WORLD ROUNDUPThe Non-Proliferation Problem | Canada Bolsters Arctic Defense, and more
· The Non-Proliferation Problem
Would prudence still prevail in a world of ‘nuclear-armed porcupines?’
· South Korea Planning to Deploy £1 ‘Star Wars’ Lasers to Melt Drones
The system would also be capable of launching precision strikes on small incoming multi-copters
· How Can Europe Reduce Its Military Dependency on the United States?
With Washington looking toward China, and the possibility of another Trump presidency, Europe should do more for its own defense. Here are four key areas to watch
· Canada Bolsters Arctic Defense in Face of Russian, Chinese Aggression
The region that is fast gaining strategic significance in the face of climate change
The Non-Proliferation Problem (Joseph S. Nye, The Strategist / Project Syndicate)
Avril Haines, the US director of national intelligence, warned in March that ‘Russia’s need for support in the context of Ukraine has forced it to grant some long-sought concessions to China, North Korea and Iran with the potential to undermine, among other things, long-held non-proliferation norms.’
South Korea Planning to Deploy £1 ‘Star Wars’ Lasers to Melt Drones (Nicola Smith, The Telegraph)
South Korea is planning to deploy £1 “Star Wars” lasers to melt drones dispatched from the North out of the sky.
How Can Europe Reduce Its Military Dependency on the United States? (Steven Erlanger, New York Times)
Even the European members of NATO say that they must do more to defend themselves as the war in Ukraine grinds on and the United States shifts its priorities to Asia and a rising China. The possibility that former President Donald J. Trump will return to the White House heightens the concern, given his repeated threat to withdraw collective defense from countries that don’t pay their way in the alliance.
Canada Bolsters Arctic Defense in Face of Russian, Chinese Aggression (VOA News)
Canada says it is going shopping for 12 conventionally powered submarines capable of operating under the Arctic ice to enhance maritime security in a region that is fast gaining strategic significance in the face of climate change.
The purchase is expected to help ease mounting pressure on Ottawa — one of the lowest-spending NATO members — to meet the alliance’s commitment to spend 2% of GDP on defense.
Several nations have been stepping up their military and commercial capabilities in the Arctic as the receding ice pack makes navigation and petrochemical exploration in the Arctic Ocean more practicable. A sea route across Russia’s Arctic coastline promises to provide a shorter sea route between China and Europe.
Despite China’s distance from the Arctic Ocean, Beijing has dubbed itself a “near-Arctic country” to try to stake a bigger claim in the region.
