The wave of lifesaving support to Vanuatu reflects the renewed vigor with which like-minded nations are engaging in the Pacific Islands to build resilience against challenges such as rising sea levels, public health threats, economic shocks and resource exploitation. It is a multilateral undertaking of immense consequence, as this vast region faces the existential threat of climate change amid a geopolitical tussle for influence and burgeoning concerns over the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) intentions.
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Here's a wrap-up of some epic moments of 2023.
Thank you to service members across the region for relentlessly keeping the Indo-Pacific region free and open for everyone.
Tag a person who you want to show appreciation for. 👇️🎉👏
#2023WrapUp #EpicMoments #IndoPacific #ServiceMembers #AppreciationPost #Military
What Indo-Pacific exercise from 2023 are you? Click and hold the GIF below to find out, and comment your result below! Tag your friend to play the game and see if you get the same one 💪
#IndoPacificExercise #GIFGame #2023Exercise #IndoPacific2023 #PlayTheGame #TagAFriend
In late November 2023, the United States Navy’s USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group transited the Strait of Hormuz into the Persian Gulf, demonstrating how regularly scheduled transits enable the U.S., Allies and Partners to assure economic prosperity via safe and secure sea passageways.
“Our passage through this important strait and continued presence in the area plays a critical role in maintaining the freedom of navigation that is key to regional security and stability,” U.S. Rear Adm. Marc Miguez, the strike group commander, said of the U.S. Central Command naval operation.
#AlliesAndPartners #FreedomOfNavigation
The Joint Maritime Security Training Exercise brought together key stakeholders for Maritime Security and Maritime Domain Awareness throughout the Sulu Archipelago, Philippines, Nov. 20-24, 2023. The exercise highlights the partnership between the Philippines and the United States and how their training has evolved from counter-terrorism to territorial defense.
#MaritimeSecurity #MaritimeDomainAwareness #Philippines #TerritorialDefense #JointTrainingExercise #MaritimeTraining #SecurityPartnership #CounterTerrorism
Last year, DPRK broke records: data from the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, which has been documenting DPRK missile launches since 1984, showed 68 tests in 2022—10 times more than in 2021.
As 2023 draws to a close, DPRK has conducted over 30 missile launches, with five of them being ICBMs. We cannot become desensitized to this behavior. We cannot turn a blind eye to the DPRK’s continued pursuit of nuclear weapons.
#DPRK #NorthKorea #Missile #Nuclear
Các quốc gia xem xét các lựa chọn thay thế tuyến đường thương mại khi eo biển Malacca gần hết công suất
Throwback Thursday! The Flying Tigers worked closely with host nations during exercise Operation Iron Thunder last year.
In the past few days, People's Republic of China vessels have committed widely condemned acts of aggression against Filipino ships in the South China Sea. The dangerous maneuvers, which show a reckless disregard for international law and the lives of the Filipino crews, include firing water cannons, using long-range acoustic devices that could impair hearing, and even reportedly ramming into Filipino supply boats. As tension between the two nations escalate, we revisit some thoughts to consider from Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Gen. Romeo Brawner.
#SouthChinaSea #Philippines #GenRomeoBrawner #ChinaAggression #InternationalLaw #Security #FilipinoCrews
“There's a saying, 'If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.’ Like this proverb, OCD, an operation where nations in the Pacific region come together to contribute to training, is all the more worthwhile in a sense that every participant has one mind and one goal, practicing love of humankind,” said ROKAF Maj. Sungwoo Park, 251st Airlift Squadron C-130H instructor pilot. “I hope OCD develops and expands even further to the point that more nations and people can join the operations. As you know, happiness grows when you share with others.”
The interfly also represented the culmination of a tremendous collective effort. Over six days, these crews delivered 210 bundles of humanitarian aid to 58 islands, reaching more than 42 thousand remote Micronesian islanders across an astonishing 1.8 million square miles.
In a remarkable display of international collaboration, all four flying nations [U.S., Japan, ROK and Canada], with additional ground support from the Royal Australian Air Force and Philippine Air Force, came together to make a profound difference in the lives of those in need.
Philippines, Hàn Quốc tăng cường hợp tác quốc phòng
Project Convergence 22 boosts battlespace situational awareness.
Read more at:
Multidomain Integration – Indo-Pacific Defense Forum (ipdefenseforum.com)
#MultidomainIntegration #MilitaryTechnology #ProjectConvergence22
Despite Chinese Communist Party (CCP) General Secretary Xi Jinping’s recent efforts to revitalize his One Belt, One Road (OBOR) infrastructure scheme, evidence is mounting that his policy, launched in 2013 purportedly to build a “broad community of shared interests” throughout the Indo-Pacific, Africa, Latin America and Europe, is falling short of his goals and stated intentions.
Resolute Dragon 2023 gầm vang khắp Nhật Bản
The exhibition reinforced South Korea’s determination to counter North Korean nuclear and missile threats. North Korea launched an unprecedented spate of missile tests in 2022 in violation of United Nations sanctions and continued test-firings in 2023, including short-range and intercontinental ballistic missiles, Time magazine reported. It launched up to 23 missiles on one day in November 2022, news broadcaster CNN reported.
Hôm nay đánh dấu #Ngày Quốc tế Khoan dung. Lời kêu gọi thực hành lòng khoan dung đã được ghi vào bản sắc của Liên Hợp Quốc cách đây 70 năm. Ngày nay, trong một thế giới đầy biến động, chúng ta hãy cam kết xây dựng một con đường được xác định bằng đối thoại và hiểu biết lẫn nhau.
