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Showing posts with the label Japanese Self defence Force

Japan is building massive Kirov-like battlecruisers? (Credits- Binkov"s Battle Grounds)

Revealed: Japan's Secret Weapon to Destroy China's J-20 and J-31 ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Dave Majumdar)

United States Navy E-2D Hawkeye ( Image source- Wikimedia Commons / Credits- United States Navy) Source- The National Interest Author- Dave Majumdar Japan is set to acquire four Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeyes airborne early warning aircraft that would nullify the threat of Chinese stealth fighters and afford it a potent missile defense capability. The new aircraft is equipped with a powerful hybrid mechanical/electronically scanned UHF-band radar that will be able to tie into the U.S. Navy’s state-of-the-art Naval Integrated Fire Control—Counter Air (NIFC-CA) battle network. Japan’s purchase of the E-2D is significant because the capabilities of those two key features. The E-2D’s Lockheed Martin AN/APY-9 UHF-band radar is the central feature of the Advanced Hawkeye. Both friend and foe alike have touted UHF radars as an effective countermeasure to stealth technology. One early public example of that is a paper prepared by Arend Westra that appeared in the Nat

Japan Seeks To Export its New Sub-Hunting Plane ( Source- The Diplomat / Author- Franz Stefan-Gady)

Japanese P-1 ASW Plane ( Source- Wikimedia Commons/ Credits- JMSDF) Source- The Diplomat Author- Franz Stefan-Gady Japan will offer Great Britain its first indigenously developed and built maritime patrol aircraft, the Kawasaki P-1, and will send two jets overseas for the first time to participate in UK’s  Royal International Air Tattoo – the world’s largest military airshow – according to media reports. The Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) will dispatch two P-1s, part of the JMSDF’s 51 Air Development Squadron, from the Naval Air Facility Atsugi in Kanagawa Prefecture on July 10, according to the Japanese Ministry of Defense. One aircraft will be on static display, whereas the second plane will perform a flight demonstration at the airshow from July 17-19. The planes will then head to an airbase near Ambouli International Airport in Djibouti to perform tests and permit “the technical challenges when operating in tropical and desert areas,” according to J

Japan Unleashed: Tokyo's New Military Ambitions ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Emily S.Chen)

Image source- Wikimedia Commons / Author- èšŠæ³¨å°„ Source- The National Interest Author- Emily S. Chen Under the leadership of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Japan is steadily loosening the shackles of its postwar pacifist constitution. The April announcement of the new U.S.-Japan defense guidelines aims to bolster U.S.-Japanese defense cooperation without preset geographical limits and enables “seamless and effective” alliance responses to security threats. Keeping up the momentum, Prime Minister Abe is in full force to push forward Japan’s defense-reform legislations. On May 14, Japan’s Cabinet endorsed two defense bills that would allow the country’s Self Defense Forces (SDF) to operate under a broader definition of self-defense and play a larger role internationally. Still, removing Japan’s postwar security restraints is no easy task. To boost Japan’s defense reforms, the Japanese government has to address both international and domestic concerns. In addition to reassuring

China, Be Afraid: The Mighty U.S.-Japan Alliance Is Going Global ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Nick Bisley)

Japanese Air Self Defence Force F-15 ( Image source- Wikimedia Commons / Author- United States Air Force)  Source- The National Interest Author-  Nick Bisley Due to continuing challenges around the TPP agreement, the public release of the revised Guidelines for Japan–US Defense Cooperation is the key policy outcome of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s spring visit to Washington DC. The rebalance to Asia is the signature feature of the Obama administration’s foreign policy, with the Japanese alliance at its center. For this reason alone the Guidelines are of importance. They also spell out a broader functional purpose and larger conceptual frame of reference for the bilateral relationship, which adds to their significance. But what signals do the Guidelines send about the strategic relationship and its purpose? Perhaps the most striking of these is that the alliance is now explicitly global in scope. The alliance has evolved from a key part of US Cold War strategy and it’s n

Japan's Navy Unveils 'Aircraft Carrier in Disguise' ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Akhilesh Pillalamarri)

JZ Izumo ( Image Source- Wikimedia Commons / Credits- Dragoner JP) Source- The National Interest Author- Akhilesh Pillalamarri Japan’s largest warship since World War II has just entered service. Japan’s Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) took delivery on Wednesday of the Izumo, a helicopter carrier “as big as the Imperial Navy aircraft carriers that battled the United States in the Pacific.” The Izumo was indigenously constructed at a shipyard in Yokohama, near Tokyo, at a cost of around $1.5 billion. It is named after the former Izumo province in western Honshu. In Japanese mythology, the entrance to yomi (hell) is located in Izumo. Perhaps this is apt, as the ship’s capacities definitely have the ability to dispatch Japan’s foes. The Izumo displaces 19,500 tons and is 248 meters (814 feet) long. According to Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani, the ship will improve the Japanese Self-Defense Forces’ capacity to deal with submarines: “As well as having the

