And more. . .
We begin with a very real security threat from Salon:
Americans see economic inequality as a bigger threat than nuclear weapons
Asked to name top threat to the world, a plurality of Americans say it’s the gap between rich and poor
Pew polled people in 44 countries for the survey. In the U.S., 27 percent of respondents named income inequality as the biggest danger to the world, followed by religious and ethnic hatred (24 percent), nuclear weapons (23 percent), pollution and the environment (15 percent), and AIDS and other diseas (7 percent). Europe, which was also hard hit by the Great Recession and whose leaders have since embarked on an agenda of economic austerity, joined the U.S. in seeing economic inequality as the top global threat.
The findings are part of Pew’s spring 2014 Global Attitudes poll. Earlier this month, Pew unveiled data from the survey showing that a plurality of Americans support raising taxes as a means of combating economic inequality.
The percentage of Americans naming inequality as the top global threat has increased sharply since the Great Recession. In 2007, just 17 percent of Americans told Pew that they considered inequality the biggest threat.
And on to the highest profile conflict of the moment from BBC News:
Islamic State ‘being driven out of Syria’s Kobane’
The Islamic State (IS) militant group has been driven out of most of the northern Syrian town of Kobane, a Kurdish commander has told the BBC.
Baharin Kandal said IS fighters had retreated from all areas, except for two pockets of resistance in the east. US-led air strikes have helped push back the militants, with another 14 conducted over the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, the new UN human rights commissioner has called IS a “potentially genocidal” movement. Zeid Ra’ad al Hussein described the group as the antithesis of human rights.
From TheLocal.dk, the latest player in the bombing war:
Danish F-16s carry out first mission against Isis
For the first time since parliament approved Denmark’s military involvement in northern Iraq, Danish jets took to the air to support an American-led mission.
Danish F-16 fighter jets participated in their first mission over northern Iraq on Thursday, the Defence Ministry announced.
“The jets took part in an operation over Iraq in close cooperation with our coalition partners. Our people have made dedicated and highly professional efforts to be ready and I am very pleased that the Danish F-16s are now actively contributing to the international coalition’s fight against the Islamic State,” Defence Minister Nicolai Wammen said in a statement.
Another high-flyer from the Guardian:
UK to send armed drones to assist campaign against Isis
Foreign secretary says drones will carry out surveillance over Iraq, and defence secretary says they will add to strike capability
Britain is to send heavily armed Reaper drones to the Middle East to help in the fight against forces from the Islamic State in Iraq.
Philip Hammond, the foreign secretary, told MPs that the Reaper drones would add to Britain’s surveillance operations over Iraq. Michael Fallon, the defence secretary, said the drones would add to Britain’s “strike capability”.
Hammond told the Commons: “We are in the process of redeploying some of our Reaper remotely piloted aircraft from Afghanistan to the Middle East to add to our surveillance capabilities.”
Blowback from the Guardian:
Threat of extremist attack in UK is escalating, say police
About 50 people a week referred to deradicalisation programmes, with 218 terror-related arrests so far this year
Britain’s most senior counter-terrorism officer has said that several plots this year to murder people on Britain’s streets “directed by or inspired by terrorism overseas” have already been disrupted, with police activity to prevent extremist attacks at its highest level for years.
Scotland Yard assistant commissioner Mark Rowley said Britain’s counter-terrorism network was battling increasing radicalisation via the internet, with fears that young British people are being brainwashed by material including depictions of beheadings, suicides, murder and torture. About 50 people a week are being referred to deradicalisation programmes, he said.
Activity to stop an attack was said by one source to be the highest since the aftermath of the 7 July 2005 attack on London’s transport system, with the threat level escalating as the year has worn on.
From BBC News, gee, we’re shocked:
US ‘hid Iraq chemical weapons incidents’
US troops and Iraqi police were wounded by exposure to abandoned chemical weapons in 2004-11 in a series of incidents largely kept quiet by the Pentagon, a US newspaper has reported.
The New York Times said the weapons were built by Saddam Hussein’s regime during the 1980s Iran-Iraq war.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/14/world/middleeast/us-casualties-of-iraq-chemical-weapons.html
Soldiers and police uncovered about 5,000 warheads, shells or bombs.
The Times based its report on dozens of pages of classified documents, and interviews with soldiers and officials.
