Author: Brian Fernando Buchanan

All men in Russia are required to do a year-long military service, or equivalent training during higher education, from the age of 18. Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree setting out the routine spring conscription campaign, calling up 150,000 citizens for statutory military service, a document posted on the Kremlin’s website showed on Sunday (31 March). All men in Russia are required to do a year-long military service, or equivalent training during higher education, from the age of 18. In July Russia’s lower house of parliament voted to raise the maximum age at which men can be conscripted to 30…

The European Union and the United States have denounced North Korea “in the strongest possible terms” for providing Russia with ballistic missiles and propping up the war of aggression against Ukraine. “The transfer of these weapons increases the suffering of the Ukrainian people, supports Russia’s war of aggression and undermines the global non-proliferation regime,” the two Western allies said in a statement released on Wednesday morning. The communiqué was co-signed by almost 50 nations, including Japan, South Korea, Argentina, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom. The provisions of lethal equipment “flagrantly” violate multiple resolutions of the United Nations Security Council…

United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stressed the importance of modernising Indonesia’s military in a meeting with its defence chief, as Washington shores up ties in Southeast Asia amid geopolitical rivalry with China. Austin on Thursday hosted at the Pentagon Indonesian Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto, a former special forces commander and political veteran who is expected to run in next year’s presidential election. The meeting comes as Indonesia, an archipelago of 270 million people, looks to upgrade its military and replace its ageing hardware, earmarking 134.3 trillion rupiah ($8.89 billion) this year for defence, the biggest allocation in its state…

ON 3 JUNE 2023, naval vessels from the United States and Canada conducted a joint military exercise in the South China Sea — a Chinese warship (PRC LY 132) overtook the U.S. guided-missile destroyer (USS Chung-Hoon) and sped across its path. The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command released a statement saying that the Chinese ship: ‘… executed manoeuvres in an unsafe manner.’ The spokesperson from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Wang Wenbin, responded that the United States: “…made provocations first and China responded [and that the] actions taken by the Chinese military are completely justified, lawful, safe and professional.” This incident is one of many in these waters, where the United States conducts what it calls…

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is due to visit China on Sunday as Beijing and Washington attempt to move forward with rapprochement after a particularly tense year. Blinken was originally slated to visit China in February but his trip was delayed after the United States shot down a so-called “Chinese spy balloon” found flying over US territory and said to be gathering intelligence on domestic military sites. Blinken is the most senior US official to visit China since 2019 and the first secretary of state since Mike Pompeo’s trip in 2018 amid then-President Donald Trump’s trade war with Beijing. Blinken is expected to…

The United States, United Kingdom and Australia have announced plans to base nuclear-powered submarines in Western Australia, using the Down Under area as an alternative to strategic bases in Guam while potentially sidestepping nuclear proliferation concerns. The Insider reported this month that the Biden administration has established Submarine Rotational Forces–West (SRF-West), which are believed to consist of four US Virginia-class nuclear attack submarines (SSN) and one UK Astute-class SSN, and will operate out of HMAS Stirling at the western Australian city of Perth as early as 2027.  The Biden administration stated last month that SRF-West would “help build Australia’s stewardship. It will also…

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo sat down with her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao in Washington D.C. on Thursday to discuss “concerns” surrounding bilateral trade. Marking the first cabinet-level exchange between the two countries in months, the U.S. talked about American companies operating in China. According to a readout by the Commerce Department, “The two had candid and substantive discussions on issues relating to the U.S.-China commercial relationship, including the overall environment in both countries for trade and investment and areas for potential cooperation.” Raimondo also “raised concerns about the recent spate of PRC [People’s Republic of China] actions taken against…

The first billionaire ever is thought to be Standard Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller back in 1916, or perhaps Henry Ford in 1925. Fast forward some 100 years to 2021: As the COVID-19 pandemic continued to rage, a record-breaking 660 people became billionaires globally, growing the previous year’s number by 30%. While the U.S. is home to the most billionaires out of any other country, Americans are somewhat split in their feelings on the billionaire class. According to Pew Research Center data, people in the U.S. became somewhat more critical of billionaires between 2020 and 2021. Although support for individual billionaires like Bill Gates is relatively strong,…

Montana is the fourth largest U.S. state by area, behind Alaska, Texas and California, but with an average of just six people per square mile, it is one of the country’s least densely populated states. Although the name Montana is derived from the Spanish montaña (“mountain” or “mountainous region”), it has an average elevation of only 3,400 feet, the lowest among the Rocky Mountain states. Montana is home to the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, which memorializes the historic 1876 battle between the Sioux tribe and U.S. Army, often referred to as “Custer’s Last Stand.” Yellowstone National Park, located in…

On the afternoon of the 13th local time, US President Biden, British Prime Minister Sunak and Australian Prime Minister Albanese announced in the United States a plan to provide Australia with nuclear submarines. According to Reuters, Kremlin spokesman Peskov said on the 14th that the plan to provide nuclear-powered submarines to Australia has raised questions about nuclear proliferation. According to the report, Peskov told reporters, “There are many questions related to the issue of nuclear non-proliferation. In this regard, we need special transparency, and we need answers to these questions.” On the 13th local time in the United States, the United…