Best printers for Home

Best Mixer Grinder

Best wired Earphones

Best 43 Inch TV in India

Best Wi Fi Routers

Best Home Theatre in India

Smart Watch under 5000

Best Laptops for Education

Best Laptop for Students

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The US Army quickly deployed assets to Alaska's Aleutian Islands amid Russia and China's Pacific naval drills.</li><li>The 11th Airborne Division led the event, which included long-range artillery and counter fire radars.</li></ul>The US Army rapidly deployed weapons and soldiers out to the far tip of Alaska in a sudden show of force.The force projection event, which began this week in the North Pacific, sends a message to American adversaries at a time when key rivals Russia and China are conducting joint naval drills in the Pacific.In an exclusive interview with Business Insider, the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-us-army-is-training-soldiers-to-fight-in-arctic-2024-3">Army's 11th Airborne Division</a> commander Maj. Gen. Joseph Hilbert said that the event demonstrates US Army Pacific's ability to move assets adeptly and with little notice into even the most remote locations."The Army looks at us to be Arctic experts," Hilbert said, and as a part of US Army Pacific,"we've got to be ready to operate in the region as a part of the land power there."<div type="image" title="A US Army Q-53 Radar is parked on a sandy shore overlooking the ocean and a grey sky." height="1882" width="3347" msid="113351825" hostid="261" sizebytes="359986"></div>For the event, the 11th Airborne Division pulled together a range of capabilities from across the US Army, including a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-army-looking-to-build-hundreds-more-himars-launchers-2022-9">High Mobility Artillery Rocket System</a> platoon from Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, communications equipment from Hawaii, and a target acquisition radar and an infantry security force from the 11th Airborne Division. The number of soldiers deployed was around 130 for this exercise.The Alaska Air National Guard and the Air Force transported the various weapons and assets."Bringing these forces together," Hilbert explained, "demonstrates to any adversary that we can deploy anywhere with little notice. We can suddenly create a dilemma," he said, "and we can do that with significant firepower, and we can do it as a joint force."<div type="image" title="A US Army soldier stands in front of a communications system truck parked on a road near green fields against a blue sky." height="4764" width="7147" msid="113351840" hostid="261" sizebytes="1178728"></div>Hilbert said the deployment of the HIMARS speaks to the importance of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/west-new-permissions-mean-ukraine-can-actually-fight-experts-2024-7">long-range fires</a> in force projection and deterrence, something that's also been evident in the war in Ukraine.The exercise, which will continue into next week, is also highly visible to US friends and foes alike. There is a lot of discussion around the need to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-electronic-warfare-shows-us-needs-for-future-wars-2024-5">conceal the signatures of forces and weapons</a> and hide them within the electromagnetic spectrum. That wasn't done here, as the event was purposefully overt. The Army wasn't hiding this.The intended aim was to show that these capabilities are readily deployable, even in unexpected places. It's also a signal of readiness to US allies and partners, Hilbert said.<div type="image" title="A US Army soldier standing and holding a gun with other soldiers and an American flag in the background." height="3875" width="5824" msid="113351832" hostid="261" sizebytes="1633898"></div>The Army exercise is being carried out in the Aleutian Islands, an island chain extending from Alaska's southernmost edge out into the Bering Sea and Northern Pacific Ocean. More specifically, the exercise is being held on Shemya Island.Alaska is a large, complex, and challenging environment that requires soldiers to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-army-breeding-new-kind-of-arctic-warrior-freezing-alaska-2024-2">develop various Arctic warfare skills</a>. 11th Airborne Division soldiers previously told BI that the difficulties of fighting in the unforgiving Arctic prompt them to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-army-lost-arctic-fighting-skills-training-regain-them-alaska-2024-2">adapt and innovate in real time</a>. Soldiers regularly train and carry out exercises across the state and in the broader region, remaining flexible for different situations.US Army Pacific has made combat in the Arctic a major priority, and 11th Airborne forces work with the larger network — both USARPAC and US Pacific allies and partners — to maintain readiness.<div type="image" title="A US Army soldier attaches an atenna to the top of a Light Mobile Terrain Vehicle against a grey sky." height="2160" width="3840" msid="113351835" hostid="261" sizebytes="126860"></div>At the US Army Pacific's Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness exercise in Alaska in February, USARPAC commander Gen. Charles A. Flynn told BI that amid <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-army-training-to-counter-aggressive-insidious-china-top-general-2024-2">an increase in "aggressive, insidious" moves from China</a> and other adversaries in the Indo-Pacific region, US allies and partners were working closer with the US Army on strengthening ground forces and their connections.The latest exercise comes amid Russia's largest naval drills since the Cold War, stretching across the Pacific, Mediterranean Sea, and Arctic Ocean to test combat readiness. The large exercise involves over 400 ships, submarines, and support vessels, along with air assets and well over 90,000 troops, the Kremlin said earlier this week.<div type="image" title="Two US Army Q-53 radar systems sit on a tarmac waiting to be loaded into plane against a grey sky." height="4024" width="6048" msid="113351836" hostid="261" sizebytes="626028"></div>Prior to the launch of the drills, Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the US of provoking "an arms race" and "disregarding the security interests of its European and Asian allies" by engaging in military action in the Indo-Pacific region."This lays the groundwork for a dangerous crisis in Europe, as well as in the Asia-Pacific Region," he added, painting his exercise as a challenge to the US. <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-army-dilemma-china-missile-force-top-pacific-general-2024-2">China</a>, another US rival, joined these exercises as Beijing and Moscow increasingly partner to confront the US-led world order.The timing of USARPAC's force projection demonstration is "not a coincidence," Hilbert said, pointing to the Army and larger joint force's goal of showing the strength and flexibility of US capabilities in the region."This is a capability that USARPAC has that we could use anywhere, and this was the right time to use this capability," the 11th Airborne commander said.

The US Army put on a sudden show of force out on the far edge of Alaska to send the message it can as Russia and China drill in the Pacific

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The US sank a decommissioned ship in the Pacific using a low-cost bomb from a B-2 stealth bomber.</li><li>The USS Tarawa, a 39,000-ton amphibious assault ship, was sunk on July 19.</li></ul>The US carried out a successful operation in the Pacific, using a low-cost bomb to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/b-2-bomber-sank-warship-pacific-new-anti-ship-bombs-2024-7">sink an 820-foot-long ship</a>, but China was quick to undermine the operation.As part of the 2024 Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC), the US successfully managed to sink the decommissioned USS Tarawa on July 19.The ship, an amphibious assault ship that weighed <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.navsource.org/archives/10/07/0701.htm">39,000</a> tons and was the size of an aircraft carrier, was in service from 1976 to 2009.In a first, the bomb was dropped from a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/b-2-spirit-stealth-bomber-what-is-feared-2018-2">US Air Force B-2 stealth bomber</a>, one of the most sophisticated and lethal aircraft in the US Military's arsenal.As part of the live-fire sinking exercise, dubbed SINKEX, the USS Tarawa was sunk more than 50 nautical miles off the northern coast of Hawaii's Kauai island, the US Navy 3rd Fleet said in a<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/News-Stories/Article/3846516/us-and-partner-nations-conduct-multiple-sinkexs-as-part-of-rimpac-2024/"> press release on July 23.</a>"This capability is an answer to an urgent need to quickly neutralize maritime threats over massive expanses of ocean around the world at minimal costs," the press release said.American, South Korean, Dutch, Australian, and Malaysian forces participated in the SINKEX this year.<h2 id="37d17002-5885-41ce-b3f0-cff416a9fb63">China is scrambling to say that the US' sinking exercise was insignificant.</h2>Although the US Navy did not mention that the exercise was targeted at China particularly, China was quick to take offense.The Global Times, a state-aligned Chinese news outlet, said in a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/27/asia/rimpac-air-force-b2-bomber-low-cost-bomb-sinking-exercise-intl-hnk-ml/index.html">commentary</a> on June 27 that the RIMPAC exercise "is clearly aimed at China."It said that China is "the only country deemed as "enemy" by the US that operates a 40,000-ton amphibious assault ship in the Asia-Pacific region."The Global Times slammed the exercise in its piece, saying it was a "big show" by the US to "prove its power."It also called into question how effective the operation was."The USS Tarawa is an amphibious assault ship that served in the US from 1976 to 2009," the outlet said. "Such an outdated ship cannot be compared with modern military equipment."The SINKEX operation comes as China's <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-needs-naval-coalition-stand-up-to-china-retired-admiral-2024-5">navy fleet grows</a> and poses a threat to the South China region.China has overtaken the US Navy in fleet size. According to the Pentagon's 2023 <a target="_blank" href="https://media.defense.gov/2023/Oct/19/2003323409/-1/-1/1/2023-MILITARY-AND-SECURITY-DEVELOPMENTS-INVOLVING-THE-PEOPLES-REPUBLIC-OF-CHINA.PDF">China Military Power Report,</a> its fleet has about 370 vessels. By contrast, the US <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://sgp.fas.org/crs/weapons/RL32665.pdf">fleet</a> is down to just under 300 ships.Representatives for the US Navy did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

