Defense News – Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft took center stage in Australia’s and New Zealand’s joint response during a surprise appearance last month of Chinese warships sailing around Australia, while the nations’ numbers of surface combatants have been dwindling, according to officials and analysts.
Author Archives: Naval Open Source Intelligence (NOSI)
A War of Chokepoints: Mavulis Island in a Future Taiwan War Scenario
Modern War Institute – Amid the strategic competition and simmering tensions in the Indo-Pacific region between the United States and China, Japan has worked to boost its military capability on Yonaguni Island, the westernmost island of Okinawa. This is a sensible move given the island’s strategic importance and proximity to both Taiwan and China. The Japan Self-Defense Forces established a military base and radar station in 2016 with approximately 160 troops to monitor airspace and waterways. Plans are also in place to deploy a missile unit to the island.
Will Australia make notification in advance of military ops near China? Chinese Defense Ministry asks in return
Global Times – In response to four questions raised by journalists on the recent exercises by Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy warships in international waters near Australia and New Zealand, including the two countries’ claims that China did not notify them in time, a Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson on Thursday reiterated that the PLA Navy flotilla’s activities completely conform to international law. He responded by asking if Australia would send notifications in advance when it conducts military operations near China.
DragonFire directed energy weapon to be fitted to four Royal Navy warships by 2027
Navy Lookout – In her Spring Statement to Parliament today, the Chancellor will announce a modest increase of funding for defence, part of which will enable the RN to advance its plans for fitting the DragonFire laser weapon.
The South Pacific is the New Frontline in the Rivalry With China
War on the Rocks – For much of the last quarter of a century, the Sino-U.S. rivalry was largely confined to East Asia. Recently, however, there is an increasing amount of competition between Washington and Beijing in the South Pacific. However, I find that America and China are playing different games. China’s game is centered more on elite capture, the establishment of diplomatic relations, and various infrastructure projects. The United States has been focused on the development of human capital and working with these small island nations through Australia and New Zealand.
Sanctioned Russian Tankers Will Offload Oil in Syria
MarineLink – Two tankers hit by U.S. sanctions are due to offload Russian Arctic Oil in Syria for the first time, days after Moscow made its first known delivery of diesel there in more than a decade.
(Thanks to Alain)
Murky Waters – Navigating the Risks of China’s Dual-Use Shipyards
CSIS – China has emerged as the undisputed leader of the global shipbuilding industry. Over 300 shipyards dot China’s seaboard, churning out more than half of the world’s commercial vessels each year. These shipyards build the merchant ships that power global trade, but many are also charged with building China’s rapidly expanding navy.
Foreign companies have poured billions of dollars of revenue and transferred key technologies into these dual-use shipyards, accelerating China’s naval modernization. In underwriting the growth of China’s military and economic power, they risk marginalizing U.S. and allied competitiveness in a key industry and undermining peace and security in the Indo-Pacific.
Germany Seizes Russian ‘Shadow Fleet’ Oil Tanker
MarineLink – Germany seized a decrepit tanker found adrift off its northern coast in January that is believed to be part of a shadow fleet used by Russia to circumvent oil sanctions.
(Thanks to Alain)
Anti-submarine warfare: A scalable approach
European Security and Defense – The growing and increasingly-quiet submarine fleets of potential adversaries present Western navies with a resource-intensive challenge using traditional ASW approaches. This article examines a number of more cost-effective and scalable alternative methods that may allow navies to do more with less.
Portugal Intercepts Suspicious Submarine, Finds 6.5 Tonnes Of Cocaine In It
NDTV – Officers have confiscated nearly 6.5 tonnes of cocaine from a semi-submersible submarine intercepted off the Azores while bound for the Iberian peninsula.
(Thanks to Alain)
Taiwan’s Endeavor Manta Drone Boat Breaks Cover
The War Zone – Taiwan has not moved as fast as some may have expected to build an uncrewed surface vessel force, but that appears to be changing.
Italy can play a role in the Indo-Pacific—but must do it its own way
Atlantic Council – Italy is one of the major European powers that does recognize the importance of the Indo-Pacific, and its recent naval deployments to the region show that Rome is serious about playing a role in its security. But Italy needs to do so in a way that is sustainable, consistent, and makes use of its specific military expertise and capabilities. It will also need to carry out its Indo-Pacific strategy while keeping Euro-Mediterranean security as its top priority. Perhaps most important, Italy must avoid several possible pitfalls ahead that could hamper its efforts. A successful approach means not simply doing more in the Indo-Pacific. It means doing more of the right things that play to Italy’s strengths.
