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United in Service of Defence and Security since 1920 |
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Captain Ryan McCall, a CH-148 Cyclone Pilot, sits on the aircraft after being traversed onto the flight deck for preparation for Ship Without Air Detachment (SWOAD) training with Navy personnel as the ship sails on the Pacific Ocean during Annual Exercise (AnnualEx) on 18 November 2023. Photo Credit: Aviator Gregory Cole, Canadian Armed Forces Photo |
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Dear Friend of RAUSI,
In this Issue:
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Notes from the President's Desk
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On behalf of the directors of RAUSI, I would like to extend my best wishes to each of you and your family for a stress-free and peaceful holiday season.
In the coming year, we look forward to continuing our shared commitment to security, defense, and the well-being of our community. For those following security and defence matters over the season, a number of points are worth noting. Refer to the information below for more details.
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Developments in Russia-Ukraine Situation
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Soviet grenade K-51. Photo: mil.in.ua. Via Ukrainska Pravda
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The Institute for the Study of War and other sources reported 24 December 2024 that Russia’s Black Sea Fleet [BSF] 810th Naval Infantry Brigade deployed chemical weapons against Ukrainian forces on the east bank of the Dnipro River [i.e., on the western edge of Kherson Oblast; the river on the following map is obscured by the solid red line along that western edge]. See a map from the Institute for the Study of War. READ MORE >>
“Aerosol grenades are K-51s filled with CS (2-chlorobenzalmalononitrile) irritant gas, a type of tear gas used for riot control (also known as riot control agent (RCA)). The Chemical Weapons Convention prohibits the use of RCA as a method of warfare, and Russia has been a party to the Convention since 1997…. Russian forces [also] used K-51 grenades against the Ukrainian military in Donetsk Oblast in November 2022.” WATCH VIDEO >>
The Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction was concluded 13 January 1993 and in force 29 April 1997. Russia ratified the instrument 05 December 1997, as did Iran 03 December 1997, Iraq 12 February 2009 and Syria 14 October 2013. 192 states in the international order are Member States of the Convention; currently absent from states ratifying the instrument are Egypt, Israel, North Korea and South Sudan.
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Two ships from China’s 44th Naval Escort Taskforce, the guided-missile destroyer Zibo and guided-missile frigate Jingzhou, completed a round of military diplomacy in late 2023. Not unlike the US’ Navy’s good-will visits, the taskforce visited Qatar 24-28 October 2023, Zayed Port in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates in early November 2023, and Yangon 27 November 2023.
More notably, however, was the deployment of the Taskforce to offshore Israel in mid-October 2023. As reported in the Times of India 24 October 2023, “China's PLA deployed six warships, including the Zibo, a Type 052D guided-missile destroyer, and the [guided missile] frigate Jingzhou [Type 054A]. They are part of the PLA's 44th naval escort task force and departed from Muscat to an undisclosed destination, according to Chinese state media. In response, the US has deployed its most advanced aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford, to the region.” The third of the three ships in the 44th Taskforce is the supply ship, Qiandaohu. READ MORE >>
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In and Around North Korea
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Ruediger (Rudiger) Frank, Professor of East Asian Economy and Society at the University of Vienna, writes North Korea is closing various embassies, the total now only 46. While one cited reason is the DPRK’s poor economy, such issues are longstanding and hence insufficient reasoning. Frank argues closures indicate Pyongyang’s long-term strategy of de-risking: a shift from managing risk to avoiding it. READ FULL ARTICLE >>
The geopolitical return to a new Cold War, viz, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, contextualizes this strategy. DPRK appears to be adjusting its risk-benefit analysis accordingly. Former changes in economic and foreign policy are being reconsidered. DPRK’s membership in a new and firm alliance with Moscow [see the exchange on this issue between Siegfried Hecker, former Director of Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Stimson Center’s Joel Witt] and Beijing helps to offset the economic and political costs of the return to a conservative state-centered economic policy and international isolationism. READ MORE >>
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Beyond Greed: How Corruption Threatens Global Security
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Sahar Chayes is former advisor to the US Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, and former Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict and Governance Program at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. While her post graduate research at Harvard concerned Islamic Studies, Ms. Chayes gained a wide range of experience during her tenure in these exceptional posts, and as her website notes, she now speaks to the full spectrum of corruption across a wide range of societies, including those in the west.
Ms. Chayes will address RAUSI on systemic corruption on 22 February 2024 via Zoom and invite discussion on root causes of corruption, its effects and whether it might happen in Canada. Please join us.
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Mewata Armoury and The Military Museum are not hosting any levees this year but RAUSI members are invited to the following annual New Year's Levees.
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HMCS TECUMSEH, 01 January 2024 at 1100.
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Government House (Edmonton), 01 January 2024 at 1300.
See the poster below for more details.
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RAUSI is conducting its first survey (members and non-members). If you have not yet completed the survey, we would be incredibly grateful if you could find the two minutes to complete the ten or so questions.
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- In anticipation of the upcoming Annual General Meeting RAUSI is looking for members interested in becoming working directors, notably in roles of Secretary, communications and legal information. Please contact admin@rausi.ca for further information.
- RAUSI has updated its bylaws, which will promulgated in due course.
- RAUSI is studying whether to combine its currently separate 18-month funding and 12-month programming cycles into one eighteen-month cycle to synchronize and smooth out funding and operations.
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All members are welcome to contribute newsworthy matters to future monthly issues of Dispatches by e-mailing us at admin@rausi.ca. The content submission deadline is Monday, 15 January 2024.
Questions or submissions? Write to admin@rausi.ca.
We are excited to keep you informed about RAUSI and our upcoming events and news. If you ever find that this e-newsletter is not for you, simply click on the link at the bottom of this newsletter to unsubscribe.
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RAUSI is a Canadian-based forum for global civilians, humanitarian, military and international police communities to present original thoughts on trending issues, in their formative stages, as they relate to global security and defence.
Formed in 1920 as a think tank, RAUSI later evolved into a service organization for veterans in the decades following the World Wars. In this new era, RAUSI has evolved back into a think tank, publishing original content, curating extant articles, and sponsoring speaker’s symposia which amplify cross-disciplined models of 21st century security and defence.
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Copyright © 2023. The Royal Alberta United Service Institute, All rights reserved.
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