Tag - defense

 
 

DEFENSE

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Defense Minister Gen Nakatani met in Italy in October and in Australia last month, so they will be meeting for the third consecutive month if Austin visits Japan next week.
JAPAN
Dec 4, 2024
U.S. Defense Secretary Austin planning to visit Japan next week
Japan and the U.S. aim to confirm their intention to further beef up their alliance, Japanese government sources said.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who lost his bid for the Republican presidential nomination to Trump, was on an earlier list of potential defense secretary candidates but U.S. President-elect Donald Trump decided to go with Pete Hegseth, a report said Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 4, 2024
Trump considers replacing Hegseth with DeSantis to run Pentagon, report says
Pete Hegseth's nomination has run into trouble over allegations about his personal and professional life.
Activated on Wednesday, U.S. Space Forces Japan — a component similar to the one established at South Korea’s Osan Air Base in 2022 — will operate out of Yokota Air Base in the city of Fussa, western Tokyo, with a staff of about 10.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Dec 4, 2024
U.S. Space Force launches first unit in Japan
The move is part of an effort to boost coordination and interoperability with its ally, including the Air Self-Defense Force’s own Space Operations Group
Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson reviews an honor guard during a ceremony with his Japanese counterpart, Gen Nakatani, ahead of a bilateral meeting at the  Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 4, 2024
Sweden aims to deepen defense cooperation with Indo-Pacific partners
Stockholm plans to boost cooperation in defense policy dialogue and technology exchanges while boosting its military presence.
Members of the German Navy operate a submarine drone onboard German mine hunter FGS Weilheim during a NATO exercise led by the Finnish Navy, in the Baltic Sea in Turku, Finland, on Nov. 20
WORLD / Politics
Dec 3, 2024
As sabotage allegations swirl, NATO struggles to secure the Baltic Sea
The defense alliance conducted one of northern Europe's largest naval exercises on Nov. 18 to step up its protection of critical infrastructure.
A giant TV screen shows news footage of military drills conducted in the Taiwan Strait and areas to the north, south and east of Taiwan, by the Eastern Theater Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, in Beijing on Oct. 14.
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 3, 2024
Taiwan watching Chinese carrier movements as drills could start over weekend
Beijing could launch large-scale drills to coincide with Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's trip to the Pacific this week that includes visits to Hawaii and Guam.
An anti-regime fighter tears off a poster depicting Syrian President Bashar Assad (left) and his brother Maher at the airport in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 3, 2024
Syria flare-up jolts U.S. and offers chance for Trump
The Biden administration has committed more than $1 billion over the past year in humanitarian aid for Syria's displaced.
A Ukrainian serviceman holds a Stinger anti-aircraft missile as he takes part in joint military drills near the border with Belarus, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the country's Rivne region in February 2023.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 3, 2024
U.S. to send Ukraine with $725 million weapons package ahead of Trump return
President Joe Biden's outgoing administration is seeking to bolster Kyiv in its war with Russian invaders before leaving office in January.
The Foreign Ministry has said that the next beneficiaries of Japan’s official security assistance framework are likely to be the Philippines, Indonesia, Mongolia and Djibouti.
JAPAN
Dec 2, 2024
Japan to offer ¥5 billion in military aid to four countries
The next beneficiaries of Japan’s official security assistance framework are likely to be the Philippines, Indonesia, Mongolia and Djibouti.
Armored vehicles from the Self-Defense Forces parade in formation at the Ground Self-Defense Force's Camp Asaka on Nov. 9.
JAPAN
Dec 2, 2024
Top Japan defense industry firms saw sales boom in 2023
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Fujitsu, NEC and Mitsubishi Electric saw their combined revenues from arms rise by 35% to $10 billion.
A serviceman with the Ukrainian Army's 24th mechanized brigade fires a machine gun during an exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the country's Donetsk region on Friday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 2, 2024
Europe eyes 'boots on the ground' in Ukraine as possible peace deal option
The troop presence is among security guarantees being considered as the possibility grows of a deal requiring Kyiv to cede territory to Moscow.
A Finnish soldier operates a towed 155 mm field gun during the Northern Forest land force exercise in Rovajarvi, Finland, in May 2023.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Dec 2, 2024
Ukraine war reinvigorating Finland’s fighting spirit
Instead of intimidating the Finns, Ukraine's conflict with Russia has had the opposite effect of reigniting their focus on national resilience.
If Russia insists on its nuclear doctrine, allies must adopt their own and assert that a nonnuclear country attacked by a nuclear power has the right — and duty — to receive nuclear weapons for deterrence.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 1, 2024
Should nuclear weapons for Ukraine be on the table?
The situation in Ukraine is absurd: While Ukraine's missile use is called an escalation, Russia's attacks on civilians are seen as routine.
The primary motivation for potentially adding Japan to the Five Eyes alliance is the considerable intelligence contributions the country could make concerning China, North Korea, Eastern Russia and East and Southeast Asia.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 30, 2024
If ever invited, should Japan make it 'Six Eyes'?
The primary motivation for potentially adding Japan to the alliance is the considerable intelligence contributions the country could make.
Guards raise Taiwan's national flag on Democracy Boulevard at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 30, 2024
U.S. approves $385 million arms sale to Taiwan
The U.S. State Department has approved the potential sale of spare parts for F-16 jets and radars to the democratic island.
Pete Hegseth, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's nominee to be secretary of defense, speaks to reporters at the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington on Nov. 21.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 30, 2024
Pete Hegseth’s mother accused her son of mistreating women for years
She said on Friday that she regretted the 2018 email and had apologized to him.
A Chinese J-16 fighter jet is seen during a joint patrol with Russian forces on Friday.
JAPAN
Nov 30, 2024
China and Russia conduct joint military air patrol near Japan
This was the eighth large-scale joint flight by military aircraft from the two countries near Japan and the first since December last year.
A government panel of experts says there is a need to monitor communications between foreign countries via Japan, as well as those between Japan and foreign countries, considering possible cyberattacks using malware-infected servers in Japan.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 29, 2024
Japan panel proposes law to monitor communications for cyberdefense
The panel, headed by former Ambassador to the United States Kenichiro Sasae, said that surveillance "needs to be conducted before attacks become apparent."
The Moscow skyline. Heavy recruitment by the armed forces and defense industries has drawn workers away from civilian enterprises, as has emigration, pushing unemployment to a record low of 2.3%, data showed Wednesday.
WORLD / Society / ANALYSIS
Nov 29, 2024
Russia's labor shortage spreads as defense sector poaches staff
A growing labor shortage is affecting all areas of life since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
While the economic benefits of Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel are clear, concerns remain about sustaining U.S. domestic steel production, preserving national security interests and addressing union concerns.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 28, 2024
Nippon Steel endgame: Resistance or renaissance for the U.S. steel industry
The endgame for Nippon Steel’s bid for U.S. Steel appears near and the results could have a significant impact on U.S.-Japan relations, depending on the outcome.

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