Editorial: China Hosts SCO’s Largest-Ever Military Drills

By Shannon Tiezzi

The anti-terrorism drills involved troops from China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

7,000 troops from five countries are in China this week as part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) “Peace Mission 2014” military drills. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a regional multilateral body consisting of China, Russia, and the Central Asian states of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. This year’s military drill included troops from China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in what Chinese media called the largest SCO drill yet.

China is hosting Peace Mission 2014, which opened August 24 and will conclude on the 29, in Inner Mongolia.Xinhua underscored that the drill was unprecedented, both in terms of scale and in terms of the weaponry being used. The drill involved multiple branches of the various militaries, including ground and air forces as well as units devoted to special ops, electronic countermeasures, and reconnaissance. The list of hardware was even more extensive: drones, early-warning aircraft, air-defense missiles, tanks, and armored vehicles. There were Su-25 jets and MI-8AMTSh armed assault helicopters from Russia, and China sent some of its “most advanced military hardware” as well, including the armed WZ-10 and WZ-19 helicopters. With the extensive array of technology and troops, Xinhua described the drills as “close to real combat.”

The drill was designed to counter what China calls the “three evil forces”: terrorism, separatism, and extremism. As China has grown increasingly concerned about these “evil forces,” particularly in Xinjiang, it has highlighted these issues in multilateral forums as well as in its own domestic policies. The SCO, as its name implies, is China’s pet project, and thus a perfect place for Beijing to shift the agenda to emphasize its core concerns. 

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Editorial: China Might Just Be an Assertive Status Quo Power

By Robert Farley

On balance, Beijing’s policies suggest it is looking to carve out a special role for itself within the current order.

Is China a status quo or a revisionist power?

This question dominated 20th century geopolitics. Attempts to discern whether competitors intended to adjust the existing international order in their favor, or to overthrow that order and install something new, sat at the heart of statecraft and diplomacy at the openings of World War I, World War II, and the Cold War.  The question goes to the heart of the willingness of people and statesmen to make the sacrifices necessary to defend national interests. World War I might have been worth fighting against a revolutionary power, rather less so against states that merely desired a reshuffling of the deck.

Unsurprisingly, this question has animated (if often implicitly), U.S. discussion of the problems created by the rise of China.  We can agree on certain things. Chinese pilots are not going rogue; there is a logic behind these intercepts, and it’s worthwhile to expose Chinese provocations. All of this tells us less about China’s long-range aims than we might think, however. 

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India: Defence Minister Reviews Progress of Indigenous Submarine Construction at Mazagon Docks Limited, Mumbai

Hon’ble Raksha Mantri Shri Arun Jaitley accompanied by Admiral RK Dhowan Chief of the Naval Staff visited Mazagon Docks Limited, Mumbai today and reviewed the progress of the Project 75 (Indigenous submarine construction project) as well as the other ongoing warship building projects including P-15 B class stealth destroyers . The visit of Raksha Mantri, within 3 months of taking over amply demonstrates the importance being accorded by the Government to the indigenous construction of submarines and warships. 

During his visit the Defence Minister inaugurated the Mazdock Modernisation Project (MMP), which would significantly enhance the warship and submarine construction capability of the shipyard. M/s Haskoning Nederland B.V. (HNBV), world renowned consultants in the field of marine construction, were appointed as consultant for this project. The major components created under MMP include a new Wet basin with level luffing cranes, 300-Ton Goliath Crane, Module Workshop, Stores Building, Shipyard transporter and Cradle & Assembly shop at a cost of Rs. 800 Crores approx. 

News Story: Drone fires missiles at Inner Mongolia SCO anti-terror drill

China's military drones participated in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) anti-terror drills in Inner Mongolia for the first time on Tuesday.

Participating in the live fire drills, one drone, which was not identified by its model number, shot off several missiles during the rehearsal, said Shen Jinke, spokesperson of the People's Liberation Army Air Force.

"Drones, tasked with surveillance, reconnaissance and ground attacks, will play a vital role in fighting against terrorism," he said.

The aerial vehicle has yet to miss a shot since joining Peace Mission 2014, a multinational drill which began on Aug. 24, said Feng Aiwang, commander of the air force battle group.

