Tag: United States

President Duterte is now saying that he will maintain the alliance the Philippines has with the US, but will not allow any more military exercises:

 Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Wednesday his country would maintain its existing defense treaties and its military alliances, adding to uncertainty and confusion over the status of security ties with the United States.

It an apparent break from a weeks-long torrent of anti-American rhetoric, Duterte suggested defense alliances would continue and his foreign policy was to “realign”, but reiterated joint exercises with U.S. troops, a decades-old tradition, would be stopped.

Part of the re-alignment has been overtures toward China and Russia, which Duterte has spoken highly of and plans to visit in the weeks ahead, starting with China from Oct. 18-21.

“We need not really break or abrogate our existing treaties because they say that it could provide us with the umbrella,” Duterte said in a speech to the coastguard personnel in Manila.

“We will maintain all military alliances because they say we need it for our defense.”

It was not immediately clear who Duterte was attributing the comments to when he mentioned “they” in his justification for maintaining ties.  [Reuters]

You can read more at the link, but could you imagine if Trump was to become President what the back and forth between these two would look like?

North Korea just added the U.S. to its list of state sponsors of terrorism. Discuss. https://t.co/fDFCQO9et8 https://t.co/Uk5Z6lYUCW

— Joshua Stanton (@freekorea_us) October 10, 2016

Here is something interesting, the U.K. is going to take part in a joint military drill with the US and the ROK in November:

To counter the rising threats from North Korea’s intensified nuclear and missile tests, South Korea and its allies – the US and the UK – are gearing up for a joint military drill in November.

Earlier in the week, South Korea and the US conducted a joint naval drill in the Sea of Japan in the Korean peninsula, which was said to be a show of force by the two countries against North Korea. The countries are also discussing imposing tougher sanctions against Kim Jong-un’s regime to stop him from pursuing the banned nuclear programme.

The South Korean Air Force said in a statement that the maiden joint military drill will be conducted between 4 and 10 November at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek, 70 km south of the South Korean capital Seoul. The drill, dubbed the “Invincible Shield” will involve a combined aerial exercise, the first of its kind, the statement added.

The UK is planning to send four Eurofighter Typhoon combat jets, Voyager tanker aircraft and C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft to take part in the exercise. F-15K and KF-16 fighters from South Korea will also participate in the drill with the US’s F-16 fighters, the statement added.  [International Business Times]

You can read more at the link.

It sounds like Duterte may be trying to bring his country more closely into the orbits of Russia and China in a bid to keep control over their contested South China Sea islands:

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said Tuesday he won’t allow government forces to conduct joint patrols of disputed waters near the South China Sea with foreign powers, apparently scrapping a deal his predecessor reached with the U.S. military earlier this year.

Duterte also said he was considering acquiring defense equipment from Russia and China. The Philippines has traditionally leaned on the U.S., its longtime treaty ally, and other Western allies for its security needs.

The remarks were the latest from a Philippine president who has had an uneasy relationship with the U.S. but also has tried to mend relations with China strained over South China Sea disputes.

Duterte said he wanted only Philippine territorial waters, up to 12 nautical miles offshore, to be patrolled by Filipino forces, but not other offshore areas that are contested. He added he opposes Filipino forces accompanying foreign powers like the U.S. and China in joint patrols which could entangle the Philippines in hostilities.  [Associated Press]

You can read much more at the link.

I would be surprised to see this happen:

The Defense Ministry said it was implementing a three-pillared system against North Korean weapons threats. On top of the already known Kill Chain to preemptively destroy North Korea missiles and the Korean Air Missile Defense system for air strikes, the ministry will add the so-called Korean Massive Punishment and Retaliation program, which would authorize joint allied forces to attack the North Korean military command if the country causes nuclear damage. The military plans to back the program with precision missiles and specially trained forces. Korean and U.S. forces are also developing new type of preemptive-strike operations.

Seoul should persuade Washington to redeploy tactical nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula until the North Korean nuclear threat is removed. NATO allows jet fighters of members to mount tactical nuclear weapons. The South Korean president as well as the U.S. president need to have the power to authorize the use of such weapons.   [Joong Ang Ilbo]

You can read more at the link.

Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump has taken another swipe at South Korea:

U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump denounced the free trade pact with South Korea as a “job killing” deal Thursday, pledging to totally renegotiate what he called “horrible” trade agreements.

It was not the first time Trump has voiced criticism of the Korea-U.S. trade agreement, but Thursday’s remark carried greater weight as it came in his first speech since formally winning the nomination at the national convention under way in Cleveland.

