China

Chinese Troops Meet Xi After Major Reshuffle in Government

Chinese President Xi Jinping urged his military’s leaders to improve modernization, fight the rampant corruption and have the Chinese military a world-class power by the middle of the century.

Meeting senior military leaders for the first time since the country’s new leadership was unveiled for all to see, Xi, who heads the military as well as the Communist Party, has made military modernization a key policy.

In his first publicly reported meeting with top officers since Wednesday’s unveiling of his new Standing Committee, a seven-man body that is the height of power in China, Xi pushed home his modernization message.
The military must ensure it is a world-class service by 2050, Xi said, in comments carried by state media, a goal he set last week at the opening of a key party congress.
The armed forces must “fully recognize the bright prospects for a strong military”, Xi told them. “Put into practice one hundred percent military construction.”
Though China has not fought a war in decades, it has been taking an increasingly assertive stance in the disputed East and South China Seas, as well as over self-ruled Taiwan, claimed by Beijing as its own, rattling nerves around the region.

While Xi continues to state that these measures are strictly for the defense of the country, the Chinese are pushing their influence far from their borders for the first time. Not only in the Pacific but outwards in the Indian Ocean as well. The Chinese opened a base outside its own borders for the first time in Djibouti and are pushing out commercial ports in Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Djibouti, and Tanzania.

To read the entire article from Reuters, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

U.S. Remains World’s Top Military Force, But its Power is Dwindling Rapidly

In an intriguing Op-Ed for Fox News, former Marine Dakota Wood says that the US’ military power is decreasing across the board while our enemies are getting stronger.

Wood was a 20-year member of the Marine Corps and is a The Heritage Foundation’s senior research fellow for defense programs and editor of the think tank’s 2018 Index of U.S. Military Strength. And he says the state of our military forces has been steadily eroding since 2011.

Since 2012, the Army has shrunk from 45 combat brigades to only 31. In February, Gen. Daniel B. Allyn, , informed the House Armed Services Committee that only a third of those brigades are considered combat ready and only three, count ‘em, three, would be able to deploy immediately to a combat zone.
The Marine Corps is shrunken, too. Its end-strength now stands at about 184.400—down from 202,000 five years ago. Training and equipment are woefully sub-par, as well.
Inadequate funding has hit Marine aviation units especially hard. Maintenance crews have to cannibalize some planes to keep others flying. Last December, only two out of every five Marine aircraft were even flyable. Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Glenn Walters warns that today’s Corps “is insufficiently manned, trained and equipped across the depth of the force to operate in an ever-evolving operational environment.”
Things aren’t much better for our air and sea forces. The Heritage Foundation’s Index of Military Strength assesses the Air Force as being 24 percent short of the 1,200 fighter jets it needs. As for keeping the aging aircraft it does have flying… it lacks 1,000 pilots and over 3,000 flight maintenance crew members. Only four of its 36 combat-coded squadrons are ready to execute all wartime missions.

And the Navy isn’t in much better shape with only 276 ships in the fleet, that is the smallest the Navy has been since the days prior to World War I. And while our military is being cut down, our adversaries are building theirs up. China has rapidly expanded its forces and now has a blue water navy capable of projecting power anywhere in the globe and opened its first overseas base in Djibouti.

The Russians have also beefed up their military in recent years and continue to prop up the dictator Assad in Syria while occupying the Ukraine. They also continue to tweak the US by buzzing American ships and overflying American cities, including Washington.

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

Photo courtesy DOD

Military Parts Dealer Found Guilty of Stealing Army Equipment

John Roberts, of Clarksville, Tennessee, a military equipment dealer was found guilty of conspiracy to steal and sell government property, two counts of violating the Arms Export Control Act and 10 counts of wire fraud.

Prosecutors said that he schemed with active duty soldiers at Ft. Campbell, KY to steal sensitive military material to sell to buyers in Russia, China, Mexico. Roberts faces up to five years in prison for conspiracy and up to 20 years for each count of arms export violations and wire fraud.

More than $1 million in weapons parts, body armor, helmets, gun sights and other equipment was stolen and sold in a vast black market, prosecutors said. Six soldiers and another civilian pleaded guilty. One testified that Roberts was given a tour of the base to see items to be stolen. Eventually, they brought equipment back from Afghanistan and sold it by the truckload.
More than $1 million in weapons parts, body armor, helmets, gun sights and other equipment was stolen and sold in a vast black market, prosecutors said.
Roberts, 27, testified that he did not know the soldiers were bringing him stolen equipment. He said the items he bought and sold were commonly found in surplus stores, gun stores and on eBay.

