Defense News 04/29/2013

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1 |t|tsstKtws April z9, zO1J www.dofonsonows.com
80L4w40, Z|mbabwe ~ Tho US must in-
croaso its intolligonco- gathoring capacity in
Africa1b-foldinthoshort tormtocountor tho
throat posod by rogional Islamic oxtromist
groups and maritimo piracy, particularly in
tho Gulf of Guinoa, according to a top US
gonoral.
US Army Gon. David Rodriguoz paid his
first visit tothocontinont ashoadof USAfrica
Command (AFRICOM) this month, visiting
tho USArmy baso at CampLomonnior inDji-
bouti. Tho visit camo as tho US, Britain and
somo Europoan partnors considor plans to
incroaso anti-piracy oporations intho Gulf of
Guinoa whilo ramping up tho training and
oquipping of Wost African partnor armios to
crackdownmorooffoctivolyonthomaritimo
piracy crisis.
Socurityanalystssaythoroisapossiblolink
botwoon piracy in tho Gulf of Guinoa and
tho financing of rogional Islamist torrorist
groups such as al-Qaida in tho Islamic Ma-
ghrob (AQIM), Ansar Al Dino, Movomont for
Ononoss and 1ihad in Wost Africa (MU1AO),
Boko Haram and tho National Movomont
for thoLiborationof Azawad, all of whichop-
orato in tho widor Sahol dosort rogion cov-
oring Nigoria, Mali, Nigor, Algoria, Morocco
and Mauritania.
Tho Gulf of Guinoa is a koy intornational
shipping lano off tho Atlantic coast of Wost
Africa and is considorod ono of tho world's
most dangoroussocurityzonosduotoasurgo
in maritimo crimos such as piracy, robbory,
hijackings, arms and narcotics smuggling,
kidnappings and oil thoft in tho past throo
yoars. Thopiratozono," whichhadboonlim-
itod to torritorial wators off tho coasts of Ni-
goriaandBonin, nowcovorsthoWost African
rogion from tho Atlantic coast of tho Domo-
craticRopublicof CongoinContral Africaup
to Ivory Coast, according to tho latost roport
from tho Intornational Maritimo Buroau.
Rodriguoz, in a writton statomont to tho
Sonato ArmodSorvicos Committoo inFobru-
ary boforo taking ovor tho command, wroto
thoforcois focusodonboostingits continon-
tal survoillanco capabilitios to fill a hugo
information gap and doal with tho African-
basod torrorist groups.
I boliovo additional intolligonco, survoil-
lanco and roconnaissanco capabilitios aro
nocossary to protoct Amorican intorosts and
assist ourclosoalliosandpartnors[inAfrica].
Tho rocont crisos [Bonghazi bombing] in
NorthAfricadomonstratothovolatilityof tho
African socurity onvironmont," ho wroto.
Rodriguoz said tho command rocoivos only
half of itsintolligonconoodfor thoNorthAfri-
ca rogion and a moro 7 porcont of its total
roquiromont for tho continont.
Rodriguoz said oxpanding tho command's
ISR capabilitios includos an urgont nood for
unmannod aircraft and moro spy satollitos
for imago colloction ovor tho continont.
ThoUS, Britain, Spain, FrancoandBolgium
havo takon part in sovoral rogional maritimo
socurity and naval oxorcisos and providod
training for somo African forcos whilo loav-
ing torritorial wator patrols to local forcos.
Concornod that monoy gonoratod from pira-
cy oporations in tho Gulf of Guinoa could bo
usod to financo torrorist groups, US dofonso
officials aro oxamining moro practical ways
of clamping down on piracy in Wost Africa.
This yoar, naval and marino forcos drawn
from sovoral African nations participatod in
thoUS-lodExorcisoObangamoExprosszO1J
in which naval spocialists from Britain,
Franco, Bolgium, tho Nothorlands and Cana-
da lod training.
Concornodbythosproadoftorrorismintho
Sahol andpiracyinthoGulf of Guinoa, thoUS
Army this yoar oponod its first Wost African
drono baso in tho Nigorian capital, Niamoy.
From that baso, Prodators oporato on in-
tolligonco-gathoring and survoillanco mis-
sions. Sinco zO11, whon Saholian torrorism
bocamo a sorious throat, AFRICOM has
ovolvodintoa moro offonsivo forco, croating
a spocial purposo Marino air ground task
forcotoprovidolimitodcrisis-rosponsocapa-
bility andconduct countortorrorismtraining
on tho continont.
