Current Events in Asia-Pacific

Useful scenario fodder to be found here ... From Jane's Atomic revelation - Defector reveals Myanmar's nuclear programme By Robert Kelley and Allison Puccioni 22 July 2010 Processing facility at Thabeikkyin: 11 May 2010. The area on the right appears dishevelled in appearance but has been expertly cleared and reinforced within the last 18 months. It is heavily secured with a perimeter fence and a road access point. There is a straight line stemming from a concrete-lined open water tank (red arrow, bottom left) through to a processing area into several buildings. These components indicate ore processing takes place. (2010 DigitalGlobe) That Myanmar has a …

Japan to host nuclear U.S. carrier The Navy says the move is unrelated to efforts to base such a vessel in Hawaii By Gregg K. Kakesako gkakesako@starbulletin.com The Pentagon's decision to locate a nuclear aircraft carrier in Japan for the first time is not related to the ongoing campaign to home-port one at Pearl Harbor, Navy officials said yesterday. Pacific Fleet spokesman Jon Yoshishige said no decision has been made on whether the Navy will base a nuclear aircraft carrier in Hawaii. The Navy announced yesterday that the USS Kitty Hawk -- one of its two remaining non-nuclear carriers -- will leave Yokosuka in 2008 and be decommissioned. It will be repla…

From the DEW Line [excerpt]

From Air Force Times F-22 fighters headed home from Okinawa By Eric Talmadge - The Associated Press Posted : Wednesday May 9, 2007 8:24:25 EDT TOKYO — A dozen F-22 stealth fighters are heading back to the U.S. after completing their first overseas mission, a four-month deployment to Okinawa aimed at showcasing the fighter’s capabilities and giving pilots a chance to train in a new setting. The fighters, which arrived on the southern Japan island of Okinawa in February, will fly out of Kadena Air Base early Thursday, the Air Force and Japan’s Foreign Ministry said in separate statements. The fighters are based at Langley Air Force Base, Va. The deployment…

From DefenseNews Posted 10/16/07 16:16 Thailand Picks Sweden’s Gripen for $1B Fighter Deal By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, BANGKOK Thailand will purchase 12 Swedish-made jet fighters over the next decade for 34.4 billion baht ($1 billion), the head of the air force said Oct. 17. The first lot of six JAS-39 Gripen fighters will be bought by 2011, with a second lot of six jets purchased by 2017, air force chief Chalit Phukphasuk told reporters. The Gripens, manufactured by Sweden’s Saab, will replace aging American F-5E fighters, which will be rotated out of service in 2011, he added. "It is necessary to purchase the new jet fighters to replace the retiring fighters, …

This Is Not The ICBM You Are Looking For; Detailed Analysis Of North Korean Missile (Breaking Defense)

From Center for a New American Security: Cooperation from Strength: The United States, China and the South China Sea (PDF) One excerpt that stood out to me:

Chinese Carrier's Purported Air Wing Deemed Plausible but Limited Details from the article:

China S-400 deal moves forward (Jane's)

Image Emerges Of What Could Be A Chinese Knock-Off Of Russia's Su-34 Fullback (Foxtrot Alpha)

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-05-31/australia-to-buy-second-hand-united-states-submarines-aukus/106742496?utm_source=abc_news_app&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_campaign=abc_news_app&utm_content=other

From DefenseNews [excerpt]

From Jane's India pays extra $102m for carrier conversion By Rahul Bedi 10 June 2009 India has paid Russia an additional USD102 million to refurbish the Kiev-class aircraft carrier Vikramaditya (ex- Admiral Gorshkov ), ahead of a deal to conclude the final cost of the ship's troubled refit. The latest instalment brings the cost of the work at the Sevmashpredpriyatiye shipyard to USD602 million so far, a spokesman for the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) told Jane's . Another MoD official said: " Gorshkov is by far the most problematic of the deals with Russia. But by 15 July we will work out the scope of the carrier's trial and its final cost after which…

I noticed this in 'The Australian' newspaper (november 24th). The link to the www article is: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/natio...f-1225802738569 The summary: OFF-the-shelf military purchases offer big savings and reduced risk for taxpayers compared with do-it-yourself, but come with a major trade-off -- a potential sacrifice of the nation's defence self-sufficiency, a federal government-backed security think tank warned yesterday. The article mentions some of our recent less than ideal R&D and design/ building efforts and compares them to some recent success with straight purchases such as USA battle tanks. Considering we don't even make our own washing …

China Points Finger At U.S. Over Asia-Pacific Tensions (Aviation Week/Reuters)

Not certain which catagory this should fit so move it you feel necessary oh worthy administrator. Looks like some littoral warfare of Sri Lanka. Civil War Looms After Sri Lanka Sea Battle Find article here COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - At least 50 rebels were killed and 17 Sri Lankan sailors missing after a sea battle Thursday instigated by the Tamil Tigers left the country on the brink of civil war. Tamil Tigers sank a navy patrol boat off the northern coast as it escorted a troop transport carrying 710 soldiers. In retaliation, the navy downed five rebel vessels and the air force launched airstrikes on guerrilla-held territory. The escalation in viole…

From Stratfor Chinese Geopolitics and the Significance of Tibet April 15, 2008 By George Friedman China is an island. We do not mean it is surrounded by water; we mean China is surrounded by territory that is difficult to traverse. Therefore, China is hard to invade; given its size and population, it is even harder to occupy. This also makes it hard for the Chinese to invade others; not utterly impossible, but quite difficult. Containing a fifth of the world’s population, China can wall itself off from the world, as it did prior to the United Kingdom’s forced entry in the 19th century and under Mao Zedong. All of this means China is a great power, but one that h…

From Ares [excerpt]

U.S. says Chinese warship nearly struck Navy cruiser (Navy Times) China paper: Cowpens harassed China fleet during drill (Navy Times) USS Cowpens: Why China forced a confrontation at sea with US Navy (Christian Science Monitor)

North Korea's 2017 Military Parade Was a Big Deal. Here Are the Major Takeaways (The Diplomat)