🇯🇵🇵🇭⚡- Japan and the Philippines begin talks on a potential agreement which will allow the two countries to share sensitive classified information.

🇨🇳⚡- Chinese state media, CCTV, shows a military exercise at a massive military base that's still under construction.

Rerum Novarum have geolocated the site to 40.5244743, 115.0814616, southeast of Zhangjiakou. The level and rate of construction is incredible, just over two years ago, the entire site was open green fields, and now there exists an entire military-city.

🇺🇸🇦🇺🇨🇳⚡️- As tensions with China rise, the US is expanding its military presence in northern Australia by sending more troops, deploying additional equipment, and carrying out joint exercises with Japan and Australia. The focus is on rapid response and deterring conflict, particularly over Taiwan. While Australia supports the buildup, China calls it a threat to regional peace.The number of Marines rotating through northern Australia each year has increased more than tenfold since 2012 to 2,500 Marines, marking the most significant US military presence there since the Second World War.

🇺🇸🇦🇺🇨🇳⚡️- Australia holds major strategic significance because it is close enough to Taiwan to project power and provide support in a regional conflict, yet far enough from China to remain outside the range of DF-26 intermediate-range ballistic missiles.

🇺🇸🇨🇳🇹🇼⚡- "President Trump plans to boost arms sales to Taiwan beyond the $18.3 billion approved during his first term, already more than double Biden’s total so far.

Two U.S. officials told Reuters the next four years will easily surpass that figure of $18.3 billion to counter China’s military pressure on the island," - Reuters.

🇸🇬⚡- The Shangri-La Dialogue of 2025 has begun. China has refused to participate at a high-level this year.

🇺🇸🇦🇺🇸🇬⚡- US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is currently meeting Australia's Defense Minister Richard Marles at the SLD 2025.

🇺🇸🇸🇬⚡- "The United States is committed to working with its allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific to ensure security and prosperity in the region. The region is a leading priority for US foreign policy.

American commitment and leadership in the region will make America and our allies and partners safer, more secure and more prosperous," - US Embassy in Singapore, at the SLD 2025.

🇮🇳🇵🇰🇸🇬⚡- India and Pakistan are likely to meet face-to-face at the SLD 2025.

🇫🇷🇸🇬⚡- "The recognition of a Palestinian state was not simply a moral duty, but a political requirement," - Emmanuel Macron, President of France, at the SLD 2025.

🇫🇷🇸🇬⚡- "Europeans must harden their collective position against Israel if there is no response that is commensurate with the humanitarian situation that is being provided in the coming hours and days," - Emmanuel Macron, President of France, at the SLD 2025.

🇫🇷🇸🇬⚡- "If Russia confirms that it is not ready to make peace, then Washington must confirm its commitment to sanctioning Moscow," - Emmanuel Macron, President of France, at the SLD 2025.

🇫🇷✍️ - Macron says that the Ukrainian war turned into a "credibility test" for the US.

🇨🇳🇲🇾🇸🇬⚡- As the Shangri-La Dialogue, SLD, of 2025 begins, three Chinese Coast Guard vessels enter well within Malaysia's water spaces, operating just 50km from the major city of Miri.

🇦🇲🇦🇿⚡️- The Armenian Ministry of Defense reports that Azerbaijani forces opened fire with small arms and machine guns in the direction of Khoznavar, southern Armenia, approximately 3,000 feet away from the Azerbaijani border.

A residential door was damaged and some cattle were reportedly killed. The cause for the shooting is unknown.

🇨🇩🇷🇼🇺🇬 - The situation in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC:

- After a 3 months long counteroffensive by Wazalendo, M23 have restarted offensive operations in almost all directions.
- Wazalendo have refused to hand the territory they had captured over to the DR Congo Armed Forces, FARDC, and have even clashed with them on several occasions. Wazalendo are primarily centered in the Walikale region.
- Uganda's Armed Forces, UPDF, continues to push CODECO away from its border, creating a buffer zone around Fataki.
- Uganda and the DR Congo agreed to fight the Islamic State of the Central African region jointly, however that has not happened. Uganda is clearly pursuing its own goals.
- UPDF had previously entered the central Ituri region, and are directly facing the M23 (allegedly backed by Rwanda) in the Lubero direction. However, both have not yet fought, in fact, the M23 handed over the control the strategic towns around Kagheri to the UPDF. An event that did not go well with Kinshasa.
- The minerals and ceasefire deals signed by both sides with the US seem to be non-existent.

🇷🇺🇺🇦⚡- Russian forces have merged the two fronts of Topoli and Stroivka on the left-bank of Oskol, northern Kharkov region - Kupyansk direction.

🇺🇦🇹🇷⚡- After meeting Medinsky, Putin and Lavrov in Moscow, Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan arrives in Kiev, Ukraine, to meet Ukraine's President Zelensky.

🇺🇸🇨🇳⚡- "Two weeks ago China was in grave economic danger! The very high Tariffs I set made it virtually impossible for China to TRADE into the United States marketplace which is, by far, number one in the World. We went, in effect, COLD TURKEY with China, and it was devastating for them.

Many factories closed and there was, to put it mildly, “civil unrest.” I saw what was happening and didn’t like it, for them, not for us. I made a FAST DEAL with China in order to save them from what I thought was going to be a very bad situation, and I didn’t want to see that happen. Because of this deal, everything quickly stabilized and China got back to business as usual. Everybody was happy! That is the good news!!!

The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US.

So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!" - President Donald Trump.

🇷🇺🇺🇦⚡- Major Russian advance towards Dyleevka, capturing several Ukrainian trenches and fortifications - Konstantinovka direction.

Russian troops captured an area of 15 sqkm.

🇷🇺🇺🇦⚡- Russian forces have captured the rest of Kondrashovka - Kupyansk direction.

R79 supply route to the north of Kupyansk is now completely under Russian control.