May. 26, 2013 - By PAUL KALLENDER-UMEZU – Defense News

TOKYO — After almost seven decades of maintaining a limited defense posture, Japan should develop its amphibious and pre-emptive strike capability while bolstering sea- and ground-based ballistic-missile defenses, according to policy proposals by the country’s ruling party.

The proposals, obtained by Defense News and released to a select group last week ahead of widespread distribution, were drawn up by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). They also call for Japan to beef up its space-based early warning systems and invest in cyber defense.

The proposals were generated by several internal LDP committees led by former LDP Defense Ministers Shigeru Ishiba and Gen Nakatani, and therefore carry considerable weight, according to Narushige Michishita, director of the Security and International Studies Program at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies here.

“They’re important,” he said.

The recommendations will feed into policy, spending and acquisition priorities for Japan’s next five-year Mid-Term Defense Plan, which is being crafted by the Defense Ministry and will be published by December.

They also come as the LDP administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe seeks to revise Article 9 of Japan’s constitution to delete provisions that prohibit Japan from using “war as a sovereign right of the nation” and maintaining “war potential,” and replace them with the right to hold a “National Defense Force” under the prime minister as commander in chief.

The LDP’s policy proposals do not name weapon systems or suggest budgets, and are deliberately more vague than similar proposals drawn up by the LDP in 2009, just before the party suffered a disastrous electoral defeat to the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ).

“The LDP was not in power then [in 2009],” and so could be more direct, Michishita said.

The 2009 proposals openly discussed Japan acquiring, for example, the Boeing KC-46 tanker refueling plane as a step toward developing pre-emptive strike capability, such as knocking out fueled North Korean missiles. They also suggested adding the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to Japan’s ship-based Aegis and ground-based Patriot systems.

Fast forward four years, and the proposals come from a resurrected LDP that delivered an even bigger electoral defeat to the DPJ last December. This time around, the language is more cautious because each word has more value.

While they carefully avoid all reference to Japan’s major sources of concern — China and North Korea — the proposals open intriguing possibilities over the extent to which Japan will strengthen its defense posture. In this context, Japanese defense planners are considering a number of options for each of the force enhancements, according to analysts and people familiar with the LDP’s discussions.

Most interesting and controversial is the proposed discussion of pre-emptive strike capability, which would require Japan to acquire Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs), long-range refueling capability for its nascent F-35 Joint Strike Fighters and/or a naval platform for the F-35B jump jet, should Japan opt to purchase that variant.

The proposals make no mention of the KC-46 this time around. The Air Self-Defense Force, meanwhile, has steadily equipped its fleet of Mitsubishi F-2 multirole fighters with JDAMS. It is thought that the two 19,500-ton 22DDH-class helicopter destroyers planned for the Maritime Self-Defense Force can be converted to carry the F-35B.

In 2003, before Japan had deployed its Aegis SM-3 and Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) ballistic-missile defense (BMD) systems, then-Defense Minister Ishiba made it clear that Japan could launch a strike against a missile base in North Korea in specific sets of circumstances.

For example, a strike could take place if there was evidence the missiles were fueled and aimed at Japan, and Japan had no other credible means of defense, Michishita said.

But now Japan is steadily building out its BMD systems to intercept North Korea’s longer-range Unha and Musudan mobile intermediate-range ballistic missiles, so such a strike would be potentially unconstitutional, he said.

Brad Glosserman, executive director of the Pacific Forum, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said he found recent talk of Japan bolstering its pre-emptive strike capability worrying.

“CSIS has been conducting discussions on the issue of pre-emptive strike for six years, and in recent months, we have seen resumption of calls to develop this capability resurface. I am concerned about the proliferation of these capabilities because of the potentially destabilizing consequences,” he said.

Japan probably won’t develop a separate marine corps, but it will more likely reinforce its amphibious capability, largely based on the Western Infantry Regiment of the Ground Self-Defense Forces (GSDF) that trained in amphibious warfare as part of the Iron Fist exercises with the US Marine Corps in California, analysts say.

