by the U.N. Security Council for 14 years and reflected global opposition to North Korea’s expanding nuclear weapon program.

Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told the council before the vote that Western nations are trying to “strangle” North Korea and that sanctions are losing their “relevance” and “detached from reality” in preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons in the country.

He accused the panel of experts of “increasingly being reduced to playing into the hands of Western approaches, reprinting biased information and analyzing newspaper headlines and poor quality photos.” Therefore, he said, it is “essentially conceding its inability to come up with sober assessments of the status of the sanctions regime.”

But U.S. Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood called the panel’s work essential and accused Russia of attempting to silence its “independent objective investigations” because it “began reporting in the last year on Russia’s blatant violations of the U.N. Security Council resolutions.”

He warned that Russia’s veto will embolden North Korea to continue jeopardizing global security through development “of long-range ballistic missiles and sanctions evasion efforts.”

White House national security spokesman John Kirby condemned Russia’s veto as a “reckless action” that undermines sanctions imposed on North Korea, while warning against the deepening cooperation between North Korea and Russia, particularly as North Korea continues to supply Russia with weapons as it wages its war in Ukraine.

“The international community should resolutely uphold the global nonproliferation regime and support the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom and independence against Russia’s brutal aggression,” Kirby told reporters.

Britain’s U.N. Ambassador Barbara Woodward said Russia’s veto follows arms deals between Russia and North Korea in violation of U.N. sanctions, including “the transfer of ballistic missiles, which Russia has then used in its illegal invasion of Ukraine since the early part of this year.”

“This veto does not demonstrate concern for the North Korean people or the efficacy of sanctions,” she said. “It is about Russia gaining the freedom to evade and breach sanctions in pursuit of weapons to be used against Ukraine.”

“This panel, through its work to expose sanctions non-compliance, was an inconvenience for Russia,” Woodward said.

France’s U.N. Ambassador Nicolas de Riviere added that “North Korea has been providing Russia with military material in support of its aggression against Ukraine, in violation of many resolutions which Russia voted in favor of.”

Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador Dmitry Polyansky responded, calling these “unfounded insinuations” that “only strengthened our conviction that we took the right decision to not support the extension of the panel of experts.”

The Security Council imposed sanctions after North Korea’s first nuclear test explosion in 2006 and tightened them over the years in a total of 10 resolutions seeking — so far unsuccessfully — to cut funds and curb its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

The last sanctions resolution was adopted by the council in December 2017. China and Russia vetoed a U.S.-sponsored resolution in May 2022 that would have imposed new sanctions over a spate of intercontinental ballistic missile launches.

The Security Council established a committee to monitor sanctions and the mandate for its panel of experts to investigate violations had been renewed for 14 years until Thursday.

In its most recent report circulated last month, the panel of experts said it is investigating 58 suspected North Korean cyberattacks between 2017 and 2023 valued at approximately $3 billion, with the money reportedly being used to help fund its development of weapons of mass destruction.

The experts said North Korea continues to flout sanctions, including by further developing its nuclear weapons, and producing nuclear fissile materials — the weapons’ key ingredients. It also continues to import refined petroleum products in violation of council resolutions.
 
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Japan plans 2-week shelters on islands near Taiwan​

Central government to pay for facility construction for military emergency
https%3A%2F%2Fcms-image-bucket-production-ap-northeast-1-a7d2.s3.ap-northeast-1.amazonaws.com%2Fimages%2F8%2F5%2F1%2F1%2F47481158-4-eng-GB%2FCropped-171172492720240329N+Yonaguni.jpg

Yonaguni, near Taiwan, will receive evacuation facilities. (Photo by Shogo Kodama)
KANA BABA, Nikkei staff writerMarch 30, 2024 03:51 JST
TOKYO -- The Japanese government on Friday revealed guidelines for building shelters on southwestern Okinawa islands designed to protect citizens for roughly two weeks in the event of a military crisis involving Taiwan.
The central government will pay for designing and construction of emergency evacuation facilities in Okinawa prefecture's Sakishima islands.