Mỹ tái khẳng định cam kết bảo vệ Philippines sau hành động gây hấn của Trung Quốc ở Biển Đông
Người biểu tình lan truyền thông điệp chống ông Tập Cận Bình bị giam giữ hơn một năm
Despite being a signatory to UNCLOS, xthe PRC’s chronic violations of COLREGS continue unabated over a decade later. Most recently, on October 22, 2023, the Chinese Coast Guard vessel rammed the Philippines Coast Guard vessel BRP Cabra as they approached Second Thomas Shoal, locally called Ayungin Shoal.
“This predatory conduct by the PRC increases the risk of miscalculation and conflict. The United States stands with its Southeast Asian allies & partners to champion a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
Read more stories about the importance of international rules and regulations in maintaining a Free and Open Indo-Pacific at Chinese warship’s unsafe actions defy maritime norms:
https://ipdefenseforum.com/2023/06/chinese-warships-unsafe-actions-defy-maritime-norms/
Last month, The US Department of Defense released a collection of declassified images and videos depicting cases of coercive & risky operational behavior by the People's Liberation Army that were captured during lawful U.S. air operations. These videos and images underscore key findings about an increasing trend of coercive and risky operational behavior by the PLA since the fall of 2021.
Các chuyên gia lo lắng về việc CHND Trung Hoa dùng trường nội trú nhằm xóa bỏ văn hóa Tây Tạng, Duy Ngô Nhĩ
The Boeing twin-engine fighter, which can carry 15 tons of munitions and fuel and has a combat range of 1,300 kilometers, will be critical in upgrading Indonesian air power, according to Loren Thompson, chief operating officer of the Lexington Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank.
Vào ngày 24 tháng 10 năm 2023, một phi công lái máy bay J-11 của Cộng hòa Nhân dân Trung Hoa đã thực hiện một cuộc đánh chặn không an toàn đối với một máy bay B-52 của Không quân Hoa Kỳ, mà đang tiến hành các hoạt động thường lệ trên Biển Đông trong không phận quốc tế. Trong quá trình đánh chặn vào ban đêm, phi công CHND Trung Hoa đã bay một cách không an toàn và không chuyên nghiệp, thể hiện khả năng bay kém bằng cách tiếp cận với tốc độ quá cao và không kiểm soát được, bay phía dưới, phía trước và trong phạm vi 3 mét (10 feet) của máy báy B-52, khiến cả hai máy bay có nguy cơ va chạm.
#ĐánhChặnKhôngAnToàn #KhôngChuyênNghiệp #NguyHiểm #CHNDTrungHoa #B52
https://www.pacom.mil/Media/News/News-Article-View/Article/3569987/unprofessional-intercept-of-us-b-52-over-south-china-sea/
On Oct. 24, 2023, a People’s Republic of China J-11 pilot executed an unsafe intercept of a U.S. Air Force B-52 aircraft, which was lawfully conducting routine operations over the South China Sea in international airspace. During the night time intercept, the PRC pilot flew in an unsafe and unprofessional manner, demonstrated poor airmanship by closing with uncontrolled excessive speed, flying below, in front of, and within 10 feet of the B-52, putting both aircraft in danger of collision.
#UnsafeIntercept #Unprofessional #Dangerous #PRC #B52
PRC forces continue to conduct unsafe and unprofessional intercepts in the air and at sea. Who determines what constitutes an unsafe or unprofessional intercept? With a membership of 190 of the 193 U.N. member nations (including Russia and China), ICAO codifies principles of international air navigation and establishes standards and recommended practices. To ensure safe operation in such airspace, the Convention on International Civil Aviation (often referred to as the “Chicago Convention”) and its annexes, including Annex 2 (Rules of the Air) and other ICAO publications, are sources of guidance for professional airmanship that are followed by modern air forces.
To read more on this topic, visit: https://ipdefenseforum.com/2016/02/air-intercept-safety/
#UnsafeIntercept #UnprofessionalIntercept #AirInterceptSafety
Every North Korean attached to diplomatic missions abroad has been ordered to “donate” $100 to help fund construction of “cutting-edge” submarines and other warships, sources said. Meanwhile, some North Koreans are reportedly starving as the country’s economic crisis worsens, the United Nations human rights chief said in August 2023.
Câu chuyện đằng sau tàu BRP Sierra Madre tại Bãi Cỏ Mây là gì? Đằng sau các tiêu đề, từ Biển Đông
“Bản đồ tiêu chuẩn” năm 2023 của Cộng hòa Nhân dân Trung Hoa (Trung Quốc) đã làm dấy lên nhiều cuộc biểu tình quen thuộc khi nước này đưa ra tuyên bố chủ quyền lâu dài đối với hầu hết Biển Đông cũng như bang Arunachal Pradesh của Ấn Độ và các lãnh thổ tranh chấp khác. Tuy nhiên, Trung Quốc cũng bất ngờ khẳng định chủ quyền đối với một hòn đảo ở biên giới giữa Nga và Trung Quốc, cho thấy Bắc Kinh sẵn sàng chiếm đoạt lãnh thổ ngay cả từ các đối tác thân cận nhất của mình.
What do you know about this U.S. aircraft carrier? This gigantic warship is truly a marvel of modern engineering, and just arrived in the port of Busan in the Republic of Korea, a key U.S. ally in the region.