China

North and South Korea Agree to Hold Military, Red Cross Talks

While the on-again, off-again summit meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong Un is still in flux, the divided Korean states, both North and South have agreed to conduct military and Red Cross talks later this month. They are trying to finally end the war that began 68 years ago and hopefully set the table for families to be able to reconnect since the war began.

The rivals also agreed at a meeting of senior officials at the border village of Panmunjom to soon establish a liaison office at the North Korean border town of Kaesong and hold sports talks on fielding combined teams in some sports at the Asian Games in August, as they continue to take steps toward reconciliation.
South Korea says building trust with North Korea is crucial amid a U.S.-led diplomatic push to persuade the North to give up its nuclear weapons.
The high-level meeting between the Koreas followed talks in New York between U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and senior North Korean envoy Kim Yong Chol on a possible summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. American delegations are also meeting with North Koreans at Panmunjom and in Singapore.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reported that “good progress” has been made with North Korea and setting up the meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong Un.

The US is pressing a demand for “complete, verifiable, irreversible denuclearization.” The US has promised the North Koreans security guarantees as well as helping them achieve economic prosperity.

To read the entire article from Fox News, click here:

Photo: screenshot of North and Korean leaders meeting

US Disinvites China from Pacific Military Exercise

The continuing escalation of tension between the United States and China has been ratcheted up even more with the U.S. disinviting the Chinese from participating in an upcoming international naval exercise to be held off Hawaii.

Among other things, the U.S. is upset of China’s militarization of small islands in the South China Sea. China’s foreign minister criticized the U.S. decision calling it “very unconstructive” and “unhelpful.”

The move is in response to China’s continued placement of military hardware on seven artificial islands in the Spratly Island chain that it claims as its territory.
“China’s continued militarization of disputed features in the South China Sea only serves to raise tensions and destabilize the region,” said Lt. Colonel Christopher Logan, a Pentagon spokesman.
“As an initial response to China’s continued militarization of the South China Sea, we have disinvited the PLA Navy from the 2018 Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) Exercise,” he added. “China’s behavior is inconsistent with the principles and purposes of the RIMPAC exercise.”
Held every two years, this year’s version of the RIMPAC exercise was to begin in late June and end in early August. The exercise is largest international Navy exercise, with 27 nations slated to participate in this year’s version.
China’s navy participated in a limited role in the 2014 and 2016 versions of the exercise.
The move to rescind the invitation to participate in this year’s exercise is directly pegged to China’s buildup of large-scale air and sea facilities on the seven artificial islands it has built up in the Spratly Islands.
In 2015, Chinese President Xi Jinping made assurances to President Barack Obama that China was not seeking to militarize the islands, but satellite photos indicate China has consistently placed military equipment on the islands, and built up runways and port facilities that could be used by China’s military.
“We believe these recent deployments and the continued militarization of these features is a violation of the promise that President Xi made to the United States and the World not to militarize the Spratly Islands,” said Logan.
“We have strong evidence that China has deployed anti-ship missiles, surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems, and electronic jammers to contested features in the Spratly Islands region of the South China Sea,” said Logan. “China’s landing of bomber aircraft at Woody Island has also raised tensions.”
State Councilor Wang Yi labeled the rescinding of the invitation “very unconstructive” and “unhelpful to mutual understanding.”

Wang has stated that China is only building civilian and some necessary defense facilities on their own islands,” he said.

He added that the Chinese retain their right to self-defense and compared the construction to what the U.S. does on their bases in Guam and Hawaii.

To read the entire article from ABC News, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

On This Date in 1954, The French Surrender at Dien Bien Phu

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was the culminating piece of the guerrilla war fought between the French and the Viet Minh from 1949 until the garrison was overrun and the French withdrew from the country.

After fighting a losing guerrilla war, the French dropped paratroopers and Foreign Legionnaires into Dien Bien Phu, a small mountain outpost on the border with Laos. The base was ringed by mountains with the base occupying lower ground, which would prove to be decisive.

