News Report: Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi to Give National Address on Rakhine Crisis

Aung San Suu Kyi

Margaret Besheer

UNITED NATIONS — Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi is scheduled to give a highly anticipated national speech Tuesday addressing her country's crisis in Rakhine state, where ongoing violence has led about 400,000 ethnic Rohingya to flee to neighboring Bangladesh in recent weeks.

Rohingya militants attacked security forces in Myanmar — also known as Burma — in late August. Since then, analysts and rights workers say the Burmese military has carried out a brutal crackdown that has burned entire villages and killed fleeing women and children. 

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has come under strong international criticism for not speaking out more forcefully on the situation. She canceled her appearance at the United Nations General Assembly this week in part to address the ongoing crisis at home.

On the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Monday, diplomats from the United States, Britain and other countries concerned about the humanitarian crisis in Rakhine called for an end to the violence and for measures to relieve Rohingya refugees' suffering. U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley said it was a "productive meeting about the dire situation," but that no improvement has been seen on the ground in the area where displaced Rohingyas have been fleeing into Bangladesh.

News Story: S. Korea, U.S. to end joint military exercise

SEOUL, Aug. 31 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States will wrap up their combined defense drills on Thursday as scheduled amid renewed tensions on the peninsula, officials said.

The annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG) exercise, which started on Aug. 21, has involved more than 50,000 South Korea troops and around 17,500 American service members, including 3,000 from overseas bases.

Seven other member states of the United Nations Command -- Australia, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Britain -- also took part in it.

The command post practice has focused on war games based on the allies' Operational Plan 5015 for an emergency situation on the peninsula and joint deterrence strategies.

The North has protested the training with a series of provocations. It fired a ballistic missile on Tuesday that flew over Japan following the launch of three short-range rockets.

Read the full story at YonhapNews

News Story: S. Korea, U.S. in military drills amid N. Korea's threats

By Lee Chi-dong

SEOUL, Aug. 21 (Yonhap) -- The South Korean and U.S. militaries on Monday started their first major combined training since North Korea's test-firing of two long-range missiles and threat to shoot ballistic missiles toward Guam.

The Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG) exercise will run through next Thursday, focusing on a "tailored joint deterrence strategy" based on the Operational Plan 5015 of the Combined Forces Command, officials said.

In an unusual gesture, three top U.S. military commanders -- Pacific Command chief Adm. Harry Harris, Strategic Command head Gen. John Hyten and Missile Defense Agency Director Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves -- will observe the command-post exercise in person.

It involves tens of thousands of South Korean soldiers. In a press statement, the Ministry of National Defense did not specify the number. Ministry officials said the size is similar to that of last year, roughly 50,000.

The U.S. has reduced the number of its participating service members to 17,500 from 25,000, according to the Pentagon. The troops include some 3,000 coming from off-peninsula.

Seven other member states of the United Nations Command -- Australia, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Britain -- are also taking part in it.

There's no report of the U.S. dispatching such high-profile weapons as aircraft carriers, nuclear-powered submarines or strategic bombers to the training.

"UFG is computer simulated defensive exercise designed to enhance readiness, protect the region and maintain stability on the Korean peninsula," it said.

Officials from the two countries denied speculation that links the decrease in the number of U.S. participants to an effort to cool down tensions on the peninsula.

Read the full story at YonhapNews

News Story: S. Korea, U.S. begin military drills amid N. Korea's threats

SEOUL, Aug. 21 (Yonhap) -- The South Korean and U.S. militaries on Monday started their first major combined training since North Korea's test-firing of two long-range missiles and threat to shoot ballistic missiles toward Guam.

The Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG) exercise will run through next Thursday, focusing on a "tailored joint deterrence strategy" based on the Operational Plan 5015 of the Combined Forces Command, officials said.

In an unusual gesture, three top U.S. military commanders -- Pacific Command chief Adm. Harry Harris, Strategic Command head Gen. John Hyten and Missile Defense Agency Director Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves -- will observe the command-post exercise in person.

It involves tens of thousands of South Korean soldiers. In a press statement, the Ministry of National Defense did not specify the number. Ministry officials said the size is similar to that of last year, roughly 50,000.

