6 New Messages
Digest #4485
Messages
Sat Sep 8, 2012 9:01 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://blog.
Huntsville Times
September 5, 2012
'Epicenter of missile defense' growing on Redstone Arsenal
By Kenneth Kesner
====
"The key to an effective missile defense is the integration of all the systems we give our warfighters,
"This will truly be the epicenter of missile defense expertise in the world," O'Reilly said.
====
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama: The Base Realignment and Closure moves are over, but big buildings are still going up on Redstone Arsenal.
Ground was ceremonially broken today for the five-floor, 225,000-square-
They will then be alongside thousands of MDA and Army Space and Missile Defense Command workers in the other three wings of the complex, and that's important to the mission, said MDA Director Lt. Gen. Patrick O'Reilly.
"The key to an effective missile defense is the integration of all the systems we give our warfighters,
"The best way to make those systems work together is to develop them in an integrated fashion," he said. With the opening of Von Braun IV, more than 5,700 air and missile defense professionals will be working side by side, day by day at the complex.
"This will truly be the epicenter of missile defense expertise in the world," O'Reilly said.
He praised the vision and long-term support of Alabama U.S. Sens. Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa, and Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile. "We discussed this many, many, many years ago," O'Reilly said. "To see it a reality is a great fulfillment for all of us."
"This is just a plus-plus for national security," Shelby said. He added that it's a worthy addition to a project named for Dr. Wernher von Braun, whose team in Huntsville developed the Saturn V rocket and Apollo mission technologies that carried Americans to the moon and back.
The lunar landing remains "a feat that no other nation has been able to match with manned spaceflight,
That exceptionalism continues with the accomplishments of MDA, he said. A lot of hard work and intellect has been applied to the challenge of missile defense, inadequately described as "hitting a bullet with a bullet," Brooks said. The result of those efforts has been the missile intercepts and other successes of the last few years.
"That's truly a remarkable feat of engineering and science. And the people here, in this audience, are the ones that are able to do that," he said. They are helping America prepare for the next, unknown threat.
"This is the kind of complex that provides our men and women in uniform the technological capability to make them powerful on the battlefield,
...
Rear Adm. James D. Syring has been nominated for promotion and to succeed O'Reilly as MDA director. The Senate must approve the promotion and is expected to consider it later this month.
There was no sign of those troubles today, as O'Reilly and the visiting dignitaries smiled and dug in with shovels to mark what Sessions called the beginning of the completion of the Von Braun Complex. More than 2,200 MDA jobs were moved to Huntsville as part of the 2005 BRAC and, while Von Braun IV was not officially part of the BRAC legislation, the building will certainly alleviate the need for space.
...
============
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Huntsville Times
September 5, 2012
'Epicenter of missile defense' growing on Redstone Arsenal
By Kenneth Kesner
====
"The key to an effective missile defense is the integration of all the systems we give our warfighters,
"This will truly be the epicenter of missile defense expertise in the world," O'Reilly said.
====
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama: The Base Realignment and Closure moves are over, but big buildings are still going up on Redstone Arsenal.
Ground was ceremonially broken today for the five-floor, 225,000-square-
They will then be alongside thousands of MDA and Army Space and Missile Defense Command workers in the other three wings of the complex, and that's important to the mission, said MDA Director Lt. Gen. Patrick O'Reilly.
"The key to an effective missile defense is the integration of all the systems we give our warfighters,
"The best way to make those systems work together is to develop them in an integrated fashion," he said. With the opening of Von Braun IV, more than 5,700 air and missile defense professionals will be working side by side, day by day at the complex.
"This will truly be the epicenter of missile defense expertise in the world," O'Reilly said.
He praised the vision and long-term support of Alabama U.S. Sens. Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa, and Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile. "We discussed this many, many, many years ago," O'Reilly said. "To see it a reality is a great fulfillment for all of us."
"This is just a plus-plus for national security," Shelby said. He added that it's a worthy addition to a project named for Dr. Wernher von Braun, whose team in Huntsville developed the Saturn V rocket and Apollo mission technologies that carried Americans to the moon and back.