The siege began in late November 1953 and by March the Viet Minh with massive Red Chinese support were ready to attack and they kept the pressure upon the French, slowly sinking the perimeter of the base and closing the airfield until they capitulated on May 7, 1954, nine years to the day that the Germans surrendered in World War II in Europe.

When it was over, the French were out of Vietnam and the Geneva Accords temporarily would split the country at the 17th parallel between North and South Vietnam and the United States would get dragged into the fray.

Background: As World War II was winding down, Ho Chi Minh tried to establish a free Vietnam, free from French colonial rule once the Japanese were ousted from South East Asia. Just hours after the Japanese surrender, Ho proclaimed the independent Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

In 1946, Ho accepted a French proposal to allow Vietnam to function as an autonomous state within the French union. But the French soon reneged on that and tried to reassert colonial rule. That began an increasingly costly and bloody guerrilla war.

By 1953, the French had grown weary of the guerrilla war and had gone thru a series of commanders. In May of 1953 French Premier René Mayer appointed Henri Navarre as the commander of the French Union forces in Indochina. In a book by historian LTG Phillip Davidson, Navarre’s first impressions were not favorable.

On arrival, Navarre was shocked by what he found. There had been no long-range plan since de Lattre’s departure. Everything was conducted on a day-to-day, reactive basis. Combat operations were undertaken only in response to enemy moves or threats. There was no comprehensive plan to develop the organization and build up the equipment of the Expeditionary force.
Finally, Navarre, the intellectual, the cold and professional soldier, was shocked by the “school’s out” attitude of Salan and his senior commanders and staff officers. They were going home, not as victors or heroes, but then, not as clear losers either. To them the important thing was that they were getting out of Indochina with their reputations frayed, but intact. They gave little thought to, or concern for, the problems of their successors.

The French were hoping to repeat a victory at Nà Sản, where they established an air/land base in the Viet Minh’s rear area to deny him unfettered access to equipment, supplies, and reinforcements and cut off their attempts to take Laos.

But Navarre’s staff planners made several critical blunders that would lead to disaster. First, at Nà Sản, the French controlled the high ground and had a massive superiority in artillery. At Dien Bien Phu the base was surrounded by high peaks that the Viet Minh would ring with artillery. And the French troops would be outnumbered 4-1.

Opening Moves: The French began dropping paratroopers into Dien Bien Phu on the 20th of November 1953. Utilizing three different drop zones, the French had landed six battalions of airborne troops and a bulldozer to complete the airstrip by the end of November.

The French commander, Colonel Christian de Castries was a poor choice to direct the defenses. He was a cavalryman by his training and unsuited for a set-piece battle. He set up seven outposts each code-named with names starting with the first seven letters of the alphabet.

Christian de Castries, French Commander at Dien Bien Phu.

The French force totaled about 16,000 troops and included airborne troops, Foreign Legionnaires as well as Moroccan mercenaries and local troops. They also had ten light M-24 Chaffee tanks and aircraft. The French failed to secure the high ground surrounding the valley which was a tactical blunder and the Viet Minh quickly filled the gaps around the high ground where they massed their artillery. The Viet Minh commanded by Võ Nguyên Giáp had much more artillery than the French envisioned there and had more than five divisions with 50,000 men.

By the end of January, the Viet Minh began sporadic shelling of the base and the French patrols were finding contact in every direction. Dien Bien Phu was surrounded.

The Outposts Fall One by One: The Viet Minh were ready by March 13, 1954, and opened fire with extremely well-aimed artillery fire on Outpost Beatrice. One artillery round took out the entire French command group. By 1800, a massive infantry assault hit the French lines and by midnight they had overrun the base. Over 500 Legionnaires were killed. In the morning, a French counterattack was stopped cold by massed artillery fires.

The Viet Minh artillery had been skillfully dug into the sides of the mountains. French counter-battery fire was completely ineffective. By the second day, the French artillery commander, Colonel Charles Piroth, so distraught over his inability to fire on the enemy committed suicide by using a hand grenade in his bunker.