And from the Intercept, an ominous development:
New Zealand Cops Raided Home of Reporter Working on Snowden Documents
Agents from New Zealand’s national police force ransacked the home of a prominent independent journalist earlier this month who was collaborating with The Intercept on stories from the NSA archive furnished by Edward Snowden. The stated purpose of the 10-hour police raid was to identify the source for allegations that the reporter, Nicky Hager, recently published in a book that caused a major political firestorm and led to the resignation of a top government minister.
But in seizing all the paper files and electronic devices in Hager’s home, the authorities may have also taken source material concerning other unrelated stories that Hager was pursuing. Recognizing the severity of the threat posed to press freedoms from this raid, the Freedom of the Press Foundation today announced a global campaign to raise funds for Hager’s legal defense.
In August, one month before New Zealand’s national election, Hager published Dirty Politics, which showed that key figures in Prime Minister John Key’s National Party were feeding derogatory information about their opponents to a virulent right-wing blogger named Cameron Slater. Hager published evidence in the form of incriminating emails, provided by a hacker, demonstrating coordination between National Party officials and Slater. The ensuing scandal forced the resignation of a top Key ally, Justice Minister Judith Collins, and implicated numerous other National Party officials and supporters. Despite the scandal, the National Party won a resounding victory in the election, sending Key to a third term as prime minister.
From Al Jazeera America, The Most Transparent Administration in American History™ is a sore loser:
US may appeal release of Guantanamo tape
Federal judge asked to halt plans for releasing video showing Guantanamo Bay hunger striker being force-fed his meals.
The United States government has asked a federal judge to halt plans for releasing videotapes showing a Guantanamo Bay hunger striker being force-fed his meals.
In court papers filed on Wednesday night, the Justice Department told US District Judge Gladys Kessler that the government may appeal an order by the judge that would, for the first time, lead to disclosure of classified information in a proceeding involving a prisoner at Guantanamo Bay.
The Justice Department told Kessler that she was substituting the court’s judgment for that of executive branch officials, contrary to established precedent.
intelNews covers old school spookery:
Senior Polish defense official detained for ‘spying for Russia’
A high-ranking official in Poland’s Ministry of National Defense has reportedly been arrested on suspicion of spying for Russia.
Poland’s Dziennik Gazeta Prawna said early on Wednesday that a man had been detained by Polish security personnel because it was thought he had been acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign country. Another source, Poland’s commercial news Radio Zet, reported that two men had been arrested, a colonel in the Polish Army and a lawyer with dual Polish-Russian citizenship.
Later in the day, an official statement from the office of the Senior Military Prosecutor said simply that Poland’s “Ministry of National Defense detained a Polish Army officer on suspicion of being a member of a foreign intelligence service.”
And RT covers Cold War 2.0, the latest complication:
US tanks arrive in Latvia to ward off ‘perceived’ Russian threat
US tanks have arrived in Latvia as NATO flexes its muscles in an apparent show of strength towards Moscow. The machines are being deployed across the Baltic States and Poland over the next two weeks and will be used for training exercises.
The 1st Cavalry Division, based at Fort Hood in Texas, was deployed in Adazi, not far from the Latvian capital of Riga. 150 soldiers used five M1A2 Abrams tanks, as well as 11 Bradley Fighting Vehicles in a training demonstration.
The commander of the 1st Brigade of the 1st Cavalry Division, John Di Giambattista said, “This is more than just a training mission. This is more than just a trip across the Atlantic; this is more than a multinational training exercise. This is how we demonstrate our nations’ commitment to reassure our NATO allies,” Reuters reports.
After the jump, neo-Nazi legislators to stand trial in Greece, Another FBI blast at citizen encryption coupled with a shot at China, hackers game the latest online ad tech, cybercam spookery, another corporation found selling our their “secure” devices, an NSA exec’s curious enterprises, an intriguing story about what Greenwald and company haven’t published, “smart meter” hacking, the latest Cold War 2.0 move, more mass grave found as search for Mexican students intensifies and anger rises, an Aussie/Japanese Channel sub deal draws closer, Korean military talks stall, another Korean nuclear threat [from the U.S.], on to Hong Kong as the crackdown intensifies, America responds, and pointless talks are proposed, Taiwan frets over Chinese maritime moves and Japan looks to America for critical help, Japanese lawmakers pay a provocative visit [Abe does it with an offering], and an even more provocative moved aimed at banishing any admission of World War II war guilt. . .
