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Pacific Ocean. (August 24, 2024): In this photo by Royal Australian Navy Seaman Mathew Lyall, a U.S. Marine Corps helicopter lands aboard the Australian Helicopter Land Dock Ship the HMAS Canberra during flight operations as part of Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercises. Australian/Chinese relations hit a new low recently over a Defense Technology Agreement with America and Britain to provide nuclear powered submarine technology to Australia
Perth, Australia. (August 19, 2022): There are few things worse than a bad break up, especially when it involves world superpowers. The recent signing of a Defense Technology Agreement with Britain and America to give Australia nuclear submarines and China’s visceral reaction represent a new low in relations between the two nations. The brouhaha over submarines follows a series of tit for tat moves that have deteriorated relations to a dangerous level.
Australia is rightfully concerned about China’s military build up in its back yard and the increasingly belligerent attitude of the Chinese on trade and economic matters. Australia recently passed a law forbidding “covert political activity by a foreign power” to counter illicit Chinese efforts to influence Australian politics. China responded by imposing punishing sanctions on Australian coal, wine, wheat, and other agricultural products. Not to be outdone, the Australians banned Chinese telecom giant Huawei from operating within its borders.
Read more: A Bad Break Up… AUSTRALIAN-CHINESE RELATIONS HIT A NEW LOW
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Pacific Ocean. (August 22, 2012): In this U.S. Navy photo, the decommissioned frigate USS Rodney M. Davis is fired upon and sunk during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercises in the Southwest Pacific. These sinking exercises help member nations gain proficiency in tactics, targeting, and live firing against surface targets at sea. Australians are alarmed at a recent cooperation agreement between China and the Solomon Islands that they fear could lead to Chinese military bases just 1,200 miles of their coast.
Canberra, Australia. (August 22, 2022): Australians, one of America’s oldest allies, are increasingly alarmed at aggressive moves by China in the Taiwan Strait that threatens their national security. In a recently released annual survey by the Lowly Institute, a highly respected Australian Research organization, 46% of respondents say China is a growing threat to their security.
Recent events, including China’s overreaction to visits by U.S. dignitaries to Taiwan, have clearly rattled Australians whose sense of security has dropped dramatically from 70% in 2016 down to 53% in 2022, a 17-point drop in six years. Along with a sense of insecurity, Australians are worried about a potential U.S. conflict with China over Taiwan, with 64% saying such a skirmish between superpowers poses a critical threat to world order according to the Lowly Institute’s assessment.
The Aussies have reasons to be concerned.
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Wonju Air Base, South Korea. (August 21, 2022): In this photo by South Korean Air Force Master Sergeant Hyung Kwon, a Republic of Korea KA-1 Woongbi, a locally built flight trainer, flies alongside two U.S. A-10 Thunderbolts assigned to the American 25th Fighter Squadron participating in Buddy Squadron 22 exercises held here recently. The Republic of Korea Air Force trains with American pilots regularly to develop trust, introduce new tactics, and improve readiness.
Wonju Air Base, South Korea. (August 21, 2022): Japan and North Korea, traditional enemies, continue to face off in the South China Sea in a hair-trigger conflict that could endanger the entire world. North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, in defiance of the international community, continues to develop and test nuclear weapons many of which he has test fired at Japan.
The provocations have been many.
Since 2017, North Korea has shown a willingness to test its high-powered missiles by firing them into Japanese waters, rattling nerves from Tokyo to Washington. One such missile flew over the Japanese city of Hokkaido, home to thousands of American Marines, and another in September landed within 200 nautical miles of northwestern Japan. Despite international sanctions, North Korea continues to present a real and imminent threat to free nations in the Indo-Pacific that must be countered by allied firepower.
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Okinawa, Japan. (August 10, 2022): In this photo by Corporal Christopher Lape, U.S. Marine Corps Lance Corporal Cristobal Denaoseguera, an infantry Marine with Battalion Landing Team 2/5, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, holds a defensive position during a helicopter raid exercise on le Shima, Okinawa. During these exercises, Marines train with Japanese Defense Forces to secure an objective and to create forward arming and refueling points. The 31st MEU operates aboard the USS Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group of the U.S. 7th Fleet.
