GE2025: SPP optimistic about chances in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, after PAP’s Ng Eng Hen retirement from politics
SINGAPORE : Singapore People’s Party ( SPP ) secretary-general Steve Chia believes his staff may do better in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC at the May 3 General Election, then with Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen stepping down from the constituency’s People’s Action Party ( PAP ) team.
Dr Ng entered politicians more than two decades ago in 2001, and has served in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC since then.
During a haywire at Block 75 Lorong 5 Toa Payoh Food Centre on Monday night ( Apr 21 ), Mr Chia said : ” When we read that Dr Ng Eng Hen has retired, in a way, it’s a great pleasure for me, because he’s a big for the PAP in this area. “
He added that without Dr Ng at the reins, he hopes SPP is garner over 40 per cent of the vote in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC.
” We are fighting to get, but we recognise that is a very steep work, and we’re doing whatever we can to make sure that it’s a good struggle, it’s a good struggle, it’s a dependable fight,” he noted.
Dr Ng has served Bishan-Toa Payoh for about 24 times, having defeated an Genus team in the last three primaries. During his political career, he had served as Minister for Education, Minister for Manpower, and is the longest-serving Defence Minister.
In the 2020 election, Mr Chia led his SPP staff at the GRC against Dr Ng’s staff, garnering 32. 77 per share of the voting.
This vote, he may be up against a PAP team led by Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat. Mr Saktiandi Supaat and two new faces, donation director Elysa Chen, and social investor Cai Yinzhou, round out the four-member stone.
Mr Chia may direct a slate of two new eyes: Mr Muhammad Norhakim, an businesses administrative, and Mr Lim Rui Xian, who is self-employed.
He did not reveal the fifth part, but hinted that it would probably be either group president Melvyn Chiu or treasurer Williiamson Lee- both of whom had contested alongside him in the last election.
Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC has 98,505 registered votes. It is one of five GRCs to keep its electoral boundaries in the recent Electoral Boundaries Review Committee ( EBRC ) report.
” We think there’s a better opportunity or similar prospect,” said Mr Chia.
Nevertheless, he acknowledged that for most opposition parties, defeating the president remains an uphill struggle.
” I think that the possibilities for all opposition parties is an upward job, its not easy,” he said.
He said that in his watch, the “only group” that has a “very good opportunity” is the Workers ‘ Party.
” I am rooting for this Workers ‘ Party, and I think that they have a very good chance of winning another GRC this time,” he said.
” The other events, we are essentially making sure that the PAP MPs are responsible for their guidelines,” he added.
This will be Mr Chia’s fifth time standing in a General Election. He was a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament from 2001 to 2006 – landing the couch after he contested Chua Chu Kang SMC under the Singapore Democrat Alliance’s symbol.
Singapore leaders send condolences after death of Pope Francis, hail his ‘legacy of love and faith’
” TIRELESS ADVOCATE”
Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in 1936 to European immigrants from Argentina, Pope Francis was the first Latin American president of the Roman Catholic Church. He became its nose in March 2013.
He died on Monday night at his home in the Vatican’s Santa Marta hotel, where he had been recovering after being hospitalised for five months with lethal asthma.
Pope Francis ‘ visit to Singapore was the first catholic visit to the state in 38 years.
Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong, who served as the priest’s Minister in Attendance therefore, said he was “overwhelmed with a deep sadness ” after hearing of his death.
Describing the pontiff’s funny sense of humour and likeable nature, Mr Tong recounted how the bishop had joked with him during the silent moments of the visit.
“ He was entirely brutalizing, and made me feel at ease in his appearance, and by doing so, he showed that whilst he was the bishop, he was still also very much one of us, ” he said.
GE2025: PM Wong thanks Ng Eng Hen, Maliki Osman for service to Singapore as they retire from politics
SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Monday ( Apr 21 ) thanked Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Maliki Osman for their service to Singapore as they retired from politics.
Dr Ng announced his retirement on Apr 18, with Dr Maliki doing the same on Monday. In a Twitter article, Mr Wong said both officials had been “deeply missed”.
” But I have to let them go, so as to maintain the management staff for Singapore. I wish them the very best as they begin fresh pages and do coming pursuits,” he wrote.
Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong even thanked Dr Ng and Dr Maliki, with both having served as officials on Mr Lee’s Cabinet when he was prime minister.