The lunar landing remains "a feat that no other nation has been able to match with manned spaceflight,
That exceptionalism continues with the accomplishments of MDA, he said. A lot of hard work and intellect has been applied to the challenge of missile defense, inadequately described as "hitting a bullet with a bullet," Brooks said. The result of those efforts has been the missile intercepts and other successes of the last few years.
"That's truly a remarkable feat of engineering and science. And the people here, in this audience, are the ones that are able to do that," he said. They are helping America prepare for the next, unknown threat.
"This is the kind of complex that provides our men and women in uniform the technological capability to make them powerful on the battlefield,
...
Rear Adm. James D. Syring has been nominated for promotion and to succeed O'Reilly as MDA director. The Senate must approve the promotion and is expected to consider it later this month.
There was no sign of those troubles today, as O'Reilly and the visiting dignitaries smiled and dug in with shovels to mark what Sessions called the beginning of the completion of the Von Braun Complex. More than 2,200 MDA jobs were moved to Huntsville as part of the 2005 BRAC and, while Von Braun IV was not officially part of the BRAC legislation, the building will certainly alleviate the need for space.
...
============
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============
Sat Sep 8, 2012 9:01 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://azstarnet.
Arizona Daily Star
September 5, 2012
Raytheon scores contract for 19 more missile killers
David Wichner
====
The SM-3 Block IA missiles will add to the inventory of missiles deployed aboard U.S and Japanese navy ships as part of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense system. It is part of the first phase of the Obama administration'
The next-generation Block IB missile is seen as critical because it can defeat more sophisticated emerging threats. It is part of phase two of the missile-defense plan, set for deployment by 2015.
In July, the Missile Defense Agency awarded Raytheon a $925 million contract for development of the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA, which is a co-development effort between the U.S. and Japan.
====
Tucson-based Raytheon Missile Systems has been awarded a $230 million contract to produce 19 Standard Missile-3 interceptors for the nation's emerging missile-defense shield - including five copies of an advanced version whose future looked uncertain a year ago.
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency contract announced by Raytheon on Tuesday is for 14 currently fielded Standard Missile-3 Block IA missiles and five SM-3 Block IB test missiles.
While the SM-3 Block IA has been fielded since 2006, the Block IB version is still in development and appears to have rebounded from a major misstep last year.
The SM-3 Block IB was successful in two back-to-back flight tests in May and June 2012, after failing its first intercept test in September.
One more flight test is scheduled this fall, but the Block IB missiles on order are close to production-ready, a Raytheon official said.
"The 'pre-production' Block IB fight test missiles are essentially the same design as we intend to deliver in production," Jack Ransbotham, Raytheon's Standard Missile-3 deputy program director, said in an email statement.
The missiles will be made using the same processes, tooling and equipment that Raytheon will use in production, allowing the company to refine its manufacturing processes, Ransbotham said.
The next flight test for the SM-3 Block IB is scheduled for November, he said.
"There are planned decision points in (fiscal year) 2013 that would allow Raytheon to begin initial production," Ransbotham said.
Both SM-3 versions are designed to destroy short- to medium-range ballistic missiles - with ranges of up to about 3,000 kilometers or 1,850 miles - during midflight in space.
The SM-3 Block IA missiles will add to the inventory of missiles deployed aboard U.S and Japanese navy ships as part of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense system. It is part of the first phase of the Obama administration'
The next-generation Block IB missile is seen as critical because it can defeat more sophisticated emerging threats. It is part of phase two of the missile-defense plan, set for deployment by 2015.
The SM-3 Block IB features an enhanced, two-color infrared seeker for better target discrimination, Raytheon said. It also has a throttleable control system that enables the missile's hit-to-kill kinetic warhead to propel itself toward incoming threats using short bursts of precision propulsion.
The contract announced Tuesday increases the total value of the contract to $1.93 billion from $1.7 billion.
