– AP – Nuclear-armed U.S. submarines that went more than a decade without calling on foreign ports in part because of post-Sept. 11 security concerns are once again visiting other countries, a shift intended to underscore their global presence and lift sailor morale.
German-made submarine heads to Israel for delivery
– UPI – The latest German-built Dolphin-class submarine INS Rahav is en route to Haifa to be delivered to the Israeli Navy.
The Russian Navy Report You Missed (But Need to Read, Now)
– National Interest – After its near collapse in the 1990s following the Soviet Union’s demise, the Russian navy is now on a path towards recovery.
Making Sense of the Latest Taiwan Arms Deal
– USNI News – Taiwan-watchers waited for long four years for new arms sales, but their patience was not met with large reward when the news about imminent arms sale to Taiwan emerged at the end of November.
Carter’s Rebuke of Navy Budget Propsoal Points to Split Between Service, DoD Priorities
– USNI News – Secretary of Defense Ash Carter’s list of directives Monday to the Navy to retool its budget for Fiscal Year 2017 revealed a split in priorities between the Secretary of the Navy and the Pentagon on the future of the force.
The Russian Navy – A Historic Transition
– Office of Naval Intelligence – ONI’s most recent unclassified report on Russia’s navy, The Russian Navy – A Historic Transition, looks historically and currently at the role played by Russian Naval forces. It is the first such report discussing the Russian Federation Navy by ONI since the seventh and last issue of Understanding Soviet Naval Developments published in 1991.
Vietnam builds military muscle to face China
– Reuters – Vietnam’s military is steeling itself for conflict with China as it accelerates a decade-long modernization drive, Hanoi’s biggest arms buildup since the height of the Vietnam War…Most significantly, Hanoi is creating a naval deterrent largely from scratch with the purchase of six advanced Kilo-class submarines from Russia. In recent months, the first of those submarines have started patrolling the South China Sea, Vietnamese and foreign military officials said, the first confirmation the vessels have been in the strategic waterway.
Pentagon Cuts LCS to 40 Ships, 1 Shipbuilder
– Defense News – The US Navy’s fight to buy 52 variants of its littoral combat ship (LCS) from two shipbuilders may have taken a fatal blow this week after the secretary of defense directed the service to cap its buy at 40 ships and pick only one supplier. The directive also orders the Navy to buy only one ship annually over the next four years, down from three per year.
Truman Carrier Strike Group Enters U.S. 5th Fleet To Begin Anti-ISIS Operations
– USNI News – The U.S. Navy once again has an aircraft carrier in U.S. Central Command, after the Truman Carrier Strike Group passed through the Suez Canal on Monday and became a U.S. 5th Fleet asset. The region had gone without any naval air power for a stretch of time, after the Theodore Roosevelt CSG and the Essex Amphibious Ready Group departed the region in mid-October. The Kearsarge ARG entered 5th Fleet on Nov. 1 and began air strikes with Marine Corps AV-8B Harriers about two weeks later, after a one-month gap in naval air power operations.
F-35B Integration, Larger Fleet Size Create Opportunities To Rethink How Fleet Operates
– USNI News – The Navy and Marine Corps amphibious fleet is on the cusp of two major changes – the introduction of the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter and the growth of the fleet from 30 to 33 ships – that will change the way the fleet trains and fights.
Chinese Submarine Practiced Missile Attack on USS Reagan
– Washington Free Beacon – A Chinese attack submarine conducted a simulated cruise missile attack on the aircraft carrier USS Reagan during a close encounter several weeks ago
Access vs. anti-access: China, US posture in anti-ship missile face off
– Asia Times – The People’s Liberation Army last month disclosed new details about its new intermediate-range anti-ship ballistic missile known as the DF-26. The missile can be armed with nuclear or conventional warheads and supplements the shorter range DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missile that along with the DF-26 are elements of a military strategy of building arms designed to force the US military to operate further away from Chinese shores.
Israel to arm warships with Iron Dome system to protect gas reserves at sea
– i24 News – The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) will install its successful Iron Dome missile defence system on warships protecting Israel’s off-shore gas drilling platforms, a temporary measure until new warships acquired in a deal with Germany arrive.
Flying close to Beijing’s new South China Sea islands
– BBC – Last year the BBC’s Rupert Wingfield-Hayes travelled across the South China Sea in a fishing boat and became the first journalist to observe close-up how China is constructing new islands on coral reefs. A few days ago he returned to the area in a small aircraft – provoking a furious and threatening response from the Chinese Navy.
Why America isn’t winning its wars
– Christian Science Monitor – It’s easy to blame presidents for a lack of strategy, but a growing number of officials are saying that the fault lies with a lack of vision in the Pentagon.
China may pay ‘international price’ in South China Sea legal case, experts say
– Reuters – When an international court ruled in late October that it had jurisdiction to hear a case filed by the Philippines against China over the disputed South China Sea, Beijing dismissed the decision, saying it would “lead to nothing”…Legal experts say Manila has a significant chance of success, citing the court’s detailed rejection of China’s arguments in the hearing on jurisdiction.
Guided missile cruiser Normandy returns to Norfolk
– Virginian Pilot – After more than nine months, 70,000 nautical miles and just about every major sea and ocean over the course of a trip around globe, the guided missile cruiser Normandy returned Saturday to Norfolk.
Russia fires warning shot at Turkey boat in Aegean
– BBC – Russia says one of its warships fired warning shots at a Turkish fishing vessel in the Aegean Sea to avoid a collision.
The Chinese Submarine Threat
– The Diplomat – What is the scale of the threat to U.S. supercarriers of China’s growing undersea capabilities?
Pentagon confirms patrols of Chinese nuclear missile submarines
– Washington Times – China has begun patrols with nuclear missile submarines for the first time, giving Beijing a new strategic nuclear strike capability, according to the U.S. Strategic Command and Defense Intelligence Agency. U.S. intelligence and strategic nuclear officials, however, remain uncertain whether China’s four Jin-class missile submarine patrols are being carried out with nuclear-tipped JL-2 missiles on board.
Taking Distributed Lethality to the Next Level
– USNI News – The evolving Distributed Lethality (DL) concept ––announced last year –– offers a new approach for how the nation might use its naval surface forces as potential adversaries acquire naval capabilities designed to control the sea.
Latest Russian Navy Operational Surge Could be Unsustainable
– USNI News – The Russian Navy has operated more and further afield in the last year than it has in decades, but the current high operational tempo maybe difficult for the Russian’s to sustain over the long term.
Russian submarine hits targets in Syria
– Defense News – Russian media reports that a Russian diesel-electric submarine operating in the Mediterranean Sea on Tuesday launched Kalibr cruise missiles at targets in Syria.
Zumwalt Destroyer Leaves Yard for First Set of Sea Trials
– USNI News – On Monday morning, the first-in-class Zumwalt-class destroyer left its pier at General Dynamics Bath Iron Work, headed down Maine’s Kennebec River bound for the Atlantic Ocean and its first taste of saltwater.
The Economics of War With China: This Will Hurt You More Than It Hurts Me
– War on the Rocks – The robust trade relationship between the United States and China dwarfs the limited trade between the United States and the Soviet Union, leading many analysts to conclude that open conflict today is unrealistic because of a presumed equal economic impact on both sides. A cursory analysis reveals that the reality is entirely different: Sino–American economic ties are asymmetrically interdependent rather than mutually dependent. This would strongly favor the United States in any conflict.
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