The US just showed it can stealthily sink an 820-ft ship with a low-cost bomb, and China is scrambling to say it's not impressed

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Chinese exporters are reportedly going "underground" as domestic banks pullback from transaction business with Russia, Reuters reported.</li><li>Many lenders have restricted transactions with Moscow, curbing payment options for Chinese firms.</li></ul>Tighter US scrutiny of Beijing's trade ties is sending domestic exporters underground, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/china-firms-go-underground-russia-payments-banks-pull-back-2024-04-28/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reuters exclusively reported</a> on Monday.Chinese firms involved in the Russian market are reportedly finding alternative ways to facilitate trade with its Northern neighbor, as they <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-dedollarization-sanctions-russia-trade-dollar-access-banks-ukraine-war-2024-4">no longer can rely on big banks</a> to finance such settlements. "Transactions between China and Russia will increasingly go through underground channels," a Chinese trade body head told Reuters: "But these methods carry significant risks."For instance, one unnamed Chinese manufacturer told the outlet that it may have to turn to currency brokers operating on the border with Russia, as they could potentially help settle payments.The search for alternatives is a direct consequence of Washington's growing concern over trade between the two capitals. China's commercial shipments have been accused of supplying Russia's military industry, spurring US lawmakers to start drafting sanctions against Chinese banks that facilitate this trade."I reiterated our serious concern about the PRC providing components that are powering Russia's brutal war of aggression against Ukraine," Secretary of State Antony Blinken <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/blinken-meet-chinese-counterpart-wang-yi-beijing-2024-04-26/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> of the People's Republic of China last week.In the face of possible sanctions, a number of financial institutions have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-russia-secondary-sanctions-foreign-banks-yuan-payments-trade-us-2024-3">voluntarily restricted Russia-related transactions</a>, including <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-biggest-banks-stop-russia-payments-icbc-ccb-boc-2024-2">some of China's biggest state banks</a>. For exporters, this has also meant a pullback from Russia's market, given the challenges of pursuing business outside of official channels, Reuters said.For those who try, money brokers are one option. Cryptocurrency could also provide an answer, even though the asset has been banned in <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/china-crypto-crackdown-timeline-regulatory-bitcoin-ether-solana-dogecoin-bans-2021-9?utm_medium=ingest&amp;utm_source=markets">China since 2021</a>. But the restriction hasn't stopped China's strained investors from <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/china-stock-rout-banned-bitcoin-cryptocurrency-economy-recovery-offshore-investing-2024-1">seeking out crypto </a>this year, and could help exporters bypass know-your-customer channels.While some smaller banks are still open to facilitating business between the countries, its led to months-long queues for those who want to open an account — an issue <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-china-economy-trade-oil-payments-sanctions-banks-delays-vtb-2024-4">seen among dealers</a> on both sides of the border.Lenders in China aren't the only ones rethinking their ties with Russia. Restrictions have also tightened in countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, and even <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-russia-western-sanctions-raiffeisen-foreign-bank-exit-deripaska-stock-2024-3">Austria,</a> all resulting from rising <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-economy-financial-system-us-sanctions-oil-trade-foreign-banks-2024-3">US sanctions rhetoric</a>.

How China and Russia are reportedly using 'underground' channels to get around sanctions

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Chinese auto-part makers are establishing a presence in Mexico to supply Tesla's new factory there. </li><li>Elon Musk invited the suppliers to Mexico as part of plans for cheaper Teslas, Bloomberg reported.</li></ul>Chinese auto-part makers are setting up shop in Monterrey, Mexico, to supply Tesla's upcoming factory in the country — and it's feeding into concerns among US officials over China's influence over EV production lines.The move comes after <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-ceo-elon-musk">Tesla CEO Elon Musk</a> invited Chinese suppliers to Mexico, sources familiar with the matter told <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-14/tesla-tsla-courts-chinese-ev-suppliers-to-mexico-stoking-fears-in-dc">Bloomberg</a>, in an effort to recreate the network that supplies Tesla's Shanghai plant. It appears to be part of the US-based automotive giant's plans to make a cheaper electric vehicle at a new Tesla factory being built in the northern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon.Tesla's plant in Austin and other US automakers' factories also import Chinese-owned Mexican-made parts, Bloomberg reported.Using Chinese and Mexican supplies may be less costly for Tesla than US equivalents. China has a "highly organized, highly efficient supply chain," Venkatesh Prasad, chief innovation officer at the Center for Automotive Research, told Bloomberg. "No manufacturer anywhere in the world is going to miss the opportunity to include that as part of their value proposition as they try to manage margins."Tesla didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider before publication.Still, China's growing presence in Mexico's EV manufacturing industry may be one tactic Beijing is using to circumvent <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-trade-war-china-beijing-tariffs-unmitigated-disaster-2020-9">Trump-era tariffs</a> that make it harder for manufacturers to export goods directly into the US. That may stoke greater worries among Washington, DC, officials who have previously expressed concerns over China's influence.Last November, members of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party <a target="_blank" href="https://selectcommitteeontheccp.house.gov/media/letters/letter-ambassador-tai-surge-prc-automobile-exports-and-ccps-strategy-dominate-global">wrote </a>to US Trade Rep. Ambassador Katherine Tai urging her to take on Chinese manufacturers "preparing to flood the United States and global markets with automobiles, particularly electric vehicles" backed by "massive subsidies." In response, Tai <a target="_blank" href="https://subscriber.politicopro.com/f/?id=0000018d-1903-dc2e-a3ad-79c31af10004">wrote</a> that the Biden administration is devising plans to make current trade restrictions "more strategic."EVs assembled in Mexico can currently qualify for a US consumer tax credit of as much as $7,500, though they must stick to limits on battery materials coming from "foreign entities of concern" — businesses with ties to China and other rival countries. There is currently a 25% US import tariff on Chinese vehicles.Tesla, which also makes cars in the US, and other US-based EV makers may also be feeling the heat from competitors. On Wednesday, China's BYD, a carmaker known for its cheaper EV models, told <a target="_blank" href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/Tesla-rival-BYD-weighs-EV-plant-in-Mexico">Nikkei</a> that it's considering opening a plant in Mexico with the goal of establishing an export hub to the US.Tesla's Musk warned investors in a January earnings call that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-tesla-warns-chinese-ev-firms-could-demolish-rivals-2024-1">Chinese EV firms will "demolish" their Western rivals</a> if trade barriers aren't put in place to limit their expansion. BYD overtook Tesla earlier in 2024 to be the world's top seller of electric cars.Even though <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-economy-us-trade-markets-investors-policy-beijing-finance-outlook-2024-1">China's perceived threat to the US economy</a> may be top of mind for business and government leaders, some policy experts believe it's best for the US to maintain a good relationship with its rival."If there isn't Chinese involvement, how do we keep the industry competitive? Mary Lovely, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, told Bloomberg. "If we try to produce everything at US wages, we'll end up with a vehicle that can't compete in any sense."