From the Guardian, with a reminder that going to prison actually helped Hitler:
Greek prosecutor orders all Golden Dawn MPs to face criminal trial
Far-right party’s MPs are accused of murder, weapons offences and attacks on immigrants, leftwing activists and gay people
In a decision that could mark the end of Europe’s most violent neo-Nazi force, a Greek public prosecutor on Thursday demanded that Golden Dawn’s entire parliamentary group stand trial for criminal offences.
The order, outlined in a 700-page argument by state prosecutor Isidoros Doyiakos, said that more than 50 leading party cadres should also be tried for using the far-right group as a political front to pursue a litany of illegal activities.
“This is an extremely important development and no time should now be wasted in holding this trial and putting these criminals away for life,” said Petros Constantinou, a prominent member of the anti-fascist Antarsya whose supporters have been widely targeted by the extremists. “Their murderous tactics have been tolerated for far too long.”
Another FBI blast at citizen encryption from the New York Times:
F.B.I. Director Calls ‘Dark’ Devices a Hindrance to Crime Solving
The director of the F.B.I., James B. Comey, said Thursday that federal laws should be changed to require telecommunications companies to give law enforcement agencies access to the encrypted communications of individuals suspected of crimes.
In a speech at the Brookings Institution in Washington, Mr. Comey warned that crimes could go unsolved if law enforcement officers cannot gain access to information that technology companies like Apple and Google are protecting using increasingly sophisticated encryption technology.
“Unfortunately, the law hasn’t kept pace with technology, and this disconnect has created a significant public safety problem,” he said.
Another FBI warning from the Washington Post:
FBI warns industry of Chinese cyber campaign
The FBI on Wednesday issued a private warning to industry that a group of highly skilled Chinese government hackers was in the midst of a long-running campaign to steal valuable data from U.S. companies and government agencies.
“These state-sponsored hackers are exceedingly stealthy and agile by comparison with the People’s Liberation Army Unit 61398 . . . whose activity was publicly disclosed and attributed by security researchers in February 2013,” said the FBI in its alert, which referred to a Chinese military hacker unit exposed in a widely publicized report by the security firm Mandiant.
Indeed, U.S. officials say privately, the activities of this group are just as significant — if not more so — than those of Unit 61398.
Hackers game the latest online ad tech, via PCWorld:
Hackers strike defense companies through real-time ad bidding
A major change this year in how online advertisements are sold has been embraced by hackers, who are using advanced ad-targeting capabilities to precisely deliver malware.
Security vendor Invincea said it has detected many instances of people within defense and aerospace companies stumbling across malicious advertisements that are shown only to them, a scheme it calls “Operation DeathClick.” A white paper on the scheme will be released Friday.
The cybercriminals are taking advantage of a sea change in the online advertising industry, which has mostly stopped selling “bulk” user impressions and moved to real-time bidding for advertisements that are highly targeted, said Patrick Belcher, director of malware analysis at Invincea, in a webinar presentation Thursday.
Another spooky intrusion from Deutsche Welle, with a video at the link:
Cyber-spying via webcam
Remote-maintenance software is meant to allow troubleshooters to repair your computer. But like much technology it’s open to abuse. It can also allow “ratters” to track another user’s activities – and, thanks to the webcam, actually see the targets themselves.
Another corporation found selling our their “secure” devices, via the Guardian:
Revealed: how Whisper app tracks ‘anonymous’ users
Some Whisper users monitored even after opting out of geolocation services
Company shares some information with US Department of Defense
User data collated and indefinitely stored in searchable database
The company behind Whisper, the social media app that promises users anonymity and claims to be the “the safest place on the internet”, is tracking the location of its users, including some who have specifically asked not to be followed.
The practice of monitoring the whereabouts of Whisper users – including those who have expressly opted out of geolocation services – will alarm users, who are encouraged to disclose intimate details about their private and professional lives.
Whisper is also sharing information with the US Department of Defense gleaned from smartphones it knows are used from military bases, and developing a version of its app to conform with Chinese censorship laws.
Another spooky sell-out, via the Guardian
Whisper app rewrites terms of service and privacy policy
‘Anonymous’ app revises sections of its terms of service after learning of Guardian article exposing details of its business practices
Whisper, the app which claims to be “the first completely anonymous social media network”, has introduced major changes to its terms of service after learning that the Guardian planned to publish details about its business practices.
