2015-03-11 With the return of direct defense considerations for the Balts and the Nordics, key states like Sweden are rethinking their approach to defense. In an interview in Copenhagen last year with Hans Tino Hansen, the founder and CEO of Risk Intelligence, the shift was the focus of attention: Question:…
2015-03-03 By Richard Weitz Recent weeks have seen China reenergize its campaign against the deployment of the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) in South Korea. The reasons for Chinese concern is puzzling, since the U.S. and South Korean governments have not held any formal talks on such a…
2015-03-07 According to the February 2015, Japan Defense Focus published by the Japanese Ministry of Defence, there has be a significant increase in scrambles by the ASDF in 2014 compared to 2013. And the cause? No surprise here: incursions by the Russians and the Chinese. The ASDF scrambled 744 times…
03/05/2015: The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force(JMSDF) submarine JS Hakuryu (SS 503) arrives at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. Credit:Commander Submarine Forces Pacific:2/27/15 According to Wikipedia: The Sōryū-class submarines (16SS) are diesel-electric Attack submarines that entered service with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force in 2009. The design is an evolution of the Oyashio class submarine, from which it can…
2015-02-23 Recently, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, the research arm of the German Social Democratic Party, sponsored a look at the future with regard to the European Union and the East. According to the foundation: The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung has invited 20 experts from all over Europe to jointly develop four scenarios for relations between…
2015-02-19 As part of the overall pressure which Russia is putting upon Europe as part of the Ukrainian campaign, Russian bomber incursions have been stepped up over the past few months. This means that European air forces are having to exercise air interception missions on a more regular basis than…
2015-02-16 By Kenneth Maxwell The secrets of HSBC were painfully revealed last week by the Washington based "International Consortium of Investigative Reporters" (ICIJ). Working with an international team of 140 journalists in 45 countries, the leaked documentation, reveals how HSBC's (Suisse) Private Bank, helped wealthy customers conceal billions of dollars of assets: Over 100,000 accounts worth almost US$…
2015-02-13 Ian Armstrong Temple University Department of Political Science Roughly five years since the Obama Administration initiated the U.S. “pivot” to Asia, the circumstances have aligned themselves to make for significant headway in the region. In light of recent events, there is an opportunity to strengthen the bilateral relations of…
