Pacific Winds 20250507
A daily collection of news affecting the Asia-Pacific region
Alliances
Japan’s soft power gains a hard edge
EAF 20250506
https://eastasiaforum.org/2025/05/06/japans-soft-power-gains-a-hard-edge/
Beijing or Washington: Anthony Albanese might have to choose between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump
ABC A(U) 20250506
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05-06/australia-united-states-china-relations/105255304
US House passes China bills on issues from economic espionage to human rights
SCMP 20250506
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3309167/us-house-passes-china-bills-issues-economic-espionage-human-rights
Micronesia-Marianas (2nd Island Chain+)
‘A military colony:’ Panel says Department of Defense is at heart of Guam decolonization
PDN 20250506
https://www.guampdn.com/news/a-military-colony-panel-says-department-of-defense-is-at-heart-of-guam-decolonization/article_aacc5d85-8d2e-4276-859c-a4a6ce7fc5fe.html
Project Carabao: Joint Expeditionary Training
USAF AAFB 20250505
https://www.andersen.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/4174987/project-carabao-joint-expeditionary-training/
Island Waves
Australia-Pacific relations to remain 'more of the same' following Labor re-election - experts
RNZ 20250506
https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/560094/australia-pacific-relations-to-remain-more-of-the-same-following-labor-re-election-experts
Machinery arrives for 17km tar-sealed road on Ambae
Daily Post (VU) 20250506
https://www.dailypost.vu/news/machinery-arrives-for-17km-tar-sealed-road-on-ambae/article_b352c107-b56a-511f-b1a9-e5a4c576ebd2.html
Fiji calls for stronger Japan-Pacific ties
FBCN 20250506
https://www.fbcnews.com.fj/news/fiji-calls-for-stronger-japan-pacific-ties/
Police from All Over Pacific Undergo Training
National (PNG) 20250506
https://www.thenational.com.pg/police-from-all-over-pacific-undergo-training/
Taiwan + SCS
China needs Taiwanese ports to take the island. Mines are the key to protecting them
ASPI 20250506
https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/china-needs-taiwanese-ports-to-take-the-island-mines-are-the-key-to-protecting-them/
51% support raising defense budget: poll
Taipei Times 20250507
https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2025/05/07/2003836460
China’s Gambit: The Economic Risks of a Taiwan Conflict
AIIA 20250505
https://www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australianoutlook/chinas-gambit-the-economic-risks-of-a-taiwan-conflict/
China's Taiwan policy driven by Xi agenda, not Lai rhetoric: Scholars
CNA (TW) 20250506
https://focustaiwan.tw/cross-strait/202505060027
DPP's "bluff diplomacy" is a road to nowhere
China Military 20250506
http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/OPINIONS_209196/Opinions_209197/16384482.html
Taiwan tracks 16 Chinese military aircraft, 12 naval ships
Taiwan News 20250506
https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/news/6102521
Island construction at Scarborough Shoal 'would cross red line'– NSC spox
Daily Tribune (PH) 20250506
https://tribune.net.ph/2025/05/06/island-construction-at-scarborough-shoal-would-cross-red-line-nsc-spox
Think tank: China boosted ship presence in Scarborough Shoal
Daily Tribune (PH) 20250506
https://tribune.net.ph/2025/05/06/think-tank-china-boosted-ship-presence-in-scarborough-shoal
Taiwan Coast Guard sprays Chinese fishing boat for intruding on Dongsha waters
Taiwan News 20250506
https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/news/6102502
Capabilities
From Punishment to Denial: Stabilizing Deterrence on the Korean Peninsula
Quincy 20250505
https://quincyinst.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/02140308/QUINCY-BRIEF-NO.-74-MAY-2025-PARK.pdf
CRS Report to Congress on Hypersonic Weapons
USNI 20250506
https://news.usni.org/2025/05/06/report-to-congress-on-hypersonic-weapons-19
Revising Missile Controls Is Necessary to Help Allies and Prevent New Nuclear States
CSIS 20250505
https://www.csis.org/analysis/revising-missile-controls-necessary-help-allies-and-prevent-new-nuclear-states
Space Force awards contracts for missile-warning ground systems
Space News 20250506
https://spacenews.com/space-force-awards-contracts-for-missile-warning-ground-systems/
Closing the Shipbuilding Gap: Lessons from Henry Kaiser, Part I
Hudson 20250506
https://www.hudson.org/national-security-defense/closing-shipbuilding-gap-lessons-henry-kaiser-part-i-arthur-herman