IMOA
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The Real Attitude of the Chinese Communist Party Towards International Law
On February 17, 2014, the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights issued the 372-page “Report of the detailed findings of the commission of inquiry on human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” detailing the atrocities suffered by the North Korean people, raising allegations of Pyongyang’s crimes against humanity, and proposing […]
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How China Is Making Tiny Islands Inhabitable With Huge Floating Docks
The Spratly Islands are basically mounds of sand in the middle of the South China Sea, some of them barely tall enough to reach above the water. But China is hell-bent on making them inhabitable, even drawing up plans for floating energy and water plants. It has nothing to do with the islands themselves and […]
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Satellite photo shows Vietnam’s land reclamation in South China Sea
Satellite images captured by Taiwan indicate that Vietnam is pushing for land reclamation much harder than China in the disputed South China Sea, the Christian Science Monitor reported on Sept. 23. Wang Cheng-gi from the Satellite Surveying Center of the Department of Land Administration under Taiwan’s Ministry of the Interior, who is in charge of […]
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Will China follow PH arbitration case ruling?
UNITED NATIONS – “Can international law be a law when it can be ignored or broken by states without any consequence?” Philippine Ambassador to the United Nations Libran Cabactulan raised this question as he hosted a discussion at the UN on a topic closely related to the Philippines’ historic arbitration case against China on the […]
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India to supply Vietnam with naval vessels amid territorial disputes with China
India will soon be supplying naval vessels to Vietnam, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday, the first significant military transfer to Hanoi at a time when it is embroiled in a territorial dispute with China. The announcement came after Modi held talks with his visiting Vietnamese counterpart, Nguyen Tan Dung, during which the two […]
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China’s 5 Constitutions refute Beijing sea claim
China, History, IMOA, Justice Antonio T. Carpio, Maps, Philippines, Scarborough Shoal, South China Sea Dispute, SpratlysThis resumes Wednesday’s piece, “China’s Own Ancient Maps Disprove Beijing Sea Claim.” The article detailed 15 maps of China, 1136-1933, by Chinese officials and citizens. Their common feature: Hainan Island (ancient names Zhuya, Qiongya, Qiongzhou) always has been China’s southernmost territory. Supreme Court Senior Justice Antonio T. Carpio dug up the maps. They belie Beijing’s […]
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Why the US may go to war in the South China Sea
It is no secret that the South China Sea is an area of conflict and controversy, but understanding the interests and role of the United States in that region is not intuitive. The situation centers on competing territorial claims by China, Vietnam, Taiwan, Brunei, the Philippines and Malaysia over several sets of islands. Attempts by […]
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South China Sea Dispute: Top Beijing Diplomat Set for Hanoi Talks to Smooth Waters
China’s leading diplomat has arranged to visit Vietnam next week, five months since tensions between the two countries erupted over a territorial dispute in the South China Sea. Yang Jiechi will meet with Vietnam’s Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh on 27 October, China’s foreign ministry said in a statement, where the two will discuss “Sino-Vietnam […]
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David vs. Goliath in the South China Sea: The Philippines vs. China
China, Kalayaan Group of Islands, Military Presence, Pagasa, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, SpratlysIn a dramatic display of strategic naiveté, the Philippines decided (early-October) to suspend the repair and upgrade of its age-old airstrip on the Spratly island of Thitu (Pagasa to the Filipinos), among the biggest and most prized land features in the South China Sea, which can generate its own 200-nautical-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The […]
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Philippines pushes arbitration in China sea row
ASEAN, China, Code of Conduct, Oil Rig, Philippines, Reed Bank, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, UNCLOSMANILA, Philippines (AP) The Philippine president said Wednesday that the international arbitration Manila has initiated to challenge China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea and a legally binding “Code of Conduct” are the only ways to settle the long-raging disputes peacefully. The Philippines says that China has been intruding into its exclusive economic zone, […]