The People’s Liberation Army Navy Z-9 utility helicopter that intercepted the Philippine Cessna. Photo Courtesy of Camille Elemia.
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A People’s Liberation Army Navy Z-9 utility helicopter intercepted the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Cessna 208B Grand Caravan during a routine patrol mission over Scarborough Shoal today at 8:39 a.m. local time, according to Philippine officials. A number of Philippine journalists [embedded journalists] were on board the Cessna during the encounter, which saw the Chinese helicopter fly as close as three meters from the turboprop aircraft. Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela described China’s actions as “dangerous flight maneuvers” and blasted the conduct as a disregard to international aviation regulations.
The Typhon launchers, which carry Tomahawk cruise missiles capable of reaching targets in China and Russia from the Philippines, also house SM-6 missiles, which can strike air or sea targets more than 200 km away.
The US military has relocated its Typhon missile launchers—capable of firing multipurpose missiles over thousands of kilometers—from Laoag Airfield in the Philippines to another location on Luzon island, a senior Philippine government source revealed, as reported by Reuters.
MANILA, Philippines — A United States Naval Ship (USNS) was spotted near the country’s landmass while China Coast Guard (CCG) was conducting what it considers as a patrol around Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal on Sunday morning, a West Philippine Sea monitor said.
Ukraine’s stockpiles of U.S.-supplied long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) are running low, the New York Times (NYT) reported on Dec. 27, citing senior U.S. officials.
“It is planned to be acquired because we see its feasibility and its functionality in our concept of archipelagic defense implementation,” Philippine Army chief Lt. Gen. Roy Galido told a news conference.
“I’m happy to report to our fellow countrymen that your army is developing this capability for the interest of protecting our sovereignty,” he said, adding the total number to be acquired would depend on “economics.”
As a rule, it takes at least two or more years for the Philippine military to acquire a new weapons system from the planning stage, Galido said, adding it was not yet budgeted for 2025.
Brawner already announced that they wanted one, three months ago. Shortly afterward, the U.S. said that they were keeping the Typhon in the Philippines, at the Laoag International Airport. Will this be a second unit?The only new information that I’ve learned, is that it’ll take at least two years for them to officially acquire the Typhon.Why announce it, again? Except to provoke China?
We’re not obligated to defend Taiwan. What we are obligated to do is governed by the law and the law is the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act.
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But defending Taiwan is not one of those things, but it means that we sell them equipment that they need to defend themselves and the like. And it makes it clear intent that we want a peaceful resolution of the Taiwan PRC issue, a peaceful resolution across the Taiwan Strait. And that we are opposed to a forceful reunification against the Taiwanese people’s will.
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Is the United States going to defend Taiwan? If the answer to that question is yes, they’re going to lose hundreds of thousands of troops in that fight and they ought to know that. And then they can then make the calculus whether it’s worth it or not.
— Admiral Harry B. Harris, Jr., former commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command
“The National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine supported the decision to appeal to the United Nations and the European Union on the “deployment of a peacekeeping and security mission in Ukraine.” This is not news from today, when the composition and size of a possible peacekeeping mission of European countries is being discussed after the possible ceasefire, but from February 18, 2015. Days earlier, in the Belarusian capital, after negotiations involving Angela Merkel, François Hollande, Petro Poroshenko and Vladimir Putin, the only peace agreement of this war had been signed and a ceasefire was to begin, which was to be routinely violated, and the political process that would return Donbass to Ukraine under very specific conditions and with certain linguistic, cultural, political and economic rights that Kiev always considered unacceptable and never had the slightest intention of fulfilling. Ukraine, which had suffered the second major defeat in the Donbass war at Debaltsevo after Ilovaisk in September 2014, was at its lowest point, its army was at risk of being overwhelmed and it needed to stop the war in order to recover and become stronger while waiting for the next phase of a war that all parties were aware was not over.
Senior Col. Wu Qian, a spokesman for China’s Ministry of National Defense, accused the Philippines of causing disturbances in various areas with the support and encouragement of the United States.
“From Ren’ai Jiao (Ayungin Shoal) to Xianbin Jiao (Sabina Shoal) and from Houteng Jiao to Huangyan Dao (Scarborough Shoal), such repeated provocations have allowed the international community to see clearly who is undermining peace and stability in the South China Sea and who is fabricating and spreading lies,” Wu said.
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