News
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Taiwan Suggests Code of Conduct for East China Sea
TAIPEI — China and Japan have tested each other’s patience for 18 months with claims to the same patch of ocean. Now Taiwan, a third but smaller claimant to the same area, is suggesting a code of conduct to avoid missteps or accidents. Taiwan normally gets little attention for diplomacy because of opposition from China […]
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Ex-Navy chief prods US to act on sea row
A retired Philippine Navy admiral has asked the United States to be more resolute in preventing China’s continued aggressive action in the West Philippine Sea and called on the international community to fight off illegal actions in the already tense-environment in the Asean region. Speaking at the Center for American Security Forum at the Willard […]
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Malaysia seeks hotline with Philippines on Sabah
MANILA, Philippines – Malaysia wants to establish a “hotline” between its security forces and that of the Philippines to prevent a repeat of the standoff in Lahad Datu, Sabah last year between over 200 Filipino militants and Malaysian troops. The Filipino militants, who called themselves the royal security forces of the sultanate of Sulu and […]
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China’s aircraft carrier leaves for tests, training
QINGDAO, March 2 (Xinhua) — China’s first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, Sunday left its homeport of Qingdao in east China’s Shandong Province on tests and training missions. The journey is the first of its kind for Liaoning in 2014 and is part of its yearly tests and training schedule, according to sources with he People’s […]
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Malaysia joins forces with Philippines and Vietnam against China in sea dispute
China, Diplomatic Relations, Foreign Policy, Malaysia, Militarization, Philippines, President Benigno Aquino III, South China Sea Dispute, USA, VietnamThe submerged reef would be easy to miss, under turquoise seas about 80 km (50 miles) off Malaysia’s Borneo island state of Sarawak. But two Chinese naval exercises in less than a year around the James Shoal have shocked Malaysia and led to a significant shift in its approach to China‘s claims to the disputed […]
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Taiwan Asserts Itself in East China Sea
Taiwan’s Coast Guard and Military held a simulated fire drill and patrolled in the East China Sea last week, even as Taiwan’s President continued to promote his East China Sea peace initiative. According to detailed press accounts in Taiwan’s media this week, last week Taiwan’s Coast Guard, Navy, and Air Force conducted combined patrols and […]
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Over the past few years, China has steadily increased its assertiveness in the South China Sea. Its most recent claim to fishing rights over most of this territory has given other countries in the region cause to worry that China may soon try to implement an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) across the South China […]
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Indonesia to boost military in South China Sea
The Indonesian National Defense Forces (TNI) says Jakarta will increase its presence around the Natuna waters in the South China Sea as a preemptive measure to avert instability in the area. TNI Chief Gen. Moeldoko stated on Thursday that Jakarta will deploy additional forces and increase the presence of its army and air force around […]
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Malaysia eyes security ties with PH
Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak is seeking a security hotline with the Philippines, a year after clashes between authorities and Filipino Muslims claiming sovereignty over Sabah state resulted to the death of at least 62 people. Najib met with President Benigno Aquino III in Putrajaya south of Kuala Lumpur on Friday, where they discussed the […]
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UNCLOS explained: Why China’s claims in South China Sea are invalid
MANILA, Philippines — With a little over a month before the Philippines submits its written arguments to the international Permanent Court of Arbitration, Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza publicly spoke for the first time about the basis of the Philippines’ case against China’s claim to nearly the entire South China/West Philippine Sea. “You need to have […]
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‘China action in sea row unacceptable’
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, China, European Union, Germany, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, UNCLOSMANILA, Philippines – A former president and the longest serving member of the European Parliament called China’s actions in the West Philippine Sea and South China Sea “unacceptable,” and said no power should be allowed to dominate in the region. Hans-Gert Pöttering, chairman of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) and member of the European Parliament representing the […]
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Long pacifist, Japan hones military skills
CAMP PENDLETON, California: In the early morning along a barren stretch of beach here last week, Japanese soldiers and US Marines practiced how to invade and retake an island captured by hostile forces. Memo to Beijing: Be forewarned. One Marine sergeant yelled for his soldiers to push into the right building, as his soldiers, guns […]