DefenceTalkThe United States has announced a partial lifting of its ban on arms sales to Vietnam to help its maritime security, easing the embargo on Vietnam that was imposed after the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. At the same time, the U.S. claims it has a national interest in peace and stability, but […]https://www.defencetalk.com/americas-arms-sales-to-vietnam-a-short-sighted-policy-60741/

DefenceTalkSouth Korea said Thursday it would create a joint military unit with the United States, as a report suggested the contingent would target North Korea’s weapons of mass destruction if a full-scale conflict broke out. The mechanized unit led by a US major general will be set up in the first half of next year, […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-south-korea-set-up-wartime-unit-to-destroy-norths-nukes-report-60539/

DefenceTalkChina’s military on Thursday told the United States to end air and naval surveillance near its borders, saying it was damaging relations between the Pacific powers and could lead to “undesirable accidents”. The US should “take concrete measures to decrease close-in reconnaissance activities against China towards a complete stop”, defence ministry spokesman Yang Yujun said […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-defence-ministry-tells-us-to-stop-close-in-surveillance-60473/

DefenceTalkGuam, because of its military bases, Army anti-ballistic missile system and location 3,300 miles west of Hawaii is an increasingly important strategic hub for the U.S. Asia-Pacific rebalance, Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work said today. Work’s visit here was part of a seven-day trip that began with an Aug. 17 stop in Hawaii and will […]https://www.defencetalk.com/guam-is-strategic-hub-to-asia-pacific-rebalance-60401/

DefenceTalkReports claim that Southeast Asian nations are investing in their defense sector in response to increasing tensions with Beijing over the South China Sea. But will that be able to keep China at bay? Experts believe that nations in Southeast Asia can depend on US military support only to certain degree; in the end they […]https://www.defencetalk.com/southeast-asia-boosting-homegrown-defense-60383/

DefenceTalkChina and the US geared early Wednesday for high-stakes talks on a slew of thorny issues, as American officials warned against rising tensions caused by Beijing’s “problematic” claim to swathes of the South China Sea. The maritime disputes, as well as US fears over cybersecurity and Chinese hacking, were raised Tuesday in preparatory talks involving […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-us-vow-to-end-old-rivalries-60083/

DefenceTalkNorth Korea on Wednesday fired what appeared to be two short-range missiles into the sea in the latest in a series of launches interspersed with spurned peace overtures to South Korea. A spokesman for the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul said the two missiles were fired from the western province of Hwanghae into the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/north-korea-fires-two-more-missiles-into-the-sea-60086/

DefenceTalkThe Burke Chair at CSIS has developed a new analysis of the trends in Chinese military strategy and forces entitled Chinese Military Modernization and Force Development: Chinese and Outside Perspectives. This report provides a comprehensive update of previous Burke Chair studies. The goal behind this report is not to present the authors’ view of the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/chinese-military-modernization-and-force-development-chinese-and-outside-perspectives-60028/

DefenceTalkAs fears grow that China is on an aggressive South China Sea territorial grab, a sleepy Philippine village is being transformed into a major naval base that may host US warships. Ulugan Bay, a small, picturesque cove encircled by thick mangroves, has suddenly become a vital part of the Philippine military’s efforts to shore up […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-fears-spur-philippine-naval-upgrade-59901/

DefenceTalkChina continues to modernize and improve its military capabilities, according to an annual DOD report to Congress, and is also preparing for contingencies in the South and East China Seas where Beijing has been involved in increasingly tense territorial disputes with its neighbors. The just-released “Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-continues-military-modernization-report-says-59797/