The China Crisis and the Japanese Coast Guard: Japanese Youth Seek to Join

10/05/2012
2012-10-05 In a recent article in The Asahi Shimbun, the growing interest in joining the Japanese Coast Guard is the focus of attention. [caption id="attachment_45930" align="alignnone" width="300"] Graphic Credit The Asahi Shimbun[/caption] Being an officer in the Japan Coast Guard is now seen as a really cool job, as shown by…

Hangar 80 at Yuma Air Station: A Building Block for F-35 Global Presence

10/05/2012
2012-10-05 In a discussion with Phil Klendworth, head of site activation for the F-35 at Lockheed Martin, we focused on the new infrastructure being built to house the F-35. Site activation is an important part of any new program, especially so for the F-35 with its new hangers being built appropriately…

All Aussie F-35 maintenance to be performed in Australia

10/03/2012
Kym Bergmann / Canberra Speaking to the media on August 23 August in Canberra, Lockheed Martin’s F-35 program manager Tom Burbage explained that once Australia’s F-35s are delivered they will never have to return to the US for maintenance. He seemed surprised that the media was surprised by the information,…

Russian Radars and Global Politics: American Legitimization of Russian Military Presence?

10/03/2012
2012-10-03 by Richard Weitz According to the Russian media, the Azerbaijani government is about to renew Russia’s lease of a radar station at Gabala in Azerbaijan. The station, built in 1985, can detect missile launches at a distance up to 6,000 kilometers, or much of the Middle East. The became…

Japan in a Nuclear Weapons Neighborhood

10/02/2012
2012-10-01 By Richard Weitz Japanese-U.S. security ties have experienced recurring Japanese worries about strategic abandonment by Washington. Such concerns could be realized either as part of a general U.S. strategic disengagement from East Asian security issues, or by obtaining a denuclearization deal with North Korea, or by deepening ties with…

Re-Shaping the US-Japanese Relationship for the “Dynamic Defense” of Japan

09/30/2012
2012-09-30 By Richard Weitz During the Cold War, the core bargain was that the United States would defend Japan against external attack while the Japanese government would contribute to its immediate self-defense and offer generous financial and other support, including hosting U.S. military facilities on Japanese territory. American strategists consider…