Koizumi Shinjiro and Richard Marles met for about an hour in Melbourne on Saturday.

Koizumi welcomed the contracts to jointly develop Australia’s new frigates that will be based on the upgraded Mogami-class vessel of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

The ministers exchanged views on Australia’s recently released national defense strategy and the regional situation among other issues.

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Source: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20260418_18/?fbclid=IwY2xjawRV9bVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeaoJ8LA9OLJwu6UFN_5bI02BiqcsC7DyeaeSq2DOT7HuJ3NWEKQZ_y4GegJk_aem_byXpLWiMbywtSKcwRTabow

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It’s been quite a week. A shooting at Brown University, leaving two dead and many others injured, quickly turned into a days-long manhunt. It resolved with an apparent suicide but was also soon linked to the murder of a former classmate and MIT professor, leaving more questions than answers.

The world was treated to Vladimir Putin’s year end press conference. It painted a rosy picture of strength and resilience but perhaps more importantly an overriding determination to bring the war in Ukraine to a close on their terms.

Meanwhile, the EU has waffled on its outspoken desire to use frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine. It was a public humiliation for both Chancellor Merz of Germany and the President of the EU, Ursula von der Leyen. Both had pushed the plan hard, with Merz declaring there was “no alternative.” There was, but it starts with a D and ends with an EBT.

Ultimately, they borrowed to provide the desired funding. Belgium, where the majority of the Russian funds are held, balked at releasing them without an unlimited commitment to shared legal liability for doing so. This was a bridge too far for their European peers. Hungary proposed a way out of the impasse. It exempted them and a few others who protested for assuming any of the debt burden but allowed their colleagues to proceed as they desired.

The US has been flexing its military might. An attack that killed and wounded US troops in Syria has been responded to by strikes on numerous locations. This in cooperation with the new regime in Syria. A Venezuelan tanker carrying sanctioned oil was also seized this week, drawing strong rebukes from Maduro and others.

Trump has since announced a full blockade against vessels transporting these products. The majority of them sail to “teapot” refineries in China that are immune to international sanctions, but the same vessels also supply Cuba and are often part of the “shadow fleet” that transports Russian and Iranian crude. A conflict of some sort is certainly brewing.

The saddest news of all was the massacre at Bondi Beach in Australia. With 15 dead and many more wounded the country is grappling with a multitude of issues, chief among which are gun control and unassimilated migrants. The attack was perpetrated by a father, who held an Indian passport, and a son, who had been investigated for his links to radical Islam.

Being from Texas, where you expect everyone to be armed, it seems a tragedy that an event like this could transpire for so long without being met by equal force. The heroic intervention of another (unarmed) Muslim immigrant likely saved many lives, yet there has been considerable backlash online- as if he is a traitor to his race or religion for saving life. How appalling.

It’s abhorrent. All know by now that the targets of this heinous attack were Jews commemorating the beginning of Hanukkah, which celebrates the cleansing of the temple after it was defiled by Antiochus Epiphanes. While not a Holy Day ordained by God, Christ Himself is recorded as being at the Temple during this time in John 10:22. With the Sabbath upon us, it gives us pause to consider the general attitude toward those who do observe God’s annual Holy Days and what the future may hold.

Michael

The post Weekly Update by Michael Armstrong – December 19, 2025 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Australia has suffered its worst mass shooting since the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, with at least 16 people killed in a horrific terror attack at Bondi Beach during Hanukkah celebrations.

One of the gunmen was killed and another was taken into custody, while NSW Police have begun investigating the possibility of a third attacker.

Twenty-nine people have also been hospitalised, including two police officers who were shot in the shocking act of violence.

NSW Police confirmed that the incident had been declared a terror attack, with the event unfolding during the first day of Jewish Hanukkah on Sunday.

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Source: https://www.skynews.com.au/australia-news/crime/reports-of-active-shooting-in-bondi-beach/news-story/a55e71f2a6011fbf5129946243b4b5aa?fbclid=IwY2xjawOtJ3NleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEePkx1cetok9lCpGxFD9rGHY-qRjMTuLYg4y2V9msetvrZAwamTvLlt1jAyME_aem_8u4oXJqaxa5xl8Qs_rZ8NA

The post Israeli citizen among 16 victims killed alongside one gunman in Bondi Beach terror attack, with at least 29 injured and two police officers shot during Hanukkah celebration first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Canberra’s ban, which came into effect from midnight local time, targets 10 major services, including Alphabet’s YouTube, Meta’s Instagram, ByteDance’s TikTok, Reddit, Snapchat and Elon Musk’s X.

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Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/12/10/australia-16-year-old-teens-ban-social-media-policy-law-ig-tiktok-fb-reddit-youtube-snapchat.html?fbclid=IwY2xjawOmxPlleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeLySOuiF8mHpkT088LPgU3YBfqTFhQp1-dEilYkVchy6LwIfJLHaNgbB-pac_aem_X1LlGupSk1kuTQdgij5EQw

The post Australia is trying to enforce the first teen social media ban. Governments worldwide are watching. first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

LONDON — The United Kingdom, Canada and Australia officially recognized Palestine as a state Sunday, a significant shift in foreign policy and a step away from their alignment with the United States, with several other European nations and U.S. allies set to follow suit this week.

“Today, to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two state solution, the United Kingdom formally recognizes the State of Palestine,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement.

Canada had, moments before, become the first Group of 7 nation to recognize the state of Palestine, as Prime Minister Mark Carney promised a “peaceful future for both the State of Palestine and the State of Israel.”

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Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/world/middle-east/uk-canada-australia-formally-recognize-palestine-state-rcna232588

The post U.K., Canada and Australia formally recognize a Palestinian state, breaking with the U.S. first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Defence Minister Richard Marles announced on Tuesday that cabinet had selected Japan’s upgraded Mogami frigate over the German MEKO A-200.

The first three of the frigates are expected to be built in Japan, with the remaining eight to be built in Western Australia.

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Source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08-05/australia-japan-navy-frigates/105613688

The post Australia picks Japan to build $10b frigates after fierce contest first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Hundreds of people have been rescued during one-in-500-year flooding after parts of Australia’s east copped four months of rain in two days.

Flooded residents are warned to prepare for long periods of isolation while others are urged to evacuate.

Almost 300 flood rescues were carried out on Wednesday, including helicopters lifting stranded occupants off their roofs to safety in the Hunter and Mid North Coast regions of NSW.

More helicopters and crews are on their way to join the rescue efforts.

The state and federal governments have activated disaster support — including emergency accommodation — for 16 local government areas and the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has declared it a “significant event” and started collecting data for claims.

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Source: https://7news.com.au/news/residents-winched-to-safety-as-downpour-swells-flooding-in-nsw-c-18767611

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The post Australia plans “world-leading” social media ban for children under 16 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

AUKUS, formed in 2021 to address shared worries about China’s growing power, is designed to allow Australia to acquire nuclear-powered attack submarines and other advanced weapons such as hypersonic missiles.

The post In boost for AUKUS, US says Australia and UK export-controls comparable first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

The Chinese air force J-10 jet dropped flares above and several hundred meters ahead of an Australian MH60R Seahawk helicopter which was on a routine flight on Saturday in the Yellow Sea as part of an operation to enforce sanctions against North Korea, Defence Minister Richard Marles said in a statement.

The post Australia denounces China over ‘unsafe’ aerial confrontation first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.