November 2015
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Stand-off in the South China Sea
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAOn Oct 27, the US Navy destroyer Lassen conducted a freedom of navigation (FON) operation in the South China Sea within 12 nautical miles of an artificial island reclaimed by China on the Subi Reef. The United States took this action in order to defy China’s claim that foreign vessels must obtain permission from the […]
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‘Large’ Chinese military fleet flies near Japan islands: media
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USATOKYO – Japan scrambled jets after 11 Chinese military planes flew near southern Japanese islands during what Beijing said was a drill to improve its long-range combat abilities, reports said Saturday. The planes — eight bombers, two intelligence gathering planes and one early-warning aircraft — flew near Miyako and Okinawa on Friday without violating Japan’s […]
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China Defends Military Expansion In South China Sea
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAChina has defended its military expansion in the South China Sea and denied claims that it’s militarizing the artificial islands in the disputed South China Sea, according to USA Today. China vs. U.S. South China Sea Image source: Wikimedia Commons The comments come immediately after U.S. President Barack Obama finished his six-day Asian trip, during […]
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Why the US is reluctant to take on China
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAChina wants to use resources like these landing craft, pictured here parading through Beijing on Sept. 3. © AP TOKYO — Talks over China’s island-building projects in the South China Sea at Sunday’s East Asia Summit in Malaysia yielded no surprises. The U.S. and Japan expressed concerns about the new islands, and China defended their […]
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UN tribunal at The Hague to rule on rival claims to South China Sea islands
Philippines disputes China claim to sovereignty over Spratly archipelago, where Beijing is building military bases on artificial islands Rival claims to strategic reefs and atolls in the disputed waters of the South China Sea are to go before an international tribunal in The Hague. The hearing on Tuesday – prompted by the Philippines’ claim – […]
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PH: China ‘9-dash-line’ doesn’t exist
Philippine lead external counsel Paul Reichler (standing) confers with Solicitor General Florin Hilbay during round two oral arguments in the territorial dispute between the Philippines and China at the UN arbitral court in The Hague on Tuesday. The empty table is reserved for China, which has refused to participate in the proceedings. (Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN/Zoilo […]
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China: Philippines breached consensus by filing arbitration case
“Our position is crystal clear: we will neither accept nor participate in the arbitration,” Chinese Foreign Ministry Spoeksperson Hong Lei said in a press conference on Tuesday. FMPRC MANILA, Philippines – Beijing on Tuesday insisted that the Philippines breached the bilateral consensus between the two countries as it filed an arbitration case before the Permanent […]
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Philippines Presents Maritime Claims at the Hague
In a tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague on Tuesday, a delegation of nearly 50 lawyers and representatives for the Philippines gathered to present their case for territorial claims and usage rights in the South China Sea. The Philippine claims contest China’s assertion that it has sovereignty over waters surrounding its […]
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China’s ‘historical sovereignty’ over East Vietnam Sea is groundless: US expert
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, History, Japan, Militarization, Military Conflict, Paracels, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USA, VietnamThe “historical sovereignty” China claims over the East Vietnam Sea is baseless and thus Beijing should comply with international law, according to a U.S. expert. Dr. Patrick M. Cronin, senior director of the Asia-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, offered the remark when talking to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, rejecting […]
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New South China Sea Lighthouses: Legal Futility and Strategic Risk
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Lighthouses, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAInternational law can be viewed as either a tool or a weapon, depending on how it is wielded. On the one hand, the rules of international law outlining the range of legitimate territorial and maritime claims can provide an invaluable toolbox of objective standards for sorting out a way forward in what can often be […]