Beginner's Guide to nc (Netcat)

Welcome to the beginner's guide to nc (Netcat)! Netcat is a versatile networking utility that allows you to read from and write to network connections using TCP or UDP. It's a powerful tool for network troubleshooting, port scanning, file transfer, and even creating simple network servers. In this guide, we'll cover the basics of nc and how to use it effectively.

Installation

To use nc, you first need to install it on your system. The installation process may vary depending on your operating system. Here are a few common methods:

Linux

On most Linux distributions, nc is usually included by default. If it's not installed, you can install it using your package manager. For example, on Ubuntu or Debian, open a terminal and run:

sudo apt-get install netcat

macOS

macOS doesn't come with nc pre-installed, but you can easily install it using the Homebrew package manager. Open a terminal and run:

brew install netcat

Windows

For Windows users, you can download the official version of nc from the Nmap project's website. Choose the appropriate installer for your system and follow the installation instructions.

Basic Usage

Once you have nc installed, you can start using it to interact with network connections. Here are a few common use cases:

Connect to a Server

To connect to a server using nc, you need to know the server's IP address or domain name and the port number it's listening on. Use the following command:

nc <host> <port>

For example, to connect to a web server running on example.com on port 80, you would run:

nc example.com 80

Send and Receive Data

After establishing a connection, you can send and receive data through nc. Anything you type will be sent to the server, and any response from the server will be displayed on your screen. Simply type your message and press Enter.

File Transfer

nc can also be used for simple file transfer between two machines. One machine acts as the server and the other as the client. On the receiving machine (server), run the following command:

nc -l <port> > output_file

On the sending machine (client), use the following command to send a file:

nc <server_ip> <port> < input_file

The receiving machine will save the file as output_file. Make sure to replace <port>, <server_ip>, input_file, and output_file with the appropriate values.

Port Scanning

Another useful feature of nc is port scanning. It allows you to check if a particular port on a remote machine is open or closed. Use the following command:

nc -z <host> <start_port>-<end_port>

For example, to scan ports 1 to 100 on example.com, run:

nc -z example.com 1-100

Conclusion

Congratulations! You've learned the basics of nc and how to use it for various network-related tasks. This guide only scratches the surface of nc's capabilities, so feel free to explore more advanced features and options in the official documentation or online resources. Happy networking!

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.run/post/8710

Beginner's Guide to htop

Introduction

htop is an interactive process viewer and system monitor for Linux systems. It provides a real-time overview of your system's processes, resource usage, and other vital system information. This guide will help you get started with htop and understand its various features.

Installation

We are assuming that you are using ubuntu or debain based distros here.

To install htop, follow these steps:

1. Open the terminal.
2. Update the package list by running the command: sudo apt update.
3. Install htop by running the command: sudo apt install htop.
4. Enter your password when prompted.
5. Wait for the installation to complete.

Launching htop

Once htop is installed, you can launch it by following these steps:

1. Open the terminal.
2. Type htop and press Enter.

Understanding the htop Interface

After launching htop, you'll see the following information on your screen:

1. A header displaying the system's uptime, load average, and total number of tasks.
2. A list of processes, each represented by a row.
3. A footer showing various system-related information.

Navigating htop

htop provides several keyboard shortcuts for navigating and interacting with the interface. Here are some common shortcuts:

• Arrow keys: Move the cursor up and down the process list.
• Enter: Expand or collapse a process to show or hide its children.
• Space: Tag or untag a process.
• F1: Display the help screen with a list of available shortcuts.
• F2: Change the setup options, such as columns displayed and sorting methods.
• F3: Search for a specific process by name.
• F4: Filter the process list by process owner.
• F5: Tree view - display the process hierarchy as a tree.
• F6: Sort the process list by different columns, such as CPU usage or memory.
• F9: Send a signal to a selected process, such as terminating it.
• F10: Quit htop and exit the program.

Customizing htop

htop allows you to customize its appearance and behavior. You can modify settings such as colors, columns displayed, and more. To access the setup menu, press the F2 key. Here are a few options you can modify:

• Columns: Select which columns to display in the process list.
• Colors: Customize the color scheme used by htop.
• Meters: Choose which system meters to display in the header and footer.
• Sorting: Set the default sorting method for the process list.

Exiting htop

To exit htop and return to the terminal, press the F10 key or simply close the terminal window.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You now have a basic understanding of how to use htop on the Linux bash terminal. With htop, you can efficiently monitor system processes, resource usage, and gain valuable insights into your Linux system. Explore the various features and options available in htop to get the most out of this powerful tool.

Remember, you can always refer to the built-in help screen (F1) for a complete list of available shortcuts and commands.

Enjoy using htop and happy monitoring!

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.run/post/9328

1. Introduction to awk:

   awk is a powerful text processing tool that allows you to manipulate structured data and perform various operations on it. It uses a simple pattern-action paradigm, where you define patterns to match and corresponding actions to be performed.

2. Basic Syntax:

   The basic syntax of awk is as follows:

   awk 'pattern { action }' input_file
   

   • The pattern specifies the conditions that must be met for the action to be performed.
   • The action specifies the operations to be carried out when the pattern is matched.
   • The input_file is the file on which you want to perform the awk operation. If not specified, awk reads from standard input.

3. Printing Lines:

   To start with, let's see how to print lines in Markdown using awk. Suppose you have a Markdown file named input.md.