In lino with its shift to moro combat-
oriontod dutios, AFRICOM has dodicatod
spocial oporationsunits, includingarapidro-
action forco sot up aftor last yoar's Bonghazi
attacks.
Lastwook, thoUSArmyadvortisodaUS$bO
million aviation contract sooking a privato
airlino contractor to provido flight sorvicos
for small units of lightly armod US spocial
oporations forcos conducting high-risk ac-
tivitios" in zO African countrios in tho noxt
four yoars, starting in August.
Tho high-risk activitios" will bo flown out
of amilitaryairbasoandrogional intolligonco
hub in Ouagadougou, tho capital city of Bur-
kina Faso.
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8, 05048 NK4L4
I0K0 ~ An offort by 1apan to put
boots on tho ground and install a
radar monitoring station on ono of
its islands could bo dorailod by a
fowhundrod islandors as tho coun-
try's now administration trios to
provido a moro muscular, in-your-
faco dofonso posturo to China.
Things had boon going woll with
tho doploymont, which involvos
buildingabarracksforagarrisonof
1OO to zOO Ground Solf-Dofonso
Forco (GSDF) troops in tho contor
of Yonaguni Island with a coastal
monitoringfacilityandamobilora-
dar unit on its oastorn tip by zO1b.
Bothsidos agroodtothomovoaftor
nogotiations that bogan in 1uno
zOO9whonislandorsinvitodthoDo-
fonso Ministry to Yonaguni in tho
hopoof bringingmoromonoytotho
tiny local oconomy. Tho island,
closor toTaiwanthantho 1apanoso
mainland, has 1,6OO rosidonts.
Things changod March zO, whon
local Mayor Shukichi Hokama sud-
donly prosontod tho MoD with a
suddonoxtra 1billion(US$1O mil-
lion) domand for a nuisanco pay-
mont" to componsato local land-
ownors for tho doploymont.
Tho standoff gainod national at-
tontion a wook lator whon Dofonso
Ministor Itsunori Onodora publicly
throatonod to pull tho plug on tho
doploymont, a throat roitoratod by
MoD spokosman Takaaki Ohno to
Dofonso Nows. Ohno said tho MoD
fails tosoo tho validity of tho claim,
adding that it broaks prior agroo-
monts. Tho MoD will continuo to
nogotiato positivoly with tho is-
landors, but if wo do not soo any
progross, wo will havo no choico
but to roviow tho plan, including
whothortodoploythotroopsontho
island," ho said.
Whilothodisputomight soomliko
avoryminor typhoonina1apanoso
toacup, thoro is a lot moro at stako
than monoy, according to analysts.
Gavan McCormack, omoritus
profossor and visiting follow, Divi-
sion of Pacific and Asian History at
tho Australian National Univorsity,
saidthorocont ratchotingupof ton-
sionsbotwoon1apanandChinahas
causod massivo fissuros on tho is-
land botwoon somo who want in-
vostmont in tho tiny community's
docaying oconomy and thoso who
say tho movo puts tho hithorto
largoly ignorod island right in Chi-
na's crosshairs.
Whon a small plurality of island-
ors supportod movos to invito tho
MoD in zOO8, diplomatic rolations
botwoon1apanandChinaworobot-
tor. But tho oscalation of torritorial
disputos botwoon tho two noigh-
bors ovor ownorship of tho Sonka-
ku Islands (callod tho Diaoyu
Islands by China) just north of Yo-
naguni, has coolodtho GSDF's wol-
como in tho oyos of many, ho said.
Yonaguni is only 67 milos off of
Taiwan, placing it straight onto a
Chinoso missilo targot list, to bo
wipod out immodiatoly" if hostili-
tiosovorbroakout botwoonthotwo
countrios, McCormack said.
That split has loft Hokama, tho
mayor, in a difficult situation, Mc-
Cormack said, bocauso whilo Ho-
kama originally supportod tho
GSDFdoploymont foritsporcoivod
oconomic boost, rocont growing
opposition may now affoct his
chancos of ro-oloction.
Tho Yonaguni issuo has bocomo
symbolically and stratogically im-
portant. Sinco assuming powor
lato last yoar, tho Abo administra-
tion has boon tho first 1apanoso
govornmont in 11 yoars to raiso do-
fonso sponding, alboit only by O.8
porcont.
Boofing up 1apan's ability to do-
fond its island chain and dotor po-
tontial Chinoso aggrossionis nowa
stratogic priority.
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