News
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The “strategic triangle” that would allow Beijing to control the South China Sea
In this March 29, 2014 file photo, a Chinese Coast Guard ship attempts to block a Philippine government vessel as the latter tries to enter Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea to relieve Philippine troops and resupply provisions. While the global economy will dominate at the summit of the Group of 20 industrialized […]
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Parting the South China Sea How to Uphold the Rule of Law
July 12, 2016, marked a turning point in the long-standing disputes over the South China Sea. After more than three years of proceedings at the Permanent Court of Arbitration, an international body in The Hague, a tribunal constituted under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) issued a widely anticipated decision in […]
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China and Russia to hold joint South China Sea naval drills as pressure rises from US
China and Russia will launch eight days of joint naval drills in the South China Sea on Monday, a move observers said underlined the growing partnership between the countries amid rising military pressure from the United States. The exercise off Zhanjiang, Guangdong province, would involve surface ships, submarines, fixed-wing aircraft, ship-borne helicopters and marines from […]
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International outlaw
As much as I want to refrain from criticizing China’s foreign policy, I feel I would be defaulting in my own little way if we let the bully destabilize the region because of aggressive action in the West Philippine Sea. Just because it’s more popularly known as the South China Sea does not give the […]
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‘Shelve sea dispute to save reefs’
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY—As the Philippine and Chinese governments fight for control over territories in the South China Sea, the sustainability of the waterway’s rich marine resources has become the silent casualty in the dispute, according to a marine expert. “A Scarborough [Shoal] peace park right now could be the foot in the door for the […]
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China narrows the South China Sea Is arming Southeast Asia with strategic impact weapons the answer?
Bharat Karnad analyses China’s strategy in the South China Sea, and proposes a regional military solution, leveraging the power of supersonic cruise missiles, to bring about a durable peace. China has gone some ways to obtaining by force a mere closum (closed sea) in the waters off Southeast Asia without meeting any real resistance to […]
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Reclaiming Scarborough Shoal China’s South China Sea strategy
A plan to reclaim Scarborough Shoal lies at the heart of China’s evolving military strategy in the South China Sea, Abhijit Singh writes. Is China about to reclaim the Scarborough Shoal? It is a question that has absorbed discussions in maritime circles recently. Speculation is growing that China might be planning to build a small […]
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China, Russia naval drill in South China Sea to begin Monday
China and Russia will hold eight days of naval drills in the South China Sea off southern China’s Guangdong province starting from Monday, China’s navy said. The exercises come at a time of heightened tension in the contested waters after an arbitration court in The Hague ruled in July that China did not have historic […]
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The Scarborough challenge
Last July, the Arbitration Tribunal in the Hague ruled that the waters around Scarborough Shoal lay within the Economic Exclusive Zone of the Philippines and that Filipino fishermen possessed traditional fishing rights at the Shoal. China has chosen to reject the decision and continues to keep Filipino fishermen out of the area. A think tank, […]
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Obama Puts South China Sea Back on Agenda at Summit
VIENTIANE, Laos — President Barack Obama put the long-simmering dispute in the South China Sea front and center on the agenda at a regional summit Thursday as it became clear that most of the other leaders gathered in the Laotian capital were going to let China off with a mild rebuke over its territorial expansion […]
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South China Sea: China building more islands?
The Philippines military this week released images of Chinese ships it said were capable of dredging sand around the Scarborough Shoal — a small but strategic reef and fertile fishing ground 130 miles (200 kilometers) west from the Philippine island of Luzon. Beijing has denied it is reclaiming land, saying that while Chinese coast guard […]
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US official defends China over PH claim of new island-building
ALARMING PRESENCE Chinese vessels are gathering at Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, raising fears that China is building another artificial island just off Luzon. DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL DEFENSE A US official said the United States had not detected any unusual Chinese presence and activity around Scarborough Shoal despite photos presented by the Philippines showing Chinese vessels at […]