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Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pacific land force leaders seek ‘positional advantage' against China
Top generals in the Pacific are aiming to create 'positional advantage' using a combination of land forces and maritime assets to counter Chinese military aggression in the region. Some units, such as the Japanese Self-Defense Force, are positioned inside the first island chain around China. While others, such as the Australian Defence Force and Armed Forces of the Philippines, are farther out but plan to use terrain as they monitor Chinese military maneuvers. Leaders from those three militaries discussed their respective roles alongside the head of U.S. Army Pacific, Gen. Ronald Clark, on Wednesday at the Association of the U.S. Army's annual Land Forces Pacific conference in Honolulu, Hawaii. Lt. Gen. Roy Galido, commanding general of the Philippine Army, said changes in the operational environment, in part due to modern technologies, have 'radically altered the definition of key terrain.' Army task forces 'centerpiece' for deterring China: INDOPACOM boss Some of that is more ships and boats coming under the control of traditional land forces, while other influences include longer-reaching fires that can hold Chinese ships at bay. Ultimately, though, Clark said, it will take a combination of those nations and others to effectively contain Chinese military action in the region. 'It's not just about the United States Army, it's not just about our joint force, it's about our allies and partners,' Clark said. Gen. Yasunori Morishita, chief of staff for Japanese Ground Self-Defense Forces, said he sees Japan's location as a key block to Chinese expansion. For Lt. Gen. Simon Stuart, chief of the Australian Army, ongoing, daily campaigning is key to winning the competition phase of any potential conflict, which leaders hope will ultimately deter conflict overall. Stuart pointed to recent acquisitions of ships and light vehicles that his country has approved as ways to 'achieve sea denial and kill ships from the land, dominate key and vital terrain' in the littoral regions, those areas of the sea close to land. Following Australia's 2023 defense review, the country began looking to acquire lighter, smaller vehicles for moving in and around littoral zone land features, Defense News previously reported. At the same time, the Australian military will acquire 28 new ships for its land forces to facilitate that maneuver, the most it's had since the end of World War II. Other review recommendations include an enhanced long-range strike capability for multiple domains of warfare. Planners also expect to field a fully enabled and integrated amphibious combined arms land system and a mobile, joint expeditionary theater logistics system, Defense News reported. On the strike side of the house, the review also recommended acquiring more M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, or HIMARS, and including local weapons manufacturing to ensure stock levels. Adding the HIMARS and the Precision Strike Missile, or PrSM, will give the Australian military greater land and maritime target reach, according to a Journal of Advanced Military Studies article published last fall. The Australian Army will acquire 42 HIMARS, the article notes. Japan, meanwhile, has built a new amphibious unit and launched its first such ship for the unit in November, U.S. Naval Institute reported. The maritime asset is key for the island nation to resupply its long island chain. The first ship, the JS Nihonbare, has similar capabilities to the U.S. Army's Runnymede-class large landing craft, according to USNI. Ultimately, the unit will contain 10 such vessels, four of which will be in the Nihonbare class, two 3,500-ton transport vessels and four maneuver support vessels. Elsewhere, the Philippine Army is actively training with U.S. Marines and Army assets, adopting an antiship strike capability of its own and facilitating U.S. strike platforms in their region through recent exercises such as Balikatan and Valiant Shield, officials said. The Maritime Key Terrain Security Operation recently concluded following an experiment with stand-in force concepts that deployed 'low-signature, light-weight formations to various islands in the Batanes and Babuyan Island chains to rehearse Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations, test sensing capabilities, and simulate securing and defending key maritime terrain,' according to a Marine release. The event included the simulated use of the Marines' newest weapon, the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System, or NMESIS, which deployed onto Batan Island. 'Walking off the C-130 with NMESIS onto that island was one small step for a Marine, and one giant leap for U .S.-Philippine-delivered sea denial capabilities,' said Col. John G. Lehane, commanding officer of the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Army, allies ponder Pacific role
The Association of the United States Army's annual Land Power in the Pacific Conference—better known as LANPAC—kicked off Tuesday at the Sheraton Waikiki. This year the conference, which brings together armies from across the Pacific and beyond, has attracted participants from a record 32 countries, including 16 national chiefs of army. 'The United States Army is working hard to gain positional advantage, ' said Gen. Ronald Clark, commander of U.S. Army Pacific at Fort Shafter, during a media conference early Tuesday morning as attendees were still arriving at the conference. 'We're doing that with decisive land power to deter aggression in the Indo-Pacific, specifically aggression by China, so that we can maintain regional security stability and reassure our allies and partners.' American military leaders and policymakers have often thought of the vast blue Pacific as the domain of the Navy and Air Force when it comes to defense policy. But in recent years the Army has sought to more vocally assert its role in the region, and the LANPAC conference, sponsored by the, a private, nonprofit organization that serves as the professional association for the military branch, has been a key occasion to promote it. In particular, Army brass have promoted the concept of a 'landpower network ' linking the U.S. and its allies in the region. As the military services have fought each other for funding and resources, Navy and Air Force leaders have at times sought to play down the Army's role in the region. But in a keynote address opening the conference, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command's top officer, career naval officer Adm. Samuel Paparo, embraced a mantra Army officers have used for years, telling the audience that 'human beings live on the land.' 