The U.S. has reduced the number of its participating service members to 17,500 from 25,000, according to the Pentagon. The troops include some 3,000 coming from off-peninsula.

Seven other member states of the United Nations Command -- Australia, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Britain -- are also taking part in it.

Read the full story at YonhapNews

USA: Exercise to Strengthen Efforts in Defense of South Korea, Mattis Says

By Lisa Ferdinando 

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Aug. 20, 2017 — A joint U.S.-South Korean computer-simulated defensive exercise set to kick off tomorrow is meant to strengthen joint efforts for the defense of South Korea, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said today.

Ulchi Freedom Guardian, which runs to Aug. 31, is focusing on command post operations for the integration of efforts, Mattis told reporters traveling with him while en route to Jordan on the first leg of an overseas trip.

"This right now is an exercise to make certain that we're ready to defend South Korea and our allies over there," he said, adding that "because of the specific circumstance, we want it to be a command post-heavy, command post exercise."

The exercise is defensive in nature, Mattis said, noting that joint exercises have been going on for decades. The exercise operates transparently and is carefully planned out to prevent any misinterpretation on what is occurring, he said.

"It's calculated to not allow for miscalculation," he added. The number of troops involved is because of the focus of this year's exercise -- command and control -- and not in response to any factor from North Korea, he explained.

News Report: Pyongyang - US, South Korean Military Drills Pushing Peninsula 'Into Nuclear War'

Joint military exercises by the US and South Korea are only "adding fuel to the fire" on the Korean Peninsula, Pyongyang said on Sunday.

The Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercises set to start on Monday, plus the new sanctions on North Korea by the US and the UN, are making things worse instead of easing tensions on the peninsula, the Pyongyang organ Rodong Sinmun said in a Sunday editorial, Yonhap reports.

Indeed, the exercises are "reckless behavior driving the situation into the uncontrollable phase of a nuclear war," Rodong Sinmun warned.

"The joint exercise is the most explicit expression of hostility against us, and no one can guarantee that the exercise won't evolve into actual fighting," the paper warned. "If the United States is lost in a fantasy that war on the peninsula is at somebody else's door far away from them across the Pacific, it is far more mistaken than ever."

At least 75,000 troops will take part in the 10-day war games, a huge-scale, computer-simulated drill designed to help American and South Korean forces practice defending South Korea against an invasion, according to the US Defense Department. Washington insists that the drills are "defensive," but Pyongyang sees them, and military drills that practice taking out North Korean leadership, as provocations.

USA: DoD Announces Start of Exercise Ulchi Freedom Guardian

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2017 — South Korea and U.S. Combined Forces Command will hold the annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercise Aug. 21-31, defense officials announced today.

Ulchi Freedom Guardian is a computer-simulated defensive exercise designed to enhance readiness, protect the region and maintain stability on the Korean Peninsula, defense officials said. About 17,500 U.S. service members will participate, with about 3,000 coming from installations outside South Korea, the officials said.

Multinational Participation

U.S. forces will join military forces from major South Korean units representing all services, as well as South Korean government participants. In addition, United Nations Command forces from seven nations, including Australia, Canada, Columbia, Denmark, New Zealand, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, will participate in the exercise.

Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission observers will monitor the exercise to ensure it complies with the 1953 armistice agreement, defense officials said. Training exercises like Ulchi Freedom Guardian are carried out in the spirit of the Oct. 1, 1953, South Korean-U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty and in accordance with the armistice, the officials added.

"These exercises also highlight the longstanding military partnership, commitment and enduring friendship between the two nations, help to ensure peace and security on the peninsula, and reaffirm U.S. commitment to the alliance," the defense officials said.

US DoD

News Story: U.S, NATO Says Fight Against Daesh ‘Will Go On’

During a visit to Denmark on Tuesday, U.S Secretary of Defense James Mattis said in NATO’s fight against Daesh they have noticed the enemy in Afghanistan has lost about two thirds of its strength.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Danish Defense Minister Claus Hjort Frederiksen, after the two chaired a meeting within the coalition against Daesh, Mattis said: “In this past weekend, President (Ashraf) Ghani announced the death of the emir of ISIS Khorasan (Daesh Afghanistan), the ISIS group in Nangarhar there in eastern Afghanistan. In our anti-ISIS campaign we are dealing that group one more significant blow with the loss of their leader.