Communities accessible only by aircraft or ship will qualify. They will have to draw up and publicize evacuation plans for all residents and hold joint drills with central and prefectural governments.
The central government has identified five Sakishima communities as meeting the requirements, and will begin negotiations soon.
The Cabinet Secretariat will help design the facilities while the Ministry of Defense will provide funding for construction in the cities of Ishigaki and Miyakojima as well as the town of Yonaguni, all of which host Self-Defense Forces bases.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency will pay for shelters in the town of Taketomi and the village of Tarama, which do not have any SDF bases.
Shelters will be constructed under new public buildings and designed to house evacuees for roughly two weeks.
They will have electricity and communications equipment, as well as a daily 3 liters of water and other suppliers per person. Each evacuee will have about 2 sq. meters of space. Exterior walls be made of more than 30 centimeters of reinforced concrete.

If a crisis breaks out, Japanese government plans to evacuate all residents of islands over a wide area before any military attack. But doing so will take time on outlying islands.
The shelters will thus be used by government staff overseeing evacuations as well as by evacuees waiting to leave the islands. In peacetime, the shelters will serve as meeting venues and parking lots.
The shelters will be made to protect against a combination of offensives from landing operations, guerilla or special forces units, ballistic missiles. and airstrikes. In prolonged attacks affecting a wide area, they will protect against shells and missile blasts.

A Cabinet Secretariat office responsible for responding to emergency situations has set specifications for the shelters. The situation response office took input from experts and referenced examples in Switzerland and elsewhere.
Some in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party have called for structures able to withstand nuclear strikes and electromagnetic pulses.
In January, the situation response office established a dedicated team to develop a plan for evacuating 120,000 residents from the Sakishima Islands to the Kyushu region as well as to Yamaguchi prefecture on the main Honshu island. The team will be expanded to 10 or so people in April.
Previously, the central government urged local authorities to designate temporary emergency shelters but provided no guidance on standards and no fiscal support.

Okinawa has no subway lines and few underground facilities. As of April 1, 2023, the prefecture had only eight locations designated as emergency underground shelters. Authorities in the Sakishima Islands, which are close to Taiwan, have petitioned the central government to provide support for shelters.
"If the country is going to fund shelters, it will need to properly assess the risks underlying the reasons for building them," said professor Mitsuru Fukuda of the College of Risk Management at Nihon University in Tokyo.
"It needs to be clearly communicated to the public that there's a strong likelihood that the lives of Sakishima Islands residents will be threatened by a Taiwan contingency or by a North Korean missile launch," Fukuda said.

asia.nikkei.com

Japan plans 2-week shelters on islands near Taiwan

Central government to pay for facility construction for military emergency
asia.nikkei.com asia.nikkei.com
 
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Financelot
@FinanceLancelot
8m

BREAKING: China issues travel advisory for the U.S. warning them to take safety precautions & to be prepared for “various unexpected situations”

Very strange...
 
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Collin Koh
@CollinSLKoh
“The U.S., Japan and the Philippines will launch joint naval patrols in the South China Sea later this year, according to a U.S. official and a foreign diplomat familiar with the planning.”


US, Japan, Philippines plan joint South China Sea naval patrols

The collective show of maritime force against China will be a centerpiece of next month’s trilateral summit in Washington.
U.S. Navy ships move in the South China Sea.

The South China Sea has become increasingly tense in recent years as China has used its military might to lay claim to waters internationally recognized as belonging to the Philippines. | Petty Officer 2nd Class Haydn Smith/DVIDS

By Phelim Kine, Alexander Ward and Lara Seligman

03/29/2024 02:15 PM EDT

The U.S., Japan and the Philippines will launch joint naval patrols in the South China Sea later this year, according to a U.S. official and a foreign diplomat familiar with the planning. It’s a major move to counter China in the region — and one likely to elicit a strong response from Beijing.

The three-country naval maneuvers are part of a package of initiatives that President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will unveil at their first-ever trilateral summit next month, the official and the diplomat said.

The White House is also expected to announce that it will “seriously consider” having Japan as a technological partner in elements of the “AUKUS” security partnership between the U.S., U.K. and Australia, according to a Defense Department official and another person familiar with the planning, both granted anonymity to speak ahead of an announcement.

