Japan secures first-ever major defense export with Philippine radar order
MELBOURNE, Australia — Japan has concluded its first export sale of major defense equipment, with the Philippines signing a contract for fixed and mobile air surveillance radars to cover potential flashpoints around the country, including the South China Sea.
Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana signed the contract agreement Aug. 28 in the capital Manila, which will see Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Corp. supply three fixed, long-range air surveillance radars and a mobile air surveillance radar to the Philippines.
An announcement made earlier that day by the Philippine Department of National Defense did not specify the radar type, but it had previously been reported that an improved version of the Mitsubishi Electric J/FPS-3 active electronically scanned array radar would be supplied for the fixed sites, along with the J/TPS-P14 mobile radar.
The department added that the radars, which are being acquired under the Horizon 2 Air Surveillance Radar System acquisition project, are expected to be delivered to the Philippines starting 2022.
MELBOURNE, Australia — Japan has concluded its first export sale of major defense equipment, with the Philippines signing a contract for fixed and mobile air surveillance radars to cover potential flashpoints around the country, including the South China Sea.
Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana signed the contract agreement Aug. 28 in the capital Manila, which will see Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Corp. supply three fixed, long-range air surveillance radars and a mobile air surveillance radar to the Philippines.
An announcement made earlier that day by the Philippine Department of National Defense did not specify the radar type, but it had previously been reported that an improved version of the Mitsubishi Electric J/FPS-3 active electronically scanned array radar would be supplied for the fixed sites, along with the J/TPS-P14 mobile radar.
The department added that the radars, which are being acquired under the Horizon 2 Air Surveillance Radar System acquisition project, are expected to be delivered to the Philippines starting 2022.
The deal between the two U.S. allies is significant, as it marks the first time Japan will export complete defense articles after it relaxed self-imposed restrictions on such sales in 2014. Since that time Japan has bid for a number of projects globally without success, with previous Japanese defense-related exports limited to spare parts.
The easing of restrictions on arms sales was part of a push by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to reform Japan’s defense posture and boost Japan’s domestic defense industry, driven in part by China’s rapidly modernizing military and increasing assertiveness. Abe announced Aug. 28 that he is resigning from his post due to health reasons.
Mitsubishi Electric was declared the winner for the Horizon 2 Air Surveillance Radar System acquisition project in March following an evaluation conducted by the Department of National Defense. The radars were purchased under a government-to-government deal, with a total contract value of $103.5 million.
The radars will be used for surveillance of airspace over the southern portion of the South China Sea, the southern islands of the Philippine archipelago as well as the strategic Benham Rise. The latter is an underwater plateau, 150 nautical miles east of the main Philippine island of Luzon, that is potentially rich in natural resources.
The Philippines is one of six southeast Asian countries that claim parts of the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, where China has carried out massive land reclamation and military construction projects on some of the islands and features it has occupied, dwarfing the smaller scale projects undertaken by some of the other claimants.
China criticizes US sanctions over South China Sea buildup
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| FILE - In this July 6, 2020, file photo provided by U.S. Navy, the USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76, front) and USS Nimitz (CVN 68, rear) Carrier Strike Groups sail together in formation, in the South China Sea. The U.S. Navy says the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan and its strike group entered the South China Sea earlier in August, 2020, and have been carrying out air operations. China routinely objects to U.S. naval activity in the sea, especially when more than one strike group is present, as happened earlier this year, and when they involve operations with navies from other countries. (Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jason Tarleton/U.S. Navy via AP, File) |
BEIJING (AP) — China on Thursday accused the United States of violating international law by imposing sanctions on officials and companies involved in Beijing’s military buildup in the disputed South China Sea, but gave no indication of how it might retaliate.
The sanctions add to conflict over control of the sea, one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. The U.S. rejects China's claim to virtually the entire waterway, portions of which are also claimed by Vietnam, the Philippines and other governments.
“The relevant U.S. acts grossly interfere in China’s internal affairs, violate international law and relevant international norms, which are totally out of hegemonic logic and power politics,” foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said.
The U.S. Commerce Department on Wednesday announced penalties against an unspecified number of Chinese officials and 24 companies for their role in building artificial islands to enforce Beijing’s territorial claims. The companies were added to an “entity list” that limits access to U.S. exports without government permission.
“China will take firm measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of its enterprises and individuals,” Zhao said.
Chinese officials frequently make such vows, although specific responses are rare.
The Commerce Department said the companies were targeted for their role in building the artificial islands through dredging and other activities that cause environmental damage and infringe on other nations’ claims.
“The relevant construction China carried out on its own territory is entirely within the scope of sovereignty and has nothing to do with militarization,” Zhao said. “There is no reason for the U.S. side to impose illegal sanctions on Chinese enterprises and individuals because of their participation in relevant domestic construction.”
Tensions in the South China Sea have been building as the U.S. and others push back against Beijing's moves to cement its control over the area.
U.S.-China relations have declined to their lowest level in years amid disputes over trade, technology, Taiwan, Hong Kong and human rights.
China is currently holding live-fire military exercises in both the South and East China Seas and a Hong Kong newspaper reported Thursday that the military test-fired two missiles into the South China Sea, including one seen as specifically designed to attack a U.S. aircraft carrier.