'The Army provides the backbone of our ability to sustain combat power across the region, ' he said, addressing soldiers from across the globe. With its high-level commands, Hawaii is the nerve center of all U.S. military operations in the Pacific. It's one of the few places to have troops from every U.S. military branch, as well as a host of military attache and liaison officers from foreign militaries stationed in the islands. Gov. Josh Green welcomed conference attendees, telling the crowd that 'we here in Hawaii recognize the incredible value of our geopolitical position. … We are all keenly aware of what's at stake here.' In his second presidency, Donald Trump and his new defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, have pledged to make cuts at the Pentagon and throughout the military. Environmental and cultural programs that Hegseth considers 'woke ' have been targets. Trump and Hegseth have also expressed a desire to heavily scale back the U.S. military presence in places like Europe, the Middle East and Africa. However, Heg seth requested the Pacific be largely exempt from budget cuts. 'When I saw that they had chosen not to threaten cuts to the Indo-Pacific … I was grateful, grateful to hear from our leadership that at least this region is going to see growth in our resources and not see any pullback, because it's simply that important, ' Green told attendees. 'It is central to my thoughts every day, my thoughts of how you protect us, how your expertise moves us forward or really how vulnerable we would be otherwise if we didn't have this relationship.' But the conference kicked off as the military faces scrutiny over its presence in Hawaii. On Friday the state Board of Land and Natural Resources rejected the Army's final environmental impact statement on its plan to renew a lease on state land at the Pohakuloa Training Area on Hawaii island. The rejection was preceded by a long day of public comments by isle residents who overwhelmingly expressed opposition. For Clark it's just the latest chapter in a long story. He has been stationed in Hawaii many times before ; his daughter was born at Tripler Army Medical Center ; and he led the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks before taking on a senior staff role at Fort Shafter. He most recently worked in the Pentagon before returning to Hawaii over the summer to succeed Gen. Charles Flynn as top Army officer in the Pacific. 'Army training, land retention is a challenge, and it's something I've personally been working on for the better part of 10 years, ' Clark told reporters. 'Our ability to live and train in Hawaii is very important, not just to the Army and to U.S. Army Pacific, but to national security.' The BLNR voted 5-1 to reject the EIS, ultimately concluding that it contained data gaps on potential impacts to endangered plant and animal species, traditional Native Hawaiian burial grounds, wildfires and potential threats to groundwater. The Pohakuloa Training Area is the U.S. military's largest maneuver and live-fire training area in Hawaii and possibly the entire Pacific. With its rugged lava fields and volcanic soil, Poha kuloa is also classified as a subalpine tropical dryland forest, one of the world's rarest kinds of ecosystems and home to wildlife that exists nowhere else on Earth. The Army obtained its lease on the state parcel at PTA and others around the islands in 1964 for a mere $1, and will have to renew or vacate by 2029. Clark said, 'The Board of Land and Natural Resources made a decision. We accept that decision and look forward to continuing to negotiate in good faith with the state of Hawaii to come to some workable solutions with regard to land retention.' PTA has become an increasingly active training ground, used by both the Army and the Marines, and has become a central part of the the Army's new Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center, a series of training ranges in Hawaii and Alaska aimed at preparing soldiers for operations in the Pacific amid tensions with China. 'It's not just the United States Army that trains here. It's a joint force. It's a number of our allies across a number of training areas in the state of Hawaii, to include our National Guard, ' Clark said. 'We have to be good stewards of the land—we understand that—and good partners in this process.' The U.S. for years has been trying to make a 'pivot to the Pacific ' to forge closer ties with booming Asian economies. Yet American policymakers have continuously tried and failed to untangle the country from costly conflicts in the Middle East. Meanwhile, tensions in the Pacific have been on the rise. Paparo said, 'China, Russia, North Korea, among others, have formed a transactional symbiosis that threatens regional stability. The threat's particularly acute and increasingly interconnected across our global supply chains.' When asked by a Dutch military officer how Paparo views alliances, he said : 'When we're talking about our alliances and partnerships, if you are in this room, we're really talking about market democracies. We're talking about countries that are committed to a free and open Indo-Pacific and world. 'And here we notice that increasingly threats are global, they are interconnected, (and ) events in one continent have a great bearing on the events in others.' This year the Army will celebrate its 250th birthday. In a keynote address Tuesday afternoon to conference attendees, Clark argued that the U.S. military has relied on allies from its earliest days as a rebel force fighting the British crown for its independence. 'Two hundred fifty years ago, our allies and partners provided us legitimacy and direct military support, ' he said. 'Direct support from France in the terms of naval support at Yorktown, Prussian military training, loans from the Dutch, welcome military pressure on the British from Spain, and—not to be lost in this discussion—the Indigenous people of the United States who helped us to understand and leverage both the physical terrain and the human terrain.' LANPAC continues through Thursday.
