Hudson Institute

Taiwan Retooling Defenses to Counter a ‘Belligerent’ China

Soldiers from a M110A2 self-propelled artillery squad from the Republic of China (Taiwan) Army. CNA Photo

Taiwan is emphasizing asymmetric defenses from mines to anti-ship missiles, overhauling its reserve forces and professionalizing its military structure to better defend itself from “a more belligerent and aggressive” China, the island’s president said Wednesday.

Ensuring the island, now spending 2.3 percent of its GDP on defense, is focused on the right capabilities “is our number one...

https://news.usni.org/2020/08/12/taiwan-retooling-defenses-to-counter-a-belligerent-china

Veneer of China’s Charm Offensive Cracked By Vietnamese Fishing Boat Incident

China Coast Guard Cutter taken by Vietnamese fishermen. Photo via South China Sea News

Last week’s collision between a Chinese Coast Guard vessel and a Vietnamese fishing boat near the Paracel Islands exposes Beijing’s “charm” and “coercion” strategy during the COVID-19 pandemic, regional experts say.

The Department of Defense released a statement on Thursday criticizing the People’s Republic of China’s handling of the incident.

“The PRC’s behavior stands in contrast to the United States’ vision...

https://news.usni.org/2020/04/09/veneer-of-chinas-charm-offensive-cracked-by-vietnamese-fishing-boat-incident

Panel: COVID-19 Exposes Weakness in Global Supply Chain, Chinese Global Expansion

This illustration of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). CDC illustration

The COVID-19 pandemic underlines the importance of international cooperation to contain the deadly virus but also spotlights the dangers of over-reliance on global supply chains in manufacturing everything from cars to pharmaceuticals, three international relations scholars said on Tuesday.

“Pandemics require cooperation among sovereign nations; responsible governments share the information,” Eric Brown speaking from the...

https://news.usni.org/2020/04/01/panel-covid-19-exposes-weakness-in-global-supply-chain-chinese-global-expansion

China’s Coast Guard Enforcing Blue Its Intended Water Territorial Expansion

Chinese Coast Guard vessel

The rapid expansion of China’s Coast Guard gives Beijing the means to shift its sea expansion aims from aspirational to operational, a panel of security experts concurred during a Monday event detailing China’s maritime ambitions.

In vast stretches of sea, an area stretching from the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea to the Scarborough Shoals off the Phillippines in the South China Sea, China’s maritime forces are aggressively asserting claims to every landmass —...

https://news.usni.org/2019/11/19/chinas-coast-guard-enforcing-blue-its-intended-water-territorial-expansion

Official: Australia Committed to U.S. Partnership as Relationship with Beijing Grows More Complex

USS Wasp (LHD-1) at the Port of Brisbane, Army Maj. Gen. Roger Noble, deputy chief of Joint Operations (left) and Rear Adm. Fred Kacher, commander, Expeditionary Strike Group 7 (right) begin the closing ceremony for Exercise Talisman Sabre on July 27, 2019. US Army Photo

No country, including the United States, is capable of going it alone, trying to meet the economic and military challenges of the Indo-Pacific region, said Australia’s defense minister.

“Deterrence is a shared responsibility,”...

https://news.usni.org/2019/11/04/official-australia-committed-to-u-s-partnership-as-relationship-with-beijing-grows-more-complex

Taiwan Wants Updated Submarine Force

Taiwan Hai Lung-class submarine in 2009

A modern submarine force to deter China’s ambitions to take over Taiwan tops the island’s unmet defense needs, its first civilian defense minister told a Washington, D.C., audience on Wednesday.

“We are far behind” in that arena, said Michael Tsai during an appearance at the Hudson Institute. After a proposed deal negotiated under President George W. Bush to have Taiwan buy diesel-powered subs fell apart, he said Taipai’s only recourse is to build...

https://news.usni.org/2019/09/12/taiwan-wants-updated-submarine-force

Navy Needs To Think Small When Planning Irregular Surface Warfare Strategies

A boarding team from dock landing ship USS Whidbey Island (LSD 41) approaches merchant vessel Golden Nori after pirates released the Japanese chemical tanker Dec. 12, 2007. The pirates seized the ship off the coast of Somalia in late October. The release of Golden Nori marked the first time in more than a year that no ships were held by Somali pirates. Navy Photo

Great power competition dramatically expands the challenges of confronting irregular naval warfare such as defending against maritime...

https://news.usni.org/2019/07/03/navy-needs-to-think-small-when-planning-irregular-surface-warfare-strategies

Panel: US/Turkey Dispute Over Buying Russian Air Defense System Has Deeper Roots

The U.S. and Turkey are at a political impasse over the pending sale of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters to the NATO ally, experts say.

Turkey doesn’t understand that, for the United States, buying a sophisticated Russian air defense system is a major national security issue that can’t be papered over. But Americans don’t understand that all their tough talk about leveling sanctions against Turkey if the Russian arms sale goes through only plays into Turkish leaders’ hands politically, a panel of...

https://news.usni.org/2019/05/22/panel-us-turkey-dispute-over-buying-russian-air-defense-system-has-deeper-roots

Former Navy Intel Officer: Chinese Navy ‘Very Competent,’ Getting Better

Chinese sailors watch a People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) warship pull into Djibouti. Xinhua Photo

China’s rise as a naval power goes well beyond its growing number of ships and submarines but the People’s Liberation Army Navy growing capability to operate jointly with the Chinese air force and rocket corps, a maritime intelligence expert said Tuesday.

Speaking at the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C., James Fannell, a retired Navy captain, said, “we need to respect that” growth in...

https://news.usni.org/2019/05/15/former-navy-intel-officer-chinese-navy-very-competent-getting-better

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