China's Missile Threat Shifts Pentagon's Approach.

"LAL-LO, Philippines -- At this tiny commercial airport near the northern tip of the Philippines, tents for U.S. military equipment and troops dotted the tarmac alongside U.S. Army helicopters during recent training exercises.

It is one of a growing number of outposts for American forces in the Asia-Pacific region designed to meet the rising military challenge from China.

It is also part of a shift away from a heavy reliance on big military bases that have been the linchpin of the American presence in Asia for decades. Such bases are increasingly vulnerable as Beijing's missile arsenal grows larger and more technologically advanced.

By dispersing weaponry, troops and command posts among smaller outposts such as Lal-Lo, the U.S. hopes to make it harder for Beijing to strike a decisive blow by crippling any single military facility.

"The threat to fixed bases from the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, given its extraordinary growth in capabilities in the last few years, is front and center," said Thomas Shugart, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, a Washington think tank.

China's growing military capabilities and the U.S. military presence in Asia are set to be among the themes at this weekend's meeting of defense ministers in Singapore known as the Shangri-La Dialogue. China rebuffed a U.S. request for a meeting at the event between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu.

China now has more than 1,300 ballistic missiles that could be used against targets in the Asia-Pacific region, including over 250 that could reach as far as major U.S. military bases in Guam, around 3,000 miles from the Chinese mainland, according to Pentagon estimates.

China's development of hypersonic missiles, which are harder for missile-defense systems to hit because they don't follow predictable flight paths, has also focused attention on the vulnerability of U.S. bases in Asia.

Recent tabletop simulations conducted by American security analysts, including of a hypothetical war over Taiwan, generally assumed Beijing would try to destroy major American installations early in the conflict.

That potentially includes Kadena Air Base, the largest American air base in the region on the Japanese island of Okinawa, with more than $4 billion in jet fighters and other equipment.

Alarmed by this possibility, Sen. Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) introduced a bill into Congress in May calling for the U.S. military to build stronger shelters for its aircraft in Asia.

Air Force leaders say new shelters alone won't solve the problem. They are giving priority to a hub-and-spoke model that would move many aircraft away from large bases to an array of smaller facilities, especially if a conflict is looming.

As part of that transition, the Air Force is creating small teams of personnel that can quickly convert locations such as airstrips on remote islands into temporary bases for military aircraft when needed. So-called Air Mobility Teams would be dropped into these locations and tasked with rapidly preparing runways and setting up infrastructure like refueling points.

"It's about complicating their decision matrix. So yes, you might be able to hit this location, but we have another one over here from which we can project combat power," said Maj. Gen. John M. Klein, commander of the Air Force Expeditionary Center, under which the Air Mobility Teams are being created.

A larger number of small bases around the region could also allow the U.S. military to deploy assets closer to where they might be needed, shortening response times in a strategy known as prepositioning.

This may help with other missions such as disaster response. The Lal-Lo airfield is located in a region of the Philippines often hit by typhoons.

Some military strategists warn that moves to disperse U.S. military forces could make them more vulnerable if individual sites have weaker defenses and can be destroyed by a small number of missiles.

Operating from more countries can have other complications, such as coordination with host governments. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has said that sites the U.S. military has access to in his country can't be used for offensive military action.

Logistical and operational challenges may also increase with a more dispersed military, including communications with control centers.

U.S. military officials say the risks of losses as a result of concentrating their forces in just a few locations are now too great to not have other options.

Major U.S. military facilities in the Asia-Pacific region are protected by missile-defense systems such as Patriot batteries, which can defend against ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones, and the ship-based Aegis system, which targets ballistic missiles in midflight.

U.S. military officials say the task of defending bases is more challenging than ever because of China's advancing capabilities, as well as those of North Korea.

A central goal for China's military under leader Xi Jinping has been to make it perilous for the U.S. or any other rival military to operate around China's periphery, Chinese military scholars said." [1]

According to this strategy our the most stinky asshole country in the world, Lithuania, (all those stinky outdoor restrooms...) could expect some small American teams. First military application of strong odor just for hiding airplanes. Very interesting...

1.  World News: China's Missile Threat Shifts Pentagon's Approach. Gale, Alastair. 
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 02 June 2023: A.16.

