US Military News, Reports, Data, etc.
- Thread starter tphuang
- Start date
BLUEJACKET
Banned Idiot
bd popeye, what do you think of late CNO (Chief of Naval Operations) ? One sailor who was on his ceremonial detail told me that no poweder marks were found on his body! By all accounts, he was the sailor's Admiral, and made a lot of top brass unhappy with his pro-personnel decisions.
I remember that incident somewhat. I do not remember the details. So I cannot comment.
Violet Oboe
Junior Member
Wow, three boxes of condoms! The guys at puget sound seem to have excessive energy (nuclear reactor induced sideeffects?) indeed
. Nevertheless the suicide story must remain suspicious as long as a credible motive is not uncovered (at least publicly).
. Nevertheless the suicide story must remain suspicious as long as a credible motive is not uncovered (at least publicly).Schumacher
Senior Member
General Pace is in Beijing. Possible setup of 'hot line'.
I really wonder what's being discussed behind closed doors in such meetings between potential rivals.
International Herald Tribune
Top U.S. general says "hot line" possible with China in future
The Associated Press
Friday, March 23, 2007
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BEIJING: China's military is proposing officer exchanges and other confidence-building measures with the U.S. armed forces and may be inching closer to setting up a "hot line" for emergency communication with Washington, the top U.S. general said Friday.
However, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he received no new information in meetings with Chinese military chiefs about Beijing's test of an anti-satellite weapon in January that raised major concerns in Washington. He said he continued to press China's generals for more transparency about the aims of their military buildup.
"I used the example of the anti-satellite test as how sometimes the international community can be confused because it was a surprise that China did that and it wasn't clear what their intent was," Pace said.
Pace said he immediately agreed to study the proposals put forward by Gen. Liang Guanglie, chief of the PLA's General Staff Department, in a meeting Friday. Liang's move seemed to indicate a shift by China to a more pro-active approach to military-to-military cooperation, an issue that the highly secretive People's Liberation Army has long expressed skepticism over.
"To me this was a very good, open discussion and one that I found very encouraging," Pace told reporters in Beijing.
He said Liang's proposals included sending Chinese cadets to the U.S. Army academy at West Point, and other academic exchanges, as well as observing or participating in joint exercises and humanitarian and relief-at-sea operations "that might be able to build trust and confidence amongst our forces."
Military exchanges were largely suspended following a collision between a U.S. spy plane and a Chinese jet fighter over the South China Sea in 2001. The Chinese pilot was killed and the U.S. crew held captive after making an emergency landing at a Chinese air base.
During that crisis, communication between the sides was spotty and at times nonexistent, largely because Washington had no direct channel of communications with the Chinese leadership.
Pace said the sides agreed to keep discussing setting up a "hot line" between either military or civilian leaders that would help ease any future friction.
"The Chinese military understands as well as I do that the opportunity to pick up the phone and talk to somebody you know and smooth out misunderstandings quickly is a very important part of relations between two countries," Pace said.
Deep mistrust remains, however, particularly over Washington's close military ties with Japan and commitment to help ensure the defense of Taiwan, the self-governing island that China considers its own territory and which it has threatened to use force to recover.
China has complained about U.S. plans to sell a batch of more than 400 missiles to Taiwan, but Pace said he had no details and didn't indicate whether the deal was mentioned in discussions.
Asked about the possibility of a conflict over Taiwan, he said: "I believe there are good faith efforts among all the leadership to prevent that."
The general didn't say how the Chinese officers responded to his calls for more transparency. China raised its military budget by 17.8 percent this year to about $45 billion — the biggest jump since 1995. The Pentagon says actual Chinese defense spending could be twice as high.
The spending boost and January's satellite test, in which China became only the third country to destroy an object in space by pulverizing one of its own unused satellites with a missile warhead, heightened the sense of unease in Washington over China's 2.3 million-member armed forces.
Notes:
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International Herald Tribune Copyright © 2007 The International Herald Tribune |
I really wonder what's being discussed behind closed doors in such meetings between potential rivals.
International Herald Tribune
Top U.S. general says "hot line" possible with China in future
The Associated Press
Friday, March 23, 2007
<A HREF="http://ad.fr.doubleclick.net/click%3Bh=v8/351e/3/0/%2a/i%3B20438114%3B0-0%3B0%3B7973059%3B4252-336/280%3B12112136/12130032/1%3B%3B%7Esscs%3D%3fhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com/products/timesselect/iht/overview.html?excamp=ts:iht_more" TARGET="_blank"><IMG SRC="http://m.fr.2mdn.net/518758/backup_iht_336x280.gif" WIDTH="336" HEIGHT="280" ALT="Click here..." BORDER="0"></a>
BEIJING: China's military is proposing officer exchanges and other confidence-building measures with the U.S. armed forces and may be inching closer to setting up a "hot line" for emergency communication with Washington, the top U.S. general said Friday.
However, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he received no new information in meetings with Chinese military chiefs about Beijing's test of an anti-satellite weapon in January that raised major concerns in Washington. He said he continued to press China's generals for more transparency about the aims of their military buildup.
"I used the example of the anti-satellite test as how sometimes the international community can be confused because it was a surprise that China did that and it wasn't clear what their intent was," Pace said.
Pace said he immediately agreed to study the proposals put forward by Gen. Liang Guanglie, chief of the PLA's General Staff Department, in a meeting Friday. Liang's move seemed to indicate a shift by China to a more pro-active approach to military-to-military cooperation, an issue that the highly secretive People's Liberation Army has long expressed skepticism over.
"To me this was a very good, open discussion and one that I found very encouraging," Pace told reporters in Beijing.
He said Liang's proposals included sending Chinese cadets to the U.S. Army academy at West Point, and other academic exchanges, as well as observing or participating in joint exercises and humanitarian and relief-at-sea operations "that might be able to build trust and confidence amongst our forces."
Military exchanges were largely suspended following a collision between a U.S. spy plane and a Chinese jet fighter over the South China Sea in 2001. The Chinese pilot was killed and the U.S. crew held captive after making an emergency landing at a Chinese air base.
During that crisis, communication between the sides was spotty and at times nonexistent, largely because Washington had no direct channel of communications with the Chinese leadership.
Pace said the sides agreed to keep discussing setting up a "hot line" between either military or civilian leaders that would help ease any future friction.
"The Chinese military understands as well as I do that the opportunity to pick up the phone and talk to somebody you know and smooth out misunderstandings quickly is a very important part of relations between two countries," Pace said.
Deep mistrust remains, however, particularly over Washington's close military ties with Japan and commitment to help ensure the defense of Taiwan, the self-governing island that China considers its own territory and which it has threatened to use force to recover.
China has complained about U.S. plans to sell a batch of more than 400 missiles to Taiwan, but Pace said he had no details and didn't indicate whether the deal was mentioned in discussions.
Asked about the possibility of a conflict over Taiwan, he said: "I believe there are good faith efforts among all the leadership to prevent that."
The general didn't say how the Chinese officers responded to his calls for more transparency. China raised its military budget by 17.8 percent this year to about $45 billion — the biggest jump since 1995. The Pentagon says actual Chinese defense spending could be twice as high.
The spending boost and January's satellite test, in which China became only the third country to destroy an object in space by pulverizing one of its own unused satellites with a missile warhead, heightened the sense of unease in Washington over China's 2.3 million-member armed forces.
Notes:
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International Herald Tribune Copyright © 2007 The International Herald Tribune |
Schumacher
Senior Member
And this comment by Admiral Keating, which I think is stating the obvious.
Nationalistic PLA fans & some hawks in US may not like what he says.
But Chinese leaders who are not keen on too much attention on China's rise may not mind too much.
China's military lags US: Pacific chief
March 23, 2007 - 3:04PM
AdvertisementAdvertisement
China is far from catching up to the United States as a military power, says the US admiral set to take command of US operations in the Pacific.
Admiral Timothy Keating will next week take responsibility for US military operations in an area stretching from New Zealand to North Korea.
He says the Pentagon will conduct exercises with the Chinese to gauge their intentions, tactics and strategy.
"While they may achieve improved combat effectiveness in certain limited areas, their overall near-peer status I think is a long way away," said Admiral Keating.
"We're watching carefully. We'll work with them to the extent that is appropriate so as to be able to evaluate their military strategy and doctrine, tactics, techniques and procedures, and stay ahead of them," he said.
The US and Chinese militaries have ties that include officer exchanges and limited joint exercises, and the United States maintains military relationships with many countries that it does not consider close allies.
The change of command in the Pacific comes as many analysts and policymakers in Washington cast a wary eye at China and its rising military budget, and question how soon Beijing may be able to challenge the United States militarily.
The Pentagon is due to update Congress, likely this month, on its assessment of China's power.
Defence officials have said little about the contents, but US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has said he does not consider China a strategic adversary.
Keating reiterated a regularly-voiced criticism of China's recent anti-satellite test, saying it was not consistent with the country's claim to want to rise peacefully as a major economic and military power.
