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Defence

Defence
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Defence. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
A sign for MacDill Air Force Base is displayed on a wall near the facility’s main gate in Tampa, Florida, on March 18. Photo: Reuters
US-China relations

Siblings who fled to China charged over bomb planted outside US Air Force base

Alen Zheng remains at large, while Ann Mary Zheng was arrested after she returned to the US; their mother has been detained for deportation.

India

As India and US seek to reset defence ties, Iran war threatens to be wild card

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Ukraine war

Iran war deflects attention from Ukraine as Russia starts spring offensive

Japan

Japan plans to deploy missiles to a faraway island in the Pacific. Here’s why

The deployment is a response to China’s military activity near Minamitorishima, a defence ministry researcher says.

Japan’s Ground Self-Defence Force unveils a Type 12 coastal defence anti-ship missile launcher vehicle during a training exercise in June last year. Photo: Handout
US-China relations

US unlikely to get China to join new nuclear arms control agreement, experts say

Nuclear superpowers not taking active steps towards meaningful negotiation following the expiry of New Start arms treaty in February.

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Ukraine war

Russia fires hundreds of drones at Ukraine in deadly massive attack

Swarms of drones rock Ukrainian cities, killing at least six and injuring dozens.

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China-Japan relations

Economic ‘poison’? China has strong words for Japan’s ‘Takaichinomics’ strategy

Communist Party newspaper cautions against tying economic growth to ‘militaristic adventurism’, saying Japan’s citizens would shoulder the costs.

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Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi answers questions during a plenary session of the House of Councillors, the upper house of the National Diet of Japan, in Tokyo on Monday. Photo: AFP
North Korea

North Korea’s Kim slams US ‘state terror’ but spares Trump in third-term address

Mindful of the fate of Iran and Venezuela’s leaders, Kim Jong-un used his speech to cast nuclear weapons as a non-negotiable shield.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | Look East? South Asia’s fate is far more intertwined with Middle East

Beyond oil, remittances and cultural ties, trade and defence pacts in recent years have added to strategic and security interconnectedness.

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US, Israel war on Iran

UK rushes air defence systems to Gulf to help counter Iran attacks

The UK is sending air defence missiles and an anti-drone system, as HMS Dragon takes up position to defend Cyprus.

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Crew members board the HMS Dragon in Portsmouth Harbour on March 4. The British warship has arrived in the eastern Mediterranean to defend Cyprus. Photo: Reuters
Japan

Most Japanese oppose helping Trump fight his war on Iran, polls show

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi says she has explained to Trump that there are limits to what Japan can do due to legal constraints.

Donald Trump and Sanae Takaichi talk in the Oval Office of the White House on Saturday. Photo: White House/Planet Pix/Zuma Press Wire/dpa
Japan

Can Japan offer Indonesia a ‘credible alternative’ to China on Prabowo’s visit?

Defence and minerals to dominate the agenda as Tokyo offers hi-tech warships and energy pacts to secure Indonesia as a ‘trusted partner’.

China's military weapons

Why is China’s ASN-301 suicide drone more deadly than its Iranian counterpart?

In a conflict over Taiwan or western Pacific, Beijing may overwhelm air defences through sheer numbers in a war of economic attrition.

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Indonesia

Opinion | Indonesia’s new aircraft carrier is more vanity project than war machine

The jet-less carrier might buy Jakarta a seat at the elite table, but it offers no advantage in modern naval warfare.

The Italian aircraft carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi pictured in 2016. Photo: AFP
US, Israel war on Iran

Iranian missile gets past Israeli interceptors to hit town with nuclear site

Iran says the attack, which wounded dozens, was in response to a strike on its own Natanz nuclear site.

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An Israeli soldier inspects the damage after Iranian missiles struck Dimona on Saturday. Photo: Reuters
US, Israel war on Iran

Iran war nears 3-front tipping point as Gulf energy hubs burn

Israeli strikes on the world’s largest gas field and Iranian attacks on Saudi and Qatari hubs threaten a global energy crisis.

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US-China relations

US claims China manipulating its position at UN to undermine America’s interests

House Select Committee says Beijing using monetary contributions, critical UN posts and strategic troop deployment to expand its reach.

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US, Israel war on Iran

UK allows US to use its bases to strike Iran missile sites targeting Hormuz

Trump has repeatedly attacked British PM Starmer since the conflict started, complaining ⁠he was not doing enough to help.

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A USAF B-1 bomber takes off at RAF Fairford airbase in Gloucestershire, Britain, on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters
US, Israel war on Iran

Trump calls Nato ‘cowards’ over lack of support in Iran war, sends more troops

Iran is threatening tourist sites worldwide, renewing fears that Tehran could resort to militant attacks beyond the Middle East.

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Japan

Trump’s Pearl Harbour joke falls flat in Japan over his ‘disrespectful remarks’

As Japan faces pressure over the Iran war, some observers commend Takaichi for steering her meeting with Trump towards trade deals.

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Pakistan

Is Pakistan building ICBMs? Non-proliferation experts dispute US warning

US fears of Pakistani ICBMs targeting America are overstated as Islamabad’s missile programme remains regional, observers say.

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Pakistan’s Shaheen-3 missile on display during a military parade in Islamabad in 2018. Photo: AP
US, Israel war on Iran

Opinion | Iran war revives pandemic-era shocks – and may go further

As war in Iran quickly reshapes energy flows, trade routes and political alignments, the crisis may mark the start of a more volatile new phase.

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A delivery bike motors along a highway as a FlyDubai aircraft prepares to land while smoke rises from a fire near Dubai International Airport on March 16. Photo: AFP
United States

Trump compares Iran attack to Pearl Harbour in otherwise positive Takaichi talks

Two leaders tout bilateral relationship and pledge to work cooperatively on trade.

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Science

Liu Guozhi, once top PLA scientist, wiped off Chinese Academy of Sciences site

High-power microwave weapon expert was elected to the nation’s top scientific body in 2009.

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The Philippines

Beyond ‘lip service’: Philippines urged to act on air defence gaps

The Iran war has underscored the need for robust air systems and Manila should look to build a layered defence architecture, experts say.

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The Philippine Air Force’s SPYDER system is designed to counter aircraft, drones and missiles. Photo: Philippine Air Force
Japan

Russian hypersonic jets buzz Japan’s coast in ‘thinly veiled threat’

The exercises send a message that Tokyo should avoid antagonising Moscow or risk ‘repercussions’, observers say.

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Footage of a Russian fighter jet carrying Kinzhal hypersonic missiles conducting exercises over the Sea of Japan, or East Sea. Photo: Handout
US-China relations

US says mainland China has no plans to attack Taiwan in 2027

Beijing seeks to control the island without the use of force, the US intelligence community confirms in its annual report on global threats.

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Ukraine war

Zelensky urges EU to bypass Hungarian veto on vital US$103 billion loan

Putin ally Viktor Orban has been blocking the loan, in part because of a closed pipeline supplying his country with Russian oil in Ukraine.

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