News Story: No immediate impact on Japan security from N. Korea missiles - gov't

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan does not view North Korea's launch Thursday morning of surface-to-ship missiles into the Sea of Japan as having an immediate impact on national security, the country's foreign minister said.

Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters there is nothing to suggest that Thursday's missiles reached Japan's exclusive economic zone.

Japan will work with the United States and South Korea to gather information and analyze the launch, he added.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said what appeared to be surface-to-ship cruise missiles were fired from the vicinity of North Korea's eastern coastal city of Wonsan and travelled about 200 kilometers before falling into the sea.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Report: Japan Pushed World Leaders to Warn China Over Maritime Expansion

Ralph Jennings

TAIPEI — On paper, all of the world’s seven richest nations warned last month against militarization of the contested South China Sea, where Beijing is building up small islets for combat aircraft and radar systems.

But analysts believe it was Japan that pushed the Group of Seven nations for the warning as it vies with China for political influence around Asia.

Japan is concerned

“I think in recent times Japan has been trying to make use of various regional and international forums to, for lack of a better word, publicize China’s military expansion and its associated activities,” said Collin Koh, maritime security research fellow at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. “So I think in this context using the G7 is a particularly timely platform.”

The G7, which includes Japan as well as the United States and several Western European countries, expressed “concern” about the East and South China Seas in a leadership communique from the May 26-27 event in Italy. The G7 is “strongly opposed to any unilateral actions that could increase tensions," it said, and "we urge all parties to pursue demilitarization of disputed features.”

News Story: G7 seeks demilitarization of ‘disputed’ sea features

By Pia Lee-Brago

MANILA, Philippines - The Group of Seven (G7) or the seven richest countries in the world have issued a joint communiqué expressing concern about the situation in the East and South China Seas and calling for a demilitarization of “disputed features.”

The joint statement was released following the May 26 and 27 meetings in Taormina, Italy attended by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and US President Donald Trump.

The leaders strongly opposed any unilateral action that could increase tensions.

They expressed their “commitment to maintaining a rules-based order in the maritime domain based on the principles of international law.”

The joint communiqué voiced support for the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and for the peaceful settlement of maritime disputes “through diplomatic and legal means, including arbitration.”

China was “strongly dissatisfied” with the mention of the East and South China Sea issues in the G7 statement as Beijing called on G7 allies to stop making “irresponsible” remarks.

Read the full story at PhilStar

News Report: How US Used G7 Summit to 'Pressure China on Its Sore Spots'

On Saturday, G7 countries wrapped up their summit in Taormina with a joint communique, expressing concern about the situation in the East China and South China Seas. Russian political analysts told Sputnik that the US and Japan used the gathering to intensify their pressure on Beijing instead of reaching consensus on global trade and climate.

The annual G7 summit, which wrapped up on Saturday in the Sicilian city of Taormina, Italy, ended with a joint communique in which the group stated it is committed to "maintaining a rules-based order in the maritime domain based on the principles of international law."

The statement expressed concerns about the situation in the East China Sea and South China Sea.

On Sunday, China strongly denounced the result of the two-day gathering, accusing it of interfering in the East China Sea and South China Sea disputes in the "guise of international law."

China's position on the East China Sea and South China Sea issues is clear and consistent, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said in a statement.

News Story: Unlike ASEAN, G7 leaders send strong statement on South China Sea

By Patricia Lourdes Viray

MANILA, Philippines — Contrary to their Southeast Asian counterparts, the leaders of the Group of Seven advanced economies reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining a rules-based order in the East and South China Seas.

The G7—composed of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States—urged all parties to pursue demilitarization of disputed features in the region.

"We reaffirm our commitment to maintaining a rules-based order in the maritime domain based on the principles of international law, including as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and to the peaceful settlement of maritime disputes through diplomatic and legal means, including arbitration," the G7 leaders said in a joint communique following their meeting in Taormina, Italy last Saturday.

The leaders were also strongly opposed to any unilateral actions that could increase tensions in the region.

This statement from the G7 leaders appears to be stronger than the Chairman's Statement of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations issued on April 29.

Read the full story at PhilStar

News Story: N. Korea fires missile to Japan EEZ after G-7 vow to stem provocations

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- North Korea fired a ballistic missile Monday that is believed to have fallen into Japan's exclusive economic zone in the Sea of Japan, in the latest in a series of weapons tests in defiance of the international community, the Japanese government said.

