With North Korea’s 4th of July missile show still resonating politically around the globe, another foray from that region—this time from Taiwan—is likely to exacerbate the volatile situation. The Christian Science Monitor reports that Taiwan is gearing up for a September test of a tactical missile that is capable of striking targets in China—a response to China’s growing military might. “Even if we are going to buy Patriot missiles, we also need to develop our own offensive missiles,” legislator Lee Wen-chung tells the paper.
U.S. Southern Command recently announced its first lethal strike on a suspected narco-trafficking vessel in two months, and the first under a newly formed permanent counter-cartel task force. The U.S. is also reportedly planning to transfer MQ-9 drones to Colombia to bolster its counter-cartel efforts.