TOKYO – One of the largest-ever joint training exercises between U.S. and Japanese troops is underway in and around the …
South China Sea
Big U.S. Fleet Nears Disputed Islands, But What For?
The South China Sea: From Bad to Worse
TOKYO – Territorial disputes in the South China Sea are about to get a whole lot worse — and at the worst possible time.
Whether the U.S. can avoid being dragged into a shooting match will depend on how far Beijing and its …
U.S. Takes A Pass — For Now — On China Sea Disputes
TOKYO – The territorial disputes in the South China Seas are over, China has won, and the U.S. couldn’t care less. But that’s not necessarily bad.
While arguments over who owns which reefs, rocks and lagoons in the South …
Tokyo Puts a Pro in Charge — for a Change
TOKYO – Japan finally has a defense minister who knows what he’s doing – and it couldn’t come at a worse time. Satoshi Morimoto, a prominent national security analyst and government advisor who served in both the Japan …
“Delicate Dance” for Panetta in China’s Backyard
TOKYO – When U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta arrives in Singapore this week to talk about containing China – and that’s really what this trip is all about — he’ll find plenty of support from friends in the region. …
Clock Ticks On China-Japan Islands Dispute
TOKYO – Japan has one year, maybe two, to resolve the ownership dispute over a tiny group of islands or risk an honest-to-goodness shooting war with China. Unfortunately, neither Japan’s diplomats nor public seem to realize …
A Risky Game Over Japan’s Disputed Islands
TOKYO – Whether it’s a genuine attempt to steer Japan’s foreign policy or a clever ploy to annoy political leaders in both Japan and China, Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara’s plan to buy three disputed islands in the East …
Marines on Okinawa: Time to Leave?
TOKYO – More than six decades after U.S. Marines stormed ashore on Okinawa, it may finally be time for them to go home. Japan Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on Friday fired his defense minister, in part for missteps and verbal …
China Syndrome
It’s plain China is our Next Big Enemy. All the experts say so. And even if it isn’t, we have to prepare for war with it in case it comes true. Yum! The self-licking ice cream cone never tasted so good.
So folks are marshalling arguments either to support or knock that notion. Here’s a handy list from the American Enterprise …
“Is China Getting Ready to Try and Kick the U.S. Out of the Western Pacific?”
Continuing this week on Command Post, our tour of the national-security challenges associated with the Middle Kingdom. John Nagl, of the Center for a New American Security, and I ask if China, beginning to flex its military muscle, is readying to tell the Pentagon: the western Pacific is ours, so scram! We’re joined in the discussion …
Japan Worries About China Nukes
TOKYO – Never mind natural resources or national pride.
China’s rapid military modernization and aggressive territorial claims are rooted in the calculus of nuclear deterrence, according to defense analysts in Japan.
Sumihiko Kawamura, deputy director of the conservative Okazaki Institute in Tokyo, says China has claimed …
“How Big a Threat Does China Pose?”
This week on Command Post, John Nagl of the Center for a New American Security and I probe the threat — or whatever it is — posed by China. We’re joined in the discussion by David Finkelstein, retired Army officer and director of China studies at the Pentagon-funded Center for Naval Analyses, and Patrick Cronin, CNAS’s director …