The Guardian contacted Whisper on 9 October, informing the company that it planned to write a story about a number of internal company practices that appeared to breach the social media app’s contract with users.
Four days later, Whisper updated its terms of service – rewriting entire sections and introducing a whole new page about privacy. These new terms, which were posted on Whisper’s website on 13 October, come into effect on 12 November.
And BuzzFeed covers a curious NSA story:
Exclusive: A Second Business At Home Of NSA Official
Powerful National Security Agency official registered “electronics” business at her home before her husband set up intelligence business there, BuzzFeed News finds. Her company owns a plane and a condo
On a quiet street in Ellicott City, Maryland, a blue-grey two-story clapboard house, set back from the road, is shaded by two sycamores and a towering maple. It’s the unassuming home of one of the National Security Agency’s most powerful officials, Teresa H. Shea.
In September, BuzzFeed News disclosed a potential conflict of interest involving Shea, the director of Signals Intelligence. Called SIGINT in espionage jargon, it refers to all electronic eavesdropping and interception, including the controversial domestic surveillance program that collects information about Americans’ phone use.
As BuzzFeed News reported, there’s a private SIGINT consulting and contracting business based at Shea’s home in that quiet neighborhood. Shea’s husband, a business executive in the small but profitable SIGINT industry, is the resident agent for the firm, Telic Networks.
In addition, James Shea also works for a major SIGINT contracting firm, DRS Signal Solutions Inc., which appears to do SIGINT business with the NSA. DRS declined to comment, and the NSA declined to answer questions related to the Sheas, Telic Networks, or DRS.
Now there’s a new wrinkle, which the NSA has also declined to discuss: Yet another company, apparently focused on the office and electronics business, is based at the Shea residence on that well-tended lot.
And an intriguing story about what Greenwald and company haven’t published from Bruce Schneier at Cyptogram:
FOXACID Operations Manual
A few days ago, I saw this tweet: “Just a reminder that it is now *a full year* since Schneier cited it, and the FOXACID ops manual remains unpublished.” It’s true.
The citation is this: “According to a top-secret operational procedures manual provided by Edward Snowden, an exploit named Validator might be the default, but the NSA has a variety of options. The documentation mentions United Rake, Peddle Cheap, Packet Wrench, and Beach Head–all delivered from a FOXACID subsystem called Ferret Cannon.”
Back when I broke the QUANTUM and FOXACID programs, I talked with the Guardian editors about publishing the manual. In the end, we decided not to, because the information in it wasn’t useful to understanding the story. It’s been a year since I’ve seen it, but I remember it being just what I called it: an operation procedures manual. It talked about what to type into which screens, and how to deal with error conditions. It didn’t talk about capabilities, either technical or operational. I found it interesting, but it was hard to argue that it was necessary in order to understand the story.
It will probably never be published. I lost access to the Snowden documents soon after writing that essay — Greenwald broke with the Guardian, and I have never been invited back by the Intercept — and there’s no one looking at the documents with an eye to writing about the NSA’s technical capabilities and how to securely design systems to protect against government surveillance. Even though we now know that the same capabilities are being used by other governments and cyber criminals, there’s much more interest in stories with political ramifications.
From BBC News, and not considering the obvious:
Smart meters can be hacked to cut power bills
Smart meters widely used in Spain can be hacked to under-report energy use, security researchers have found.
Poorly protected credentials inside the devices could let attackers take control over the gadgets, warn the researchers.
The utility that deployed the meters is now improving the devices’ security to help protect its network. The discovery comes as one security expert warns some terror groups may attack critical infrastructure systems.
And the latest move in Cold War 2.0, via the Guardian:
Russia to bolster military presence in former Soviet states
Air force chief announces plans for new air base in Belarus, as well as expansion of existing facilities in Armenia and Kyrgyzstan. The Moscow Times reports
The head of the Russian air force has announced Moscow’s plans to establish an airbase for fighter jets in eastern Belarus in 2016, according to state media.
Colonel General Viktor Bondarev also said Moscow planned to expand its airbases in Armenia and Kyrgyzstan.
The three nations are members of a loose Russia-dominated security alliance known as the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which has accelerated efforts to create a unified air defence network as the Ukraine crisis re-energises the West’s military powerhouse, Nato.