Paul Giarra, president of US-based consulting firm Global Strategies & Transformation, said the language of the policy proposal opens the possibility of the GSDF equipping one or perhaps two regiments with advanced capabilities, including up to four dozen amphibious landing vehicles over the next five years, beyond the four AAV-7A1S vehicles already planned, and a suitable number of Bell-Boeing V-22 tilt-rotor Osprey aircraft.

“I read it more as the [Japan Self-Defense Forces] with some improved amphibious capabilities like vehicles and tilt-rotor aircraft. That is potentially a significant development, but the LDP does not look like it wants to go the whole hog on a marine corps,” said Christopher Hughes, professor of international politics and Japanese studies at Britain’s University of Warwick.

Japan is considering several options to boost its BMD portfolio, consisting of four Kongo-class destroyers and two larger Atago-class Aegis cruisers, and PAC-3 units. While the 2009 version of the proposals specifically mentions purchasing THAAD and an “advanced” version of the PAC-3, the new version recommends strengthening land-based BMD, leaving Japan a choice between purchasing either THAAD or the Aegis Ashore land-based version of the Aegis system, and the PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) system for last-ditch interdiction.

Giarra said deploying the PAC-3 MSE would complement Aegis Ashore, which Japan has shown an interest in purchasing to the tune of one or two 24-missile interceptor batteries, a number that could increase. In this case, purchasing THAAD systems might be too much of an overlap of similar capabilities, he suggested.

Japanese defense planners see cruise missiles in general and China’s DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missile in particular as growing threats. This means that on top of the planned upgrades to employ the SM-3 Block IIA Aegis system when it becomes available, Japan also is considering purchasing the extended-range anti-air warfare RIM-174 missile.

“Cruise missile defense is becoming as important to Japan as ballistic-missile defense,” Michishita said.

Hughes said the proposals face many roadblocks, including opposition from more dovish LDP members and the MoD’s own panel scheduled to meet in January, which may have its own priorities. Last but not least is the Ministry of Finance, which will be unwilling to raise the defense budget under any circumstances.

“[But] if Abe/the LDP can pull all this off, then it will be very radical indeed,” Hughes said.

Regional Concerns

Japan’s moves will likely be welcomed across a region concerned about China’s aggressive territorial claims.

“Japan and the Philippines have a strained history, but the Filipinos are for a stronger Japan because Tokyo is helping train its Coast Guard,” Giarra said. “South Korea is less dependent on Japan and tensions run deeper, so it’s much less willing to go along with it.”

Tensions soared last week after Osaka’s mayor said forced prostitution in occupied nations was a military necessity for invading Japanese forces, prompting a South Korean newspaper to write that US atomic attacks on Japan were “divine punishment” for Tokyo’s brutality.

Some in Asia and Washington worry Japan’s nationalist leader believes Japanese forces did nothing wrong during World War II.

“Passive support for Japan will hold unless Japanese behavior changes,” Giarra added. “The question is whether Japanese officials can resist the temptation to undo what they believe were unnecessary apologies for wartime actions they don’t believe were wrong.

“The feeling of being wronged is as powerful in Japan as it is the other way around in Korea, Philippines, Indonesia . . . Germany dealt with its past and continues to do so, but Japan suppressed the issue, creating pent up pressure, and when it vents, it could change how this buildup is seen.”

02 juin 2013 Romandie.com (AFP)

YOKOHAMA (Japon) - Le Premier ministre japonais a annoncé dimanche le versement de 750 millions d'euros en cinq ans pour aider à stabiliser la région nord-africaine du Sahel et la formation de 2.000 personnels sur place pour la lutte anti-terroriste.

Le Japon va fournir 100 milliards de yens (750 millions d'euros) sur cinq ans pour le développement et la stabilité du Sahel, a déclaré Shinzo Abe lors de la conférence internationale de Tokyo pour le développement de l'Afrique (Ticad).

Ce soutien financier apporté par l'Etat nippon entre dans le cadre d'un paquet de 10,6 milliards d'euros d'aide publique au développement sur cinq ans pour l'Afrique, annoncée samedi par M. Abe à l'ouverture de ce sommet à Yokohama (région de Tokyo) auquel participent une quarantaine de chefs d'Etat et de gouvernement africains.

