Military
- News
Head of Thai Army’s Channel 5 to be replaced after plan to exchange news with Russia
After a controversial meeting with the Russian ambassador on news coverage of the Ukraine conflict, the director of the Royal Thai Army-owned TV Channel 5 is being replaced. Reports point out the meeting between Channel 5 director Rangsee Kitiyanasap and the ambassador earlier this month, but it’s unclear why the channel’s chief is being replaced. Rangsee says he had submitted…
- World News
Asia News Today | Taiwanese army reserves on high alert
Hundreds of Taiwanese army reserves have carried out training exercises after a call from the Taiwanese president calling for “unity” as the island keeps an eye on China’s reaction to the invasion of Ukraine. Taiwan has kept its military reservists on high alert over the past year.About 400 personnel took part in target training and combat simulations yesterday in efforts…
- Thailand News
Royal Thai Air Force says Thailand needs new fighter jets for national security
New fighter jets are needed to improve Thailand’s national security and replace the current aircraft that are due to be decommissioned, according to the Royal Thai Air Force. The air force started a 10-year plan to decommission fighter jets in 2021, cutting the fleet in half by 2032. Officers say new jets are needed for main air defence operations. The…
- World News
China’s military budget increases 7.1% in 2022, Taiwan not afraid
China has allotted 1.45 trillion yuan for military spending in 2022. That’s the equivalent of US$229.5 billion and a whooping 17 times Taiwan’s defense spending for the year, according to a report by the Taipei Times. On Saturday, the Chinese Ministry of Finance issued a statement saying the nation’s defense budget would increase 7.1 percent from last year, signaling a…
- World News
Russia enters war games with Belarus as NATO nations rush to defuse conflict in Ukraine
Russia has entered war games with ally Belarus, after amassing more than 100 thousand troops on its border with Ukraine in recent days, while NATO leaders are scrambling for diplomatic talks in hopes of avoiding potential conflict in Europe. Russia has sent an estimated 30 thousand troops, including missile launchers, armoured vehicles and fighter jets, for 10 days of joint…
- World News
Indonesia purchases six Rafale fighter jets from France
The defence minister in Indonesia’s capital Jakarta says the country is buying six Rafale fighter jets, confirming that a deal was signed with France yesterday as part of an order of 42 warplanes. Jakarta is replacing its ageing fleet of warplanes, which are mostly American F-16 fighter jets and Russian Sukhoi fighter jets. Indonesia’s first order for French fighter jets…
- Bangkok News
China proposes to donate two used submarines to Thai Navy after problems in purchase deal
The Royal Thai Navy is reportedly in talks with China about receiving two decommissioned military submarines. But apparently, the offer is on the table because there was a problem with ordering parts for the submarine currently being assembled by China for Thailand, according to the Bangkok Post. The used submarines would be used for training while Thailand waits for its…
- World News
China donates US$19.5 million worth military equipment to Philippines
Last week, China allocated the Philippines US$19.5 million in military equipment as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s vow to help the Philippines government with not only anti-narcotics and anti-terrorism efforts, but also disaster relief missions. China has helped the Philippines modernise its military in recent years by sending high-capacity weaponry and equipment to support ongoing missions despite tensions in…
- World News
Philippines to spend US$620 million on 32 new Black Hawks for disaster relief
The Philippines will become another Southeast Asian nation to upgrade its military capability in 2022, probably for different purposes, as the Thai Cabinet approved the government’s plan to purchase four more fighter jets to strengthen the potency of its Royal Thai Air Force earlier last week. According to defence secretary Delfin Lorenzana, the Philippines will spend over US$620 million on…
- Thailand News
Cobra Gold military exercise downsized this year due to Omicron spread
Thailand’s annual Cobra Gold military exercise, where Thai soldiers train the US and other foreign troops on jungle survival skills, is being scaled down this year due to the spread of the highly transmissible Omicron variant. The large, multinational military exercise has been known for its snake decapitating demonstration where soldiers drink the fresh blood from the headless snake before…
