News
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Duterte Should Visit Vietnam And Malaysia Before Visiting China
Before visiting his “friends” in Beijing at the end of this month, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte needs a strategy lesson or two on how to stop Chinese vessels from invading Philippine waters. And he needs a lesson on how to stop China from turning the Philippines into a modern day semi-colony. Duterte’s visit to Beijing comes at a time China…
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Vietnam demands Chinese ship leave disputed waters as end of fishing ban threatens to inflame tensions
Fishing boats prepare to leave port on Hailing island in south China’s Guangdong province on Friday. Photo: Xinhua Vietnam repeated its demand that a Chinese survey ship and its escorts leave contested waters in the South China Sea as Beijing’s lifting of a ban on fishing in the area threatened to raise tensions further. The presence of Haiyang Dizhi…
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Beijing starts military exercise in disputed South China Sea as tensions with Vietnam rise
China started a series of military training exercises near the Paracel chain of islands in the disputed South China Sea on Tuesday, amid growing tensions with Vietnam over the vital maritime trade route. Ships were prohibited from entering three locations in and near the Paracels from Tuesday morning until Thursday afternoon, according to three brief notices published on the Maritime…
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Has Xi Jinping Stirred a Backlash?
When relations between China and the West frayed in the wake of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping gave guidance that set Beijing’s course for several decades. “Hide our capacities and bide our time, be good at maintaining a low profile and never claim leadership,” he urged. As Deng and his successors opened China up to the…
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China warships in PH waters irk DND chief
Chinese warships crossing Philippine waters are an “annoying” matter for Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, who did not mince words about the latest challenge to Philippine sovereignty by China when he questioned the intention of these vessels. “I think this is not innocent anymore because this ha[s] been happening repeatedly,” Lorenzana said in an interview on Friday. “[They] can pass through…
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Chinese casinos near PH military camps worry DND
MANILA, Philippines—Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Friday (Aug. 16) raised concern over the location of Chinese casinos, also known as Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogo), which appeared to be too close for comfort to Philippine military camps in Metro Manila. “This is very concerning until such time I saw the map,” Lorenzana told reporters. “They are near,” he said. He…
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Observers See Duterte Making a Play for More Chinese Aid
Duterte, who made peace with China in 2016 by setting aside the dispute, said Aug. 8 that he would discuss with Chinese President Xi Jinping a 3-year-old World Court arbitral tribunal ruling in Manila’s favor and the prospects for a multicountry maritime code of conduct, the presidential office website says. China and the Philippines dispute sovereignty over parts of…
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Candor from Chinese ambassador surely hurts
IN a cacophony of stereotypes, two complement each other to nail the issue on the South China Sea once and for all: Truth hurts, and the truth shall set you free. I won’t need the advice of a former British prime minister to state my take on the recent pronouncement by Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Zhao Jianhua on the…
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China puts new weapons and warships through paces in live-fire drills near Vietnam
The Chinese navy is conducting a week-long exercise in the Gulf of Tonkin to test new warships and weapons, military experts said. The Maritime Safety Administration posted “no sail” notices for three parts of the gulf, warning vessels not to enter the zones because of live-fire drills. The exercises began on August 9 and are expected to end on Sunday.…
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Philippines Protests China’s Flotilla Of Militia Ships In South China Sea
The Philippines are beginning to show some resistance against the increasingly bothersome presence of Chinese militia ships in waters that everyone considers as belonging to the Philippines. The one country that is of a different opinion is, of course, China itself. The Chinese have over two million active military personnel and have the second largest defense budget estimated at about…
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Palace concerned over Chinese warship in Sibutu Strait
MANILA — Malacañang expressed concern on Thursday over a Chinese warship’s unauthorized passage through Sibutu Strait in the waters of Tawi-Tawi despite China’s assurance to maintain friendly ties with the Philippines. “We express concern with that kind of incident. Because if they keep on saying that we’re friends, I don’t think this is an act of friendship,” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador…
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South China Sea bombshell: Philippines in crisis over presence of fleet of warships
THE Philippines has spoken of its fear following the citing of five Chinese warships in its waters. Tensions between the two countries have risen lately with Philippine President, Rodrigo Duterte confirming that he will confront Beijing over its territorial dominance next month. In an added escalation to the tensions between the two states, the Philippine Government has expressed concern over…