 

Karas pabudimo (angl. woke) laikais: Afganistano karo veteranas pralaimi teismus prieš Australijos spaudą

  „Sidnėjus – Australijos teisėjas atmetė ieškinius dėl šmeižto laikraščiams, kuriuos iškėlė Afganistano karo veteranas, kuris buvo diskusijų dėl šalies karių elgesio konflikte ir elgesio su jos veteranais centre.

 

     Benas Robertsas-Smithas, pelnęs aukščiausią Australijos karinę garbę už kovą, remiant JAV karius Afganistane, padavė į teismą laikraščius, įskaitant Sydney Morning Herald and the Age leidėjus Melburne, po to, kai 2018 m. straipsniuose buvo pranešta, kad jis žudė neginkluotus afganus ir darė spaudimą kitiems daryti žmogaus teisių pažeidimus.

 

     Remiantis Robertso-Smitho pateiktais teismo dokumentais, straipsniuose buvo pateikti kaltinimai, kad jis nužudė neginkluotą civilį afganistanietį, nuspardydamas jį nuo uolos ir įsakydamas jo vadovaujamiems kareiviams, kad šį nušautų; nušovė vyrą su protezuota koja, kurią parvežė atgal į Australiją, o paskui paskatino karius naudoti, kaip naujovišką gėrimo indą; ir spaudė naujai dislokuotą kareivį nužudyti pagyvenusį, neginkluotą, vyrą.

 

     Robertsas-Smithas, kuris buvo specialiųjų pajėgų narys, tvirtino, kad straipsniai buvo melagingi ir šmeižikiški. Laikraščiai laikėsi savo pranešimų. Ketvirtadienį savo sprendimo santraukoje teisėjas nustatė, kad laikraščiai „nustatė esminę tiesą“ iš 14 kaltinimų Robertsui-Smithui – teisinė kliūtis, kurią laikraščiai turėjo išsiaiškinti, kad byla būtų nutraukta.

 

     Robertso-Smitho teisininkai iš karto neatsakė į prašymus pakomentuoti.

 

     „Šio teismo proceso centre esančios istorijų serijos turės ilgalaikį poveikį Australijos gynybos pajėgoms ir mūsų karių elgesiui konflikto metu“, – sakė „Nine Entertainment“, Sidnėjaus ir Melburno laikraščių, kurie buvo kaltinamieji šioje byloje, leidėjas, teigdamas, kad teisėjo sprendimas yra svarbus žingsnis siekiant teisingumo aukų šeimoms.

 

     Australija, viena iš svarbiausių JAV sąjungininkių Indo-Ramiojo vandenyno regione, Vašingtonui stengiantis kovoti su Kinija, grumiasi su savo dalyvavimo Afganistane palikimu. Visuomenės kontrolė sustiprėjo 2020 m., kai vyriausybės tyrimas aptiko patikimos informacijos, kad Australijos specialiosios pajėgos neteisėtai nužudė 39 kalinius, ūkininkus ir kitus civilius. Reaguodama į pranešimą, kuriame rekomenduojama atšaukti kai kurių Afganistane tarnavusių karių garbę, vyriausybė įsteigė specialią agentūrą, kuri padėtų tirti galimus nusikaltimus.

 

     Remiantis 2020 m. teismo dokumentu šmeižto byloje, policija informavo Robertsą-Smithą, kad jis buvo laikomas įtariamuoju tyrime dėl kai kurių tų pačių tariamų karo nusikaltimų, apie kuriuos praneša laikraščiai. Dokumente teigiama, kad jam nebuvo pareikšti jokie kaltinimai.

 

     Šiais metais Australijos valdžia apkaltino buvusį karį, kuris buvo dislokuotas Afganistane, karo nusikaltimu – tai pirmasis tokio pobūdžio baudžiamasis persekiojimas Australijoje. Kareivis buvo viešai identifikuotas; su kario advokatu komentuoti tuo metu nepavyko.

 

     Diskusijos dėl Australijos karinio elgesio kyla Vašingtonui, gilinant saugumo aljansą su Australija.

 

     JAV taip pat padeda Australijai kurti branduolinius povandeninius laivus pagal trijų krypčių „Aukus“ partnerystę su JK.