"We find that curious behaviour for a nation that wants to have this peaceful entry into the league of nations, as they profess to desire," Keating said.
"Through the work that we will continue to do at Pacific Command to get greater transparency on their military intentions, we'll operate with them across a spectrum of exercises and services."
© 2007 Reuters, Click for Restrictions
Nationalistic PLA fans & some hawks in US may not like what he says.
But Chinese leaders who are not keen on too much attention on China's rise may not mind too much.
China's military lags US: Pacific chief
March 23, 2007 - 3:04PM
AdvertisementAdvertisement
China is far from catching up to the United States as a military power, says the US admiral set to take command of US operations in the Pacific.
Admiral Timothy Keating will next week take responsibility for US military operations in an area stretching from New Zealand to North Korea.
He says the Pentagon will conduct exercises with the Chinese to gauge their intentions, tactics and strategy.
"While they may achieve improved combat effectiveness in certain limited areas, their overall near-peer status I think is a long way away," said Admiral Keating.
"We're watching carefully. We'll work with them to the extent that is appropriate so as to be able to evaluate their military strategy and doctrine, tactics, techniques and procedures, and stay ahead of them," he said.
The US and Chinese militaries have ties that include officer exchanges and limited joint exercises, and the United States maintains military relationships with many countries that it does not consider close allies.
The change of command in the Pacific comes as many analysts and policymakers in Washington cast a wary eye at China and its rising military budget, and question how soon Beijing may be able to challenge the United States militarily.
The Pentagon is due to update Congress, likely this month, on its assessment of China's power.
Defence officials have said little about the contents, but US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has said he does not consider China a strategic adversary.
Keating reiterated a regularly-voiced criticism of China's recent anti-satellite test, saying it was not consistent with the country's claim to want to rise peacefully as a major economic and military power.
"We find that curious behaviour for a nation that wants to have this peaceful entry into the league of nations, as they profess to desire," Keating said.
"Through the work that we will continue to do at Pacific Command to get greater transparency on their military intentions, we'll operate with them across a spectrum of exercises and services."
© 2007 Reuters, Click for Restrictions
BLUEJACKET
Banned Idiot
New to Job, Gates Argued for Closing Guantánamo
I've been deployed there 5 times in'94/'95 to handle cargo for Cuban & Haitian refugee camps- it's a very nice place to visit, but not to work hard or be imprisoned!
Marine unit ordered out of Afghanistan
I've been deployed there 5 times in'94/'95 to handle cargo for Cuban & Haitian refugee camps- it's a very nice place to visit, but not to work hard or be imprisoned!
Marine unit ordered out of Afghanistan
It is nice there. Nice and warm all the time. Beautiful scenery. Everything you need is right on base. Good thing because you sure can't go off base!....Most people do not realize how long that base has been there. It's been there since the end of the Spanish-American War. The base was offically established in 1903.
Schumacher
Senior Member
Gen Pace continues his visit in China. Observing ground froces exercises & a close up of Su-27.
Pace Visits Chinese Air Base, Checks Out Su-27 Fighter-Bomber
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
ANSHAN, China, March 24, 2007 – In a move toward openness, Chinese military officials let the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff examine their top-of-the-line combat aircraft and allowed him to speak with pilots and ground personnel here.
Marine Gen. Peter Pace and his party toured Anshan Air Base, home of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s 1st Air Division, and he examined a Chinese-built Su-27 fighter-bomber. The base was part of a visit to the Shenyang Military Region.
The 1st Air Division has three flying regiments and has Su-27s, F-8s and F-7Es. The Su-27 is the top of the food chain for the PLA Air Force, and Pace was the first American to get such a close look at the aircraft, senior Chinese officials said.
NATO pilots know the aircraft by the code name Flanker, and former Soviet Union engineers designed it to counter the American F-15 Eagle. The Su-27 was engineered to be an air superiority fighter and the Chinese still use it in that role, but they also can use it as a precision ground-attack aircraft. The Russians licensed the Chinese to build the plane in China.
The Su-27 does have some drawbacks. Some of the avionic packages are Russian, and the “warranty isn’t the best,” said a U.S. military official speaking on background. There is no air-to-air refueling capability for the Su-27, and that limits the Flanker to a range of about 1,500 kilometers.
Pace, Army Command Sgt. Maj. William J. Gainey, the senior enlisted advisor to the chairman, and Air Force Brig. Gen. Ralph Jodice, the defense attaché at the American embassy in Beijing, climbed into the cockpit of the aircraft. In addition, Chinese pilots flew four aircraft around the airfield to give the chairman and his party a small look at what the aircraft can do in the air.
