TOKYO, 25 oct 2012 marine-oceans.com (AFP)

Quatre navires gouvernementaux chinois sont entrés jeudi matin dans les eaux territoriales d'îles administrées par le Japon mais revendiquées par la Chine, ont annoncé les garde-côtes nippons.

Trois premiers navires de surveillance maritime avaient pénétré peu après 06H30 locale (21H30 GMT mercredi) dans cette zone de 22 km entourant Minamikojima, une des îles Senkaku de mer de Chine orientale (appelées Diaoyu par Pékin), ont précisé les garde-côtes.

Ils ont été rejoints par un quatrième bâtiment une heure plus tard, ont-ils ajouté.

Par ailleurs, deux navires de l'administration chinoise des pêches ont également été repérés à la limite de ces eaux territoriales en face d'une autre des îles de ce petit archipel.

La tension est montée au début septembre lorsque le gouvernement japonais a décidé de nationaliser plusieurs de ces îles, en les achetant à leur propriétaire privé nippon.

Pékin avait immédiatement décidé d'envoyer six navires vers l'archipel, tandis que démarrait une semaine de manifestations antijaponaises, parfois violentes, à travers la Chine, visiblement avec l'approbation tacite des autorités.

Ces manifestations ont rassemblé des dizaines de milliers de personnes dans des dizaines de villes, dont Pékin, jusqu'à la mi-septembre, contraignant de grands groupes japonais, notamment automobiles, à provisoirement stopper leur production totalement ou partiellement.

Depuis lors des navires de surveillance maritime et de l'administration des pêches chinoises sont entrés plusieurs fois dans les eaux territoriales de ces îles - soit à moins de 22 km de leurs rivages -, tout comme des bateaux des garde-côtes de Taïwan qui les juge siennes également.

Le 16 octobre, sept navires militaires chinois, dont deux destroyers, étaient passés à proximité d'autres îles de l'extrême sud du Japon, sans toutefois entrer dans les eaux territoriales.

Outre des répercussions économiques, cette crise bilatérale a considérablement alourdi le climat politique et diplomatique entre les deux premières puissances de la région: Pékin a décidé de ne pas envoyer son ministre des Finances ni le gouverneur de sa banque centrale au sommet du FMI début octobre à Tokyo.

Fin septembre, la Chine avait également "suspendu", dans la réalité annulé, les célébrations qui devaient marquer le 40e anniversaire de la normalisation des relations diplomatiques entre les deux pays.

Le jour prévu de cette célébration, le 29 septembre, le ministre chinois des Affaires étrangères, Yang Jiechi, avait accusé le Japon d'avoir "volé" ces îles, depuis la tribune de l'ONU.

25.102012 Pacific Sentinel

Oct. 24, 2012 - By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI  Defense News

NEW DELHI — India will increase spending on naval forces in the next 10 years but is unlikely to raise total defense spending above the current level of a little under 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), despite encouragement to do so from some experts, said an official of India’s Planning Commission.

A Defence Ministry official said buys of weapons and equipment, worth $100 billion, will be made in the next seven to 10 years from both domestic and overseas sources. The purchases will focus on “maritime security, increase in firepower assets for mountain warfare, precision guided munitions — ground-based and air-to-ground, military intervention capabilities,” said Gurmeet Kanwal, retired Indian Army brigadier general and defense analyst.

Defense spending on sea-based assets will increase as the Navy will need to add warships to maintain a fleet strength of about 140; maintain three aircraft carriers; and purchase additional submarines, aircraft and helicopters.

The Navy also plans to double its strength of aircraft to 500 in the next 10 to 12 years, a Navy official said. Unspecified numbers of UAVs, air defense missiles, heavyweight torpedoes for subs and a dedicated satellite will be procured.

Defence Ministry sources said another 12 P8I long-range maritime reconnaissance (LRMR) aircraft may be ordered from Boeing.

The Navy bought eight P8I LRMR aircraft in January 2009, and an order of four more was awarded to Boeing in 2010 for about $1.1 billion.

