Posted on Dec. 29th The government has officially decided to drastically revise the nation’s so-called three principles on arms exports, which would make it possible for Japan to participate in the development and production of military equipment with other countries, Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said Tuesday. The announcement by the chief government spokesman came [...]

Posted on Dec 21st The new phase of Chinese naval development could include even more new weapons and sensors than the previous phase, if the recent launch of another specialized testing ship is any indication. Last month, the PLA Navy launched“Ship 893,” its third new weapons trials vessel since 2005. Trials ships are equipped with systems [...]

Posted on Dec 21st TOKYO, Dec 20 (Reuters) – Japan picked Lockheed Martin’s F-35 jet as its next mainstay fighter on Tuesday, choosing the aircraft over combat-proven but less stealthy rivals, as concern simmers over North Korea and as China introduces its own stealth fighters. The decision came as Japan and the United States stressed that their [...]

Posted on Dec 14th Japan said it’s close to selecting a supplier for a fighter-jet order that may be worth more than $4 billion after the Yomuiri newspaper reported that Lockheed (LMT) Martin Corp. will win the contest. “We’ve entered the final stages,” Defense Minister Yasuo Ichikawa told reporters in Tokyo today. “I want to [...]

Posted on Dec 14th CANBERRA, Australia — The South Korea and Australian defense ministers signed an agreement Wednesday to deepen military cooperation between the two countries through increased joint exercises. The move comes after the United States announced last month that it will increase its military presence in Australia and conduct more joint exercises across [...]

Posted on Dec 14th SYDNEY – Australia said Dec. 13 it had invited three companies from France, Germany and Spain to submit designs for its new submarine fleet, a project expected to span the next 30 years. Defence Minister Stephen Smith said Canberra had asked French naval defense firm DCNS, Spain’s Navantia and HDW of [...]

Posted on Dec 8th It’s no secret that North Korea has been providing missile technology to Syria, to Iran and to other countries, typically in the form of local assembly, although several of Pyongyang’s former missile customers have stopped their business. The issue of nuclear co-operation is quite a bit less clear. With regard to [...]

Posted on Dec 8th BEIJING – Chinese and US defense officials opened military talks in Beijing on Dec. 7 after ties were strained by American arms sales to Taiwan and a planned U.S. troop deployment in Australia. The talks, led by Michele Flournoy, U.S. undersecretary of defense for policy, and her Chinese counterpart Ma Xiaotian, [...]

Posted on Dec 1st BEIJING – China’s first aircraft carrier began its second sea trial on Nov. 29 after undergoing refurbishments and testing, the government said, as tensions over maritime territorial disputes in the region ran high. The 300-meter (990-foot) ship, a refitted former Soviet carrier called the Varyag, underwent five days of trials in [...]

Posted on Nov 28th In 2007 news agency Kanwa exclusively reported from St. Petersburg that China would buy 4 arresters designed by Marine Engineering Research Institute and made by Proletarsky Zavod plant which produces all Russian arresters and arresting hooks. Earlier on, China had contacts with this plant purchasing constituent parts for Project 956E/EM destroyers. Kanwa reported referring to a [...]