Roberts former business partner, Cory Wilson plead guilty to buying and selling stolen military equipment, wire fraud and violating the Arms Export Control Act. He stated that the pair would target soldiers who were young, broke and those who often needed money for drugs. He told prosecutors that they set up multiple accounts to sell the stolen items on eBay and would remove packaging designating the items as military equipment and use faked shipping labels to avoid suspicion by authorities.

To read the entire article from NBC News click here:

Photo courtesy Wikimedia

Chinese, US Generals Reach Deal to Reduce ‘Risk of Miscalculation’

Some of the top United States and Chinese military commanders have come to an agreement to improve communications between the two superpowers. Put in place to stop a potential powder keg from exploding into a shooting war, the pact will hopefully calm the tense standoffs on going in the South China Sea.

Representing the Trump administration, Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and his Chinese counterpart, Gen. Fang Fenghui, met at the People’s Liberation Army headquarters in Bejing and signed this joint staff dialogue mechanism on Tuesday.

According to the US Department of Defense, the agreement will enable the two militaries “to communicate to reduce the risk of miscalculation.”
Such communications are especially crucial now, officials said, “as the region and world are facing the dangers of a nuclear-armed North Korea.”
Dunford, who is currently visiting Asia, said the United States and China “have many difficult issues where we will not necessarily have the same perspectives,” according to a Defense Department statement.
He added improved military contacts would reduce the chances of “miscalculation.”

Both sides have been using provocative tactics since neither recognizes each other’s claims in the region. The US sailed a destroyer into waters the Chinese claim as territorial and a Chinese J-10 fighter flew within 300 feet of a US EP-3 surveillance aircraft forcing the US plane to take evasive maneuvers.

To read the entire article from CNN click here:

Photo courtesy Joint Chiefs of Staff

China Pushes Four-Point Peace Plan for Israel – Palestine to UN

China’s UN ambassador Liu Jieyi has urged the international community to support President Xi Jinping’s new four-point proposal to establish a fully independent Palestinian state and to end the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Jieyi said that Xi’s proposal is based on four proposals and that China’s diplomatic efforts will focus on a negotiated solution at a news conference on Monday. China’s attempt to increase their influence in the Middle East with the proposal and the meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Beijing last month goes against some of their earlier overtures where they were trying to avoid being dragged into the quagmire of war there.

Xi outlined the plan and not surprisingly the Chinese are courting the Palestinians who are the foe of the US’ biggest ally in the region Israel. As the Chinese are seeking to counter the US at every turn.

The four points are:
— Advancing the two-state solution based on 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital of a new Palestinian state;
— Upholding “the concept of common, comprehensive, co-operative and sustainable security,” immediately ending Israeli settlement building, taking immediate measures to prevent violence against civilians, and calling for an early resumption of peace talks;
— Coordinating international efforts to put forward “peace-promoting measures that entail joint participation at an early date”;
— Promoting peace through development and cooperation between the Palestinians and Israel.

Curiously absent from Xi’s proposal is the very sticking point that exists in every peace proposal between the two countries… Israel’s right to exist. Until the Palestinians and the rest of the neighbors who support them are willing to call for Israel’s right to exist as a nation, the hope for any lasting peace accord is slim.

While Abbas will say all of the right things for Xi, what will Tehran say to Israel’s right to exist? Don’t expect that to be forthcoming.

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

Photo courtesy UN

Chinese Military “Will Never Allow Threats to its Sovereignty”

Chinese President Xi Jinping in an attempt to assert total authority over their modernizing armed forces called on “capable, brave and virtuous soldiers with soul” to lead the nation’s armed forces. Jinping spoke in the Great Hall of the People to mark the 90^th Anniversary of the Peoples’ Liberation Army (PLA) and warned potential adversaries that China “will never allow any people, organization or political party to split any part of Chinese territory out of the country at any time.”