While he said examining the aircraft was good, Pace said he was even more interested in the PLA Air Force personnel. The chairman spoke to pilots and enlisted men about their service, the qualities of their aircraft and their training and experience of the personnel. He said they were highly motivated and impressed him with their professionalism.
Chinese officials said all their pilots are college graduates and that 96 percent of them are capable of handling complex air operations. The officials said pilots average 120 hours of flying time per year with most of their training centered on tactical considerations. Roughly 35 percent of pilot training is at night. They said they had about 130 pilots for the 100 aircraft in the unit.
In comparison, U.S. Air Force pilots average about 250 flying hours per year and there are roughly 120 pilots per 100 aircraft.
Pace thanked the Chinese personnel for their work. He said their efforts are helping to bring China and the United States closer together. Pace told the airmen that the United States and China have many common national interests and that it is in Asia’s and the world’s interest for the two countries to cooperate.
During the visit, the base commander pinned a set of Chinese pilot wings on Pace’s uniform. Pace told the commander, and all the pilots he met, that, “while I did not earn the wings, I will wear them as a compliment to your professionalism.”
Chairman Observes Chinese Land Combat Exercise
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
DALIAN, China, March 24, 2007 – Artillery and mortar fire poured in on one impact area, while attack helicopters launched strikes that absolutely pulverized another.
Tanks and armored personnel carriers raced down tank trails, firing main guns and disgorging soldiers who immediately went on the attack with small arms.
All this – and more – went on under the watchful eyes of Gen. Peter Pace. As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and a Marine for 40 years, Pace has participated in countless exercises like this one.
But this one was different for the chairman. The troops, tanks, aircraft and armored vehicles were Chinese. Pace observed the exercise at the Dalian Training Area here at the invitation of the leaders of the People’s Liberation Army.
Pace came here to increase understanding and military-to-military cooperation between the United States and China. He met with senior Chinese defense and foreign affairs leaders in Beijing March 22 and 23. After the meetings, he flew to Shenyang, China and was hosted by soldiers of the Military Region. Today, he visited airmen of the 1st Air Division at Anshan Air Base and then flew in a PLA Air Force Boeing 737-300 here to observe the exercise conducted by soldiers of the 39th Army Corps.
Fog on the peninsula jutting out into the Yellow Sea almost cancelled the trip. But it cleared enough to continue. Pace and his staff ate lunch with the leaders of the unit and then climbed a steep hill to observe the exercise. A Chinese senior colonel described what would take place through an interpreter.
And then the crack of artillery began.
The Chinese military ran the exercise without mistake or mishap, even though banks of fog sometimes obscured the terrain. Pace watched as state-of-the-art T-99 tanks rumbled into view and he could hear the squeal of the tracks as they went over the roadwheels.
Chinese soldiers ran out of BMPs – armored personnel carriers – to open lanes through simulated minefields. Some vehicles were “hit” and large clouds of red smoke billowed from them. The follow on forces drove on to the battlefield in older T-80 tanks.
The sights, the noise, the smells, the orders pouring over the radio net were familiar to seasoned U.S. military professionals observing the exercise. Even the feeling as the overpressure of an explosion a mile away reaches the observation point seemed normal. One difference was that in the United States, the friendly forces are called the “blue forces.” In China, the friendly forces are called “red forces.”
Following the exercise, Pace spoke with PLA leaders and then met with the soldiers who put on the demonstration. Pace thanked the soldiers for the extra work they had to put in to make the demonstration so successful. He told them he was honored to be with them, and said the free and truthful exchange of ideas by military professionals can make the world a safer place.
After a group photo, Pace and Command Sgt. Maj. William J. Gainey shook hands with each of the soldiers involved.
Pace Visits Chinese Air Base, Checks Out Su-27 Fighter-Bomber
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
ANSHAN, China, March 24, 2007 – In a move toward openness, Chinese military officials let the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff examine their top-of-the-line combat aircraft and allowed him to speak with pilots and ground personnel here.
Marine Gen. Peter Pace and his party toured Anshan Air Base, home of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s 1st Air Division, and he examined a Chinese-built Su-27 fighter-bomber. The base was part of a visit to the Shenyang Military Region.
The 1st Air Division has three flying regiments and has Su-27s, F-8s and F-7Es. The Su-27 is the top of the food chain for the PLA Air Force, and Pace was the first American to get such a close look at the aircraft, senior Chinese officials said.