Your next Tesla could be made by China

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Congress ordered the US Navy to look into new ships and weapons platforms amid shipbuilding delays.</li><li>The requested study is in direct response to the delays of a new frigate class.</li></ul>Congress has requested that the US Navy conduct a study looking into other ships it can arm with missiles given the pressing need to maintain US naval power amid ongoing shipbuilding delays.The potential short-term solutions, it said, are key to keeping up US strength in the Indo-Pacific region, especially as <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-needs-bigger-navy-match-up-against-china-retired-admiral-2024-1">China continues building up its naval forces</a>.In a report accompanying a new draft of the annual defense policy bill for the 2025 fiscal year, the US Senate Armed Services Committee <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/fy25_ndaa_committee_report.pdf">wrote</a> that it was "concerned with the number of Navy battle force ships" and vertical launch platforms for missiles over the next two years."Given the ongoing naval buildup by the People's Republic of China, the committee believes these projected declines increase risk to US forces in the US Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility," lawmakers wrote.The committee report added that it doesn't believe the Navy is adequately preparing to meet requirements for those capabilities in the near-term.The request comes in response to delays on the first new Constellation-class guided missile frigate, which won't be delivered until at least 2029, three years behind schedule, per a Navy report earlier this year. The second ship in the class is also delayed.<div type="image" title="Newport News Shipbuilding workers and Navy sailors walk past USS George Washington." height="2000" width="3000" msid="111698316" hostid="261" sizebytes="645938"></div>Congress' push for short-term naval combat solutions is also linked to the slow procurement of new large, unmanned surface vessels, which is not expected to begin until 2027.With this in mind, "the committee believes the US Navy needs to focus more on supplementary options for increasing ship numbers and missile-launching capacity in the nearer term."By April 2025, Congress expects the Navy to pursue a number of solutions, including a crewed version of the LUSV, more missile-launching capacity, "foreign, commercial, or US government ship designs" that could be adapted for the Navy, and existing Navy platforms "that could be quickly modified into missile-firing ships through the addition of VLS (vertical launch system), bolt-on, or containers missile launchers."In its report, the committee acknowledged its concerns that these near-term solutions are needed to keep the US Navy in fighting shape should conflict in the Indo-Pacific region arise, especially considering the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-shrinking-china-biggest-fleet-shipbuilding-taiwan-2024-4">massive naval buildup seen in China</a>.Back in April, a 45-day review showed <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-us-navy-shipbuilding-projects-are-delayed-by-years-2024-4">major delays for most of the Navy's big shipbuilding projects</a>, including its Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine program, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-may-keep-ohio-missile-subs-longer-over-columbia-cost-2022-7">a top priority for the Department of Defense</a>. Due to plans to retire previous ships, the delay will likely keep the Navy from meeting its obligation of having 10 ballistic missile submarines ready to deploy at all times. But this isn't the only problem.<div type="image" title="A rendering of a Columbia class SSBN missile submarine sailing at sea." height="1445" width="2000" msid="111698319" hostid="261" sizebytes="234052"></div>Other ships, like the Navy's next Ford-class carrier, are also notably delayed. At the time of the review, Navy officials attributed the issues to the lingering effects of COVID-19 on the workforce and supply chain, though some issues have long been around.Beyond the Navy's shipbuilding woes, other US military deficiencies have prompted lawmakers and other national leaders to raise concerns about how the Pentagon is prioritizing its military capacity in the Pacific in order to counter and deter China. In May, 13 members of Congress wrote to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall and Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro about the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-pacific-bases-aircraft-vulnerable-to-chinese-missiles-lawmakers-2024-5">glaring vulnerabilities of US Pacific air bases and aircraft</a> in the face of a missile barrage from China, for example.With China's current missile strike capabilities," the lawmakers wrote in their letter, "<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-military-china-missile-problem-getting-worse-2024-5">China can attack all US bases in the region</a>, targeting US service members from Okinawa to those on US territories of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands."

The US Navy needs to find more ships it can load up with missiles amid shipbuilding delays, Congress says with eyes on China

<ul class="summary-list"><li>One of the most storied US submarines of WWII has been found at the bottom of the South China Sea. </li><li>The Lost 52 project aims to find and memorialize all 52 US submarines sunk during World War II.</li></ul>Researchers say they have located the final resting place of one of the most storied vessels of World War II: the USS Harder.The submarine was found more than 3,000 feet underwater at the bottom of the South China Sea, almost intact except for damage to its conning tower, according to the archaeology branch of US Naval History and Heritage Command.US NHHC confirmed the find on Thursday, crediting data collected by Lost 52, a project dedicated to finding and memorializing all 52 US submarines sunk during the war.Lost 52 is headed by entrepreneur and ocean explorer Tim Taylor, along with diving entrepreneur Christine Dennison.They used advanced photogrammetry and underwater robotics to locate and take stunning images of the Harder, which was sunk by Japan off the coast of the Philippines in 1944.Lost submarines are notoriously difficult to locate and identify, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-failed-nautical-rescues-submarines-were-lost-and-not-found-2023-6">as Business Insider's Elias Chavez previously reported</a>."Submarines by their very design can be a challenge to identify, but the excellent state of preservation of the site and the quality of the data collected by Lost 52 allowed for NHHC to confirm the identity of the wreck as Harder," the NHHC said in a statement.<div type="image" title="A black-and-white image of the USS Harder on February 1944, viewed from the stern." height="653" width="1000" msid="110406186" hostid="261" sizebytes="47754"></div>The Harder — sailing under the slogan "Hit 'em Harder" — was sunk on August 24, 1944, after racking up a prodigious number of kills.Seventy-nine servicemen were aboard, including the famed Commander Samuel Dealey."Harder was lost in the course of victory," NHHC Director and retired Rear-Admiral Samuel J. Cox said, adding that the sub used "particularly audacious attacks" against the Japanese.In the course of a single patrol, Harder sank three enemy destroyers, as well as destroying or damaging a further two, according to NHHC.The Harder's final patrol saw it seek out new targets alongside the USS Hake near Dasol Bay in the northern Philippines.The pair started to hunt two Japanese ships. Harder fired three torpedoes before it fell victim to a series of depth charges. The Hake took evasive maneuvers, but the Harder was not so lucky.The Lost 52 team has previously located at least six other US submarines."We maintain a policy of not disclosing current ongoing expedition plans" out of respect for families, the group says on its website, adding that it only announces discoveries once they are fully confirmed.Lost 52's cofounder Taylor is the CEO of Tiburon Subsea, which focuses on ocean-floor data collection using underwater drones.The discovery — which Taylor told BI is part of a multi-year $50 million project — illustrates the growing use of underwater photogrammetry to illuminate deep-sea sites that are otherwise difficult to reach.Finding the Harder "highlighted the importance of ocean data collection and the significance of underwater robotic technology," Taylor told BI.It's part of a growing "blue economy" that is predicted to be a $30 trillion industry by 2030, he added.Undersea photogrammetry uses divers or remotely operated vehicles to take thousands of pictures from all sides, which are then stitched together using software, <a target="_blank" href="https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/technology/photogrammetry/photogrammetry.html">according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a>.