The work will be performed in Tucson through September 2014, the Pentagon said.
Raytheon says it has delivered more than 135 SM-3 missiles to the U.S. and Japanese navies, on time and on budget.
Meanwhile, development of a larger, longer-range version of the SM-3 continues.
In July, the Missile Defense Agency awarded Raytheon a $925 million contract for development of the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA, which is a co-development effort between the U.S. and Japan.
The larger-diameter SM-3 Block IIA is designed to defeat ballistic missiles with up to intermediate ranges (about 5,500 kilometers or 3,400 miles) as part of the third phase of the missile-defense plan by 2018.
...
============
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Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
Arizona Daily Star
September 5, 2012
Raytheon scores contract for 19 more missile killers
David Wichner
====
The SM-3 Block IA missiles will add to the inventory of missiles deployed aboard U.S and Japanese navy ships as part of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense system. It is part of the first phase of the Obama administration'
The next-generation Block IB missile is seen as critical because it can defeat more sophisticated emerging threats. It is part of phase two of the missile-defense plan, set for deployment by 2015.
In July, the Missile Defense Agency awarded Raytheon a $925 million contract for development of the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA, which is a co-development effort between the U.S. and Japan.
====
Tucson-based Raytheon Missile Systems has been awarded a $230 million contract to produce 19 Standard Missile-3 interceptors for the nation's emerging missile-defense shield - including five copies of an advanced version whose future looked uncertain a year ago.
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency contract announced by Raytheon on Tuesday is for 14 currently fielded Standard Missile-3 Block IA missiles and five SM-3 Block IB test missiles.
While the SM-3 Block IA has been fielded since 2006, the Block IB version is still in development and appears to have rebounded from a major misstep last year.
The SM-3 Block IB was successful in two back-to-back flight tests in May and June 2012, after failing its first intercept test in September.
One more flight test is scheduled this fall, but the Block IB missiles on order are close to production-ready, a Raytheon official said.
"The 'pre-production' Block IB fight test missiles are essentially the same design as we intend to deliver in production," Jack Ransbotham, Raytheon's Standard Missile-3 deputy program director, said in an email statement.
The missiles will be made using the same processes, tooling and equipment that Raytheon will use in production, allowing the company to refine its manufacturing processes, Ransbotham said.
The next flight test for the SM-3 Block IB is scheduled for November, he said.
"There are planned decision points in (fiscal year) 2013 that would allow Raytheon to begin initial production," Ransbotham said.
Both SM-3 versions are designed to destroy short- to medium-range ballistic missiles - with ranges of up to about 3,000 kilometers or 1,850 miles - during midflight in space.
The SM-3 Block IA missiles will add to the inventory of missiles deployed aboard U.S and Japanese navy ships as part of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense system. It is part of the first phase of the Obama administration'
The next-generation Block IB missile is seen as critical because it can defeat more sophisticated emerging threats. It is part of phase two of the missile-defense plan, set for deployment by 2015.
The SM-3 Block IB features an enhanced, two-color infrared seeker for better target discrimination, Raytheon said. It also has a throttleable control system that enables the missile's hit-to-kill kinetic warhead to propel itself toward incoming threats using short bursts of precision propulsion.
The contract announced Tuesday increases the total value of the contract to $1.93 billion from $1.7 billion.
The work will be performed in Tucson through September 2014, the Pentagon said.
Raytheon says it has delivered more than 135 SM-3 missiles to the U.S. and Japanese navies, on time and on budget.
Meanwhile, development of a larger, longer-range version of the SM-3 continues.
In July, the Missile Defense Agency awarded Raytheon a $925 million contract for development of the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA, which is a co-development effort between the U.S. and Japan.
The larger-diameter SM-3 Block IIA is designed to defeat ballistic missiles with up to intermediate ranges (about 5,500 kilometers or 3,400 miles) as part of the third phase of the missile-defense plan by 2018.
...
