Taiwan air force stages drill amid tensions with China

 

 

As tensions remain high in the region, Taiwan Air Force pilots were seen rushing to F-16V jets as part of drills simulating the interception of an incursion into the disputed island’s defense zone. 

F-16V fighter jets perform an elephant walk during an annual New Year's drill in Chiayi, Chinese Taipei, on January 5, 2022. (Photo by Reuters)

Taiwan's air force has conducted a drill simulating a war situation to show the self-ruled island's combat readiness amid heightened tensions with Beijing.

The exercises were carried out at a base in the southern city of Chiayi on Wednesday, where Taiwanese jets took off into the sky as part of a three-day drill to show off the self-governed island's military prowess ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday at the end of this month.

Flight crews rushed to ready aircraft as an alarm sounded before takeoff at the base, home to US-made F-16 fighter jets, which frequently scrambles jets to intercept Chinese planes.

Major Yen Hsiang-sheng told reporters that with the very high frequency of Chinese planes entering Taipei's self-designated air defense identification zone (ADIZ), "pilots from our wing are very experienced and have dealt with almost all types of their aircraft."

Taipei holds live-fire drill amid tensions with mainland China

Chinese Taipei conducts a live-fire military exercise to test the combat readiness of the self-ruled Island’s troops and the firepower of its armored divisions.

The latest development comes as tensions among Chinese Taipei, China, and the United States have been at their highest in decades.

China has been flying fighter jets close to Chinese Taipei while the US has reportedly had troops deployed in the territory for the past year for alleged training purposes.

China flew 150 planes over Taipei's self-designated air defense identification zone in the first five days of October. Taipei's defense ministry described the show of force as an "incursion."

Last month, President Joe Biden said the US would come to Taipei's aid if it were to come under attack from China, claiming it had a commitment to defend the self-ruled island. China blasted the statement, accusing Washington of meddling in Chinese internal affairs.

China has sovereignty over Chinese Taipei, and under the "One China" policy, almost all world countries recognize that sovereignty. The US, too, recognizes Chinese sovereignty over the island but has long courted Taipei in defiance of Beijing.

China warns of 'drastic measures' if Taiwan moves toward independence

China has warned Taiwan against making moves toward independence, saying it will take "drastic measures" if the self-governed island crosses red lines.

The United States, which backs Taipei's secessionist president, also continues to sell weapons to the island in violation of its own stated policy.

China has in the past said its military exercises near Chinese Taipei are a "solemn warning" to secessionist factions in the self-ruled island and their foreign backers, particularly the United States.

Beijing has also warned Taipei against making moves toward independence, saying it will take "drastic measures" if the self-governed island crosses red lines.

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China Warns of WAR With US Amid Coronavirus Backlash

Internal memo says China should prepare for “worst case scenario” of “armed conflict” with USA, according to Reuters

A leaked Chinese memo recommends the country prepare for a “worst-case” scenario of “armed confrontation” with the United States amid global backlash over the coronavirus pandemic, according to Reuters.

Chinese leaders are concerned about anti-China sentiment spreading across the globe as controversy grows over China’s handling of the coronavirus during the outbreak’s early stages, but it’s unknown if the memo reported by Reuters currently reflects the sentiment of Beijing or if it’s intended to put the country on a war footing.

Related: Putin And Trump vs The New World Order: The Final Battle

“An internal Chinese report warns that Beijing faces a rising wave of hostility in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that could tip relations with the United States into confrontation, people familiar with the paper told Reuters,” the outlet reported, stating that it didn’t see the memo directly. “The report, presented early last month by the Ministry of State Security to top Beijing leaders including President Xi Jinping, concluded that global anti-China sentiment is at its highest since the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, the sources said.”

It is known that the US and China have both stepped up military activity in the disputed South China Sea over the past few days, with both the USS Bunker Hill and the USS Barry sailing near islands claimed by China and several other countries.



And the Czech Republic installed signs informing their Chinese tourists of the events of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, and to put this into context, China has spent the past several decades censoring all information on the ’89 protests involving ‘Tank Man’ that an entire generation of Chinese citizens have grown up completely unaware the protests ever happened.

“China’s early coverup of the outbreak – including silencing and/or disappearing whistleblowing doctors and journalists, lying about the transmissibility of the virus while hoarding personal protective equipment (PPE), quarantining Wuhan domestically while allowing international travel and using the World Health Organization to run cover – has drawn global scorn as COVID has infected over 3.5 million and killed nearly 250,000 in five months,” Zero Hedge reported.