NATO pilots know the aircraft by the code name Flanker, and former Soviet Union engineers designed it to counter the American F-15 Eagle. The Su-27 was engineered to be an air superiority fighter and the Chinese still use it in that role, but they also can use it as a precision ground-attack aircraft. The Russians licensed the Chinese to build the plane in China.
The Su-27 does have some drawbacks. Some of the avionic packages are Russian, and the “warranty isn’t the best,” said a U.S. military official speaking on background. There is no air-to-air refueling capability for the Su-27, and that limits the Flanker to a range of about 1,500 kilometers.
Pace, Army Command Sgt. Maj. William J. Gainey, the senior enlisted advisor to the chairman, and Air Force Brig. Gen. Ralph Jodice, the defense attaché at the American embassy in Beijing, climbed into the cockpit of the aircraft. In addition, Chinese pilots flew four aircraft around the airfield to give the chairman and his party a small look at what the aircraft can do in the air.
While he said examining the aircraft was good, Pace said he was even more interested in the PLA Air Force personnel. The chairman spoke to pilots and enlisted men about their service, the qualities of their aircraft and their training and experience of the personnel. He said they were highly motivated and impressed him with their professionalism.
Chinese officials said all their pilots are college graduates and that 96 percent of them are capable of handling complex air operations. The officials said pilots average 120 hours of flying time per year with most of their training centered on tactical considerations. Roughly 35 percent of pilot training is at night. They said they had about 130 pilots for the 100 aircraft in the unit.
In comparison, U.S. Air Force pilots average about 250 flying hours per year and there are roughly 120 pilots per 100 aircraft.
Pace thanked the Chinese personnel for their work. He said their efforts are helping to bring China and the United States closer together. Pace told the airmen that the United States and China have many common national interests and that it is in Asia’s and the world’s interest for the two countries to cooperate.
During the visit, the base commander pinned a set of Chinese pilot wings on Pace’s uniform. Pace told the commander, and all the pilots he met, that, “while I did not earn the wings, I will wear them as a compliment to your professionalism.”
Chairman Observes Chinese Land Combat Exercise
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
DALIAN, China, March 24, 2007 – Artillery and mortar fire poured in on one impact area, while attack helicopters launched strikes that absolutely pulverized another.
Tanks and armored personnel carriers raced down tank trails, firing main guns and disgorging soldiers who immediately went on the attack with small arms.
All this – and more – went on under the watchful eyes of Gen. Peter Pace. As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and a Marine for 40 years, Pace has participated in countless exercises like this one.
But this one was different for the chairman. The troops, tanks, aircraft and armored vehicles were Chinese. Pace observed the exercise at the Dalian Training Area here at the invitation of the leaders of the People’s Liberation Army.
Pace came here to increase understanding and military-to-military cooperation between the United States and China. He met with senior Chinese defense and foreign affairs leaders in Beijing March 22 and 23. After the meetings, he flew to Shenyang, China and was hosted by soldiers of the Military Region. Today, he visited airmen of the 1st Air Division at Anshan Air Base and then flew in a PLA Air Force Boeing 737-300 here to observe the exercise conducted by soldiers of the 39th Army Corps.
Fog on the peninsula jutting out into the Yellow Sea almost cancelled the trip. But it cleared enough to continue. Pace and his staff ate lunch with the leaders of the unit and then climbed a steep hill to observe the exercise. A Chinese senior colonel described what would take place through an interpreter.
And then the crack of artillery began.
The Chinese military ran the exercise without mistake or mishap, even though banks of fog sometimes obscured the terrain. Pace watched as state-of-the-art T-99 tanks rumbled into view and he could hear the squeal of the tracks as they went over the roadwheels.
Chinese soldiers ran out of BMPs – armored personnel carriers – to open lanes through simulated minefields. Some vehicles were “hit” and large clouds of red smoke billowed from them. The follow on forces drove on to the battlefield in older T-80 tanks.
The sights, the noise, the smells, the orders pouring over the radio net were familiar to seasoned U.S. military professionals observing the exercise. Even the feeling as the overpressure of an explosion a mile away reaches the observation point seemed normal. One difference was that in the United States, the friendly forces are called the “blue forces.” In China, the friendly forces are called “red forces.”
Following the exercise, Pace spoke with PLA leaders and then met with the soldiers who put on the demonstration. Pace thanked the soldiers for the extra work they had to put in to make the demonstration so successful. He told them he was honored to be with them, and said the free and truthful exchange of ideas by military professionals can make the world a safer place.
After a group photo, Pace and Command Sgt. Maj. William J. Gainey shook hands with each of the soldiers involved.