============
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Stop NATO website and articles:
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============
Sat Sep 8, 2012 9:01 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
====
Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts
http://rickrozoff.
====
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts
http://rickrozoff.
====
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
Sat Sep 8, 2012 4:11 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.aco.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied Command Operations
September 5, 2012
UNPRECEDENTED – US AIR FORCE TWO A-10 FOURSHIPS LAND AT NAMEST FOR EXERCISE RAMSTEIN ROVER
Tuesday, 4 September 2012, 1040 local time - a fourship of United States Air Force A-10 "Thunderbolt” fighters arrive in the airspace above the 22nd Air Base at Namest in the south of the Czech Republic. It is the first time this type of aircraft has landed at this Czech air base. The A-10s arriving in a formation, do an overflight and then a break away one after the other to land at Namest. As they roll into their parking position, another A-10 four-ship comes in to touch down.
With these eight air-to-ground fighter aircraft arriving, Exercise Ramstein Rover 12 (RARO12) finally gets going. As the engines are shut down, German Air Force Colonel (General Staff) MSc Harry H. Schnell, the RARO12 Exercise Director, and Colonel Miroslav Svoboda, senior Czech officer at RARO12, step up to welcome Lieutenant-Colonel Clinton Eichelberger, US Air Force, the leader of the first fourship. He is also the detachment commander of the eight A-10s from 81st Fighter Wing based at Spangdahlem, Germany, who will fly Close Air Support or CAS missions to support soldiers on the ground during fictitious training scenarios of RARO12.
Shortly after the A-10 landed, a Turkish C-160 transport aircraft arrived at Namest to off load elements of the Turkish armed forces contingent who will also participate in the exercise. Later this week, the Turkish F-16 fighter aircraft will fly in and so will the Slovak Mi-17 and the German PC-9 and Learjet. These international aircraft complement the Czech Air Force L-159, L-39 fighters as well as the Mi-24 helicopter who will all be used as flying assets to train Forward Air Controllers (FAC), who direct and control the supporting aircraft to the target during RARO12 very beneficial opportunity to exercise with these entities.
Officially starting on 5 September and closing on 21 September, RARO12 is an advanced training opportunity to exercise Close Air Support (CAS) and FAC capabilities. RARO12 provides realistic pre-deployment training for FACs to be deployed to NATO's ISAF operation in Afghanistan.
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied Command Operations
September 5, 2012
UNPRECEDENTED – US AIR FORCE TWO A-10 FOURSHIPS LAND AT NAMEST FOR EXERCISE RAMSTEIN ROVER
Tuesday, 4 September 2012, 1040 local time - a fourship of United States Air Force A-10 "Thunderbolt” fighters arrive in the airspace above the 22nd Air Base at Namest in the south of the Czech Republic. It is the first time this type of aircraft has landed at this Czech air base. The A-10s arriving in a formation, do an overflight and then a break away one after the other to land at Namest. As they roll into their parking position, another A-10 four-ship comes in to touch down.
With these eight air-to-ground fighter aircraft arriving, Exercise Ramstein Rover 12 (RARO12) finally gets going. As the engines are shut down, German Air Force Colonel (General Staff) MSc Harry H. Schnell, the RARO12 Exercise Director, and Colonel Miroslav Svoboda, senior Czech officer at RARO12, step up to welcome Lieutenant-Colonel Clinton Eichelberger, US Air Force, the leader of the first fourship. He is also the detachment commander of the eight A-10s from 81st Fighter Wing based at Spangdahlem, Germany, who will fly Close Air Support or CAS missions to support soldiers on the ground during fictitious training scenarios of RARO12.
Shortly after the A-10 landed, a Turkish C-160 transport aircraft arrived at Namest to off load elements of the Turkish armed forces contingent who will also participate in the exercise. Later this week, the Turkish F-16 fighter aircraft will fly in and so will the Slovak Mi-17 and the German PC-9 and Learjet. These international aircraft complement the Czech Air Force L-159, L-39 fighters as well as the Mi-24 helicopter who will all be used as flying assets to train Forward Air Controllers (FAC), who direct and control the supporting aircraft to the target during RARO12 very beneficial opportunity to exercise with these entities.
