News
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China’s Big Missile Defense Move in the South China Sea: A Game Changer?
Satellite imagery appears to confirm that China has nearly completed construction of new fortification that could be used to house advanced surface-to-air missiles batteries such as the HQ-9. According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, the fortifications are being built on Fiery Cross, Mischief and Subi Reefs. “Eight of these buildings are being…
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Report: China Nears Completion of Militarizing Island Chain
WASHINGTON — China is almost finished building military structures on its artificial islands in the South China Sea (SCS), Reuters reports, in a development that is sure to test the new Trump administration. Unnamed U.S. officials told the news service construction is almost complete on nearly two dozen structures with retractable roofs designed to house long-range surface-to-air missiles on the…
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U.S. Flexes Its Military Muscle Off China
As China flexes its military muscle in the South China Sea, the U.S. is responding with its own show of force that includes ships, fighter jets and submarines, as well as the test launch of nuclear-capable missiles. According to internal military reports reviewed by NBC News, almost every week brings another display of U.S. hardware in the waters off China,…
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Beijing cements South China Sea land grab with missile defense sites while the world awaits US response
New satellite photography from the South China Sea confirms a nightmare for the US and champions of free navigation everywhere — Beijing has reinforced surface-to-air missiles sites in the Spratly Islands. For years now, China has been building artificial islands in the South China Sea and militarizing them with radar outposts and missiles. The latest move seems to have been…
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China continues to militarize South China Sea—experts
WASHINGTON, D.C.: Recent satellite imagery appears to show China is completing structures intended to house surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) on a series of artificial islands in the South China Sea, a Washington think-tank said Thursday. According to images published by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, the structures are being installed on Fiery Cross Reef, Mischief Reef and Subi Reef in the…
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How to Stop China in the South China Sea Flight operations aboard USS Carl Vinson in January.
All eyes on Taiwan, America’s ‘unsinkable aircraft carrier’ China has once again raised the stakes in one of the world’s most fiercely contested waterways — this time, for the first time, on Donald Trump’s presidential watch. New satellite photos have revealed that China is building surface-to-air missile (SAM) facilities on Subi, Mischief, and Fiery Cross Reefs in the South China…
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South China Sea: Why Global Markets Ignore China’s Repeated Warnings
China is getting noisier and noisier in the South China Sea, sending warnings to every nation that challenges its ambitious agenda—to write the navigation rules for the world’ busiest sea trade route. Like a warning Beijing sent to Taiwan and the US last December in the form of a naval force demonstration, as a group of Chinese warships that included…
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US’ South China Sea naval patrols threaten sovereignty: Beijing
BEIJING, China yesterday said it opposed action by other countries, under the pretext of freedom of navigation, that undermined its sovereignty, after a US aircraft carrier strike group began patrols in the contested South China Sea. The US Navy last Saturday said the strike group, including the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier the USS Carl Vinson, had begun “routine operations” in the…
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China On Edge as U.S. Aircraft Carrier Exercises in South China Sea
The aircraft-carrier strike group led by USS Carl Vinson conducting naval and air operations in the South China Sea this week is the first challenge to Beijing’s expansive maritime claims to the waters since Donald Trump took office. The US Navy announced that the operations began on February 18, describing them as “routine,” while Chinese state media quickly called the…
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Proposed Changes to China’s Maritime Safety Law and Compliance with UNCLOS
Last week, Reuters reported that China is “considering revisions to its maritime safety law which would make foreign submersibles travel on the surface and report their movements to authorities when in China’s waters.” The news bulletin also reported that draft provisions would allow maritime authorities “to stop foreign ships entering Chinese waters if the ships are judged to be a…
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U.S. carrier group patrols in tense South China Sea
China’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday warned Washington against challenging its sovereignty in the South China Sea. The U.S. navy said the force, including Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, began routine operations in the South China Sea on Saturday. The announcement was posted on the Vinson’s Facebook page. The strike group’s commander, Rear Admiral James Kilby, said that weeks of…
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China Condemns Trump’s South China Sea Stance While Mulling New Maritime Law
China continued to react critically to the Trump administration’s emerging position on the South China Sea. Responding to a joint statement by President Trump and Prime Minister Abe that confirmed American support for Japanese administration of the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said that “Diaoyu [Island] and its affiliated islands are China’s inherent territory. . . We…