Pyongyang's missile launch comes days after the Group of Seven leaders agreed in their weekend summit meeting in Italy to press the country to abandon its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile development.

"We cannot tolerate North Korea's repeated provocations in defiance of warnings from the international community," Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters in his office.

Noting that North Korea is a "matter of high priority in the international community as agreed in the G-7 meeting," Abe expressed readiness to closely cooperate with the United States, South Korea and others to curb the country's provocations.

It would be the fourth time, if confirmed, that a North Korean ballistic missile has fallen into Japan's EEZ.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a press conference the launch is also a "clear violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions" prohibiting North Korea from such activities.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Report: Shinzo Abe - Japan to Take Concrete Actions With US to Suppress North Korea

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said following the latest missile test by North Korea that Japan will join forces with the United States to supprees Pyongyang.

TOKYO(Sputnik) — Japan will take concrete actions jointly with the United States in order to respond to North Korea’s repeated provocations as the latter has fired a missile earlier in the day, which fell in Japan’s exclusive economic zone, Abe said Monday.

Earlier in day, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said at press conference that Tokyo expresses strong protest to Pyongyang as the latter has fired a missile from the North Korean city of Wonsan on Monday’s morning at 05:40 am local time (21:10 GMT on Sunday). The official said that the missile launch is a violation of UN Security Council’s resolutions.

“North Korea ignores numerous warning of global community, continuing to do provocative actions. It is unacceptable. As it was said at the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is one of the most crucial in the world. In order to suppress North Korea we will take actions jointly with the United States. We will also cooperate with the global community and we will do everything to ensure security for the nation,” Abe told reporters.

Tensions around North Korea's activities with both nuclear and non-nuclear weapons have drastically escalated in recent months, after Pyongyang conducted a number of nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches in violation of the UN Security Council's resolutions.

This story first appeared on Sputnik & is reposted here with permission.

News Report: Can Japan Convince Russia, China to Impose More Sanctions on N Korea?

Recent media reports suggest that Japan intends to convince the UN Security Council to adopt new sanctions against North Korea and is waiting for support from Russia and China. However Tokyo is aware that Moscow and Beijing, unlike the US, advocate a diplomatic dialogue with Pyongyang.

Japan has reportedly started preparing a package of its own sanctions against its neighbor after Pyongyang’s launch of ballistic missiles, in the knowledge that it will be unlikely to convince Russia and China to support further sanctions.

Tokyo however has already won the support of the US on the issue. On Friday, US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed to step up punitive measures against Pyongyang for its continued missile tests and nuclear program.

Meeting before the G7 summit in Italy that finished on Saturday, Trump and Abe dedicated most of their discussions to the issue, the White House said in a statement.

"President Trump and Prime Minister Abe agreed their teams would cooperate to enhance sanctions on North Korea, including by identifying and sanctioning entities that support North Korea's ballistic missile and nuclear programs," the statement said.

"They also agreed to further strengthen the alliance between the United States and Japan, to further each country's capability to deter and defend against threats from North Korea."

News Report: Beijing Expresses 'Strong Protest' Over G7 Discussing South China Sea Dispute

Beijing strongly opposes the statement, made by the countries of the G7 summit in Italy, where the states expressed concern over the ongoing disputes in regards to the South China and East China seas, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said Sunday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Asia-Pacific region faces several territorial disputes in South China and East China seas, involving China, Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines. According to the G7 communique, the leaders expressed their opposition toward “any unilateral actions that could increase tensions.” The leaders urged all parties to conflict to start the demilitarization process.

“We noticed this situation. We express strong protest in relation to the G7 summit’s communique, where the issue of South China and East China seas was discussed under the pretext of the international law,” the spokesman said.

News Report: 3rd US Naval Strike Force Deployed to Deter North Korea

The United States is sending a third aircraft carrier strike force to the western Pacific region in an apparent warning to North Korea to deter its ballistic missile and nuclear programs, two sources have told VOA.

The USS Nimitz, one of the world’s largest warships, will join two other supercarriers, the USS Carl Vinson and the USS Ronald Reagan, in the western Pacific, the sources told VOA's Steve Herman.