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Iran didn’t want to kill US troops with its strike, it wanted to make point to Trump about its missile tech & resolve. It did that

 

Scott Ritter is a former US Marine Corps intelligence officer. He served in the Soviet Union as an inspector implementing the INF Treaty, in General Schwarzkopf’s staff during the Gulf War, and from 1991-1998 as a UN weapons inspector. 

© AFP / BBC Persian

Iran’s anticipated retaliation for the US assassination of Qassem Suleimani sent a clear signal to Donald Trump that while the current round of violence may be over, Iran stands ready to respond to any future US provocation. 

Tehran warned Iraq to spare US soldiers

On Tuesday night, the Iranian nation buried the body of Qassem Soleimani, the charismatic senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) officer assassinated by the US this past week. In the early hours of Wednesday morning, that task completed, Soleimani’s IRGC comrades, acting on the orders of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, launched some 22 ballistic missiles from Iranian territory into neighboring Iraq, targeting the huge US air base Al Asad, in western Iraq, and the US consulate in the city of Erbil, in Iraqi Kurdistan.

In the hours following the announcement of these attacks, which were broadcast on Iranian television for the Iranian people, the world held its breath, waiting for the results. Shortly after the missiles were launched, Iran signaled its desire for a diplomatic resolution to the crisis through a tweet sent out by its Foreign Minister, Javad Zarif, who described the attacks as “proportionate measures in self-defense under Article 51 of UN Charter.” Zarif concluded by noting that “We do not seek escalation or war, but will defend ourselves against any aggression.”

The ultimate decision to deescalate, however, was not Iran’s to make. War is not a one-way street, and the enemy always gets a vote. However, in launching its missile attack on US targets in Iraq, Iran appeared to go out of its way to signal that it considered the matter of retaliation for the assassination of Soleimani closed. First and foremost, Iran communicated its intent to strike US targets in Iraq directly to the Iraqi Prime Minister a full two hours prior to the missiles being launched; Iraq then shared this information with US military commanders, who were able to ensure all US troops were in hardened shelters at the time of the attack.

Showing off its new-gen ballistic missiles

But the most important aspect of Iran’s actions was the way its missiles were targeted. For years now, Iran has made significant strides in terms of the reliability, range and accuracy of its ballistic missile force. Gone are the days when Iran arsenal consisted solely of inaccurate Soviet-era SCUD missiles.

The missile attack on the US incorporated new, advanced missiles—the Qaim 1 and Fahad-110—possessing advanced guidance and control capable of pinpoint precision. Iran had used these weapons previously, striking targets inside Syria affiliated with the Islamic State. But this was the first time these weapons had been used against the US. From the US perspective, the results were sobering. The Iranian missile attacks resulted in no casualties among US, Iraqi or coalition forces stationed in either Al Asad or Erbil. But the lack of lethality, however, is actually Tehran’s way of proving the accuracy of its ballistic missiles.

Commercial satellite images of the Al Asad air base taken after the attack show that the Iranian missiles struck buildings containing equipment with a precision previously only thought possible by advanced powers such as the US, NATO, Russia and China. Iran fired 17 missiles at Al Asad, and 15 hit their targets (two missiles failed to detonate).



 

Satellite imagery on Al Asad air base from @PlanetLabs shows five impact points after being hit by Iranian missiles last night.#Iran deliberately avoided hitting populated areas.

I haven't seen any damage reports being released by the Pentagon.
Has anyone else?#NoWarWithIran pic.twitter.com/QZ4Mc9whdB

— Ian56 (@Ian56789) January 8, 2020

Iran also fired five additional missiles at the US consulate in Erbil; US commanders on the ground said that it appeared Iran deliberately avoided striking the consulate, but in doing so sent a clear signal that had it wanted, the consulate would have been destroyed.
Trump had to back down

This was the reality that President Trump had to wrestle with when addressing the American people regarding the state of hostilities between the US and Iran.

Trump had previously promised a massive retaliation should Iran attack any US personnel or facilities. Surrounded by his national security team, Trump had to back down from that threat, knowing full well that if he were to attack Iran, the Iranian response would be devastating for both the US and its regional allies, including Israel, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The US might be able to inflict unimaginable devastation on Iran, but the cost paid would be unacceptably high.