The April 11 trilateral summit is seen as key to cementing efforts by the three countries to counter China’s regional influence. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement last week that the three leaders will discuss ways to “further peace and security in the Indo-Pacific,” but did not provide further details.

The South China Sea has become increasingly tense in recent years as China has used its military might to lay claim to waters internationally recognized as belonging to the Philippines — establishing bases and harassing Philippine Coast Guard units. There are rising concerns in Washington that Beijing and Manila could tip into open conflict. Beijing could also use those military outposts to support a blockade or invasion of Taiwan in coming years.

The joint naval patrols will mark the most robust assertion of the Biden administration’s Indo-Pacific Strategy hinged to rallying allies and partners to offset China’s growing economic, diplomatic and military footprint in the region.

While the U.S. and the Philippines have conducted joint patrols previously, this will be the first time Japan’s navy has joined with them in doing so — a show of force designed to show Beijing its belligerence won’t be tolerated. Japan’s involvement also reflects the Kishida government’s moves to make Tokyo a bigger player in regional security alongside the U.S. that began with his announcement in 2022 of a doubling of the country’s defense budget within five years.

The National Security Council, DOD and the Japanese embassy in Washington declined to comment. The Philippine embassy didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The joint operations also raise the risk of possible confrontations with Chinese forces operating in the region. Beijing has already ignored repeated warnings from the Biden administration that the U.S.-Philippine Mutual Defense Treaty obligates the U.S. to intervene if Philippine forces come under armed attack.

In recent months, Chinese vessels have on multiple occasions deployed water cannons against Philippine Coast Guard vessels, injuring Filipino sailors.

Chinese forces “will continue to take resolute steps to safeguard its territorial interests,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said Monday. Marcos warned on Thursday that his government would respond with a “countermeasure package” aimed to deter “aggressive and dangerous attacks” by China in the South China Sea.

It is not clear how soon the Japan-U.S.-Philippines patrols will start. The three militaries have been laying the groundwork for joint patrols already — they began holding joint maritime training exercises in the region in June.

Eric Bazail-Eimil and Paul McLeary contributed to this report.
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Filed under: Japan, National Security Council, Foreign Affairs,

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Yonhap News Agency
@YonhapNews

(URGENT) N.K. launch involves one IRBM fired from Pyongyang region: JCS


en.yna.co.kr
(LEAD) N. Korea fires intermediate-range ballistic missile into East Sea: JCS
Kim Eun-jung
2–3 minutes

(ATTN: CHANGES headline, lead; UPDATES throughout with latest details)
By Kim Eun-jung

SEOUL, April 2 (Yonhap) -- North Korea fired what appeared to be an intermediate-range missile into the East Sea on Tuesday, the South Korean military said, in its third ballistic missile launch of the year.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected a missile presumed to be intermediate-range class fired from the Pyongyang region at 6:53 a.m. but did not provide further details.

"Our military has heightened surveillance and alertness in preparation for additional launches. We are maintaining a full readiness posture while sharing information related to North Korean ballistic missile launches with U.S. and Japanese authorities," the JCS said in a text message to reporters.

Japan's defense ministry said the North Korean ballistic missile fell into waters outside Japan's exclusive economic zone.

The latest ballistic missile launch comes 15 days after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un guided firing drills involving super-large multiple rocket launchers in the country's western region.

The South Korean military said the missiles fired by the North's 600-millimeter multiple launch rocket system flew about 300 kilometers, which could put most parts of the South Korean territory within range. Pyongyang has claimed a tactical nuclear warhead could be mounted on such a weapon.

Tuesday's launch marks North Korea's third ballistic missile launch this year. On Jan. 14, the North test-fired a solid-fuel intermediate-range ballistic missile carrying a hypersonic warhead.

