2014-11-03 The Marines this year are celebrating their 239th birthday. A good way to honor the Marines would be not only to remember the battle of Dong Ha, Vietnam, but to honor the men who fought there. The entire Second Line of Defense team wishes to support the suggestion of…
2014-11-05 Recently, the Rome based think tank, Centro Studi Internazionali, published their look at the F-35 program, its impact on Italian defense and the role of Italy within the global enterprise. The report was authored by Francesco Tosato who is the analyst in charge of military affairs at the Center…
2014-11-03 By Richard Weitz The United States and South Korea just completed their most important series of national security meetings this year. On October 24, the South Korean and U.S. foreign and defense ministers held their third so-called “2+2 meeting,” which was the first such ministerial since Park Geun-hye became…
2014-10-29 by Julien Canin Recently, the German press has underscored the perilous condition of the Bundeswehr. In part due of the Euro crisis, the government has made economies on the supply chain and spare parts with, for result, the currently atrophy of German capabilities. Indeed, between 2008 and 2014, the defense…
2014-10-17 By Robbin Laird It has been a year since I first sat down with Lt. General Preziosa at his office in Rome to discuss the evolution of Italian and coalition airpower. I had a chance to both discuss with the COS of the Italian Air Force at a meeting…
2014-10-23 By Julien Canin With the protests in Hong Kong reminding the world how democracy challenges the leadership of the PRC, Taiwan remains a clear reminder that it is possible to be both Chinese and democratic. But for it to remain democratic, it needs to remain free.And that requires the successful…
2014-10-15 By Richard Weitz Last week, the Japanese and U.S. governments released an interim report on their progress in revising the guidelines for their militaries’ roles and missions in the joint defense of Japan. 20141003_INTERIM_REPORT The interim report does not identify specific threats or discuss detailed scenarios for joint military…
2014-10-20 by Richard Weitz From September 20 to September 24, the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) conducted its first port visit to Iran and its first entry into the territorial waters of Iran and the Persian Gulf. Two vessels belonging to the PLAN East Sea Fleet, the Changchun and the…