- World News
Kim Jong-un eyes strategic military “muscle” after North Korea’s “hypersonic” missile test
North Korean media reports that the country test fired a new hypersonic missile but also the attendance of its leader. The event was also Kim Jong-un’s first public appearance in nearly 22 months after his regime tested a pair of single-stage solid-fuel KN-24 missiles in March 2020. It was the second test-firing of the hypersonic missile in less than a…
- World News
UN praises Vietnam over its participation in peacekeeping missions
The UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, has praised the country’s collaboration with the UN, as well as the country’s efforts throughout 2021 since it joined the 100 member bloc’s missions in 2014. Lacroix praised Vietnam’s provision of level-2 field hospitals to South Sudan, adding that this is the kind of capacity that the UN needs its member countries…
- Central Thailand News
Two killed in a military helicopter crash in Nakhon Sawan
A flight instructor and an aviation student were killed in helicopter crash during a training session for Thai military. The helicopter from Army Aviation Centre in Lop Buri caught fire and crashed in the neighbouring province Nakhon Sawan. According to a military source, the helicopter, which was made in the United States by Enstrom Helicopter Corporation and was worth 74 million…
- World News
Meta bans Myanmar military-owned telco from Facebook
Myanmar’s military junta chief has woken up to find his partly-owned telecom company Mytel being barred from Facebook as Meta, Facebook and Instagram’s new company umbrella, is pulling the plug on business related to the Tatmadaw, the Burmese military. Facebook has nearly 29 million users in Myanmar, in a country with a population of 54 million. Mytel is on of…
- World News
China’s lobbying for Myanmar junta to join Xi Summit met with opposition
China’s Special Envoy of Asian Affairs Sun Guoxiang has pressed Southeast Asian governments to allow Myanmar’s military ruler to attend a regional meeting hosted by China’s President next week, but has faced heavy opposition, diplomatic sources told Reuters reporters. He visited Singapore and Brunei last week, but was told that Myanmar military junta chief Ming Aung Hlaing would be unable…
- Thailand News
Royal Thai Air Force signs US$143 million contract for US-made aircraft
The Royal Thai Air Force signed a contract on Sunday to buy a new fleet of aircraft. These will come from Textron Aviation Defense, an American aircraft manufacturer that builds planes for the US military. The US$143 million, or about 4.86 billion baht, deal was made on the first day of the Dubai Airshow. The RTAF is set to purchase…
- Events
Cobra Gold expected to be back to normal by 2022
The military exercise known as Cobra Gold is expected to be back to it’s normal size by 2022. This massive joint military training operation between Thailand and the United States has been scaled down due to concerns over Covid-19. The exercise is one of the longest running military training events in the world that is has been held annually since…
- South Thailand News
Violence continues between military and insurgents in Thailand’s deep south
The fighting between the military and insurgents in the Southern border provinces of Thailand continues. Yesterday the Thai military killed a suspected insurgent after a shootout in a peat swamp in the Bacho district of Narathiwat, a province on Thailand’s southern border. This marks the sixth insurgent killed in the area in the last week. A combined force of Thai…
- Thailand News
Army to cut spending on foreign weapons, buy domestic instead
The army is recognising that, with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, they shouldn’t be spending massive money to obtain weapons from abroad. Instead, they will look for domestic sourcing for the weapons they purchase and spend on maintaining what they have already. The chief of staff for the army acknowledged that the Thai military is reconsidering its spending since much…
- Thailand News
No drinking of snake blood at this year’s Cobra Gold military exercise, PETA says
The controversial practice of decapitating snakes and pouring the blood into soldiers’ mouths is apparently no longer part of the jungle survival training for US and other foreign troops at Thailand’s annual Cobra Gold military exercise. PETA, or the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, has been calling for an end to the snake blood exercise and the killing…
- World News
Anti-coup Burmese protesters take up military training in jungles of Myanmar