” I thank Eng Hen and Maliki for their years of service and efforts to Singapore, and wish them both all the very best in the next step of their life,” Mr Lee wrote in a Twitter post.
Doctor NG “STEADY IN CRISIS”
In his Instagram post, Mr Wong said Dr Ng brought quality and detail to every Cabinet conversation.
” He is stable in turmoil, bold in thinking opportunities, and intelligent in analysing problems. I experienced all these personally during my early days in politics when I had the chance to work with him in MINDEF ( Ministry of Defence ),” said Mr Wong.
Calling him a role design and source of advice for both him and another younger officials, Mr Wong noted that Dr Ng had served in the workforce, education and military departments.
” But he will be best remembered as Minister for Defence, a position he held for more than a decade. Also respected locally and abroad for his attentive and insightful assessments, he raised Singapore’s appearance and standing,” said the primary minister.
Dr Ng has been the Minister for Defence since 2011. He guided the modernisation of the Singapore Armed Forces ( SAF ), which acquired and developed next-generation skills, said Mr Wong in a text to Dr Ng.
The SAF not merely stood ready for battle but proved its worth in peace, playing a vital role in supporting COVID-19 answer activities.
” You never lost sight of the people who form the center of the SAF,” said Mr Wong, listing Dr Ng’s efforts as defence secretary.
Investigators turn focus on collapsed Bangkok building’s lift shaft walls
The decision to reduce the thickness of the walls of the elevator shafts at the new State Audit Office ( SAO ) building contributed to the building’s collapse, according to Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong.
Pol Col Tawee said prosecutors are especially concerned about the floor beams ’ walls, as they are drastically thinner than those built in another, similar properties.
Normally, he said, a shaft’s surfaces should be about 60 centimetres wet, but the ones at the SAO tower were about 25cm wet.
Pol Col Tawee said a team of engineers has been assembled to do a detailed investigation to determine if the diminished thickness of the rooms played a role in the building’s decline.
The building’s unique plans may be examined as part of this process, he said.
As the company accountable for the project — China Railway No. 10 ( Thailand )— is a subsidiary of a state-owned company, Chinese authorities have been involved in the handling of the disaster.
They noted the task followed the plans submitted by the SAO, which were drafted by Thai professionals.
According to Pol Col Tawee, Taiwanese officials are cooperating with prosecutors.
He said they have sent experts to create the collapse, analyze the soil composition around the building blog, and allocated funds to substitute victims of the catastrophe.
Separately, the Department of Special Investigation ( DSI) said the three Thai executives of China Railway No. 10 ( Thailand ) have turned themselves in to the police.
The group, identified as Manas Sri-anan, Prachuap Sirikhet, and Sophon Meechai, are accused of acting as illegitimate Thai nominations for Chinese partners in the business.
A Chinese investor, identified as Zhang Chuanling, was arrested on Saturday at a motel in Bangkok’s Ratchadaphisek village.
He told investigators that while he owns 49 % of the business ’s securities, he was conscious of how the Thai owners came to be involved with the business.
His constitutional team is expected to drive for his release on parole.
Researchers are also probing a two-billion-baht loan issued by the Thai owners to fund the construction job, according to the DSI.
The DSI is investigating whether they had the financial means to issue for a mortgage, it said.
The office also rejected says that the efforts to collect data from the site of the building collapse were delayed.
In a related development, a lawyer representing Xin Ke Yuan Steel Co, which supplied steel for the SAO building project, plans to appeal the revocation of the investment promotion privileges provided by the Board of Investment ( BoI ) for its steel billet plant in Rayong.
The withdrawal follows numerous safety and excellent concerns, including a new explosion at the Rayong grow and allegations of poor steel.
Parks adviser sacked after viral video
PUBLISHED: 21 Apr 2025 at 18:50
Siranudh” Psi” Scott, a marine conservationist, has been removed from his position as an adviser at the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation ( DNP ) for his alleged inappropriate behaviour.
Mr Siranudh, 26, last year said he was stepping down as assistant to DNP director-general Athapol Charoenshunsa over what he said was a dispute about the control of restoration work in the country.
But, Mr Athapol yesterday said that the division decided to remove Mr Siranudh from his article according to his continued “inappropriate behavior despite multiple instructions”.
