China steps up spying on U.S. military

Li Shangfu (center), who was slapped with U.S. sanctions this week for buying arms from Russia, is director of the Equipment Development Department of China’s Central Military Commission. The department announced a database that will likely benefit from China’s theft of 22.1 million records on American federal workers, including those with security clearances, from the Office of Personnel Management in 2015. (Photo by: Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press/File)

 

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is stepping up open-source spying on the U.S. military and other foreign militaries that will utilize artificial intelligence means.

According to a procurement notice from China’s Central Military Commission, the new database is a six-month project to set up an “Open Source Intelligence Database on Foreign Militaries.”

The revealing notice was published by the commission’s PLA Equipment Development Department, whose director, Lt. Gen. Li Shangfu, was slapped with U.S. sanctions this week for buying arms from Russia.

The database will likely benefit from China’s theft of 22.1 million records on American federal workers, including those with security clearances, from the Office of Personnel Management in 2015. Chinese hackers also stole an estimated 80 million records on Americans from health care insurance giant Anthem.

China Threatens India Over Border: “Leave Chinese Land Or Face War”

 

While the world’s eyes are focused on Syria, Russia, Ukraine, and North Korea; there is another – much more tense – fight between two nuclear powers that is getting far too little attention. The world’s two most populous nations, China and India, have been engaged in a border dispute for decades but in recent months it has flared once again with a Chinese Ministry of Defense official now warning explicitly that Indian troops must leave the contested Doklam area if they do not want war.

The latest standoff started more than a month ago after Chinese troops started building a road on a remote plateau, which is disputed by China and Bhutan.  Indian troops countered by moving to the flashpoint zone to halt the work, with China accusing them of violating its territorial sovereignty and calling for their immediate withdrawal.

Pakistan provoking India to launch a major offensive

India’s Border Security Force soldiers stand guard along fencing near the India-Pakistan Chachwal border. Photo: AFP

 

Monday’s killing and beheading of two Indian soldiers by Pakistan army is seen as a ploy to trigger a conflict and internationalize Kashmir issue

Pressure is mounting on India from political parties and the public to retaliate after the killing and mutilation of two Indian soldiers by Pakistani troops near the line of control (LoC) in the Krishna Ghati sector of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.

The killing of the soldiers, who were then beheaded, is the 12th such incident since the 1999 Kargil war and the third since India’s “surgical strikes” on terrorists in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in September last year. It also represents a clear violation of the Geneva convention.

Major Attack on Indian Army in Kashmir Puts South Asia on Crisis Footing

Indo-Pakistani tensions have been heightening over the last several months, but Sunday’s attack on an Indian Army base in Kashmir that left 17 soldiers dead has put the region in crisis mode.

The attack took place near the Line of Control (LoC) that divides Indian and Pakistani Kashmir and marks the most deadly attack against Indian security forces in over two decades. In 2002, a terrorist attack on an Indian army base in Jammu, Kashmir that killed over 30 (mostly family members of Indian Army officials), nearly led to war between Pakistan and India.

China launches charm offensive for first overseas naval base

BEIJING (Reuters) – China has launched an unusual charm offensive to explain its first overseas naval base in Djibouti, seeking to assuage global concerns about military expansionism by portraying the move as Beijing’s contribution to regional security and development.

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China has repeatedly said it does not seek a U.S.-style “hegemony” by extending its military reach, including through bases abroad.

Now that it appears it may be doing precisely that, the government has been quietly briefing on its rationale for the Djibouti base and using state media to address fears of China’s aims.

India plans US$1bn mountain strike corps to counter China

India is building a new 62-billion-rupee (US$1.02 billion) mountain strike corps to counter China along the China-India border in the northeastern part of the country, according to a report from the New Delhi-based Hindustan Times.

The report said General Dalbir Singh Suhag, Chief of the Army Staff of the Indian Army, is set to visit the Kolkata-based Eastern Command before the end of the month to track the progress of the new 17 Corps, which is being set up to counter China’s reconnaissance and intelligence along the 4,057-kilometer Line of Actual Control (LAC) between the two countries. The corps is likely to be operational by 2022, the report said, adding that it is expected to reduce China’s combat power advantage over India from the current ratio of 3:1 to 2.1:1.

Chinese troops adopt new tactic, stop Indian Army from patrolling in its own territory

Amid a spate of incursions by China in Ladakh, its troops are also resorting to tactics like preventing the Indian Army from patrolling posts in this sector along the border which was well within India’s territory.

In what is being described as an aggressive approach by China, the tactics have come to the fore in the wake of yet another incident last week when Indian troops launched its patrol “Tiranga” from Trade Junction area in North of Ladakh for two posts located 14 km up in the higher reaches along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The Indian army personnel were stopped by Chinese troops who came mounted on heavy and light vehicles, official sources said on Sunday.

The patrol party was shown a banner that it was Chinese territory and that they cannot proceed to the posts, they said.

The sources said the Chinese troops were aggressive in their approach while stopping the Indian patrol who were at their posts.

India to deploy 50,000 additional troops along China border

NEW DELHI: Boosting Army’s war fighting capabilities along the line of actual control (LAC), the government on Wednesday has given the go ahead to the creation of a corps including deployment of 50,000 additional troops along the China border at a cost of around Rs 65,000 crore.

The Cabinet committee on security headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh cleared the proposal in its meeting, sources told PTI.