Human Rights Watch Warns of Democratic Decline in U.S. Under Trump Administration 
Norway Opens Corruption Probe Into Former PM and Nobel Committee Chair Thorbjoern Jagland Over Epstein Links 
Iran–U.S. Nuclear Talks in Oman Face Major Hurdles Amid Rising Regional Tensions 
Nvidia, ByteDance, and the U.S.-China AI Chip Standoff Over H200 Exports 
Ukraine-Russia Talks Yield Major POW Swap as U.S. Pushes for Path to Peace 
Trump Signs “America First Arms Transfer Strategy” to Prioritize U.S. Weapons Sales 
Melania Trump Pushes Diplomacy to Return Ukrainian Children from Russia 
CK Hutchison Launches Arbitration After Panama Court Revokes Canal Port Licences 
Trump Allegedly Sought Airport, Penn Station Renaming in Exchange for Hudson River Tunnel Funding 
Marco Rubio Steps Down as Acting U.S. Archivist Amid Federal Law Limits 
Nighttime Shelling Causes Serious Damage in Russia’s Belgorod Region Near Ukraine Border 
Trump Rejects Putin’s New START Extension Offer, Raising Fears of a New Nuclear Arms Race 
Newly Released DOJ Epstein Files Expose High-Profile Connections Across Politics and Business 
Pentagon Ends Military Education Programs With Harvard University 
TrumpRx Website Launches to Offer Discounted Prescription Drugs for Cash-Paying Americans 
U.S. Justice Department Removes DHS Lawyer After Blunt Remarks in Minnesota Immigration Court 
U.S.-India Trade Framework Signals Major Shift in Tariffs, Energy, and Supply Chains 
Japan’s defense ministry said that it has been monitoring Chinese aircraft carrier activities in the region for the past two weeks. The moves come amidst Japan’s plans to increase its military build-up due to tensions in the region.
In a press release on Monday, the Japanese defense ministry said it has scrambled fighter jets and deployed aircraft and warships to monitor China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier and five warships that conducted naval maneuvers and flight operations in the Pacific. Japan started monitoring the operations following the Liaoning aircraft carrier group’s transit between the main Okinawa island and Miyakojima island into the Western Pacific from the East China Sea on December 16.
The ministry said that before returning in the same way on Sunday, the Chinese carrier conducted 300 more take-offs and landings of fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. No incursions into Japanese territorial waters were mentioned.
China has previously conducted similar activities. However, the latest large-scale drills close to Japanese islands follow Tokyo’s unveiling of its increased defense spending over a span of five years in an effort to deter China from using military force to assert its territorial claims in the region, including against the democratically-governed island nation of Taiwan.
Japan has also reported that it has detected flights by a Chinese WZ-7 drone close to Miyakojima on Sunday and on Monday. This marks the first time Japan has spotted a high-altitude drone in the area.
On Saturday, Kyodo news reported that the defense ministry is making arrangements for plans to develop long-range missiles that are capable of reaching up to 3,000 kilometers with the goal of deploying the missiles by the 2030s. The Japanese government is looking to deploy a 2,000-kilometer range missile by the early 2030s and a 3,000-kilometer hypersonic missile that can reach any part of North Korea and parts of China by around 2035.
Japan has previously announced its increased military build-up, the biggest since World War Two. The $320 billion strategy includes acquiring missiles that are capable of striking China and preparing it for potential conflicts in light of flared regional tensions and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