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News Story: Taiwan to carry out further military downsizing next year

A planned program to further cut the country's military personnel to below 200,000 by the end of 2019 will be formally implemented from next year, as Taiwan moves forward with its efforts to streamline the military, the country's defense minister, Yen Ming, said Tuesday.

The military is finalizing the details of the new downsizing program and it is scheduled to be formally implemented in July 2015, Yen told reporters.

He said the program will be carried out through 2019, with the goal of cutting the number of troops to between 170,000 and 200,000, from the 215,000 target for the end of 2014 under the current streamlining program.

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News Story: US plane interfered with Chinese sub before intercept - Global Times

A Chinese fighter jet that made a controversial intercept of an American reconnaisance aircraft earlier this month may have been forced to do so because the US plane had been "seriously interfering" with a Chinese submarine, says the Chinese-language version of the Global Times, a tabloid under the auspices of the Communist Party mouthpiece People's Daily.

In yet another staunch defense of the intercept by the Chinese J-11 fighter from the People's Liberation Army on the US Navy's P-8A reconnaisance plane on Aug. 19, the Global Times questioned what other alternatives were available to China when the US had been conducting highly frequent close-in surveillance near Chinese waters and airspace.

While Pentagon press secretary John Kirby labeled the intercept, in which the two planes came within nine meters of one another, as "aggressive" and "dangerous," the Global Times said China had no choice, adding that the primary role of the P8-A is anti-submarine warfare, meaning it is designed to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines.

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Editorial: Changing the Narrative in Northeast Asia

By Jeffrey W. Hornung

South Korean and Japanese leaders need to change the history narrative and focus on common security challenges.

Ties between Japan and South Korea remain frozen. Korean President Park Geun-hye continues to refuse to meet Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Military exchanges remain curtailed. Even economic relations have been curbed, such as a lapsed bilateral currency swap and reduced Japanese investment in Korea.

At root are disagreements over the facts of Japan’s colonization of the Peninsula (including issues of the Japanese military’s recruitment of women to provide sex for soldiers—comfort women—and the ownership of the Liancourt Rocks in the Sea of Japan), how Japan remembers and shows contrition for this colonization, and to what extent South Korea acknowledges Japan’s reconciliation efforts. These disagreements dominate the bilateral narrative. This narrative, however, is in dire need of change toward one that prioritizes the interdependent nature of their security.

This situation predates the current administrations. During the Cold War, U.S. security guarantees to South Korea and Japan froze bilateral discussions on the role, if any, the other country played in their security. While disagreements over history existed, the necessity of a united front against global communism meant disagreements rarely disrupted relations. Occasionally they sprung up, such as controversies over Japanese history textbooks, but these were quickly resolved.

The Cold War’s departure, coupled with the democratization of South Korea and the death of Japan’s Emperor Hirohito, meant the parameters of debate widened considerably. North Korea’s nuclear and missile developments highlighted Pyongyang’s threat. Likewise, the Tiananmen Square events and the Taiwan Strait crisis demonstrated that Beijing was willing to use force at home and engage in military coercion. While these events led to revised relations with the United States, they failed to motivate Tokyo and Seoul toward serious bilateral security discussions. 

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Editorial: Australia May Help US Bomb Syria

RAAF F/A-18F Super Hornet (File Photo)

By Zachary Keck

U.S. officials believe that Australia and Great Britain will participate in airstrikes against ISIS in Syria.

Australia may help the U.S. conduct airstrikes against the Islamic State of al-Sham and Iraq (ISIS) in Syria, according to the New York Times.

On Tuesday night, the New York Times published an article that said “the United States has begun to mobilize a broad coalition of allies behind potential American military action in Syria.” The report went on to say that, “White House began its diplomatic campaign to enlist allies and neighbors in the region to increase their support for Syria’s moderate opposition and, in some cases, to provide support for possible American military operations.”

Most of the countries the report listed were indeed ones from the region, including Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. However, the report also cited unnamed Obama administration officials as saying that they believe that Great Britain and Australia would be willing to actually join the U.S. in mounting the air assault in Syria.

