Anne Applebaum writes: It’s funny – but it’s also tragic, for May could have played all of this differently. When she took over last year, she could have recognized Brexit for the constitutional and political crisis it has turned out to be. She could have called for national unity to deal with this divisive issue. She could have appealed across party lines, or asked people what outcome they preferred, or sought compromise. Instead she stuck to her formula – “Hard Brexit,” tough-sounding language, “it’s all about immigration.” She kept her base – and lost everyone else. – Washington Post
India's long-awaited strategic partners policy has been approved, paving the way for the selection of private sector companies to produce weapons in partnership with overseas original equipment manufacturers. – Defense News India’s nuclear roadblock: Since 2016, India has been making efforts to attain membership of the 48-member Nuclear Suppliers Group. Sabena Siddiqui writes that the group is a nuclear technology control organization created to prevent misuse or proliferation of nuclear technology and China, along with other nations, have disapproved of India’s entry as they say it could lead to a nuclear arms race. READ THE STORY HERE
What's "PUSSY IN KOREAN": U.S. STOPS DEPLOYMENT OF THAAD MISSILE SYSTEM & Little Kim Launches6/7/2017 Anthony Ruggiero writes: Pyongyang’s provocations, which will soon culminate in the development of a nuclear-armed ballistic missile capable of hitting North America, deserve increasingly harsh responses from Washington. A new North Korea sanctions approach is needed to secure the United States and its allies against the dangerous and growing threat from this rogue regime. Sanctions are the only peaceful means for coercing the Kim regime, and are for that reason indispensable. – Foundation for Defense of Democracies The Halt of South Korea’s THAAD Deployment By Scott A. Snyder, Forbes: “South Korea’s new president decided to halt deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Air Defense (THAAD) system last week—pending environmental review. Barely a day after Moon Jae-in’s announcement, North Korea reportedly launched four short-range anti-ship missiles.” South Korea’s Defense Blunder From The Wall Street Journal: “Moon Jae-in’s decision to suspend deployment of a missile-defense system last week signals how the new South Korean President will approach the threat from North Korea as well as relations with the U.S., China and Japan. Like his center-left predecessors, Mr. Moon wants to play a balancing role between the regional powers and convince North Korea to negotiate an entente. This naïvete puts South Korea’s security in peril..” U.S., SOUTH KOREA: South Korea to Freeze Deployment of Thaad From The Japan Times: “South Korea will suspend any further deployment of a controversial U.S. missile defense system until an environmental impact assessment ordered by new President Moon Jae-in is finished, his office said Wednesday.” Pyongyang, more missiles: North Korea fired several land-to-ship missiles off its east coast on Thursday, less than a week after the UN Security Council stepped up sanctions on the reclusive state for its nuclear and missile programs. Asia Times reports that this is the fourth missile test by North Korea since President Moon Jae-in took office on May 10 pledging to engage in dialogue with Pyongyang. READ THE STORY HERE The launches Thursday morning of what appeared to be surface-to-ship cruise missiles were meant to demonstrate that the North could repel forces staging a strike on the Korean Peninsula, analysts said. – New York Times
North African neighbors push for political solution in Libya
The foreign ministers of Algeria, Egypt and Tunisia agreed Tuesday on the strategic importance of stability in Libya and fighting terrorism. In a joint statement issued after meeting in Algiers, Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and Tunisian Foreign Minister Khemaies Jhinaoui rejected any foreign interference or military solution to the crisis in Libya, stressing the need to preserve the country's territorial integrity, sovereignty and unity. The tripartite meeting came after Egyptian warplanes conducted airstrikes last month against militant camps inside Libya, following repeated attacks on Egyptian Christians. Islamic State claims twin attacks in TehranThe Islamic State claimed twin attacks that killed at least 12 people in Tehran today, marking the militant group's first such assault inside Iran. Multiple assailants entered parliament but were unable to reach the main hall, where lawmakers were holding a session. Separately, at least one suicide bomber detonated explosives as assailants sought to enter the shrine of the Islamic Republic’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, on the southern outskirts of the capital. Iran’s intelligence ministry said that a third plot was foiled and asked people to avoid using public transportation.
Manila’s international war: Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s security forces are struggling to contain an on-going Islamic State-linked attack on Mindanao that has dangerous new international dimensions, writes David Hutt. Reports from the front-lines indicate foreigners from countries as far-flung as Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Chechnya, India, Malaysia and Indonesia are fighting alongside the local IS-linked Maute Group. READ THE STORY HERE
Outflank China in the South China Sea
By Brett Wessley, Proceedings Magazine: “Throughout the history of warfare, the advantage has constantly swung between offense and defense, with new technologies and innovative tactics displacing old doctrines and war plans. The defensive advantage of the Greek phalanx was outmaneuvered by the skilled Roman legion. Improvements in fortifications and armor led to castles and iron-clad knights, until the invention of gunpowder made them obsolete. Rapidly maneuvering infantry assaults were favored until the trenches and machine guns of World War I made them suicidal. The French investment in the Maginot Line proved worthless in the face of a combined-arms Blitzkrieg around its flank. In all these examples, the common denominator is that one side’s tactical advantage spawned new ways of military thinking among its opponents, eventually degrading that advantage or reversing it completely.” After one year of deadlock in India over the issuance of industrial licenses to private sector defense companies, the government has reverted back to a previous arrangement in which the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, or DIPP, will grant licenses, in place of the Ministry of Home Affairs, according to a senior Ministry of Defence official. – Defense News
Derek Scissors writes: GDP growth was put at 7.9% the previous year. If GDP had continued to race ahead while jobs and other indicators were this weak, it would reveal deep structural problems — GDP growth doing little for most people. Though seemingly poor, 6.1% is a good signal that the economy has further potential. GDP growth can go higher and it can still signify truly greater prosperity. – AEI Ideas The Battle for Southeast Asia's Soul
By Peter Layton, Lowy Institute's the Interpreter: “In a ‘sphere of influence’, the dominant state can constrain and guide the foreign and domestic policy choices of other states within a particular region without using direct military coercion. For China, establishing a Southeast Asian sphere of influence would bring several benefits. In making regional states more pliable, China could gain implicit veto power over any unfavourable actions they might take. Regional states would become less willing to provide long term basing to American forces or short term support for transiting US forces. The US would progressively become less able to exert military pressure in the region as it became more difficult to operate there. The US would be gradually pushed out of the region, and China would have excluded US access without resort to armed force.” |
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