The DF-26B and DF-21D missiles fired Wednesday targeted an area between the southern island province of Hainan and the Paracel Islands, the South China Morning Post reported, citing unidentified sources close to the Chinese military.
The Ministry of Defense said the People’s Liberation Army conducted military exercises in the area but gave no confirmation of missiles being fired or other details.
China Fires Missiles Into Disputed Sea; U.S. Sanctions
US imposes sanctions on Chinese defense firms over maritime dispute
Taiwan finalizes $62bn purchase of F-16 jets from Lockheed Martin
Taiwan finalized the purchase of F-16 fighter jets from US aircraft manufacturer Lockheed Martin on Friday, a source confirmed to AFP, in a $62 billion, 10-year deal sure to anger Beijing.
Underscoring the sensitivity of the transaction, the Pentagon announced the contract without specifying the buyer, but a source familiar with the matter confirmed to AFP that it was Taiwan.
The self-ruled island, which China considers part of its territory, last year obtained the green light from Washington for the purchase of 66 new generation F-16s, which will allow it to modernize its defenses.
Taiwan already has a fleet of F-16s purchased in 1992.
The new contract, which the Pentagon said is for an initial delivery order of 90 jets, provides for more modern aircraft with the newest technology and weaponry.
Beijing insists that Taiwan -- an island of 23 million people that has been self-ruled since 1949 -- is part of its territory and has vowed to respond with force if Taipei ever formally moves towards declaring independence.
Washington, which switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979, remains Taiwan's most powerful ally and its main supplier of arms.
The Lockheed contract comes as Beijing flexes its political muscle in Hong Kong, imposing a sweeping security law on the international business hub, a move that has caused concern in Taiwan.
It also comes two days after a visit to Taiwan by the highest-level US delegation since 1979, provoking fury from Beijing, with ties between the two superpowers severely strained over issues from trade to military and security issues, human rights and the coronavirus pandemic.
sl/leo/acb/jah
U.S. Navy carrier conducted exercises in South China Sea on Aug. 14 |
| U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan is seen during its visit to Hong Kong |
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - A U.S. Navy aircraft carrier conducted exercises in the contested South China Sea on Friday, the U.S. navy said in a statement.
A strike group led by the USS Ronald Reagan conducted flight operations and high-end maritime stability operations and exercises, the statement said.
"Integration with our joint partners is essential to ensuring joint force responsiveness and lethality, and maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific," U.S. Navy Commander Joshua Fagan, Task Force 70 air operations officer aboard USS Ronald Reagan, was quoted as saying.
The drill comes amid heightened tensions between the United States and China. Washington has criticised Beijing over its novel coronavirus response and accuses it of taking advantage of the pandemic to push territorial claims in the South China Sea and elsewhere.
The United States has long opposed China's expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea and has sent warships regularly through the strategic waterway.
China has objected to such exercises and said the U.S. rejection of its claims in the South China Sea has raised tension and undermined stability in the region.
China claims nine tenths of the resource-rich South China Sea, through which some $3 trillion of trade passes a year. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam have competing claims.
(Reporting by Brenda Goh; Eduting by Shri Navaratnam)
World
China seeks to increase influence in South China Sea by reclassifying international shipping lanes
China has quietly changed how it identifies a vast stretch of international waters in a shipping regulation, indicating it as a “coastal” region, rather than “offshore,” as authorities seek to exert even greater control over the South China Sea.
The amended regulation, first drafted in the 1970s, went into effect on Saturday, and establishes a “navigation area” from China’s Hainan island in the south, all the way down to the disputed Paracel Islands, which sit east of Vietnam’s coastline.
The revision, however small, allows Beijing yet another avenue to justify its claims in the region.
“The move is pretty consistent with the broader, general patterns of China seeking ‘creeping jurisdiction’ using domestic laws to assert its claims and extend control in the South China Sea,” said Collin Koh,a research fellow at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
“With those domestic laws and regulations being implemented quietly without fanfare, the less likely it’ll attract undue external attention, so that over time a fair accompli is created - in other words, for Beijing to change facts on the ground.”
The risk, in the long run, is that this area of ocean already flanked by Chinese military interests and installations, could turn a navigational zone to a “future security alert zone,” he said.
The change comes as China has displayed increasing swagger in the South China Sea, where Beijing and a number of Southeast Asian countries all lay claim to the rocks, reefs and waters.
China has been accused of stepping up its maritime push in these resource-rich waters while the rest of the world remains busy battling the coronavirus pandemic.
The US and Australia conducted joint naval exercises this summer in the region, angering Beijing.
In response, the Chinese military in July engaged in drills in the region, deploying bombers and simulating nighttime takeoffs, long-range raids and attacks on sea targets, according to state media.
Both Washington and Canberra have since officially rejected Chinese claims to the South China Sea. In the past, both countries had stressed the importance of all countries maintaining access to these waters, stopping short of classifying Chinese activity as illegal.
The concern has long been that an increasingly assertive Beijing could use access to the South China Sea – along key international shipping routes – as a tool for economic coercion to squeeze nations during diplomatic rows.
Beijing’s recent maritime push has extended beyond the South China Sea to the East China Sea, angering Japan.
The Indian military has also stepped up operations in the Indian Ocean over concerns that China will next look to assert itself at sea against Delhi, after a land border skirmish in June led to a number of Indian casualties.
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