News Story: U.S. senator suggests having China as part of peacekeeping force in Korea

US Sen. Rand Paul (Image: Wiki Commons)

WASHINGTON, Sept. 27 (Yonhap) -- A U.S. senator proposed Wednesday that China be allowed to keep a peacekeeping force on the inter-Korean border as part of a solution to the North Korean nuclear standoff.

In an interview on MSNBC, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said the arrangement could satisfy both North Korea and China, which he claimed wants to be treated with more respect.

"Have them be part of a peacekeeping force in exchange for North Korea giving up their weapons," Paul said. "But I'm not talking about initially doing this. I'm talking about doing this in exchange for North Korea dismantling their program. They would be simultaneous sort of things."

China is North Korea's main ally and trading partner. It is responsible for 90 percent of the reclusive nation's external trade.

Read the full story at YonhapNews

News Story: China conducts first military drills in Djibouti

China has staged military exercises in Djibouti after opening its first overseas military base there last month, official media said.

State television CCTV showed armoured vehicles moving on a desert track, groups of soldiers firing automatic weapons and cannon pointing towards the horizon.

Dozens of soldiers have been deployed in temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104 F) "to reinforce their hardiness in combat and their mastery of military techniques", the report said.

"This is the first time that officers and soldiers stationed in Djibouti have left their camp to conduct live-fire exercises," Liang Yang, the base commander, told the broadcaster.

It was unclear when the drills took place. China opened its base in Djibouti in early August.

Read the full story at SpaceDaily

News Story: Japanese gov't reluctant to reveal details of SDF cooperation with US forces

The Japanese government is reluctant to disclose the details of Self-Defense Force (SDF) operations to cooperate with U.S. forces in peacetime, which have been expanding under the security legislation enacted two years ago.

How to fulfill accountability for SDP cooperation with U.S. forces is posing a challenge to the government.

Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera underscored the significance of the security-related laws at a news conference on Sept. 15. "The Japan-U.S. alliance has further strengthened, and U.S. and other concerned countries' confidence in Japan has increased," he said.

Following repeated missile launches by North Korea, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force carried out a mission to guard U.S. Navy vessels in peacetime for the first time in May this year. Moreover, SDF supply vessels have been engaged in a mission to refuel U.S. Aegis destroyers, which are on alert against missile launches, once or twice a month since April.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: S. Korea, Vietnam to hold defense strategy talks

SEOUL, Sept. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Friday it will hold vice ministerial defense talks with Vietnam on improving bilateral cooperation on North Korea and other security issues.

South Korean Vice Defense Minister Suh Choo-suk is scheduled to meet with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Chi Vinh later in the day for the annual Defense Strategy Dialogue, which was launched in 2012.

He's on a visit here to attend the sixth Seoul Defense Dialogue, a security forum hosted by Suh's ministry.

Read the full story at YonhapNews

News Story: Vietnamese government backs increased defence link with Australia & Vietnamese, Australian defence ministers hold talks

Vietnamese government backs increased defence link with Australia

Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnamese Government supports the Vietnamese and Australian defence ministries to strengthen practical and sustainable ties to match bilateral strategic partnership and contribute to peace, stability and development in Asia-Pacific and beyond.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc made the statement at his reception for visiting Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne in Hanoi on August 24. 

He lauded the development of bilateral defence ties in line with the Memorandum of Understanding on defence cooperation signed in 2010. 

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

--

Vietnamese, Australian defence ministers hold talks

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s Defence Minister Gen. Ngo Xuan Lich and his Australian counterpart Marise Payne agreed to consider the organisation of the first deputy ministerial defence policy dialogue and Australia’s support for Vietnam’s deployment of UN peace keeping forces during their talks in Hanoi on August 24.

Australia’s Defence Minister Marise Payne is on an official visit to Vietnam on August 24-25. This is the fourth official visit to Vietnam by a defence minister of Australia since the two countries set up defence ties in 1999, which realises bilateral commitments to intensifying defence cooperation for peace, stability, and wealth of the region.

At the talks, the ministers discussed regional security issues of shared concern and orientations for bilateral defence cooperative activities in the coming time.

They shared the view that the two countries’ defence cooperation is substantive, stable, and sustainable, and it is in line with the memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation inked in 2010.