The wreck of a legendary WWII US submarine has been found at the bottom of the South China Sea

<ul class="summary-list"><li>US officials and lawmakers have for years voiced concern about growing US influence in <keyword id="11962841" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="latin-america" source="Orion">Latin America</keyword>.</li><li>For military and national-security leaders, that influence has security implications for the US.</li></ul>As the US increases its focus on global competition with <keyword id="11892748" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="china" source="Orion">China</keyword>, officials have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/southcom-4-ways-china-is-growing-influence-in-latin-america-2019-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">singled out Beijing's inroads into Latin America</a> as a growing threat to countries there and to US interests in the region.At recent congressional hearings and public events, those officials have cautioned that China is investing in digital and physical infrastructure, natural resources and extractive industries, and in political and military relationships across Latin America and the Caribbean in a multipronged effort to secure access and influence and gain leverage over countries there in order to advance its own commercial and strategic interests.Although China's engagement with the region has focused on economic ties and it has not established a military presence there, US military commanders, national-security officials, and lawmakers believe Beijing's investments have implications for US security.At an August 2021 hearing on her nomination to lead <keyword id="14128431" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="us-southern-command" source="Orion">US Southern Command</keyword>, which is responsible for Central and South America, Gen. Laura Richardson said China comes to the region "with very sophisticated plans in order to capture the interests of the countries, willing to loan billions of dollars."<div type="image" title="Laura Richardson Southern Command Buenos Aires Argentina" height="1266" width="1688" msid="92039398" hostid="261"></div>"I look at that from the military lens of projecting and sustaining military power for the [Chinese People's Liberation Army] with this expansion," Richardson said at the time.Richardson's remarks echoed those of her predecessor, Adm. Craig Faller, who <a href="https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Faller_03-16-21.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> the Senate Armed Services Committee in March 2021, his final appearance as commander, that China was "rapidly advancing" toward its goal of "economic dominance" in Latin America within the next decade.Beijing "is also seeking to establish global logistics and basing infrastructure in our hemisphere in order to project and sustain military power at greater distances," Faller told lawmakers.At a hearing on China's presence in the region in April, Sen. Marco Rubio, citing <a href="https://www.uscc.gov/annual-report/2021-annual-report-congress" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a report</a> by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, said China is using its economic heft and political ties to convince countries there to make decisions that favor Beijing and "undermine democracy and free markets."The same report, Rubio added, said China's military seeks "to deepen its engagement in the region by funding the construction of ports, space programs, and other dual-use infrastructure that frankly is pretty clear it appears to have a limited economic purpose but could serve as future operating bases, even of rotational bases, for a hostile navy close to our nation's shores."<h2>Strategic concerns</h2><div type="image" title="Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Panama Canal" height="1513" width="2000" msid="92039399" hostid="261"></div>China has become a major trading partner for most of Latin America and the Caribbean. Its trade with the region <a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/review-essay/2022-02-24/latin-america-looks-east" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has risen</a> from $18 billion in 2002 to $450 billion last year.The region's largest countries have attracted Chinese investment in agricultural commodities as well as in ecommerce and other technology, including <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/24/technology/ecuador-surveillance-cameras-police-government.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">surveillance technology</a>. Smaller, resource-rich countries in Latin America have attracted Chinese interest in mineral wealth and oil exploration.Chinese firms have also pursued infrastructure projects across the region — many as part of Beijing's sprawling <keyword id="12209625" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="belt-and-road-initiative" source="Orion">Belt and Road Initiative</keyword> — but especially in areas that facilitate access into or around the continent.Richardson has said the Chinese presence around the <keyword id="14128432" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="panama-canal" source="Orion">Panama Canal</keyword> and near the <keyword id="14128433" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="strait-of-magellan" source="Orion">Strait of Magellan</keyword> are her "two greatest concerns, strategically."The canal is one of the world's most important trade corridors, particularly for goods flowing between the US and East Asia. It is "a strategic line of communication that we want to keep free and open for the global economy but also for our global war plans," Richardson told senators in March.China has invested billions of dollars in projects around the canal and Chinese state-owned enterprises are present "on either side," Richardson said. "What I worry about Chinese state-owned enterprises that have capability and infrastructure there is that they can be used for dual use, which means civilian but also military."<div type="image" title="Navy aircraft carrier George Washington in Strait of Magellan" height="1320" width="2000" msid="92039400" hostid="261"></div>The Strait of Magellan sees less traffic but remains an important route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, including aircraft carriers too big for the canal, and is close to resource-rich Antarctica. China's presence in ports and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/r-chinas-military-run-space-station-in-argentina-is-a-black-box-2019-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">other projects</a> "around the tip of the southern cone" of South America is worrisome, Richardson said.US concerns about Chinese activity around the canal reflect a worry that such a presence "would give China at least some of the information" needed to understand trade and transit activity there and "to make decisions with security-related implications based on that information," Margaret Myers, director of the Asia and Latin America Program at the Inter-American Dialogue, told Insider.Richardson's counterpart at <keyword id="12554868" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="us-northern-command" source="Orion">US Northern Command</keyword>, which is responsible for North America and parts of the Caribbean, has expressed similar concerns. "China's very aggressive in the Bahamas right now," Gen. Glen VanHerck told the House Armed Services Committee in April 2021."They have the largest embassy in the Bahamas right now, and they continue to buy up [the] tourism industry to have access and influence," VenHerck said at the time, adding that those Chinese projects "do have access right now to an overwatch, if you will, of our Navy <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-area-51-autec-in-the-bahamas-2016-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">test and training facilities</a>, which is very, very concerning."In the Caribbean, China sees similarities to its own "southeast maritime approaches," said R. Evan Ellis, a research professor of Latin American studies at the US Army War College."It sees exactly the same space — a space that has political importance, military importance, as well as economic importance" as a logistical hub and transit area connecting the US and Central and South America and points beyond, Ellis told Insider in late 2021.<div type="image" title="China navy hospital ship Peace Ark in Guayaquil Ecuador" height="1333" width="2000" msid="92039401" hostid="261"></div>Chinese military basing in Latin America is still "rather hypothetical" Myers told Insider, "but there's a sense that based on the sorts of investments that we see in areas of strategic interest to the US and some of the investments that we see in ports with potential dual-use capacity that things are headed in that direction."China set up its first overseas military base in Djibouti in East Africa in 2017 and is reportedly seeking a military presence in other regions, including the Middle East and West Africa. In <a href="https://www.congress.gov/117/meeting/house/114486/witnesses/HHRG-117-AS00-Wstate-RichardsonL-20220308.