Tag: Australia

When I hear people say “Happy Memorial Day” I too find it a bit awkward considering the real meaning of this holiday:

Allison Jaslow heard it more than once as the long holiday weekend approached — a cheerful “Happy Memorial Day!” from oblivious well-wishers.

The former Army captain and Iraq War veteran had a ready reply, telling them, matter-of-factly, that she considered it a work weekend. Jaslow will be at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday to take part in the annual wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. She’ll then visit Section 60, the final resting place of many service members who died in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“You can see it in people’s faces that they’re a little horrified that they forget this is what the day’s about,” said Jaslow, 34, who wears a bracelet bearing the name of a fallen comrade. “Culturally, we’ve kind of lost sight of what the day’s supposed to mean.”

While millions of Americans celebrate the long Memorial Day weekend as the unofficial start of summer — think beaches and backyard barbecues, mattress sales and sporting events — some veterans and loved ones of fallen military members wish the holiday that honors more than 1 million people who died serving their country would command more respect.  [CBS 58]

In my opinion Memorial Day really should begin with a somber tone much like I have seen with ANZAC Day in Australia and New Zealand.  Communities across both nations meet for morning remembrance services every April 25th.  It is a very big deal and has a somber tone to them.  After the morning service the rest of the day depending on the community there could be parades and other events going on to honor servicemembers and all of them usually involve drinking beer.  So the whole day is not somber, but enough of it is so people don’t lose the real meaning of the day.

It seems if Memorial Day was on a fixed date like ANZAC Day then a tradition like this could be established in the United States as well.  However, as long as it remains at its current last Monday of May it will remain a holiday that represents the unofficial start of summer for most people.

What an idiot:

An Australian, whose identity is unknown, has been arrested for defacing a subway car, according to Suseo Police Station Sunday.

According to police, the man, 22, and his girlfriend arrived on Mar. 27, and stayed at a hotel near Hongik University.

The man broke into Gangnam Subway Depot and drew graffiti on a subway car on Apr. 1, after being told wrongly he could do this.

He left for Japan the next day, but was arrested on Sunday after stopping at Incheon International Airport for a flight back to Australia.  [Korea Times]

I wonder if this guy is friends with the group of Australians that defaced these Seoul subway cars two years ago?

Korean War veterans from the British Commonwealth lay flowers during a ceremony at the War Memorial Hall in Seoul on the occasion of the anniversary of Anzac Day on April 25, 2017. Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders who served and died in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations. Britain and 15 other nations fought for South Korea against invading North Korea under the U.N. flag during the 1950-53 war. The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs (MPBA) invited them. (Photo courtesy of MPBA) (Yonhap)

North Korea’s response to Australia’s announcement of sanctions enforcement perfectly justifies why they are enforcing sanctions in the first place:

North Korea has bluntly warned Australia of a possible nuclear strike if Canberra persists in “blindly and zealously toeing the US line”.

North Korea’s state new agency (KCNA) quoted a foreign ministry spokesman castigating Australian foreign minister, Julie Bishop, after she said the rogue nation would be subject to further Australian sanctions and for “spouting a string of rubbish against the DPRK over its entirely just steps for self-defence”.

“If Australia persists in following the US moves to isolate and stifle the DPRK and remains a shock brigade of the US master, this will be a suicidal act of coming within the range of the nuclear strike of the strategic force of the DPRK,” the report said.

“The Australian foreign minister had better think twice about the consequences to be entailed by her reckless tongue-lashing before flattering the US.”

Bishop had said this week on the ABC’s AM program that North Korea’s nuclear weapons program posed a “serious threat” to Australia unless it was stopped by the international community.  [The Guardian]

You can read more at the link.

Australia has just assigned their first Korean born ambassador to their embassy in Korea:

The first Korea-born Australian ambassador to Korea, James Choi, stresses Australia’s longtime friendship with Korea.

“It’s a very difficult time in Korea and certain Korean newspapers are calling it samyeon-choga [to be surrounded by enemies on all sides] and naewoo-waehwan [troubles at home and abroad],” he said. “I look at the difficult period Korea is facing, with the North Korean nuclear tests, Mr. Donald J. Trump’s inauguration and the isolationist trends in China.

“I want to remind Korea that there is a friend in the region and that Australia is a natural partner for Korea,” he said. “Australia is here as a friend and a partner in the Asia-Pacific region to meet these challenges.”

Inaugurated on Dec. 27, Choi spoke with the Korea JoongAng Daily and JoongAng Ilbo on Thursday at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in central Seoul during the Australia Day event, an annual celebration to remember the beginnings of the country.

In many ways, the newly appointed ambassador represents a natural link between the two countries. Born in Seoul in 1970, Choi migrated to Australia in 1974.

“I am a beneficiary myself of Australia’s immigration policies,” Choi said, “and its openness and diversity have given me opportunities to come back to Korea as a representative of the Australian government.”  [Joong Ang Ilbo]

You can read more at the link, but Ambassador Choi is correct that Australia is a natural partner for Korea in the region.

