News
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‘NUCLEAR TRIAD’ – US-China relations at breaking point amid fears of Beijing dominance
THE US has become fearful of China’s quest to be the dominant global force amid the country’s development of a “nuclear triad”, according to a new Pentagon report. The Pentagon has insisted Beijing is close to completing an elite cohort of being able to deliver a nuclear strike by land, sea and air. In a recent report from the…
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The Pentagon Reports: China’s Military Power
As Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Randall G. Schriver emphasized in his rollout remarks on May 2, 2019, “our annual report to Congress, which we refer to as the China Military Power Report… is our authoritative statement on how we view developments in the Chinese military, as well as how that integrates with our overall strategy.”…
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HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT: CHINESE EXPANSION IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
Beijing’s geopolitical moves continue to obfuscate its larger designs, surprise observers, and render the United States and its allies reactive. The prospect of a Chinese naval base in Cambodia offers a case in point. This issue — seemingly obscure and inconsequential to many observers — made the news in late 2018 when American Vice President Mike Pence raised it…
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China, Wary of US, Pushes to Accelerate Accident Prevention Deal in Disputed Sea
TAIPEI — China and Southeast Asian countries that dispute sovereignty over a strategic Asian sea aim to speed up talks toward a code of conduct that would lower the risk of accidents and help keep the U.S. government out of the fray. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said his country and a bloc of Southeast Asian states will “speed…
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Two US warships sail near islands in South China Sea, angering China
Washington: The US military says two of its warships have sailed near islands claimed by China in the South China Sea, a move that has angered Beijing at a time of tense ties between the world’s two biggest economies. The US guided-missile destroyers Preble and Chung Hoon travelled within 12 nautical miles of Gaven and Johnson Reefs in the Spratly…
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PH, US, India, Japan war ships passing through South China Sea
Navy ships of four countries wary of China’s growing military are conducting maritime exercises while passing through the South China Sea (locally referred to as West Philippine Sea), an area which is almost entirely claimed by China. Capt. Jonathan Zata, spokesman of the Philippine Navy, said that the decision to conduct maritime exercises came up during the discussion of commanders…
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US joins India, Japan and Philippines for South China Sea sail
The U.S. on Wednesday finished a weeklong sail through the South China Sea with India, Japan and the Philippines, a region fraught with tension amid disputed territorial claims, according to a Navy statement Thursday. The guided-missile destroyer USS William P. Lawrence joined the Indian navy destroyer INS Kolkata and tanker INS Shakti; Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force helicopter carrier JS…
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Will Xi Jinping Blockade Taiwan?
If Xi Jinping isn’t positioning himself and his nation to rectify the issue of Taiwan once and for all, then who will? Much is made of China’s obsessive need to “redress a national humiliation,” as a banner around a watch tower on the Great Wall trumpeted shortly before the handover of Hong Kong back to China in 1997. The humiliation…
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China, Russia Conduct First Joint Live-Fire Missile Exercise at Sea
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) and Russian Navy for the first time conducted a joint sea-based live-fire air defense exercise involving two surface combatants on May 4, according to Chinese media reports. The Global Times reports that the air defense drill involved the launch of surface-to-air missiles against mock anti-ship cruise missile targets. “Upon their approaches, the…
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SPECIAL BRIEFING: TRUMP THROWS DOWN THE GAUNTLET
This is an OZY Special Briefing, an extension of the Presidential Daily Brief. The Special Briefing tells you what you need to know about an important issue, individual or story that is making news. Each one serves up an interesting selection of facts, opinions, images and videos in order to catch you up and vault you ahead. What happened?…
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A U.S. Ally Is Turning to China to ‘Build, Build, Build’
CLARK, Philippines—Vince Dizon makes sure his guests take in the view from his ninth-story office before they leave. A set of windows looks out over a hazy, expansive airfield that was the center of the United States’ largest overseas military base, until it was handed back to the Philippines in 1991. The concrete skeleton of a new commercial-airline terminal…
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Strong Chinese navy guarantee of South China Sea peace
May 6, two US warships trespassed in the adjacent waters of Nanxun Jiao and Chigua Jiao of China’s Nansha Islands without the Chinese government’s permission. This was the third provocation this year by US warships in the South China Sea. Every time it was carried out under the banner of the so-called freedom of navigation. No matter how many…