News
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Destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer Sails Past Fiery Cross, Mischief Reefs in Latest FONOPS
Sailors man the rails aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108) as the ship transits along the coast of Valparaiso, Chile during a parade of ships on Nov. 19, 2018. US Navy photo. A U.S. destroyer conducted a freedom of navigation operation in the Spratly Islands today. Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Wayne E.…
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Philippine President Duterte says he’ll stand up to China – he might not deliver
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s pivot toward China will come under the spotlight as he meets Chinese President Xi Jinping this week. The Southeast Asian nation is a long-time ally of the U.S., but since Duterte took office in 2016, the Philippines’ ties with China have been warming. Duterte’s visit to China — from Aug. 28 to Sept. 1 —…
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South China Sea dispute to dominate Duterte’s China visit
Philippine president is facing pressure over what critics say is an increasingly close relationship with China. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will arrive in Beijing on Wednesday, in the run-up to talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. And it could be a tense meeting for China and the Philippines. Duterte says he is planning to raise their rival claims to territory…
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China might seize Scarborough Shoal, Spratly Islands as it develops missiles — think tank
MANILA, Philippines — China’s People’s Liberation Army might be encouraged to take control of the Scarborough or Panatag Shoal, as well as parts of the Spratly Islands, as the country grows its missile arsenal, according to an Australia-based think tank. The United States Studies Centre (USSC) at the University of Sydney warned that Beijing’s growing arsenal of long-range missiles…
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Maritime law expert: PH lost credibility with handling of S. China Sea arbitral victory
In this edition of #MattersofFact, a maritime law expert expresses doubts over President Rodrigo Duterte’s promise to raise Manila’s arbitral victory over Beijing in the South China Sea dispute during his meeting with Chinese president Xi Jinping this week. Jay Batongbacal, director of the University of the Philippines’ Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea, says while…
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Pentagon blasts Beijing for ‘bullying tactics’ in South China Sea
In an unusually strong statement by the Pentagon, the U.S. has accused Beijing of employing “bullying tactics” in the disputed South China Sea, citing what it said was “coercive interference” in oil and gas activities in waters claimed by Vietnam. “China will not win the trust of its neighbors nor the respect of the international community by maintaining its…
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China says US ‘maliciously hyping up’ South China Sea issue
BEIJING: China accused the United States on Tuesday (Aug 27) of “maliciously hyping up” the South China Sea situation and making warrantless criticism, after the Pentagon said China was carrying out “coercive interference” in waters claimed by Vietnam. A Chinese survey vessel on Saturday extended its activities to an area closer to Vietnam’s coast, ship tracking data showed, after…
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Philippine Hypocrisy And Double Standards Regarding Warship Passage Through Archipelagic Waters – Analysis
The recent passage of Chinese warships through the Sulu Sea generated an outburst of criticism by Philippine officials and pundits. Since February 2019, at least 14 Chinese warships including its aircraft carrier have passed through Philippines’ territorial and archipelagic waters in the Sulu Sea using the Balabac Strait -Sibutu Passage route in a manner that the Philippines claims violates…
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With Duterte’s visit, Manila will likely stop looking at rearview mirror
Whether Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who is scheduled to visit China from Wednesday to Sunday, will discuss the South China Sea issue with Beijing has caused quite a stir among some Western and Philippine media outlets. The interaction between China and the Philippines over the South China Sea issue in 2019 has seen interference by some in the Philippines and…
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Concessions from China difficult after PH shelved arbitral victory: analyst
MANILA – The Philippines may have lost credibility and valuable support for its arbitration win against China’s sweeping claims in the South China Sea after the government decided to shelve the victory for the past 3 years, an analyst said Tuesday. A United Nations-backed court in 2016 junked Beijing’s “historic rights” to nearly 90 percent of the waterway, but…
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Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines rejects arbitral ruling on South China Sea
Zhao Jianhua, Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines says they will not accept Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) on July 2016 or Arbitral ruling on South China Sea in a statement on Sunday, August 25. Zhao told, “We expressed that we will not accept it. We will not recognize that. That remains. Our position has not changed and we will not…
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A breakthrough in the South China Sea dispute?
Supreme Court Justice Antonio Carpio’s keynote speech at the Democracy and Disinformation conference in Davao last Friday presented the case against what he called “the fake news of the century,” the “disinformation of the millennium.” He was referring to China’s claim to almost the entire South China Sea, based on fraudulent, fabricated history. “This is the historical narrative of…