On the morning of March 14, the Viet Minh next turned their attention to Outpost Gabrielle. Following a massive bombardment, the French airstrip was now permanently put out of commission. All supplies would now have to be delivered via air drops. The tough Algerian troops holding Gabrielle were hit with a coordinated attack at 1700 hrs and were then reinforced by elements of the 5th Vietnamese Parachute Battalion early the next morning.

The counterattack failed and the Algerians abandoned Gabrielle to the Viet Minh. The die was already cast. The French could not hold Dien Bien Phu and now their enemy could rain down direct artillery fire right into their positions.

The Outpost Anne Marie was manned by troops of the Tai minority in Vietnam, but loyal to the French. For weeks, Giap had rained down leaflets telling the Tai, that this wasn’t their fight. During the night of 17 March under heavy fog, the Tai abandoned their posts and Anne Marie was lost.

The French in Hanoi realized too late the blunder of putting de Castries in command, but with no airstrip functioning, they were powerless to change. To the chagrin of his paratrooper officers, de Castries remained in his bunker and virtually had no feel whatsoever of the battle all around him.

Mass Assaults on Dominique and Eliane: On March 30, the Viet Minh attacked the Outposts Dominique and Eliane where some of the most brutal fighting took place.

After taking half of Eliane, the French unleashed a powerful counterattack that took it back. But the next day, the Viet Minh rushed in more reinforcements and took it back again. Just as it seemed the French would lose their grip on the outposts, the M-24 light tanks entered the battle and were instrumental in forcing the Viet Minh back.

The fighting took on a World War I feel to it with both sides taking part in trench warfare. The Viet Minh massed their troops for another assault and were hit hard by French aircraft providing close air support.

Morale of the Viet Minh units which had taken a lot of casualties plummeted. Giap was forced to bring in fresh troops from Laos. The fighting went back and forth like this for several weeks.

The Viet Minh Final Attacks Overrun the French: By the first of May, the French defenses were wearing down under the sheer weight of the attacking forces. Isolated outposts inside Eliane, Dominique and Huguette were overrun. The situation was becoming desperate for the French defenders. By May 7, Giap had 25,000 troops surrounding just 3,000 defenders. Giap ordered a full frontal assault.

The French radio operator inside the command bunker radioed French headquarters that the enemy troops were directly outside the headquarters bunker and that all the positions had been overrun. His last words stated: “The enemy has overrun us. We are blowing up everything. Vive la France!”

The remaining troops tried to breakout but none made it out of the valley. On one outpost, Isabelle, about 70 of the 1700 troops made it to Laos and safety.

French prisoners march to prisoner of war camps. Less than half would survive the 500 mile-forced march.

Death March: The Viet Minh captured 8000 French soldiers of which nearly half were wounded. They then marched them 500 miles on foot to their prisoner of war camp. Less than half of them survived the march. Of the nearly 11,000 total prisoners (French and Vietnamese) the Viet Minh captured, only 3290 were repatriated four months later.

The disastrous outcome for the French would set the stage for the United States to become involved in the war between North and South Vietnam.

Photos: Wikipedia

US Pilots Told to Beware of China’s Use of Lasers Near Airfield in Djibouti

United States military pilots have been warned to beware of possible laser attacks near China’s first overseas military base in Djibouti amid increasing signs of friction between the two armed forces in the Horn of Africa.

The military issued a Notice to Airmen, later reproduced on the US Federal Aviation Administration’s website, that there had been multiple events “involving a high-power laser” just 750 meters (2,400ft) from China’s base in Djibouti.