“This fight will go on, as the minister said. We continue to integrate our military and our non-military efforts. We have to remember that the battlefield that we are fighting on is also a humanitarian field where innocent people live right now, sometimes forced to stay on a battlefield by ISIS,” he said.

According to him, the troops were doing everything possible, “everything humanly possible, to limit the suffering and any casualties among those innocent people.”

He also said they were committed to working together in order to defeat Daesh and that Denmark had always been a stalwart ally of the U.S and the two nations have stood by each other in good and bad times.

Frederiksen meanwhile said that Denmark was considering sending in more soldier to Afghanistan.

Read the full story at TOLOnews

AUS: (Minister for Defence) Visit to Copenhagen for Counter-Daesh Defence Ministers' meeting

Minister for Defence, Senator the Hon Marise Payne, will travel to Copenhagen today for discussions on key Australian defence, security and strategic interests.

Minister Payne will attend a meeting of Defence Ministers from the Counter-Daesh (IS/ISIS/ISIL) coalition on 9 May 2017, to discuss the military campaigns in Iraq and Syria. Co-hosted by Danish Minister of Defence, Claus Hjort Frederiksen and United States Secretary of Defense, James Mattis, the meeting brings together Defence Ministers from coalition contributing countries.

The coalition will continue to support Iraq and its security forces so it is able to keep its people safe, maintain appropriate control over its territory and combat Daesh. This meeting will be an opportunity to further progress the coalition campaign against the terrorist group.

Whilst in Copenhagen, Minister Payne will meet with a number of her counterparts to discuss a range of shared defence and security issues.

Minister Payne will farewell the outgoing French Minister for Defence, Monsieur Jean-Yves Le Drian, who has been a key partner both in the fight against Daesh and strong cooperation in the Pacific, but also in developing the framework between the Australian and French Governments required for the developing of the Royal Australian Navy’s new submarine fleet.  

AUS DoD

News Story: Buy America, Again. Sigh

By COLIN CLARK

WASHINGTON: America cannot apply Buy America provisions on a widescale basis and buy the best weapons, no matter how much President Trump and his team may feel otherwise. It’s a simple as that.

All the competitors for the Air Force’s next-generation trainer, the T-X, include enormous amounts of foreign content, some including the aircraft. The biggest weapon system built for the US military, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, includes enormous amounts of foreign content. The F-35’s complex wiring bundles are done by a Dutch company. An Australian company builds vertical tailpieces. BAE, a British and American company, builds major portions of the plane. Check out the graphic below by BAE Systems to see what they do. There’s even a Memorandum of Understanding between Australia, Denmark, Italy, Holland, Norway, Turkey, the UK and the U.S.A about the production, sustainment, and follow-on development of the F-35 that guarantees certain rights to the program’s original partner countries.

As those examples make clear, the world is really too interconnected to put America First in defense trade without harming American interests. American defense supply chains are inextricably tied to Europe, Australia, Japan and South Korea. I don’t mention Canada because it is legally part of the US defense industrial base and is not subject to regulation. It was missed by many, but the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act added Australia and Britain to the US industrial base, so their companies also would not be subject to whatever the review finds. One source familiar with the issue says Britain and Australia were added to fend off the worst effects of a Buy America crackdown that was already being discussed.