Significant: @USNavy deploying #CVN68 (USS Nimitz) to Western Pacific, meaning there'll soon be three carrier-led strike forces in region.

— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) May 27, 2017

The U.S. military has rarely simultaneously deployed three aircraft carriers to the same region.

News Story: China denounces G7 interference in its sea issues

BEIJING, May 28 (Xinhua) -- China strongly denounced the communique released after a G7 summit, saying it interfered in the East China Sea and South China Sea issues in the guise of international law, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said early Sunday.

The 2017 G7 summit concluded with a joint communique Saturday, saying the G7 members are committed to "maintaining a rules-based order in the maritime domain based on the principles of international law", and expressing concerns about the situation in the East China Sea and South China Sea.

China's position on the East China Sea and South China Sea issues is clear and consistent, said Lu.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Story: U.N. chief backs Japan-S. Korea 'comfort women' deal

TAORMINA, Italy (Kyodo) -- U.N. Secretary General Antonia Guterres told Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Saturday he supports the deal between Tokyo and Seoul over Korean women forced to work in Japan's wartime military brothels, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.

The deal, struck in 2015 to "finally and irreversibly" settle the long-standing dispute over "comfort women," has come under question since Moon Jae In, who has called for renegotiating it, was elected South Korean president earlier this month.

In the talks held on the sidelines of the Group of Seven industrialized nations' summit in the Italian city of Taormina, Abe stressed the importance of complying with the agreement, while Guterres said he supports and welcomes the deal, according to the ministry.

The backing by Guterres also came despite a U.N. Committee against Torture report on May 12 calling on Japan and South Korea to modify the deal so that it ensures "the surviving victims of sexual slavery during World War II are provided with redress." Japan has rebutted the report.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: Abe, Trump agree N. Korea warrants pressure, not dialogue

Japanese Prime Minister Abe and U.S. President Trump (File Photo)

TAORMINA, Italy (Kyodo) -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump affirmed Friday in Italy that pressure, not dialogue, is needed now in tackling the threat from North Korea.

The leaders agreed in their talks in Taormina just ahead of the Group of Seven industrialized nations' summit, to work with all countries in persuading North Korea to denuclearize, and that China, Pyongyang's primary diplomatic and economic benefactor, has an important role to play.

The agreement to prioritize pressure over dialogue was reached despite Trump saying earlier this month that he would be "honored" to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un "under the right circumstances."

Abe has stressed that direct dialogue with North Korea should not be resumed while Pyongyang continues provocative actions including testing ballistic missiles, the latest just last Sunday.

Trump told Abe that the issues presented by North Korea, which continues to develop nuclear weapons as well, are "a world problem and it will be solved at some point."

"It will be solved, you can bet on that," Trump said at the outset of the talks, the portion open to the press.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: Japan, Malta leaders affirm importance of rule of law at sea

VALLETTA (Kyodo) -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Maltese counterpart Joseph Muscat affirmed on Saturday the importance of the rule of law at sea in a meeting in Malta amid concerns about the situation in the East and South China seas.

The affirmation in their talks held during the first visit by a sitting Japanese premier to the Mediterranean island nation comes as Japan and some other Asian countries remain concerned about China's expansionary activities in the East and South China seas.

China has made claims to much of the South China Sea, as well as to the uninhabited Senkaku Islands administered by Japan in the East China Sea.

In Malta, the International Maritime Law Institute operates under the United Nations' International Maritime Organization to train specialists in maritime law.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: U.S Joint Chiefs Of Staff Chair Rallying For More Troops

General Joseph Dunford (Image: Wiki Commons)

By Mir Aqa

General Joseph Dunford, chairman the Joint Chiefs of Staffs of the U.S army, this week rallied for more troops to Afghanistan, warning that terrorist groups in Afghanistan “have the desire” to attack the West.

On the issue of a possible increase in U.S troops in Afghanistan, the top U.S general said that such a move would help prevent terrorists from executing their plans.

Dunford made the remarks during a speech at Saint Michael's College in Colchester in Vermont in the U.S this past weekend.  

"That's where the attackers planned and executed the attack on 9/11, and there's about 18 or 19 extremist groups in that region who have indicated they have the desire - if not currently the capability - to attack the west, and so our job is to keep pressure on them and preclude that from happening," he said.