This assessment, if accurate, isn’t a complete surprise. After all, Australia was one of the most active members of the “coalitions of the willing” that the U.S. organized to help fight the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

More notably, as Kevin Placek reported on Oceania last week, Australian security officials have grown increasingly concerned over the threat of homegrown terrorism in recent months. 

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Editorial: Security or Investment - Balancing Japan’s Long-Term Foreign Policy

Image: tsuna72 via Flickr

By Clint Richards

Sea lane security and new partners are key to protecting Japan’s far-flung assets.

Part of Japan’s new push to normalize its military stems from a long-term imperative to ensure its sea lines of communication (SLOC) and to protect its deepening interests in Southeast Asia and the greater Indian Ocean. Recent investments and partnerships show how Japan sees this interaction unfolding. While the U.S. has been Japan’s (and indeed the world’s) guarantor of blue water navigation and access since the end of the Cold War, some nations now question its long-term commitment and ability to fulfill that role. Even as Japan seeks to draw itself closer to the U.S. within their alliance, it is looking for new regional partners to not only generate economic growth (which will continue to stagnate domestically as the population declines), but also to protect Japanese trade and energy imports through waters that are increasingly contested with China.

While The Diplomat has noted Japan’s latest moves to build security relationships in Southeast Asia with countries like Australia, the Philippines and Vietnam, mainly through the sale of military hardware and technology, it is also attempting to do the same in the Indian Ocean. During Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Japan next week, the two leaders are expected to strengthen their security relationship by signing a “two-plus-two” mechanism to ensure regular meetings between their foreign and defense secretaries. The two will also likely sign deals for sea lane cooperation, joint navy drills, and the sale of Japanese hardware like the US-2 amphibious aircraft.

On Tuesday the Nikkei reported that Japan plans to offer aid for maritime security to Sri Lanka during Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit next month. This strategy is mainly intended to counter China’s already large investments in the country and elsewhere in the region, particularly in infrastructure like ports. Japan plans to offer advisors to Sri Lanka’s coast guard as well as making assessments about the possible supply of patrol ships at a later date. A friendly Sri Lanka could help protect future Japanese natural gas imports from Mozambique once they come online, as well as mineral exports from central and eastern Africa. 

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Editorial: Modi’s Course Correction on Pakistan - Lessons from China’s Tibet Policy

By Abanti Bhattacharya

Separating Kashmir from Pakistani relations could help solve India’s sovereignty problem.

The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cancellation of ministerial level talks with Pakistan this week has drawn wide criticism and is being seen as inept and short-sighted. The majority of the criticism is focused on the impact that it would have on the Kashmir issue. While indeed this issue is a primary irritant in Indo-Pakistani relations, and cancellation of the talks would certainly not sit well with either the Pakistani establishment or separatists groups, Modi’s decision to cancel the meeting is essentially a signal to Pakistan that India is not going to play by Islamabad’s rules any longer.

Pakistan has indelibly impaired India’s national security, not simply by supporting and sponsoring cross border terrorism, but also by openly colluding with separatists flouting India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. In other words, while the Pakistani military has been condoning a low intensity conflict with India, its government is engaged in separatism in Kashmir. What Modi essentially did was to end the tripartite nature of the Kashmir issue, which hitherto defined the otherwise bilateral relations between India and Pakistan.

By involving the Hurriyat group, the earlier UPA government essentially included the Kashmiris as a third party to the question of Kashmir. This has ominous security implications for India. For one, it legitimated not only the separatists’ role in the decision-making process, but more importantly extolled separatism in the narrative of the nation. Second, it emboldened the Pakistani government to openly challenge India’s national integrity. Third, it has convinced the Kashmiris that their problems cannot be solved by their government but by outside forces, thus distorting the Kashmir issue itself. Under the patronage of Pakistan, the Kashmir problem, which hitherto was a governance problem, soon metamorphosed into an identity issue and coalesced into a separatist movement. After which those Kashmiri leaders who dared to discuss the Kashmir issue within India were assassinated, in attacks linked to Pakistan. It is no wonder that a solution on the Kashmir issue remains elusive. 

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