– The News – A look at the Pakistani Navy’s current world view.
Monthly Archives: January 2011
US Navy – The Wrong Ship at the Wrong Time
– US Naval Institute Proceedings – It is clear that the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program cannot live up to expectations. Yet the surface Navy still badly needs low-end ships for littoral and maritime-security missions.
Geopolitics / China – When China Ruled the World
– Esquire – Thomas P. M. Barnett on why the “China Century” will be the shortest on record
US Navy – The Strategic Implications of Obscurants
– US Naval War College Review – A very interesting article looking at how to use low-cost and cheap obscurants to defeat Chinese antiship cruise missiles and antiship ballistic missiles.
US Navy – Small-boat simulator tests Little Creek crew's mettle
– US Navy – Small-boat simulator tests Little Creek crew’s mettle – More and more, the Navy is turning to simulators to train its sailors. Its Expeditionary Combat Command, which oversees the maritime security teams, owns more than 100. They can replicate everything from interacting with locals in Afghanistan to operating a crane during a humanitarian mission, responding to small-arms fire in a war zone or leading a supply convoy in Iraq.
Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force – Japan: Britain of the Far East?
– The Diplomat – In the third of a series on Asia-Pacific navies, Alessio Patalano argues that Japan has had no choice but to develop a powerful navy.
US Navy – Why The F-35B Is In Trouble
– Defense Technology International – Bill Sweetman’s update on the state of the F-35B STOVL variant.
Geopolitics / Tunisia – One Small Revolution
– New York Times – Robert D. Kaplan writes that the West stands captivated by Tunisia, where a month of peaceful protests by secular working- and middle-class Arabs has toppled a dictator, raising hopes that this North African country of 10 million will set off democracy movements throughout a region of calcified dictatorships. But before we envision a new Middle East remade in the manner of Europe 1989, it is worth cataloguing the pivotal ways in which Tunisia is unique.
Malaysian Navy – Malaysia navy foils ship hijack attempt, seizes pirates
– BBC – Malaysia says its navy commandos have foiled an attempted hijacking of a ship in the Gulf of Aden, rescuing 23 crew and capturing seven Somali pirates.
South Korean Navy – South Korea rescues Samho Jewelry crew from pirates
– BBC – South Korean navy commandos have stormed a cargo ship which had been seized by pirates in the Arabian Sea.
US Navy – Breakthrough reported in Navy laser weapon technology
– Virginian Pilot – A technological breakthrough at Los Alamos National Laboratory could pave the way for megawatt-class lasers, which would be used to provide highly precise shipboard defense without fear of running out of ammunition.
Afghanistan – The Way Out of Afghanistan
– New York Review of Books – Ahmed Rashid on the current situation in Afghanistan.
Chinese Navy – China largely restores aircraft carrier
– Washington Post – China has taken a major step toward commissioning its first aircraft carrier by largely completing the restoration of a derelict ship purchased from Ukraine.
US Marines – The Challenges of Small-Unit Patrolling in Afghanistan
– New York Times – CJ Chivers shares video of a Marine ambush in Afghanistan.
US Marines – Amid struggle with budget cuts, lawmakers oppose plan to drop Marine vehicle
– Washington Post – The backroom congressional battle over Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates’s plan to eliminate the Marine Corps’ multibillion-dollar amphibious Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle will be fought out at the same time as the Corps wrestles with how to shrink its forces.
Information Warfare – Israel Tests on Worm Called Crucial in Iran Nuclear Delay
– New York Times – The Dimona complex in the Negev desert is famous as the heavily guarded heart of Israel’s never-acknowledged nuclear arms program, where neat rows of factories make atomic fuel for the arsenal. Over the past two years, according to intelligence and military experts familiar with its operations, Dimona has taken on a new, equally secret role — as a critical testing ground in a joint American and Israeli effort to undermine Iran’s efforts to make a bomb of its own. Behind Dimona’s barbed wire, the experts say, Israel has spun nuclear centrifuges virtually identical to Iran’s at Natanz, where Iranian scientists are struggling to enrich uranium. They say Dimona tested the effectiveness of the Stuxnet computer worm, a destructive program that appears to have wiped out roughly a fifth of Iran’s nuclear centrifuges and helped delay, though not destroy, Tehran’s ability to make its first nuclear arms.