The Hindu
08-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Operation Sindoor: Watching situation very closely, says top U.S. army general
A top American military commander has said that the United States is 'watching the situation very closely' after Indian military strikes on terror targets in PoK and Pakistan's Punjab province. Click here for the live updates on Operations Sindoor - Day 2 India launched Operation Sindoor early Wednesday (May 7, 2025), hitting nine terror targets in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Pakistan's Punjab province in retaliation for the April 22 terror attack that killed 26 people in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam. 'It's right now too early to opine on any of that. We're watching the situation very closely. We're nested with our higher headquarters and USINDOPACOM as the information about these strikes becomes more clear,' U.S. Army Pacific Commanding General, General Ronald Clark said during a digital press briefing Wednesday. The United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) is one of six geographic Unified Combatant Commands of the United States Armed Forces, headquartered in Hawaii. Mr. Clark was responding to a question on the U.S. view of the developing situation after the strikes by India. Earlier on Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he wants India and Pakistan to 'stop' the conflict, saying if he can do anything to 'help', he will be there. 'Oh it's so terrible. My position is I get along with both. I know both very well and I want to see them work it out. I want to see them stop and hopefully they can stop now. They have gone tit for tat, so hopefully they can stop now. I know both, we get along with both the countries very well. 'Good relationships with both and I want to see it stop. And If I can do anything to help, I will be there,' Mr. Trump said in response to a question on the 'war' between India and Pakistan. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told reporters in New Delhi on Wednesday that the Indian military carried out a 'measured, non-escalatory, proportionate, and responsible' strike to dismantle terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan to 'deter and to pre-empt' any further terrorist strikes. Addressing a packed press conference, Mr. Misri said it was deemed essential that the perpetrators and planners of the April 22 attack be brought to justice as there was 'no demonstrable' step from Islamabad to take action against the terror infrastructure on its territory or on territory under its control.
Straits Times
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
US will ensure allies' security, says General Ronald Clark after China unfurled its flag at a disputed South China Sea sandbank
Top US general says America will keep promise to ensure Indo-Pacific allies' security SINGAPORE - A top US general has assured Indo-Pacific nations that Washington will keep to its promise to ensure its allies' security, weeks after China's coast guard unfurled the nation's flag atop a sandbank also claimed by the Philippines in the South China Sea. Responding to a question from The Straits Times during a virtual press briefing on May 7, US Army Pacific commander General Ronald Clark said the US stood 'shoulder to shoulder' with the Philippines in its territorial dispute with Beijing. However, he stressed that he could not speak for the government in Manila, nor dictate what actions it might take. 'We have worked very closely with them – really day to day work – allowing for the dialogue necessary and the coordination necessary and interoperability between the Philippine armed forces and our own, to work through some of the challenges associated with some of the claims being made on their sovereign territory,' said Gen Clark. 'As a treaty ally, we stand shoulder to shoulder with them as they work through challenges (relating) not just to features in the South China Sea, but also their sovereign territory at large,' he added. Gen Clark's comments come after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth pledged to strengthen ties with the Philippines and 'restore deterrence' during a March trip to Asia. The flag unfurling in mid-April at Sandy Cay – part of the disputed Spratly Islands – came to light shortly after the US and Philippines launched their annual Balikatan ('shoulder to shoulder') military drills involving more than 17,000 personnel on April 21, with the timing seen as a direct challenge to both Washington and Manila. Beijing's actions at what it calls Tiexian Reef was reported in the Chinese media only on April 25, though the incident was believed to have been staged two weeks before. This prompted Manila to send military personnel to stage a flag-raising ceremony of its own at the maritime feature just days later on April 28. Manila's response sparked warnings from Beijing against actions that 'violated China's territorial sovereignty'. Sandy Cay is situated just kilometres from Thitu Island, the second-largest of the natural islands that make up the Spratlys. Known as Pag-asa in the Philippines, Thitu is home to a few hundred civilians and a military outpost. The tensions over the South China Sea take place in the backdrop of growing animosity between the US and China, with the two superpowers engaged in a brutal trade war that is likely to hurt global growth and prosperity. The deteriorating situation has raised fears among smaller nations that they will be arm-twisted into picking a side against their own self-interest. Arvind Jayaram is an assistant foreign editor at The Straits Times. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Japan Times
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