Officially starting on 5 September and closing on 21 September, RARO12 is an advanced training opportunity to exercise Close Air Support (CAS) and FAC capabilities. RARO12 provides realistic pre-deployment training for FACs to be deployed to NATO's ISAF operation in Afghanistan.
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
Sat Sep 8, 2012 8:06 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.nation.
The Nation
September 9, 2012
USA - managing China’s rise
By Imran Malik*
====
The USA’s strategic moves do indicate an emerging crescent of containment around China. It ranges from Afghanistan in the west to Arunachal Pradesh on the Sino-India border in the Himalayas in the centre and onto the Pacific Ocean in the east where the US and its allies are present with their formidable militaries.
China is reacting to counter this ominous and blatant attempt to hem it in and circumscribe its strategic space for manoeuvre. It seeks credible alternatives.
Geopolitically, it must garner succour and support from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which must be expanded immediately to include Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and India as full members. Such a move may deter India from joining the US camp too eagerly.
====
The rapacious and insatiable global US juggernaut is on the prowl again. Having wreaked death, devastation and misery on the peoples of the Greater Middle East Region (GMER-Iraq), the South-Central Asian Region (SCAR-Afghanistan, Pakistan), North Africa (Tunisia, Libya, Egypt), the Arabian Peninsula (Yemen), the Mediterranean (Syria) and still keeping the Persian Gulf sub-region (Iran) on tenterhooks, it has now set its sights on the Asia Pacific Region (APR).
Its ambitions and intentions to “contain and manage the rise of China” could not have been starker. Leon Panetta has declared the USA’s intent to “shift, pivot or rebalance” to the APR by deploying 60 percent of its naval assets there by 2020 - a major paradigm shift from the GMER/SCAR to the APR - with menacing geopolitical and strategic connotations.
While it indicates its geopolitical orientations for the future, it also questions its capabilities to project power simultaneously in multiple theatres of war. The US was generally expected to fight and win at least two-and-a-half Major Regional Conflicts (MRCs) simultaneously - meaning thereby that it could fight and win two major and one minor conflict in different theatres of war at the same time.
Some analysts now degrade that capability to about one-and-a-half MRC, for a myriad of reasons. Would this mean that the US does not foresee fighting a major war elsewhere (other than the APR) in the world circa 2020 and beyond? Is it by choice or a genuine limitation? The US sees China’s emerging economic military power as a major threat to its global and national aspirations, and thus feels compelled to “contain and manage its rise.”
It has made the preliminary geopolitical and strategic moves to manoeuvre into an advantageous position in the APR. It is reconfirming existing alliances and forging new ones. It can count upon known old allies such as South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Australia (US troops are to be based in the northern territories)
India’s importance lies in not only keeping the Chinese distracted in the Himalayas, but also lets the US and its allies exploit the strategic advantages its military assets and facilities at the Nicobar and Andaman Islands provide.
Furthermore, the Indian Peninsula jutting out so prominently into the Indian Ocean allows great strategic oversight on all global East-West trade/SLOCs.
The two major likely areas of conflict in the APR (apart from Taiwan) are the South China Sea and the Malacca Straits. The South China Sea issue is gaining momentum with many regional countries, including China, laying claims to the Spratly Islands archipelago and its mineral/fossil riches.
The Malacca Straits (as opposed to the Lombok, Makassar and Mindoro Straits and the Sibutu Passage) provide the most economical Sea Lines of Communications (SLOCs). All the countries or economies of the APR thus have a compulsion to keep it open and navigable at all times. And the only naval power with the wherewithal to decisively control the Malacca Straits and other SLOCs - is the US.
Could the South China Sea issue then become the flashpoint to initiate a war with China to stunt its rapid growth into a global rival of the US? Could the blockade of the SLOCs through the Malacca Straits (and others) be the leverage that could force China to submit to US demands or hegemony?