Le Premier ministre japonais a tenu à détailler la partie de cette assistance dédiée à cette vaste zone comprise entre l'Afrique du Nord et l'Afrique sub-saharienne et comprenant des territoires de nombreux pays dont le Mali, la Mauritanie, le Niger, l'Algérie, le Tchad, le Soudan et la Lybie.

Le Japon attache beaucoup d'importance à cette région, particulièrement depuis une prise d'otages mi-janvier au complexe gazier d'In Amenas dans le sud de l'Algérie, au cours de laquelle dix ressortissants nippons avaient été tués.

Quelques jours après cette tragédie qui avait traumatisé le pays, Tokyo avait annoncé un don de 120 millions de dollars pour aider à stabiliser la région, somme à laquelle viennent s'ajouter les fonds annoncés dimanche.

Cette assistance permettra de renforcer les protections sociales, avec un accent mis sur l'alimentation, l'éducation et la santé, avec également un soutien pour les femmes et les jeunes, a détaillé M. Abe, pour qui cela ramènera l'espoir d'un développement économique dans la région et contribuera ainsi à sa stabilité.

En plus de ce volet d'aide au développement, le Japon va fournir un soutien distinct aux pays de la région, dédié spécifiquement à la lutte contre le terrorisme et au maintien de la sécurité.

Nous formerons 2.000 personnes pour les opérations anti-terroristes et le maintien de la sécurité, a précisé le chef du gouvernement japonais.

Parmi les pays du Sahel confrontés à des troubles, le Mali fait l'objet d'une attention particulière et une force onusienne de 12.600 hommes doit y prendre le relais des quelque 4.000 soldats français déployés en janvier et qui ont chassé du nord du pays - avec l'appui de contingents d'Afrique occidentale - les groupes armés islamistes qui avaient conquis ce vaste territoire.

01/06/2013 vietnamplus.vn

En marge du 12e Dialogue Shangri-La organisé à Singapour, le général Nguyen Chi Vinh, vice-ministre de la Défense, chef de la délégation vietnamienne à cet événement, a eu samedi des rencontres bilatérales avec des responsables de la défense de certains pays participants.

Il a travaillé avec les ministres malaisien, néo-zélandais et australien de la Défense, et ses homologues singapourien, russe, sud-coréen et du Brunei, ainsi que le commandant de la Flotte pacifique des Etats-Unis et le chef adjoint d'état-major de l'Armée populaire de Libération de Chine, Qi Jianguo.

Lors de ces rencontres, les deux parties ont passé en revue les relations militaires bilatérales et échangé leurs points de vue sur la situation de la sécurité régionale. Elles ont également discuté des mesures afin de renforcer les relations dans la défense sur la base des liens d'amité traditionnelle et promouvoir les liens de coopération et de développement sur la base du respect commun.

Elles ont émis le souhait de trouver la voix commune sur les problèmes importants dans la défense de la région et du monde comme la paix, la guerre, la sécurité de navigation maritime, la lutte contre le terrorisme...

Le général Nguyen Chi Vinh a affirmé que le Vietnam souhaitait la poursuite de construire et consolider les relations d'amitié et de coopération avec les pays, dont en matière de défense.

Il a hautement apprécié le soutien des pays pour la position du Vietnam dans l'édification de l'environnement de paix et de stabilité dans la région sur la base du respect du droit international sans oublier de remercier les pays d'avoir aidé l'Armée du Vietnam dans plusieurs domaines. -VNA

June 2, 2013 by WiseApe – Think Defence

A Report to Congress posted on AviationWeek gives the IOC dates for the three versions of F35, along with their respective software blocks

29 May 2013 By Zach Rosenberg - FG

Washington DC -- The US government will greatly relax export restrictions on satellites and most components, according to a Federal document published on 24 May.

The change to what is known as the International Trafficking in Arms Regulations (ITAR) has long been sought by the US satellite industry, which has been largely restricted from selling satellites and components abroad, leading to a near-total loss of market share.