(Thanks to Alain)
Royal Navy minehunter monitors Russian spy ship Admiral Vladimirskiy in UK waters
Navy Lookout – As part of a continuing series of operations to monitor Russian vessels of interest near UK waters, HMS Cattistock last week tracked the Russian ‘ocean research’ ship Admiral Vladimirskiy as it travelled west through the English Channel.
Colombian Drug Gang Bribed Navy Staff to Place GPS Devices on Navy Ships
Maritime Executive – The indictment of two former employees of the Colombian Navy has revealed an elaborate plot by one of the country’s most notorious drug gangs to use GPS devices to evade capture by Colombian warships.
(Thanks to Alain)
‘Battle of the BAM’: An Inside Look at Early Red Sea Combat Operations
Naval News – The Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group redefined how the U.S. Navy performs its highest level pre-deployment integration exercises, achieving countless ‘firsts’ for naval aviation throughout its time in the Red Sea fighting Houthi drone swarms and anti-ship ballistic missiles.
Japan establishes new Maritime Transport Group with Taiwan contingency in mind
Naval News – On March 24, the Japanese Ministry of Defense established a new Self-Defense Forces Maritime Transport Group, a joint unit of the Ground and Maritime Self-Defense Forces, at the JMSDF Kure Base. The initial number of members at the unit is about 100, according the Ground Staff Office in Tokyo.
In focus: the Royal Navy’s anti-submarine sentry – the Towed Array Patrol Ship
Navy Lookout – In this article, we highlight the work of the Towed Array Patrol Ship (TAPS), the Royal Navy’s frigate specifically assigned to the anti-submarine task in UK waters and beyond.
Donald Trump’s Anti-Houthi Campaign Comes Up Short
National Interest – James Holmes writes that control represents the prime goal of military strategy, and air bombardment—no matter how relentless—cannot replace the power of boots on the ground.
Norway’s coastal rangers eye fresh drones to find threats at sea
Defense News – A team of officers bearing the Norwegian flag on their uniform climb from one moving vessel onto another, a larger Norwegian Coast Guard offshore patrol ship, using a single pole with a hook and flimsy ladder to haul themselves up. They are part of the Norwegian Coastal Rangers, a marine commando unit trained to operate in littoral combat environments. In the context of the NATO exercise Joint Viking 2025, organized earlier this month, they trained for the task of boarding a suspicious vessel.
CMSI Note 14: Bridges Over Troubled Waters: Shuiqiao-Class Landing Barges in PLA Navy Amphibious Operations
China Maritime Studies Institute – Considering these landing barges in the context of other developments related to amphibious operations suggests the PLA may have significantly advanced its timetable to have sufficient capabilities to conduct a large-scale cross-strait operation against Taiwan in accordance with Xi Jinping’s 2027 centennial military building goal.
The hunt for Red October in warmer oceans – Climate change and anti-submarine warfare
NATO – Climate change can have a real impact on interstate rivalry and strategic competition, specifically by affecting water temperatures, currents and salinity, and thus sonar performance – a key asset in submarine and anti-submarine warfare.
10 Russian warships rehearsed battle for Kaliningrad region
Bulgarian Military – On Tuesday, the Russian Navy carried out military exercises in the Baltic Sea, involving about 10 ships, according to a statement from the Baltic Fleet’s press service reported by Interfax, a Russian news agency.
(Thanks to Alain)
Subsea fibre cables can ‘listen out’ for sabotage
BBC – Some companies are trying to monitor what’s going on in the vicinity of any cable – by using fibre optic signals to listen out for surreptitious underwater drones, or hostile vessels dragging their anchors along the seabed.
Russia’s ghost ships haunt Libya
International Consortium of Investigative Journalists – The Kremlin is using vessels from its “ghost fleet” — hundreds of aging commercial ships with obscured ownership — to send military equipment to Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar.
(Thanks to Alain)
Frigate in Barents Sea is manned by sailors with battle experience from Ukraine
The Barents Observer – Servicemen on board the Admiral Kasatonov successfully applied their war experiences during a recent exercise in the Barents Sea, the Northern Fleet reports.
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