Read the full story at Breaking Defense

Think Tank: Sea, air, land and space updates (18-Apr-2017)

Boeing WC-135 Constant Phoenix (Image: Wiki Commons)

Zoe Glasson, Sophie Qin, Madeleine Nyst and Patrick Kennedy

Sea State

Some worthy new analysis on the future of the US Navy surfaced last week. The crux of the analysis in Foreign Policy is that the three Congress-commissioned proposals for naval force structure—mentioned recently in this feature—‘are all overwhelmingly preoccupied with China’ and only tangentially address the threats posed by Russia and Iran. The author argues that Congress should be advised whether those proposals believe ‘a Navy built for the Spratly Islands will play just as well in the Black Sea.’ And, a Politico piece sets out ‘How Trump Can Build a 350-Ship Navy’. The writers acknowledge that growing the naval fleet will present both industrial and fiscal challenges, but nevertheless argue that taking bold actions now is the only way to meet President Trump’s goal of a highly-capable 350-ship Navy—by the end of his second term…

New research is challenging the traditional “bludgeoning” method of icebreaking, used by Russia in the Arctic to speed up melting and create clear shipping lanes. The research shows that using submarines and ‘flexural gravity-wave resonance’ would offer a faster and more elegant approach. Data demonstrates that, by using this method, a submarine could forge a passage through ice ten times faster than America’s heavy icebreaker, Polar Star. Read all about it in The Economist.

News Story: Denmark explores maritime, energy cooperation with Indonesia

Jakarta (VNA) - The Danish government is exploring cooperation with the provincial government of Indonesia’s South Sulawesi in the maritime and energy sector.

"We met with Deputy Governor of South Sulawesi, Agus Arifin Numang, to jointly promote cooperation in maritime affairs and renewable energy," said Danish Ambassador to Indonesia Casper Klynge.

Denmark is one of the world’s leading countries in the development of renewable energy.

South Sulawesi can be a pioneer in the development of this energy because the region has the potential to develop wind energy, according to the ambassador.

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

Think Tank: Sea, air, land and space updates (29-Nov-2016)

Christopher Cowan, Thulasi Wigneswaran, Elisabeth Buchan and Alexander Vipond

Sea State

The Indian Navy’s anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capability received a boost this past week, with the commissioning of the INS Chennai. Equipped with two ASW helicopters as well as sophisticated sonar systems, the INS Chennai is optimised for ASW missions but also has a potent anti-air capability and boasts a stealthy design. The INS Chennai is the third and last ship of the Indian Navy’s Kolkata-class guided missile destroyers; the first two—the INS Kolkata and the INS Kochi—were commissioned in 2014 and 2015 respectively.

According IHS Jane’s, the Royal Danish Navy is looking to acquire SM-2 missiles for its fleet of Iver Huitfeldt-class frigates and will make a decision on planned frigate ballistic missile defence upgrades in 2018. The Danish frigates are admired by many (including some members of the US Navy) for their flexibility; equipping them with the SM-2 would add a punch to their arsenal.

News Story: International defense show concludes in Karachi

ISLAMABAD, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- The 9th International Defense Exhibition and Seminar 2016 (IDEAS) concluded in Pakistani city Karachi on Friday. The four-day show witnessed bigger-than-ever participation by Chinese, Russian, and Turkish companies.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Chief of the Army Staff General Raheel Sharif inaugurated the event on Tuesday. The strategic show was organized by the Defense Export and Promotion Organization.

The theme for this year's exhibit was "Arms for Peace" which was spelled out by PM Sharif on the inaugural day.

Chinese, Turkish and Russian companies made their presence felt with an enormous participation. The number of Russian defense manufacturers increased to three this year including the state-controlled arms import and export company Russia Rosoboron export.

Nine Chinese companies including China Aerospace Long-March International, China National Aero-Technology Import and Export Corporation and Poly Technologies Inc. took part in the exhibition.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Story: Danish firm picked to provide communications for New Zealand army

SitaWare Edge (Image: Systematic)

WELLINGTON, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) is to buy a cutting-edge communications system for battlefield information sharing from Danish firm Systematic, Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee said Tuesday.

The government had approved the purchase of the SitaWare Battle Management System as well as integration consultancy at a cost of 11 million NZ dollars (8.07 million U.S. dollars) over three years, Brownlee said in a statement.

The SitaWare system would link headquarters, units, vehicles and individuals, allowing the army to get a full picture of the battlefield and share information quickly.

"The purchase is part of a program to digitize the army to provide modern command, communication, battle management and surveillance capabilities," Brownlee said.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Story: China trains UN military observers

BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A training course for UN international military observers organized by China's Ministry of National Defense (MND) started in Beijing Monday.