   • To print all lines, use the following command:

     awk '{ print }' input.md
     

   • To print lines that match a specific pattern, use:

     awk '/pattern/ { print }' input.md
     

4. Field Separation:

   By default, awk treats each line as a sequence of fields separated by whitespace. You can access and manipulate these fields using the $ symbol.

   • To print the first field of each line, use:

     awk '{ print $1 }' input.md
     

5. Conditional Statements:

   awk allows you to perform conditional operations using if statements.

   • To print lines where a specific field matches a condition, use:

     awk '$2 == "value" { print }' input.md
     

6. Editing Markdown Files:

   Markdown files often contain structured elements such as headings, lists, and links. You can use awk to modify and manipulate these elements.

   • To change all occurrences of a specific word, use the gsub function:

     awk '{ gsub("old_word", "new_word"); print }' input.md
     

7. Saving Output:

   By default, awk prints the result on the console. If you want to save it to a file, use the redirection operator (>).

   • To save the output to a file, use:

     awk '{ print }' input.md > output.md
     

8. Further Learning:

   This guide provides a basic introduction to using awk for text manipulation in Markdown. To learn more advanced features and techniques, refer to the awk documentation and explore additional resources and examples available online.

Remember, awk is a versatile tool, and its applications extend beyond Markdown manipulation. It can be used for various text processing tasks in different contexts.

1. Introduction to awk:

   awk is a powerful text processing tool that allows you to manipulate structured data and perform various operations on it. It uses a simple pattern-action paradigm, where you define patterns to match and corresponding actions to be performed.

2. Basic Syntax:

   The basic syntax of awk is as follows:

   awk 'pattern { action }' input_file
   

   • The pattern specifies the conditions that must be met for the action to be performed.
   • The action specifies the operations to be carried out when the pattern is matched.
   • The input_file is the file on which you want to perform the awk operation. If not specified, awk reads from standard input.

3. Printing Lines:

   To start with, let's see how to print lines in Markdown using awk. Suppose you have a Markdown file named input.md.

   • To print all lines, use the following command:

     awk '{ print }' input.md
     

   • To print lines that match a specific pattern, use:

     awk '/pattern/ { print }' input.md
     

4. Field Separation:

   By default, awk treats each line as a sequence of fields separated by whitespace. You can access and manipulate these fields using the $ symbol.

   • To print the first field of each line, use:

     awk '{ print $1 }' input.md
     

5. Conditional Statements:

   awk allows you to perform conditional operations using if statements.

   • To print lines where a specific field matches a condition, use:

     awk '$2 == "value" { print }' input.md
     

6. Editing Markdown Files:

   Markdown files often contain structured elements such as headings, lists, and links. You can use awk to modify and manipulate these elements.

   • To change all occurrences of a specific word, use the gsub function:

     awk '{ gsub("old_word", "new_word"); print }' input.md
     

7. Saving Output:

   By default, awk prints the result on the console. If you want to save it to a file, use the redirection operator (>).

   • To save the output to a file, use:

     awk '{ print }' input.md > output.md
     

8. Further Learning:

   This guide provides a basic introduction to using awk for text manipulation in Markdown. To learn more advanced features and techniques, refer to the awk documentation and explore additional resources and examples available online.

Remember, awk is a versatile tool, and its applications extend beyond Markdown manipulation. It can be used for various text processing tasks in different contexts.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.run/post/9325

PM Modi will also hold discussions with President Biden on bettering trade and investment relations, besides forging closer ties in the technology domain comprising telecom, space and manufacturing.

Stepping up defence cooperation, India and the US are poised to unveil a roadmap for industries in the sector to partner closely in co-production, co-development and maintaining supply change during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the US beginning June 21.

Prime Minister Modi, during his first state visit to the US, will also hold discussions with President Joe Biden on bettering trade and investment relations, besides forging closer ties in the technology domain comprising telecom, space and manufacturing.

Addressing a press conference here, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said the prime minister will also be on a state visit to Egypt from June 24-25 at the invitation of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi during which he is also scheduled to visit 11th Century mosque Al-Hakim, which was refurbished and renovated by the Bohra community.

The foreign secretary said the Defence Industrial Cooperation Roadmap was expected to be one of the key outcomes of Prime Minister Modi's visit to the US.

It essentially focuses on all aspects of defence co-production and co-development. It also talks about how defence industrial ecosystems of the two countries could cooperate much better, how the supply lines in the field of defence industry could also interface with each other much better," he said.

Kwatra described defence cooperation as a "key pillar" of India's relationship with the US.

"If you look at the complete matrix of the India-US defence partnership, it is very robust, very dynamic, it has all the significant elements that make it so important.

"We conduct a large number of bilateral military exercises – both bilateral as also regional in nature. Armed forces have staff-to-staff engagement. India is also the deployer of the US equipment and platforms. Some of them are used by India," he said.

Also top on the minds of Biden and Modi would be the challenges posed by the incidents such as the attempts to incite violence outside the Indian embassy in Washington.

“The underlying intent and the goal of such attacks is something which we are concerned (about) and we have shared those concerns very actively and very completely with the countries where such organisations function,” Kwatra said.

Modi will begin the visit to the US from New York, where he will lead the International Yoga Day celebrations at the United Nations headquarters and meet prominent personalities and leaders on June 21.

He will travel to Washington the same day and join President Biden and first lady Jill Biden for a private engagement.

