Current Events in Asia-Pacific

From DefenseNews Taiwan Plans To Buy Mini-Submarines from United Arab Emirates: MP By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, TAIPEI Taiwan plans to buy up to 12 mini-submarines from the United Arab Emirates for 1.6 billion Taiwan dollars ($50.96 million US), an opposition legislator said May 10. Lin Yu-fang from the Kuomintang party said Deputy Defense Minister Chu Kai-sheng confirmed the plan to buy the twin-seat subs for the Marines during a closed meeting of parliament’s national defense committee. The United Evening News said the deal was part of Taiwan’s efforts to secure approval for President Chen Shui-bian’s stopover in Abu Dhabi last week on his way to Latin America. …

From Defense Aerospace Problems with Malaysian Scorpene (Source: Forecast International; issued February 15, 2010) KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia --- The Malaysian Navy reports that Malaysia's first Scorpene class submarine, delivered in September 2009, has developed problems that have left it unable to submerge. "The submarine can still dive but when we detected the defects, we were advised that it should not dive," Defense Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said. "The defects are still covered by warranty, so the supplier and contractor are repairing them," he added. This is the third fault found with the Scorpenes built for Malaysia. Malaysian Navy commander…

http://alert5.com/2012/09/25/breaking-varyag-is-named-liaoning-officially-inducts-into-plan/

From BBC News Page last updated at 09:54 GMT, Wednesday, 8 July 2009 10:54 UK Kim Jong-il appears at memorial North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has made a rare public appearance for commemorations of the 15th anniversary of his father's death. Observers said he looked gaunt and limped slightly while entering the crammed auditorium where the ceremony was held in the capital Pyongyang. It was the second major state event the 67-year-old has attended since suffering a suspected stroke in August. His poor health has led to concerns of a power struggle if he dies suddenly. Wednesday's memorial came after Pyongyang carried out UN-banned ballistic missile …

From Defense Aerospace China Could Potentially Defeat U.S. In Conflict Over Taiwan By Limiting Military Access, Rand Study Finds (Source: Rand Corporation; issued Mar 29, 2007) China could potentially defeat the United States in a future military conflict over Taiwan by using strategies designed to limit U.S. military access to the area, according to a report issued today by the RAND Corporation. The report examines scenarios in which China might employ what are known as “antiaccess” strategies – actions that would impede the deployment of U.S. forces into a combat zone, limit the locations from which American forces could operate, or compel the U.S. milita…

From DefenseNews Australia Cancels Seasprite Contract AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE Published: 4 Mar 22:13 EST (17:13 GMT) SYDNEY - Australia on March 5 cancelled a $1 billion (930 million U.S.) contract for U.S.-made Seasprite helicopters following a review of the troubled project. The Australian navy ordered 11 of the anti-submarine and anti-shipping helicopters in 1997 but technical problems meant they were never fully operational and the fleet was indefinitely grounded in 2006. Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon ordered a review of the project after the center-left Labor Party won office last November as part of a wider examination of a series of controversial …

I found this very interesting link while cruising around ConSimWorld. It's an open source analysis of Taiwan's SAM Networks with plenty of maps and other images. I though it might find a home in HG/Weblinks/Sources, but was not able to post it there. Either way, some interesting information. Taiwanese SAM's

From Aviation Week's ARES Blog China's "Global Hawk" in Taxi Tests Posted by Graham Warwick at 10/16/2008 11:47 AM CDT This video is doing the rounds on the internet. It appears to show taxi tests of China's Chengdu Aircraft (CAC) Xianglong (Soar Dragon) high-altitude. long-endurance UAV, a model of which was displayed at the Zuhai show in 2006. Video: YouTube link The UAV clearly resembles the Global Hawk in configuration, but the relatively small size of the engine (here seen without its full nacelle) has caused some comment. Data displayed at Zuhai showed the Xianglong to be 14.3m long, with a 25m span, a takeoff weight of 7,500kg with a payload of 650…

