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Free and Open Indo-Pacific/FOIP
Military leaders, civilian defense authorities meet to enhance Indo-Pacific security, stability
FORUM Staff Defense leaders from 28 countries and multinational organizations met in Hawaii in September 2024 to discuss Indo-Pacific security concerns. The annual Chiefs of Defense (CHOD) conference drew upon the collective wisdom of participants and strengthened professional and personal relationships. The three-day conference in Kona included representatives from Asia, Europe, the Pacific Islands, North America and South America. Participants…
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Conflicts - Tensions
Quad leaders to expand maritime security cooperation in face of PRC aggression
FORUM Staff Australia, India, Japan and the United States will launch joint Coast Guard patrols in the Indo-Pacific in 2025. The enhanced security cooperation will improve interoperability and boost maritime safety, the leaders of the four member nations of the Quadrilateral partnership, or Quad, announced after their late September 2024 summit in the U.S. The initial Quad-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission…
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Conflicts - Tensions
Fake news, nonexistent journalists part of Beijing’s information manipulation scheme
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS When United States diplomat Kurt Campbell traveled to the Solomon Islands to counter the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) influence in the South Pacific country, he saw just how far Beijing would go to spread its message. Campbell, now the U.S. deputy secretary of state, woke up one morning in 2022 to a long article in the local…
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Conflicts - Tensions
Allies, Partners conduct joint naval exercises in South China Sea for Free and Open Indo-Pacific
Reuters The armed forces of five Allies and Partners conducted joint maritime exercises in a portion of the South China Sea in late September. New Zealand joined for the first time. Australia, Japan, the Philippines and the United States also participated in the exercises in Manila’s exclusive economic zone that sought to improve the militaries’ interoperability, the Armed Forces of…
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Conflicts - Tensions
Hong Kong’s academic freedom suffers under security regime, report says
Voice of America Hong Kong’s national security law, enacted in July 2020, has eroded academic freedom in the former United Kingdom colony, according to a report released in late September 2024. The report, by the international group Human Rights Watch and the United States-based advocacy organization Hong Kong Democracy Council, said university authorities have imposed greater control and limitations on…
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Northeast Asia
Canada, South Korea expand defense industry collaboration, eye joint security initiatives
Felix Kim Canada and South Korea are advancing defense cooperation in line with their comprehensive strategic partnership and shared security concerns in the Indo-Pacific. During his September 2024 visit to Seoul, Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair reaffirmed his nation’s long-standing commitment to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. He noted that since the 1950-53 Korean War, in which more…
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Free and Open Indo-Pacific/FOIP
Indonesia’s collaborative patrols enhance maritime security
Gusty Da Costa Indonesia’s Navy and Maritime Security Agency, which performs functions similar to a coast guard, will conduct more joint patrols in the country’s territorial waters, partnering with other maritime security agencies. The initiative highlights the critical role of such patrols in countering maritime threats. The 2024 Joint Patrol Operation, which ran from March to June, served to sharpen…
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Conflicts - Tensions
CCP’s bid to train foreign police officers seen as latest ploy in quest for global control
FORUM Staff The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) announced a plan in early September 2024 to export its law and order model by training 3,000 police officers worldwide. The proposal from the CCP’s public service ministry may seem superficially attractive, when combined with offers of equipment, and especially to other authoritarian regimes that seek to emulate the CCP’s model of absolute…
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Conflicts - Tensions
U.S., Chinese defense leaders resume military-to-military talks
FORUM Staff United States and People’s Republic of China (PRC) defense leaders reiterated their respective security postures in discussions intended to defuse actions or misunderstandings that could spark a confrontation. The renewed engagements in mid-2024 follow a two-year lull in dialogue and center on issues such as Taiwan, the South China Sea and the PRC’s support of Russian military industries.…
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Conflicts - Tensions
U.S. sanctions target Russia-North Korea financial conspiracy for illegal weapons
Reuters The United States imposed sanctions on five entities and one individual for enabling payments between North Korea and Russia to support Moscow’s unprovoked war against Ukraine and Pyongyang’s illicit weapons programs, the U.S. Treasury Department said in mid-September 2024. The measures, which target attempts to evade prior sanctions, demonstrate the U.S.’s commitment to disrupting networks that facilitate funding of…
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