Prime Minister Modi will be accorded a ceremonial welcome at the White House on June 22, which will be followed by a formal bilateral meeting with Biden.

President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will also host a state dinner in honour of Modi on Thursday evening.

On Friday, the prime minister will interact with select Chief Executive Officers of leading companies. Later, US Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Bilnken will host a state luncheon.

Prime Minister Modi will also address the Indian-American community at the Reagan Centre.

"It is a milestone in our relationship. It is a very significant visit, a very important visit, a visit on which there is a genuine, widespread and deep interest in the US," Kwatra said, adding that Modi has visited the US six times since 2014.

On planned protests against Modi's visit to the US, Kwatra said India viewed the visit from a very different frame of reference.

“We sense deep and widespread positive interest in the US on the visit. We are aware, evidence based, of the positive things we have done in the relationship.

"We are determined and targeted to move to the new domains of strategic partnership, which are crucial not just for partnership between our two societies, two countries, two systems, which would also be net positive contributors to developments in the world,” Kwatra said.

He said the extent of enthusiasm across the various cross-section of the US system was palpable.

“You can see it well spread in the pages of the media and determine what is the frame of reference in which the two systems are looking at the relationship,” Kwatra said.

On the situation in Myanmar, Kwatra said India’s position on Myanmar has always been clear and the US side was appreciative of it.

“Let us not forget we have a large border with Myanmar. Myanmar is our neighbour. The kind of framework in which we deal with our relationship in Myanmar is very different.

"We have continued with our extensive humanitarian assistance and development cooperation with Myanmar, even when the times that Myanmar was troubled, so to speak,” the foreign secretary said.

“Being a neighbour, we have always tried, we have wished and we make an effort in that direction so that the country remains peaceful and stable,” Kwatra said.

Basic Linux Command Cheat Sheet

Navigation

• cd [directory]: Change directory.
• pwd: Print the current working directory.
• ls [options] [directory]: List files and directories.
• mkdir [directory]: Create a new directory.
• rmdir [directory]: Remove an empty directory.
• cp [options] [source] [destination]: Copy files and directories.
• mv [options] [source] [destination]: Move or rename files and directories.

File Operations

• touch [file]: Create a new empty file or update the timestamp of an existing file.
• cat [file]: Concatenate and display the contents of a file.
• head [options] [file]: Output the first part of a file.
• tail [options] [file]: Output the last part of a file.
• less [file]: View file contents interactively.
• rm [options] [file]: Remove files and directories.
• chmod [options] [mode] [file]: Change file permissions.

File Searching

• find [path] [expression]: Search for files and directories.
• grep [options] [pattern] [file]: Search for text patterns in files.
• locate [file]: Find files by name.
• which [command]: Show the location of a command.

Process Management

• ps [options]: Display information about active processes.
• top: Monitor system processes in real-time.
• kill [options] [PID]: Terminate a process.
• killall [options] [process]: Terminate all processes by name.

System Information

• uname [options]: Print system information.
• whoami: Print the username of the current user.
• hostname: Print the name of the current host.
• df [options]: Display disk space usage.
• free [options]: Display memory usage.
• uptime: Show system uptime.

File Compression

• tar [options] [file]: Create or extract tar archives.
• gzip [options] [file]: Compress files using gzip compression.
• gunzip [options] [file]: Decompress files compressed with gzip.

Network

• ping [options] [host]: Send ICMP echo requests to a host.
• ifconfig: Display network interface information.
• ip [options]: Show or manipulate routing, devices, and policy routing.
• ssh [user@]host: Connect to a remote server using SSH.
• wget [options] [URL]: Download files from the web.

System Administration

• sudo [command]: Execute a command with superuser privileges.
• su [username]: Switch to another user account.
• passwd [username]: Change a user's password.
• apt [options] [command]: Package management command for APT.
• systemctl [options] [command]: Control the systemd system and service manager.

Conclusion

This cheat sheet covers some of the basic Linux commands for navigation, file operations, process management, system information, file searching, network-related tasks, file compression, and system administration. It serves as a handy reference for both beginners and experienced users.

Feel free to explore these commands further and refer to the command's manual page (man [command]) for more detailed information.

Happy Linux command line exploration!

Beginner's Guide to htop

Introduction

htop is an interactive process viewer and system monitor for Linux systems. It provides a real-time overview of your system's processes, resource usage, and other vital system information. This guide will help you get started with htop and understand its various features.

Installation

We are assuming that you are using ubuntu or debain based distros here.

To install htop, follow these steps:

1. Open the terminal.
2. Update the package list by running the command: sudo apt update.
3. Install htop by running the command: sudo apt install htop.
4. Enter your password when prompted.
5. Wait for the installation to complete.

Launching htop

Once htop is installed, you can launch it by following these steps:

1. Open the terminal.
2. Type htop and press Enter.

Understanding the htop Interface

After launching htop, you'll see the following information on your screen:

1. A header displaying the system's uptime, load average, and total number of tasks.
2. A list of processes, each represented by a row.
3. A footer showing various system-related information.