Mr Siranudh, who obtained a diploma in video from the California Institute of the Arts, returned to Thailand to focus on marine protection. He has gained reputation for his dedication in protection programs.
Nevertheless, he was recently involved in a contentious video that went viral. On it, he was seen confronting a foreign tourists who sarcastically used the Taiwanese greeting na hao in southern Thailand.
Mr Athapol acknowledged Mr Siranudh’s” great motives” but noted that, on several occasions, his website content affected the relationship between the garden power and local societies. At one point, a libel lawsuit was filed by a local company operator over Mr Siranudh’s online information, Mr Athapol said.
Trump trade war: It’s worse than a crime, it’s a blunder – Asia Times
Say you may think me
I can’t consider, my heart did break
‘Cause I made a terrible blunder
A terrible blunder
– Gareth Gates
Upon reading of the abduction and murder of the Duc d’Enghien for plotting against Napoleon, French minister Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, bracing for political consequences, quipped, “It’s worse than a murder, it ’s a wrongdoing. ”
In the affairs of man, errors are forgiven while acts are punished. In the affairs of state, crimes are inexcusable while errors can prove fatal. Many countries have ceased to exist because of failures. And behind some wonderful nations is a long-forgiven offense.
Heavy is the king of the sage sovereign, virtuous in private affairs but depraved on behalf of country. But what about the queen of the dumb royal – lurid in private life, depraved on the world stage and, worst of all, susceptible to wrongdoing?
Winston Churchill when quipped, “Americans can always be trusted to do the proper issue, after all other options have been exhausted. ”
Otto von Bismarck channeled the same thought when he said, “There is heaven that protects stupid, tramps, kids and the United States of America. ”
This concept is also the theme of F Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby”, “They were thoughtless people, Tom and Daisy– they smashed up things and creatures and therefore retreated again into their money or their great carelessness or whatever it was that kept them up, and let other people clean up the mess they had made. ”
Churchill, Bismarck and Fitzgerald understood that America had the pleasure for all kinds of gross and careless behavior. Providence saw to it that local Americans had little to no resistance to Western conditions, opening up a huge globe for the easiest growth in the background of empires – from sea to shining sea.
Providence allowed Franklin Roosevelt to saunter into WWII in its fourth act, participate in mop-up operations and declare victory. Providence allowed America to kick the legs out from under Japan in the 1980s and then ride Chinese and Indian PhDs into the internet age. Providence allowed Wall Street to securitize everything, sell bits and pieces to foreigners and buy bass boats for suburban dads.
This is Peter Zeihan’s America – a vast, sparsely populated continental economy with convenient river systems and coasts on two oceans, blessed with energy, mineral and agricultural riches.
But of late, Zeihan’s America has been squandering its blessings on foreign wars and living beyond its means at home. And now, under President Donald Trump, America is squaring up for an economic showdown against what is certainly not Zeihan’s China ( i. e. , the one that collapsed in 2022 ).
Churchill’s powers of imagination are no match for all the possible follies Trump can cook up before exhausting himself. And the providence that has protected America is surely being stretched as Tom and Daisy smash things up with US$ 37 trillion of debt.
All thi<del>s</del> non<del>s</del>en<del>s</del>e, thi<del>s</del> <in<del>s</del>>S</in<del>s</del>><del>s</del>turm und Ddrang – the Liberation Day tariff<del>s</del>, threatening to annex Canada and Greenland, <del>s</del>ending migrant<del>s</del> to pri<del>s</del>on in El <in<del>s</del>>S</in<del>s</del>>alvador, cru<del>s</del>hing <del>s</del>tate capacity with DOGE, laying <del>s</del>iege to elite univer<del>s</del>itie<del>s</del> etc, etc– i<del>s</del> Trump <del>s</del>peed-running all other po<del>s</del><del>s</del>ibilitie<del>s</del> becau<del>s</del>e he, and the re<del>s</del>t of America, know<del>s</del> that the right thing i<del>s</del> too little, too late, too difficult and might not work even if attempted.
The smartest thing America can do is skip to the right thing without going through this destructive trial and error. But like those 20 pounds you mean to lose, those cigarettes you mean to give up and those websites you mean to stop visiting, the right thing is easier said than done – especially when one has serious doubts that it can be done at all.
America is facing a China that planted its tree at the best time – 30 years ago – with the panicked realization that the best it can do is plant its tree today. China ’s universities now produce ~1. 7 million engineers per year, an eightfold increase since the turn of the century and approximately 6. 7 times the ~250,000 engineers graduating from American universities.
