DefenceTalkAmerican and Japanese snipers came together to exchange their knowledge and learn from each other to enhance their combat readiness Sept. 5, at the Yakima Training Center, Wash. They focused on target detection, reconnaissance techniques and cover and concealment. The training was part of Operation Rising Thunder 13, a three-week exercise designed to develop all […]https://www.defencetalk.com/american-japanese-snipers-train-on-common-ground-49003/

DefenceTalkFour Chinese coastguard ships on Friday entered disputed waters near East China Sea islands at the centre of a bitter row with Tokyo, according to a report. Jiji press said the ships entered waters around Uotsurijima, one of the five islands Japan claims as the Senkakus and China as the Diaoyus around 8.15 pm, staying […]https://www.defencetalk.com/four-china-ships-in-disputed-zone-report-48982/

DefenceTalkJapan’s defence ministry is looking for its biggest budget hike in two decades, partly to create a Marines-like force, it revealed Friday, as neighbors fret about Tokyo’s rising assertiveness. Military bosses want more than 4.8 trillion yen ($49 billion) — three percent up on last year — with much of their focus on safeguarding remote […]https://www.defencetalk.com/japan-eyes-defence-budget-increase-marines-like-unit-48941/

DefenceTalkMilitary relations between China and the United States are steadily improving but Beijing remains determined to defend its maritime rights, the country’s defense minister said Monday during a US visit. Although General Chang Wanquan and his US counterpart, Pentagon chief Chuck Hagel, struck an optimistic tone after more than three hours of talks, the Chinese […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-will-defend-its-maritime-rights-defense-minister-48820/

DefenceTalkChina’s new unified coast guard agency has gone into operation, state media reported Tuesday amid maritime disputes with its neighbors, and experts said more ships will be armed as a result. The China Coast Guard integrates the functions of marine surveillance, the existing coast guard which came under the police, fisheries law enforcement and Customs’ […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-unveils-coast-guard-to-handle-sea-conflict-48620/

DefenceTalkA Chinese naval fleet was Sunday spotted sailing for the first time through an international strait between northern Japan and Russia’s far east, the Japanese defence ministry said. The two missile destroyers, two frigates and a supply ship passed through the Soya Strait from the Sea of Japan to the Sea of Okhotsk early Sunday, […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-naval-fleet-seen-off-northern-japan-48432/

DefenceTalkJapan is planning to launch satellites to monitor the world’s oceans, a report said Sunday, as Chinese government ships plied waters around islands controlled by Tokyo and claimed by Beijing. The Cabinet office plans to launch nine satellites in the next five years to counter piracy and monitor the movements of foreign ships intruding into […]https://www.defencetalk.com/japan-to-launch-satellites-to-monitor-oceans-48296/

DefenceTalkKADENA AIR BASE, Japan: Japan Air Self Defense Force rescue squadron crews safely recovered the pilot who ejected from a Kadena-based F-15 aircraft over the Pacific Ocean approximately 70 miles east of Okinawa at around 9 a.m. May 27. The pilot is in stable condition and is being evaluated at a military medical facility. The […]https://www.defencetalk.com/f-15-crashes-in-pacific-pilot-safe-47931/

DefenceTalkEurocopter Japan recently signed contracts with Japan’s National Police Agency for a total of four helicopters. Comprising two medium-class and two twin-engine light helicopters, the new acquisitions will be deployed to Hyogo Prefectural Police (EC155 B1), Hiroshima Prefectural Police (AS365 N3+), Osaka Prefectural Police (EC135 P2e) and Fukuoka Prefectural Police (EC135 P2e), as replacements for […]https://www.defencetalk.com/japan-police-agency-acquires-four-eurocopters-47914/

DefenceTalkHawkish Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Tuesday Tokyo could mount a military response if foreign submarines enter its territorial waters while underwater, as Japan and China continue to squabble over islands. Abe’s comment came after Japan’s Defence Ministry said a submerged vessel was spotted in the contiguous waters — a 12 nautical mile strip outside […]https://www.defencetalk.com/japan-pm-warns-of-possible-military-response-to-subs-47783/