Navigating htop

htop provides several keyboard shortcuts for navigating and interacting with the interface. Here are some common shortcuts:

• Arrow keys: Move the cursor up and down the process list.
• Enter: Expand or collapse a process to show or hide its children.
• Space: Tag or untag a process.
• F1: Display the help screen with a list of available shortcuts.
• F2: Change the setup options, such as columns displayed and sorting methods.
• F3: Search for a specific process by name.
• F4: Filter the process list by process owner.
• F5: Tree view - display the process hierarchy as a tree.
• F6: Sort the process list by different columns, such as CPU usage or memory.
• F9: Send a signal to a selected process, such as terminating it.
• F10: Quit htop and exit the program.

Customizing htop

htop allows you to customize its appearance and behavior. You can modify settings such as colors, columns displayed, and more. To access the setup menu, press the F2 key. Here are a few options you can modify:

• Columns: Select which columns to display in the process list.
• Colors: Customize the color scheme used by htop.
• Meters: Choose which system meters to display in the header and footer.
• Sorting: Set the default sorting method for the process list.

Exiting htop

To exit htop and return to the terminal, press the F10 key or simply close the terminal window.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You now have a basic understanding of how to use htop on the Linux bash terminal. With htop, you can efficiently monitor system processes, resource usage, and gain valuable insights into your Linux system. Explore the various features and options available in htop to get the most out of this powerful tool.

Remember, you can always refer to the built-in help screen (F1) for a complete list of available shortcuts and commands.

Enjoy using htop and happy monitoring!

$ netstat -an | awk '/tcp/ {print $6}' | sort | uniq -c
     92 ESTABLISHED
      1 FIN_WAIT2
     13 LISTEN
   7979 TIME_WAIT

$ grep processor /proc/cpuinfo | wc -l
4

$ grep -r keep.*alive /etc/
/etc/ufw/sysctl.conf:#net/ipv4/tcp_keepalive_intvl=1800
/etc/nginx/nginx.conf:    keepalive_timeout     5 5;

$ free -m
             total       used       free     shared    buffers     cached
Mem:         14980       1402      13577          0        113        831
-/+ buffers/cache:        458      14521
Swap:

 $ uptime
 02:17:14 up 18:20,  1 user,  load average: 2.77, 2.39, 2.21

$ dstat
You did not select any stats, using -cdngy by default.
----total-cpu-usage---- -dsk/total- -net/total- ---paging-- ---system--
usr sys idl wai hiq siq| read  writ| recv  send|  in   out | int   csw 
 46   2  51   0   0   1|4432B   10k|   0     0 |   0     0 |4346  1870 
 51   3  46   0   0   1|   0    56k|2679k  191k|   0     0 |5130  2318 
 40   3  57   0   0   1|   0     0 |1566k  211k|   0     0 |4825  2141 
 46   2  52   0   0   0|   0     0 |1311k  136k|   0     0 |4606  1997 
 27   2  71   0   0   1|   0     0 | 234k  144k|   0     0 |3278  1693 
 23   2  76   0   0   0|   0   152k| 286k  123k|   0     0 |3094  1683 
 23   2  74   1   0   0|   0    28k| 146k  131k|   0     0 |3103  1576 
 30   2  67   0   0   1|   0     0 | 668k  177k|   0     0 |4023  2020 
 31   2  67   0   0   0|   0     0 | 326k  197k|   0     0 |4330  2273 
 23   2  75   0   0   0|   0     0 | 339k  121k|   0     0 |3020  1428 
 30   2  67   0   0   0|   0     0 |1930k  180k|   0     0 |4487  1947 
 38   3  59   0   0   1|   0    12k| 340k  155k|   0     0 |4403  1994 
 29   2  68   0   0   1|   0     0 | 187k  117k|   0     0 |3449  1729 
 35   4  59   2   0   1|   0     0 | 478k  314k|   0     0 |4415  2338 
 49   4  46   0   0   1|   0     0 |2263k  210k|   0     0 |5153  2289 
 49   2  49   0   0   1|   0    60k|2921k  118k|   0     0 |5063  1532 
 52   2  46   0   0   0|   0    24k|2823k  161k|   0     0 |4842  1740 
 72   2  26   0   0   1|   0     0 |2361k  141k|   0     0 |4715  1600 
 62   3  34   0   0   1|   0     0 |3414k  147k|   0     0 |5487  1863 
 48   2  49   0   0   1|   0     0 |1501k  117k|   0     0 |4211  1722 
 49   4  46   0   0   1|   0     0 |4675k  207k|   0     0 |5660  2286 
 46   2  51   0   0   0|   0     0 | 182k  169k|   0     0 |4178  2373 
 43   1  55   0   0   0|   0    12k| 172k  168k|   0     0 |3407  1843 
 29   2  69   0   0   0|   0     0 | 376k  175k|   0     0 |4013  2216 
 29   2  68   0   0   0|   0     0 | 613k  238k|   0     0 |4885  2628 
 25   2  72   0   0   1|   0     0 | 272k  215k|   0     0 |5105  3126 
 33   3  63   0   0   1|   0     0 |3692k  228k|   0     0 |5978  2397

$ cat /etc/sysctl.conf
# Avoid a smurf attack
net.ipv4.icmp_echo_ignore_broadcasts = 1

# Turn on protection for bad icmp error messages
net.ipv4.icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses = 1

# Turn on syncookies for SYN flood attack protection
net.ipv4.tcp_syncookies = 1

# Turn on and log spoofed, source routed, and redirect packets
net.ipv4.conf.all.log_martians = 1
net.ipv4.conf.default.log_martians = 1

# No source routed packets here
net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_source_route = 0
net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_source_route = 0

