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Post by DavidH on Mar 16, 2017 17:59:50 GMT
Tillerson says diplomacy with North Korea has ‘failed,’ Pyongyang warns of warDiplomacy has failed and it’s time to “take a different approach” to North Korea, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said here Thursday, as the North Korean embassy in China warned that American military threats were bringing the region to the brink of nuclear war. Tillerson’s comment --- that 20 years of diplomacy has been unable to persuade the regime in Pyongyang to abandon its pursuit of nuclear weapons — will fuel fears in the region that military options might be on the table to deter North Korea. And in a sign of mounting tensions, the North Korean embassy held an extraordinary news conference in Beijing to issue its warning of nuclear war while vowing to continue with its own nuclear test program as a legitimate form of self-defense. The Trump administration is now conducting a review of North Korea policy and some in Washington are advocating “kinetic options” — a euphemism for military action. www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/tillerson-stresses-regional-cooperation-to-curb-north-koreas-weapons-programs/2017/03/16/4ec5e07c-09ab-11e7-bd19-fd3afa0f7e2a_story.html
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Post by DavidH on Mar 16, 2017 18:25:50 GMT
China's Most Important South China Sea Military BaseNear the picturesque city of Sanya, at the southernmost tip of Hainan Island, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy is methodically preparing itself for the next phase of power projection in the South China Sea. The site in question is the Yulin Naval Base, and it is shaping up to be the most strategically important military base in the South China Sea. Theater and point defense assets have been deployed, degaussing and weapons-loading facilities appear operationally ready — as do the administrative buildings, munitions transportation systems, and geological fortifications — and much of the South Sea Fleet’s submarine force has already nestled itself deep into the resident mountain. With a healthy mix of surface vessels, anti-aircraft and anti-ship missile platforms, and both conventional attack and nuclear deterrent submarines, Yulin’s strategic value is steadily rising. And with it rises China’s coercive power in the South China Sea and its surrounding waterways. Cont- thediplomat.com/2017/03/chinas-most-important-south-china-sea-military-base/
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Post by DavidH on Mar 17, 2017 14:20:46 GMT
Russia says US fuelling ‘vicious circle’ on North KoreaRussia on Friday urged an end to a “vicious circle” on North Korea, claiming tough US reactions to nuclear tests by Pyongyang escalate tensions on the peninsula. “We suggest looking at the situation in a multi-dimensional way in order to break the vicious circle of tensions,” Russian deputy foreign minister Igor Morgulov told Japan’s JiJi Press in an interview posted on the ministry’s site Friday. He said that currently “in response to North Korean nuclear missile ‘experiments’, the United States and its allies take steps to bolster exercises and other military activity, which in turn pushes Pyongyang to new provocative actions.” www.manilatimes.net/russia-says-us-fuelling-vicious-circle-north-korea/317727/
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Post by DavidH on Mar 17, 2017 20:39:09 GMT
Trump administration crafting big new arms sales to TaiwanThe Trump administration is crafting a big new arms package for Taiwan that could include advanced rocket systems and anti-ship missiles to defend against China, U.S. officials said, a deal sure to anger Beijing. The package is expected to be significantly larger than one that was shelved at the end of the Obama administration, the officials told Reuters on the eve of a visit to Beijing by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. The Trump administration is crafting a big new arms package for Taiwan that could include advanced rocket systems and anti-ship missiles to defend against China, U.S. officials said, a deal sure to anger Beijing. The Trump administration source told Reuters that the new deals under consideration would likely top the $1 billion mark. The new administration plans to focus more than the previous one on enhancing Taiwan's "asymmetric" capabilities, possibly with advanced multiple launch rocket systems, anti-ship missiles and other technologies that would enable Taiwan's military to defend against a much larger Chinese force in the event of an attack, the U.S. official said. www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-taiwan-arms-idUSKBN16O2LQ?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=Social
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Post by DavidH on Mar 18, 2017 18:38:41 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 19, 2017 13:11:39 GMT
Tillerson hints that ‘circumstances could evolve’ for a Japanese nuclear arsenalThe possibility of a nuclear-armed Japan has again been raised by the Trump administration, after U.S. Secretary of State Tillerson appeared to say in an interview ahead of his visit to Beijing that, with “all options on the table” regarding the North Korean threat, “circumstances could evolve” in terms of Tokyo acquiring atomic weapons. For now, he said, Washington’s policy of working to rein in Pyongyang’s nuclear program remained unchanged. “A denuclearized Korean Peninsula negates any thought or need for Japan to have nuclear weapons,” Tillerson said during the interview with the conservative Independent Journal Review, his only remarks to the media outside of official events. www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/03/19/national/amid-north-korea-threat-tillerson-hints-circumstances-evolve-japanese-nuclear-arsenal/#.WM6DFBIYnqQ
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Post by DavidH on Mar 20, 2017 13:55:44 GMT
Opinion - Bombing North Korea is not an optionThe idea of bombing the North Korean nuclear programme is dangerous folly. For the past 20 years, the US has repeatedly considered the idea and repeatedly dismissed it — for good reason. The North Korean nuclear and missile programmes are widely dispersed, including underground and underwater. It is unlikely that the whole programme could be destroyed in a single wave of strikes, which would immediately raise the prospect of nuclear retaliation by the North. North Korea still has formidable conventional artillery. They could launch devastating barrages aimed at Seoul, the South Korean capital, a city of 10m people 35 miles from the North Korean border. Japan would also be vulnerable to missile strikes, as would US bases in the region. The US would be unlikely to have the support of its key Asian allies if it staged a pre-emptive strike against North Korea. Tokyo and Seoul know that a war on the Korean peninsula could cost more than 1m lives. It could also draw in China, which is both a neighbour and a formal treaty ally of North Korea. The best ways of dealing with the threat are diplomatic and economic, not military. America would just have to live with the threat of North Korean nuclear weapons, as it has lived with similar threats in the past. Full- www.ft.com/content/9c6cdb9a-0d4e-11e7-b030-768954394623