Read the full story at TOLOnews

News Story: No Decision Yet By Trump On Additional Troops - McMaster

Addressing a White House press briefing on Saturday night, the U.S President’s National Security Advisor H.R McMaster said that Donald Trump has not yet made a decision regarding the deployment of additional troops to Afghanistan.

McMaster said that Trump will have the opportunity to hear from allies during his upcoming foreign trip, which will include stops at the NATO summit and the gathering of G7 nations.

On the issue of additional troops, McMaster said: “The president has not made a decision yet on a course of action. What we have done which is what we have done in many cases on the North Korea problems for example, is we have consulted broadly across our government and with allies.

“The president wants to hear from our allies as well. This is a president who listens to its allies and partners who have an opportunity to do this at the NATO summit, who have an opportunity to do so at the G7 and so what we'll have at the end of this next few weeks here is an opportunity for a much more effective strategy for the problems set in Afghanistan, Pakistan and the region more broadly."

He said however that the U.S had engaged in “highly successful” operations in Afghanistan against Daesh in recent weeks.

Read the full story at TOLOnews

News Story: Manhunt for hackers behind global cyberattack

By Robin MILLARD

International investigators hunted Saturday for those behind an unprecedented cyber-attack that affected systems in dozens of countries, including at banks, hospitals and government agencies, as security experts sought to contain the fallout.

The assault, which began Friday and was being described as the biggest-ever cyber ransom attack, struck state agencies and major companies around the world -- from Russian banks and British hospitals to FedEx and European car factories.

"The recent attack is at an unprecedented level and will require a complex international investigation to identify the culprits," said Europol, Europe's police agency.

Europol said a special task force at its European Cybercrime Centre was "specially designed to assist in such investigations and will play an important role in supporting the investigation".

The attacks used ransomware that apparently exploited a security flaw in Microsoft operating systems, locking users' files unless they pay the attackers a designated sum in the virtual currency Bitcoin.

Read the full story at SpaceDaily

News Story: French ship in Japan for naval drill as N.Korea tensions rise

A French Navy Mistral class amphibious assault ship (LHD)

A French warfare ship arrived in Japan Saturday for an international drill as tensions mounted over North Korea's latest ballistic missile launch in defiance of a US push for tougher global sanctions.

The amphibious assault ship arrived at the Sasebo naval base in southwestern Japan ahead of the first joint exercise among Japan, France, the US and the UK.

The drill comes as tensions run high in East Asia after North Korea test-fired a ballistic missile early Saturday amid speculation that Pyongyang could conduct another nuclear test.

The drill will run from May 3 through May 22 in the waters surrounding Japan as well as the Pacific islands of Guam and Northern Marianas, according to Japan's Self Defence Forces.

Read the full story at SpaceDaily

News Story: Abe starts 4-day trip to Russia, Britain for summits

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Prime Minister Shinzo Abe left Japan on Thursday for a four-day trip to Russia and Britain for one-on-one meetings with the countries' leaders on security and economic affairs.

In a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin later Thursday in Moscow, Abe is set to discuss joint economic activities on the Russian-held, Japanese-claimed islands off Japan's Hokkaido in an effort to conclude a post-World War II peace treaty.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: Abe to discuss isles row, N. Korea, Syria with Putin

TOKYO -- Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is set to discuss with Russian President Vladimir Putin at their summit Thursday in Moscow ways to enhance economic ties and realize joint economic activities on the disputed islands in a step to conclude a peace treaty.

The talks, the leaders' 17th overall and the first since the summit in December, could be overshadowed by their difference in approaching the issue of North Korea's nuclear and missile development programs and comes amid deteriorated ties between the United States and Russia over the Syrian crisis.

Abe hopes his repeated talks with Putin will eventually lead to a breakthrough in the long-standing row over Russian-held, Japanese-claimed islands off Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido, which has prevented the two countries from signing a post-World War II peace treaty.

Abe told a gathering in Tokyo on Tuesday he hopes to "make progress on the issue of the peace treaty."

"I hope to have a meeting that would lead to Russia's constructive cooperation toward resolving issues such as those of the Korean Peninsula and the Middle East," he said.

In the upcoming talks, the leaders are expected to confirm a speedup in talks on joint economic activities on the disputed islands in areas such as fisheries and tourism, an initiative they agreed to launch at their summit in December.

Read the full story at The Mainichi