Foreign Forces

U.S., Australia, Japan Drill with the Philippines in South China Sea; China Flies Military Drone Near Taiwan

HMAS Canberra (L02) with JS Izumo (DDH-183) on Aug. 24, 2023. JMSDF Photo

The U.S., Australia, Japan and the Philippines carried out a joint exercise in the waters off Manila on Thursday involving the Australian and Japanese large-deck ships on deployment in the region. Meanwhile, Chinese bombers flew near Japan while a Chinese unmanned air vehicle conducted a flight off Taiwan’s east coast, according to Japan Ministry of Defense press releases.

A Friday release by the Japan Maritime Self Defense...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/27/u-s-australia-japan-drill-with-the-philippines-in-south-china-sea-china-flies-military-drone-near-taiwan

MV-22 Osprey Carrying 20 Marines Crashes in Australia

U.S. Marine Corps MV-22B Osprey pilot with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 265 (Rein.), 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, transports Royal Australian Air Force and Navy senior leadership during Talisman Sabre 23, in the Coral Sea, July 22, 2023. US Marine Corps Photo

An MV-22 Osprey carrying approximately 20 U.S. Marines crashed off the coast of Darwin, Australia, local news reported Sunday morning.

The helicopter crashed around 11 a.m. local time on Melville Island while Marines were conducting...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/27/mv-22-osprey-carrying-20-marines-crashes-in-australia

Ukrainian Forces Plant Flag in Crimea Following Raid

Satellite image of the Crimean Peninsula. NASA Image

Ukrainian forces landed on Crimean shores Thursday, according to local press reports.

The forces, assisted by the Ukrainian Navy, planted a flag in Crimea before engaging in combat, the Kyiv Independent reported. Ukrainian forces landed near the village of Maiak, on the Crimean coast.

Ukrainian Defense Intelligence told CNN that Ukrainian and Russian forces clashed, resulting in casualties for the Russians.

CNN also reported that the attack...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/24/ukrainian-forces-plant-flag-in-crimea-following-raid

Second North Korean Launch Failure Draws Protest from Japan

June 1 launch of Chollima-1 rocket. KCNA Photo

North Korea carried out an unsuccessful attempt to launch a military satellite on Thursday, with the launch vehicle breaking up into three separate parts that landed in the Yellow Sea, East China Sea and the Philippine Sea.

Thursday’s launch was the second attempt to deploy the Malligyong-1 reconnaissance satellite using a Chollima-1 rocket as the launch vehicle following the failure of the first attempt on May 31.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Japanese...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/24/second-north-korean-launch-failure-draws-protest-from-japan

Growing Tension with China Requires More Surveillance off the Philippines, Report Finds

PCG vessels – BRP Cabra and BRP Sindangan escorted the indigenous boats utilized by the AFP as supply vessels to transport essential provisions to our troops aboard BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, completing the mission on Aug. 22, 2023. Philippine Coast Guard Photo

With a U.S. Navy reconnaissance plane circling overhead, two resupply ships escorted by two Philippine Coast Guard vessels maneuvered their way through a Chinese naval blockade in a five-hour confrontation to bring food, other...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/23/growing-tension-with-china-require-more-surveillance-off-the-philippines-report-finds

Russian-Chinese Warship Group Pulls into Qingdao

JMSDF Image

A joint Russian-People’s Liberation Army navy warship group docked at Qingdao, China on Monday. Meanwhile, the Philippines carried out a successful resupply of its outpost in the disputed Spratly Islands on Tuesday.

On Monday, a joint flotilla comprised of Russian Navy destroyers RFS Admiral Panteleyev (548) and RFS Admiral Tributs (564); corvette RFS Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov (339); and fleet tanker Pechenga; and PLAN destroyers CNS Guiyang (119) and CNS Qiqiha...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/22/russian-chinese-warship-group-pulls-into-qingdao

Report to Congress on South China Sea Disputes

The following is the Aug. 21, 2023, Congressional Research Service report, China Primer: South China Sea Disputes.

From the report

Multiple Asian governments assert sovereignty over rocks, reefs, and other geographic features in the heavily trafficked South China Sea (SCS), with the People’s Republic of China (PRC or China) arguably making the most assertive claims. The United States makes no territorial claim in the SCS and takes no position on sovereignty over any of the geographic features in...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/22/report-to-congress-on-south-china-sea-disputes

USS Bataan, USS Carter Hall and 26th MEU Now in the Persian Gulf

Two U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II aircraft operate alongside amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD-5) and guided-missile destroyer USS Thomas Hudner (DDG-116) in the Gulf of Oman, Aug. 17, 2023. US Navy Photo

Amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD-5) and landing dock ship USS Carter Hall (LSD-50), sailing on orders to the Persian Gulf region, crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, USNI has learned.

Both ships, part of the three-ship, 4,000-member Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, left...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/18/uss-bataan-uss-carter-hall-and-26th-meu-now-in-the-persian-gulf

Russian, Chinese Warships in East China Sea After Sailing Near Alaska

JMSDF Image

The joint Russian Navy – People’s Liberation Navy (PLAN) flotilla that sailed near Alaska and the Aleutian Islands in early August is now operating in the East China Sea, according to a Thursday Japan Ministry of Defense release.

The flotilla has been sailing together since July 27, when it departed from Vladivostok, Russia. At that time it consisted of 10 ships: Russian Navy destroyers RFS Admiral Panteleyev (548) and RFS Admiral Tributs (564); corvettes RFS Gremyashchiy (337) and...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/17/russian-chinese-warships-in-east-china-sea-after-sailing-near-alaska

Beijing Investing in Network of Global Chinese Naval Bases, Researchers Find

Chinese sailors at the People’s Liberation Army Navy base in Djibouti in 2019. Xinhua Photo

A team of researchers have identified likely locations of future Chinese naval bases not only in the Indo-Pacific but as far away as the Atlantic coast of Africa.

China invested in a “whole swath of ports” through its decade-old Belt and Road Initiative, but it is not clear which one will be used for a future naval base, said Alexander Wooley, one of the study’s authors and director of partnerships and...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/16/beijing-investing-in-network-of-global-chinese-naval-bases-researchers-find

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