More mass grave found as search for Mexican students intensifies, via BBC News:
New graves found in Mexico in hunt for missing students
People searching for 43 missing Mexican students say they have found new burial pits. The 43 have been missing since they clashed with police almost three weeks ago in the town of Iguala.
Vigilantes who joined the search said they had found six new burial pits, at least two of which contained what they believe are human remains. The search had been stepped up after forensic tests showed bodies found on 4 October were not those of the students.
The latest burial pits were found by members of a group of vigilantes who had travelled to Iguala to help with the search.
Strikes intensify, from Al Jazeera America:
Mexico universities call strike in solidarity with missing students
Protesters demand justice for 43 students who disappeared after clashes with police in Guerrero state last month
Students from major Mexico City universities have called a two-day strike and were set to hold a rally Wednesday at the national attorney general’s office to call for the safe return of dozens of rural students who disappeared after clashes with police in Guerrero state last month, leading to public outrage.
“We are on strike for 48 hours in support of the disappeared students in Guerrero,” Silvia Caballero, a 21-year-old student at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), told Al Jazeera.
Survivors of the Sept. 26 violence joined Mexico City protesters in informal campus activities and rallies demanding justice for their missing classmates. Several other universities joined the UNAM strike on Tuesday and Wednesday. Family members of the missing students were to attend the protest at the attorney general’s office in the capital, organizers said.
From the Guardian, a story that contains reader reports on the protests and why folks are participating int the student action and others sweeping the country:
Mexico missing student protests: demonstrators share their perspectives
A week ago thousands of Mexicans took to the streets in protest at the disappearance of 43 student teachers. Here some of the demonstrators share their perspectives
The students who studied at Ayotzinapa, a teacher training college in the state of Guerrero, south west Mexico, went missing on the night of 26 September. After taking part in a protest in the city of Iguala, about 120 miles south of Mexico city, the convoy of buses they were travelling home on came under fire from Iguala’s municipal police. Subsequently a series of mass graves have been discovered just outside Iguala, though it’s as yet unconfirmed whether they contain the bodies of the students.
Since the disappearance, thousands of Mexicans have taken part in protests to demand action from the government, here are some of their perspectives.
And the latest from the Latin American Herald Tribune:
Protest to Demand Return of Missing Students in Mexico Turns Violent
Mexican students wearing masks hurled objects at the headquarters of the federal Attorney General’s office in Mexico City in a protest against the disappearance of 43 students in the southern state of Guerrero.
The protesters, most of them from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, began a march at the campus which ended late Wednesday in front of the Attorney General’s office, where they held a rally.
The protest turned violent when the students hurled blankets on fire, sticks, stones and other objects at the building, breaking glass on the facade.
An Aussie/Japanese Channel sub deal draws closer, from Channel NewsAsia Singapore:
Australia asks Japan for help to develop new submarines: Japan defence ministry
If submarines export to Australia is realised, it would be a big breakthrough for Japan’s defence industry
Japan says Australian Defence Minister David Johnston has asked Tokyo for help to develop a new fleet of submarines. A spokesman for the Japanese Defence Ministry said Mr Johnston had made the request during a meeting with his Japanese counterpart Akinori Eto on Thursday (Oct 16).
The Australian defence minister is in Tokyo to discuss defence and security tie-ups with Japan. During his meeting with Mr Eto, Mr Johnston showed interest in Japan’s submarine technology. “So, we have many important and vital issues to discuss in terms of our cooperation going forward in challenging times,” said Mr Johnston.
It is clear that Japan and Australia are moving towards a “special relationship” as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has put it. In July, Mr Abe and his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott signed the transfer of defence equipment and technology agreement, following the easing of Japan’s arms export ban.
Korean military talks stall, via the Guardian:
North and South Korea military talks end in stalemate
First meeting between generals from both sides since 2007 ends with the longtime rivals failing to narrow key differences
The first military talks between North and South Korea in more than three years have ended in stalemate, with the rivals failing to narrow their differences on how to ease animosity after two shooting incidents last week.
Generals from both sides met on Wednesday at Panmunjom, the “truce village” that straddles the heavily fortified border dividing the peninsula since the end of the 1950-53 Korean war.
