Manoj Ambat's Blog dealing with Defence, Foreign Affairs, Strategic Affairs and Politics

America entering into a defence cooperation agreement with Singapore, 2015 ( Image credits- DOD, USA) Source- The Diplomat Author- Shannon Tiezzi As my colleague Prashanth Parameswaran noted yesterday, the United States and Singapore just signed an enhanced defense cooperation agreement. The agreement covered a wide range of areas, including expanded defense dialogues and increased cooperation on cybersecurity and counterterrorism. However, the announcement that garnered the most attention was the news that Singapore will allow U.S. surveillance aircraft to operate from the city-state.  A U.S. P-8 Poseidon aircraft will be deployed in Singapore from December 7 to 14 – and it is widely expected to be used in part to keep tabs on China’s activities in the South China Sea. China was none too happy with the agreement. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told reporters that “the overall situation in the South China Sea is peaceful and stable,” just as regional count

Image credits- United States Navy Source- The Diplomat Author- Prashanth Parameswaran Underestimating the United States commitment in Asia would be a “severe miscalculation,” one of America’s top defense official for Asia warned Tuesday in a speech in Washington, D.C. “U.S. commitment to Asia should not be underestimated, and to do so would be a severe miscalculation,” Abraham Denmark, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia, told an audience at The Heritage Foundation, a D.C.-based think tank. As part of its rebalance to the Asia-Pacific, Denmark said the Obama administration has been solidifying alliances, deepening key partnerships, strengthening institutions and promoting strong trade and investment links in the region over the past years. Recent initiatives, from the inking of a new U.S.-ASEAN strategic partnership to the unveiling of the new Maritime Security Initiative, were proof of America’s commitment to the region (See: “US, ASEAN t

People's Liberation Army, China ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Kremlin) Source- The Diplomat Author-  Joseph A. Bosco China’s new military reform measures, intended to “give more power to lower-level authorities,” are likely to increase the threat of conflict with its neighbors and with the United States – in ways both obvious and more subtle. First, to the extent the reforms succeed in making the People’s Liberation Army more effective and “capable of real combat” as Xi Jinping has advocated, that is bad news for the region, the United States, and its allies. Given the territorial gains China’s aggressive posture has already made, any enhanced military power, real or perceived, can only whet the PRC’s appetite for further advances. Second, the devolution of authority to local commands portends a rise in incidents like the 2001 EP-3 collision and multiple ship-to-ship confrontations in the South and East China Seas. Beijing attributed each of those dange

PLAN Type- 39 class sub ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons /  SteKrueBe) Source- The Diplomat Author- Ben Ho Wan Beng There has been extensive debate in recent years about modern Chinese anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) systems rendering the aircraft carriers of the United States Navy (USN) highly vulnerable if Beijing and Washington were to clash in the western Pacific. Particularly ominous is the growing undersea arm of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). According to the U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence, China’s attack submarine fleet consists mainly of diesel-electric boats (SSKs) ­– there are 57 of them, as well as five nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs). Of these, the more modern ones include two Shang SSNs, 12 Kilo SSKs, and 12 Yuan SSKs. Experts often allude to the threat posed by SSKs to the U.S. flattop. This is because the SSK, which is quieter than its nuclear-powered counterpart, is seemingly often able to slip detection by the carrier’s escor

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Vitaly Kuzmin) Source- The National Interest Author- Blake Franko There has been much sensational media attention over Russian president Vladimir Putin’s decision to shore up Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, with hints that it could even be the start of a second Afghanistan for Russia. But there are strong incentives for Russia to fight in a limited role in Syria. The New York Times recently highlighted this, detailing how Russia under Putin has been keen on advancing its military prowess and Syria has therefore become Russia’s proving ground. In this sense, the invasion of Ukraine and intervention in Syria are no mistake, but rather stepping stones toward a larger Russian strategic goal. Besides the obvious reasons—supporting an ally who secures regional interests and landing an embarrassing blow to the Obama administration’s Middle East policy—Russia’s military is continuing its march toward professionalization. Putin has been sho

Kandahar Airport ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States Ministry of Defense) Source-  The Diplomat Author- Catherine Putz Tuesday evening Taliban assaulted the Kandahar airport, an attack that coincided with the opening of the Heart of Asia conference in Islamabad. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is in Pakistan attending the conference, which seeks to further regional cooperation and is seen as an opportunity for Afghanistan and Pakistan to move toward re-starting (re-re-re-starting?) the peace process aborted earlier this year. Kandahar, Afghanistan’s second largest city, is a well-know place within the wider war. Positioned in the south, in the heart of Pashtun territory and the Taliban’s traditional stomping grounds, the city continues to host thousands of coalition forces. While reports are still coming out and many details are unconfirmed, the fighting has died down after nearly 24 hours. The latest AP report cites the Afghan Defense Ministry as s

United States Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Greg L. Davis) Source- Eurasian Review Author- PANARMENIAN China’s military is paying “close attention” to an agreement between the United States and Singapore to deploy the U.S. P8 Poseidon spy plane to the city state and hopes the move does not harm regional stability, the defense ministry said, according to Reuters. “We are paying close attention to how the relevant situation develops, and hope bilateral defense cooperation between the relevant countries is beneficial to regional peace and stability and not the opposite,” the ministry said in a brief statement late on Tuesday. The foreign ministry of China, which is at odds with Washington over the South China Sea, said on Tuesday the move was aimed at militarizing the region. In a joint statement after a meeting in Washington on Monday, December 7, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Singapore Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen welcome