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">written testimony</a> to the House committee, Richardson expressed concern about China abusing "commercial agreements at host country ports for military functions," citing Chinese actions <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/reviews/out?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsj.com%2Farticles%2Fus-china-uae-military-11637274224" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in the United Arab Emirates</a>.China appears to have "some appetite to explore" a military presence in the Western Hemisphere but that is tempered by the proximity to the United States, a US analyst of Chinese foreign policy told Insider.China will likely "explore what it looks like to establish more significant military relationships in Africa or in the Pacific before they try something like that in the Western Hemisphere because of how much more likely a strong US reaction would be," the analyst said, requesting anonymity because of professional commitments.While China doesn't have a military presence in Latin America, the US military may have already experienced the impact of its influence there.In March 2021, US Coast Guard cutter Stone was <a href="https://warontherocks.com/2021/03/a-new-great-game-finds-the-south-atlantic/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">turned away</a> from a port call in Argentina, which has developed close economic and political ties with China."We were going to do a port call in Argentina, and then Argentina has got some relational business arrangement things with China," Adm. Karl Schultz, the Coast Guard commandant at the time, said in May 2021. "We didn't end up going into Argentina, but it sort of starts to show people's allegiances and alignments."<h2>'A very close eye' on China</h2><div type="image" title="China UN peacekeeper Haiti" height="1453" width="2000" msid="92039402" hostid="261"></div>While some Latin American countries nurture ties with China for ideological reasons, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-military-wary-of-chinas-military-economic-presence-in-venezuela-2019-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">seeking to counter the US</a>, others have grown wary of Beijing because of US warnings and those countries' own <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/24/world/americas/ecuador-china-dam.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">experiences</a>.In Panama, Chinese investment expanded after then-President Juan Carlos Varela <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/panama-china-relations-2017-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recognized</a> Beijing over Taiwan in 2017. After President Laurentino Cortizo took office in 2019, projects around the canal were canceled or withdrawn for what Mari Carmen Aponte, the Biden administration's nominee for ambassador to Panama, said were "the right reasons, meaning because there was non-compliance of the contract."At her confirmation hearing in May, Aponte told lawmakers she would "keep a very close eye" on agreements the Chinese have made in Panama, as "they seem to over-promise but not necessarily to deliver."Such warnings have also irritated Latin American leaders, many of whom hear the paternalism that has <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ilhan-omar-elliott-abrams-testimony-on-venezuela-central-america-2019-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often characterized</a> US policy toward the region. Many leaders want to <a href="https://www.americasquarterly.org/article/latin-america-doesnt-want-a-new-cold-war/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">avoid taking sides</a> in the competition between Beijing and Washington but welcome Chinese engagement because they see it as offering what the US is <a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/review-essay/2022-02-24/latin-america-looks-east" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unable or unwilling</a> to provide, like expanded trade, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/neighbors-see-chance-to-play-us-china-in-vaccine-race-2021-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">coronavirus vaccines</a>, or infrastructure investment.Richardson often notes that 21 of the 31 countries in Southern Command's area of responsibility have signed onto China's Belt and Road Initiative and told the House Armed Services Committee this spring that several of its multibillion-dollar projects were particularly worrying, among them a $5.6 billion highway in Jamaica and a $3.9 billion metro project in Colombia, a close US ally."This region is rich in resources, and the Chinese don't go there to invest. They go there to extract," Richardson said of those projects.<div type="image" title="China Li Keqiang Jamaica Andrew Holness" height="900" width="1200" msid="92039404" hostid="261"></div>At an event in Washington, DC, in April, Jamaica's prime minister, Andrew Holness, <a href="https://www.press.org/events/npc-newsmaker-prime-minister-andrew-holness-jamaica" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> US concerns about Chinese projects there were "totally unwarranted" and that China has pursued investments in Jamaica for "a long time while the US has been looking all over the place.""We would want to see more US investment in Jamaica, but Jamaica can't postpone its development needs until the US decides to come in," Holness said.Sergio Guzmán, director of Colombia Risk Analysis, a political risk consultancy, said that when Colombia has issued tenders for infrastructure projects, "US companies are completely AWOL.""So how can the US blame Colombia for giving them over to Chinese bidders, who are, by the way, the lowest bidders?" Guzmán told Insider.The Biden administration's signature <keyword id="6356001" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="international" source="Orion">international</keyword> development effort, Build Back Better World, <a href="https://prospect.org/politics/build-back-better-dies-again/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has foundered</a>, and US private-sector investment has been hard to attract to the region, either because of the overall environment or because the opportunities, particularly infrastructure projects, aren't well suited for American firms."There are efforts to try to increase and incentivize US investment in Latin America and the Caribbean now. The problem is that a lot of these initiatives are private-sector-led," Myers said, "and in a moment in time when the investment environments aren't necessarily improving in Latin America, it's very difficult to generate that interest."<div type="image" title="Military officers meet during Panamax exercise" height="1429" width="2000" msid="92039406" hostid="261"></div>The US Defense Department is involved in some infrastructure projects, largely through the Corps of Engineers, but their total value is a fraction of what China has offered, Richardson said this spring.Richardson and other officials say the US military's best asset for engagement is security cooperation — military education, training, and other exchanges that build on the US's already extensive partnerships in the region.China "doesn't have partners. We have partners. We have exercises where I have 29 countries that participate," Richardson told the House Armed Services Committee in March, referring to the annual Panamax exercise, which simulates defense of the Panama Canal.China's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-us-is-watching-chinese-influence-with-latin-american-militaries-2020-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">defense cooperation with Latin American countries</a> "is far less" than that of the US, "but it does exist and the overall trend line has been going up," Daniel Erikson, deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Western Hemisphere, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4x0GjgzFvs&amp;list=PLb0XJybQSgVhRVmqX9qyeHTJd14ITH2vY&amp;index=5&amp;ab_channel=FIUGordonInstitute" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> at a conference in May.The Pentagon is trying to "be more proactive" about engaging with countries in the region on issues relevant to them, such as training and exercises or in specific areas like cyber defense, Erikson said."As the overall security dynamic in the relationship evolves, what we need to do to out-compete evolves as well," Erikson added. "That's something that we're working very hard to stay on top of."

