Special to WorldTribune.com By Sol W. Sanders The U.S.’ confrontation with an increasingly powerful and incipiently aggressive China is getting much more complicated. There is no question of its high priority among the U.S.’ foreign policy issues. But were you a Chinese strategist attempting to measure an American opponent’s intentions, the contradictory U.S. positions might […]
Special to WorldTribune.com A prominent Saudi cleric who is on Islamic State of Iraq and Levant’s (ISIL’s) hit list was shot and wounded in the Philippines on March 1. Sheikh Aaidh al-Qarni and Saudi diplomat Sheikh Turki Assaegh were both wounded in an assassination attempt as they left a university auditorium in the southern port […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Asian Pacific nations are spending big on “long overdue” military upgrades to counter the threat posed by China, according to a IHS Jane’s report. In 2015, nine of the 20 fastest-growing defense budgets were in the Asian Pacific, the report said. By 2020, total military spending in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region is […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, EastAsiaIntel.com MANILA ― No city suffered more in World War II than this sprawling metropolis of more than 10 million people. No enemy was more cruel, more hostile, more destructive than the Japanese after defeating U.S. forces in the Philippines at the outset of the war in the Pacific. […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, EastAsiaIntel.com American ambassadors to South Korea pursue a fine line between defense of the U.S.-Korean alliance and pursuit of North-South reconciliation. If they seem hell-bent on military goals, they’re accused of trying to push Korea into a war that nobody wants. And if they appear overly eager for talks, […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, EastAsiaIntel.com President Park Geun-Hye is pursuing a fight-talk strategy. On Monday, South Korean gunners staged a live-fire exercise in waters well within hearing range of North Korea’s southwestern coast. Next, North and South Korean negotiators were planning to meet at Panmunjom. The contrast between military drills and diplomacy suggests […]
Special to WorldTribune.com U.S. President Barack Obama on Nov. 18 called on China to stop its land reclamation and military buildup in the South China Sea. “We agree on the need for bold steps to lower tensions, including pledging to halt further reclamation, new construction, and militarization of disputed areas in the South China Sea,” […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, EastAsiaIntel.com Here’s a twist on the shifting course of the recent military history of the region. The Philippines and Vietnam are about to become “strategic partners” in common cause against, yes, the Chinese. For those who may have forgotten, the U.S., having ruled the Philippines for nearly half a […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, East-Asia-Intel.com SEOUL — Maybe Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, should have kept his mouth shut. No matter what he might have said on the 70th anniversary of the Japanese surrender, he would be the target of intensive criticism. The fact is the Japanese are done with apologizing for World […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, East-Asia-Intel.com MANILA ― War clouds hang over the South China Sea. The question is whether they’ll burst into a storm or simply cast a menacing shadow and eventually blow away. The outlook for clear weather does not appear bright while the Philippines works on reopening Subic Bay for defense […]