“India needs to improve its military infrastructure and force levels, particularly in the sea, keeping in mind China’s forays into the Indian Ocean,” said Nitin Mehta, a New Delhi-based defense analyst.

China inducted one aircraft carrier last month and plans to have three carriers by 2016.

Indian defense planners will also have to pay more attention to the Chinese influence in the Arabian Gulf, once U.S. troops leave Iraq, creating a gap of influence in the region, Mehta added.

“The Indian Navy will need to do some fast thinking to match the Chinese influence, not only in the Indian Ocean but also in the Persian Gulf,” Mehta said

October 23, 2012: Strategy page

India is revising the terms of its deal to work with Russia to build a rival for the American F-22/F-35 “5th generation” fighters. India is insisting on building more of the new T-50 (or PAK-FA) in India and outfit Indian T-50s with Indian or Western electronics and other equipment. As part of this change India will buy fewer T-50s built in Russia. That order has been cut from 200 to 144. Russia says the T-50 will now enter service in 2019, but India is willing to delay its version an additional year or more in order to modify the “T-50I” to Indian specifications.

Earlier this year it was revealed that the T-50 has been delayed two years. It will now, barring more delays, be ready for mass production in 2019. India was not happy about this. India is picking up half of the $6 billion dollar development cost and feels they are not having enough say in how the project proceeds. A two year delay means rising costs and the Russians have not announced any budget changes yet. Moreover, the $6 billion only covers work on the basic aircraft. All the avionics will be extra, and India is unclear of how much extra. That’s apparently the main reason why India is now going to supply its own electronics, something the Russians are not happy about and are unable to prevent. India has had serious (and expensive) problems with Russian development cost projections before. India originally planned to buy 250 of the new T-50s, for about $100 million each. That number fell to 200 and now 144. An increasing number of Indians now see the T-50 possibly following the same cost trajectory as the F-22.

The T-50 prototype first flew two years ago and India will get its first flyable prototypes in two years. Russians and Indians have been doing a lot of tinkering with the design. While the T-50 is the stealthiest aircraft the Russians have, it is not nearly as stealthy as the F-22, or even the F-35 or B-2. The Russians are apparently going to emphasize maneuverability instead of stealth. India wants more stealth and would prefer a two-seat aircraft. There are also problems perfecting the engines for the T-50 and the defensive electronics. This puts the T-50 at a big disadvantage against the F-22 or F-35, which try to detect enemy aircraft at long distance, without being spotted, and then fire a radar guided missile (like AMRAAM). These problems are apparently the main reason for the two year delay.

The T-50 is a 34 ton fighter that is more maneuverable than the 33 ton Su-27, has much better electronics, and is stealthy. It can cruise at above the speed of sound. It also costs more than twice as much as the Su-27. Russia is promising a fighter with a life of 6,000 flight hours and engines good for 4,000 hours. Russia promises world-class avionics, plus a very pilot-friendly cockpit. The use of many thrusters and fly-by-wire will produce an aircraft even more maneuverable than earlier Su-30s (which have been extremely agile).

The T-50 is not meant to be a direct rival for the F-22 because the Russian aircraft is not as stealthy. But if the maneuverability and advanced electronics live up to the promises, the aircraft would be more than a match for every fighter out there except the F-22. If such a T-50 was sold for well under $100 million each there would be a lot of buyers. For the moment the T-50 and the Chinese J-20/30 are the only potential competitors for the F-22. Like the F-22 development expenses are increasing and it looks like the T-50 will cost at least $120 million each (including a share of the development cost) but only if 500 or more are manufactured. Russia hopes to build as many as a thousand. Only 187 F-22s were built because of the high cost. American developers are now seeking to apply their stealth, and other technologies, to the development of combat UAVs. Thus by the time the T-50 enters service, in 7-10 years, it may already be made obsolete by cheaper, unmanned, stealthy fighters.