All of China ’s achievements are downstream of education. What did people think would happen when Chinese universities increased student enrollment tenfold? Adult education programs quadrupled China ’s literacy rate under Mao, setting up the nation’s workforce for Deng’s market reforms. It’s human capital all the way down.
And, of course, Trump’s exploration of all possible follies includes rampaging through the crown jewel of America’s education system – its world-class research universities. Eradicating the woke mind virus from higher education may be a justifiable political goal, but to do so by holding research funding hostage and demonizing international students is the height of madness.
The bond vigilantes can immediately force a President’s hand. The international graduate student mob can cause far more damage to America’s long-term economic viability. International students make up half of America’s STEM graduate students. This is a testament to both America’s superb universities and the decrepit state of its public education system.
The pain of increasing 10-year Treasury yields is instantly felt by all borrowers. The loss of international PhD students will fly under the radar, but the loss of economic dynamism as American science and technology withers could not be more calamitous.
China has pulled ahead of the US in science and technology – probably by a significant margin. This is already difficult for many Americans to accept, but the data is clear. Among the top 20 global research universities ranked by Nature, 14 are Chinese and four are American.
According to a recent report published by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI), out of ten major research fields, China leads in seven ( chemistry, agriculture, environment and ecology, electrical engineering and computer science, engineering and materials science and earth science ). The US leads in three ( clinical and life sciences, physics and arts and humanities ).
According to the report, China is now producing more top 1 % papers with fewer total papers published than the US in fields such as chemistry, agriculture, environment and ecology, and electrical engineering. China ’s Ministry of Science and Technology has spent the past decade tweaking incentives like phasing out government payments for publications to improve efficiency.
All of this is confirmed downstream as China rockets up the value chain to lead industry after industry ( e. g. 5G equipment, shipbuilding, cars, solar power, batteries, nuclear power, high-speed rail ) and create new ones along the way ( e. g. consumer drones, cashless economy, super apps ).
So what is this all about? As crazy as things are, Trump’s second-term nuthouse is just an absurd magnification of the China anxiety carried over from the first Trump term with continuity through the Biden interregnum. Trump’s second time around just has fewer guardrails on his lunatic imagination.
This is all about an America that knows it cannot win but will not go down without a fight. There is no way any economist can look at energy consumption and industrial output charts and honestly believe the US can close the China gap.
There is no way Pentagon strategists can look at China ’s 250x shipbuilding capacity advantage and honestly believe that the US can maintain its forward military position in Asia. There is no way that National Science Foundation wonks can look at the trajectory of China ’s tertiary education and honestly believe that the US will not be a distant second in science and technology.
Unfortunately, there is a difference between losing and losing even worse. There is a price to pay for not going down without a fight. Trump’s economic war with China is a blunder of historic, perhaps civilizational, proportions.
Because a second-place America is so distasteful to certain parts of the US psyche, Trump is obliged to choose losing even worse. On some level, America rationally understands that it cannot win with the hand it holds and because of that, the only option is to chimp out, throw everything at the wall – chip sanctions, tariffs, alliances, libelous accusations – and lose spectacularly, irrationally and cathartically.
Apologies MAGA folks, Trump is not playing 5D chess. America will soon fold in its foolish economic war with China. In the next few months, large swathes of American industry will shut down as prices of intermediate goods surge and supply of rare earth and other crucial inputs dries up. Store shelves will empty out and inflation will skyrocket. Whoever believed that deficit economies with a deficient industrial base had leverage will eat humble pie.
Whatever face-saving climb-down Chinese President Xi Jinping offers President Trump will be understood by all to mean the US has surrendered global economic leadership to China. Treasuries will embed a permanent “moron premium”, American universities will fall in the league tables and America’s global alliances will come undone – slowly at first, then suddenly.
This is, mind you, the best-case scenario. Permanent damage has already been done. The worst-case scenario will veer off from the blunder of a trade war to something more sinister and criminal. We can all use our imaginations for the possible combinations and permutations of worst-case outcomes.
How bad would surrendering economic leadership to China be? Much of it is just accepting reality. China is already a far bigger economy than the US ( see here ). People who insist otherwise have just led the US into an unwinnable trade war.
