“This is a clear demonstration that Embraer Defense and Security is ready for the future and is ready to support the most demanding air forces here in the Asia-Pacific region,” Embraer Defense and Security President and CEO Bosco da Costa Jr. said at the Singapore Airshow.
"It shows how close we are to an incident that triggers a wider diplomatic and military crisis," China analyst Euan Graham said.
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How should the US and its regional allies respond? "Muscle up. Partner up. And brace for impact," one analyst said.
For Thailand, the new Gripens will be equipped with the Raven ES-05 Active Electronically Scanned Array radar, Infra-Red Search and Track systems and datalinks.
The approved package, which covers 16 F-16C Block 70/72 jets and four F-16B Block 70/72 fighters, comes just days after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited Manilla and pledged greater defense ties between the two countries.
The Trump administration would “truly prioritize and shift to this region of the world in a way that is unprecedented. Today, it’s the Philippines. Tomorrow, it’s Japan. It will be Australia and South Korea and other nations in this part of the world,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said.
Government can’t stop to update systems, so modernization has to happen without interruptions.
In the last year Japan has moved from making its first appearance at an international air show, the 2024 Singapore event, to providing radars to the Philippines and engaging in a full court press to sell the Mogami frigate to Australia.
The buy from South Korea, maker of the FA-50, binds the Philippines even more closely to another US ally and highlights the costs to China of its bullying tactics.
"As you know, China keeps doing that kind of thing around Korea, Japan, Vietnam and Philippines. We are concerned and trying to know what is their intention," a Canberra-based diplomat said on condition of anonymity.
A new study from the Hudson Institute finds that while the People’s Liberation Army has made strides in recent years to make air bases more resilient against attack, similar investments by the US have been lacking.
As global navies adapt to evolving underwater threats, ASELSAN’s integrated sonar, countermeasure, and sonobuoy solutions offer a scalable, future-ready approach.
"Not only will this allow the Philippines access to higher capabilities and big-ticket items from the United States, it will also open opportunities to pursue similar agreements with like-minded nations," Philippine Defense spokesman Arsenio Andolong said according to local media.
The commander of US Coast Guard Indo-Pacific operations, Vice Adm. Andrew Tiongson, told regional reporters that he will "work very closely with those nations to ensure that we’re operating in the correct place, the correct time, and actually exercising the correct things.
For the first time," experts surveyed for the Asia Power Index judged that China is better able to deploy rapidly and for a sustained period in the event of an interstate conflict in Asia."
“Politically, it is unclear to me their long-term goals and objectives other than to counter what the United States and allies and partners are doing,” said Air Force Gen. Kevin Schneider.