Trump’s rhetoric was aggressive, however, and his message made it clear that the US still considered Iran to be a rogue state whose pursuit of nuclear technology, ballistic missiles, and regional dominance would be opposed by the US, with force if necessary. But the Iranian missile attack drove home the new reality that, when it came to Iran’s actions in the Persian Gulf, American Presidential rhetoric no longer held sway as it once did.

Ali Khamenei, the Iranian Supreme Leader, drove this point home in a series of tweets claiming to have “slapped” the US in the face for its assassination of Soleimani, emphasizing that the policies pursued by Soleimani seeking the withdrawal of the US from the Persian Gulf region were becoming a reality, citing the recent vote by the Iraqi parliament to evict all foreign troops, including those of the US, from its soil.

President Trump, in his address to the American people, certainly talked the talk when it came to articulating a strong anti-Iranian policy. The real question is whether Trump and the American people are prepared to walk the walk, especially in a world where Iranian missiles are capable of dealing death and destruction on a scope and scale previously unimaginable.

Source: https://www.rt.com/op-ed/477759-iran-missiles-subdued-us-strike/

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NATO build-up on Russia’s borders a threat to Europe’s security - New Russian envoy to UK

On this episode of Going Underground, we speak to the new Russian Ambassador to the UK Andrei Kelin. He discusses Russia-NATO relations and the rising tensions of NATO positioning soldiers and armaments along Russia’s borders; the reasons for poor UK-Russia relations historically and why the Russia-UK relationship has held despite this; the impact of Brexit and Scottish nationalism in weakening the UK’s global standing compared to Russia’s and allegations of Russian interference in the Brexit referendum and cyber attacks.

He also discusses allegations of Russia aiding the US-UK trade talk leaks on the NHS presented by Jeremy Corbyn, alleged Russian assistance to Boris Johnson, the collapse of the INF Treaty and the Iran Nuclear Deal (JCPOA) and more!

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXi93SedJDs

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Kissinger: Coming Conflict Between U.S. and China “Will Be Worse Than World Wars”

Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger warns that a catastrophic conflict between America and China that will be “worse than world wars” is inevitable unless the two sides sort out their differences.

Kissinger made the comments at an event hosted by the National Committee on US China Relations in New York last night.

“We are in a difficult period now. I am confident the leaders on both sides will realise the future of the world depends on the two sides working out solutions and managing the inevitable difficulties,” said Kissinger.

A permanent conflict between Washington And Beijing would be unwinnable and lead to “catastrophic outcome,” he added.

“It’s no longer possible to think that one side can dominate the other…it will be worse than the world wars that ruined European civilisation,” said Kissinger.

The U.S. and China have been embroiled in a trade war since President Trump began imposing tariffs on thousands of Chinese-made products in a bid to end unfair trading practices.

Source: https://summit.news/2019/11/15/kissinger-coming-conflict-between-u-s-and-china-will-be-worse-than-world-wars/

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Russia Setting Up Military Bases Across Northeastern Syria, War Report

Source: South Front

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'Secret' US Military Base Near Russian Border Revealed in Documents Mishap

This is not the first time "secret" American bases have accidentally been revealed to the public and their possible opponents as a result of a mishap. Last year, a popular fitness smartphone app published global "hotspots", some of which could only be explained by soldiers stationed at such bases using the app in their training sessions.

While the presence of a NATO contingent in Estonia, a Baltic state on Russia's north-west border, was never a secret, the presence of American troops at an alleged covert base apparently was a well-guarded secret. The "secrecy" of the place was blown, however, by a local broadcaster, ERR, after one of its journalists simply studied the US Department of Defence (DoD) public records.

Although the papers did try to conceal the fact that Washington has a military base there by calling it an "unspecified training, operations facility", it never hid the country where it was located. The latter unwittingly gave away the "secrecy" of the site since the US never acknowledged having military facilities in Estonia, where officially only NATO troops from the UK at the Tapa base are deployed.

According to the DoD documents, the $15.7 million allocated to the development of the Estonian military base, will be used for the construction of a number of facilities, including barracks, arms vaults, and a weapons cleaning area.

 

© REUTERS / Ints Kalnins

U.S., Estonia's and NATO flags flutter next to the U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II fighter in Amari air base, Estonia, April 25, 2017

After a half-year investigation, journalists from ERR managed to get on the "secret" base's territory, which reportedly accommodates a regiment of US Special Forces on rotation. According to Kevin Stringer, a US Army colonel cited by the broadcaster, the base was established in 2014 after relations between neighbouring Russia and the West began their downward spiral.