The USA’s strategic moves do indicate an emerging crescent of containment around China. It ranges from Afghanistan in the west to Arunachal Pradesh on the Sino-India border in the Himalayas in the centre and onto the Pacific Ocean in the east where the US and its allies are present with their formidable militaries.
China is reacting to counter this ominous and blatant attempt to hem it in and circumscribe its strategic space for manoeuvre. It seeks credible alternatives.
Geopolitically, it must garner succour and support from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which must be expanded immediately to include Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and India as full members. Such a move may deter India from joining the US camp too eagerly.
Further, an assertive and proactive SCO in the SCAR/AfPak region could help nullify pressure on the Chinese western flank to a great extent. Its ‘String of Pearls Strategy’ is designed to find viable alternatives to the Malacca Straits and to seek a presence in the Indian Ocean.
It must translate its proactive interests in Pakistan (Gwadar), Sri Lanka, Maldives, Myanmar, etc. into tangible counter moves. It must also launch a massive diplomatic initiative and particularly engage ASEAN, regional countries and India to forestall their joining cause with the US.
Geo-economically, Pakistan is indispensable to the Chinese. Together they could develop the North-South trade corridor linking Xinjiang province in western China to Pakistani ports on the Arabian Sea. China’s presence in Gwadar will bring it close to Iran and the Hormuz Straits. An extension of the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline to China, an oil pipeline running parallel to it and a railway line along the Karakoram Highway (KKH) would provide viable and practical (though partial) alternatives to the SLOCs/Malacca Straits.
The Chinese already have an oil pipeline coming in from Kazakhstan into western China. Geo-strategically, with China sitting at Gwadar/the Straits of Hormuz (a strategic vulnerability for the US and its allies), it could project power and gain an even more devastating leverage over the US and its allies than they would have at the Malacca Straits.
When push comes to shove, this would give it a priceless and overwhelming bargaining, and negotiating advantage over the US and it hapless allies. A possible China-Pakistan-
Furthermore, Pakistan could keep the bulk of Indian forces tied to its borders and thus obviate meaningful hostilities against China in the Arunachal Pradesh region. It makes for a great game of chess at the global level. One only hopes that the US understands the regional and global ramifications of its shenanigans in the APR. World beware.
*The writer is a retired brigadier and a former defence attaché to Australia and New Zealand.
============
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http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
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============
The Nation
September 9, 2012
USA - managing China’s rise
By Imran Malik*
====
The USA’s strategic moves do indicate an emerging crescent of containment around China. It ranges from Afghanistan in the west to Arunachal Pradesh on the Sino-India border in the Himalayas in the centre and onto the Pacific Ocean in the east where the US and its allies are present with their formidable militaries.
China is reacting to counter this ominous and blatant attempt to hem it in and circumscribe its strategic space for manoeuvre. It seeks credible alternatives.
Geopolitically, it must garner succour and support from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which must be expanded immediately to include Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and India as full members. Such a move may deter India from joining the US camp too eagerly.
====
The rapacious and insatiable global US juggernaut is on the prowl again. Having wreaked death, devastation and misery on the peoples of the Greater Middle East Region (GMER-Iraq), the South-Central Asian Region (SCAR-Afghanistan, Pakistan), North Africa (Tunisia, Libya, Egypt), the Arabian Peninsula (Yemen), the Mediterranean (Syria) and still keeping the Persian Gulf sub-region (Iran) on tenterhooks, it has now set its sights on the Asia Pacific Region (APR).
Its ambitions and intentions to “contain and manage the rise of China” could not have been starker. Leon Panetta has declared the USA’s intent to “shift, pivot or rebalance” to the APR by deploying 60 percent of its naval assets there by 2020 - a major paradigm shift from the GMER/SCAR to the APR - with menacing geopolitical and strategic connotations.
