South Korea Readies for a Future Without America

Instead of North Korea coming to terms with the Western world, it’s the Western world that’s being absorbed into China’s sphere of influence in Asia. The Western plan in its current state seems to be backfiring.

 

A South Korean soldier stands guard before the military demarcation line and North Korea’s Panmun Hall. (ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images)

 

‘These disagreements have brought thorny issues over the shape and size of the U.S.-South Korea alliance back to the surface.’

The United States and South Korea are increasingly at odds over North Korea, placing the future of their military alliance in doubt.

Early last month, South Korea opened a liaison office with North Korea despite U.S. opposition to the move. Shortly after, South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha publicly criticized the U.S. for its inflexibility regarding an action of good faith that North Korea had asked of the U.S. Also in September, South Korea announced that it might remove a certain set of sanctions on the North, prompting U.S. President Donald Trump to say the South does “nothing without our approval,” a statement that irritated many South Koreans.

Taiwan Seeks Bigger Military to Protect Itself From China

 

The Taiwanese are bracing for the possibility that China will use military force to attempt to assert control over their island.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen promised on October 10 to boost Taiwan’s national security in order to counter an increasingly aggressive China. Taiwan will not allow Communist China’s efforts to seize control of the island, Tsai said.

Japanese Prime Minister Wants to Revise Pacifist Constitution to Create Military Force

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and wife Akie Abe arrive at Marka international airport on April 30, 2018 in Amman, Jordan. Abe is on a Middle East tour visiting the UAE, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories. (Getty Images)

 

Prime Minister Shinzō Abe steps up efforts to change Japan’s constitution to allow the creation of a military force by 2020.

“Let’s fulfill our mission by clearly writing in the constitution the Self-Defense Forces that protect peace and independence of Japan,” Prime Minister Shinzō Abe said on September 9, reiterating his support for changing Japan’s constitution to allow for a military.

The second clause of Article 9 of Japan’s constitution says that “Land, sea and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained.” Nonetheless, Article 9 allowed Japan to create its own military strictly for the purpose of defending its own borders. This de facto military is known as Japan’s Self-Defense Forces (sdf).

Prime Minister Abe wants to officially change this policy. And he wants to do it by next year.

Thousands Rally to Remove U.S. Military Base From Okinawa

Protesters stage a sit-in to block construction vehicles working on the expansion of Camp Schwab, a U.S. military base, on May 31 in Nago, Okinawa, Japan. (Carl Court/Getty Images)

 

The latest deterioration of a fading trans-Pacific alliance

Some 70,000 protesters rallied in Okinawa, Japan, on August 11 against the planned relocation of a United States military base. Rather than see U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma moved from a heavily populated part of the island to the remote Henoko Bay, the protesters want it to be removed from the island entirely.

In North Korea Crisis, Russia and China Hold the Cards

 

These two nations are the reason why North Korea is able to operate so freely and dangerously.

After the United Nations Security Council voted unanimously on September 11 to increase sanctions on North Korea, the United States tried to portray it as a victory for the American-led efforts to neutralize the North Korean threat. But the UN’s move actually showcases the influence of Russia and China and shows that these two nations hold the cards on North Korea.

The Other Asian Powerhouse

Indian Border Security Force personnel walk through a market area in Amritsar on October 21.

 

Why is India leaning toward the East?

The Trumpet has long said that India—with its population of more than 1.2 billion people—is almost certain to join the Asian bloc that the Bible says will congeal in the end time.

A look at India’s history, its recent direction, and specific Bible prophecies reveal why.