June 2016
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Trial of the Century: Philippines vs. China in the South China Sea
In the coming days, an obscure arbitral tribunal, constituted under the auspices of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), is expected to issue a final ruling on the Philippines’ complaint against China’s expanding (military and civilian) footprint across the world’s most important waterway, the South China Sea. As I argue […]
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US warns China against ‘provocative actions’ if international tribunal rules against its sovereignty claims in South China Sea
State Department official says any ruling by the court in The Hague must be considered binding The United States has warned China against taking “additional provocative actions” following an impending international court ruling on the South China Sea that is expected to largely reject Beijing’s broad territorial claims. A senior State Department official voiced scepticism […]
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SOUTH CHINA SEA | INDONESIA VOWS MORE DECISIVE ACTION AFTER CHINESE SHIP SPAT
Illegal fishing vessel Viking, which was seized by Indonesia’s Navy, is anchored next to Indonesian navy ship KRI Sutanto before its sinking on the waters off Pangandaran, West Java Illegal fishing vessel Viking, which was seized by Indonesia’s Navy, is anchored next to Indonesian navy ship KRI Sutanto before its sinking on the waters off […]
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Hong Kong-Based Legal Organization Challenges S China Sea Arbitration
Weeks ahead of an expected decision by the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration on a legal challenge by the Philippines against China’s claims to the South China Sea, a Hong Kong-based institute has produced a 41-page legal document making the case that the dispute lies outside the court’s jurisdiction. The amicus curiae (friend of the […]
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China is threatening to leave a major UN sea treaty—and there’s nothing the US can say about it
Over 160 countries and the European Union have signed on to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos). The United States, however, has long declined to do so. Now, China has indicated that it might exit the convention if an upcoming ruling by an international tribunal runs counter to its questionable […]
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China’s militarization of the South China Sea: Building a strategic strait?
The UN arbitration court will soon rule on the case, brought by the Philippines against China, over who owns the Scarborough Shoal, located in the South China Sea (SCS). It is all but certain that China will reject the ruling, no matter what it says, because Beijing has already decided that the SCS is a […]
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Dozens of countries support China’s stance on South China Sea: FM
BEIJING, June 21 (Xinhua) — Dozens of countries have expressed support for China’s stance on the South China Sea dispute, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Tuesday. Hua at a regular news briefing rejected reports that only eight countries back China on the issue, saying, “I knew some Western media sometimes call black white […]
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Natuna Islands: Indonesia says no ‘overlapping’ South China Sea claims with China
On Monday, China’s Foreign Ministry said the two nations do not have any territorial disputes, but there were some overlapping claims on “maritime rights and interests”. But Jakarta has objected to China’s inclusion of waters around the Indonesian-ruled Natuna Islands within a “nine-dash line” Beijing marks on maps to show its claim on the body […]
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Traditional fishing: A game changer in the SCS?
Indonesia’s recent diplomatic protest to China over the resumption of alleged illegal trans-border fishing near the waters of the Natuna Islands marks a new episode of conflict management in the South China Sea. The scholar Ann Marie Murphy in 2014 predicted the unavoidable “game changer” in the South China Sea after Indonesia officially protested China’s […]
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US on offensive over South China Sea
Any day now, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague is expected to hand down its ruling in the Philippines case against China over its claims in the South China Sea. US Navy chief Admiral John Richardson said it wasn’t very often two aircraft carriers and their strike groups were sent to the same […]