Artificial Islands
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A look at South China Sea conflicts
Airstrip, Artificial Islands, China, Fiery Cross Reef, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, SpratylsA couple of weeks ago, IHS Jane’s, a leading British publishing company specializing in military topics, reported that China was reclaiming land at Fiery Cross Reef in the South China Sea and transforming permanently submerged features that do not qualify as an island under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea into […]
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How to Steal the Sea, Chinese Style
In history, countries have sought to increase their territory by bribery, chicanery, coercion and outright force of arms. But while many have sought to dominate the seas, from the Greek city states to the mighty British Empire, none has ever, in effect, tried to take over an ocean or a sea as its own. But […]
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Vietnam-Philippines port call amid concern over China’s SCS airstrip
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Airstrip, Artificial Islands, China, Reclamation, Scarborough Shoal, South China Sea Dispute, SpratlysLate last week, an IHS Jane’s report corroborated claims that China was embarking on an island-building project in the South China Sea. Based on satellite imagery, Jane’s reported that China was building an airstrip-capable island on Fiery Cross Reef, a group of three reefs in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. China claims the territory as part of Hainan […]
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China’s Friendship Treaty: A Distraction from South China Sea Diplomacy
Artificial Islands, ASEAN, China, Code of Conduct, Japan, Philippines, Reclamation, Silk Road, South China Sea Dispute, VietnamAs China once again offers ASEAN states billions of dollars and promotes another treaty for “Good Neighborly and Friendly Cooperation” (which sounds an awful lot like the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation), Southeast Asian nations should consider how China perceives ASEAN and what goals it hopes to gain from its interactions with the bloc. By […]
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PH helpless in stopping China’s reclamation work in disputed seas
MANILA, Philippines—Several months after China was first found to be conducting reclamation activities in a reef in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippines has been helpless in stopping the Asian giant from doing nearly all it wants in the disputed region. The latest of China’s reclamation projects is on Fiery Cross Reef, which China calls […]
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China strengthening claim to South China Sea oil and gas
Not gone and not forgotten, China is ready to solidify its claim to the South China Sea (SCS). Recent satellite imagery confirms China is conducting significant land reclamation operations in the Spratly Islands in the SCS. The SCS is an important fishing ground and is believed to hold large amounts of oil and gas. Undermining […]
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Vietnam-Philippines port call amid concern over China’s SCS airstrip
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Joint Military Exercises, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, Vietnam, WarshipsIn what was the first ever port call between the countries, two Vietnamese frigates visited the Philippines on Tuesday. An unnamed Filipino naval officer said the two countries would hold peaceful joint patrols and operations in the Spratlys. But the timing of the maiden port call was clear. It coincides with the first anniversary of China’s declaration […]
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Victims Under the South China Sea
Artificial Islands, China, Coral Reefs, Ecology, Environment, Food Security, Philippines, Reclamation, SpratlysFiery Cross Reef, a tiny coral dot in the 1.4 million square miles of the South China Sea, wouldn’t seem the most obvious or ecologically sound location for a nearly two-mile-long airstrip. But based on satellite images released last week by Jane’s Defence Weekly, that’s exactly what China seems to be getting ready to build atop it. Such construction […]
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China defies U.S. call to stop island project in South China Sea
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USA(Reuters) – China on Monday hit back at “irresponsible remarks” from the United States which has called on Beijing to stop a land reclamation project in the disputed South China Sea that could be large enough to accommodate an airstrip. China lays claim to almost all of the entire South China Sea, believed to be […]
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US should stay out of S.China Sea land reclamation issue: PLA general
Airstrip, Artificial Islands, China, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USA“Stay out of it.” That appears to be the message of a general of China’s People’s Liberation Army, following reports the US urged China to halt land reclamation activities in the South China Sea. PLA Major General Luo Yuan told the Global Times that as China is constructing infrastructure on the reef, mainly to improve […]