The change moves satellites from the US Munitions List (USML), meant to restrict the sale of weapons and dual-use items, to the Commerce Controlled List for economically sensitive but non-militarised goods. Effectively, the move declares that satellites are not necessarily for military use.

The regulations were initially put into place after two US commercial satellites were lost during separate launches in China. It became clear to many that China was using the post-accident investigation to gather sensitive data, and the US Congress subsequently passed a law moving satellites to the USML, and removing presidential authority to shift them back.

Only after the US share of the commercial satellite market went from near-total dominance to near-total irrelevance did opinion shift back in the other direction. Congress restored presidential authority with language in the 2013 military budget.

The satellite industry is "pleased that the Administration has moved quickly to right-size the rules that govern exports of satellites and their parts and components, just a few months after Congress restored their authority to do so," says Patricia Cooper, president of the Washington, DC-based Satellite Industry Association. "We view sensible and effective export controls as a vital tool to enhance our nation's space industrial base and encourage the satellite sector's ongoing leadership in innovation and investment."

01/06/2013 medi1.com (MAP)

 Le ministre espagnol de la défense Peter Morenés a ordonné le renforcement de la sécurité des forces armées du pays, suite aux attaques survenues dernièrement contre des militaires à Londres et à Paris.

Dans une déclaration à la télévision publique espagnole "TVE", M. Morenés a indiqué avoir chargé le chef d'état-major de la défense (JEMAD), l'amiral Fernando Garcia Sanchez, de prendre des mesures de sécurité à l'intérieur et hors d'Espagne après les attaques de Londres et de Paris contre des militaires.

"Nous avons pris des mesures préventives. j'ai demandé à la JEMAD de s'occuper de tous, à l'intérieur et hors d'Espagne, et de prendre des mesures", a dit le ministre à la télévision espagnole, avant de participer à l'acte de célébration de la journée des forces armées, célébrée samedi à Madrid.

Le ministre a, d'autre part, annoncé que l'Espagne va envoyer une section de protection au Mali qui "permettra de renforcer la sécurité des troupes espagnoles sur place et aussi des alliés".

Un soldat français avait été agressé dernièrement à l'arme blanche alors qu'il patrouillait en tenue à Paris. Son agresseur a été interpellé par la police. Quelques jours auparavant, un militaire britannique a été tué à Londres par deux individus à coups de couteau et de hachoir.

2 juin, 2013 – BBC Afrique

En négociation sous la médiation du Burkina Faso, les groupes armés touareg qui contrôlent Kidal, dans le nord-est du Mali, affichent leur position concernant la situation de la ville mais du reste du Nord-Mali, qu'ils appellent Azawad.

Affichant une position commune, les délégations du Mouvement national de libération de l'Azawad (MNLA) et du Haut conseil pour l'unité de l'Azawad (HCUA), écarte toute présence de l'armée malienne à Kidal.

Ils posent, par ailleurs, comme conditions à toute négociation avec le gouvernement malien, le retrait des militaires maliens d'autres zones du Nord ou la future force onusienne, la Minusma, prendrait leur relève.

Le porte-parole de cette nouvelle coalition de mouvement touareg, Moussa Ag Attaher, a expliqué que l’armée malienne "est incapable d’assurer la sécurité de l’ensemble des citoyens sans faire la distinction".

Le gouvernement malien de transition a fixé au 28 juillet le premier tour de la présidentielle en soulignant que le scrutin se déroulera sur tout le territoire national.

31.05.2013 par P. Chapleau – Lignes de Défense

130 soldats du 92e régiment d'infanterie ont regagné Clermont-Ferrand ce vendredi après-midi (photo cellule Com 92e RI). Désormais, tous les 350 militaires du régiment sont de retour en métropole après quatre mois passés au Mali.

Deux compagnies de combat d’infanterie équipées du VBCI (Véhicule blindé de combat d’infanterie), une équipe de mécaniciens et une partie de l’état-major, soit environ 350 soldats du régiment, avaient été déployées, fin janvier 2013, en urgence au Mali. Hommes et blindés étaient passés par le Sénégal avant un long raid blindé en deux étapes, de Dakar à Bamako puis de Bamako à Gao.