U.S. Army looks to deploy agile new unit to Japan for exercises
The U.S. Army plans to deploy one of its new agile, multidomain units to Japan for exercises as it looks to work more closely with allies and partners to help deter and potentially confront adversaries in the Indo-Pacific, the army's Pacific commander said Wednesday. Speaking to reporters, U.S. Army Gen. Ronald Clark didn't provide specifics but noted that the focus of the service's new Multi-Domain Task Forces (MDTFs), 'and not just in their employment or deployment to Japan, is to combine ... capabilities to challenge China's anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) network.' A2/AD refers to Beijing's strategy of working to keep the U.S. and allied forces at bay in the event of a conflict over Taiwan. Concerned about the threat posed by Russia and China, the U.S. Army has been setting up MDTFs that can operate across all warfighting domains — land, air, sea, space and cyberspace. Equipped with the army's latest weapons, such as new long-range precision missile systems and advanced cybercapabilities, the Pentagon has already established three such formations in strategically significant locations worldwide and is planning two more over the next two to three years. 'We're right now in the process of making our formations more mobile, more lethal, more survivable and more resilient by increasing the lethality of our soldiers and giving them capabilities that they can use right now ... to be able to deter our adversaries,' Clark said. Two of those formations — the 1st and 3rd MDTFs — already operate in the Indo-Pacific and a third is in the works. 'Our opportunity to deploy those capabilities, really across the region, is something that we look forward to continuing to do,' Clark said after elements of the 1st MDTF, which is headquartered in the state of Washington, deployed the Typhon Mid-Range Capability (MRC) missile system to the northern Philippines for exercises in April last year. The system, which is capable of firing Tomahawk cruise missiles, with a range of 1,600 kilometers as well as SM-6 missiles — has remained in the country since. Philippine officials have suggested that it will stay in the country indefinitely, with Manila also announcing plans to acquire its own midrange system. 'Our ability ... to synchronize in time and space long-range precision fires, (a) cybercapability, space capability and information operations in order to penetrate and neutralize an A2/AD threat is important,' Clark said. A U.S. Army High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) assigned to the 1st Multi-Domain Task Force, is readied as part of the Balikatan 25 military exercises, in Palawan, the Philippines, on April 28. | U.S. ARMY Crucial to success, he added, is the ability to deploy those assets in a way that's dispersed, easily camouflaged and allows U.S. forces to be one the move, so that they cannot be targeted at any one time and place. 'Both the will and capability to deploy those assets is the key to deterrence, and we plan to do that whenever possible,' he said. 'This is all about our ability to prevent war by building necessary capacity and interoperability with our partners and allies in the region.' Clark suggested the topic could be discussed at the U.S. Army's upcoming Land Forces Pacific Symposium in Hawaii from May 13 to 15. The event, he said, will bring together representatives from 32 Indo-Pacific nations, including at least 11 army chiefs as well as the commanders of the two MDTFs currently operating in the Indo-Pacific. His remarks came after the four-star general, who took up his post in November, wrote late last month that the U.S. Army would not only deploy an MDTF to Japan but also 'employ long-range non-kinetic space and cyber effects across the theater' as the Pentagon increasingly views allies as 'force multipliers.' 'The whole goal of this is that we want stronger and more resilient partnerships and a network of partnerships, not less going forward,' Clark said Wednesday. 'Less does not deter.' As part of a strategic move to reinforce its military posture in the Indo-Pacific, Washington has been considering the idea of having an MDTF 'operate out of Japan' as a part of exercises, along with a powerful missile system, since 2024. Last September, then-U.S. Army Secretary Christine Wormuth said the Pentagon had already made its interest clear with the Self-Defense Forces, adding that any deployment would 'go at the pace of the Japanese government.' Clark, who oversees 106,000 personnel, told The Wall Street Journal earlier this week that the goal is for the U.S. Army to operate the new multidomain agile units on front-line territories, including in the first island chain — which runs from Japan through Taiwan, the Philippines and on to Borneo, enclosing China's coastal seas — to deter Chinese aggression. In a conflict, the idea would be for these forces to disperse, hit Chinese targets from land, collect valuable battlespace information and create openings for U.S. air and naval forces to maneuver, Clark said in the interview, adding that the role of the new missile systems being deployed to the region is to help the units do their job. Besides the Typhon, the U.S deployed the HIMARS multiple rocket launcher system to this year's Balikatan exercises in the Philippines along with the Navy/Marine Corps Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS), a ground-based anti-ship missile system. 'If it gives them (China) pause, if it causes them to think twice, if it causes them to delay any thoughts they would have about some sort of aggressive action towards Taiwan that would result somehow in reunification, let them have it,' Clark was quoted as saying about giving these systems to allies and partners.
