Arrr! What Be UNCLOS?
& Why Be This Ultra Important Today?
Watch Ye The Waters.
Watching The waters
Delhi protests as Beijing tries to turn South China Sea Code of Conduct into a barrier to keep US, India, others away from dispute
India on Saturday tacitly opposed China’s latest move to press the ASEAN hard to insert in the proposed Code of Conduct on the South China Sea certain clauses that would help the communist country to keep its rivals and other nations outside the region away from the disputed waters. The negotiation for the code “should not be prejudicial to the legitimate interests of the third parties and should be fully consistent with the United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)”, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar while representing Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the East Asia Summit, which was held through video-links in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. Without mentioning China, he expressed India’s concern over the nation’s aggressive moves in the region, including building military infrastructures in the disputed waters, and purported plan to create an Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) covering the disputed Pratas, Paracel and Spratly Islands. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) expressed concern about “actions and incidents that erode trust in the region”. Jaishankar’s remarks on the South China Sea came amid the six-month-long military stand-off between the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in eastern Ladakh. Premier Li Keqiang represented China in the East Asia Summit. He also attended the ASEAN-China summit on Friday, when he nudged the leaders of the South East Asian nations to speed up negotiations for a code of conduct for the South China Sea.
idrw.org .Read more at India No 1 Defence News Website https://idrw.org/delhi-protests-as-beijing-tries-to-turn-south-china-sea-code-of-conduct-into-a-barrier-to-keep-us-india-others-away-from-dispute/ .
https://idrw.org/delhi-protests-as-beijing-tries-to-turn-south-china-sea-code-of-conduct-into-a-barrier-to-keep-us-india-others-away-from-dispute/ .
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Building Readiness.
America’s Awesome Pacific Division kicks off platoon exchange with Excellent Indonesian Army…
For more than 70-years the partnership between the United States and Indonesian Armies has endured, despite the two nations being geographically located on opposite sides of the earth.
On Nov. 14, 2020, this partnership became a lot closer inside the historic F-Quad on Schofield Barracks, Hawaii as a platoon from the Tentara National Indonesian Army’s 431st Para Raider Infantry Battalion stood together as one with Soldiers assigned to 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment “Raiders,” 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division marking the official start to the U.S. hosted portion of the 2020 Indonesia platoon exchange.
During his opening remarks, Lt. Col. Walter Reed, 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment Commander stressed the importance of strengthening the partnership through shared tactical knowledge and the lifetime friendships that will be formed.
“I encourage all Soldiers, both in the 431st Para Raider Battalion and the Raider Squadron of 3-4 Cav., to spend time over the next two weeks getting to know one another, reinforcing the shared bonds that unite us in service to our nations,” said Reed.
The U.S. hosted portion is only half of the overall concept as the Raiders also have a platoon who traveled to Indonesia in order to train alongside the Indonesian 502nd Airborne Battalion for two weeks.
“The simultaneous training occurring here and in Indonesia, will enable our light fighters at the troop and squadron level to build readiness on critical individual and collective tasks,” said Reed. “More importantly, it will also deepen our strategic partnership with Indonesia to further the relationship built on shared democratic values and common interest.”
For the next two weeks in Hawaii, the Raiders will train together with the 431st Para Raiders conducting everything from morning physical readiness training to counter-improvised explosive device training as well as a series of training conducted at the 25th Infantry Division’s Lightning Academy.
Lt. Col. Kemas Nauval, 431st Para Raider Infantry Battalion Commander is excited to be part of this opportunity to enrich the skills and experience of both armies Soldiers. “As we all know, this joint training exercise is intended to strengthen bonds and friendships between our two armies and also between our two nations so that we will continue to have a good communication, coordination and understanding afterwards,” he said during his remarks.
While this platoon exchange provides high-quality training for both armies, the relationships built will go far beyond the two-weeks of training.
“This exchange is an example of how America's Pacific Division continues to build readiness and learn from our partners in the region” said Maj. Gen. James Jarrard, Commanding General of the 25th Infantry Division and U.S. Army Hawaii. “We hope to deepen our partnership with Indonesia to further the relationship we have based on shared values and common interests, and we welcome our partners to Schofield Barracks.”
Looking toward the future, this event will hopefully be seen as the start of an even stronger partnership between the two armies which will last beyond another 70-years.
https://www.dvidshub.net/news/383044/americas-pacific-division-kicks-off-platoon-exchange-with-indonesian-army
Joint Chiefs Vice Chair John Hyten Expected to Retire Next Year; Shortest Tenure in Job Since 2007.
The Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is set to step down from the number-two leadership role in the Pentagon next year without seeking a renomination for the postion, USNI News has learned.
Gen. John Hyten, who took on the job in November 2019, plans to step down from the position at the end of his two-year term without seeking to extend, three U.S. officials confirmed to USNI News.
Under the current rules for the position, the vice chair serves a two-year term after being confirmed by the Senate, according to federal law. The term was extended from two to four years as part of the Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act with the first year four-year term starting after Jan. 1, 2021. Hyten’s term will currently expire on Nov. 20, 2021 and he would need to be renominated to serve past that date.
“Gen. Hyten has always understood his tenure as Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff would last two years and plans to retire upon the completion of his term,” Hyten spokeswoman Maj. Trisha Guillebeau told USNI News on Friday.
“The next Vice Chairman will serve a four-year term. Gen Hyten will serve two years. The intent of Congress was to offset the Chairman and the Vice Chairman positions by two years.”
If Hyten elected to instead retire, it would be the shortest term for the position since Adm. Edmund Giambastiani elected to retire from the position in 2007 after just under two years in office to spend more time with his family and pursue other opportunities.
Among his replacements under consideration last week include current commander of U.S. Fleet Forces Command Adm. Chris Grady, who had also been under consideration to lead U.S. Northern Command, two officials told USNI News. Ultimately Air Force Lt. Gen. Glen VanHerck was nominated in July to lead the command.
Two officials told USNI News there has been an active conversation in the Joint Staff regarding staggering the terms of the chair and vice chair to provide a level continuity for Pentagon senior leadership. It’s unclear if the desire to provide overlap between leadership roles led to the decision for Hyten to retire.
Hyten’s decision to not seek another term comes as he’s in the midst of a civil sexual assault lawsuit from a subordinate who worked with him when Hyten led U.S. Strategic Command.
Army Col. Kathryn Spletstoser filed charges against Hyten in federal court over an alleged 2017 assault when the two were on travel in California. She filed the suit after Air Force and Senate investigations into the allegations could not substantiate the charges.
In October, a federal judge ruled the case could proceed after dismissing a motion from Hyten’s lawyers to throw out the case based on the Feres Doctrine that prohibits service members from being sued in civil court.
Hyten has continued to deny any wrongdoing.
“This case has been taken seriously by the Air Force and the [Defense] Department. It has been rigorously investigated and reviewed. And at no time has corroborating evidence or testimony be found,” Guillebeau said.
https://news.usni.org/2020/11/13/joint-chiefs-vice-chair-john-hyten-expected-to-retire-next-year-shortest-tenure-in-job-since-2007
Arrr!
Must QSY for Now. Eyes Open Shipmates ye. Arrr!