# Turn on reverse path filtering
net.ipv4.conf.all.rp_filter = 1
net.ipv4.conf.default.rp_filter = 1

# Make sure no one can alter the routing tables
net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_redirects = 0
net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_redirects = 0
net.ipv4.conf.all.secure_redirects = 0
net.ipv4.conf.default.secure_redirects = 0

# Don't act as a router
net.ipv4.ip_forward = 0
net.ipv4.conf.all.send_redirects = 0
net.ipv4.conf.default.send_redirects = 0


# Turn on execshild
kernel.exec-shield = 1
kernel.randomize_va_space = 1

# Tuen IPv6
net.ipv6.conf.default.router_solicitations = 0
net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_ra_rtr_pref = 0
net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_ra_pinfo = 0
net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_ra_defrtr = 0
net.ipv6.conf.default.autoconf = 0
net.ipv6.conf.default.dad_transmits = 0
net.ipv6.conf.default.max_addresses = 1

# Optimization for port usefor LBs
# Increase system file descriptor limit
fs.file-max = 65535

# Allow for more PIDs (to reduce rollover problems); may break some programs 32768
kernel.pid_max = 65536

# Increase system IP port limits
net.ipv4.ip_local_port_range = 2000 65000

# Increase TCP max buffer size setable using setsockopt()
net.ipv4.tcp_rmem = 4096 87380 8388608
net.ipv4.tcp_wmem = 4096 87380 8388608

# Increase Linux auto tuning TCP buffer limits
# min, default, and max number of bytes to use
# set max to at least 4MB, or higher if you use very high BDP paths
# Tcp Windows etc
net.core.rmem_max = 8388608
net.core.wmem_max = 8388608
net.core.netdev_max_backlog = 5000
net.ipv4.tcp_window_scaling = 1

$ 2>/dev/null sysctl -a | grep \
    'tcp_syncookies\|tcp_max_syn_backlog\|tcp_synack_retries'
net.ipv4.tcp_synack_retries = 5
net.ipv4.tcp_syncookies = 1
net.ipv4.tcp_max_syn_backlog = 2048

Question: What might cause high number of TIME_WAIT?

Answer:

# This setting allows sockets reusing.
$ echo 'net.ipv4.tcp_tw_recycle = 1' >> /etc/sysctl.conf
$ sysctl -p /etc/sysctl.conf

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.run/post/7536

Author: Kalpit A Mankikar

Beijing hopes expansion in the American backyard will make dominoes fall

Media reports of a pact between China and Cuba to establish a facility on the island barely off the American coast to collect electronic intelligence and keep tabs on maritime activity has emerged as a new challenge to the United States (US) in its backyard. Reports suggest that the snooping facility in Cuba would enable China to spy on communication throughout America’s southeast part, which is home to several military establishments.

Monroe Doctrine to Mao Doctrine

The Biden administration’s initial flip-flop on the issue of the Cuban spy base amidst the Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to China for parleys, which seek to stabilise fraught relations, have churned domestic politics. Initially, the White House and Pentagon termed the news reports as inaccurate, but later the Biden administration portrayed the Chinese spy base as a “legacy issue” from the Trump era since the base had been in operation since 2019 and that the development had been discussed during the presidential transition. At a time when there is a bipartisan consensus in the US polity on the issue of China, the Republicans are not pleased with their rivals trying to drive home a point that the Grand Old Party was lax on the national security front. Congressman Mike Gallagher, chairperson of the House Committee on the Communist Party of China (CPC), has assessed the development as a bid by the CPC to alter the “Monroe doctrine into the Mao doctrine”, linking the flip-flops over the Cuban spy base with the recent overtures by the Biden administration to China.

The Biden administration’s initial flip-flop on the issue of the Cuban spy base amidst the Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to China for parleys, which seek to stabilise fraught relations, have churned domestic politics.

The Cuban-Chinese spy station row comes amid speculation of a Sino-US thaw. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is slated to travel to Beijing and London between 16-21 June. In China, Blinken’s agenda prominently features ways to manage relations with the People’s Republic of China and issues related to bilateral cooperation, which had come to an end since the US spy balloon incident. Gallagher has also posited that China’s spy station in Cuba, and Chinese involvement with governments in the region constituted an important challenge to the American sphere of influence. Naturally, these issues would gain traction as the US heads towards the 2024 presidential elections. However, the controversy comes at a time when there is increased engagement between governments in Central and South America and the People’s Republic.

Another Castro headache for America

Honduras, which established formal relations with China in March 2023, became the latest addition in a string of nations to sever diplomatic connections with Taiwan. And for this switch, Beijing pulled out all the stops for the state visit of Xiomara Castro, the first woman President of the Central American nation. Honduras is among the latest Central American nation to hop on to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) bandwagon. On 12 June, the two nations inked 19 bilateral cooperation agreements, including one on the joint building of the BRI. Sino-Honduran cooperation will cover fields like farming, economic and trade issues, education, science and technology, and culture. The China-Honduras business session on the sidelines of the Castro visit saw the participation of 200 delegates from both nations. Castro sought admittance to the New Development Bank, which has been promoted by the BRICS grouping, after visiting the financial institution’s headquarters in Shanghai. Significantly, she also visited a facility operated by Chinese telecom major, Huawei. Although the two nations formalised relations in March 2023, their negotiations on a free-trade agreement are near fruition. The pact will make it easy for Honduran products to access the Chinese market, and facilitate Chinese companies to invest in sensitive sectors like infrastructure, energy, and telecommunications. At a time when nations like India and the US have been trying to highlight China’s strategy of entrapping small states through white-elephant projects in infrastructure, Xi Jinping’s signature initiative seems to have received strong endorsement in America’s backyard. Honduran Minister of Economic Development Fredis Cerrato rebutting the “debt trap” narrative, saying that BRI would improve people’s living conditions, is a propaganda coup by Beijing in Washington’s backyard.