The US military is watching China's presence grow in Latin America, and it doesn't like where things are going

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Lockheed developed a spy drone in the 1960s that crashed in China.</li><li>China recently debuted a supersonic drone that bears a striking resemblance to Lockheed's D-21.</li></ul>On March 20, 1971, a specially modified US Air Force B-52 bomber from the 4200th Support Squadron took off from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam carrying a unique aircraft mounted under its wing.The aircraft, shaped like a dart and painted black, was a D-21 supersonic reconnaissance drone. It was to be the fourth such drone to conduct aerial reconnaissance of China's Lop Nor nuclear test site in northwestern China, and despite its sophistication, it would crash into the very country it was intended to spy on.Created by the renowned Lockheed Corporation, the D-21 was the most advanced unmanned aircraft of its time. Intended to bridge a gap between burgeoning satellite technology and manned reconnaissance flights, the drone's development was filled with ambition, urgency, and tragedy.Ultimately unsuccessful, the drone would be relegated to the annals of aviation history if not for the appearance of a strikingly similar Chinese drone unveiled at a recent military parade. This delta-shaped drone of similar size also requires being launched by a mothership. But Chinese engineers claim advances that go much farther than the D-21, reaching 30 miles into the atmosphere and speeds up to Mach 6.This is what we know about the high-flying Chinese spy drone and the D-21 upon which it could be based.<h2>An urgent need</h2>The origins of the D-21 start in 1960, when Francis Gary Powers and his <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/u2-dragon-lady-flying-over-60-years-but-plane-changed-2019-6">U-2 spy plane</a> were shot down over the Soviet Union by a Soviet surface-to-air missile. The incident pushed President Dwight Eisenhower to discontinue all manned reconnaissance flights over the Soviet Union to avoid future casualties and embarrassments.But the need to surveil Soviet military sites was still vital, and while reconnaissance satellites were <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nro.gov/About-NRO/history/history-corona/">starting to be launched into space</a>, the technology was nascent. Satellites carried a limited amount of film despite being in orbit for days, had limited repositioning ability, and were not as available for short-notice launches in emergencies compared to manned aircraft.A faster and higher-flying successor to the U-2, the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/history-of-a-12-spy-plane-2024-1">A-12</a>, was in development. However, as a conventional aircraft, it still had to be manned, and the White House and CIA alike were both reluctant to risk the capture of another pilot, especially if it also meant losing an even more advanced aircraft in the process.Consequently, the CIA needed a stopgap solution until the satellite programs matured. In 1962, the Central Intelligence Agency approached Lockheed's Skunk Works division (which created the U-2 and the A-12) for such a solution.<h2>High altitude, high speed</h2>Lockheed's solution was to create an unmanned high-altitude high-speed reconnaissance aircraft with similar capabilities as the A-12, but much smaller. Originally designated as the Q-12, the drone utilized a delta wing design, had a wingspan of 19 feet, and measured 42 feet long.It was powered by a Marquardt RJ43-MA-20S4 <a target="_blank" href="https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/airplane/ramjet.html">ramjet engine</a> that ran the entire length of the aircraft. Capable of producing 11,500 lbs. of thrust, the engine gave the drone a top speed of Mach 3.3, and enabled it to reach an altitude of 95,000 feet. The D-21's range, meanwhile, was over 3,000 miles.Because it was powered by a ramjet engine, the drone had to be launched from a mothership once it reached a speed where the ramjet could be activated. A modified A-12 was judged to be the best candidate. Redesignated as the <a target="_blank" href="https://airandspace.si.edu/multimedia-gallery/m-21-aircraft">M-21</a>, the jet would carry the drone, redesignated as the D-21, on its fuselage, then release it once it reached a speed where the ramjet could be activated.Once released, the D-21 would fly a pre-programmed route utilizing an internal navigation system to the area of interest, where it would take photos.Once taken, the D-21 would fly to a designated area, eject its film cannister, then self-destruct. The film cannister, meanwhile, would be snatched from the sky as it parachuted down by a waiting <a target="_blank" href="https://www.key.aero/article/catch-falling-star">JC-130B</a>, or be collected by a Navy vessel.Dubbed Project Tagboard, the first carry test occurred on December 22, 1964, with the first separation and flight test occurring on March 6, 1966. Two more largely successful tests followed.But the fourth flight test, on July 30, ended in tragedy when the D-21 collided with the M-21 after release, destroying both aircraft. Pilot Bill Park and Launch Control Officer Ray Torrick successfully ejected, but Torrick's flight suit was likely torn in the process, leading to it filling with water when both men landed in the ocean, causing him to drown.After the crash, it was decided that using M-21s as a mothership was too dangerous. Instead, a modified B-52H would be used, carrying up to two drones under its wings. As the bomber was unable to fly at the speed required to activate the D-21's scramjet engine, a 44-foot rocket booster was attached underneath it. After release, the booster would ignite to bring the D-21 to the required speed, then detach after its scramjet came online.<div type="image" title="A B-52H bomber carries the D-21B. A rocket booster provided the acceleration to start the drone's ramjet engine." height="1188" width="1800" msid="109456617" hostid="261" sizebytes="76230"></div><h2>Senior Bowl</h2>Now dubbed Project Senior Bowl, the new system was tested multiple times between September 1967 and early 1969 with mixed results. The D-21's first fully successful test occurred on June 16, 1968, which saw it fly some 3,000 miles at 90,000 feet.Despite its spotty success record, the drone was approved for limited service in 1969. Flying out of Andersen Air Force Base, the D-21s were given the task of spying on China's Lop Nor nuclear test site, where China had detonated its first <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-china-is-rapidly-expanding-its-nuclear-arsenal-2022-1">nuclear weapon</a> five years earlier.But while the tests had mixed results, the missions were all failures.The first mission, on November 9, 1969, was perhaps the worst. After launching from its mothership and reaching Lop Nor, contact with the D-21 was lost, and it disappeared.In fact, the drone continued flying all the way into the Soviet Union, and crashed in the Siberian wilderness. With the wreckage recovered, Soviet engineers drew up plans for a reverse-engineered copy called the <a target="_blank" href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/russia-got-its-hands-mini-sr-71-mach-3-spy-drone-steal-its-secrets-58302">Voron</a>, but the project was never pursued.After more than a year of further testing and preparation the second mission was flown on December 16, 1970. The D-21 launched successfully, reached Lop Nor, took its photographs, and arrived at the return point, but the film canister's parachute didn't deploy properly after ejection, and it was lost at sea.The third mission, on March 4, 1971, proceeded similarly. The film canister's parachute deployed successfully, but the JC-130B failed to recover it before it splashed into the water. A Navy destroyer attempted to recover the floating canister, but accidentally collided with it, causing it to sink.The fourth and final mission two weeks later was a complete failure, with the D-21 crashing into China's southwestern Yunnan province while en route to Lop Nor. The drone was recovered by the Chinese, and is on display at the Chinese Aviation Museum in Beijing.With Senior Bowl resulting in four operational failures, and with each drone costing at least $2.5 million, the D-21 program became hard to justify — especially as satellites were becoming more advanced.Consequently, the program was canceled in July 1971.Of the 38 D-21's built, 21 had been used in tests or operations. The remaining D-21s were put into storage, and eventually made their way to the boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona.Apart from the crashed model at the Chinese Aviation Museum, 11 D-21s are on display in the United States.<div type="image" title="A WZ-8 reconnaissance drone is on display at the 13th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition on September 28, 2021 in Zhuhai, China." height="1333" width="2000" msid="109456620" hostid="261" sizebytes="284976"></div><h2>A Chinese copy?</h2>The D-21 had largely faded from public memory until 2019, when, at the military parade commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the People's Republic of China on October 1, China unveiled a similar-looking drone.Dubbed the WZ-8, the drone is a delta-wing design, about 37 feet long, and has a wingspan of 22 feet. Instead of a scramjet running the length of the body, it is powered by two rocket motors.Like the D-21, the WZ-8 must be launched by a mothership during flight — specifically an H-6M, a version of the H-6 strategic bomber modified to carry cruise missiles on external hardpoints.Chinese media has reported that the WZ-8 is capable of flying 160,000 feet and as fast as Mach 6. Its sensor suite reportedly includes a daylight electro-optical sensor and a synthetic aperture radar.Documents reportedly leaked from US intelligence sources last year revealed that China has "almost certainly" established its first operational <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/leaked-documents-show-china-plans-for-supersonic-spy-drone-report-2023-4">WZ-8 unit</a>.One document, alleged to originate from the US National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, claims that the unit is based at Liuan Airfield, and that its missions could include high-altitude reconnaissance flights of the South Korean coast and virtually all of Taiwan.According to the document, the drone would be released from its mothership just off the northern or eastern Chinese coast, execute its mission, then return and land at Chinese coastal airfields, whereupon it would be loaded back on an H-6M <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/recent-bomber-flights-reflect-chinas-rapid-military-modernization-2022-1">bomber</a> and return to Liuan. The document lists the WZ-8 as being capable of flying up to 100,000 feet at Mach 3.It has been separately speculated that the WZ-8 could be used to track US carrier battle groups in the Pacific in real time.<a target="_blank" href="https://www.defensenews.com/unmanned/2023/05/18/satellite-image-shows-wz-8-supersonic-drone-at-chinese-base/">Subsequent reporting</a> confirmed the presence of at least one WZ-8 at Liuan Airfield. The base, which is reportedly home to the 29th Air Regiment of the People's Liberation Army Air Force's 10th Bomber Division, has been receiving extensive upgrades since at least early 2019.Benjamin Brimelow is a freelance journalist covering international military and defense issues. He holds a master's degree in Global Affairs with a concentration in international security from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. His work has appeared in Business Insider and the Modern War Institute at West Point.

China's latest supersonic spy drone looks a lot like the Lockheed D-21 that crashed there in 1971

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Australia's National Rugby League could help stop China from gaining more influence in the South Pacific.</li><li>Australia's government has reportedly offered up to $25 million a year to set up a franchise in Papua New Guinea.</li></ul>The US appears to be courting an unlikely ally to help stop China from building its political and economic influence in the Pacific: Australia's National Rugby League.Administrators of the competition, made up of 17 teams mainly based in the states of New South Wales and Queensland, have repeatedly signaled a plan to expand into Papua New Guinea.<a target="_blank" href="https://www.afr.com/world/north-america/biden-backs-secret-weapon-nrl-expansion-into-pacific-20240303-p5f9b8">The Australian Financial Review</a> reported that the White House will support those plans, which policymakers believe could help counter China's efforts to assert itself in the South Pacific."The United States and Australia share a unique bond of friendship, this includes our shared passion for sports," an unnamed senior Biden administration official told the newspaper."We both understand the important ways that sports can bring people of different cultures together and deepen trust between nations."NRL commissioner Peter V'landys met Biden in Washington, DC, in October and said Biden "was all ears" when told about the league's plan to set up a new franchise in Papua New Guinea by 2027.Australia's government has offered to spend up to $25 million a year to bring a team to its neighbor in a bid to curb China's geopolitical influence, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/pacific-championships-another-big-step-as-png-closes-in-on-18th-nrl-licence-20230816-p5dx1h.html">The Sydney Morning Herald</a> reported. Papua New Guinea won independence from Australia in 1975.The South Pacific has emerged as a key battleground between Beijing and Washington in recent years. In 2022, China inked a security pact with the Solomon Islands, sparking fears that it could start building a military base in the region, while US Vice President Kamala Harris <a target="_blank" href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jul/12/us-to-open-two-new-embassies-in-pacific-as-it-jostles-with-china-for-influence-in-region">traveled to Fiji</a> and pledged to build new embassies in Tonga and Kiribati.Rugby league is one of the sport's two main codes. It's popular in Australia, New Zealand, northern England, France, and across the Pacific Islands and has slightly different rules to rugby union.The AFR's report comes the weekend that the NRL kicked off its 2024 season with a double-header at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.The Sydney Roosters beat the Brisbane Broncos 20-10 in one of the curtain-raisers, but the match was marred by allegations that Roosters forward Spencer Leniu had used a racial slur against Broncos star Ezra Mam.

