Displaying items by tag: aggression

Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un have signed a mutual defence agreement pledging support in case of ‘aggression’ against either country. The announcement followed Putin's visit to Pyongyang, his first since 2000, which Kim described as elevating their relationship to a ‘new, high level of alliance’. The pact raises Western concerns, potentially leading to Russian assistance for North Korea in a Korean conflict and North Korean support for Russia in Ukraine. Kim is accused of supplying Russia with weapons, while Putin is believed to be providing North Korea with space technology for its missile programme. Both leaders criticised Western sanctions and vowed to counter them. Kim expressed strong support for Russia's war in Ukraine, marking a historic moment in their alliance.

China sees the self-ruled island of Taiwan as a part of its territory and insists it be unified with them, by force if necessary. Taiwan has its own constitution, democratically elected leaders, and 300,000 troops; also, the USA is available to provide it with the means to defend itself. After Beijing recently conducted air and sea military drills with live ammunition around Taiwan, the US accused it of ‘provocative’ actions. Taiwan said China is using military exercises to disrupt regional stability, and responded by launching a two-day exercise, simulating a Chinese invasion, to show it is ready to defend the island from any attack. China is signalling to Taiwan that it is ready to invade, while Taipei is telling China ‘You can hurt us, but we will also hurt you.’ Beijing’s extended drills are disrupting air travel and trade in the Taiwan Strait, one of the world's busiest waterways. The aggression could spill into the South China Sea, where many countries which rely on China economically would have to contend with a more geopolitically belligerent Beijing.

On 25 May North Korea test-fired at least two ballistic missiles, just a day after Joe Biden left the region. One flew about 300 km, the other 750 km: they were the latest in a flurry of such launches in 2022. Japan’s defence minister said they were ‘unacceptable’, and South Korea called them ‘a grave provocation’.' Mr Biden visited both those countries, and agreed with the South Korean president to hold bigger military drills and deploy more US strategic assets if necessary, to deter North Korea’s intensifying weapons test.' He said that the USA was ‘prepared for anything North Korea does’.

Russian aggression has taken on many different forms. The most glaring example remains the undeclared and ongoing war in eastern Ukraine, which has cost over 14,000 lives and displaced millions. President Putin has also deployed hybrid Russian forces around the world, unleashed teams of assassins, and attempted at least one coup in the Balkans. Russian hackers have set new standards in cyberwarfare, targeting everything from political parties to essential infrastructure. Meanwhile, Moscow has funnelled support to political extremists and separatist movements throughout the EU and beyond, aided and abetted at every turn by a vast Kremlin-backed disinformation machine that has succeeded in comprehensively polluting the internet. The aim is not to defeat the West, but to secure its own position by undermining the allure of the liberal traditions and democratic institutions that allow the Western world to dominate the global imagination.

Many believe the US killing of Qasem Soleimani (plus four senior commanders and an Iraqi militia leader) risks causing Iraq instability. The USA believed the men were organising radical tactics against it, describing the action as ‘a preemptive defensive strike to prevent attacks yet to come’. In retaliation Iran fired missiles towards two air bases housing US troops and coalition forces. It is believed the strikes deliberately missed areas populated by Americans and multiple administration officials. Also, advance warning was given so that troops could take ‘necessary precautions.’ Iraq's prime minister Adil Abdul Mahdi’s government is already shaken by protest movements and relentless Iranian pressure and interference, plus the threat of a resurgent IS. Its future hinges on what happens next between the United States and Iran. Pray for an end to ballistic missile development. See also

At the UN Security Council’s Middle East monthly meeting, the Syrian ambassador threatened an airstrike on Israel’s international airport near Tel Aviv, in retaliation for Israeli air force attacks on military targets at Damascus and elsewhere in the country. When the Syrian war erupted, Israel stated it would stay out of the conflict unless actions were hostile to the Jewish state, including the transfer of arms to Iranian proxy Hezbollah. As indications grew that Iran was exploiting the void left by the Syrian turmoil to build its own presence there, Israel vowed to act against Tehran’s entrenchment, and has repeatedly attacked Iranian targets. After a daytime Israeli strike on Damascus airport, an Iranian-made surface-to-surface missile was fired from Syria into the Israeli side of the Golan Heights. IDF’s defence system intercepted the rocket. This escalation is seen as the most serious in many months.