At a time when nations like India and the US have been trying to highlight China’s strategy of entrapping small states through white-elephant projects in infrastructure, Xi Jinping’s signature initiative seems to have received strong endorsement in America’s backyard.

Dominoes fall

The Monroe Doctrine, one of the principal foreign policy tenets espoused by former US President James Monroe, forbade foreign intervention in the Western Hemisphere. It cemented the notion that the region was effectively in the American sphere of influence. America has forcefully intervened in the past to thwart foreign powers from spreading their influence in its backyard in the past. At the height of Cold War 1.0 in the 1960s, Cuba had been at the centre of great power contestation. Shortly after Fidel Castro deposed Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista and established a Communist beachhead off the American coast in the late 1950s, a Democrat John F Kennedy administration backed an attempt by émigrés to grab power, which was known as the Bay of Pigs incident. The US and the Soviet Union were on the brink of nuclear war after the latter positioned nuclear-capable missiles in Cuba, forcing a naval blockade of the island known as the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. In the original Cold War, there was a notion of the ‘domino theory’ that nations neighbouring a state where a communist regime had been installed would quickly fall like dominoes.

Today, we are witnessing a reverse-domino effect in Cold War 2.0, with nations in America’s backyard falling to China’s economic statecraft. According to Beijing’s strategists, Honduras may veritably be the domino in the Americas with respect to China’s inroads in the region. Recently, Argentina and China signed an agreement on promoting BRI, improving cooperation in areas like infrastructure, energy, and trade. Zhou Zhiwei from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences expressed hope that as BRI makes inroads, other nations in the region like Brazil and Colombia fall like dominoes to China’s juggernaut. Above all the Cuba and Honduras case studies serve as a pointer to the fact that if the US supports Taiwan, then China can make inroads in America’s turf. This is evidenced by Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang’s assertion in a recent call with Blinken that the US must respect China’s position on Taiwan and stop undermining its sovereignty.

Zhou Zhiwei from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences expressed hope that as BRI makes inroads, other nations in the region like Brazil and Colombia fall like dominoes to China’s juggernaut.

Cuba is a major inflection point in both Cold Wars as proxy conflicts are usually fought in countries away from the superpowers. The Soviet Cuban retreat signified its overreach, and now as the CPC has chosen to take the fight to America’s doorstep, all eyes will be on how it goes ahead. Again, in a sensitive political year as the US heads for election, the American electorate will be scrutinising the responses of the past and current Democrat administrations to gauge how they fared on the Monroe metric. In Asia, too, nations will closely follow Blinken’s Beijing sojourn, and how America deals with the dragon rampaging in its backyard to assess its primacy and resolve in taking on the China challenge.

Author: Kalpit A Mankikar

Beijing hopes expansion in the American backyard will make dominoes fall

Media reports of a pact between China and Cuba to establish a facility on the island barely off the American coast to collect electronic intelligence and keep tabs on maritime activity has emerged as a new challenge to the United States (US) in its backyard. Reports suggest that the snooping facility in Cuba would enable China to spy on communication throughout America’s southeast part, which is home to several military establishments.

Monroe Doctrine to Mao Doctrine

The Biden administration’s initial flip-flop on the issue of the Cuban spy base amidst the Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to China for parleys, which seek to stabilise fraught relations, have churned domestic politics. Initially, the White House and Pentagon termed the news reports as inaccurate, but later the Biden administration portrayed the Chinese spy base as a “legacy issue” from the Trump era since the base had been in operation since 2019 and that the development had been discussed during the presidential transition. At a time when there is a bipartisan consensus in the US polity on the issue of China, the Republicans are not pleased with their rivals trying to drive home a point that the Grand Old Party was lax on the national security front. Congressman Mike Gallagher, chairperson of the House Committee on the Communist Party of China (CPC), has assessed the development as a bid by the CPC to alter the “Monroe doctrine into the Mao doctrine”, linking the flip-flops over the Cuban spy base with the recent overtures by the Biden administration to China.

The Biden administration’s initial flip-flop on the issue of the Cuban spy base amidst the Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to China for parleys, which seek to stabilise fraught relations, have churned domestic politics.

The Cuban-Chinese spy station row comes amid speculation of a Sino-US thaw. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is slated to travel to Beijing and London between 16-21 June. In China, Blinken’s agenda prominently features ways to manage relations with the People’s Republic of China and issues related to bilateral cooperation, which had come to an end since the US spy balloon incident. Gallagher has also posited that China’s spy station in Cuba, and Chinese involvement with governments in the region constituted an important challenge to the American sphere of influence. Naturally, these issues would gain traction as the US heads towards the 2024 presidential elections. However, the controversy comes at a time when there is increased engagement between governments in Central and South America and the People’s Republic.