This photo, carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency on Jan. 15, 2024, shows the North's launch of a solid-fuel intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) carrying a hypersonic warhead the previous day. South Korea's military said it detected the launch from an area in or around Pyongyang at about 2:55 p.m., and the missile flew approximately 1,000 kilometers before splashing into the sea. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

This photo, carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency on Jan. 15, 2024, shows the North's launch of a solid-fuel intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) carrying a hypersonic warhead the previous day. South Korea's military said it detected the launch from an area in or around Pyongyang at about 2:55 p.m., and the missile flew approximately 1,000 kilometers before splashing into the sea. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

ejkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
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(LEAD) N. Korea fires intermediate-range ballistic missile into East Sea: JCS | Yonhap News Agency

(ATTN: CHANGES headline, lead; UPDATES throughout with latest details)By Kim Eun-jung SE...
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nknews.org
North Korea says Kim Jong Un led Hwasong-16B hypersonic IRBM test | NK News
Colin Zwirko
~1 minute

Successful solid-fuel missile test means nukes can be launched 'quickly, accurately and powerfully'

North Korea says Kim Jong Un led Hwasong-16B hypersonic IRBM test

Kim Jong Un inspects the new missile prior to launch on April 2 | Image: Rodong Sinmun (April 3, 2024)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a successful test of the new “Hwasong-16B” hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) on Tuesday, according to state media.

The Rodong Sinmun reported Wednesday that the inaugural test of the solid-fuel missile, equipped with a “newly-developed hypersonic gliding flight warhead,” demonstrated technology that can improve all the country’s nuclear missiles.
www.nknews.org

North Korea says Kim Jong Un led Hwasong-16B hypersonic IRBM test | NK News

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a successful test of the new “Hwasong-16B” hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) on Tuesday, according to state media. The Rodong Sinmun reported Wednesday that the inaugural test of the solid-fuel missile, equipped with a “newly-developed...
www.nknews.org www.nknews.org
 
H

Housecarl

On TB every waking moment
jward said:
nknews.org
North Korea says Kim Jong Un led Hwasong-16B hypersonic IRBM test | NK News
Colin Zwirko
~1 minute

Successful solid-fuel missile test means nukes can be launched 'quickly, accurately and powerfully'

North Korea says Kim Jong Un led Hwasong-16B hypersonic IRBM test

Kim Jong Un inspects the new missile prior to launch on April 2 | Image: Rodong Sinmun (April 3, 2024)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a successful test of the new “Hwasong-16B” hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) on Tuesday, according to state media.

The Rodong Sinmun reported Wednesday that the inaugural test of the solid-fuel missile, equipped with a “newly-developed hypersonic gliding flight warhead,” demonstrated technology that can improve all the country’s nuclear missiles.
www.nknews.org

North Korea says Kim Jong Un led Hwasong-16B hypersonic IRBM test | NK News

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a successful test of the new “Hwasong-16B” hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) on Tuesday, according to state media. The Rodong Sinmun reported Wednesday that the inaugural test of the solid-fuel missile, equipped with a “newly-developed...
www.nknews.org www.nknews.org
Click to expand...

Merde.....
 
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Derek J. Grossman
@DerekJGrossman

North Korea’s strategic partnership with Russia has been soaring, but it will remain inherently limited. Although their personal rapport is growing and they have a useful quid pro quo, other priorities will get in the way. I explain for @NikkeiAsia
.https://asia.nikkei.com/Opinion/Putin-s-embrace-of-Kim-Jong-Un-has-its-limits
 
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Ian Ellis
@ianellisjones
NEW: USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (CVN 73) deployment announced

The aircraft carrier will deploy to U.S. Southern Command over the next few months—circumnavigating South America with port visits in Brazil, Chile, & Peru—en route to the Indo-Pacific.
 
M

mecoastie

Veteran Member
jward said:
Ian Ellis
@ianellisjones
NEW: USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (CVN 73) deployment announced

The aircraft carrier will deploy to U.S. Southern Command over the next few months—circumnavigating South America with port visits in Brazil, Chile, & Peru—en route to the Indo-Pacific.
Click to expand...
This is a long planned deployment. She is replacing the Reagan as the forward deployed carrier in Japan. Reagan is going in for maintenance
 
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Ian Ellis
@ianellisjones

China launched joint combat patrols in the South China Sea today in response to Australia, Japan, Philippines, & U.S. drills

1712462580112.jpeg

China will conduct military “combat patrols” Sunday in the disputed South China Sea, a statement from the army said, the same day as joint drills by the Philippines, the United States, Japan and Australia.

