Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Rear Adm. Masafumi Nishiwaki, Commander, Escort Flotilla Four gives introductory remarks at the Malabar 2019 opening ceremony aboard the Japanese helicopter destroyer JS Kaga (DDH-184) on Sept. 26, 2019. US Navy Photo
Washington and New Delhi, “need to press the refresh button” in building a relationship for the future based on new global realities, India’s minister of external affairs said Wednesday. Read More
USS Wasp (LHD-1) transits the Coral Sea. Wasp, flagship of the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, with embarked 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit on Aug. 1, 2019. US Navy Photo
After less than two years forward-deployed, big deck amphib USS Wasp (LHD-1) has left Japan. Read More
U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Randall G. Schriver speaks to reporters on the 2019 Report on Military and Security Developments in China at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., May 3, 2019. DoD photo.
Japan and South Korea would be “much better off removing obstacles, rather than making it more difficult” to share critical intelligence about ballistic missiles launched from North Korea and possible cyber and space threats they face from Pyongyang or Beijing, the senior Pentagon official charged with that region’s security said Wednesday. Read More
The South Korean government’s intent to end an intelligence-sharing agreement with Japan is more than a slight toward its neighbor, but a blow to U.S. efforts at monitoring North Korean activities and countering Chinese influence, experts say. Read More
Gen. Koji Yamazaki, the chief of staff of Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, speaks with Vice Adm. John Alexander, commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet, aboard the amphibious transport dock ship USS Somerset (LPD-25) during Exercise Iron Fist 2019 on Feb. 3, 2019. US Navy Photo
The most immediate threat facing Japan has been China’s ramped-up maritime intrusions into the waters surrounding the Senkaku Islands, Japan’s senior military official said Thursday. Read More
Crew members from USCGC Munro (WMSL-755) conduct law enforcement from the cutter’s 35-foot Cutter Boat in the Central Pacific, Dec. 2, 2018. US Coast Guard Photo
KUALA LUMPUR – The U.S. Coast Guard will increase its presence and deployments to Asia – particularly around Oceania and U.S. Pacific territories – and test out a new operational deployment concept in the region, service head Adm. Karl Schultz told reporters on Thursday. Read More
President Donald J. Trump joined by the Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe arrive aboard the JS Kaga Tuesday, May 28, 2019, in Yokosuka, Japan. White House Photo
When President Donald Trump visited Japan this month, he was taken on board JS Kaga, one of a pair of new Izumo-class helicopter carriers built for the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) set to be retrofitted to fly the F-35B Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter. The carriers represent a new approach to maritime security that is shifting to a more forward defense posture. Read More
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo on Aug. 18, 2017. DoD Photo
President Donald Trump will head to Tokyo later this month to discuss how to resume stalled denuclearization talks with North Korea, work more jointly on cybersecurity with the Japanese and build upon his meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in resolving trade issues between the two nations. Read More
Undated photo of Russian president Vladimir Putin. Kremlin Photo
Vladimir Putin could turn out to be the big winner economically and diplomatically if the United States sticks to its pledge of no more sanction waivers for countries buying Iranian oil, a leading expert on the Middle East said on Monday. Read More
An unarmed Trident II D5 missile launches from the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine USS Nebraska (SSBN-739) off the coast of California in 2008. US Navy Photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. – China and Russia had their money on winning asymmetric advantages in conventional and nuclear forces in the last decade, and now the United States is playing catch-up in modernizing its sea, air and land nuclear forces, the Pentagon’s top policy official said Wednesday. Read More