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

News Story: Vietnam, Indonesia eye joint vision statement on defence cooperation

Jakarta (VNA) – The defence ministries of Vietnam and Indonesia are going to sign a joint vision statement on defence cooperation for 2017-2022 during an upcoming Indonesia visit by Vietnamese Defence Minister Ngo Xuan Lich.

The consensus was reached by Vietnam’s Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh and Indonesian Defence Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu in Jakarta on August 23.

At the meeting, held in the framework of an official visit to the archipelago nation by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, the two sides expressed their delight at the outcomes of bilateral defence cooperation in recent years, saying that the development of Vietnam-Indonesia friendship as a good condition to enhance cooperation in multiple spheres, including defence.

They agreed to make efforts to boost substantive defence relations, stressing cooperation between their navies, air forces and coast guard forces, personnel training, UN peacekeeping operations, and counter-terrorism.

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

News Story: Defense minister refuses demand for new probe over logs of Japanese peacekeepers & New defense minister deflects criticism over alleged cover-up of GSDF logs

Defense minister refuses demand for new probe over logs of Japanese peacekeepers

Minister of Defense Itsunori Onodera has refused an opposition party demand for a renewed probe into whether his predecessor Tomomi Inada received a report on Japanese peacekeeping logs when their existence was being covered up.

The logs concerning Japanese peacekeepers dispatched to South Sudan were the focus of an out-of-session meeting of the House of Representatives Committee on Security on Aug. 10. On the question of whether Inada received a report from the Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) on the existence of log data, Hiroshi Marui, an official at the Inspector General's Office of Legal Compliance of the Defense Ministry, echoed previous explanations by stating, "The testimonies of those involved were shaky, and we were unable to identify a statement."

Unconvinced by this response, the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) demanded a renewed investigation, but Onodera rejected the request, saying a thorough investigation had already been carried out.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

--

Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera
(Image: Wiki Commons)

New defense minister deflects criticism over alleged cover-up of GSDF logs

Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera calmly fended off opposition attacks during an out-of-session Diet meeting on Aug. 10 over his ministry's cover-up of daily activity logs kept by Ground Self-Defense Force troops that were engaged in United Nations peacekeeping operations in South Sudan.

While the meeting was held in response to allegations that Onodera's predecessor, Tomomi Inada, was involved in the cover-up, neither the former defense minister, who stepped down in July over the scandal, nor Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who appointed her, was present at the meeting. Onodera and his ministry's bureaucrats just reiterated statements in line with the recently released results of an investigation into the scandal by the Inspector General's Office of Legal Compliance of the Defense Ministry -- thereby covering for Inada while triggering a fierce opposition backlash.

"The results of the investigation were very severe on the Defense Ministry and the Self-Defense Forces (SDF), and I view them as something we should reflect upon," Onodera said at the outset of the meeting in the House of Representatives Committee on Security. It was his first appearance in a Diet question and answer session as defense minister since July 2014, after he was reappointed to the post in the Cabinet reshuffle on Aug. 3.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: Vietnamese, US defence chiefs hold talks

Washington D.C. (VNA) – Defence Minister Gen. Ngo Xuan Lich held talks with US Secretary of Defence James Mattis in Washington D.C. on August 8 following a welcome ceremony the same day. 

Lich, who is on US visit from August 7-10, said Vietnam considers the US one of the top important partners and always prioritises developing bilateral ties based on the principles of equality, respect for political regime, independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of each country. 

He spoke highly of the US’s collaboration with the Vietnamese coast guards in law enforcement at sea as well as in the United Nations peacekeeping mission. 

The two officials hailed the outcomes of bilateral ties on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding on promoting defence links and the Declaration on the Joint Vision on bilateral defence ties covering the exchange of all-level delegations, training, dialogue consultation, maritime security, search and rescue, bomb and mines clearance, Agent Orange/dioxin detoxification, and United Nations peacekeeping activities. 

They agreed to reinforce coordination under signed agreements, with priority given to post-war recovery efforts in Vietnam, response to non-traditional security challenges and the UN peacekeeping activities. 

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

News Story: Special inspection report finds legal violation in GSDF activity logs scandal

The Defense Ministry violated the freedom of information law by not disclosing the daily activity logs of Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) troops participating in U.N. peacekeeping operations in South Sudan, a report by the ministry's special inspection office has shown.