“On April 7, the Southern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army organises joint naval and air combat patrols in the South China Sea,” said the statement.
insiderpaper.com

China to conduct drills Sunday in South China Sea: army

China will conduct military "combat patrols" Sunday in the disputed South China Sea, a statement from the army said, the same day as joint drills by the
insiderpaper.com insiderpaper.com
 
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mecoastie said:
This is a long planned deployment. She is replacing the Reagan as the forward deployed carrier in Japan. Reagan is going in for maintenance
Click to expand...
Ian Ellis
@ianellisjones
USS GEORGE WASHINGTON, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS PORTER (DDG 78), & Henry J. Kaiser-class replenishment oiler USNS JOHN LENTHALL (T-AO-189) are scheduled to conduct passing exercises & operations at sea with partner nation maritime forces.

U.S. Fleet Forces
@USFleetForces
The best #FlyNavy ⚓️

The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington recently conducted at sea operations in the Atlantic Ocean.

George Washington and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, USS Porter (DDG 78) are slated to deploy as part of Southern Seas 2024
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1776330763367047569
View: https://twitter.com/USFleetForces/status/1776330763367047569

Southern Seas 2024 will feature exchanges & provide the opportunity for partner nations to see aircraft carrier operations up close.

Engagements are planned with Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, & Uruguay, with port visits planned for Brazil, Chile, & Peru.
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1776427396968644616
View: https://twitter.com/ianellisjones/status/1776427396968644616
 
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(Yonhap Interview) U.S. Army Pacific commander says SM-6, Tomahawk missile launchers to be deployed in Indo-Pacific
Kim Eun-jung
5–6 minutes

By Kim Eun-jung

PYEONGTAEK, South Korea, April 7 (Yonhap) -- The United States will deploy ground-based launchers capable of firing SM-6 and Tomahawk missiles in the Indo-Pacific region soon to address rising security threats, the Army Pacific commander has said.

During his visit to South Korea, Gen. Charles Flynn said the U.S. Army has developed "long-range precision fires," listing the SM-6 interceptor and the maritime-strike Tomahawk as missiles that could be launched from the new launch system.

It marks his first confirmation of the types of weapons systems to be fielded in the region this year.

"That system will be deploying into the region soon. Where and when it's going to go, I'm not going to talk about that now," Flynn said during the interview with Yonhap News Agency at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, 60 kilometers south of Seoul, on Saturday.

Gen. Charles Flynn, the commanding general of U.S. Army Pacific, speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency at Vandal Training Center in Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, 60 kilometers south of Seoul, on April 6, 2024. (Yonhap)

Gen. Charles Flynn, the commanding general of U.S. Army Pacific, speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency at Vandal Training Center in Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, 60 kilometers south of Seoul, on April 6, 2024. (Yonhap)

The SM-6 is designed to intercept ballistic missiles with a range of over 240 km, and the Tomahawk is a subsonic cruise missile that can strike a target about 2,500 km away.

Experts widely speculate the system could be the ground-based Typhon system, which has been operated by the U.S. Army since last year. Guam, a U.S. territory in the Western Pacific Ocean, is considered a potential site for the system, according to Japanese media.

It marks a significant development as such a weapon system would be deployed in the region for the first time since the U.S. and the former Soviet Union signed a treaty in 1987 to abolish the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF).

After the U.S. withdrew from the INF treaty in 2019, citing alleged Russian violations, the U.S. Army has developed and deployed new intermediate-range missiles amid China's muscle-flexing in the Indo-Pacific region.

Flynn, who was on a three-nation Asia tour, including stops in Japan and Thailand, addressed concerns over North Korea's recent string of missile tests but showed confidence in the alliance's "integrated and layered missile defense system."

"Continued testing is concerning and, in many ways, destabilizing," he said. "I am confident, given our recent activities in the region, about layered missiles defense of what we have."

North Korea said Wednesday it test-fired a new hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile, called the Hwasongpho-16B, claiming all of its missiles are now solid-fuel and nuclear capable with warhead control capability.

A hypersonic missile is usually hard to intercept with existing missile defense shields as it can travel at five times the speed of sound, changes its flight paths and flies at low altitudes.