It was Xi’s latest move to assert his authority ahead of the 19^th Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Congress in the fall, a crucial five-yearly meeting when key leadership positions are chosen. It also marks what should be the mid-point of Xi’s ten-year leadership term, which has been characterized by an ideological tightening and a crackdown on free speech.
Xi’s 50-minute address on Tuesday included several calls for the 2 million-strong armed forces to rally around the Party. “Our army will remain the army of the party and the people,” Xi said. “The army should increase its political awareness … and carry forwards and implement the Party’s absolute leadership.”
It was China’s largest parade since the 70th anniversary of the culmination of World War II in September 2015. Then, Xi announced a reduction of 300,000 troops and other high-level organizational changes aimed at transforming the PLA into a modern, sleek fighting force, with significant implications for global security. More than 100 high-ranking military officers have been punished for various offenses including corruption since Xi took office in 2012. Seven PLA regional commands have been consolidated into five “theaters” and its schools cut from 74 to 43.
“The force is modernizing very rapidly, probably more rapidly than most Westerners grasp,” says Lyle Goldstein, associate professor in the China Maritime Studies Institute at the U.S. Naval War College. “Across the board it’s hard to find any weaknesses.”
New missiles were on display in Inner Mongolia, including the road-mobile DF-31AG, a new variant of its DF-31A intercontinental ballistic missile, as well as the the DF-16G and DF-26. The HQ-22 surface-to-air missile (SAM), the HQ-9 SAM, and the YJ-12A anti-ship missiles were also eagerly examined by cooing weapons experts. New generation aircraft on display included the Shenyang J-16 strike fighter and Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter. In April, China launched its first aircraft carrier and has long been reclaiming and militarizing islands in the South China Sea.
“In the long term, they have a vision for what kind of order they would like to see in Asia, and that’s clearly one where China has regional military dominance,” says Richard Weitz, director of the Center for Political-Military Analysis at Washington DC’s Hudson Institute. “Anything west of Hawaii they would like to have conventional superiority over any potential adversary.”

China’s projections beyond its borders have given them a greater piece of the pie in terms of combatting piracy and global terrorism. And as China continues to modernize and upgrade their military forces as they try to project their influence far beyond their borders. One area of the world they are quick to ignore…for now is the Middle East.

To read the entire article from Time, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

China’s Base in Djibouti is Much Larger Than Previously Thought

China’s new base in Djibouti is much larger in scale than previously thought. The base has extensive underground space, multiple security layers but thus far, they’ve yet to begin construction of docks.

It is believed that until the Chinese build docks on their base, they’ll use the commercial docks available.

Two images provided by Stratfor Worldview and Allsource Analysis show the base in Djibouti, located at a strategic choke point on the Horn of Africa, to be heavily fortified with three layers of security and has about 23,000 square meters (about 250,000 square feet) of underground space, according to analysis provided by Stratfor.
“This type of construction is in line with known Chinese practices in hardening their military bases. The underground structures allow for unobserved activity, as well as offer protection to vehicles or facilities critical to the Chinese mission in Djibouti,” Stratfor, a geopolitical intelligence firm, said in an analysis accompanying the images.
China dispatched troops to the base earlier this month. The United States, France and Japan also have permanent military bases there, but Tack said those are not as heavily fortified.
It’s not clear how big the Chinese base is, but for comparison, the US base was expanded to 500 acres in 2007.
“Even though this is just one of those bases in Djibouti as several other countries have, China has taken it’s own methods into Djibouti,” Stratfor Senior Analyst Sim Tack told CNN.
China’s Defense Ministry has touted the base as a way for the People’s Liberation Army to help bring peace and security to the region by providing a means of carrying out anti-piracy operations and humanitarian assistance.
However an image from July 4 showed the Chinese had not yet begun building docks, which Stratfor called notable due to the bases aforementioned purpose.
“I wouldn’t say it’s irregular, but I would’ve expected to see a dock,” Tack said.
A dock will likely be constructed eventually, and China could use Djibouti’s commercial report until that time, according to Stratfor.
Analysts say the base is part of China’s efforts to establish a truly global naval force that’s capable of conducting operations around the world — a so-called “blue water navy” — though Chinese state media has pushed back on suggestions that Beijing will flex its muscles globally.

The Chinese are building hangars for helicopters and drones but they don’t appear large enough for fighter aircraft at this time.

To read the entire article from CNN, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Russian Ally Kyrgyzstan Received Missile Threats to Close US Base

Kyrgyzstan President Almazbek Atambayev said Monday that his nation was threatened with missile attacks by a foreign power if he didn’t close an air base that the US had in Kyrgyzstan territory.

“I will not hide that some countries warned us that they are ready, should it be the case that it is necessary, to conduct a missile strike on the U.S. air base deployed on our territory,” Atambayev said at a press conference in his country’s north.
Atambayev did not say which countries were behind the threat to the former Soviet republic which borders China and Kazakhstan. A Russian military ally since the 1990s, Kyrgyzstan is a member of Russia’s Collective Security Treaty Organization—Moscow’s analog to NATO.
The U.S. facility was opened in 2001 with the aim of supporting NATO operations in nearby Afghanistan; Kyrgyzstan closed it in 2014.
“Our people were under serious danger until [it was closed],” Atambayev said Monday, Russian state news agency Itar-Tass reports. Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan has one Russian air base on its territory—the Kant base—and recently Atambayev told Russian President Vladimir Putin that he would endorse another such base on his nation’s territory, in an apparent swipe at neighbors Tajikistan and Uzbekistan’s ability to halt the Taliban.
“I would not be afraid if Russia deployed a second base in Kyrgyzstan on the Tajikistan border,” he added. “Russia is not readying to take our territory. It has enough of its own. We risk nothing, and in this way we would defend ourselves, but the decision will have to be taken by Russia, taking into account its own abilities.”
The Kyrgyz leader voiced skepticism that Moscow would spare the funds for another air base in his country, having received a cold response when he raised the issue with Putin last month. He also said that the most recent agreement about the Kant base will see a reduction in the deployment period of Russian troops in Kyrgyzstan, from 74 years to 15.