In a nationally televised nomination acceptance speech, Trump criticized his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton for supporting many trade deals hurting the American middle class, including the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and for supporting China’s entrance into the World Trade Organization.

“She supported the job-killing trade deal with South Korea. She has supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The TPP will not only destroy our manufacturing, but it will make America subject to the rulings of foreign governments,” Trump said. [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link, but considering how the Korean left was against the US-ROK FTA does this mean that the Korean left are fans of Donald Trump? Now that would be an odd pairing.

There may be tensions between the countries in the Pacific region with China due to their territorial grab in the South China Sea, but those tensions are being put aside in order to work together during the 2016 RIMPAC exercise kicking off in Hawaii:

The hot topic for the Rim of the Pacific remains unchanged from the last version of the maritime exercise in 2014: China.

This marks the second time China has been a full participant in RIMPAC, bringing five ships compared with two in 2014, and the country will play a much larger role.

During a Tuesday news conference kicking off the six-week exercise — the largest so far — Pacific Fleet commander Adm. Scott Swift was flanked by top commanders from many of the 26 participating nations. Beside him was Vice Adm. Nora Tyson, commander of the U.S. Third Fleet, who is heading the exercise’s combined task force.

Swift’s opening remarks didn’t mention China by name, but his first talking point echoed repeated calls by U.S. civilian and military officials to maintain the U.S.-led status quo in the Pacific region in response to ever-greater Chinese military might.

“[RIMPAC] brings together 26 nations from North and South America, Europe, Asia and Oceania,” Swift said. “This is what the international maritime community does in ensuring the norms, standards, rules and laws that have provided the great stability and security — the foundation for prosperity — that we’ve all enjoyed over the last 70 years.”

The biennial exercise is “a recurring answer to the divisive angst and tensions that put security and stability at risk in this region,” he said.  [Stars & Stripes]

This is what the Chinese Navy will be training with the US on during RIMPAC:

As it did in 2014, China sent the hospital ship Peace Ark, along with the guided missile destroy Xian, guided-missile frigate Hengshui, fleet oiler Gaoyouhui and the submarine logistics vessel Changxingdao.

China will participate in a new submarine rescue scenario, among other drills.

“For any country that has submarines, submarine rescue is very important,” Tyson told reporters. “I think it’s great we’re bringing these submarine rescue capabilities together so that we understand what is available in case we have an emergency with a submarine. There is a global system that will respond if any of us were to have an emergency with a submarine.”

You can read more at the link, but something of interests is that all surface vessels during the exercise are required to “Go Green” and use biofuels to power their ships.

Is it time to scrap the KORUS FTA?  US Presidential candidate Donald Trump thinks so, but the ROK finance minister disagrees:

Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho refuted remarks by U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump that the free trade agreement between Korea and the United States (KORUS FTA) undermines the American economy.

Minister Yoo made his remarks a day after Trump lambasted the KORUS FTA as “a job-killing deal” and said the deal “doubles our trade deficit with Korea and will destroy nearly 100,000 American jobs.”

Yoo also said joining the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) is “very important” for countries in the Pacific region, a stance in stark contrast with Trump’s pledge that he will pull the U.S. out of the 12-nation body if he is elected.

“That will not help any people in the world,” Yoo said during an American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AMCHAM Korea) General Membership Meeting.

Yoo said that Seoul acknowledges that some criticize the KORUS FTA citing the increased U.S. current account deficit, but stressed that the deal’s advantages “easily outweigh” the disadvantages.

“Trump’s remarks show that he does not understand the KORUS FTA,” Yoo said. “The sales of American automobiles in Korea soared by 28 percent annually, which makes Korea the second largest market for U.S. carmakers,” he said, adding that Samsung Electronics and Lotte Chemical have invested some $15 billion and $3 billion in the U.S., respectively.

Over Trump’s remarks, widely translated as protectionist, Yoo urged that the deal ― which marks its fourth anniversary this year ― should be consolidated further. [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.

Hong Myong-ki, head of an organization honoring Korean freedom fighter Ahn Chang-ho, talks about “Pachapa Camp,” the first Koreatown in the United States, at a meeting of the cultural committee of Riverside City, California, on June 15, 2016. The panel later agreed on the designation of the camp as a historic site. Ahn, who came to America in 1902, set up the camp in the city in 1904, when many Koreans worked at orange farms in the region. Hong said the camp was virtually a base for a movement for Korea’s liberation from the Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945). The City Council will make a final decision on the designation on Aug. 28. (Yonhap)

This is what teaching has come to in the U.S. pic.twitter.com/GUQ8dYcfci

— Anita Kellogg (@arkellogg) June 16, 2016