“Use extreme caution when transiting near this area,” the notice added.
Multiple intelligence sources reported that Chinese garrison in Djibouti is suspected of operating a high-power laser weapon to temporarily blind pilots at the base or on a ship offshore, according to a report in Jane’s Defence Weekly last month.
But Chinese military observers said the lasers might have been used to scare off birds near the airfield or disrupt possible spy drones, rather than targeting foreign pilots.
They also pointed out that China is a signatory to the Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons, which bans the use of lasers that cause permanent blindness.
“The Chinese and US bases in Djibouti are really close, so one could disturb the other if the two sides don’t have a proper communication mechanism,” said Zhou Chenming, a Beijing-based military analyst.
Zhou noted that China has already publicly demonstrated its use of laser weapons against drones at air exhibitions.
As the US has increasingly eyes China as a strategic rival, the proximity of the two bases in Djibouti means the two sides will be involved in a “quiet contest” to gather information about each other, according to Ni Lexiong, a Shanghai-based military expert, although neither side “would announce this openly”.
Work began on the 36-hectare Chinese base in 2016, which was to be used a logistics hub to resupply vessels taking part in peacekeeping and humanitarian missions off the coasts of Yemen and Somalia. Weeks after the base opened at the start of August 1 the troops based there started live-fire drills.

The Chinese accused the Japanese of using frogmen attempting to gather information about their ships. The Japanese responded that they were simply doing maintenance on their own ships. But the Chinese are flexing their muscles across the Pacific and this situation will bear watching.

To read the entire article from South China Morning Post, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Russia, China Strengthen Ties to Challenge US in the Middle East

U.S. sanctions against Russia have resulted in pushback from Moscow. The Russians and Chinese have pledged to strengthen their bilateral military and political ties to challenge U.S. interests everywhere but especially in the Middle East. Moscow has one of its biggest allies in Syria and the Russians are surprisingly taking the side of Iran as well in this latest development.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu met Tuesday with Air Force General Xu Qiliang, deputy vice chairman of China’s Central Military Commission, and other regional military officials as part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in the eastern city of Qingdao. As increasingly powerful Russia and China build up their clout on the world stage, they sought a more united front against the U.S., which frequently challenged their rise.
“Time changes everything,” Shoigu said, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. “But, fortunately, it does not change our relations both personally between us and between our states, and the very close, friendly relations of the heads of our states serve as a guarantee of this.”
Shoigu praised “the privileged character of intergovernmental ties” evidenced by numerous meetings between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, both of whom secured enough national support to extend their terms last month. He said the two nations were continuing “their strategic course toward further boosting friendly and trustworthy ties in the defense sphere,” calling this relationship “an important factor for maintaining global and regional security.”
The U.S. and its allies have accused Assad of using chemical weapons in rebel-held territory, and President Donald Trump has twice ordered missile strikes against Syrian government facilities. The U.K. and France joined in the latest and most intense round earlier this month, despite warnings not only from Russia and Iran, but China as well, all of whom doubt Assad’s role in alleged toxic gas attacks. China has also joined Russia, Iran and other countries in investing in the war-torn country’s reconstruction.

The Russians characterized the recent gas attack and resultant Allied coalition response as “Western Style”, in a play on words that may mean their dropping the pretext of no gas attack happened to the U.S. and coalition did it to allow a missile attack.

To read the entire article from Newsweek, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

China Vows Military Action to Stop US Weapons Sale to Taiwan

Syria isn’t the only area of the world with escalating violence. In Asia, the Chinese have stated that they will use military action to stop any attempts to support of Taiwan, through U.S. weapons sales to the island nation.

The Chinese Ministry of Defense blasted the State Department’s recent decision to grant U.S. firms the marketing license to sell Taiwan technology necessary for building submarines. The move came at a tense time for U.S.-Chinese relations as President Donald Trump slapped new tariffs on his economic rival, prompting Beijing to do the same. Both sides warned of a potential trade war.
“China firmly opposes the U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, this is clear-cut and consistent. Taiwan is a part of China. One-China principle serves as the political foundation for the China-U.S. ties,” ministry spokesman Senior Colonel Wu Qian said, according to the official China Military Online.
“China’s military has the ability and determination to defeat all attempts to separate our country, and will adopt all necessary measures to resolutely defend national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity,” he added.
As part of the One China Policy adopted by the U.S. in 1972, Washington only recognizes China’s mainland government. A civil war saw Communist fighters force the Nationalist Kuomintang leadership into exile in Taiwan, which China claims to be part of its republic. Trump has challenged this notion and controversially accepted a congratulatory call from the Taiwanese president shortly after winning the November 2016 election.
China’s Foreign Ministry urged the United States to avoid official contacts with Taiwan, end attempts to substantially improve relations and stop military contracts for arms sales “so that China-U.S. relations and peace and stability across the Straits will not be severely damaged,” spokesman Geng Shuang said Monday during a regular press conference.