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Post by DavidH on Mar 20, 2017 17:59:47 GMT
NK vows continued nuclear deterrent steps against US hostile policyNorth Korea on Monday hinted at additional provocations by vowing that it will continue to take nuclear deterrent steps against the US' hard-line policy toward it. "Our army and people will continuously bolster up our nuclear deterrent for self defense down the road under the conditions that high-level US government officials adamantly stick to their hostile policy toward us," the Rodong Sinmun, a daily of the ruling Workers' Party, said in a commentary titled "The Root of Intensification of Tension on the Korean Peninsula." The possession of strong nuclear weapons is "the only way" to ultimately put North Korea-US relations in order and "absolute collateral" for peace and security on the Korean Peninsula, the paper said. www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20170320000752
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 11:00:07 GMT
China Turns Top Mid-Range Missiles Toward TaiwanThe Chinese military has turned its highly-accurate mid-range precision missiles towards Taiwan, the island’s defense minister confirmed Monday. The People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force has moved DF-16 missiles into position for strikes on Taiwan, Defence Minister Feng Shih-kuan said in an address to the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. Feng said that he was confident Taiwan “has adequate weaponry to shoot it down outside its borders,” reports the South China Morning Post. The DF-16, a product of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, is a highly-accurate, road-mobile, mid-range ballistic missile with a reported strike range of approximately 620 miles, reports the China Daily. dailycaller.com/2017/03/20/china-turns-its-top-mid-range-missiles-toward-taiwan/#ixzz4bxOvQ2kc
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 11:08:56 GMT
Taiwan launches submarine project in face of China threatTaiwan’s president Tsai Ing-wen launched the island’s first ever homegrown submarine project Tuesday in the face of what the government says are growing military threats from China. The move comes after China sent its only aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, through the Taiwan Strait in January, in one of a number of military drills held as relations deteriorate. Taiwan last week warned of an increased invasion risk from China and has pledged to boost its military in response. www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/03/21/asia-pacific/taiwan-launches-submarine-project-face-china-threat/#.WNEJH7gYnqR
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 11:35:12 GMT
North Korea Has Doubled Size of Uranium-Enrichment FacilityNorth Korea has doubled the size of its facility for enriching uranium in recent years, according to the United Nations’ top nuclear inspector, who voiced doubt that a diplomatic agreement can end leader Kim Jong Un’s weapons programs. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal on Monday, Yukiya Amano, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, described North Korea as rapidly advancing its capacity to produce nuclear weapons on two fronts: the production of plutonium at its Yongbyon nuclear facility and the enrichment of uranium. www.wsj.com/articles/north-korea-has-doubled-size-of-uranium-enrichment-facility-iaea-chief-says-1490046264?mod=e2tweu
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 12:14:06 GMT
Taiwan says its missiles can hit the mainland for first timeWhile delivering a four-yearly report to parliament on Thursday, Taiwan's defense minister Feng Shih-kuan was asked whether Taiwan was capable of launching missiles at mainland China. "Yes," Feng replied. "It is the first time the ministry has confirmed this," lawmaker Wang Ting-yu told the AFP, adding that Taiwanese missiles may be able to travel over 1,500 kilometers. The defense ministry appears to have finally decided to come clean due to continued military spending increases from Beijing which announced plans earlier this month to up defense spending by 7% to $151 billion this year -- though independent estimates actually put the number much higher. In his report, Feng warned that the risk of invasion has also increased, adding that the mainland has more than 1,500 missiles pointed at Taiwan. In response, Taiwan is also looking to beef up its own military spending. Feng said that military expenditures next year will rise to 3% of Taiwan's GDP, up from 2% ($11.4 billion) this year. The ministry also announced plans to procure stealth fighter jets. "Should the enemy insist on invading, we will weaken their capabilities by striking enemy troops at their home bases, fighting them at sea, crushing them as they approach the coastlines and wiping them out on the beaches," the report said. shanghaiist.com/2017/03/17/taiwan_missiles.php
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 16:36:18 GMT
Japan conducts first missile evacuation drill for civiliansThe Japanese Government has reportedly conducted a civilian missile evacuation drill in the wake of increasing missile threats from North Korea. Conducted in the northern city of Oga, the drill witnessed participation from more than 100 residents and schoolchildren, The Associated Press reported. Said to be the first of its kind, the drill aimed to make people aware of ballistic missile launches, media sources reported. During the event, emergency information was broadcasted to local municipalities through the J-Alert emergency advisory service, according to The Japan Times. The information was then transmitted to residents, who had already registered for the information. The drill involved warning people about a possible missile launch and requesting the participants to move to safe places. www.army-technology.com/news/newsjapan-conducts-first-missile-evacuation-drill-for-civilians-5766942
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 18:36:04 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 19:46:21 GMT
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