News
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WIND IN THE SAILS: CHINA ACCELERATES ITS MARITIME STRATEGY
According to none other than Xi Jinping, if Beijing hopes to achieve “the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation” by the middle of the 21st century, it is necessary that it become a “maritime great power” (海洋强国). What does this goal mean to China’s leaders, and what are the implications of Beijing’s latest round of […]
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Why is Manila neglecting the Philippine-held islands in the Spratlys?
In its editorial, the paper draws attention to the decaying state of the Philippine-held islands in the disputed Spratly waters and calls for remedial measures. MANILA (PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) – President Duterte has a standard response to critics who point out that despite the government’s deferential stance toward China, it has virtually taken […]
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China’s ZTE Ceases Major Operations After U.S. Trade Ban
ZTE Corp. regards the next two weeks as crucial to resolving a U.S. blockade that’s brought its main businesses to a standstill and choked off revenue, signaling the potential collapse of one of the world’s largest makers of phones and networking gear. The No. 2 Chinese telecom equipment maker said Thursday it’s suspended all major […]
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Is the South China Sea Dispute a Foregone Conclusion?
The security temperature in the South China Sea (SCS) has ratcheted precipitously in recent weeks. On May 2, news outlet CNBC reported U.S. intelligence that China has installed anti-ship cruise missiles and surface-to-air missiles on three fortified outposts in the Spratly Islands. This deployment follows the installation in April of jamming equipment that disrupts military […]
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LOOK: China military aircraft, ships in artificial islands near PH
MANILA – China has deployed a military aircraft to a base it built on a reclaimed island in the South China Sea, photos from an American think tank released Wednesday confirmed. A Shaanxi Y-8 is shown in an airstrip in a base built by China on Subi Reef. Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative AMTI said the […]
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RE-ORIENTING AMERICAN SEAPOWER FOR THE CHINA CHALLENGE
As a seafaring state, America demands maximal access to the world’s oceans within the constraints of international law. Though seldom recognized, U.S. efforts to defend its interest in maritime freedom in the Western Pacific have been fairly successful. When the People’s Republic of China unlawfully draws “fences” around the sea, U.S. warships steam through the […]
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China’s Plan to Conquer the South China Sea Is Now Clear
Well, it was hardly surprising when the news came out: Beijing has based – permanently, perhaps – offensive weapons on the artificial islands it has painstakingly constructed in the South China Sea. These deployments cap a series of deceptions, increasingly belligerent military actions, and various illegal activities that have surrounded Chinese goings-on in the region […]
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Think tank warns: China deploys jet in SCS
CHINA has deployed a military aircraft to a base it had built on a reclaimed island in the South China Sea, photos from an American think tank released Wednesday confirmed. The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative published photos taken from April 28 showing a military aircraft, a Shaanxi Y-8, at Subi Reef in the Spratly Islands. […]
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Why Beijing is militarizing the South China Sea
Well, it was hardly surprising when the news came out: Beijing has based – permanently, perhaps – offensive weapons on the artificial islands it has painstakingly constructed in the South China Sea. These deployments cap a series of deceptions, increasingly belligerent military actions, and various illegal activities that have surrounded Chinese goings-on in the region […]
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Is Beijing readying its airstrips for a military build-up in the South China Sea?
Satellite images show transport plane on Subi Reef in contested Spratly Islands, just 12 nautical miles from Philippine island The presence of the Shaanxi Y-8 transport plane on a runway at Subi Reef in the Spratly Islands, as seen in satellite images taken on April 28, confirms that China has now landed military aircraft on […]
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Hanoi to Beijing: Pull out missiles
This latest surveillance photo shows China’s military outpost on Zamora Reef is almost finished. CNBC has reported that China has deployed anti-ship missiles and surface-to-air missile systems on Zamora and two other Philippine-claimed reefs. Vietnam has requested China to withdraw its weapons from disputed territory in the South China Sea, while security experts have urged […]
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Duterte’s PH rise visit ‘unfortunate’ – maritime expert
MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte’s planned visit to the Philippine Rise (Benham Rise) next week is “unfortunate,” a maritime law expert said. Jay Batongbacal, director of the UP Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea, said the continental shelf is not a hotly contested area and the government should instead work on asserting […]