In a report it released on July 28, the Inspector General's Office of Legal Compliance of the Defense Ministry, which investigated the scandal, confirmed that there was a violation of the Act on Access to Information Held by Administrative Organs by not disclosing the daily activity logs while they existed in the GSDF.

The report stated that even after the logs were found within the GSDF following the nondisclosure decision, Administrative Vice Minister of Defense Tetsuro Kuroe and others decided not to disclose the data, underscoring the tendency within the Defense Ministry and the Self-Defense Forces for a systematic cover-up.

The first request to disclose the daily activity logs was filed in July last year, when the consistencies between Japan's five principles for participating in U.N. peacekeeping operations, such as an agreement on a cease-fire, and a major armed clash near the South Sudan capital of Juba, where the GSDF unit was operating, were being called into question.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: Despite resigning, doubts remain over Inada's role in suspected cover-up

Tomomi Inada (Image: Wiki Commons)

Tomomi Inada resigned as defense minister on July 28, but doubts over her involvement in a suspected cover-up concerning the daily activity logs of Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) troops serving as U.N. peacekeepers in South Sudan still remain.

In the end, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe essentially had no choice but to accept Inada's resignation -- following criticism and doubts from both his own Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and opposition parties over his unwavering support for his gaffe-prone Cabinet colleague.

Furthermore, the scandal involving peacekeepers' logs, in which the GSDF opposed Inada who has lost control over the force, has raised questions about how to secure civilian control over the Self-Defense Forces (SDF).

At a press conference on July 28, during which Inada announced her resignation, she said, "I repeatedly conveyed my thoughts sincerely (to Abe). I let him know that I was thinking of stepping down," making it clear that she consulted regularly with Abe about the timing of her resignation.

Inada's announcement on this day fell about one month after she made a gaffe on June 27 during the build up to the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election, when she told voters, "I would like to ask for your support on behalf of the Defense Ministry and the SDF."

According to a source close to the LDP, Inada immediately recognized that she had phrased her request badly, and seemed to hint at resignation even then, using the words, "I feel a sense of responsibility (concerning the gaffe)." However, Abe encouraged her to stay on, and she refrained from throwing in the towel. Apparently, she had also been warned, "You don't quit this job unless the prime minister tells you to."

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: (Vietnam) Deputy Defence Minister meets Vice Chief of Australia’s Defense Force

Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam and Australia need to maintain and develop further their defense cooperation, said Lieutenant General Phan Van Giang, Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA), and Deputy Minister of National Defense.

He made the statement at a meeting with Vice Admiral Raymond Griggs, Vice Chief of Australia’s Defense Force, in Hanoi on July 27, as part of the guest’s ongoing visit to Vietnam from July 26-30.

Giang said the bilateral defense cooperation has reaped positive outcomes over the past time, including the effective implementation of a Memorandum of Understanding in the field signed in 2010.

He affirmed that Vietnam always attaches great importance to the comprehensive cooperation with Australia and hoped the two sides will increase all-level delegation exchanges and explore new cooperation spheres.

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

News Story: Questions raised over Abe's responsibility after defense chief Inada forced to resign

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision to practically force Defense Minister Tomomi Inada out over allegations of a cover-up involving peacekeepers' logs will inevitably call into question the prime minister's responsibility for appointing her.

Inada handed Abe her resignation letter on July 28 and is set to step down before the prime minister reshuffles his Cabinet, which is expected on Aug. 3.

The decision comes only a few days after the prime minister dismissed opposition parties' demands that Inada be discharged from her post. "I'd like her to fulfill her responsibility by thoroughly investigating the case and implementing measures to prevent a recurrence," Abe told an out-of-session meeting of the House of Councillors Budget Committee on July 25. Inada also told her aides that she would stay on until Aug. 3.

However, some news outlets recently reported the existence of a handwritten note by a Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) officer stating that the organization had informed Inada of the existence of the logs on Feb. 13.

Defense Minister Tomomi Inada
(Image: Wiki Commons)

The news reports have damaged the credibility of Inada's claim that she had never been notified of the logs, sparking calls within the ruling coalition urging her to step down.