Why Australia's National Rugby League could help curb China's Pacific influence

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Satellite images show China's mock-up of Taiwan's presidential office at a desert training site.</li><li>It is not the first time China has built such mock ups, which indicate a readiness to use force.</li></ul>Out in the desert at a military training site, China has built a mock-up of a key area of Taiwan's capital city where the presidential office and other government buildings are located, satellite images show.The mock-up, like others before it, seems to indicate China's intentions and focus, though its use is uncertain.China often engages in aggressive and coercive <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-army-training-to-counter-aggressive-insidious-china-top-general-2024-2">behavior that alarms its neighbors</a>, is pursuing a significant military build-up and modernization effort, and has never renounced the use of force as an option for achieving unification with Taiwan.Images of the mock target, located in the desert in the Alxa League area of northern China's Inner Mongolia, began <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/sfx_ewss/status/1772350091635900480?s=20">circulating on social media</a> earlier this week. Taiwanese defense analyst Joseph Wen <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/JosephWen___/status/1772446247795708023?s=20">posted the satellite image</a>, as well as a map comparison of the real area in Taipei, on Monday. Wen <a target="_blank" href="https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/news/5131830">noted</a> that while China had previously created a replica of Taiwan's president's office building at another area, specifically Zhurihe, this mock up covered much of the office's surrounding area and was located at what appeared to be an aerial bombing and gunnery training range.When compared to an actual map of the area, the mock-up looks relatively realistic, with the roads and the presidential office's surroundings closely resembling the real place in Taiwan's capital city, Taipei.Satellite images provided by Planet Labs to Business Insider show the site, which is still there, has been there since at least December 2022.<div type="image" title="A satellite image showing Chinese mock up of Taiwan's presidential office." height="1825" width="2274" msid="108859222" hostid="261"></div>It is unclear though when exactly the mock-up was built, but it's not the first.<h2>Making Taiwan's presidential office and US warships in the desert</h2>Back in 2014 and 2015, satellite images showed the other mock-up of Taiwan's presidential office at Zhurihe, also in Inner Mongolia, and a video broadcast by CCTV in July 2015 captured Chinese troops practicing an assault on the fake building, The Diplomat <a target="_blank" href="https://thediplomat.com/2015/08/satellite-imagery-from-china-suggests-mock-invasion-of-taiwan/">reported at the time</a>.The office mock-up was a convincing replica. Imagery from China-based web portals showed troops entering the building conducting some sort of raid.<div type="image" title="A general view of the Presidential Office Building in Taipei." height="3334" width="5000" msid="108859296" hostid="261"></div>When asked by reporters on Wednesday about the images of the Bo'ai Special Zone mock-up that surfaced this week, Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cna.com.tw/news/aipl/202403270045.aspx">said</a> that any country could imitate another's facilities and area, adding that Taiwan's military could also conduct military exercises in simulated locations.Indeed, this kind of training isn't necessarily unusual, but it nonetheless signals intent.China has also been documented <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/satellite-images-china-mock-ford-carrier-target-western-desert-2024-1">building mock-ups of US aircraft carriers and other warships</a> at training sites, likely to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chinas-fake-us-warships-desert-help-it-threaten-us-navy-2024-1">test and improve its missiles</a>.Experts have long warned about the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-growing-df-26-missile-arsenal-more-than-carrier-killers-2023-10">increasing stockpiles and capabilities of its Rocket Force</a> and what role those assets would play should the the US and China go to war, be it over Taiwan or for some other reason.<h2>Fresh worries about a Chinese invasion of Taiwan</h2>The images of the mock-up at Alxa League have surfaced at a time of renewed concern about possible Chinese aggression against Taiwan.Amid <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-problems-has-us-worried-itll-be-more-aggressive-2024-3">China's assertiveness at sea and in the air</a>, demonstrated by unpredictable military drills, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/scarborough-shoal-chinese-fishing-vessels-pumping-cyanide-contested-waters-philippines-2024-2">fiery run-ins with Philippine boats</a>, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chinas-pilots-willing-challenge-us-risky-intercepts-former-naval-aviator-2023-11">close calls with US aircraft</a>, there continues to be concern about a potential invasion of Taiwan.Just last week, US Navy Adm. John Aquilino, the commander of US Indo-Pacific Command, told the US Armed Services House Committee that China was building its military up at a scale not seen since World War II and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-building-military-scale-not-seen-wwii-invade-taiwan-aquilino-2024-3">was on track to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027</a>.<div type="image" title="People watch a video about China's military advancements at the Military Museum in Beijing on March 3, 2024." height="3966" width="5960" msid="108859298" hostid="261"></div>China often employs economic, diplomatic, and militarily aggressive and coercive tactics toward Taiwan, such as pressuring countries that interact with the island or routinely flying fighters and bombers around it, forcing a response.In response to Taiwan's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/taiwan-2024-election-explained-whats-at-stake-relations-with-china-2024-1">election earlier this year</a>, China has turned up the pressure, and ongoing military drills in Taiwan have prompted warnings from China.Taiwan elected a new president, the Democratic Progressive Party's Lai Ching-te, the current Vice President, in January. It's a historic win for the DPP, which has now been in power for three consecutive terms. It was also <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-taiwans-election-results-mean-for-relations-with-china-us-2024-1">China's worst case scenario</a>.The DPP has navigated a tricky situation since gaining power in 2016, trying to preserve status quo with Beijing while maintaining Taiwan's autonomy. Though China is generally opposed to the elections, Beijing would have preferred the Kuomintang's Hou You-ih, who is not pro-Beijing but has an outlook on relations with China that is softer than DPP's.

China built a mock-up of key area in Taiwan's capital city at a desert training site, satellite images show