During the meeting, North Korea repeated its demands that its neighbour ban activists from dropping leaflets and media outlets from publishing articles critical of Pyongyang, a South Korean ministry spokesman, Kim Min-seok said. South Korean delegates said they could not do so because the country was a liberal democracy, he said.
An almost-blast from the past via the Independent:
US was ‘prepared to use nuclear weapons against North Korea’ if troops crossed border
The US was prepared to use nuclear weapons if North Korean forces crossed the border into South Korea, the former CIA Director and Defence Secretary Leon Panetta has claimed in his memoir.
In a passage published in Newsweek from his autobiographical book Worthy Fights: A Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace, Mr Panetta recalled a briefing in 2010 by the commander of US forces in South Korea.
During this briefing in Seoul, he said General Walter L. “Skip” Sharp suggested the US would use nuclear weapons if necessary in the event that North Korea moved across the demilitarised zone.
“If North Korea moved across the border, our war plans called for the senior American general on the peninsula to take command of all US and South Korea forces and defend South Korea— including by the use of nuclear weapons, if necessary,” Mr Panetta wrote.
On to Hong Kong as the crackdown intensifies, via Reuters:
Hong Kong police clear protesters, barricades in surprise raid in Mong Kok
Hundreds of Hong Kong police staged a dawn raid on Friday on one of the key sites occupied by pro-democracy protesters, removing barricades from roads and clearing out most of the demonstrators in an another setback for their movement.
The operation in the gritty working class area of Mong Kok, across the harbor from the main demonstration zone near the office of Hong Kong’s leader, came while many protesters were asleep in their tents.
It further reduces the number of protest sites that have paralyzed parts of the Asian financial hub over the past three weeks. Police encountered little resistance, unlike recent days when there has been violent clashes during operations to clear other major roads.
America responds via the China Post:
US calls for swift probe into Hong Kong police brutality
Television footage of officers assaulting the unarmed protester in a dark corner of a public park has sparked outrage and calls for prosecution from activists and lawmakers in the city.
Tensions soared in the former British colony after the video went viral Wednesday, with protesters saying they had lost all faith in the police despite the accused officers being “removed” from their posts by city authorities.
The United States said it was “deeply concerned” by the police brutality reports.
“We encourage Hong Kong authorities to carry out a swift, transparent, and complete investigation into the incident,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters, urging the government to show restraint and protesters to remain peaceful.
A proposal from the Los Angeles Times:
Hong Kong chief executive offers talks with democracy protesters
Hong Kong’s chief executive offered Thursday to hold a dialogue with one of the key student groups leading democracy protests, but failed to rouse much enthusiasm among demonstrators as he rejected one of their key demands: open nominations for the city’s 2017 election.
Holding his first press conference since the demonstrations began in late September, Leung Chun-ying said his administration was willing to talk with the Hong Kong Federation of Students as soon as next week. Several middlemen, he said, have been dispatched to begin a dialogue.
An agreement to hold talks the first week of October collapsed almost immediately amid a failure to agree on ground rules and other issues. Addressing demonstrators Thursday night, Federation of Students leader Alex Chow expressed an openness to meet with the government, saying discussions would “show their true colors.”
And the bottom line from the Christian Science Monitor:
Hong Kong leader confesses that real democracy is ‘impossible’
But he’s willing to talk to the kids anyway
Hong Kong’s chief executive CY Leung broke a long silence today, saying he is happy to talk with student protest leaders next week, but that they may not be happy with his bottom line position: No real democracy is possible in Hong Kong.
Mr. Leung spoke to reporters today after refusing to appear before the city’s 70-member legislative body amid roiling passions on the streets, where “Occupy”-style protesters have set up small tent areas to continue to press for free and fair elections in 2017.
Leung said the “most constructive” path forward is to “sit down and listen to the students … what we can do together.” But he said that his government is constrained from serious political reform by laws governing Hong Kong, a former British colony, since its handover to China in 1997.
Taiwan frets over Chinese maritime moves, via Want China Times:
PLA land reclamation in South China Sea could threaten Taiping
Lee Shying-jow, director-general of Taiwan’s National Security Bureau, has expressed Taiwan’s concern regarding China’s land reclamation in the South China Sea because Taiping or Itu Aba, the largest island in the disputed Spratly archipelago, is still under the control of Taipei, reports the Hong Kong-based Ta Kung Pao.