This is not the first time secretive American military bases have been exposed by accident or lack of oversight. In November 2017, a popular fitness tracking application for smartphones, Strava, published the global heatmap of the app's most active users. To many users' and netizens' surprise, some of the hotspots were located not in cities or sport centres, but were in the middle of nowhere.

Since some of these spots coincided with military bases, specifically belonging to the US, several media outlets alleged the app was being used by some soldiers in their training sessions. Thus the remaining unattributed hotspots could also "belong" to "secret" US bases.

Source: https://sputniknews.com/military/201909051076726850-secret-us-military-base-near-russian-border-revealed-in-documents-mishap/?utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fzen.yandex.com

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British Army Soldier Reacts to Spetsnaz (Russian Special Forces)

 In this Video Kevin Drake reacts to Spetsnaz (Russian Special Forces)...

My craziest reaction so far! At the end I also explain my channel changes and reasons why.

 Spetsnaz is an umbrella term for special purpose in Russian and is used in numerous post-Soviet states.

Historically, the term referred to special operations units controlled by the main military intelligence service GRU (Spetsnaz GRU). It also describes task forces of other ministries (such as the Ministry of Internal Affairs ODON and Ministry of Emergency Situations' special rescue unit) in post-Soviet countries. Russian special forces wear different berets depending on the branch of the armed forces they belong to.

These include:
• Ground forces and Airborne Troops (VDV) - Blue Beret
• Russian Navy and Russian Marines - Black Beret
• National Guard - Maroon Beret

As Spetsnaz is a Russian term, it is typically associated with the special units of Russia, but other post-Soviet states often refer to their special forces units by the term as well, since these nations also inherited their special purpose units from the now-defunct Soviet security agencies. The 5th Spetsnaz Brigade of Belarus or the Alpha Group of the Security Service of Ukraine are both such examples of non-Russian Spetsnaz forces.

 Special Forces of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (Russian: Части и подразделения специального назначения (спецназ) Главного управления Генерального штаба Вооружённых сил Российской Федерации (СпН ГУ ГШ ВС РФ)), commonly known as the Spetsnaz G.U. or Spetsnaz GRU is the special forces (spetsnaz) of the G.U., the foreign military intelligence agency of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.

 The Spetsnaz GRU was formed in 1949, the first spetsnaz force in the Soviet Union, as the military force of the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), the foreign military intelligence agency of the Soviet Armed Forces. The force was designed in the context of the Cold War to carry out reconnaissance and sabotage against enemy targets in the form of special reconnaissance and direct action attacks. The Spetsnaz GRU inspired additional spetsnaz forces attached to other Soviet intelligence agencies, such as the Vympel and Alpha Group of the KGB.

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Spetsnaz GRU remained intact until 2010, when it was reassigned to the Ground Forces.[2] In 2013, the Special Operations Forces of the General Staff were established.

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Russian Military To Receive Completely New Hypersonic And Laser Energy Weapons

ILLUSTRATIVE IMAGE: AP Photo

A scientific conference involving the leadership of the Russian Armed Forces started in Moscow on June 18. 

The Russian Armed Forces are about to get a whole new weapon based on laser energy and hypersonic, the first of its samples have already been introduced into trial combat duty, General of the Army Sergei Shoigu said.

“In the near future, the Russian Armed Forces will receive a completely new, unparalleled weapon based on hypersonic and laser energy technologies. Its first samples have already been put on trial combat duty,” he said.

IMAGE: mil.ru

The defense minister noted that development of technologies and new weapons have significantly change the face of contemporary warfare and armed conflicts.

The defense ministry’s website reports:

“Armed conflicts we saw the last decades show that the nature of warfare has changed considerably. It is caused by the rapid development of science and technologies, the emergence of new weapons – all these influence forms and methods of warfare”, Sergei Shoigu explained.
At the same time, he noted that “as the high-tech weapons and military equipment enter the service, the forms and methods of warfare should be improved.”
“And we are making progress in this issue”, the Defence Minister stressed.
He also pointed out that at today’s conference they will discuss “the features of modern operations, issues of command and control and comprehensive support of the actions, the use of new and advanced types of weapons.”
According to Sergei Shoigu, “the results of the conference will contribute to the further development of the military strategy and operational art of Russia.”

MORE ON THE TOPIC:

• Russia 2019+ Military Doctrine

Source: https://southfront.org/russian-military-to-receive-completely-new-hypersonic-and-laser-energy-weapons/

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‘Best New Year’s gift to Russia’: Putin boasts successful test of Avangard hypersonic glider

CGI showing deployment of an Avangard glider by Russian Defense Ministry

The Russian defense ministry has conducted the final successful test of the Avangard hypersonic glider before its entry into service, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced. The weapon will be deployed in 2019, he added.