Another Castro headache for America

Honduras, which established formal relations with China in March 2023, became the latest addition in a string of nations to sever diplomatic connections with Taiwan. And for this switch, Beijing pulled out all the stops for the state visit of Xiomara Castro, the first woman President of the Central American nation. Honduras is among the latest Central American nation to hop on to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) bandwagon. On 12 June, the two nations inked 19 bilateral cooperation agreements, including one on the joint building of the BRI. Sino-Honduran cooperation will cover fields like farming, economic and trade issues, education, science and technology, and culture. The China-Honduras business session on the sidelines of the Castro visit saw the participation of 200 delegates from both nations. Castro sought admittance to the New Development Bank, which has been promoted by the BRICS grouping, after visiting the financial institution’s headquarters in Shanghai. Significantly, she also visited a facility operated by Chinese telecom major, Huawei. Although the two nations formalised relations in March 2023, their negotiations on a free-trade agreement are near fruition. The pact will make it easy for Honduran products to access the Chinese market, and facilitate Chinese companies to invest in sensitive sectors like infrastructure, energy, and telecommunications. At a time when nations like India and the US have been trying to highlight China’s strategy of entrapping small states through white-elephant projects in infrastructure, Xi Jinping’s signature initiative seems to have received strong endorsement in America’s backyard. Honduran Minister of Economic Development Fredis Cerrato rebutting the “debt trap” narrative, saying that BRI would improve people’s living conditions, is a propaganda coup by Beijing in Washington’s backyard.

At a time when nations like India and the US have been trying to highlight China’s strategy of entrapping small states through white-elephant projects in infrastructure, Xi Jinping’s signature initiative seems to have received strong endorsement in America’s backyard.

Dominoes fall

The Monroe Doctrine, one of the principal foreign policy tenets espoused by former US President James Monroe, forbade foreign intervention in the Western Hemisphere. It cemented the notion that the region was effectively in the American sphere of influence. America has forcefully intervened in the past to thwart foreign powers from spreading their influence in its backyard in the past. At the height of Cold War 1.0 in the 1960s, Cuba had been at the centre of great power contestation. Shortly after Fidel Castro deposed Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista and established a Communist beachhead off the American coast in the late 1950s, a Democrat John F Kennedy administration backed an attempt by émigrés to grab power, which was known as the Bay of Pigs incident. The US and the Soviet Union were on the brink of nuclear war after the latter positioned nuclear-capable missiles in Cuba, forcing a naval blockade of the island known as the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. In the original Cold War, there was a notion of the ‘domino theory’ that nations neighbouring a state where a communist regime had been installed would quickly fall like dominoes.

Today, we are witnessing a reverse-domino effect in Cold War 2.0, with nations in America’s backyard falling to China’s economic statecraft. According to Beijing’s strategists, Honduras may veritably be the domino in the Americas with respect to China’s inroads in the region. Recently, Argentina and China signed an agreement on promoting BRI, improving cooperation in areas like infrastructure, energy, and trade. Zhou Zhiwei from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences expressed hope that as BRI makes inroads, other nations in the region like Brazil and Colombia fall like dominoes to China’s juggernaut. Above all the Cuba and Honduras case studies serve as a pointer to the fact that if the US supports Taiwan, then China can make inroads in America’s turf. This is evidenced by Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang’s assertion in a recent call with Blinken that the US must respect China’s position on Taiwan and stop undermining its sovereignty.

Zhou Zhiwei from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences expressed hope that as BRI makes inroads, other nations in the region like Brazil and Colombia fall like dominoes to China’s juggernaut.

Cuba is a major inflection point in both Cold Wars as proxy conflicts are usually fought in countries away from the superpowers. The Soviet Cuban retreat signified its overreach, and now as the CPC has chosen to take the fight to America’s doorstep, all eyes will be on how it goes ahead. Again, in a sensitive political year as the US heads for election, the American electorate will be scrutinising the responses of the past and current Democrat administrations to gauge how they fared on the Monroe metric. In Asia, too, nations will closely follow Blinken’s Beijing sojourn, and how America deals with the dragon rampaging in its backyard to assess its primacy and resolve in taking on the China challenge.

Author: Prof (Dr) DK Pandey

Air Defender 2023 is a massive NATO exercise set to take place from June 12 to June 23, 2023. This is the most extensive live-flying exercise the German Armed Forces – Bundeswehr has ever conducted in more than four decades. In the airspace of Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic, approximately 250 aircraft of a number of nations will train for their Air Forces’ combined reaction capacity in a crisis.

Germany hopes to project a more assertive military stance by taking the lead role in the wargames, which were initially planned in 2018 in response to Russia’s invasion of Crimea four years earlier. Germany planned to serve as a ‘Multinational Air Group’ (MAG) framework country in 2018. The objective was to train and equip fully operational, large-scale aviation groups in tandem with NATO partners. The strategy called for completing a challenging MAG Exercise (MAGEX) session. This strategy developed the first core idea for a successful aerial exercise.

“Air Defender 23” is the NATO exercise that will include the largest deployment of air assets in the organization’s history. This exercise is a perfect example of the friendship among the NATO continents. With up to 10,000 participants from 25 nations and 250 aircraft, the German Air Force will oversee the air operations as part of the training exercise in European airspace. There will be 23 different types of aircraft participating in Air Defender 23, including F-35s from the United States and the Netherlands, AWACS surveillance planes from NATO and, for the first time, a Japanese Air Force transport plane. Since Operation Desert Storm in 1991 in Iraq, this will be the most extensive US Air National Guard (ANG) aircraft deployment.

