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The Japanese Military and the Indo-Pacific region

Professional Military Education

Release Date: 11/01/2022

Visiting the D-Day Beaches and Normandy Battlefields show art Visiting the D-Day Beaches and Normandy Battlefields

Professional Military Education

Visiting Normandy and touring the beaches from D-Day, June 6, 1944, is a powerful experience. It is an experience that all American citizens should plan to do. There are incredible stories of American servicemembers that left their homes to serve and sacrifice for a cause greater than themselves. It is important to remember and honor these heroes. Many people do this every year as there are approximately 1.7 million people who visit the  annually. In this podcast episode, I speak with a tour guide, Yannick Sterke, who gives tours of the Normandy battlefields. In the summer of 2022, I took...

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American Guerillas Part Three: The Old Wagoner’s Revenge show art American Guerillas Part Three: The Old Wagoner’s Revenge

Professional Military Education

In the year 1780, South Carolina was in the grip of violence and turmoil. On December 3, 1780, General Nathanael Greene assumed command of the southern department from General Horatio Gates. Gates, the hero of Saratoga, had struggled in the Carolinas most notably at the disastrous battle of Camden. The Continental Congress relented to General Washington’s preferred commander: Nathanael Greene. Thus, Greene left his post at West Point and traveled south. General Greene had a series of challenging decisions in front of him. How was he going to rebuild a nearly destroyed army? How was he going...

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Washington’s Marines: The Origins of the Marine Corps with General Bohm (Maj. Gen., USMC) show art Washington’s Marines: The Origins of the Marine Corps with General Bohm (Maj. Gen., USMC)

Professional Military Education

General Jason Q. Bohm (Maj. Gen., USMC) is the author of a recently published book entitled Washington’s Marines: The Origins of the Corps and the American Revolution, 1775-1777. In this interview, we discuss why and how the Marine Corps was founded on November 10, 1775. General Bohm explains that General Washington did not initially support the Marines. However, the Marines played a pivotal role during the “Ten Crucial Days.” This was the period from December 25, 1776, through January 3, 1777. It included key battles at Trenton, Assunpink Creek, and Princeton. The Marines’ heroic...

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American Guerillas (Part II): The Sword of the Lord and Gideon show art American Guerillas (Part II): The Sword of the Lord and Gideon

Professional Military Education

The American Guerillas series continues with part two: “The Sword of the Lord and Gideon”. After the British invasion of South Carolina, American forces had their backs to the wall. But many Patriot militia units refused to give up. They fought valiantly using guerilla style tactics. In this episode, we discuss those tactics in depth.  This episode will cover the following:  The Battle of Musgrove’s Mill The Battle of Kings Mountain and the legend of the Over Mountain Men The Swamp Fox, Francis Marion’s campaign in the low country The Battle of Blackstock’s Plantation Key...

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American Guerillas (Part I): War in the Carolinas show art American Guerillas (Part I): War in the Carolinas

Professional Military Education

This is the first episode in a series on the Revolutionary War in the Carolinas. The series is called “American Guerillas” and part one is titled “War in the Carolinas”. This episode will cover a lot of ground and begin with an overview of the American Revolution up until the British invasion of Charleston in 1780. After a summary of the major milestones of the Revolution, the episode will cover the following:  Why the British shifted their strategy to the Carolinas Key leaders on the British side: Cornwallis and Tarleton Key leaders on the American side: William Moultrie and...

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When China Attacks: A Warning to America show art When China Attacks: A Warning to America

Professional Military Education

Col. Grant Newsham (USMC-Ret.), has a warning for America: China is at war with us. It is time for Americans to understand that China does not believe war starts with the deployment of missiles, tanks, and infantry. From the perspective of the People's Republic of China (PRC), war has already begun. Furthermore, over the last several decades, China has used influence operations, economic policies, political warfare, and lawfare to cripple America. The results have left American communities jobless with rampant drug use, deaths of despair, and social disfunction. As one example, fentanyl...

