News
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China’s New Map: Just Another Dash?
ASEAN, China, Code of Conduct, Malaysia, Nine Dash Line, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, Taiwan, Ten Dash Line, UNCLOS, VietnamThe recent publication of China’s new national map – which both re-affirms its historical claims to the South China Sea and incorporates a 10th ‘dash’ in the East China Sea, near Taiwan – has created ripples in Southeast Asia and beyond. Since the 10th dash is not, in fact, new, there is less novelty to […]
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Manila: China set impossible conditions for visit
MANILA, Philippines — Philippine officials said Monday that President Benigno Aquino III canceled a trip to a Chinese trade fair after Beijing demanded that he first withdraw a legal complaint over disputed territories in the South China Sea. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and two other diplomats relayed conditions for Aquino to attend the annual […]
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History the Weak Link in Beijing’s Maritime Claims
Beijing’s claims to nearly all of the South China Sea are now embossed in new Chinese passports and official maps. Chinese leaders and foreign ministry spokespersons insist with increasing truculence that the islands, rocks, and reefs have been China’s “territory since ancient times.” Normally, the overlapping territorial claims to sovereignty and maritime boundaries ought to […]
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UN tribunal gives first order on Phl’s case vs China
MANILA, Philippines – The United Nation’s Arbitral Tribunal in the Hague has given the Philippines until March 30, 2014 to make all the necessary submissions in its case on the territorial dispute with China. The Arbitral Tribunal has issued its first Procedural Order, which establishes the initial timetable for the arbitration and adopting Rules of […]
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AFP: Up to 5 Chinese ships circling Panatag, Ayungin
MANILA, Philippines — Armed Forces chief Gen Emmanuel Bautista said 2 to 5 Chinese ships are circling the Ayungin (Second Thomas Shoal) and Panatag (Scarborough) shoals at any given time and some have gone as close as 2 nautical miles or about 4 kilometers to Ayungin. These are combinations of Chinese Maritime Surveillance (CMS) ships, […]
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China can help guide critical COC talks
Senior officials from China and ASEAN will reportedly focus on agreeing to a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea in Suzhou, China’s Jiangsu Province next month. Judging by official statements, China has always been stressing a gradual process to reach a COC. But the upcoming negotiations can be considered as a more […]
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Permanent Court of Arbitration Issuance on the Arbitration between the Republic of the Philippines and the People’s Republic of China: Arbitral Tribunal Establishes Rules of Procedure and Initial Timetable
The Arbitral Tribunal in the case brought by the Republic of the Philippines against the People’s Republic of China under Annex VII to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (“the Convention”), has issued its first Procedural Order, establishing the initial timetable for the arbitration and adopting Rules of Procedure. This follows […]
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MANILA, BEIJING, AND UNCLOS: A TEST CASE?
Introduction: International law and the South China Sea After a long summer replete with tensions and incidents in both the South China2 and East China Seas, the new year failed to bring renewed hopes for a peaceful resolution to the myriad territorial conflicts casting a shadow on the Asia-Pacific Region. Rather the contrary, renewed incidents, […]
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Power games in the region
Competing forces are at work over the enormous and dangerous problems in the South China Sea. On a positive note, Asean, after years of effort, has developed a code of conduct for the region. Their idea… Read more: http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/365432/power-games-in-the-region
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China’s maritime policy
I have written repeatedly about the need to resolve the West Philippines Sea dispute with China through litigation. At the time when the Department of Foreign Affairs was still debating internally on whether to submit the issue to arbitration or resolve it through diplomacy, I was already arguing that arbitration was the only option given […]
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China does best to dispel pact hope
Optimism over a relaxation of tensions in the South China Sea generated by China’s agreement to discuss a code of conduct with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) next month is rapidly dissipating in the wake of Beijing’s clear reluctance to reach an early agreement. In late June, when China and ASEAN agreed […]
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ASEAN vows unity on South China Sea – Thai official
ASEAN, Brunei, China, Code of Conduct, Malaysia, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, Taiwan, Thailand, VietnamBANGKOK – Southeast Asian nations on Wednesday vowed unity in pressing China to accept a binding code of conduct for handling disputes in the South China Sea, the Thai foreign ministry said. Competing claims to the sea have for decades stirred tension in the region and the waterway, which is believed to sit atop vast […]