The U.S. Forces Korea operates low-tier PAC-3 missiles and the upper-tier Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptors. The U.S. missile shield is complemented by South Korea's homegrown surface-to-air missile (M-SAM) defense system, called Cheongung, against mid-tier threats.

Gen. Charles A. Flynn (R), commander of the U.S. Army Pacific, and Defense Minister Shin Won-sik pose for a photo after Flynn received a state medal from the South Korean government for his contributions to the bilateral alliance at the defense ministry's headquarters in central Seoul on April 4, 2024, in this photo provided by the defense ministry. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

Gen. Charles A. Flynn (R), commander of the U.S. Army Pacific, and Defense Minister Shin Won-sik pose for a photo after Flynn received a state medal from the South Korean government for his contributions to the bilateral alliance at the defense ministry's headquarters in central Seoul on April 4, 2024, in this photo provided by the defense ministry. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

The top commander of the U.S. Army's largest component also highlighted potential risks associated with North Korea's supplying of arms to Russia for its ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Seoul officials have raised concerns over Pyongyang advancing its weapons programs with the help of Moscow in return for supplying thousands of containers carrying munitions and other weapons since last year.

"More concerning, though, is the fact that North Korean capabilities are being used by the Russians in that laboratory on the battlefield," he said. "To me, that is an area that we are going to continue to watch."

Flynn lauded the South Korean Army for going beyond its territory to join multinational drills with the U.S. and its allies abroad, believing it sends "an important message" to the broader region amid rising security challenges posed by China.

"They are also projecting that alliance into the region at a time when we absolutely need our friends and allies across the region to be together so we can be a counterweight to some of the irresponsible and insidious behavior of China," he said.

The four-star general, whose father previously served in South Korea, said he feels grateful to see the progress that the South Korean military and Army have made over the decades and the long-standing alliance between the two countries.

"For two generations now, my father's generation and my generation, being able to bring those experiences and see the gains that have been made since the late '90s to now, it's pretty dramatic," Flynn said.

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(END)
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(Yonhap Interview) U.S. Army Pacific commander says SM-6, Tomahawk missile launchers to be deployed in Indo-Pacific | Yonhap News Agency

By Kim Eun-jung PYEONGTAEK, South Korea, April 7 (Yonhap) -- The United States will depl...
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Indo-Pacific News - Geo-Politics & Defense
@IndoPac_Info
#SouthChinaSea: Fears of 'military conflict' as #US issues stern warning to #China

Joe Biden will issue a warning to Beijing about their aggressive actions in the South China Sea, as fears over a military conflict between China and the Philippines brew.

The US President will express concern about the Philippines-occupied Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef in the South China Sea, at an upcoming summit between the US, the Philippines, and Japan later this week.

The reef has been claimed by many countries – including China, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The latest escalation in tensions between Beijing and Manila came on March 23, after three Filipino sailors were injured after the Chinese coastguard used a water cannon on the Sierra Madre, a rusting ship that has been lodged on the reef for 25 years.

Two senior officials have stated that Biden will stress that the US-Philippines Mutual Defence Treaty applies to the ship, which the Philippines have purposely marooned to reinforce its claim in the shoal.

“China is underestimating the potential for escalation. We’ve tried to make that clear in a series of conversations . . . that our mutual defence treaty covers Philippine sailors and ships and by extension . . . the Sierra Madre,” one official told the Financial Times.

“China needs to examine its tactics or risk some serious blowback.”

Jose Manuel Romualdez, Philippine ambassador to the US, said both countries hoped that the treaty would never have to be invoked, but cautioned that “we will not hesitate to do so” if justified.

The other official told the publication that China may believe that their actions may not warrant US interference.

Bonnie Glaser, a China expert at the German Marshall Fund, stressed the situation in the shoal could lead to an escalation of tensions between the US and China.

She said: “If Beijing directly attacks Philippine ships or armed forces, Washington would be compelled to respond. A major political crisis between the US and China would ensue, and, at worst, a wider military conflict.”

Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said today that they will continue to maintain a dialogue with China in order to not flare up tensions further.

He added he hopes the newly concluded joint maritime activity with Japan, Australia, and the United States will reduce incidents in the waterway.


https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1777285182279864522
View: https://twitter.com/IndoPac_Info/status/1777285182279864522
 
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