Durant les 4 mois de leur mission, les fantassins du 92e régiment d’infanterie ont participé à la recherche et la destruction des groupes terroristes. Les "Gaulois" se sont illustrés lors des violents combats dans les localités et zones désertiques du centre et nord du Mali ; ils ont notamment contribué à la sécurisation de la ville de Gao et de son aéroport.

01/06/2013 Sources : EMA

Les 29 et 30 mai 2013, le détachement français stationné sur la base aérienne de Šiauliai, a participé à un entraînement OTAN intitulé Baltic Region Training Event XV (BRTE XV).

L’objectif de cet exercice qui s’est déroulé en Lettonie était d’entraîner les moyens aériens de l’OTAN ainsi que la chaîne de commandement et de contrôle, et de renforcer l’interopérabilité des forces aériennes des pays membres.

31 Mai 2013 Jean-Dominique Merchet

Un livre des journalistes Isabelle Lasserre et Thierry Oberlé

L'intervention française au Mali (opération Serval), qui a démarré de manière fracassante le 11 janvier dernier, était dans les cartons depuis 2009. Une planification de l'état-major, baptisée Requin, prévoyait alors quasiment ce qui advenu cet hiver. Et qui a failli être déclenché à plusieurs reprises sous la présidence Sarkozy... Puis après l'élection de François Hollande, qui juge le dossier malien prioritaire, tout se met en place à partir du 31 octobre 2012. L'offensive des djihadistes en janvier servira de coup de sifflet pour y aller.  C'est ce que racontent deux journalistes du Figaro, Isabelle Lasserre et Thierry Oberlé, qui publient un livre, écrit à chaud et de lecture agréable, sur "Notre guerre secrète au Mali".

Attention, il ne s'agit pas d'un récit détaillé des opérations militaires depuis janvier - à la manière de Jean-Christophe Notin sur l'Afghanistan ou la Libye.   Les fana-milis, passionnés de la mécanique militaire, resteront sans doute sur leur faim. C'est un ouvrage de synthèse qui explique le pourquoi et le comment de cette guerre.  Une lecture conseillée à ceux qui veulent comprendre ce que fait la France au Mali, et plus largement au Sahel.

L'ouvrage revient sur les causes de cette crise, c'est-à-dire à la fois la déliquescence de l'Etat malien et la montée en puissance des groupes terroristes au Sahel, comme AQMI, qui trouvent leur origine dans la guerre civile algérienne. Les auteurs se penchent sur la question des otages, comme sur celle de l'islamisme radical. Ils retracent les causes immédiates de la guerre toujours en cours ainsi que le processus qui a conduit à l'intervention française. Sans cacher, par exemple, combien Serval a été l'objet de tensions au sommet de l'Etat et des armées, où une nouvelle architecture du pouvoir politico-militaire est apparue, plus centrée sur le ministre de la Défense qu'auparavant. En conclusion, le livre aborde les conséquences de Serval, notamment sur la question européenne ou des choix du Livre blanc.

Isabelle Lasserre et Thierry Oberlé "Notre guerre secrète au Mali" Fayard, 248 pages, 17 euros.

May 31st, 2013 defencetalk.com (AFP)

The European Union’s decision to lift its arms embargo on the Syrian opposition has provided Russia with a new defence of its controversial weapons deliveries to President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Russia reacted with fury to the EU’s decision Monday — advocated primarily by Britain and France — to lift its arms embargo on the rebels fighting to oust Assad.

Moscow, a key backer of Assad, has since escalated its sabre-rattling, announcing it intends to keep its contract to supply the Syrian regime with sophisticated S-300 missiles, which can shoot down both incoming missiles and warplanes.

Russia’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu implied Wednesday that the EU’s decision had untied Moscow’s hands, hinting that Russia could now supply weapons banned by international treaties.

“Every decision has two sides. If one side lifts its restrictions, then the other side may no longer feel compelled to keep its previously adopted obligations,” Shoigu said while on a visit to Helsinki.

Analysts said the comments reflected the Kremlin’s apparent belief that it was obligated to support its biggest Middle East ally in the face of what it perceives as the Arab world and the West’s unfair support for the rebels.

One of the biggest questions now is whether Moscow will in fact follow through on its threat to supply Syria with S-300s — a prospect that even brought Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Russia for private talks with President Vladimir Putin earlier this month.

Israel has already implied it might wipe out any S-300 shipments with new bombing raids, with Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon warning on Tuesday that Israel would “know what to do” if Russia delivered the missiles to Assad.

Regional expert Alexei Malashenko of the Carnegie Moscow Centre said that “Russia could use the EU embargo to strengthen its own position concerning the S-300 deliveries.”

“They are going to use this argument,” said Malashenko.

But he added that Russia was unlikely to fulfil its S-300 contract if Moscow and Washington were successful in their ongoing efforts to arrange a Syria peace conference to get the two warring sides engaged in their first round of direct talks.

The prospects for such a meeting at this stage look fleeting because of sharp divisions in the opposition and divergent views in Russia and the West about which regional players should be invited to the talks.

Foreign and Defence Policy Council think-tank chairman Fyodor Lukyanov called the EU embargo lifting and Russia’s 3-300s threat a diplomatic “game” that the two sides were playing while the situation on the ground deteriorated.

“You are seeing both sides use the same arguments,” Lukyanov said.

“They are saying that in order to push the two sides toward peace, you have to put pressure on the other side,” he added.

“And to do that, the European Union is supporting the opposition, and Russia — Assad.”

June 1, 2013 By Zachary Keck - Flashpoints

India’s Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) is expected to approve a proposal to deploy 40,000 additional troops along the 4,057-km line of actual control (LAC) that acts as the border between China and India, the Times of India reported Saturday morning.

“The Army has proposed a mountain strike corps, two independent infantry brigades and two independent armored brigades to plug its operational gaps along the entire line of actual control (LAC) with China, as well as to acquire offensive capabilities,” the newspaper report said.

It continued:

“The proposed mountain strike corps, with over 40,000 soldiers and headquartered at Panagarh in West Bengal, will for the first time give India the capability to also launch offensive action into Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) in the event of a Chinese attack.”

The new forces would be part of a larger plan to strengthen India’s defenses along its northern border with China and western border with Pakistan. Between 2009 and 2010, India beefed up its LAC presence by raising two new infantry divisions consisting of 35,000 troops.

The government is also planning on spending around US$4.6 billion building infrastructure on the Indian side of the LAC, and will deploy more mechanized elements and restructure troop formations to achieve greater mobility. The mountain strike corps would be part of India’s goal of having a rapid response force along the border.

The CCS’s approval of the plan will come after the Ministry of Defense (MoD) responds to questions raised by the Ministry of Finance, the Times of India report said. Previously, the MoD had said raising the extra 40,000 troops would cost $14.3 billion, which would be spread across India’s 12^th Five Year Plan (2012-2017) and could even stretch into the 13^th Five Year Plan (2017-2022).

Back in March, India’s Defense Minister AK Antony told Parliament the army also intended to raise 30 infantry battalions during the 13^th Five Year Plan, although these wouldn’t necessarily be stationed along the LAC. According to The Indian Express, the cost of raising these 30 infantry battalions would be similar to the US$14.3 billion that raising the 40,000 troops for the LAC will cost.  

Indian officials maintain that their decision to beef up forces along the LAC is a response to what they perceive as China’s military modernization in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR). In particular, Indian lawmakers and officials have previously expressed alarm with the infrastructure modernization in the TAR, including the construction of five airbases, new rail networks and 58,000 km of new roads.

India’s concern is that the PLA could use this new infrastructure to mobilize large numbers of troops along the LAC more rapidly. According to Indian press accounts, with the new roads and railways the PLA can amass 30,000 troops in around 20 days compared to the 90 days it previously would have taken them.

Although the plan to deploy an additional 40,000 troops along the LAC has been under consideration for some time now, moving forward has taken on a greater sense of urgency for many Indian officials in the wake of the three week standoff along the LAC that began in April.