Okinawa, Japan. (August 10, 2022): The Marines have landed… in Japan. That’s right, Japan. What many Americans may not realize it that the U.S. still maintains a massive military presence on the Japanese islands that are strategically vital to the defense of the Indo-Pacific. In fact, Japan hosts over 50,000 American servicemembers and their families at 23 bases, most located on the island of Okinawa. The troops serve under a bilateral defense agreement with the Japanese Defense Forces to defend against neighborhood bullies like Russia and China.
For its part, the Japanese Defense Force boasts more than 900 warplanes, 48 destroyers, and 20 submarines as part of a recent arms buildup that includes the purchase of 147 F-35 Stealth fighters. This purchase gives Japan a larger stealth fighter fleet than Britain, Germany, and Italy. To further underscore their commitment to the alliance, Japan is now retrofitting two aircraft carriers, the Izumo and Kaga, which will be their first new flat tops since the end of World War II.
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Pacific Ocean (July 26, 2022): In this photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Miura Naoto, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Destroyer JS Takanami conducts replenishment-at-sea with the Royal Australian Navy oiler ship HMAS Supply during Rim of the Pacific Exercises (RIMPAC), 2022.
Pacific Ocean (July 26, 2022): What they do is not flashy. They are not the headliners in their navies, and there are no aircraft screaming off their decks. Yet what they do, replenishment at sea, is arguably the most important function in naval warfare.
That is not an exaggeration.
Pictured above are supply ships from two of twenty-six nations participating in the recent Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercises, the world’s largest maritime training event to counter aggressive moves by China, North Korea, and Russia in the Indo-Pacific.
These vessels carry enough fuel, water, dry goods, ammunition, and equipment to sustain enormous combat ships at sea far from home. The JS Takanami, a 500-foot vessel with a crew of 175, has a dual mission to both resupply allied ships at sea and to conduct humanitarian relief when needed.
She is well armed, boasting the MK-41 Multiple Rocket Launching System to defend against attacking aircraft and Sea Sparrow anti-ship missiles for surface battles. Her Royal Australian Navy sister ship, the HMAS Supply, also participated in RIMPAC which this year involved 38 ships, 170 aircraft, and some 25,000 personnel. These exercises test each navy’s ability to resupply their forces while protecting themselves from enemy attack.
Read more: UNSUNG HEROES; NAVAL SUPPLY SHIPS CRITICAL TO VICTORY
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Kadena Air Base, Japan. (August 22, 2022): In this photo by Airman 1st Class Julia Lebens, U.S. Air Force Airmen enjoy the view as they sit on the ramp of a MC-130J Commando II aircraft assigned to the 1st Special Operations Squadron during Red Flag exercises held here recently. Red Flag is designed to give realistic training while testing interoperability between U.S. and Japanese forces in a simulated combat environment.
Kadena Air Base, Japan. (August 22, 2022): Put yourself in their shoes. Living on a chain of islands surrounded by traditional enemies, Japan tries to maintain a credible defense while hamstrung by a pacifist constitution that abhors militarism in all forms. Today, Japan is confronting an assertive China, a belligerent North Korea, and a Russian leader determined to expand its territory at her expense
As the fifth largest military in the world, Japan’s Self Defense Force’s firepower was recently on display (see above photo) in joint special operations exercises with the U.S. and allied militaries during recent Red Flag exercises on Japanese soil
America’s 1st Special Operations Squadron, based at Hurlbut Field, Florida, and is garrisoned at Kedena Air Base, Japan, is one of the Air Force’s most elite air wings that can deliver highly trained special warfare fighters anywhere in the Indo-Pacific. During Red Flag, Japanese and allied forces practice combat insertions, re-supply missions, and emergency extractions while testing interoperability among its member nations
Read more: DEFENDING THE INDO-PACIFIC… U.S. AIR FORCE SPECIAL OPERATORS TRAINING IN JAPAN
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