China already leads in science and technology. No one is denying that America has made a greater contribution to science than China in the past – far greater. It’s just that China will contribute more in the future – far more.
Second place is not something that should embarrass any American. The nation still has the magnificent physical endowments that Zeihan correctly points out. It’s just that the people have been run ragged by decades of foreign wars, political capture by capital and political division.
Zeihan gets China wrong because he refuses to appreciate the breathtaking leveling up of the nation’s human capital. That is also his blind spot for America, whose human capital has been stagnant at best.
Liberated from the burden of being number one, which has largely been a pretense anyway, America can finally surrender to the generosity of providence and do the right thing for its citizens – come home, circle wagons, lick wounds and get around to planting that tree.
‘Champion of unity and hope’: Catholic Church in Singapore pays tribute to Pope Francis
SINGAPORE: Pope Francis was a “model of mercy and compassion”, the Catholic Church in Singapore said on Monday ( Apr 21 ) as it paid tribute to the pontiff, who died at the age of 88.
” He was a hero of cohesion and desire, not just for Catholics, but for the world, especially the poor, the marginalised, and the bad,” the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore said in a statement on its website.
The Archdiocese added that the bishop spoke for displaced refugees and subjects of war, and urged world leaders to find peace through speech and righteousness.
” Pope Francis ’ regular telephone for diversity gave the world a religion that welcomed all, particularly those who yearned for love, kindness, and trust.
” His steps inspired the honest to be the experience of Christ to others and reach up to those on the borders of society,” it added.
It also noted how the bishop was an advocate for the culture, urging global action to combat climate change.
Pope Francis visited Singapore in September 2024 as part of a four-nation Asia-Pacific journey, the longest of his church.
During his visit to Singapore, he held a conference with students of various faiths and “emphasised speech and understanding between the spiritual areas”.
He urged the students to be courageous and receptive to input so as to have honest discourse with one another.
” In his last time, the Holy Father continued his work of preaching delight and sharing Christ’s all-embracing love, attending the Holy Week liturgies and meeting the honest whenever he went.
” His earthly life was full of fervour for Christ’s mission till the end, living out the words of his encyclical’ Dilexit Nos ‘ ( He loved us ), projecting like and helping with joy. We thank the Lord for His present of Pope Francis and his company on world. “
GE2025: Surge in AI-generated videos related to elections after polls called
SINGAPORE: Since Singapore’s May 3 polls were called, there has been a surge in the number of General Election-related online videos created using artificial intelligence ( AI ) tools.
CNA detected 73 for video posted between Apr 15 and Apr 19. This was more than the 64 like videos in an entire quarter from Mar 14 to Apr 14. All the videos were posted on TikTok.
Apr 15 was when the Writ of Election was issued.
The uptick in such films comes in spite of a new law banning online generated or controlled material that misrepresents what candidates say or do, regardless of whether it is advantageous or unpleasant to them.
GE2025 is the first moment the policy is in position. From Apr 15 to Nomination Day on Apr 23, the moratorium covers potential applicants who have paid their vote payments and given the Elections Department assent to make their nomination people.
After election proceedings nearer, the ban will include all candidates through the majority of the vote period.
Out of the 73 AI-generated, GE-related video posted since Apr 15, CNA found that 11 contain online generated or manipulated photos of potential candidates, possibly violating this new law.
The amount grows to 27 if the depend includes movies that contain true footage of potential candidates, but along with Iot elements like avatars and text-to-speech voiceovers.
Under the rules, preventative information can be issued to people, requiring them to get down the information; or to cultural media companies asking them to delete exposure.
Failure to comply can lead to prison or a good.
As of Monday ( Apr 21 ), no corrective directions against deepfakes misrepresenting candidates have been issued.
The Ministry of Digital Development and Information ( MDDI) told CNA the public will be notified if there are any issued.
The government said it was ” carefully monitoring Singapore’s virtual area during the General Election”.
” There are processes in place to check for and minimise the risk of election meddling that may arise from the spread of prohibited information, such as deepfakes misrepresenting individuals,” it said.
” There are dedicated team standing up during the vote time for this purpose, and they will work closely with social media companies to act quickly on prohibited information. “
MDDI also said candidates and members of the public should remain “alert and discerning consumers of information”.
The ministry did not answer CNA’s questions on what and how many reports of AI-generated content it has received, investigations it is conducting and enforcement actions taken.