Members of Myanmar’s Civil Disobedience Movement, including doctors and students, are taking up military training in the jungles, where they fled to escape a violent crackdown by the junta. Crawling on the ground towards their target of a small village isn’t just in preparation for a simulated clash-the training is to help protect them while they continue to resist the…
- World News
PM Prayut will skip ASEAN summit addressing Myanmar situation, says he needs to deal with Covid situation
Thailand’s PM Prayut Chan-o-cha will skip out of attending the Asean summit in Jakarta, Indonesia this Saturday, saying he needs to stay to deal with the country’s Covid-19 situation. The summit was to specially address the worsening situation in the neighbouring country of Myanmar, which saw a military coup February 1. The decision for PM Prayut to skip out is…
- World News
Burmese prisoners granted amnesty on first day of Myanmar’s New Year
Over 23,000 Burmese prisoners and student political activists are enjoying freedom after being released yesterday in an amnesty on the first day of the country’s Lunar New Year celebrations. The state-owned MRTV reported that 23,407 prisoners were released under sections of a penal code. In the Yangon region alone, over 800 prisoners were released, while Mandalay saw around 2,800 released from…
- World News
Myanmar junta leader to attend ASEAN summit, activists appalled
Myanmar’s junta or military leader, Min Aung Hlaing, is expected to attend an ASEAN summit in Jakarta where representatives of the bloc are expected to discuss Myanmar’s situation. Thailand’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Tanee Sangrat, made the announcement. “I can confirm that the Brunei Chair has proposed the date April 24 with the venue at the Secretariat in Jakarta. Several leaders…
- Thailand News
Burmese students to hold Bangkok cultural event to support Civil Disobedience Movement
Burmese students in Thailand are holding an art and culture concert to raise awareness and funds for the Civil Disobedience Movement. The concert, called “Myanmar Spring,” will be held on April 24 at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre. The event will help fund the movement, which has staged protests over the February 1 coup in Myanmar by the military.…
- World News
UN special envoy in Thailand to meet Foreign Minister about Myanmar crisis
The UN’s special envoy on Myanmar is meeting with Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai in ongoing diplomatic efforts to find a peaceful solution for the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar. But Thai officials have put her quarantine ahead of the needs of the Burmese people with Christine Schraner Burgener, who arrived in Bangkok yesterday, having to spend 7 days in ASQ…
- World News
London’s anti-coup Burmese Ambassador locked from embassy
In London, the Myanmar Ambassador has been tossed from his own embassy, locked out because of his stance against the military junta in his country. The lockout occurred as a result of Kyaw Zwar Minn’s breaking ranks with the Burmese military leadership and calling for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, the civilian leader who was jailed when the…
- World News
Burmese anti-coup activists hurl garbage into streets after over 500 killed
Myanmar’s anti-coup activists are hurling garbage into the streets after more than 500 people have been killed since the junta took over. Protesters held candle-lit vigils for the deceased last night as yesterday saw 14 civilians killed, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. According to witnesses, security forces fired a much heavier-calibre type of weapon yesterday to clear…
- World News
Myanmar army kills over 100 citizens in 24 hours
As the country commemorated its annual Armed Forces Day, Myanmar army troops continued to turn on the country’s citizens with reports of more than 100 people killed over the past 24 hours. News site Myanmar Now report’s yesterday’s death toll had reached 114. On the BBC, more than 90 deaths in yesterday’s violence was confirmed by the Assistance Association for…
- World News
More than 100 Burmese citizens killed in the past 24 hours – Myanmar military defies international demands
The reported killing of protesters and Burmese citizens by Myanmar’s Tatmadaw of over 100 people in the past 24 hours, makes Saturday, March 27 the single deadliest day since February 1 coup. The number of Burmese civilians reported killed since the coup has reached 440 people. On the BBC, more than 90 deaths were confirmed by the Assistance Association for…