Objectives

Air Defender 23 is a multinational exercise organised by NATO to strengthen the alliance and enhance cooperation among its troops. These activities will bolster the alliance’s capacity for global operations. NATO air forces will have to coordinate and work in unison to ensure “flight safety’’, which is a goal that poses significant operational challenges.

In a military crisis, the participating nations want to analyse their air forces’ response and cooperation. At Air Defender 23, participants will be able to evaluate their unified air response and work together to create standard operating procedures (SOPs) for use in times of crisis.

Participants

Various countries as far away as Japan, together with about 250 military aircraft (including B1 strategic bombers, modern F-35 jet fighters, and deadly long-range drones) are scheduled to perform 2000 missions.

The participating Air Forces are primarily from the NATO countries which include the United Kingdom, the United States, Japan, Germany, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey.

“Strength is the best deterrence. There is more to Air Defender 2023 than just deterrence.” Lt. Gen. Michael Loh, the head of the Air National Guard (ANG), stated. “The capacity and credibility of the forces to join together are being shown,” he claimed. The United States ANG has mobilised 100 planes and 2600 soldiers from 42 states. The war exercises will include areas as far-flung as the Baltic and Black Sea regions, which border Russia and as close as the United States and Germany.

Germany is in the driver’s seat and serving as the operations centre. The German Air Force, as the host country’s air force, has assigned 64 aircraft to the exercise; the following planes will take turns exercising above Germany alongside planes from other countries.

• German Eurofighters: 30
• German Tornados: 16
• German A400Ms: 05
• German A330: 03 (AARs for refuelling)
• German LJ35: 02
• German A-4: 02
• German light support helicopters (LUH) 145: 04

Exercise Settings

Air Forces participating in the Exercise will go through drills designed to replicate what might happen in a NATO Article 5 scenario—the collective defence of Alliance territory. As in the baseline scenario, if the enemy takes Rostock, NATO must defend the city under Article 5. The solution is to retake the port and other critical infrastructure, fortify city centres, and launch offensives. NATO’s eastern flank will be practising over Lithuania, Romania, Poland, and the Czech Republic. Europe’s air defences have an air defence gap, and the Allied air forces will train to fill it. Jet fighters will defend against Russian-simulated missile and drone attacks.

Fighter planes from the Luftwaffe and other countries will be stationed at six German locations throughout the Exercise. Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony, Saarland, Brandenburg, Berlin, and Saxony are the other six locations.

Fighter planes and other aircraft will presumably fly over Germany Monday to Friday, dividing the country into three flight corridors—north, east, and south. On weekends, there won’t be any exercise sessions. The airspace is restricted to military usage only during designated times for each flight corridor to ensure flight safety. As a result, certain passenger flights within and between European countries may be impacted by this restriction. The exercise will use altitudes between flight level 100 (about 2,900 metres) and flight level 660 (roughly 18,470 metres), with the exact height being determined by local conditions.

Contemporary air warfare requires high flexibility and adaptability to cope with various challenges. To effectively deploy ground troops, “air sovereignty” is necessary. Air sovereignty relies heavily on multi-role combat aircraft (MRCA). MRCAs will be used in various combat missions in Air Defender 23. MRCAs will be tasked with a wide range of duties throughout the spectrum of military operations. Combat police, air interdiction, counterattack strike, close air support, reconnaissance, and surveillance are all examples of these roles.

All the air forces in the NATO alliance will participate in this exercise to test and revalidate their combined operations and interoperability in realistic circumstances. “With Air Defender 2023, I intend to demonstrate determined Allied Air Power,” declared Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz, Chief of Staff of the German Air Force. The Luftwaffe, the USAF and our European partners will deliver a clear and strong message of credible deterrence in the air.”

Geopolitical Implications

The timing and geographical region of operations of NATO’s most extensive air exercise, Air Defender 23 is strategically planned. Within this window, a “counter-offensive” by the Ukrainians is possible. Ukraine has made evident that one of its key objectives is reclaiming all the land Russia took over in 2014. This would lead to returning to the border geometries in place as in 1991, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Russia is preparing for all possible outcomes which can emanate from Air Defender 2023 military exercises, which NATO is conducting. Russia has deployed 3,000 tanks it had been keeping as reserve. Locations include Murmansk, St. Petersburg, Belgorod, etc., in Russia.

The Indo-Pacific area is relevant to the exercise as well. By practicing rapid deployment in Europe and other regions, allied air forces can better safeguard NATO partners like South Korea and Japan. Climate change is a primary concern for environmentalists. Germans should prepare for noise, millions of litres of gasoline pollution, and airline cancellations and delays despite official claims to the contrary. Das Erste has reported concerns.

Conclusion

Air Defender-23 is a multinational air operation exercise that will take place in Europe. It would be the greatest air warfare operations exercise conducted by NATO since the organization’s inception. The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February of the previous year caused concern among the members of NATO and as a result, attempts to extend and strengthen the military alliance have escalated. Even though the exercise had been planned for years, it is slated to bring all NATO air forces to a common platform this year. The purpose of the exercise is to display NATO’s air power while also demonstrating the adaptability and responsiveness of Air Forces as first responders. Nevertheless, any escalation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict will harm the Global economy, food, and energy needs.