Inada decided to step down apparently at the strong urging of Abe. After Inada and Defense Ministry Inspector General Michio Kitamura briefed Abe on July 27 of the ministry's special inspection on the alleged cover-up, the prime minister and the defense minister are believed to have discussed whether she should resign.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

Related Links:

• Probe denies defense chief Inada's role in data coverup scandal
• Japan's defense chief Inada resigns over data coverup claims
• Defense Minister Inada, GSDF chief to quit over alleged cover-up of logs
• Defense Ministry's top bureaucrat to be replaced over SDF log scandal

News Story: GSDF chief to resign over alleged coverup of activity logs

Gen. Toshiya Okabe (Image: Wiki Commons)

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Ground Self-Defense Force's chief of staff has decided to resign following allegations of a coverup of logs that recorded the daily activities of Japanese ground troops serving as U.N. peacekeepers in South Sudan, a government source said Thursday.

Gen. Toshiya Okabe declined to comment Thursday morning on whether he intends to step down. He was among top officials who decided not to reveal the existence of the logs, which the Defense Ministry had previously said were discarded, according to other government sources.

The development came as the Defense Ministry continues to be rattled by a series of media reports over the alleged coverup, which is said to have also involved Defense Minister Tomomi Inada. Inada has denied the allegations.

The ministry has conducted an internal probe into the scandal. Preparations are under way to announce the outcome Friday.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

News Story: 1,100 peacekeepers participate in multinational exercise in Mongolia

ULAN BATOR, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Some 1,100 peacekeepers from 26 countries took part in the annual multinational peacekeeping exercise code-named "Khaan Quest-2017," which kicked off on Sunday at the training center of the Armed Forces of Mongolia in Tavan Tolgoi, 60 km from Ulan Bator.

Khaltmaa Battulga, president of Mongolia and commander-in-chief of the Mongolian Armed Forces, stressed that Mongolia will continue its contribution to strengthening security and peace in the world during the "Khaan Quest-2017" exercise from July 23 to Aug. 2.

This year's event is specific in field maneuvers at the level of military units and information processing training to repel cyberattacks.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Story: PLA to celebrate 90th birthday with stronger, more peaceful military

BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) -- It has been a big year for China's military.

In April, China's first domestically produced aircraft carrier was launched, which was followed by the debut of its new generation of destroyer in June. In July, the country's first aircraft carrier allowed visits by the public for the first time.

As the 90th birthday of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) approaches, the country's army has shown how much its military capacity has grown and how committed it is to maintaining world peace.

A STRONGER ARMY

The PLA has come a long way since its birth during the armed uprising in the city of Nanchang on August 1, 1927, when it had only 20,000 soldiers.

Ninety years later, the country boasts 2 million servicemen, making it the world's largest military force, according to a national defense white paper titled "China's Military Strategy," published in 2015.

Besides the growth in numbers, the PLA has armed its soldiers with world-class equipment.

During China's epic V-Day parade in September 2015, the country displayed its Dongfeng-5B intercontinental strategic missiles, designed to carry nuclear warheads, and its Dongfeng-21D anti-ship ballistic missiles, described by some media as the "carrier killer."

Other cutting-edge weaponry included the PLA's state-of-the-art tanks, unmanned aerial vehicles, and its new generation of airborne early warning and control aircraft, carrier-based fighters and attack helicopters that fly low across the sky.

Read the full story at Xinhua

---

NOTE: The “Beijing to Slash Size of Chinese Army, Largest in the World, in Half” Link in the above was added by PacificSentinel for clarity & context.

News Story: Gov't denies defense chief's reported role in alleged coverup of logs

Japanese Defense Minister Tomomi Inada
(Image: Wiki Commons)

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The government on Wednesday denied a report alleging Defense Minister Tomomi Inada allowed officials to conceal the existence of controversial activity logs of Japanese peacekeepers in South Sudan, following claims by her ministry that the records had been discarded.

"Ms. Inada has said no such event took place" as reported, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a regular news conference, while declining to comment further on the grounds that an internal investigation is pending on the matter.

Inada said the same day she neither authorized the concealment of the logs nor approved a plan to withhold the fact that they existed.

Kyodo News reported the defense minister's role in the suspected coverup on Tuesday, citing government sources.

The Defense Ministry had said the Ground Self-Defense Force had discarded the logs recorded by its members taking part in a U.N. peacekeeping mission in the fledging African country.