Lee said in the Legislative Yuan on Oct. 15 that land reclamation is taking place on seven shoals in the South China Sea currently under Chinese administration. Of these, five have been carried out at the personal order of President Xi Jinping. Lee said smaller installations will be turned into military outposts while the larger ones are likely to become permanent bases for the People’s Liberation Army in the South China Sea.
China’s land reclamation projects on Johnson South Reef, Hughes Reef, Gaven Reefs and Cuarteron Reef pose a threat to Taiwan’s national security, said Lin Yu-fang, a legislator with the ruling Kuomintang. Lin said the C-130 cargo planes of the Republic of China Air Force could be intercepted by fighters from the PLA Navy or Air Force as they resupply the Taiwanese garrison on Taiping.
Looking to Big Uncle, via Want China Times:
Tokyo wants clarity on US defense of Diaoyutai in new guidelines
As the United States and Japan work on revising their 17-year-old defense cooperation guidelines, analysts in Tokyo have expressed concerns over whether or not Washington will defend the disputed Diaoyutai (Senkaku or Diaoyu) islands in the event of a Chinese invasion, according to Paul Kallender-Umezu, an expert in Japanese national security, in his article written for Washington’s Defense News.
Umezu stated that the guidelines are being renegotiated because the United States wants Japan to share more responsibility for security around the world. In East Asia, the United States and Japan are facing an economically powerful, confident and potentially expansionist China and an unstable North Korean regime that is developing ballistic missiles with the capability to carry nuclear warheads that it could deploy against its neighbors.
In the face of a potential double threat from China and North Korea, Washington and Tokyo have agreed that they need to strengthen the security relationship between them, according to Umezu. Sources from the US State Department said that the new guidelines will provide a framework for how the two countries share roles and missions across the globe, however, there is still a huge array of unresolved issues between the two countries.
Japanese lawmakers pay a provocative visit, via Channel NewsAsia Singapore:
More than 100 Japanese lawmakers visit controversial war shrine
A cross-party group of Japanese parliamentarians said 110 members paid homage at the Yasukuni Shrine at the beginning of a four-day autumn festival
More than 100 Japanese lawmakers on Friday (Oct 17) visited a Tokyo shrine condemned by China and Korea as a symbol of Japan’s militarist past.
A cross-party group of parliamentarians said 110 members paid homage at the Yasukuni Shrine at the beginning of a four-day autumn festival.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who infuriated Beijing and Seoul by visiting the shrine in December last year, is thought unlikely to go even after he returns home Saturday from an Asia-Europe summit in Italy. He instead sent a ritual donation to the shrine, media reports said.
The group has visited the shrine during its spring and autumn festivals as well as on the Aug 15 anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II. The 145-year-old Shinto shrine honours some 2.5 million citizens who died in World War II and other conflicts.
While others say it with presents, from Reuters:
Japan PM Abe sends offering to Yasukuni Shrine for war dead: Kyodo
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent a ritual offering to Tokyo’s controversial Yasukuni Shrine, the Kyodo news agency said on Friday, a move that might complicate his push for bilateral meetings with leaders in China and South Korea.
Yasukuni is seen by critics at home and abroad as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism because wartime leaders convicted as war criminals by an Allied tribunal are honoured there along with millions of war dead.
Abe, who is currently attending a meeting of Asian and European leaders in Milan, visited the shrine in person in December 2013. The move outraged Beijing and Seoul, where bitter memories of Japan’s past military aggression run deep.
And finally, via the Asahi Shimbun, revisionism rampant:
Japan asks for revision of 1996 U.N. report on ‘comfort women’
The Japanese government asked for a partial revision of a 1996 report on wartime “comfort women” by a United Nations special rapporteur, but the request was immediately rejected.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told an Oct. 16 news conference that the revision request was made to Radhika Coomaraswamy, who compiled the report for the U.N. Commission on Human Rights.
According to Foreign Ministry officials, Kuni Sato, the Foreign Ministry ambassador in charge of human rights and humanitarian issues, met with Coomaraswamy in New York on Oct. 14 and asked her to revise references to a book written by Seiji Yoshida on how he forcibly took away comfort women from South Korea.
Coomaraswamy, a legal expert from Sri Lanka, refused to change the report, saying the Yoshida reference was only one part of the evidence, according to Suga and Foreign Ministry officials.