While it indicates its geopolitical orientations for the future, it also questions its capabilities to project power simultaneously in multiple theatres of war. The US was generally expected to fight and win at least two-and-a-half Major Regional Conflicts (MRCs) simultaneously - meaning thereby that it could fight and win two major and one minor conflict in different theatres of war at the same time.
Some analysts now degrade that capability to about one-and-a-half MRC, for a myriad of reasons. Would this mean that the US does not foresee fighting a major war elsewhere (other than the APR) in the world circa 2020 and beyond? Is it by choice or a genuine limitation? The US sees China’s emerging economic military power as a major threat to its global and national aspirations, and thus feels compelled to “contain and manage its rise.”
It has made the preliminary geopolitical and strategic moves to manoeuvre into an advantageous position in the APR. It is reconfirming existing alliances and forging new ones. It can count upon known old allies such as South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Australia (US troops are to be based in the northern territories)
India’s importance lies in not only keeping the Chinese distracted in the Himalayas, but also lets the US and its allies exploit the strategic advantages its military assets and facilities at the Nicobar and Andaman Islands provide.
Furthermore, the Indian Peninsula jutting out so prominently into the Indian Ocean allows great strategic oversight on all global East-West trade/SLOCs.
The two major likely areas of conflict in the APR (apart from Taiwan) are the South China Sea and the Malacca Straits. The South China Sea issue is gaining momentum with many regional countries, including China, laying claims to the Spratly Islands archipelago and its mineral/fossil riches.
The Malacca Straits (as opposed to the Lombok, Makassar and Mindoro Straits and the Sibutu Passage) provide the most economical Sea Lines of Communications (SLOCs). All the countries or economies of the APR thus have a compulsion to keep it open and navigable at all times. And the only naval power with the wherewithal to decisively control the Malacca Straits and other SLOCs - is the US.
Could the South China Sea issue then become the flashpoint to initiate a war with China to stunt its rapid growth into a global rival of the US? Could the blockade of the SLOCs through the Malacca Straits (and others) be the leverage that could force China to submit to US demands or hegemony?
The USA’s strategic moves do indicate an emerging crescent of containment around China. It ranges from Afghanistan in the west to Arunachal Pradesh on the Sino-India border in the Himalayas in the centre and onto the Pacific Ocean in the east where the US and its allies are present with their formidable militaries.
China is reacting to counter this ominous and blatant attempt to hem it in and circumscribe its strategic space for manoeuvre. It seeks credible alternatives.
Geopolitically, it must garner succour and support from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which must be expanded immediately to include Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and India as full members. Such a move may deter India from joining the US camp too eagerly.
Further, an assertive and proactive SCO in the SCAR/AfPak region could help nullify pressure on the Chinese western flank to a great extent. Its ‘String of Pearls Strategy’ is designed to find viable alternatives to the Malacca Straits and to seek a presence in the Indian Ocean.
It must translate its proactive interests in Pakistan (Gwadar), Sri Lanka, Maldives, Myanmar, etc. into tangible counter moves. It must also launch a massive diplomatic initiative and particularly engage ASEAN, regional countries and India to forestall their joining cause with the US.
Geo-economically, Pakistan is indispensable to the Chinese. Together they could develop the North-South trade corridor linking Xinjiang province in western China to Pakistani ports on the Arabian Sea. China’s presence in Gwadar will bring it close to Iran and the Hormuz Straits. An extension of the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline to China, an oil pipeline running parallel to it and a railway line along the Karakoram Highway (KKH) would provide viable and practical (though partial) alternatives to the SLOCs/Malacca Straits.
The Chinese already have an oil pipeline coming in from Kazakhstan into western China. Geo-strategically, with China sitting at Gwadar/the Straits of Hormuz (a strategic vulnerability for the US and its allies), it could project power and gain an even more devastating leverage over the US and its allies than they would have at the Malacca Straits.
When push comes to shove, this would give it a priceless and overwhelming bargaining, and negotiating advantage over the US and it hapless allies. A possible China-Pakistan-
Furthermore, Pakistan could keep the bulk of Indian forces tied to its borders and thus obviate meaningful hostilities against China in the Arunachal Pradesh region. It makes for a great game of chess at the global level. One only hopes that the US understands the regional and global ramifications of its shenanigans in the APR. World beware.
