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Japan has started a nationwide full-scale military drill on Wednesday for the first time in nearly 30 years as it aims to enforce its capabilities to defend remote islands amid China’s assertive actions in the Indo-Pacific.“In order to respond effectively to various situations, including attacks on the islands, it is essential that the necessary forces are deployed quickly and extensively, depending on the situation,” said Nobuo Kishi, the country’s minister of defense, Tokyo-based news agency Kyodo News reported.“In an increasingly uncertain security environment, the focus of our work will be on operational readiness,” the official added.The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force...

Emmanuel Macron has said French military forces have killed the leader of Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi. “It’s another major success in our fight against terrorist groups in the Sahel,” the French president said on Wednesday night, without disclosing the location of the operation... Sahrawi was the historic leader of Islamic State in the Sahel region of West Africa and his group targeted US soldiers in a deadly attack in Niger in 2017, Macron’s office said....

In a statement issued by French Minister Of Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-yves Le Drian and Minister of the Armed Forces Florence Parly, the country said the decision announced on Wednesday "is contrary to the letter and spirit of the cooperation that prevailed between France and Australia, based on a relationship of political trust as well as on the development of a very high-level defence industrial and technological base in Australia." "The American choice to exclude a European ally and partner such as France from a structuring partnership with Australia, at a time when we are facing unprecedented challenges in...

The United States, the UK, and Australia on Sept. 15 announced a new trilateral security partnership for the Indo-Pacific, amid rising Chinese assertiveness in the region.The first move under this partnership, called “AUKUS,” would be for the United States and the UK to help Australia acquire nuclear-powered submarines, according to a joint statement by the three governments.The new security alliance was announced by President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison during a joint virtual press conference from each of their capitals.“We all recognize the imperative of ensuring peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific...

US President Joe Biden appeared to forget Scott Morrison's name while announcing America and Britain will help Australia build a nuclear-powered submarine fleet. The prime minister joined Mr Biden and British PM Boris Johnson in a historic three-way press conference to unveil the 'AUKUS' alliance to counter the worrying rise of China in the Pacific. But Mr Biden seemed lost recalling his Australian PM's name as he thanked the other two leaders who spoke before him. 'Thank you Boris, and I want to thank...' he began, before an awkward pause in which he turned and pointed to the screen with...

China has reacted furiously after Australia signed a new three-way security alliance with the US and the UK and vowed to build nuclear-power submarines. China's Washington DC embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu accused the nations of adopting a 'Cold War mentality' towards China in reference to the stand-off between the US and the Soviet Union in the twentieth century. Countries 'should not build exclusionary blocs targeting or harming the interests of third parties,' he said. 'In particular, they should shake off their Cold-War mentality and ideological prejudice.' Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday morning unveiled Australia's role in a landmark tripartite...

The President unveiled plans for the EU to develop its own defence capacities She said the EU was too reliant on US military support, evidenced by the hasty pull-out of Afghanistan that forced EU countries to abide by Biden's deadline She declared the EU was held back by a 'shortfall of capacity' and 'lack of political will' Von der Leyen proposed a waiver on VAT for defence equipment developed and produced in Europe to help the EU gain military independence from the US France will host an EU defence summit next year to solidify the plans

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU’s vaccination drive was done “the right way” and vowed to donate 200 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to low-income countries.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen gave her annual State of the European Union address to the European Parliament on Wednesday, where she said the coming year would be “another test of character for the EU.” Her speech addressed the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, steps the EU took to slow the spread of the virus and the bloc’s future plans for vaccinations. “In the biggest global health crisis, we chose to go...

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter that she "condemns arbitrary attacks by Hamas against Israel." Josep Borrell, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said Thursday he had "confirmed EU support for Israel's security and condemned Hamas' arbitrary firing of rockets" in a conversation with Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi. French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed sympathy with the victims of attacks by Hamas and other terrorist groups in talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Macron has said Israel had the right to defend itself.

NEW YORK, November 27 (C-Fam) The European Commission intends to unleash a barrage of policies to impose LGBT uniformity across the European Union, including through the threat of sanctions. The powerful European Commission announced that it wants to make “hate speech” and “hate crimes” EU crimes by 2021 and to impose mutual recognition of “rainbow families” across the European Union by 2022. The EU Commission made the announcement in its first-ever EU-wide strategy for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, non-binary, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) equality on November 12. Alongside the pledge to legislate “hate crimes” and “rainbow families” the strategy sets...