India and Japan Inch Closer to Surveillance Aircraft Deal (Source- The Diplomat / Author- Ankit Panda)

Shin Meiwa U2 plane ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons) Source- The Diplomat Author- Ankit Panda As India and Japan continue to strategically converge amid mutual fears regarding China’s rise, they have deepened their defense cooperation. Notably, India will likely be Japan’s first export partner for military hardware under Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s principles on defense equipment exports. The Japanese government recently lifted its decades-old self-imposed ban on exporting weaponry to other countries. The two governments look all set to conclude a landmark deal for the sale of Japanese amphibious search and rescue (SAR) aircraft, a deal that has been in the works for years. India will likely purchase 12 ShinMaywa US-2 short take-off and landing (STOL) SARs this year (down from an earlier estimate of 15). Negotiations for the sale of the US-2 began in 2011 under the Democratic Party of Japan, first under Prime Minister Naoto Kan and then under Yoshihiko Nod

Japan's Master Plan to Defeat China in a War ( Source- The National Interest/ Author- Kyle Mizokami)

Mitsubishi F-2 ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Author- United States Air Force) Source- The National Interest Author- Kyle Mizokami In recent years, significant attention has been paid to the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). China’s defense budget, which has increased ten fold in the last twenty five years, has funded the construction of a modern, ocean-going navy. This includes the recently fielded aircraft carrier, Liaoning, as well as fleets of destroyers, frigates, corvettes, replenishment ships, and amphibious assault ships. The PLAN is indeed an impressive force, but local geography will create challenges during wartime. Japan controls a string of islands that form the Miyako Strait, which Chinese naval forces must transit to enter the western Pacific. Properly fortified, the Japanese-held Ryukyu Islands could conceivably block passage of the Strait altogether. The Ryukyus have been used to defend Japan before. Okinawa, the gateway to the Home Isla

Japan Wades Into South China Sea Issue ( Source- The Diplomat, Author- Mina Pollmann)

JS Ashigara ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Author- United States Navy by Mass Communication Specialist Michael A. Lantron) Source- The Diplomat Author- Mina Pollmann In the 1970s, when Japan first sought to craft a foreign policy identity independent of the U.S., it turned to Southeast Asia. Though Japanese Prime Minister Tanaka Kakuei’s 1974 trip was greeted with protests, relations quickly improved with the 1977 promulgation of the Fukuda Doctrine, which promised that Japan would never again become a military power. Since then, Japan has been seen positively in Southeast Asia as a mentor and constructive partner. However, despite this reservoir of soft power and major economic clout in the region, Japan has only been able to exercise marginal influence and has had difficulty being taken seriously. Part of the reason is that the U.S. remains the ultimate guarantor of security and stability in the region. And while the overall U.S. role will not change any time

Australia rules out open tender for new submarines, Japan in box seat ( Source- The Asean Military Defense Review, Author- Maki Catama)

JS Hakuryu ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons/ United States Navy) Source- The Asean Military Defense Review Author- Maki Catama Australia will not hold an open tender to replace its ageing Collins-class submarines, government officials said on Tuesday, a decision that bolsters Japan's position as the likely builder of the new multibillion-dollar fleet. Reuters reported in September that Australia was leaning towards buying as many as 12 off-the-shelf stealth submarines from Japan despite domestic pressure to build them at home. Since then, several European defence contractors have said they would be price competitive with Japan and do the work in Australia in a bid to win a piece of the overall A$40 billion ($33.96 billion) submarine programme. But the Australian government did not have time for an open bidding process, said Treasurer Joe Hockey. "We need to make decisions now and we don't have time to go through a speculation process,"

How Japan's Nationalization Move in the East China Sea Shaped the U.S. Rebalance ( Source- The National Interest, Author- Scott Cheney-Peters)

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons Source- The National Interest Author- Scott Cheney-Peters When President Obama heads to Beijing next month for a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), it will be an opportunity to take stock of the “rebalance”: to measure its impact on the region and the success of its objectives. Three years after Obama first announced the strategic shift in American military, economic and diplomatic resources (“the Pivot”) in 2011, the results are something of a mixed bag. The United States has enhanced military partnerships while outlining plans for bolstering its military presence in the region, yet on the economic front, Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks drag on with tenuous prospects. Diplomatically, the Pew Research Center on one hand reports a plurality of respondents in every Asian country polled except Pakistan, Malaysia and China view the United States as its greatest ally. On the other hand, pluralities in these three are