 

     Šią savaitę duodamas parodymus parlamente, Australijos kariuomenės vadas generolas Angusas Campbellas sakė, kad gavo laišką iš JAV gynybos atašė, kuriame buvo iškelta galimybė, kad 2020 m. vyriausybės ataskaitoje pateikti įtarimai dėl karo nusikaltimų gali turėti įtakos JAV gebėjimui dirbti su Australijos specialiosiomis pajėgomis.

 

     JAV ambasada Kanberoje iš karto nekomentavo." [1]

 

Karas niekada nėra pasivaikščiojimas parke. Mes išgyvenome didžiulius ugnies bombardavimus, branduolines atakas, „Agent Orange“ naudojimą. Pabudimo laikais mūsų kariškiai turi galvoti, kaip nekreipti dėmesio į teismuose keliamą pasmerkimą, kad sukeliate diskomfortą vaikams.

 

1. World News: Afghan-War Veteran Loses Suits Against Australian Papers. Cherney, Mike. 
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 02 June 2023: A.16.

The War In The Time of The Woke: Afghan-War Veteran Loses Suits Against Australian Papers.

"SYDNEY -- An Australian judge dismissed defamation lawsuits against newspapers brought by a veteran of the war in Afghanistan who has been at the center of debates over the conduct of the country's soldiers in the conflict and treatment of its veterans.

Ben Roberts-Smith, who had won Australia's highest military honor for fighting in support of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, sued newspapers, including publishers of the Sydney Morning Herald and the Age in Melbourne, after articles in 2018 reported he killed unarmed Afghans and pressured others to commit human-rights abuses.

According to court papers filed by Roberts-Smith, the allegations in the articles included that he murdered an unarmed Afghan civilian by kicking him off a cliff and getting soldiers under his command to shoot the man; gunned down a man with a prosthetic leg, which he took back to Australia and then encouraged soldiers to use as a novelty drinking vessel; and pressured a newly deployed soldier to kill an elderly, unarmed man.

Roberts-Smith, who was a member of the special forces, contended the articles were false and defamatory. The newspapers stood by their reporting. In a summary of his decision on Thursday, the judge found the newspapers "established the substantial truth" of many of the 14 allegations against Roberts-Smith -- a legal bar that the newspapers needed to clear for the case to be dismissed.

Lawyers for Roberts-Smith didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

"The series of stories at the center of this trial will have a lasting impact on the Australian Defence Force and how our soldiers conduct themselves during conflict," said Nine Entertainment, the publisher of Sydney and Melbourne newspapers that were defendants in the case, adding that the judge's ruling is a critical step toward justice for the families of the victims.

Australia, one of the U.S.'s most important allies in the Indo-Pacific region as Washington works to counter China, has been grappling with the legacy of its involvement in Afghanistan. Public scrutiny intensified in 2020, when a government inquiry found credible information that Australian special forces unlawfully killed 39 prisoners, farmers and other civilians. In response to the report, which recommended that certain honors for some soldiers that served in Afghanistan be revoked, the government established a special agency to help investigate potential crimes.

According to a 2020 court document in the defamation case, police informed Roberts-Smith that he was considered a suspect in an investigation into some of the same alleged war crimes reported by the newspapers. The document said no charges had been brought against him.

This year, Australian authorities charged a former soldier who was deployed to Afghanistan with a war crime, the first prosecution of its kind in Australia. The soldier was publicly identified; a lawyer for the soldier couldn't be reached for comment at the time.

The debate over Australia's military conduct comes as Washington deepens its security alliance with Australia.

The U.S. is also helping Australia develop nuclear-powered submarines under the three-way Aukus partnership with the U.K. 

In parliamentary testimony this week, Gen. Angus Campbell, chief of Australia's military, said he received a letter from a U.S. defense attache that raised the possibility that allegations of war crimes in the 2020 government report may impact the U.S.'s ability to work with Australian special forces.

The U.S. Embassy in Canberra didn't have an immediate comment." [1]

A war is never a walk in a park. We lived through huge firebombing, nuclear attacks, Agent Orange use. In the time of the woke our military has to think how to ignore court condemnation that you are creating discomfort for children.

1. World News: Afghan-War Veteran Loses Suits Against Australian Papers. Cherney, Mike. 
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 02 June 2023: A.16.