Current Events in Asia-Pacific

London August 18, 2006 IT'S not every day that a foreign diplomat publicly tells the US to "shut up and keep quiet", but China's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva did just that during a BBC interview on the subject of Beijing's growing military spending. Interviewed for a BBC radio program yesterday, Sha Zukang also said China would sacrifice its own people's lives if any nation supported a declaration of independence by Taiwan. Responding to jitters in the Bush Administration about Beijing's rising military budget, Mr Sha said the US itself accounted for half of the world's military spending. "The China population is six times or five times that…

From Aviation Week [excerpt]

US ‘Steadily Retreating’ In South China Sea Dispute (Breaking Defense) Ouch.

Commercial photos show Chinese nuke buildup By Bill Gertz THE WASHINGTON TIMES February 16, 2006 Commercial satellite photos made public recently provide a new look at China's nuclear forces and bases images that include the first view of a secret underwater submarine tunnel. A Pentagon official said the photograph of the tunnel entrance reveals for the first time a key element of China's hidden military buildup. Similar but more detailed intelligence photos of the entrance are highly classified within the U.S. government, the official said. "The Chinese have a whole network of secret facilities that the U.S. government understands but cannot m…

China confirms hypersonic vehicle test (Jane's)

Australias Submarine Folly (The Diplomat, Flashpoints blog) Link to the Australian Defence White Paper 2013.

Ending Pakistan’s Export of Jihadists: The Key to Win in Afghanistan (The Globalist)

From DefenseNews Japan Plans First Spy Plane to Watch North Korea By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, TOKYO Japan plans to introduce unmanned spy aircraft to watch military bases in North Korea or other countries, letting Tokyo gather such intelligence on its own for the first time, a report said July 26. The Defense Agency will tighten its watch on North Korea, which fired a missile over Japan in 1998, regardless of the outcome of multilateral talks that began July 26 in China to end Pyongyang’s nuclear drive, the Tokyo Shimbun said. The agency will seek funds on the project for the fiscal year beginning in April 2006, the newspaper said, without citing sources. …

Wall Street Journal April 18, 2007 Pg. 9 Singapore Prime Minister Urges U.S. To Bolster Its Ties In Asia By Yaroslav Trofimov and Paul Beckett SINGAPORE -- Distracted by problems elsewhere, the U.S. isn't paying enough attention to Southeast Asia, losing its regional influence to a rising China and potentially weakening antiterrorism cooperation, Singapore's prime minister cautioned. In Southeast Asia, the U.S. has "many friends and many strategic interests," Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong told The Wall Street Journal ahead of his talks with President Bush, scheduled for early next month in Washington. "It's important for us to continue to nourish this,…

Indias New Carrier is Operational (USNI News)

GLOBAL INSECURITY Private navies combat Malacca Strait pirates Waterway now so dangerous for shipping, Lloyd's classifies major seaway as warzone © 2005 WorldNetDaily.com Ship captains navigating the Malacca Strait no longer have to depend on the slow response of government – or sheer luck – to safely pass through the pirate- and terrorist-infested waters since private navies have begun providing escort services for ships through the strategic seaway. The Strait, passageway to a third of the world's crude oil, has long been treacherous, with gangs armed with machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and other modern weapons ready to board, kill crews, stea…

From Defense Aerospace More Reason to Release the Air Combat Capability Review (Source: Australian Liberal Party (Opposition); issued Sept. 12, 2008) Lockheed’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has flown into a storm of controversy in Australia and the Netherlands, amid reports it was comprehensively defeated by Sukhoi Su-35s in a wargame. The dangers of having an indecisive Defence Minister became more apparent last night when Mr Fitzgibbon validated the flimsiest of rumours about the Joint Strike Fighter. Instead of jumping at shadows, Mr Fitzgibbon should immediately release the Air Combat Capability Review so we can see what Australia’s defence experts reall…

From Defence Aerospace Boeing Rolls Out First F-15K for Republic of Korea Air Force (Source: Boeing Co.; issued March 16, 2005) ST. LOUIS --- The Boeing Company revealed the first F-15K Strike Eagle fighter aircraft for the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) today at the Boeing site in St. Louis, Mo. The aircraft unveiled at the event completed its first flight March 3 and is the first of 40 F-15Ks being built for the ROKAF. The ROKAF is investing $4.2 billion for the 40 F-15Ks and deliveries will begin this year and end in August 2008. “Boeing is thankful we can produce this world-class fighter for the Republic of Korea,” said Jim Albaugh, Boeing I…

From Flight Global DATE: 03/06/09 SOURCE: Flight International Malaysia to phase out troublesome MiG-29 fighters By Siva Govindasamy Malaysia has announced plans to phase out its RSK MiG-29N fighters over the next few years, with the fleet having been plagued by problems since it bought the type in the early 1990s. "I have decided that from next month, the aircraft will be phased out and we should find a way to sell them to certain companies or countries approved by the United Nations," Malaysia's new defence minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told the official Bernama news agency. The minister did not say what would replace the MiG-29s, which are operated …

Johnston says AWD programme in 'deep, deep trouble' (Jane's)

France's DCNS Wins Australia's $50 Billion Future Submarine Contract (The Diplomat)

North Korea fires missile over Japan in aggressive test (DefenseNews)

The Drudge Report REPORT: CHINA, RUSSIA TO 'REHEARSE INVASION OF TAIWAN' Thu Mar 17 2005 11:02:09 ET MOSCOW, March 17. (RIA Novosti)-Yesterday, Chief of the Russian General Staff Yury Baluyevsky left for China to settle a scandal over the first Russian-Chinese military exercise, Commonwealth-2005, which is due to be held this fall off the Yellow Sea coast, writes Kommersant. The initial plans were to practice operational teamwork in combating terrorism during the exercise. However, Beijing, skillfully changing the format of the exercise, has tried to re-orient the two countries' armies to practicing an invasion of Taiwan. The choice of where the exerci…

From Air Force Magazine, December 2011 issue [excerpt]