News
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Philippines’ Duterte seeks alliance with China but defence officials warn of strategic threat
Since his ascent to power, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has overseen a remarkable shift in his country’s foreign policy, particularly towards China. The tough-talking Filipino leader, who is as notorious abroad as he is popular at home, has described China as a friendly and generous nation, a partner for national development and a potential military […]
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Beijing’s scariest tack yet in the South China Sea: projecting an aura of calm
This week Japan said it plans to send its most formidable warship on a three-month tour through the South China Sea. Observers waiting for an angry reaction from China—which claims nearly all of that sea and was mighty testy about it last year—were likely disappointed. Here’s what Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying had to […]
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Malaysia speaks softly in the South China Sea
While the Philippines and Vietnam have been vocal in their maritime disputes with China, Malaysia has taken a more reticent tack to its claims Malaysian foreign minister Anifah Aman said in a spirited speech this week to parliament that Kuala Lumpur does not acknowledge Beijing’s “nine-dash line” expansive claim over territories in the South China […]
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Carpio: Saying PH can’t stop China from building in Panatag pushes China more
MANILA – Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio took a dig Monday at President Rodrigo Duterte for saying he could not stop China from building on the disputed Scarborough Shoal also known as Panatag Shoal because it was too powerful. “The President is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, which are expressly tasked by […]
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Wenceslao: Wasted triumphs Sunda
CANDID THOUGHTS TRIUMPS at the international level are rare for a small country like the Philippines. But in 2012 and 2016, we did get two of those triumphs, historic ones if I may add. In 2012, The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) supported our contention that the 13-million-hectare underwater plateau […]
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China to build on disputed shoal in South China Sea
A team of navy personnel and three Philippine congressmen standing on a tiny rock in the Scarborough Shoal with a Filipino flag in protest at Chinese land grabbing AFP/Getty Images China is to begin construction work on tiny islands in the South China Sea which are claimed by several other countries in the region. Beijing […]
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China’s Most Important South China Sea Military Base
Near the picturesque city of Sanya, at the southernmost tip of Hainan Island, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy is methodically preparing itself for the next phase of power projection in the South China Sea. The site in question is the Yulin Naval Base, and it is shaping up to be the most strategically important […]
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China Fishing Moratorium Likely to Anger Neighbors
TAIPEI, TAIWAN — China’s plan to declare an unusually strict fishing moratorium in the contested South China Sea this year threatens to shake relations with its neighbors, despite dialogue in recent months, and might violate a 2016 world arbitration court ruling, experts say. The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture said in February it would impose its […]
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China’s Navy Will ‘Intercept’ and ‘Follow’ Military Vessels and Aircraft
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN) will continue to shadow foreign military vessels and intercept aircraft in the South China Sea, according to comments last week by a senior PLAN official. On the sidelines of the annual meeting of the Chinese National People’s Congress, Wang Weiming, deputy chief of staff of the Chinese People’s Liberation […]
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Philippines questions Chinese presence at Benham Rise
The undersea Benham Rise, or Benham Plateau, is considered the Philippines’ extension as declared by the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. Namria graphic MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) sent on Friday a letter to the Chinese embassy in Manila following reports on the presence of Chinese […]
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China’s Supreme Court extends its jurisdiction to cover all seas under its control, including South China Sea
In this July 8 photo released by the Xinhua News Agency, Chinese missile frigate Yuncheng launches an anti-ship missile during a military exercise in the South China Sea. | AP File Photo BEIJING: China’s Supreme Court has extended its maritime jurisdiction to cover all seas under the country’s ‘sovereign control’, as Beijing firmed up its […]
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Looks like the Philippines may start building in the South China Sea as well
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte announces the disbandment of police operations against illegal drugs at the Malacanang palace in Manila, Philippines early January 30, 2017. Picture taken January 30, 2017. REUTERS/Ezra Acayan Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte announces the disbandment of police operations against illegal drugs at the Malacanang palace in Manila Thomson Reuters Philippine President Rodrigo […]