The latest American warplanes, the F-22 and F-35, are often called "5th generation" fighters. This leaves many wondering what the other generations were. The first generation of jet fighters was developed during and right after World War II (German Me-262, British Meteor, U.S. F-80, Russian MiG-15). These aircraft were, even by the standards of the time, difficult to fly and unreliable (especially the engines). The 2nd generation (1950s) included more reliable but still dangerous to operate aircraft like the F-104 and MiG-21. The 3rd generation (1960s) included F-4 and MiG-23. The 4th generation (1970s) included F-16 and MiG-29. Each generation has been about twice as expensive (on average, in constant dollars) as the previous one. But each generation is also about twice as safe to fly and cheaper to operate. Naturally, each generation is more than twice as effective as the previous one. The Russians are still working on their 5th generation, although some of the derivatives of their Su-27 are at least generation 4.5. One of the reasons the Soviet Union collapsed was the realization that they could not afford to develop 5th generation warplanes to stay competitive with America. The Russians had a lot of interesting stuff on the drawing board and in development, but the bankruptcy of most of their military aviation industry during the 1990s has left them scrambling to put it back together ever since. At the moment the Russians are thinking of making a run for the 6th generation warplanes, which will likely be unmanned and largely robotic.

Oct. 24, 2012 - By WENDELL MINNICK  Defense News

TAIPEI — As European and U.S. defense budgets face aggressive cuts while their governments tackle massive debt, Asian countries are continuing to spend significant amounts on defense without signs of slowing.

The top five defense spenders in Asia — China, India, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan — captured 87 percent of Asian defense spending in 2011, according to a study released by the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group under the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

The study, “Asian Defense Spending, 2000-2011,” indicates that the five spent a combined $224 billion in 2011, almost twice the amount spent by those same five countries in 2000. And there have been shifts among the top spenders.

“Until 2005, Japan had the largest defense budget in Asia. Since 2005, China has been the biggest spender on defense, having previously replaced India as the second-biggest spender in 2001,” the CSIS report says.

“Many nations in the Asia-Pacific, and especially in South and Southeast Asia, were focused for several years on developing internal power,” said Abraham Denmark, senior project director for political and security affairs at the Washington-based National Bureau of Asian Research.

“As states resolve domestic security and development problems, they are increasingly looking beyond their borders,” he said.

As internal security issues have been resolved or stabilized in China and India, both countries have spent more to recapitalize their Navy and Air Force. Both are becoming increasingly aware of the need to protect sea lanes of communication, secure fishing and oil rights, and face down new challenges over maritime territorial claims.

Japan, South Korea and Taiwan have bolstered their ballistic missile defenses with new Patriot Advanced Capability systems, long-range early warning radars, and improved command-and-control systems. All five are looking at stealthier options to replace fourth-generation fighters. China and India are pursuing indigenous development while Japan, South Korea and Taiwan are heavy favorites to buy the Lockheed Martin F-35.

The unanswered question the authors of the CSIS report are asking is whether defense spending in Asia will continue to climb, “with Asian defense spending projected to overtake that of Europe by the end of 2012,” or whether the same economic forces eating away at European and U.S. defense budgets will begin to do the same in Asia.

The report indicates that defense spending “visibly accelerated” after 2005.

“These steeper growth trajectories in recent years might be a precursor for continued significant increases in defense spending, especially in light of large, high-profile investment decisions such as India’s Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) selection, Japan’s F-35 order, or South Korea’s F-X-3 multi-role fighter competition,” the report says.

Taiwan also has a requirement to replace aging Mirage 2000 and F-5 fighters within the next five to 10 years. The U.S. has denied a request for 66 F-16C/D fighters since 2006 and now Taipei is examining a possible bid for F-35s in 2020.

China has recently revealed two new fifth-generation fighter programs, the J-20 Black Eagle and the J-31 Falcon. China is also expected to invest additional funds to build three new aircraft carriers within the next five years, said analysts, and is aggressively developing the J-15 Flying Shark carrier-borne fighter for its future carrier fleet.