Chinese Navy – J-20 – The Dragon Gets Airborne
– Defense Technology International – Nice article by Bill Sweetman on how the real purpose of the new Chinese J-20 stealth fighter may be to serve as an anti-access area-denial weapon against the US Navy.
Chinese Navy – Father of modern Chinese navy Liu Huaqing dies
– Associated Press – Liu Huaqing, the father of the modern Chinese navy, has died at age 95.
US Navy – Navy Confirms That New Jammer Will Be Cyber-Invasion Device
– Defense Technology International – The EA-18G Growler and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will both carry an airborne network invasion weapon, says U.S. Navy’s top intelligence official.
Information Warfare – The Toppling
– The New Yorker – Peter Maas describes how the media inflated a minor moment in a long war.
Editorial Note – Naval Year In Review 2010
2010
World Naval Operational News Highlights
The ten most significant naval news stories / themes this year included:
- The declaration by the US Navy that the Chinese anti-ship ballistic missile DF-21D has reached initial operational capability. What countermeasures is the US planning to use against it?
- The publication of the “Air-Sea Battle” concept by the US as a strategy to neutralize the rise of the Chinese Navy. What steps does the US need to take to transform strategy into action?
- The sinking of the South Korean Navy frigate Cheonan by a North Korean torpedo. What will be the next act of insanity that North Korea will commit, and how will South Korea respond to it?
- The disastrous Israeli naval commando raid against the Gaza relief convoy that resulted in many civilian deaths. How could the mission’s planners not have expected heavy resistance?
- The extension of Russia’s lease on its Black Sea Fleet base in the Ukraine and the news that it will upgrade and enlarge its fleet there. How will this affect NATO’s increasing operations in the Black Sea?
- The survival of the Royal Navy’s under-construction aircraft carriers after its defense review, albeit with a shift in their air wing from the F-35B STOVL variant to the F-35C naval variant. Will these aircraft ever actually be purchased or will the Queen Elizabeth-class become the world’s largest commando carriers?
- The continued drain of piracy on the world’s navies. When will one country step forward and start prosecuting and jailing pirates?
- The US Navy’s (non) decision to purchase equal numbers of both versions of the Littoral Combat Ship. How is this going to lead to logistical and budgetary efficiencies?
- The continued importance of operations other than war to the US Navy, evidenced by the relief delivered to earthquake-ravaged Haiti led by U.S.S. Bataan and to flood-ravaged Pakistan by U.S.S. Peleliu. When will the US Navy be recognized for the good it does in these operations?
- The final withdrawal of US Marines from Iraq, closely coupled to their redeployment to Afghanistan. Will the surge in Afghanistan be as militarily successful as the one in Iraq?
Statistics
In 2010, there were news stories linked to on 347 / 365 days – that is on 95% of the days.
In 2010, NOSI linked to 436 news stories.
In 2010, 140 of these stories (32%) were related to the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, or U.S. Military Sealift Command.
In 2010, 110 of these stories (25%) were background stories.
The remaining 186 news stories (43%) covered the operational activities of 28 nation’s navies, coast guards, and marine corps:
Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, India, Iran, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, North Korea, Norway, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Vietnam
In 2010, 180,010 pages of information were read on NOSI by 120,095 users. There were 63,972 post views (impressions) and 134 fans (members) on the NOSI Facebook page.
Chinese Navy – Chinese Air Force Could Overwhelm Opponents
– Aviation Week and Space Technology – Australian analysts are starting to examine how combat between the U.S. and China over the Taiwan Strait might play out and what’s needed to produce a win for small, high-tech forces.
US Navy – US Will Counter Chinese Arms Buildup
– New York Times – The Pentagon is stepping up investments in a range of weapons, jet fighters and technology in response to the Chinese military buildup in the Pacific, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Saturday on the eve of his visit to Beijing.
Geopolitics / Indian Ocean – US Navy’s Indian Ocean Folly?
– The Diplomat – Maritime strategy seems increasingly focused on the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf. It risks leaving the Navy vulnerable in the Pacific.
US Marines – Gates wants to drop Marines' $14 billion landing-craft project
– Washington Post – A long-troubled $14 billion program to build a landing craft for the Marine Corps is destined for the chopping block, defense officials and analysts said Wednesday, part of $100 billion in savings that Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has pledged to squeeze from the Pentagon’s budget.
NOSI - Naval Open Source Intelligence™ 
You must be logged in to post a comment.