President Donald Trump revealing a covert U.S. strike against what he said was a drug-trafficking facility in Venezuela raised new questions about how far he is willing to go to pressure the regime of Nicolas Maduro. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/31/world/politics/trump-venezuela-steps/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #donaldtrump #venezuela #us #usmilitary #southamerica #congress
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that Kyiv was discussing with Washington a possible presence of U.S. troops in Ukraine as part of security guarantees. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/31/world/politics/zelenskyy-trump-us-troops-ukraine/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #russia #ukraine #russiaukrainewar #volodymyrzelenskyy #vladimirputin #us #donaldtrump #usmilitary
The Chinese military on Tuesday conducted long-range live-fire drills in waters around Taiwan, part of a second day of 'major' exercises focused on blockading the island and deterring aid from Taipei’s partners. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/30/asia-pacific/china-taiwan-military-exercises-missiles/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #china #pla #taiwan #donaldtrump #sanaetakaichi #xijinping #us #usmilitary #defense #missiles
The U.S. has hit and destroyed a docking area for alleged Venezuelan drug boats, President Donald Trump said. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/30/world/trump-venezuela-drug-boats-dock/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #donaldtrump #venezuela #us #drugs #smuggling #usmilitary
China said it will hold large-scale military exercises around Taiwan on Tuesday, releasing an image showing five zones surrounding the democratic island that will be under sea and airspace restrictions. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/29/asia-pacific/china-military-drills-taiwan/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #taiwan #china #pla #chinajapanrelations #sdf #defense #usmilitary #sanaetakaichi
U.S. military police in Okinawa Prefecture temporarily detained a civilian by mistake in the city of Okinawa on Nov. 22, a joint U.S.-Japan government panel has said. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/27/japan/us-military-police-detain-civilian-okinawa/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #us #usmilitary #usbases #okinawa #usjapanrelations
A sanctioned oil tanker pursued by U.S. forces has turned away from Venezuela and retreated out into the Atlantic Ocean. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/25/world/us-oil-tanker-chase/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #venezuela #oil #donaldtrump #us #usmilitary
A suicide note left by a negotiator for the 1972 Okinawa reversion — which describes the envoy’s grief over brokering a secret nuclear agreement with the U.S. — is now on display. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/22/japan/history/okinawa-reversion-envoy-note/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #history #keiwakaizumi #okinawa #usbases #usmilitary #nuclearweapons
For Japan’s top uniformed military officer, reinforcing the country’s defense capabilities to counter complex and diverse threats most think only exist in Hollywood movies has become one of his top priorities. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/18/japan/sdf-joint-staff-uchikura-interview/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #defense #defenseministry #hiroakiuchikura #missiles #china #drones #pla #usmilitary #usjapanrelations
Venezuela struck a defiant note in the face of U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement of a potentially crippling blockade, insisting its crude oil exports were not impacted. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/18/world/venezuela-defiant-us-blockade/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #venezuela #us #donaldtrump #oil #shipping #usmilitary #nicolasmaduro
Japan has long had some of the world’s strictest restrictions on arms exports. But things are set to change radically — as early as next spring — amid an increasingly fraught regional security environment. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/17/japan/politics/japan-arms-exports-analysis/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #ldp #nipponishin #sdf #defense #diet #defenseministry #nationalsecuritycouncil #trade #china #gcap #usmilitary #us #sanaetakaichi
U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered a “blockade” of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, a move set to sharply escalate tensions between Washington and Caracas. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/17/world/politics/trump-blockade-tankers-venezuela/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #donaldtrump #nicolasmaduro #venezuela #us #usmilitary #oil
Polling shows that Donald Trump’s base broadly supports his airstrikes against suspected drug-runners, clearing the way for more pressure in the Caribbean Sea. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/17/world/politics/trump-maga-venezuela-pressure/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #us #donaldtrump #usmilitary #venezuela #nicolasmaduro #drugs
The Pentagon’s troubled V-22 Osprey program recorded more serious accidents in each of the last two fiscal years than the average during any of the previous eight years, U.S. congressional auditors said. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/13/world/osprey-incidents-watchdog/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #osprey #gsdf #sdf #us #usmilitary
A U.S. federal judge said Donald Trump can’t deploy the California National Guard in Los Angeles, the latest setback in his administration’s bid to use soldiers to respond to civilian protests. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/11/world/politics/trump-la-national-guard-ruling/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #us #usmilitary #donaldtrump #california #losangeles #gavinnewsom #immigration
The U.S. has seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, President Donald Trump said on Wednesday, a move that sent oil prices higher and sharply escalated tensions between Washington and Caracas https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/11/world/politics/us-seizes-tanker-venezuela/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #us #donaldtrump #oil #venezuela #usmilitary #nicolasmaduro
Alex Akselrod
boosted
Mike Johnson strips military IVF coverage from defense bill – report https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/08/military-ivf-coverage-defense-bill-mike-johnson #Trumpadministration #Fertilityproblems #MikeJohnson #USmilitary #USCongress #USpolitics #Health #USnews #IVF
Mike Johnson strips military IVF coverage from defense bill – report https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/08/military-ivf-coverage-defense-bill-mike-johnson #Trumpadministration #Fertilityproblems #MikeJohnson #USmilitary #USCongress #USpolitics #Health #USnews #IVF
Hegseth praised the policy of sinking boats and killing alleged drug-runners whom the Trump administration considers enemy combatants and not criminals. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/07/world/hegseth-defends-caribbean-strike/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #us #usmilitary #petehegseth #defense #latinamerica
The U.S. wants Europe to take over the majority of NATO's conventional defense capabilities, from intelligence to missiles, by 2027, Pentagon officials said, a deadline that struck some as unrealistic. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/07/world/politics/us-2027-deadline-europe-nato/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #us #europe #nato #donaldtrump #usmilitary #russia #ukraine #russiaukrainewar