Japan’s Ground-Based Air Defense Options to the Philippines

Japan’s Ground-Based Air Defense Options to the Philippines

Bilateral defense relations between Japan and the Philippines come at an all-time high, signifying the continuous cooperation between both maritime nations that share a common adversary and similar situation regarding territorial domains and integrity in the Indo-Pacific region.

With the success of the export of the aforementioned radar systems to the Philippines from Japan, the latter is now raising up an idea of the likelihood of selling its surface-to-air missile batteries for the Philippine military to consider, with a wide variety of variants coming from the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force that might find its way for the likes of the Philippine Air Force. This is especially in line with the recently passed New Government Procurement Act or NGPA (Republic Act 12009), allowing the purchase of second-hand military hardware, provided it is economically preferable to the government.

An Incomplete Report on US Military Activities in the South China Sea in 2022

An Incomplete Report on US Military Activities in the South China Sea in 2022

In 2022, alongside the context of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the US military placed great emphasis on military deterrence against China in the South China Sea, maintaining high-intensity activities including close-in reconnaissance operations, Taiwan Strait transits, forward presence operations, strategic deterrence, freedom of navigation operations (FONOPs), military exercises and drills, and battlefield preparation.

An Incomplete Report on US Military Activities in the South China Sea in 2022 via SCSPI

1,600 people march through Naha protesting Japan’s defense buildup in Okinawa

A thousand-plus people joined a demonstration in Okinawa’s prefectural capital on Feb. 26 to protest the Japanese government’s plans to build up its defense capabilities on a group of islands in the country’s south for a possible contingency in Taiwan.

1,600 people march through Naha protesting Japan’s defense buildup in Okinawa

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U.S., Japan, South Korea Hold Ballistic Missile Defense Drills after North Korean Launches

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US Marines Reactivate Base on Guam to Prepare for Future War With China

Marine Corps Reactivates Base On Guam

Guam’s history is marked by the enduring partnership between the U.S. military and the people of Guam. Since the establishment of Marine Barracks Guam in 1899, the Marine Corps has had a nearly continuous presence on Guam. The Marine Barracks was reactivated after World War II and deactivated November 10, 1992.

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US Marines Open New Base on Guam to Prepare for Future War With China

According to Kyodo News, the new base in Guam will host 4,000 US Marines that will be transferred from Okinawa. The US and Japan agreed to reduce the military burden on Okinawa, which hosts over 70% of US bases in Japan, over local opposition to the US presence. But the plans to deploy the Marine Littoral Regiment further entrenches the military presence in the Okinawa prefecture.

There is also local opposition to the expansion of the US military presence in Guam, as Kyodo reported anti-base demonstrators protested against the opening of the new Marines Corps facility. An activist said that the military buildup will make Guam “a target for a war that we didn’t want to be part of.”

Marines officially activate Camp Blaz – Mixed feelings as late veteran honored during Asan ceremony

“They are appropriating our history and they are co-opting an identity of a CHamoru hero who, quite frankly, was very critical of the fact that we never saw true liberation here in Guam, although he was a former Marine,” Flores said. “He’s been quoted many times in saying we’re equal in only war and not in peace. They have manipulated his legacy to force a closeness and connection to this new Marine base that represents so much destruction and violence for our people. And worst off, this base makes us a bigger target for war.”