News
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Shifting US policy leaves Asian allies at sea
Trump’s ‘America first’ attitude plays into China’s hands SINGAPORE — China has long bristled at the U.S. Navy’s “freedom of navigation operations” in the South China Sea, which challenge Beijing’s territorial claims in the disputed waters. So when Zhao Xiaozhuo, a senior colonel in the Chinese army, found himself with a chance to complain about them directly to U.S. Secretary…
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‘2 bottles of water for P3,000 worth of fish in Panatag Shoal’
Filipino fishermen from Zambales province confirm that China Coast Guard habitually takes their catch in Scarborough Shoal ZAMBALES, Philippines – Filipino fishermen from Zambales confirmed accounts that the China Coast Guard in Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal has been habitually taking their catch and paying them peanuts. The fishermen appealed to the government to put a stop to the practice. The military’s…
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China: ‘The US has launched a trade war’
US to impose $50 billion worth of tariffs on China The world’s two biggest economies are now at war over trade. China accused the United States of firing the first shot on Friday when the White House said that it would impose tariffs of 25% on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods. The announcement confirms a threat first made by…
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Duterte’s Immigration Agreement with China: Subversion by Numbers
A PLA Air Force (PLAAF) military transport plane (IL-76) in Davao City on 8 June 2018. Source: Philippine Plane Spotters Group (PPSG). “The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.” ― Sun Tzu, The Art of War On June 9, 2018 the Philippine Star published an article titled “More than 3 million Chinese allowed entry into…
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China criticizes ‘fickle’ Trump over tariffs
China’s Ministry of Commerce issued a highly critical statement on Friday calling on countries to take “joint actions” against the United States over President Trump’s actions on tariffs. The statement accused the Trump administration of being “fickle” and “provoking a trade war” by imposing massive tariffs on China. “This move is not only damaging bilateral interests but also undermining the…
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Why China ‘holds all the aces’ in a full-blown US-China trade war
On Friday the Trump administration announced it will impose a 25 percent tariff on up to $50 billion in Chinese goods in an effort to protect U.S. intellectual property and technology. The decision brought an immediate backlash from Beijing. China in retaliation said it will introduce taxation measures of the same scale and strength. As the world’s two superpowers inch…
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Drilon urges Duterte to review ‘appeasement policy’ towards China
MANILA, Philippines – Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon called on President Rodrigo Duterte and his administration to review the “policy of appeasement and accommodation on China,” saying it does not translate to better economic relations with the Asian giant. Drilon pointed out that Vietnam, which has been aggressive in asserting its rights over the South China Sea, has received more…
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Satellite images bare damage to Philippine shoal
MANILA, Philippines — Publicly-available satellite images show the considerable damage supposedly made by Chinese clam diggers in Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal since 2012, an international maritime law expert posted on social media yesterday. Jay Batongbacal, director of the UP Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea, shared satellite images taken from Google Earth that showed changes in the shoal…
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Carpio warns PH may lose right over Scarborough if it accepts China’s ‘goodwill’
Senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines Antonio Tirol Carpio answers questions from the Inquirer Multimedia Editors and reporters during the Meets Inquirer Multimedia program held at Inquirer office in Makati City. Justice Carpio’s personal advocacy is “to protect and preserve Philippine territorial and maritime sovereignty specifically in the West Philippine Sea. EDWIN BACASMAS/Philippine Daily Inquirer The…
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‘We do not concede’ fishing rights at Scarborough; Chinese actions, a ‘fish thievery’ – Palace
The Philippines is not conceding to China the country’s legal rights to fish on Scarborough shoal, Malacañang said on Thursday, even calling as “fish thievery” the actions of Chinese Coast Guard officers taking the catch of Filipino fishermen in the West Philippine Sea. “We do not concede,” Roque said in a Palace briefing after acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio…
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France challenges China by sending warships to South China Sea
France is increasing its military presence in the Indo-Pacific region, sending warships through the South China Sea and planning air exercises to help counter China’s military build-up in disputed waters. In late May, the French assault ship Dixmude and a frigate sailed through the disputed Spratly Islands and around a group of reefs that China has turned into islets to…
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Chinese missile launchers reappear on disputed South China Sea island
(CNN)A series of Chinese missile systems have reappeared on a disputed island in the South China Sea, days after satellite imagery appeared to show they had been removed. The initial discovery of their disappearance was made by ImageSat International (ISI) in early June, who provided images showing bare sand where previously there had been a large number of missile launchers.…