To read the entire article from Newsweek click here:

Photo courtesy US Air Force

Chinese Conduct Several Air Drills Near Japan, Tell Tokyo “Get Used to It”

The Chinese air force confirmed Saturday that its warplanes had conducted long-range drills over the Bashi Channel and the Miyako Strait “several times” over the past week. This news broke just a day after the country’s Defense Ministry told Japan that it should “get used to” the military exercises in the area.

“China’s air force over the past week conducted multiple drills far out at sea, with H-6K bombers and many other types of aircraft flying through the Bashi Channel and Miyako Strait, testing actual battle capabilities over the sea,” air force spokesman Shen Jinke was quoted as saying by the state-run CGTN website.
Shen said the drills were carried out as part of the air force’s yearly training plan, stressing that they complied with international law and were not aimed “at any specific country, region or target.”
Saturday’s announcement came after a Defense Ministry spokesman defended what he called “routine exercises” Thursday that saw six Chinese H-6 bombers fly through the Miyako Strait.
Japan scrambled fighters in response. There was no violation of Japanese airspace.
“It is legitimate for Chinese military planes to fly through the strait, and more similar training will be conducted on the high seas as needed,” spokesman Ren Guoqiang Guoqiang said.
“The parties concerned don’t need to overact and make a great fuss about it,” he added. “They will feel better after getting used to such drills.”

With the Chinese flexing their muscle in the region and increasing their influence, indeed the Japanese will need to get used to these kinds of exercises by the Chinese. According to Japanese Defense Forces, they scrambled aircraft in response to Chinese drills a record-high 1168 times during the fiscal year 2016 which ended in March.

During the months from April – June, Japanese aircraft have scrambled 101 times.

To read the entire article from The Japan Times, click here:

Photo courtesy Japan Ministry of Defense

Former CIA Agent Arrested for Selling Secrets to China

A former CIA officer has been arrested in Virginia and is accused of spying for China. Federal prosecutors said in court in Alexandria that Kevin Mallory had notes in his home that could have gotten clandestine sources killed.

While Mallory is not accused of handing those documents over to Chinese intelligence agents, he was also accused of being paid $25,000 by the Chinese and lied about the amount when returning back to the United States. Prosecutors also mentioned his access to sensitive material to underscore the seriousness of potential damages to US interests and to argue that he should remain jailed pending trial on espionage charges. A federal judge agreed and reversed an earlier ruling granting him a bond for just $10,000.

On a phone that Mallory admitted was given to him by someone he thought worked for Chinese intelligence, eight documents were found, authorities said. Six were classified CIA documents and one was a classified Defense Intelligence Agency document, FBI agent Stephen Green testified Friday. The last is a mix of typed and handwritten pages that are still being reviewed.
At least two of the documents were transmitted to the Chinese earlier this year, according to prosecutors.
A magistrate judge last week ordered Mallory’s release on a $10,000 bond. But U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis overturned that decision Friday, in part based on the new details revealed regarding Mallory’s CIA career and the documents found in his possession.
Prosecutors confirmed in court Friday that Mallory worked for both the CIA and the Defense Intelligence Agency, the CIA’s counterpart in the Defense Department.
According to court documents, Mallory was a covert CIA case officer from 1990 to 1996 and a CIA contractor from 2010 to 2012. It was not clear when he worked for the DIA.
Antoinette Shiner, an information review officer for the CIA, confirmed in a declaration filed in court Friday that Mallory’s documents contained sensitive CIA intelligence, analysis of that intelligence and, in some instances, the actual human or technical sources of the intelligence.
One of the documents he is alleged to have passed on to the Chinese “reveals the breadth and depth” of the CIA’s understanding of “a specific hostile foreign intelligence service,” according to Shiner, including details on that foreign service’s approach to counterintelligence.
Handwritten notes found in Mallory’s house, she said, concern sensitive human sources and “could reasonably be expected to cause the loss of critical intelligence and possibly result in the lengthy incarceration or death of clandestine human sources.”

Mallory is considered a flight risk and prosecutors worried that the Chinese will attempt to take and glean any other information that he may have and also to keep him from talking about the link to their government.

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

Photo courtesy CIA