Between 2000 and 2011, China’s defense spending increased at the highest rate among the five countries, the CSIS report says, with an 11-year compounded annual growth rate of 13.4 percent. South Korea was the second fastest with a 4.8 percent rate, and India and Japan with 3.6 and 3.5 percent, respectively. Taiwan experienced the lowest increase in spending at 1.8 percent despite procuring more than $17 billion worth of new arms from the U.S.

South Korea will have to rethink its naval recapitalization efforts in the face of island territorial disputes with Japan and China’s increased naval activity in the region. Seoul has already shifted funds from the Army to the Air Force and Navy over the past five years, said Scott Harold, a Hong Kong-based Asia defense specialist with Rand Corp.

Japan is facing challenges from both China and South Korea over island disputes. At the same time, it is still reeling from a devastating tsunami that has shaken its political and economic foundations. With an aging population and higher taxes to cover its expenses, the military is moving to lift arms export restrictions to raise much-needed cash for future procurements.

India has been largely disappointed by the quality of its arms procurements from Russia, Harold said. The Russian aircraft carrier program has been a “disaster,” he said, and, for the next few years, India will focus on border problems with China and Pakistan, and securing control over the Indian Ocean, he said.

25.10.2012 Pacific Sentinel

WASHINGTON, October 25 (RIA Novosti)

The United States will continue expanding its global missile shield in Asia, including in South Korea, to counter a possible missile threat from North Korea, US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said.

“First of all, with regards to any provocations from the North, I think it's very clear that South Korea and the United States have a strong cooperative relationship and that, when those provocations occur, that we will work together to determine what kind of response should be provided if necessary,” Panetta said after a meeting with his South Korean counterpart Kim Kwan Jin.

The top US defense official said he already agreed with his colleague that both the United States and South Korea will be watching closely after the developments in North Korea.

“With regards to future missile defense, that's an area that we continue to discuss in order to make sure that we have all of the defenses necessary to deal with the missile threat coming from North Korea, and whatever steps are necessary to try to make sure that we're prepared for that,” he said.

“We just deployed, or we just talked about deploying a TPY-2 radar system to Japan specifically in order to protect against that kind of missile threat, and we will continue to work with our friends in the region to further develop that kind of capability,” Panetta added.

Earlier in the month the North Korean military said that the US mainland was within the strike range of its strategic missile forces.

In October 2006, North Korea became the world’s eighth nuclear power, conducting an underground nuclear weapons test.

Although the country’s nuclear program and its development of long-range missile systems has been condemned by the international community, Pyongyang has vowed to continue its controversial missile development program.

North Korea has already deployed a number of domestically-built missiles, including some capable of hitting the American territory of Guam in the Pacific, in addition to South Korea and Japan.

23/10/2012 Sources : EMA

Du 12 octobre au 26 octobre 2012, les forces armées en Nouvelle Calédonie (FANC) conduisent l’exercice Croix du Sud sur la Grande Terre, île principale de l’archipel. Cet exercice, interarmées et multinational, est organisé tous les deux ans, sous le contrôle opérationnel du général commandant supérieur des FANC.

L’exercice Croix du Sud constitue un rendez-vous majeur pour l’entrainement des forces armées du Pacifique Sud-ouest. Il a pour but d'entraîner les FANC et leurs partenaires de la région à conduire une opération d'assistance humanitaire, suivie d'une évacuation de ressortissants, dans un contexte multinational. Il permet de développer la coopération et l’interopérabilité entre les forces participantes. La France, et principalement les forces de souveraineté du théâtre Pacifique (FANC et FAPF), a toujours été fortement engagé dans cette zone avec une participation aux opérations de maintien de la paix (MINUT au Timor oriental en 1998) et aux missions d’assistance (tsunami de 2004, cyclones aux Tonga et Fidji en 2009 et 2010).

Pour l’édition Croix du Sud 2012, la France, représentée par les FANC et renforcées par les FAPF, engage 680 militaires. A ces côtés,  huit nations participent à l’exercice : Australie, Nouvelle-Zélande, Papouasie Nouvelle-Guinée, Royaume des Tonga, Vanuatu et pour la première fois Etats-Unis, Royaume-Uni et Canada. Cette forte participation donne à l’exercice une ampleur particulière avec 1260 militaires, 7 bâtiments et 9 aéronefs ainsi que des moyens logistiques conséquents.

La première séquence de Croix du Sud a consisté à conduire un exercice d’intégration de la force ou Force Integration Training (FIT), phase qui permet de donner une cohérence initial à la force : tir, exercice amphibie, actions héliportées et aéroportées, mise en pratique des procédures d’évacuation sanitaire (EVASAN), reconnaissances d’itinéraire, PASSEX… sans oublier le travail nécessaire des échelons de commandement.

La participation à cet exercice conforte la position de la France comme contributeur de premier plan au maintien de la sécurité en zone Pacifique et comme partenaire important à la coopération régionale. Dans le cadre de la transformation des armées, les FANC et les FAPF agissent de manière complémentaire et forment le « théâtre » Pacifique. Les FANC constituent le point d’appui central du « théâtre » avec un dispositif interarmées centré sur un GTIA avec les moyens de projection associés. Les FAPF quant à elles constituent un dispositif interarmées à dominante maritime.

24.10.2012 Pacific Sentinel

24.10.2012 Pacific Sentinel

Oct. 22, 2012 - By WENDELL MINNICK  Defense News

TAIPEI — Just one month after China’s first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, was commissioned, photographs are appearing on the Internet of the Shenyang J-15 Flying Shark fighter jet operating over the ship.

The photographs have appeared on Chinese-language military blogs and government-run newspapers. The images show the J-15 flying just above the carrier deck, along with a photograph of a Changhe Z-8 search-and-rescue helicopter taking off from the deck.

“The latest imagery shows that China is continuing to progress toward a genuine carrier capacity, possibly with an initial operation capability around the middle of this decade,” said Douglas Barrie, senior fellow for military aerospace at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, U.K.

“Imagery of a prototype of the Shenyang J-15 show the aircraft being flown on practice final approaches and over-flying the deck, likely as part of the initial trials for carrier operation,” he said.

The J-15 is modeled on the Russian Sukhoi Su-33 carrier-based fighter and is being developed by the Shenyang Aircraft Corp. China obtained a prototype Su-33 (T-10K-7) from Ukraine, said a new report by the Moscow-based Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, “Shooting Star: China’s Military Machine in the 21st Century.” In 2009, China built the first prototype of the J-15 and outfitted it with the Shenyang WS-10A turbofan engine.

Though the photographs are surprising, none of the photos of the plane show a tailhook deployed, and all show the plane in the air behind the carrier’s ski jump, “so it clearly had not done a takeoff from the ship,” and “more likely a touch-and-go or fly-by,” said Roger Cliff, a China defense specialist for the Washington-based Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.

Cliff said it will be several years before China has a carrier with a fully operational air wing, “although that is in part because they probably don’t have enough carrier-capable aircraft right now, and in part because the Liaoning isn’t big enough for a full wing of aircraft.”

When China begins carrying out flight operations at maximum operating tempo, launching and landing aircraft has to be a carefully choreographed operation, he said.

“If you want to get all your combat aircraft in the air at the same time, you have to be able to bring them up from the hangar deck and launch them in rapid succession,” Cliff said. “Otherwise, the first planes to take off will have burned through half their fuel by the time the last aircraft takes off. When the mission is complete, you have to be able to recover them one by one and get them out of the way before the last one runs out of gas.”

Then comes the demands of required maintenance, refueling and rearming the planes as quickly as possible, and “then things get really complicated if you are trying to launch and recover at the same time,” he said. “The less efficiently you do all this, the fewer sorties you generate, and the less effective combat power the carrier has. I’m sure they will master all that in time, though.”