Hopefully the headlines these guys are making does not encourage others to go to North Korea to try and do the same thing:

Ruig and Shay, both 28, created worldwide headlines after pretending to be members of the Australian golf team and fooling North Korean authorities into letting them play in a two-day international tournament in Pyongyang last month.

The pair, who had been playing polo in China when they decided to email organisers for an invitation, even had fake green golf jackets made up with Australian badges.

But neither Ruig nor Shay plays golf and performed so badly their North Korean caddie told them they had brought shame on their families.

The stunt has brought the lads international fame and they were mobbed by fans on a visit to the Gold Coast yesterday.

Ruig said outraged North Korean officials had now demanded an apology.  [Courier Mail]

You can read more at the link, but I would feel no pity for these guys if they ended getting arrested in North Korea if their prank was discovered.  I am just concerned the headlines these guys are making will encourage other random people to try and get their 15 minutes of fame by trying something like this in North Korea again.  What I also don’t like is that some random official in North Korea is probably going to be held responsible for allowing these guys into the country in the first place.  Should a North Korean official’s livelihood be put at stake just because a couple of random people want their 15 minutes of fame?

U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Vincent Brooks (C) offers flower at a memorial ceremony for Australian soldiers who were killed in action during the 1950-53 war during a memorial ceremony at Taepung Observatory in the South Korean border town of Yeoncheon, on Oct. 26, 2016. Australia and 15 other nations fought for South Korea against invading North Korea under the U.N. flag during the war. (Yonhap)

Considering Australia’s strong economic ties to the Chinese I will be surprised if they commit to supporting freedom of navigation patrols in the SCS.  These calls to strike Australian ships I believe is just a signal from the Chinese to the Australians to stay out of this dispute in response to the US request for freedom of navigation patrols:

China’s state-run Global Times has published an editorial attacking Australia for supporting the recent international ruling on China’s activities in the South China Sea and called for strikes on any Australian ships which might undertake “freedom-of-navigation” activities in the region.

The editorial said Australia “is not even a ‘paper tiger’, it’s only a ‘paper cat’ at best”. It says that even though “Australia calls itself a principled country… when it needs to please Washington, it demonstrates willingness of doing anything in a show of allegiance”.

As a result, the Global Times says (our emphasis):

China must take revenge and let it know it’s wrong. Australia’s power means nothing compared to the security of China. If Australia steps into the South China Sea waters, it will be an ideal target for China to warn and strike.

Earlier this year, the Commander of the US Seventh Fleet, Vice Admiral Joseph P Aucoin, said it would be in the “best interests” of the region if Australia was to send ships to within 12 miles of the disputed area. Australia has so far not sent any of its ships there.  [Business Insider]

You can read the rest at the link.

How Will Australia Use Its Massive Warships? https://t.co/L9TmQ7Hr7w pic.twitter.com/qshOxuSwz7

— The Diplomat (@Diplomat_APAC) October 20, 2015

Considering how many more US and Japanese F-35s will be located in Japan it makes sense that the deep maintenance facility would be located there.  Of course the ROKs have to show their displeasure with this:

South Korea said on Thursday it will not send its F-35 fleet to Japan for heavy airframe maintenance, one of the two Asian hubs chosen by the United States to service the Lockheed Martin Corp stealth fighter.

Instead, it is likely to fly the jets to Australia for maintenance, about eight times further away than Japan and well beyond their operating range. The three nations, all key U.S. allies, are the only countries in the region to have ordered the F-35s.

The F-35 program has been lauded as an example of the United States and its allies working together to bolster inter-operability, but in Asia the maintenance plan is bringing traditional rivalry between Seoul and Tokyo to the fore.

The three-star air force general who runs the F-35 program for the United States, Chris Bogdan, told reporters on Wednesday that Japan would handle heavy maintenance for the jets in the northern Pacific from early 2018, with Australia to handle maintenance in the southern Pacific.

“There will never be a case where our fighter jets will be taken to Japan for maintenance,” said an official at South Korea’s arms procurement agency, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration.

“South Korea has the right to decide where to conduct maintenance for its F-35 jets, and it will decide whenever the need arises.”

The plan at the moment is for the 40 F-35s to be acquired by South Korea to be serviced in Australia, an Australian defense ministry source told Reuters on condition he wasn’t identified.

South Korea will receive the first of the stealth planes in 2018.

A source familiar with the F-35 program said South Korea could, at a later stage, negotiate with Washington on the possibility of handling the heavy maintenance of its own F-35 jets.

Such a deal would require a significant investment by Seoul, including specialized equipment used to test the jets’ stealth. [Reuters]

You can read more at the link, but when the ROKs decided to pursue the F-35 you would think that this was something that was discussed as part of the contract talks; so this should not be too surprising. I would not be surprised that this is just a big media show for domestic consumption now.  2023 is the earliest that the ROK’s F-35 need servicing so a lot can change by then.   So it makes sense that Korean politicians now do not want the headache of being accused of compromising defense of the nation to Japan needlessly and let politicians down the road work something out where these planes are quietly serviced in Japan.