U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrives at a news conference with UAE Foreign Minister Abdullain late 2013. Reuters Photo
Looking ahead to Monday’s United States-Gulf Cooperation Council summit meeting at Camp David, the ambassador from the United Arab Emirates to the U.S. said the talks would focus on more than the ongoing multi-lateral nuclear talks with Iran, United Arab Emirates ambassador to the U.S. Yousef al Otaibi, said on Thursday. Read More
An undated photo pf President of the The Philippines Benigno Aquino visiting a bridge simulator at the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy
As Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was preparing to speak before a joint session of Congress on expanding trade in the Pacific, a delegation of legislators and businessmen from the Philippine maritime industry were meeting with transportation officials and would later meet with their American counterparts to find means to better educate their ratings and put more officers aboard the world’s merchant fleet. Read More
A soldier with the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) during the Rim of the Pacific 2014 Exercise. US Navy Photo
On Monday the United States and Japan agreed to the most sweeping changes to their bilateral alliance in more than fifty years. The so-called “2+2” Security Consultative Committee (SCC), consisting of the U.S. secretary of state, and secretary of defense, and Japan’s foreign minister and defense minister agreed to a series of initiatives that will draw the two allies even closer in defense and security matters. Read More
French carrier Charles de Gaulle. US Navy Photo
French nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (R91) has entered the Persian Gulf and could soon start strike missions against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS or ISIL) fighters, defense officials told USNI News on Friday. Read More
Japan’s Defense Minister Gen Nakatani on Jan 11, 2015. via Reuters
The newly minted Japanese defense minister said the ongoing tension in the South China Sea has a direct affect on the national security of Japan, in remarks to reporters on Tuesday. Read More
The following is the Jan. 21, 2015 Congressional Research Service report, Yemen: Background and U.S. Relations. Read More
Charles de Gaulle (R91)
The French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (R91) will shortly leave for the Indian Ocean for exercises and to potentially join the air war against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Read More
The following is the Congressional Research Service report, A Shift in the International Security Environment: Potential Implications for Defense—Issues for Congress released on Dec. 31, 2014. Read More
The following is the Dec. 11, 2014 Congressional Research Service report, Iran: U.S. Economic Sanctions and the Authority to Lift Restrictions. Read More
The following is the trilateral information sharing arrangement concerning the nuclear and missile threats posed by North Korea between the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Korea, the Ministry of Defense of Japan and the Department of Defense of the United States of America. The three countries signed the agreement on Dec. 28, 2014. Read More
