News
-
Ahead of Drills in South China Sea, Chinese Foreign Minister Visits Vietnam
China and Vietnam agree to “cautiously handle maritime issues.” From March 30 to April 2, Wang Yi, China’s foreign minister as well as a member of the State Council, paid an official four-day visit to Vietnam. Officially, Wang was in Vietnam this time mainly to attend the sixth Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Meeting. But the disputed South…
-
Report: U.S. Navy could soon conduct drills in South China Sea
Hong Kong press reported Tuesday the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group anchored at Singapore port and may soon be deployed to the South China Sea. File Photo courtesy of United States Navy Sign up for our weekly Korea Now newsletter An exclusive report putting perspective on the week’s most important developments. April 3 (UPI) — The U.S. Navy could conduct…
-
Chinese air force holds drills over South China Sea, Western Pacific in ‘preparation for war’
H-6K bombers, Su-30 and Su-35 fighter jets were among the aircraft involved in the combat patrols and drills, and they also passed over the Miyako Strait, which lies between two Japanese islands, the air force said in a statement on Sunday. It called the exercises the air force’s best preparation for war. The air force did not say when or…
-
U.S. Destroyer Sails Near Chinese-Held Island
On Friday, as the U.S. and China sparred over trade and tariffs, the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Mustin conducted freedom of navigation operations (FONOPS) in proximity to Mischief Reef, a Chinese-occupied feature in the Spratly Islands. In a statement, a spokesperson for U.S. Pacific Fleet declined to confirm the specific operation. “We conduct routine and regular freedom of navigation operations,…
-
‘Serious harm to sovereignty’: Beijing angry after US destroyer sails near disputed islands
The passage of a US Navy destroyer near the Chinese-claimed islands in the South China Sea was a major political and military provocation against Beijing, the Chinese Defense Ministry has warned. The USS Mustin came within 12 nautical miles of Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands archipelago, known as Nansha Islands in China, Reuters reported Friday, citing unnamed officials. The…
-
US warship sails near disputed islands in South China Sea, officials say
WASHINGTON – A US Navy destroyer carried out a “freedom of navigation” operation on Friday, coming within 12 nautical miles or about 22 kilometers of an artificial island built by China in the disputed South China Sea, US officials told Reuters. Friday’s operation, a move likely to anger China. was the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as Beijing’s…
-
US Navy warship closely sails off Mischief Reef
The US Navy carried out a freedom of navigation operation in one of China’s artificial islands in the South China Sea on Friday, news agency Reuters reported, citing US officials. The USS Mustin sailed 12 nautical miles off Mischief Reef (Panganiban Reef) in the Spratly Islands, a group of islands also being claimed by the Philippines. The warship also “carried…
-
South China Sea: Vietnam ‘scraps new oil project’
The two countries had a tense stand-off in 2014 when China drilled for oil in disputed waters Vietnam has cancelled a major oil project in the South China Sea for the second time in a year, in the wake of Chinese pressure, the BBC has learned. State-owned PetroVietnam ordered Spanish energy firm Repsol to suspend a project off the south-east…
-
Philippines plans marine base on island near Taiwan to deter poaching
MANILA, March 22 (Reuters) – The Philippines will start building a marine base next month on its northernmost uninhabited island, near Taiwan, to boost defence arrangements and discourage poachers from its fishing grounds, a military spokesman said on Thursday. The two nations’ coast guard ships have confronted each other in the rich fishing waters where their exclusive economic zones overlap,…
-
Indonesia pushes for Southeast Asian patrols of disputed waters
SYDNEY – Indonesia has lobbied Southeast Asian countries to carry out maritime patrols in the disputed South China Sea, claimed in most part by China, to improve security, Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said on Friday. Indonesia says it’s a nonclaimant state in the South China Sea dispute, but has clashed with China over fishing rights around the Natuna Islands and…
-
Eastern Mediterranean starting to resemble disputed South China Sea
The eastern Mediterranean Sea has become a very busy place, and pressure abounds among coastal neighbors there. Governments are declaring exclusive economic zones (EEZs), but they overlap. States are granting duplicate licenses for natural gas exploration and drilling. Mammoth energy corporations and coastal states are signing hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of hydrocarbon agreements. Frequent maritime safety broadcasts are…
-
China is ramping up its presence in the South China sea — and it’s all about oil
While it’s no secret that China has been intensifying its building frenzy, including military installations on islands, reefs and inlets in the heavily disputed South China Sea, it is also becoming increasingly clear that Beijing is not afraid to draw a line in the sand over these mostly dubious claims. Late last week, while downplaying his country’s geopolitical ambitions, China’s…