From ARES Canadian Def. Minister Slams NATO Posted by Paul McLeary at 2/17/2009 10:54 AM CST It looks like the United States isn’t the only NATO member getting frustrated with the way its allies are conducting themselves in Afghanistan. Canadian Defence Minister Peter MacKay—whose troops are in the thick of the fight in Kandahar, having lost 108 troops in the war thus far—recently called out the rest of the alliance, giving voice to his frustrations in a speech in London: "Afghanistan tests the ability of the alliance to execute its most basic mission in the 21st century and in a global context…If NATO cannot deter or defeat the real physical threat facin…

From DefenseNews Posted 01/02/08 11:04 Analyst: Kim Jong-Il Still Undecided on Giving up Nukes AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, SEOUL North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il has still not decided whether to give up his nuclear weapons despite a disarmament pledge under an international deal, a senior analyst said Jan. 2. Nam Sung-Wook, a North Korea expert at Korea University who advises South Korean President-elect Lee Myung-Bak, said he expects Pyongyang to stall on the disarmament deal after missing a year-end deadline. “National Defense Commission Chairman Kim Jong-Il seems not to have made a decision yet to abandon nuclear weapons,” Nam told SBS radio. Pyongyang will “drag…

From Vikramaditya prepares for sea trials [excerpt]

Moskva takes a shot line from the Petr Velikiy, somewhere in the Indian Ocean in May 2010.

A nice pic from the Pitch Black '08 exercise, a biennial exercise held in Australia that focuses on offensive counter air (OCA) and defensive counter air training. Participants included Australia, the U.S., Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, France, Germany, Canada, the United Kingdom and NATO. More here: http://www.defence.gov.au/pitchblack08/gal...0625b/index.htm

[excerpt] Beijing is revealing pictures of its indigenously built J-15 Flying Shark design that is intended to populate the decks of its first aircraft carrier. It comes equipped with large surface area wings (for extra lift at low speeds) that fold (for a small footprint on a crowded aircraft carrier deck), reinforced landing gear (for high, sink-rate landings), a tailhook (for arrested landing on short carrier decks) and a light blue paint scheme to signal its role in the People's Liberation Army’s Navy. Small canards on the nose also are to help lower the landing speed and the tail cone has been shortened to avoid ramp strikes. [/excerpt] Full story

From DefenseNews [excerpt]

From www.defence-aerospace.com (Source: Tenix Defence; issued Feb. 22, 2005) Tenix Defence began cutting steel for the NZ$500m Project Protector naval shipbuilding contract at its Williamstown, Melbourne shipyard today. NZ Secretary of Defence, Mr Graham Fortune, switched on computerised cutting equipment to begin manufacturing plates for two 85m, 1500 tonne Offshore Patrol Vessels for the Royal New Zealand Navy. The ships are being constructed as part of Royal New Zealand Navy seven-ship order, which includes four 55m Inshore Patrol Vessels and a 131m Multi-Role Vessel, as well as the Offshore Patrol Vessels. Tenix Defence CEO Robert Salteri said the ceremony at …

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

'Arms race' leaving our subs all at sea The Age

Singapore Navy Unveils Remote-Controlled Vessels By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, SINGAPORE DefenseNews Singapore on May 17 unveiled a fleet of remote-controlled vessels, which Defense Minister Teo Chee Hean said would give the city-state a high-tech boost in the battle against maritime piracy and terrorism. The two-ton Spartan Scout Unmanned Surface Vessels (USV), which can be operated from a main warship, can be individually configured to carry out a range of missions, including surveillance and anti-submarine warfare. Teo, who witnessed a “live” demonstration of the Spartan’s capabilities, said the remote-controlled vessels would strengthen Singapore’s anti-pi…

From Defense Aerospace Joint Strike Fighter (Source: Australian Department of Defence; issued Feb. 1, 2007) Australia says it may lease 24 F-18Es as a stop-gap solution pending delivery of its JSFs. Australia’s planned acquisition of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) remains on track. Initial Operational Capability of the first squadron of JSF is expected in 2014/2015. In December I signed on behalf of the Australian Government the JSF Production, Sustainment and Follow-on Development (PSFD) Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The full complement of JSF will be phased in over the next decade. Statements that JSF will be far less capable than initia…