Tag - defense

 
 

DEFENSE

Ground Self-Defense Force members land using an amphibious vehicle on the shore of Tokunoshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture as part of large-scale joint drills with the U.S. Marine Corps in March 2023.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Feb 2, 2024
Japan starts 2024 with flurry of security deals
In January alone, Tokyo signed cooperation deals with at least four countries, strengthening and expanding its network of like-minded partners.
A news broadcast showing at a railway station in Seoul on Tuesday shows footage of a previous North Korean missile launch.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 2, 2024
North Korea fires missiles as Kim seeks ‘war preparation’ boost
Kim is likely using the tests to show he many ways to launch a strike, adding to the planning contingencies for the U.S. and its allies in the region.
Japan remains largely unresponsive as the U.S. moves toward the escalation of retaliatory strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen and other Iranian-supported militants in the Middle East.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 2, 2024
As the U.S. and Iran inch toward war, Tokyo bickers about political factions
Japan remains largely unresponsive as U.S. moves toward retaliatory strikes in the Middle East, and possibly war.
A farmer throws an egg aimed at police officers as farmers from Belgium and other European countries use their tractors to block the area outside the European Parliament, as they protest over price pressures, taxes and green regulation, in Brussels, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 2, 2024
How farmers, football and fatigue got Viktor Orban to cave on Ukraine
Angry farmers' noisy protest against burdensome EU regulations robbed Hungarian leader of a good night's sleep.
Commander in Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Valerii Zaluzhnyi. Ukraine's top general refused to step down Monday at a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is seeking to reinvigorate his military after Ukraine’s counteroffensive fizzled in the fall, according to people familiar with the discussions.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 2, 2024
After failed counteroffensive, Ukraine’s top general feuds with Zelenskyy
Valeriy Zaluzhnyi refused to step down Monday at a meeting with the Ukrainian president, leaving the pair at odds with U.S. military support in question.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban attends a European Union summit in Brussels on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 2, 2024
EU breaks deadlock on €50 billion for Ukraine after Orban caves
The deal is crucial for Ukraine, which has warned that its coffers are emptying as it grapples with a weapons shortage.
U.S. President Joe Biden has come under intense pressure from Republicans to take strong action, up to attacks directly on Iranian assets or territory.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 2, 2024
The world waits as Biden telegraphs attack on Iran-backed groups
The U.S. has accused Iran of funding groups that have attacked American bases and personnel in the region.
An F/A-18 fighter jet takes off from the deck of the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier during a three-day maritime exercise between the U.S. and Japan in the Philippine Sea, between Okinawa and Taiwan, on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2024
U.S. and Japan conduct joint naval drills
U.S. Rear Adm. Carlos Sardiello called the joint exercises "a great rehearsal opportunity for us."
A soldier stands in front of the grave sites of fallen soldiers in Kinmen, Taiwan, on Aug. 23, 2023. Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered his military to be ready to take Taiwan by 2027, though many analysts see that as an attempt to galvanize his military rather than a timeline for invasion.
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 1, 2024
How Washington is preparing for a Chinese invasion of Taiwan
It is looking at a key vulnerability — military logistics — and is setting up hubs in the Indo-Pacific region to ensure supplies are readily available.
A Ukrainian serviceman prepares shells to fire a L119 howitzer toward Russian troops from a position near Bakhmut in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Jan. 25.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 1, 2024
EU grapples with future of military aid for Ukraine
Most EU countries are ready to inject €5 billion into the military aid fund to help Kyiv but Germany wants changes to the fund first.
New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (left) speak with relatives of hostages taken by Hamas during the militant group’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, in Washington on Jan. 17. Gillibrand was one of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman's guests at discussions that took place in earlier this month.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 31, 2024
Saudis resume U.S. defense talks after pause from Gaza war
Crown prince met U.S. senators for the revival of talks of a pact that would have included a tie-up with Israel.
An F-16 fighter jet in Spangdahlem, Germany, on June 14, 2023
WORLD / Politics
Jan 31, 2024
U.S. F-16 fighter jet crashes off South Korea's west coast
The pilot ejected safely and was recovered, the U.S. military said, hailing close cooperation with South Korea during the rescue operation.
North Korea says that it launched Hwasal-2, a strategic cruise missile, in the West Sea of Korea on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 31, 2024
North Korea says it test-fired strategic cruise missile
Analysts warn these recently launched weapons could be destined for Russia's war in Ukraine.
At the heart of European Union thinking about economic security is fear that economic dependencies will be weaponized.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 30, 2024
EU’s dilemma: balancing national and economic security
At the heart of EU thinking about economic security is fear that economic dependencies will be weaponized.
A test-firing of the submarine-launched cruise missile "Pulhwasal-3-31" at an undisclosed location in North Korea on Sunday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 29, 2024
North Korea tested submarine-launched cruise missiles, state media says
Kim Jong Un supervised the test of the missiles, which were identical to the strategic cruise missiles the North said last week were under development.
A Ukrainian serviceman prepares shells to fire a howitzer toward Russian troops, at a position near Bakhmut in Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Jan 25.
WORLD
Jan 29, 2024
Ukraine says it found mass fraud in weapons procurement
Ukraine's Defense Minister was previously dismissed over corruption cases in the military.
A news broadcast shows a North Korean missile test at the main railway station in Seoul on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 28, 2024
North Korea fires multiple cruise missiles toward Sea of Japan
The latest launches come days after Pyongyang test-fired a new type of cruise missile and amid fears that leader Kim Jong Un could be girding for war.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov shakes hands with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar during a joint news conference in Moscow in December.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 28, 2024
India pivots away from Russian arms, but will retain strong ties
Russia supplied 65% of India's weapons purchases during the last two decades but the Ukraine war hastened New Delhi's impetus to diversify.
The U.S. government on Friday approved the sale of F-16 warplanes to Turkey, after Ankara ratified Sweden's NATO membership.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 27, 2024
Washington approves $23 billion sale of F-16 warplanes to Turkey
Ankara will get 40 new F-16s and upgrades to 79 of the jets in its existing fleet, the U.S. State Department said in a news release.
Unfortunately for Japan, the demographic cliff is approaching and the government will need more than minor course adjustments to fix its Self-Defense Forces' recruitment woes.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 26, 2024
Cosmetic changes won’t fix the SDF’s recruitment problem
Facing demographic decline, Japan explores innovative solutions to boost recruitment in the Self-Defense Forces.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?