Tuesday, June 7, 2016

U.S., Japan, And India To Hold A Major Naval Drill Off The Coast Of Okinawa This Friday

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) destroyer Kurama (L), which is carrying Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, leads the JMSDF fleet during its fleet review at Sagami Bay, off Yokosuka, south of Tokyo October 18, 2015. REUTERS/TORU HANAI

Reuters: U.S., Japan, India to hold major naval drill in Western Pacific

A fleet of U.S., Japanese and Indian warships will hold a large-scale joint naval exercise over eight days from Friday in the Western Pacific, close to a Japanese island chain, part of which China claims.

As China pushes its territorial claims in the neighboring South China Sea, Tokyo and Washington worry it will look to extend its influence into the Western Pacific, with a growing fleet of submarines and surface vessels to ply distant oceans.

The drill, dubbed Malabar, is an annual event between the U.S. and India, and Japan is joining it this year for the first time since 2007, Japan's Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

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Update: Japan, U.S., India to hold major naval drill off Okinawa starting Friday (Japan Times).

WNU editor: This is what I call sending a message to China.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

It would be a good thing to include Vietnam as well since we are re-establishing ties with them, if possible. A conflict is emerging, and I prefer to avoid the naysayers. This Chinese-American duet has to end.