<ul class="summary-list"><li>China, with the help of government subsidies, has led the world in producing and selling EVs. </li><li>Chinese companies have focused on reducing the cost of EV batteries over their performance.</li></ul>There's been a clear winner in the global EV race so far: China. The world's second-largest economy accounted for about 64% of total production volume in 2022, the <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/05/electric-vehicles-ev-sales-growth-2022/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Economic Forum</a> found, with government subsidies and tax breaks aiding production. China is also one of the biggest producers of the LFP — lithium, iron, phosphate — batteries that many EVs run on. CATL is China's largest battery manufacturer, and helped it earn the top spot by ensuring its LFP batteries were as cheap as possible.That approach is in contrast to car and battery makers in America and Europe, which "prioritized battery chemistry tied to performance, not affordability," Bill Russo, Chrysler's former China boss, told <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/1f95d204-ea6a-4cf3-b66a-952362e8092a" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Financial Times</a>."What we've discovered in China is that electrification, and the democratization of the EV, prioritizes consumer affordability. By making it cheaper, China wins," he said.Founded in 2011, CATL has zoomed past competitors from South Korea, the US, and Europe to take pole position, with its batteries now being found in about one in three EVs globally.Even Ford announced plans to use CATL technology in a new $3.5 billion battery plant in Michigan.<h2>Picking winners</h2>But Ariel Cohen, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center and a member of the Council of Foreign Relations, said there's been considerable pushback against the move.He said that while he understood "the national security imperative" in the US, he was "very uncomfortable over the government playing favorites and picking winners."Some members of Congress are concerned that the plant could leave Ford reliant on Chinese know-how — and send US tax subsidies to China. Last month, Ford paused construction of the facility amid the strike by the United Auto Workers union, though the union's president, Shawn Fain, said that decision was a "shameful, barely-veiled threat by Ford to cut jobs," <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/ford-pauses-work-35-billion-battery-plant-michigan-2023-09-25/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reuters reported</a>. <div type="image" title="Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford, announcing its Michigan EV-battery plant in February." height="2000" width="2666" msid="104626706" hostid="261"></div>Concern about using Chinese battery technology reflects wider global concern about China's domination of the EV-battery market, with governments starting to block Chinese investment into mines and factories.In February, the Australian government blocked China's Yuxiao Fund from increasing its stake in the rare-earth miner Northern Minerals, a rare-earth producer, on national interest grounds, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/australia-china-rareearths-idUSKBN2V209R" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reuters reported</a>. Australia is the world's biggest producer of lithium, a key material for EV batteries, and a major producer of other rare-earth materials. Jim Chalmers, the Treasurer of Australia, said at the time that Australia would now be more selective about who could invest in its minerals sector.Cohen said India had also made moves to challenge China's influence and that he expected the country to "be much more proactive to defend their own industry and other players against Chinese competition."In July, officials rejected plans by the Chinese automaker BYD to build a $1 billion factory in India.<div type="image" title="A BYD car on display at the Nanjing International Auto Show in China this month." height="2666" width="3555" msid="104626707" hostid="261"></div>China's "clear advantage" in the field also reflects its control over many of the supply chains needed to make batteries, Ilaria Mazzocco, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, told Insider.In a July report, <a href="https://www.morganstanley.com/ideas/ev-battery-lithium-supply">Morgan Stanley</a> said that "up to 90% of the EV battery supply chain relies on China, with the two largest Chinese battery companies controlling more than half of the global market."The investment bank added that China dominated "labor and manufacturing infrastructure, as well as mining of critical materials required to make EVs.""We're headed towards a world where governments are more and more concerned about globalization-integrated supply chains," Mazzocco said, adding this "wasn't a problem for the Chinese government" when it was setting up its supply chains.<h2>Optimistic</h2>China's supply-chain dominance allows it to make batteries more cheaply than rivals — less than $60 million per gigawatt hour of batteries produced, according to Bernstein analysts quoted by the FT, compared with $88 million for South Korean manufacturers, while Japan's Panasonic spends $103 million.EV competitors are also looking for new technology to take on China — especially in light of slowing EV sales in September, which led to a drop in the prices of key materials used in batteries, such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt.China's sluggish economy threatens to keep <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/teslas-china-made-ev-sales-volume-fall-109-yy-sept-2023-10-08/#:~:text=EV%20Supply%20Chain-,Tesla's%20China%2Dmade%20EV%20sales%20volume%20falls%2010.9,year%2Don%2Dyear%20in%20September&amp;text=BEIJING%2FSHANGHAI%2C%20Oct%208%20(,Association%20(CPCA)%20on%20Sunday." target="_blank" rel="noopener">dampening consumer spending</a> on new cars.Meanwhile, Cohen said he's particularly "optimistic" about US innovation."The Biden administration is throwing tens of billions of dollars at this problem. It doesn't necessarily mean that people who are making these decisions are brilliant, but at least the money is there," he said.<h2>Distorting the market</h2>Europe has struggled to decide how to deal with imported Chinese EVs, but Cohen said it's now "shifting slowly in the direction" of America.Last month, the European Union announced an investigation, with Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/von-der-leyen-hits-china-with-electric-vehicle-subsidy-probe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">saying</a> "global markets are now flooded with cheaper Chinese electric cars" sold at artificially low prices due to "huge state subsidies. This is distorting our market."There have also been protests in Hungary, where CATL and Mercedes-Benz are planning a $7.9 billion battery plant that would produce enough power for a million cars, over the plant's environmental impact, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-20/chinese-battery-plant-investment-faces-local-backlash-in-hungary">Bloomberg</a> reported. The country is already home to several car plants and battery factories as its government is aiming to make Hungary a big EV producer. Cohen also said he thinks next year's US presidential election could affect Europe's stance. A return to the White House for Donald Trump could accelerate any EU action against China as the US would likely put "more pressure on Europe."China may lead the world in the EV race — but those days could be numbered.

China's led the EV race &ndash; but it may be running out of charge

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Three Marines died when a US military helicopter crashed in northern Australia.</li><li>Five others are in a serious condition in hospital after the Boeing MV-22B Osprey crashed.</li></ul>Three Marines were killed when a US military helicopter carrying 23 people crashed in northern Australia.A representative for the US Marines told Insider that a Boeing MV-22B Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft went down during a training exercise at about 9.30 a.m. Sunday local time.All 20 remaining survivors sustained injuries in the crash, and five are in hospital in a serious condition.According to a statement, the troops were taking part in a training exercise involving 2,500 personnel from the US, Australia, the Philippines, East Timor and Indonesia.The crash happened on Melville Island, about 40 miles north of Darwin, the Northern Territory's capital.About 150 Marines are based in Darwin and up to 2,500 rotate through the city annually. They're part of a realignment of forces in the Asia-Pacific that's broadly meant to face an increasingly assertive China.The Osprey is a hybrid aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter, but during flight can rotate its propellers forward and cruise much faster like an airplane. Versions of the aircraft are flown by the US Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force.Before Sunday, there had been five fatal crashes of Marine Ospreys since 2012, causing a total of 16 deaths.The latest was in June 2022, when five Marines died in a fiery crash in a remote part of California east of San Diego. A crash investigation report last month found that the tragedy was caused by a mechanical failure related to a clutch.There had been 16 similar clutch problems with the Marine Ospreys in flight since 2012, the report found. But no problems have arisen since February when the Marine Corps began replacing a piece of equipment on the aircraft, the report said.

You Searched For "Northern china" and got 12 results

The US Army put on a sudden show of force out on the far edge of Alaska to send the message it can as Russia and China drill in the Pacific

Chris Panella

The US just showed it can stealthily sink an 820-ft ship with a low-cost bomb, and China is scrambling to say it's not impressed

Aditi Bharade

How China and Russia are reportedly using 'underground' channels to get around sanctions

Filip De Mott

Your next Tesla could be made by China

Aaron Mok

The US Navy needs to find more ships it can load up with missiles amid shipbuilding delays, Congress says with eyes on China

Chris Panella

The wreck of a legendary WWII US submarine has been found at the bottom of the South China Sea

Mia Jankowicz

The US military is watching China's presence grow in Latin America, and it doesn't like where things are going

Christopher Woody

China's latest supersonic spy drone looks a lot like the Lockheed D-21 that crashed there in 1971

Benjamin Brimelow

Why Australia's National Rugby League could help curb China's Pacific influence

George Glover

China built a mock-up of key area in Taiwan's capital city at a desert training site, satellite images show

Chris Panella

China's led the EV race – but it may be running out of charge

Nathan Rennolds

3 Marines were killed and 20 injured after a US helicopter crashed on a training exercise in northern Australia

Ryan Hogg

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides

You Searched For "Northern china" and got 12 results

The US Army put on a sudden show of force out on the far edge of Alaska to send the message it can as Russia and China drill in the Pacific

Chris Panella

The US just showed it can stealthily sink an 820-ft ship with a low-cost bomb, and China is scrambling to say it's not impressed

Aditi Bharade

How China and Russia are reportedly using 'underground' channels to get around sanctions

Filip De Mott

Your next Tesla could be made by China

Aaron Mok

The US Navy needs to find more ships it can load up with missiles amid shipbuilding delays, Congress says with eyes on China

Chris Panella

The wreck of a legendary WWII US submarine has been found at the bottom of the South China Sea

Mia Jankowicz

The US military is watching China's presence grow in Latin America, and it doesn't like where things are going

Christopher Woody

China's latest supersonic spy drone looks a lot like the Lockheed D-21 that crashed there in 1971

Benjamin Brimelow

Why Australia's National Rugby League could help curb China's Pacific influence

George Glover

China built a mock-up of key area in Taiwan's capital city at a desert training site, satellite images show

Chris Panella

China's led the EV race &ndash; but it may be running out of charge

Nathan Rennolds

3 Marines were killed and 20 injured after a US helicopter crashed on a training exercise in northern Australia

Ryan Hogg

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides

China's led the EV race – but it may be running out of charge