Trump’s reversal of the existing policy and his decision to sell arms to Taiwan is a huge sticking point with the Chinese who are on the verge of major expansion. They recently set up their first military base outside their territory in Djibouti and now have plans for another in Vanuatu among others.

To read the entire article from Newsweek, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

China Pledges Support to Russia Against the US

China has pledged its support to Russia as tensions between both superpowers and the United States have deteriorated into diplomatic sanctioning. The Chinese military made it clear, that they support Russia in any conflicts with the U.S.

In his first visit to Russia, newly appointed Chinese Defense Minister Wei Feng attended the seventh Moscow International Security Conference accompanied by a delegation of other high-level military officials. Emphasizing that his trip was coordinated directly with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Wei said that he had two major messages for Russia at a time when both nations were attempting to modernize their armed forces and strengthen their hands in global affairs in spite of U.S. fears.
“I am visiting Russia as a new defense minister of China to show the world a high level of development of our bilateral relations and firm determination of our armed forces to strengthen strategic cooperation,” Wei said at a meeting with Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, according to the state-run Tass Russian News Agency.
“Second, to support the Russian side in organizing the Moscow International Security Conference the Chinese side has come to show Americans the close ties between the armed forces of China and Russia, especially in this situation. We’ve come to support you,” he added. “The Chinese side is ready to express with the Russian side our common concerns and common position on important international problems at international venues as well.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart command what’s often considered the world’s second and third most powerful armed forces, respectively, behind the U.S. While the Pentagon has managed to retain a comfortable lead against its leading competitors, Moscow and Beijing have coordinated closely as they both aim to close this gap and check U.S. influence abroad.

With China expanding its influence beyond its borders for the first time and the increasing boldness of Russia, their mercenary troops attacked a US base in Syria and the recent poisoning of an ex-Russian spy in the UK, things are just beginning to heat up.

To read the entire article from Newsweek, click here:

Photo courtesy Russian MOD

China Modernizing Military by Increasing Spending by 8 Percent

China’s modernization program for their military forces looks to advance even fast as they will increase military spending 8.1 percent in 2018. With new stealth fighters and a second aircraft carrier being built, the Chinese military looks to project power far beyond its borders.

A budget document made available to the media before the opening of China’s 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing on Monday, reveals China will spend the equivalent of US$175 billion across all branches of the People’s Liberation Army.

The 8.1% increase is higher than last year’s announcement when it upped military spending by 7% over the previous year. In straight dollar terms, US military spending far outweighs China’s. The Pentagon has requested a budget of $686 billion in 2019, up $80 billion from 2017.
China’s budget announcement comes as President Xi Jinping, the commander in chief of the country’s armed forces, focuses on increasing both the sophistication and reach of the country’s military.
He’s also seeking to expand his influence within the upper echelon’s of China’s leadership with a change to the constitution to extend his term in office, possibly indefinitely.
Speaking to reporters Sunday, Zhang Yesui, a spokesman for the NPC, said that even with the latest increase, China spends less of its gross domestic product than other major military powers.
“A large part of the growth of the defense budget is to make up for the low military spending in the past and is mainly used to upgrade equipment and improve the welfare of servicemen and women and the living and training conditions of grassroots troops,” said Zhang.
According to the independent Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report on comparative military spending released last year, the US leads in total dollars spent, about three times that of China, and nine times that of Russia in third.

The Chinese do lack in one area, combat experience, having not had troops in combat since their short border war with Vietnam in 1979. What they lack in that area they make up for in intensive training.

As the Chinese army becomes more modernized, it is also getting leaner, they’re planning on cutting about 300,000 troops from the force, going below the one million mark for the first time since its founding.