Hollow HALO: US admits defeat in hypersonic missile program – Asia Times
The US Navy has killed its next-generation hypersonic weapon, slamming the brakes on a once-promising development plan amid soaring prices, weak efficiency and China ’s growing army.
This month, Naval News reported that the US Navy has terminated its Hypersonic Air-Launched Offensive ( HALO ) missile initiative, originally part of the Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare Increment 2 ( OASuW Inc 2 ) program, citing insurmountable budgetary issues and underperformance.
Rear Admiral Stephen Tedford, the US Navy’s software executive officer for autonomous aircraft and strike weapons, confirmed the cancellation occurred in the autumn of 2024 after a governmental analysis deemed the system economically and technically unviable.
HALO was slated for “early operational capability ” ( EOC ) by FY29 and “initial operational capability ” by FY31, intending to counter high-value surface targets from standoff distances.
Otherwise, Lockheed Martin’s Long Range Anti-Ship Missile ( LRASM), a component of OASuW Increment 1, may have important hardware and software updates to bolster efficiency and usefulness.
Tedford underscored the US Navy’s devotion to long-range arms, prioritizing existing devices to coincide with national security objectives. Business executives, including Northrop Grumman managers, signaled HALO’s problems during the Sea Air Space 2025 fair, with feasibility and value concerns dominating discussions.
The decision to abandon the HALO plan reflects broader fiscal and proper recalibrations within America’s munitions business foundation and highlights the challenges in developing wild, high-cost systems amid tightening defence budgets. It may also highlight the US military ’s incapacity for rapid, high-speed, precision strikes against heavily defended naval targets.
In a March 2025 Atlantic Council report, Michael White highlights that capability, stating that a subsonic missile such as Tomahawk or the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile ( JASSM) would take one hour to reach a target 800 kilometers away, while a hypersonic cruise missile can hit the target in less than 10 minutes.
White also mentions that a hypersonic glide vehicle ( HGV) can make the trip between Guam and the Taiwan Strait in under 30 minutes.
Asia Times has previously noted that the Harpoon anti-ship missile’s short range of 128 kilometers for standard models, lack of speed or stealth to penetrate modern shipboard defenses and paucity of launch platforms other than carrier-based aircraft forces US Navy air carriers dangerously close to battle zones, putting these valuable assets at risk. This situation narrows the US Navy’s tactical options for striking modern warships at long distances.
However, Asia Times has pointed out that stealthy anti-ship missiles such as LRASM offer distinct advantages over hypersonic weapons by combining low radar cross-sections and minimal infrared signatures with advanced semi-autonomous guidance systems.
These features ensure survivability and precision in heavily contested electromagnetic warfare ( EW ) environments, where reliance on external intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance ( ISR ) platforms might be compromised.
The LRASM’s stealth attributes make it harder to detect and intercept. In contrast, hypersonic weapons can create detectable plasma wakes and light emissions.
The capability to share data and execute coordinated swarm attacks further enhances LRASM’s effectiveness. Its stealth and autonomous targeting capabilities offer effective tactical solutions, offsetting some lost advantages from HALO’s cancellation.
Yet, at the operational level, HALO’s cancellation risks creating a capability gap to defeat anti-access/area-denial ( A2/AD ) strategies. A January 2023 report by the US Congressional Budget Office ( CBO ) mentions that hypersonic weapons, launched beyond the reach of A2/AD systems with their atmospheric flight profile, enable them to evade midcourse missile defenses designed to intercept targets in space.
According to the report, by flying lower and maneuvering unpredictably, hypersonic missiles complicate detection and interception by ship-based and short-range defenses, potentially neutralizing coastal air defenses, over-the-horizon ( OTH) radars and strike systems early in a conflict.
However, despite those advantages, a weak US hypersonic weapons industrial base may preclude the widespread adoption of such weapons.
A report released this month by the US Congressional Research Service ( CRS ) mentions that the US Department of Defense ( DOD ) has not yet established programs of record, indicating a lack of approved mission requirements or long-term acquisition plans for hypersonic weapons. It also points out that the US testing infrastructure remains limited, with no current US facility able to simulate full-scale, time-dependent flight environments above Mach 8.
Additionally, it says flight test schedules are continually hampered by limited hypersonic flight corridors, insufficient test ranges and limited support assets, hindering efforts to transition hypersonic prototypes into deployable weapons systems.