*The writer is a retired brigadier and a former defence attaché to Australia and New Zealand.
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Sat Sep 8, 2012 8:06 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.nato.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
September 7, 2012
NATO Secretary General commends strong security cooperation with Azerbaijan
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen commended Azerbaijan for its progress in defence reforms and called for closer security cooperation during his first visit to the country on Friday.
The Secretary General thanked Azerbaijan for its participation in the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan and relayed the Alliance’s appreciation for the country’s additional support given to NATO operations, through over flight and transit lines. Azerbaijan is also helping to fund the training of Afghan security forces. Mr. Fogh Rasmussen also expressed his appreciation to Azerbaijan’s intention to continue to support Afghanistan after the ISAF mission ends in 2014.
“Our relations are developing steadily and positively,” the Secretary General said after talks with President Ilham Alyiev. “We appreciate the steadfast support provided by your troops in Afghanistan.” Mr. Fogh Rasmussen said Azerbaijan is a “valuable partner for NATO,” adding that both sides have “an opportunity to build a solid, long-term partnership.”
He said that the Alliance was determined to build closer ties; “to deepen the practical experience that our military forces have gained by working together in Afghanistan over the years.” He added the two sides had to work together in dealing with the security challenges of the 21st century. The Secretary General said NATO could, for instance, serve as a platform to strengthen cooperation on energy security. The Alliance is already consulting with Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia on training and science cooperation.
Azerbaijan was urged to keep up the pace of defence and security sector reform as well. “We encourage you to keep up the momentum in this key area,” said the Secretary General. NATO is assisting Azerbaijan with this reform, helping to remove huge quantities of landmines. “This is one of the biggest such projects in the world and it is of real benefit to people,” said Mr. Fogh Rasmussen.
The Secretary General also raised the issue of regional stability in a speech to the Azeri Diplomatic Academy. He urged Azerbaijan and Armenia to reconcile. “The only way forward is through dialogue, compromise, and cooperation,” he said.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
September 7, 2012
NATO Secretary General commends strong security cooperation with Azerbaijan
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen commended Azerbaijan for its progress in defence reforms and called for closer security cooperation during his first visit to the country on Friday.
The Secretary General thanked Azerbaijan for its participation in the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan and relayed the Alliance’s appreciation for the country’s additional support given to NATO operations, through over flight and transit lines. Azerbaijan is also helping to fund the training of Afghan security forces. Mr. Fogh Rasmussen also expressed his appreciation to Azerbaijan’s intention to continue to support Afghanistan after the ISAF mission ends in 2014.
“Our relations are developing steadily and positively,” the Secretary General said after talks with President Ilham Alyiev. “We appreciate the steadfast support provided by your troops in Afghanistan.” Mr. Fogh Rasmussen said Azerbaijan is a “valuable partner for NATO,” adding that both sides have “an opportunity to build a solid, long-term partnership.”
He said that the Alliance was determined to build closer ties; “to deepen the practical experience that our military forces have gained by working together in Afghanistan over the years.” He added the two sides had to work together in dealing with the security challenges of the 21st century. The Secretary General said NATO could, for instance, serve as a platform to strengthen cooperation on energy security. The Alliance is already consulting with Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia on training and science cooperation.
Azerbaijan was urged to keep up the pace of defence and security sector reform as well. “We encourage you to keep up the momentum in this key area,” said the Secretary General. NATO is assisting Azerbaijan with this reform, helping to remove huge quantities of landmines. “This is one of the biggest such projects in the world and it is of real benefit to people,” said Mr. Fogh Rasmussen.
The Secretary General also raised the issue of regional stability in a speech to the Azeri Diplomatic Academy. He urged Azerbaijan and Armenia to reconcile. “The only way forward is through dialogue, compromise, and cooperation,” he said.