To read the entire article from CNN, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

US Must Counter Russia, China in Middle East After Defeat of ISIS

With the defeat of Islamic State, both Russia and China are attempting to grow their influence across the Middle East, adding to the growing concerns for the United States, the commanding general of Central Command said on Tuesday.

Gen. Joseph Votel, head of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), described an array of steps those “great power” nations have taken to expand their military and political clout in a way that challenges American interests from Syria to Afghanistan.
Describing the chief issues facing the U.S. military in the region, Votel took aim at what he characterized as Moscow’s attempts to monopolize events in Syria, where the course of a grinding civil conflict was redirected by Russia’s military intervention in 2015.
Although President Vladimir Putin announced a drawdown of Russian forces from Syria in December, Moscow’s continued military support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has allowed his government to claw back areas under opposition control.
In Syria, “Moscow is playing the role of arsonist and firefighter . . . fueling tensions and then trying to resolve them in their favor, and then manipulating all the parties they can in order to achieve their objectives,” he said during testimony before the House Armed Services Committee.
The general blamed Russia for failing to enforce a U.N.-backed cease fire approved over the weekend. “Either Russia has to admit that it’s not capable, or it doesn’t want to play a role in ending the Syrian conflict here,” he said. “I think their role is incredibly destabilizing.”
Votel, meanwhile, said that Russia had “exaggerated” the threat posed by an Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan and had mischaracterized that group’s rise as an indication of a failed U.S. strategy.

Votel pointed out that the Middle East was being used as a testing ground for new weapons of the Russian military and that they have scant consideration for the effect that those have on the civilian populace. The Chinese, he said, have opened a base in Djibouti and are trying to sell arms to US allies while openly courting Iran.

Iran is another nation trying to greatly increase its influence. They’re pushing their agenda thru proxies in the region and the recent airstrikes by Israel in Lebanon of their bases there are in addition to other moves in Syria and Yemen.

To read the entire article from the Washington Post, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Chinese Military Working on Exoskeleton For Special Operations Forces

The Chinese military unveiled its second-generation military exoskeleton, a body brace designed to help infantry or Special Operations members carry some 100 pounds of weapons, supplies, and ammunition. Norinco, China’s state-owned manufacturer of armored vehicles and heavy ground munitions is the builder of the exoskeleton.

Compared to a previous Norinco exoskeleton, which came out in 2015, this second generation has a better battery, more robust hydraulic and pneumatic actuators, and a streamlined harness.
The new version is also lighter, which will likely reduce strain felt by the exoskeleton’s wearer, making it a better choice for troops in mountainous terrain. (Hence all the press photos that look like REI ads.) These refinements in weight, ergonomics, and power supply could also boost the second-generation exoskeleton’s coefficiency ratio. Basically: the higher the ratio, the less physical effort is needed to wear it.
A ratio of 5:1 means that the wearer’s body only needs to exert the effort it takes to carry 10 pounds in order to carry 50 pounds. The company’s also claiming that the reduced weight increases battery performance, which would make sense. Norinco’s first-generation exoskeleton had a top speed of 2.8 miles per hour, for 12 miles. They say this new version improves on that, but doesn’t say by how much.
Norinco isn’t the only Chinese exoskeleton builder. Last month, the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation’s (CSIC) 707th Institute showed off its own powered exoskeleton to senior Chinese military officers. CSIC is marketing theirs as ideal for the shipyard, where people are expected to carry huge loads. In addition, Chinese military engineers at EEAE have developed the L-70 exoskeleton, which we saw first in 2014 and again in 2016. Before that, the Nanjing Military Region’s General Hospital built an exoskeleton that helped its wearer lift up to 80 pounds.

The new exoskeleton is built very similarly to the one developed by Lockheed Martin for U.S. Special Operations troops that SOFREP profiled after the SOFIC conference last May. The write up on the American version can be found here:

This type of exoskeleton is a workable solution for SOF troops carrying a heavy load of equipment into battle. Not to be confused with the “pie-in-the-sky” TALOS system, the Iron Man suit is many years from having a working system, these can be used now.

To read the entire article from Popular Science, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia