News
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China, US militaries in crunch talks to avoid conflicts in Taiwan and South China Sea
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Hawaii in mid-June.China’s Defence Minister Wei Fenghe and his US counterpart Mark Esper warned each other in a phone call about escalating risks over Taiwan and the South China Sea, in the highest-level US-China talks since state leader Yang Jiechimet Esper “expressed concerns about [the Chinese military’s] destabilising […]
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China risks paying ‘high cost’ for South China Sea intimidation, Japan defense chief says
Tokyo (CNN)China’s attempts to change the status quo in the South China Sea risks provoking a stern response from the international community, Japanese Defense Minister Taro Kono told CNN in an exclusive interview Friday. “Anyone who is trying to change the status quo by force needs to be forced to pay a high cost,” Kono […]
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China welcomes Philippines’ stance on South China Sea
BEIJING (Xinhua): China hails the Philippines for rebuffing attempts of some countries to incite tensions in the South China Sea, according to a foreign ministry spokesperson Wednesday. Spokesperson Wang Wenbin made the comment at a press briefing in response to a question on Philippine Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana’s recent remarks on the South China Sea […]
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China is NOT in possession of WPS
The July 12, 2016 arbitral Award that invalidated China’s nine-dash line claim to waters and resources in the South China Sea (SCS) categorically declared that China never controlled the SCS at any time in history. The Award expressly declared: “The Tribunal is unable to identify any evidence that would suggest that China historically regulated or […]
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China-Australia relations hit crisis levels – PM admits WAR with Beijing possible
CHINA’S relations with Australia rest on a knife-edge after Prime Minister declared Scott Morrison declared war between the two was now possible. He has also called for an alliance of Indo-Pacific nations to combat the rising threat of China globally but also in the South China Sea. His comments came as former Australian Prime Minister, […]
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South China Sea: Beijing trains troops for US air attacks as military tensions intensify
The Chinese military has ramped up its combat-readiness as its air force prepared for potential US bomber raids. Recent air defence drills over the South China Sea saw Chinese pilots simulate a response to “two unauthorised aircraft entering China’s airspace”. Footage of the drill showed Chinese pilots ordering the “foreign plane” in English to “leave […]
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China Conducts Mock South China Sea Bombing Drills Amid U.S. Tensions
Chinese fighter jets and bombers have completed a series of combat readiness exercises in the disputed South China Sea, as Beijing continues to assert its dominance over an area that has become a tense flashpoint in the brewing Sino-U.S. confrontation. Three of China’s five main military regions launched air combat readiness exercises, according to The […]
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South China Sea shock: Chinese officer sensationally claims Trump wants to start war
The US has increased in military presence and freedom of navigation operations in the contested region and called on other nations to counter China’s dominance. Last month, the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, issued an alarming warning to Beijing and called for other nations to counter against China. Writing on Twitter, Mr Pompeo said: […]
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Locsin to China: ‘What’s ours is ours’ as PH ‘sits out’ South China Sea naval drills
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines’ position on the South China Sea dispute stands: “What is ours is ours.” Such was the pronouncement of Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. after China welcomed President Rodrigo Duterte’s “standing order” to ban the Philippine Navy from joining maritime drills of other navies in the South China Sea. […]
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Duterte bans PH from joint maritime drills in South China Sea
SUMMARY President Rodrigo Duterte has banned the Philippine Navy from participating in joint maritime drills in the South China Sea, Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said on Monday, August 3. “President Rodrigo Duterte has a standing order to us, to me, that we should not involve ourselves in naval exercises in the […]
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China’s growing belligerence
What is China doing? In the past few months, Beijing has exploited the U.S.’s and the world’s preoccupation with the coronavirus pandemic to assert China’s hegemony throughout Asia. It has threatened or sunk boats from Vietnam, the Philippines, Japan, and Malaysia, and flown fighter jets into Taiwanese airspace eight times. It instigated a skirmish with […]
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China: how the West can counter the rise of an authoritarian superpower
On November 8, 2017, Air Force One touched down in Beijing, marking the start of a state visit hosted by China’s president and Communist Party leader, Xi Jinping. From my first day on the job as President Trump’s national security adviser, China had been a top priority. The country figured prominently in what President Obama […]