Wednesday, March 27, 2013

3/27/2013 Troubles in The Far East

TROUBLES IN THE FAR EAST MULTIPLY

The Far East is heating up this week. North Korea seems hell bent on mischief and the Dragon appears to be as voracious as ever. The week is just getting started as we continue our coverage of the count down to a Dragon miscalculation.  Check out these news accounts of the early week activities of the Dragon and her deranged pup North Korea.
Facing Dragons
`Photo By Peter Griffin http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=6631&picture=facing-dragons

N.Korean Commandos 'Train to Occupy S.Korean Islands'

SOURCE: THE CHOSUN IIBO

North Korean commandos are training to occupy South Korea's five northernmost islands in the West Sea in an emergency, Radio Free Asia reported Thursday. Quoting a Chinese source familiar with North Korea, the broadcaster said sharpshooters under the North's Navy Command and the General Bureau of Reconnaissance have been conducting the drills in waters off Nampo since mid-December. 

The source claimed they were ordered by leader Kim Jong-il and his son and heir Jong-un. 

They belong to an elite unit that invariably ranks first or second in the People's Armed Forces' combat evaluation. Troops are said to practice swimming in full combat gear for 40 minutes even in midwinter. 

The source said the aim is to dampen the South Korean military's determination to firmly respond to any North Korean provocations or attacks after the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island in November". 


LINK TO FULL STORY: http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/12/31/2010123100639.html



And this from Reuters:



North Korea Orders Artillery To Be Combat Ready, Targeting U.S. Bases




North Korea said on Tuesday its strategic rocket and long-range artillery units have been ordered to be combat ready, targeting U.S. military bases on Guam, Hawaii and mainland America after U.S. bombers flew sorties threatening the North.

The order, issued in a statement from the North's military "supreme command", marks the latest fiery rhetoric from Pyongyang since the start of joint military drills by U.S. and South Korean forces early this month."





Vietnam Says China Fired Flare On Fishing Boat In Disputed South China Sea, Damaging Vessel-Washington Post



HANOI, Vietnam — Vietnam has accused a Chinese vessel of firing a flare on a Vietnamese fishing boat that set its cabin alight in the disputed South China Sea, where rival claims to gas-rich waters have strained relations between the countries.

The Vietnamese government did not say if anyone was injured in the incident last Wednesday but called it “very serious.” It lodged a formal complaint with the Chinese Embassy in Hanoi.
Link To Full story:

China, Russia Ink Major Arms Deal: Report
China has agreed to buy 24 fighter jets and four submarines from Russia, the country's first large-scale weapons purchase deal from Moscow in a decade, reports China Central Television.

The agreement to buy 24 Su-35 fighters and four Lada-class submarines was signed just before Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Russia from Friday to Sunday, the first stop of his overseas tour since becoming head of state earlier this month.

Two of the submarines will be built in Russia, with the other two to be built in China. 

Lada-class submarine is Russia's "fourth generation" diesel-electric submarine. It features much quieter and new combat systems, and possibly air-independent propulsion.

"The Su-35 fighters can effectively reduce pressure on China's air defence before Chinese-made stealth fighters are commissioned," the report said.
Link To Full story: http://english.cri.cn/11354/2013/03/26/191s755735.htm
2/2013 Reoccurring announcement Maritime TV:  http://www.maritimetv.com/Home.aspx


NEW LINK ANNOUNCEMENT AND DESCRIPTION:


WE NOW LINK YOU TO THE WORLD'S FIRST ALL MARITIME CONTENT TV AVAILABLE OVER YOUR COMPUTER 24/7. 


Maritime TV.com brings you 24 / 7 video programming devoted entirely to naval and commercial maritime subjects. Many of the important on line and print trade journals that we link you to in our NEWS SERVICE are producing features on this service. There is an archive so if you missed a feature at air time there is a good probability that you will be able to find it and play it later.

HERE IS WHAT THE SERVICE HAS TO SAY ABOUT ITSELF:

"As a pioneering global Internet broadcasting and streaming media company, TV Worldwide (www.TVWorldwide.com) developed the first Internet TV network of community-based interactive channels, including Maritime TV (www.MaritimeTV.comin 1999. Maritime TV is now the industry’s pre-eminent channel for live and archived webcasts and video presentations involving the commercial and military shipping industry. Programming on Maritime TV ranges from congressional hearings on important marine industry issues, to live interactive town hall and advocacy group meetings, to training on shipboard safety and operational fundamentals. Maritime entertainment-based programming is also available, including the entire collection of episodes from the renowned television series, ‘Victory at Sea’. Over time the channel has also evolved into a leading source of industry-specific information for media outlets in the mainstream press, such as USA Today. Maritime TV is pleased to serve this industry, so vital to the global economy, as the world’s first maritime TV channel"

While we love books and indeed earn our primary revenue by selling books we have always accepted as part of our mission to bring you all manner of maritime information, to serve as your single portal to the maritime world. We have reviewed this service and are pleased to recommend and link to it. Maritime TV is a not a paid advertiser at this time. Please keep in mind that we have little direct control of the advertisements that Google places between our posts, so if Maritime TV ever appears there, please note that we recommended it before we ever advertised it. We are very serious about our recommendations and conscious of the apparent conflicts that may arise at times when a publication that accepts a critical role in an industry accepts advertising, but advertising is the only way we can provide the service free of charge. So we exercise care and try to be up front about any apparent conflicts. We have had no contact with nor anticipate any contact with Maritime TV .com. We simply tuned in like any other viewer and recommend it as a source of general maritime information. We will be carrying this link near the top of our station identification and notice board posts daily as one of our half dozen or so key maritime links (OUR MARITIME PORTAL) that we suggest in the early stages of any maritime research.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Visit the link below for complete system requirements we do know that  the service may be utilized with a variety of browsers, we used Google Chrome with no problems, you of course need one of the later versions of windows, and media player but basically we didn't see any system requirements that most computers under 42 months of age don't have or are able to get on a free down load. But then again, despite being an Internet blog, we are far from Geeks. Give Maritime TV .com a try at:




THANKS TO ASTUTE READER BILL RILEY FOR ALERTING US TO THIS SERVICE
                                                   


No comments:

Post a Comment