Myanmar Refugee First to Accept Cambodia Resettlement

Australian Immigration Minister Scott Morrison, front left, signs a document together
with Cambodian Interior Minister Sar Kheng, front right, during a ceremony for a controversial
deal to resettle refugees in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Sept. 26, 2014 (Source: Voice of America)

April 23 -- Cambodia said it is reviewing the case of the first refugee at the Nauru detention center to volunteer for a controversial Australian resettlement plan.

Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak Thursday told the VOA Khmer service the first refugee to agree to resettle in Cambodia is an ethnic Rohingya who had fled Myanmar hoping to resettle in Australia.

US, Philippines Agree on Base Rotations Along South China Sea

US Marines storming the beach (Pic Source: US DoD)

April 27 -- US forces would have access to at least eight bases in the Philippines -- including two near a hotly contested island group claimed by China -- under a new bilateral defense agreement, according to a Philippine media report.

Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gregorio Catapang told Manila's ABS-CBN News that during an October meeting, he and Pacific Command chief Adm. Samuel Locklear identified eight bases that the US would send troop rotations through. The rotations would happen in accordance with the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, a bilateral document signed last year that gives the US military the most access it has had since the Philippines ordered the US to leave its former bases in the 1990s.

Saab Indonesia's Scholarship Has Taken Off

April 27 -- Ten naval officers from the Indonesian Navy were in Sweden this month for a Saab training scholarship program. The officers were undergoing training in Swedish innovation systems and developing capabilities for maritime security in littoral environments. The program is an outcome of a Memorandum of Agreement with the Indonesian Navy signed in February 2015 at the Surabaya Naval base.

2 Navy SEALs Die in Training Accident

April 28 -- The US Navy says a second SEAL has died following a training accident in a swimming pool at a base in Virginia.

Lt. David Lloyd tells media outlets that Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Brett Allen Marihugh of Livonia, Michigan, died Sunday.

The 34-year-old Marihugh and 32-year-old Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Seth Cody Lewis of Queens, New York, were found unresponsive on Friday at the bottom of the Combat Swimming Training Facility at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story. Lewis died Friday.

The Virginia-Pilot reported that the two men were discovered at the bottom of the pool, which is regularly used by SEALs during training. The report said Lewis was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital; Marihugh, who had been in critical condition, died after being transferred to Sentara Virginia Beach General.

Lloyd says both sailors were members of Naval Special Warfare Group 2.

An investigation of the incident is continuing.

Marihugh and Lewis both served in the US Marine Corps before they enlisted in the Navy in 2006.

Dangers of Special Forces Trainings

The above are only the latest training accidents this year for the US Navy SEALs. Other accidents include:

March 2015

Special Warfare Operator 3rd Class Jason Kortz, 29, of Highlands Ranch, Colorado was killed in a parachute accident in Perris, California, near Riverside, a US Navy official told CNN.

Kortz joined the SEALs in September 2014 after enlisting in the Navy two years earlier. He was married, the Navy said.

Initial indications are the parachute failed to open during a jump as part of a training exercise. Kortz was part of a West Coast-based Navy SEAL team.

January 2015

William "Blake" Marston, 31, of Concord, New Hampshire, died after landing on the grounds of a DeLand airport, Central Florida where he was doing the training exercise.

A witness told DeLand police investigators that something flew off the man's parachute as he was in free fall between 40 to 60 feet above ground

He served in the Navy for six years, before completing his training in 2009.

Marston attended Stonehill College in Massachusetts and graduated in 2007. (Various sources)

ESSCom's Battle Is Not Over, Says Commander

LAHAD DATU, April 28 -- Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCom) commander Datuk Abdul Rashid Harun said the battle for security in the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZone) is not over even though security in the zone has now improved.

In this regard, he wanted ESSCom personnel to renew their determination in assisting the government to accomplish its mission to defend the sovereignty and security of the people especially in ESSZone.

Vietnam to Add Two Locally-built Warships to Naval Fleet This Quarter

Molniyac-class ship of the Vietnam People's Navy with Uran-E launchers (Source: VNExpress)

The Vietnam People’s Navy will add two warships to its fleet in the next two months following the recent successful test run of two fast-attack missile ships of the Molniya class, the first of its kind to have been built locally, according to government website chinhphu.vn.

The two warships, HQ379 and HQ380, have been accepted by a joint council made up of Ministry of Defense and Vietnam People’s Navy officials after the test run.

Cambodia ‘can’t afford’ to buy Indonesian weapons

A government spokesman poured cold water on an offer by Indonesia to sell Cambodia weapons, citing budget constraints and the Kingdom’s preference for peace.

The proposal by Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo was discussed with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on April 21 at the World Economic Forum in Jakarta.

Operation Garuda Perkasa held in Jember

The Indonesian Air Force conducted a military exercise dubbed Operation Garuda Perkasa (Mighty Garuda) in Jember, East Java, involving various combat and support units, to increase soldiers’ readiness in recapturing and controlling a seized airport.

The exercise was organized by the Abdurrahman Saleh Air Force Base in Malang, East Java, using a scenario that an armed right-wing group was active in the southern part of East Java and had seized Notohadinegoro Airport in Jember.

Military: China puts Philippines in a 'very difficult situation'

Reclamation and construction on Mischief (Panganiban) Reef in the South China Sea are seen in this recent aerial photo released by the Philippines Armed Forces on April 20, 2015. (Source: AFP)

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines is now in a "very difficult situation" and is in danger of losing access to some of its territories because of China's massive reclamation in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), the military said Monday.

Armed Forces chief Gen. Gregorio Catapang Jr. said the Philippines would be cut off from Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal and Pag-Asa Island if China reclaims Panganiban (Mischief) Reef, an area located 135 miles west of Palawan.

Brunei and Australia in Exercise Penguin 16/15

Lieutenant Colonel (L) Pengiran Mohammad bin Pengiran Haji Damit, Fleet Commander of Royal Brunei Navy; Lieutenant Commander Philip Draper, Commander Officer of HMAS Armidale; RAN Wing Com-mander Michael Cawley, Deputy Defence Advisor to Singapore and Brunei Darussalam as well as RBN officials in a group photo (Source: Borneo Bulletin)

MILITARY ties between Brunei Darussalam and Australia are set to be enhanced following the launch of Exercise Penguin 16/15, a bilateral exercise conducted biennially between Royal Brunei Navy (RBN) and Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

Lieutenant Colonel (L) Pengiran Mohammad bin Pengiran Haji Damit, Fleet Commander of the Royal Brunei Navy, said the objective of the exercise was to strengthen the relationship between both parties through operational and naval practices.