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A Brutal Winter: George Washington’s Leadership at Valley Forge show art A Brutal Winter: George Washington’s Leadership at Valley Forge

Professional Military Education

On December 19, 1777, George Washington led the Continental Army onto a high plateau twenty miles northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After fighting the British at the Battles of Brandywine and Germantown, Washington entered camp with a little over 12,000 soldiers. By mid-February, that number had dropped in half. Disease ravaged camp. Soldiers starved. Many of them were down to their last shirt. Some walked into camp barefoot. As if the problems couldn’t get worse, most soldiers didn’t know if or when they would get paid for their service.  Despite the many difficulties, General...

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The Heroes of Wake Island: Remembering the Americans that fought 16 days against impossible odds show art The Heroes of Wake Island: Remembering the Americans that fought 16 days against impossible odds

Professional Military Education

Wake Island was the site of a famous battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II. By December 7, 1941, it was a small (but growing) naval air station (NAS). The construction and development of the island began in January 1941. As Pacific Fleet Commander, Admiral Kimmel, recognized the vulnerability of the island, Marines were brought in to defend it in August 1941. On December 8, 1941, the Japanese attacked Wake Island with a series of aerial bombardments. On December 11, the Japanese attempted their first invasion of the island. But they were soundly defeated. The Marine defenders bloodied...

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Is the U.S. military weak? Breaking down the 2023 Index of U.S. Military Strength show art Is the U.S. military weak? Breaking down the 2023 Index of U.S. Military Strength

Professional Military Education

Is the United States Military weak? The Heritage Foundation has fired a shot across the bow with its “2023 Index of U.S. Military Strength.” The Index concludes that the U.S. military in its current posture is “weak.” The Pentagon might not like the report. But, my guest, Dakota Wood, is calling things as they are rather than the way people would like them to be.  “Nobody likes their baby being called ugly. But the facts are what they are.” -Dakota Wood The 2023 Index starts with an assessment of the operating environment from Europe to the Indo-Pacific. Dakota explains that...

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Epic Comeback in the Pacific! The events that led to Pearl Harbor and How the U.S. Navy won the Battle of Midway show art Epic Comeback in the Pacific! The events that led to Pearl Harbor and How the U.S. Navy won the Battle of Midway

Professional Military Education

How did the U.S. recover from the devastation of Pearl Harbor and win one of the most epic battles in naval history? Was war in the Pacific inevitable or were there diplomatic off ramps? Why did Japan attack America on December 7, 1941? Did America really know in advance that an attack was coming? My guest Dale Jenkins helps answer these questions in his book, Diplomats and Admirals. We speak at length about these topics in our interview. I thought our deep dive into the Battle of Midway was especially fun. Additional topics include: Diplomatic breakdowns that led to war between the U.S. and...

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In this interview, Grant Newsham discusses the state of the Japanese military as well as current events in the Indo-Pacific theater. Grant has first-hand experience helping develop the Japan Self-Defense Force’s (JSDF) amphibious capabilities. In this interview, we cover the following:

  • An overview of the JSDF and why it has been underfunded and underappreciated for years.
  • Why the Japanese needed to improve their amphibious capabilities and improve their joint operations. 
  • Shifting attitudes in Japan toward the military
  • How Grant and other American liaison officers worked to improve the JSDF 
  • Differences in American and Japanese approaches to training with a specific focus on Exercises Dawn Blitz and Iron Fist from 2013
  • The current state of the JSDF and ability to work with U.S. armed forces nearly a decade later

We also talk current events including:

  • Analysis of China’s 20th Communist Party Congress
  • How China’s zero COVID policy is designed to condition the population for hardship and to eliminate resistance to Xi Jinping
  • North Korea’s continued belligerence 
  • South Korea’s political situation
  • Australia and U.S. relations and ability to deter China

Biography: Grant Newsham is a Senior Fellow with the Center for Security Policy. He is also a Research Fellow at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies focusing on Asia-Pacific defense, political, and economic matters. Grant is a retired U.S. Marine Colonel and was the first U.S. Marine Liaison Officer to the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. He also served as reserve head of intelligence for Marine Forces Pacific, and was the U.S. Marine Attaché, US Embassy Tokyo on two occasions.

In March 2023, Grant is planning to publish a book called When China Attacks.

Check out Grant's work at the Center for Security Policy. Find Grant on Twitter: @NewshamGrant

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