In contrast, the LRASM may have a more mature production base. In an April 2023 article for Air & Space Forces Magazine, Chris Gordon mentions that Lockheed Martin is producing more than 500 LRASMs and JASSMs a year, with the defense contractor working to increase capacity to 1,000 missiles annually.
In the same article, Dom DeScisciolo mentions that the LRASM and JASSM share many components and are built on the same production lines. DeScisciolo notes the missiles are designated as either type depending on customer demand.
Strategically, canceling HALO undermines the US Navy’s efforts to maintain technological parity or superiority with competitors like China and Russia, which are aggressively advancing hypersonic missile programs.
Russia has already used hypersonic weapons in combat against Ukraine, though their effectiveness and overall impact on the ongoing war of attrition between the two are debatable.
Similarly, China fielded the DF-17 HGV missile system in 2019 and tested an HGV that reportedly circled the globe before cruising to its target in August 2021. In contrast, despite intensive testing, the US has yet to field any hypersonic weapon.
In a March 2024 statement for the US House Armed Services Committee, Jeffrey McCormick mentions that China now has the world’s leading hypersonic arsenal, underscoring China ’s advances in hypersonic weapon technology.
McCormick says two decades of intense and focused investment, development, testing and deployment have dramatically advanced China ’s development of conventional and nuclear-armed hypersonic missile technologies.
However, some argue hypersonic weapons are overhyped and no better than existing weapons. In a March 2024 article for the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, David Wright and Cameron Tracy argue that existing weapons, such as ballistic missiles, already fly at hypersonic speed and that drag from low-altitude atmospheric flight could slow hypersonic weapons down more than ballistic missiles on a depressed trajectory.
Wright and Tracy mention that hypersonic weapons emit substantial heat signatures during launch and flight, which could be detected early by satellites and other ground-based sensors, enabling potential interception.
They also say hypersonic weapons have limited maneuverability, as immense force is required to change direction at such speeds and scramjet engine technology for that purpose is still immature.
In terms of accuracy, they point out that the same guidance systems in hypersonic weapons can be used in maneuvering missile warheads ( MARVs ) and that the latter fly high enough to avoid the in-flight heating problems associated with the former.
In line with those views, Wright and Tracy say that while the US can not yet build functional hypersonic weapons, it stands to question whether those weapons make military and fiscal sense, regardless of whether its near-peer adversaries build them.
Pheu Thai MPs to promote casino, amnesty push
PUBLISHED: 21 Apr 2025 at 17 :09
Pheu Thai lawmakers have been instructed to encourage the casino-entertainment advanced and social asylum bills in their constituencies during the political recess time, in a bid to ensure the bills can go without a hitch.
According to Pheu Thai official and MP, Danuporn Punnakanta, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has instructed the group’s MPs to assess their constituencies ‘ view on a number of people problems, including the government’s push to legalise playing in casinos, which has caused tensions within the government coalition.
Cabinet officials from the group have also been urged to visit Pheu Thai MPs on the ground, so they can function up and arrange a complete solution to address the government’s concerns, he said.
With regards to the asylum bill, Mr Danuporn stressed the importance of defining the president’s opportunity to ensure the bill does not cause problems in the future.
” We don’t want these costs to spark large protests that may affect the structural integrity of the state,” he said.
Discussion on the casino-entertainment difficult bill, which was supposed to be discussed in the current political period, have been postponed to the next program, which will start on July 2.
Observers say the legislature is unlikely to pass the bill, given the criticism from within the Bhumjaithai Party — the next largest political party in the government coalition.
Its secretary-general, Chaichanok Chidchob, is known to be opposed to the act, but Bhumjaithai head Anutin Charnvirakul said Mr Chaichanok’s notes reflected his personal values, not the group’s stance on the matter.
Mr Anutin reaffirmed that the party remains committed to supporting the prime minister ’s policy.
Meanwhile, chief government whip Wisut Chainarun said public opinion regarding the casino-entertainment complex bill has markedly improved.
He noted that once “people have more understanding [of the bill], it will move ahead”.
Most Thais aren’t opposed to the bill, Mr Wisut claimed, saying they merely wanted to learn more about the push, particularly its benefits for the economy.
Whether the bill proceeds in the next session will depend on how well these public discussions go, he added.