Tag Archives: CSIS

Panel: U.S., China South China Sea Tensions Show No Signs of Easing

Panel: U.S., China South China Sea Tensions Show No Signs of Easing

Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning underway. PLAN Photo

While Washington defends its Navy’s transits through disputed waters in the South China Sea as upholding international freedom of navigation, Beijing blasts these operations as provocative and clear violations of its domestic law, a leading Chinese naval expert said last week; and both positions could harden.

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U.S.-Australia Relationship Looks Stable Following Recent Surprise Election Results

U.S.-Australia Relationship Looks Stable Following Recent Surprise Election Results

Service members render honors during a ceremony at the Rabaul (Bita Paka) War Cemetery on July 7, 2015. Service members from the U.S., Australia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand and Japan and civilians from non-governmental organizations assigned to the Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) visited the cemetery to lay wreaths and pay respects to those fallen during the World War II battles and other conflicts in the region. US Navy photo.

Political volatility in Australia does not appear to threaten the country’s military and economic relationship with the United States, a panel agreed, partly because of concerns about Chinese economic and military ambitions in Oceania and Asia. Read More

Navy Child Care Waitlist for On-Base Services is 9,000 Kids Long

Navy Child Care Waitlist for On-Base Services is 9,000 Kids Long

Capt. Mary Seymour, Naval Support Activity Bethesda Commanding Officer, reads to children during a Story Time event held at the Child Development Center on NSA Bethesda on April 9, 2019. US Navy Photo

The Navy has 9,000 infants and toddlers that its child care centers don’t have room for, and the service is now seeking help from off-base facilities in fleet concentration areas as that wait list shows no sign of shrinking. Read More

Pacific Island Nations Want More U.S. Engagement

Pacific Island Nations Want More U.S. Engagement

Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG-86) pulls into the Port of Suva, Fiji during a port visit Oct. 14, 2018. Navy photo.

Despite a shared history of fighting in World War II, the 16 Pacific Island nations think high ranking U.S. government policymakers suffer from “collective amnesia” when considering differing definitions of security, Fiji’s ambassador said Wednesday.

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Shanahan: Space Force Won't Take Over Navy, Army Space Assets

Shanahan: Space Force Won’t Take Over Navy, Army Space Assets

The Navy’s fourth Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) communications satellite, encapsulated in a 5-meter payload fairing lifts off from Space Launch Complex-41 in 2015. United Launch Alliance Photo

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Navy and Army will retain control of their space assets as the Pentagon moves forward with establishing a new Space Force under the Air Force, acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said on Wednesday. Read More

MCPON, SMMC: Military Childcare is a Critical Readiness Issue

MCPON, SMMC: Military Childcare is a Critical Readiness Issue

Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Ronald Green and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Russell Smith speak to an audience at the Maritime Security Dialogue hosted by USNI at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Navy photo.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Navy and Marine Corps’ top non-commissioned officers say finding affordable childcare is critical to personnel retention. Read More

SECNAV Spencer: FY 2020 Budget Outlook Could Hurt Fleet Readiness

SECNAV Spencer: FY 2020 Budget Outlook Could Hurt Fleet Readiness

Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer speaks during an all-hands call onboard U.S. Fleet Activities (FLEACT) Yokosuka on July 12, 2018. US Navy Photo

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer is preparing for what could be a tight Pentagon budget environment in Fiscal Year 2020 that could hurt future fleet readiness. Read More

Panel: Chinese Warships Acting More Aggressively Towards Foreign Navies in the South China Sea

Panel: Chinese Warships Acting More Aggressively Towards Foreign Navies in the South China Sea

Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Decatur, left, and Chinese warship PRC 170, right, during what the US Navy called an unsafe and unprofessional incident in the South China Sea on Sept. 30, 2018. US Navy photo, obtained by gCaptain.

The question following the recent close encounters between guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur (DDG-73), the U.K. Royal Navy’s amphibious ship HMS Albion and Chinese naval ships in the South China Sea is if Beijing is changing their posture toward foreign navies in the region,a Pacific maritime expert said Monday. Read More

Panel: Military Tensions in Europe Continue to Run High Between NATO, Moscow

Panel: Military Tensions in Europe Continue to Run High Between NATO, Moscow

A Danish soldier (left) coaches a U.S. Army Soldier with the 82nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, as he uses a Danish M60 Machine Gun during a multinational weapons training session in Tapa, Estonia on March 10, 2018. US Army Photo

The admission of the Baltic nations of Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia to NATO was the “fattest of red line” warnings to Russia to stay clear of the western European military, a transatlantic expert on foreign policy and security on Wednesday. But that move has not tempered tensions on the continent as both NATO and Moscow have stepped up military operations. Read More