The course has enrolled 42 participants from 31 countries across five continents, including China, Australia, Denmark, Nigeria and Mexico.

The three-week course will be in English, covering topics such as peacekeeping activities, civilian protection, intercultural communication, investigation and negotiation.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Report: US, South Korea Launch Drills Despite Threats of Nuclear Strike From Pyongyang

While the North has warned of a drastic response, the United States and South Korea are moving forward with planned military drills on the peninsula.

On Monday, North Korea claimed that it was prepared to launch a preemptive nuclear strike to prevent the 12-day Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG) war games.

"The nuclear warmongers should bear in mind that if they show the slightest sign of aggression on the inviolable land, seas and air where the sovereignty of the DPRK is exercised, it would turn the stronghold of provocation into a heap of ashes through Korean-style preemptive nuclear strike," the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army (KPA) stated.

The warning appears to have done little to prevent the exercises from taking place. On Monday, roughly 25,000 US service members and some 50,000 South Korean forces kicked off the drills. The war games will also include participants from Australia, Italy, the Philippines, France, Denmark, Colombia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand.

USA: U.S., South Korea Begin Annual Large-Scale Exercises

By Terri Moon Cronk 

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, March 7, 2016 — U.S. and South Korean troops today began their annual Key Resolve and Foal Eagle exercises, which Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis said are conducted to maintain South Korea’s preparedness.

The exercises also will include troops from United Nations Command mission nations Australia, Canada, Denmark, France and Great Britain, Davis told reporters.

DoD officials said about 7,700 American and 10,000 South Korean troops will participate in the exercises.

“As you know, we continue to ask [North Korea] to refrain from provocative actions and statements that only serve to aggravate tensions,” Davis said. “We closely monitor activities [in North Korea], and we’re always ready to act in support of our Republic of Korea allies.”

USA: Experts Gather in Seoul for Second Annual MCM Symposium

By Commander, Naval Forces Korea, Public Affairs

Nov. 05, 2015 (NNS) -- Representatives from eight United Nations Command (UNC) Sending States (SS) joined mine warfare experts from the U.S. and Republic of Korea (ROK), for a week-long mine countermeasures symposium, Nov. 2-6.

The second annual UNC SS Naval Component Commander MCM symposium, hosted by Commander, Naval Forces Korea (CNFK), was designed to exchange expertise and enhance coordination and training in critical mine countermeasures capabilities.

"This symposium was very important," said ROK Rear Adm. Park, Ki-khung, the commander of Flotilla Five. "It allowed us to share mine warfare information and tactics among our sending state partners who share our commitment to defend and support the Korean peninsula."

Editorial: China's Navy Makes First-Ever Tour of Europe's Arctic States

Image: Flickr User - Simon YANG

By Shannon Tiezzi

With historic visits to Denmark, Finland, and Sweden, the PLAN is breaking new ground.

A Chinese naval fleet is making the rounds of Nordic countries this week. A trio of People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels – a missile destroyer, a missile frigate, and a replenishment ship – has visited Denmark, Finland, and Sweden in the past two weeks on goodwill visits. For each of those countries, it was the first time PLAN vessels had paid a port call.

According to China’s Ministry of Defense, PLAN Fleet 152 is on a “round-the-globe voyage” after wrapping up a four-month anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden. Denmark, Finland, and Sweden were the third, fourth, and fifth stops (respectively) for the fleet, led by the guided-missile destroyer Jinan. The first two stops were Sudan and Egypt.

IHS Jane’s Navy International provided further details on the three vessels, identifying them as “the Type 052C Luyang II-class guided-missile destroyer Jinan (152), the Type 054A Jiangkai II-class guided-missile frigate Yiyang (548), and the Type 903 Fuchi-class replenishment ship Qiandao Hu (886).” Finland’s YLE News pointed out that the Jinanand Yiyang are among the PLAN’s most modern ships, having been completed in late 2014. The Qiandao, meanwhile, was commissioned a decade earlier, in 2004.

Read the full story at The Diplomat