Related: [Video] Russian Nukes: A Warning To Globalists

A hypersonic glider is a special type of a warhead, which can fly through the atmosphere at a high speed. This extends the range of a missile, potentially increases accuracy and makes defending against it harder through unexpected maneuvers. But prolonged controlled flight requires special protection of the glider from heat and shock produced at hypersonic speeds. China, the US and Russia are considered the most advanced nations in the relevant technologies, and Moscow claims it is winning the race with the Avangard project.

“The test was finished just now in a complete success,” Putin told the cabinet on Wednesday. “All its specifications were confirmed.”

The president said the first regiment armed with missiles carrying Avangard gliders will be deployed in Russia next year.

"It’s a big event for the armed forces, and probably for the entire country. Russia has a new kind of strategic weapons."

In a separate statement, the Kremlin said that the Avangard glider tested on Wednesday was fired from the Dombarovsky site in southern Russia and targeted the test range in Kura in the Kamchatka Peninsula. The glider performed vertical and horizontal maneuvers in flight and accurately hit its intended target at a range, the statement said.

Avangard is one of five advanced weapon systems, which Putin presented in March this year as Russia’s response to the development by the US of anti-ballistic missile systems. Washington insists that its global ABM shield is meant to protect it and its allies from states like Iran and North Korea. Moscow believes it to be deception and sees the American effort as an attempt to undermine Russia’s nuclear deterrence.

[Video] Prof. Stephen F. Cohen: Threat Of Nuclear War With Russia Is Greatest Ever

The glider allows attacking targets that would normally be protected from a traditional ballistic missile warhead. It can take a course around land sites and warships with anti-ballistic missile capabilities or rely on its speed and maneuverability to avoid interception.

The project remains highly classified and even the appearance of the glider was not shown to the public. The video of the test released by the defense ministry showed only the launch of the carrier vehicle, but not the deployment of the glider, it’s flight or the moment it hit the target. According to Moscow’s statements’ Avangard can travel at the speed of over 20 Mach and its composite material hull withstands temperatures of up to 2,000 Celsius. The weapon is believed to be impossible to counter by any ABM systems for decades to come.

Source: https://www.rt.com/russia/447441-avangard-hypersonic-glider-test/

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Israeli Media in Total PANIC over Russian transfer of S-300 to Syria

The Israeli media is in a total frenzy over the forthcoming transfer to Syria of the Russian anti-aircraft missile system S-300. They recognize that these measures will lead to serious consequences for the Israeli Air Force.

However, as FRN notes, there is a less than even chance that Russia will not make good on the delivery, given its history with this question in the past, combined with patterns it has exhibited in the use of such announcements to win a concession from a third party.

Related: How the UN Joined America’s War Against Syria by Eric Zuesse

But as the Jerusalem Post states , the appearance of the Syrian military S-300 will make it possible to modernize the air defense of the country profoundly and create a “threat to Israeli aircraft.”

Speaking about the shipments of the antiaircraft missile system, the Ninth Channel  published an article with this headline: “In two weeks, Israel is in for a nightmare?”



In turn, the news daily Yediot Aharonot also admits that the deployment of the S-300 in Syria is really bad news for Israel, since it will require the Israeli Air Force “more effort, more planning and more caution when using force in the skies of Syria and Lebanon.”

According to Haaretz , the Russian S-300 in Syrian hands can jeopardize Israel’s activities in the region, so from now on it “will have to think twice before the next attack.”

The decision to supply the S-300 systems to Syria was made against the background of the incident with the crash of the Russian Il-20 plane on September 17. It was shot down by Syrian air defense systems through the fault of Israel, resulting in the death of 15 Russian soldiers.

As Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu expects, the S-300 in Syria will help  cool the “hotheads” and deter against rash actions that threaten Russian servicemen.

Related: Iran’s elite guards vow ‘deadly’ revenge as Tehran blames US & allies for parade attack

S-300 “Favorit” anti-aircraft missile systems are designed for the defense of large industrial, administrative facilities and military bases. The first multichannel system, which is capable of accompanying each complex to six targets and aiming for them to twelve missiles.

Source: https://www.fort-russ.com/2018/09/israeli-media-in-total-panic-over-russian-transfer-of-s-300-to-syria/

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