Digital data from the logs were later found, but top officials decided at a meeting on Feb. 15 they would not uncover this fact, with Inada agreeing to the concealment, according to the sources.

On top of that, the defense minister had been briefed on the discovery of the logs by a senior official of the Ground Staff Office of the GSDF on Feb. 13, two days before the meeting, government sources said Wednesday.

Tetsuo Kuroe, the ministry's top bureaucrat who reportedly participated in the Feb. 15 meeting along with the minister, said he had no recollection of the meeting, saying he did not believe Inada had given such approval.

Read the full story at The Mainichi

Related Story: Defense chief Inada gave nod to withholding info on peacekeeping logs

News Story: Vietnam attends chiefs of defence conference on UN peacekeeping

New York (VNA) – A high-ranking delegation of the Vietnam People’s Army attended the Chiefs of Defence Conference on United Nations peacekeeping in New York, the US, on July 6-7.

Sen. Lt. Gen. Pham Ngoc Minh, Deputy Chief of the army’s General Staff and deputy head of the Vietnamese defence ministry’s steering board for participation in UN peacekeeping, led the Vietnamese delegation to the event.

The conference was attended by heads of the defence force from more than 140 UN member countries which engage in peacekeeping activities, along with representatives of such organisations as the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the European Union, and the African Union.

In his opening remarks, UN Under-Secretary-General Jean-Pierre Lacroix highly valued substantial contributions by countries volunteering peacekeepers, including Vietnam, to the peace stabilisation, war consequences settlement, humanitarian aid to refugees, and environmental protection.

He stressed the need for higher unanimity in the UN member countries’ resolve to cope with existing urgent issues that affect the future of peacekeeping operations such as field assistance, women’s role, swift force deployment, and some measures for improving the efficiency of the peacekeeping force.

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

News Story: Vietnam affirms political determination to join UN peacekeeping mission

Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Defence Minister, Sen. Lieut. Gen Nguyen Chi Vinh affirmed Vietnam’s political determination to join the United Nations (UN) Peacekeeping Mission at a reception in Hanoi on June 27 for a delegation from the UN Assessment and Advisory Visit (AAV). 

The delegation was led by Bianca Selway, representative from the UN Department for Peacekeeping Operations. 

The reception was also attended by UK representative in charge of the UN peacekeeping mission Samantha Hope and UK defence attaché in Vietnam David Houghtonm, who sought to increase coordination among Vietnam, the UN and the UK in transferring the operation of the UK’s second-level field hospital in the South Sudan city of Bentiu, part of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan, to Vietnam. 

Vinh, who is also head of the Defence Ministry’s Steering Committee on Vietnam’s participation in the UN Peacekeeping operations, thanked the UN for sending officials to Vietnam to make preliminary evaluation of its training, professional capacity and operating standards in military medicine and engineering. 

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

News Story: (Vietnam) Political-military conference lays out tasks for army

Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has asked the Central Military Commission and the Ministry of National Defence to continue effectively implement the national protection strategy in the new situation.

The government leader made the request at a political-military conference for the entire army in Hanoi on June 27, which reviewed the performance of military and national defence tasks in the first six months of 2017 and lay out missions for the second half of the year.

PM Phuc pointed out other short-term tasks for the entire army such as improving the institution-building and forecasting work, bettering training quality, combat capacity and preparedness, and effectively carrying out the Politburo’s Resolution No. 06-NQ/TW on building and developing the national defence industry until 2020 and beyond. 

He also emphasised the need for the army to pay more heed to mass mobilisation activities, defence diplomacy and international integration. 

Read the full story at VietnamPlus

News Story: China's helicopter unit joins peacekeeping mission in Darfur

PLA Mil Mi-17-1 (Image: Wiki Commons)

KHARTOUM, June 11 (Xinhua) -- China's first helicopter unit on Sunday arrived in Sudanese capital Khartoum to join the United Nations African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID).

The arriving unit is composed of 12 soldiers out of a 140 strong force to be sent in batches as part of China's participation in the UNAMID.

The team arrived along with two Mi-171 helicopters and other equipment, where two more similar helicopters are to be sent later to make a total of four Mi-171 helicopters.

The helicopter unit is from the 81st Group Army of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), where it will carry out tasks such as air patrol, transport of peacekeeping forces, evacuation of rescued personnel and air supplies.

Read the full story at Xinhua