Japan's navy held its annual fleet review yesterday, with destroyers lining the seas and missiles roaring through the air in a major display of this country's military power.
More than 8,100 troops and 48 ships -- including AEGIS-equipped destroyers and state-of-the-art submarines -- took part in the review, which was held in waters just south of Tokyo.
"Our country's Self-Defense Forces are being called upon to play a more crucial and varied role," Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said in an address to the sailors aboard the Kurama, a destroyer that served as flagship during the maneuvers.
Abe singled out North Korea as a major threat to Japan, saying its recent ballistic missile test launches and its claim to have exploded a nuclear device on Oct. 9 are "grave and unforgivable."
Though planned well before North Korea's nuclear test, yesterday's review put the Japanese navy's best ships on display -- from vessels rigged with the advanced AEGIS radar system to brand new, conventionally powered submarines and high-speed hovercraft capable of quickly putting heavy vehicles or hundreds of troops ashore in difficult to reach locations.
"I believe this is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate our readiness," Abe said in his address.
While limited by Japan's post-World War II Constitution to a strictly defensive role, Japan's military is one of the largest and best equipped in the world.
Largely in response to the North Korean threat, and concerns over the growth of China's military, it is getting stronger.
Last week, lawmakers began discussing a plan to boost the Defense Agency to a full-fledged ministry, giving it greater clout in budget and policy negotiations.
The transformation is expected to come over the New Year's holidays, though it still requires a final vote in parliament.
Concerns over North Korea have also led Japan to step up efforts to strengthen its missile defenses.
Japan launched its third spy satellite earlier this year and is rapidly moving ahead on plans to deploy missiles around the country in an ambitious, multibillion dollar missile shield project with the US.
Soon after Pyongyang's nuclear test, Japanese warships were dispatched to the Sea of Japan to monitor activity on the Korean Peninsula.
Japan also currently has warships in the Indian Ocean which are providing logistical support to coalition forces that are deployed in Afghanistan.
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including