The president of the European Commission backed calls for an investigation into the origin of the new coronavirus and said China should be involved in the process. Lawmakers in countries like Germany, Sweden and Australia have called for a probe into how the virus started, which has so far infected over 3.2 million people and killed over 230,000. Speaking to CNBC, Ursula von der Leyen, the head of the EU’s executive arm, said she would like to see China work together with her organization, and others, to get to the bottom of exactly how it emerged. “I think this is...

European lawmakers have voted to declare an EU-wide climate emergency, in a symbolic move aimed at increasing pressure on the incoming European Commission to take a stronger stance on climate change. The climate declaration was passed on Thursday in Strasbourg during a European Parliament (EP) debate on the upcoming United Nations’ COP25 climate summit that kicks off December 2 in Madrid. In a statement on Twitter after the vote, EU lawmakers urged the European Commission “to fully ensure all relevant legislative and budgetary proposals are fully aligned” with the 1.5-degree-Celsius target limit on global warming. The resolution calls on the...

European Union officials have drawn up an aggressive 173-page plan to counter both President Donald Trump’s trade moves and American tech giants including Google, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Facebook. According to a document obtained by POLITICO, European Commission officials are pushing their president-elect, Ursula von der Leyen, to set up a European Future Fund that would invest more than $100 billion in equity stakes in high-potential European companies. The goal: get Europe competing head-on with the American and Chinese tech giants it has lagged behind for decades. They’re also advocating for Europe to show more grit in Trump’s trade war,...

The United States imposing sanctions on four top generals from the country of Myanmar (formerly Burma). Those generals and their families banned from entering the USA because of the conflict in the predominately Buddhist country with the Rohingya Muslims. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo blaming the generals for what are considered harsh policies against the Rohingya Muslim minority in the country. The Myanmar government views the conflict a a fight with Islamic terrorism. A "partial preliminary injunction" from a federal judge against ranchers Dwight and Steven Hammond in Oregon Tuesday.... The US House voting 240-187 to condemn President Trump for...

German army plans to recruit foreign mercenaries in bid to plug thousands of vacancies and fulfil its NATO commitment after Trump said he would cut off funding Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen announced plans in ministry documents Poles, Italians and Romanians living in Germany will be targeted by recruiters US President Donald Trump has pressured Germany to up its NATO commitment Germany's military is drawing up plans to recruit nationals from other European countries as part of a drive to beef up the armed forces. Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen announced plans to recruit Poles, Italians and Romanians,...

GERMAN Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen says the structures for a European Defence Union have been “activated”, and also hopes to develop a system that tells Europeans when to use their “forces”.

German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen angered Saudi Arabians this week when she refused to wear traditional Muslim attire during her official visit to the kingdom, The Independent reported on Wednesday. Von der Leyen shunned the abaya, the black full length dress that covers the entire body but not the face, during her diplomatic visit in Riyadh, according to the report. The defense minister, who is a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union party and the first woman in German history to hold the defense portfolio, was meeting Deputy Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman al Saud during...

Germany’s defense minister says Britain’s decision to leave the European Union offers an opportunity to press ahead with greater military cooperation in the bloc. Ursula von der Leyen says Britain for years “consistently blocked everything that had Europe written on it,” citing the example of a mobile European hospital some countries wanted to deploy to crisis regions. …

Germany's opposition Left party has expressed its suspicions of a "dirty deal" after German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen raised the prospect of sending troops to Libya to support a potential unity government in the fractured North African country. [...] Germany is one of a number of states (including Italy, France and Britain) currently discussing Libya in Rome, alongside representatives of the European Union and the United Nations, and van Aken claims that not only is a senior Bundeswehr officer among the German delegation, but the countries are planning to send in ground troops. "The plans for Libya go...

PM meets with Germany defense minister visiting Israel to mark 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Netanyahu: Iran leading campaign of 'conquest and subversion' around Israel's borders Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday asserted that the threat emanating from the "imperial and theological ambitions" of Iran's "ayatollah regime" poses the greatest threat to the region. Speaking in Jerusalem with German Defense Minister Ursula Von Der Leyen, the prime minister said that Israel views Iran's quest to create an "empire" coupled with its nuclear ambitions as the greatest security challenge to the Middle East. "They are leading a...