China
-
U.S., Japan push for inclusion of South China Sea in defense forum statement
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAThe United States and Japan are pushing to get concerns about the South China Sea included in a statement to be issued after regional defense talks in Malaysia despite Chinese objections to any mention of the disputed waterway, officials said. A senior U.S. defense official said Beijing had made clear as early as February that […]
-
The Unintended Consequences of the US Freedom of Navigation Operations in the South China Sea
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAOver the course of the last several years, tension in the western Pacific has been building. Naval buildups and military modernization efforts continue apace, despite economic downturns. Deployment of ships and new aggressive actions by surface fleets continue unabated. Most recently, plans to spend billions of dollars building up islands that are far from the […]
-
How Far Did the United States Go with the Lassen Operation?
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAMuch of the coverage of the USS Lassen’s maneuver near the Subi reef in the South China Sea presented the operation as a challenge to Chinese maritime claims and island-building operations. But in fact there are two quite distinct legal issues at play. The first is the traditional U.S. interpretation of the right of innocent […]
-
The Diminishing Returns of Ambiguity in the South China Sea
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USANovember 03, 2015 798 22 2 0 822 Shares 19 Comments Last Friday, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled that it has jurisdiction over the Philippines’ submission challenging a number of China’s claims in the South China Sea. This judgment is not only procedurally significant, it is also substantively important because it arguably undercuts […]
-
How Is Malaysia Responding to China’s South China Sea Intrusion?
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Malaysia, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USASince 2013, a Chinese coast guard vessel has been defiantly anchored in Malaysian waters at the Luconia Shoals – which Malaysia calls Beting Patinggi Ali – in a vivid demonstration of Beijing’s growing assertiveness in the South China Sea (See: “Malaysia Responds to China’s South China Sea Intrusion”). The vessel is just 84 nautical miles […]
-
Two positive developments in West Philippine Sea dispute
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USATWO recent positive developments augur well for the Philippine strategy of seeking international arbitration in our long-simmering dispute with China over certain parts of the West Philippine (South China) Sea. But no matter how elating they are, our government should stop short of feeling any sense of triumphalism, lest it distort national perspectives and lead […]
-
Opinion: U.N. Ruling is Turning Point for Overlapping South China Sea Claims
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAThe United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration handed out a decision on Thursday that the Republic of the Philippines’ case against the People’s Republic of China regarding Law of the Seas violations can be heard. This long-awaited decision marks a turning point in the complex landscape of international legality as more maritime nations seek to […]
-
Bangkok can help Spratlys
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, Thailand, USAIt is said that every crisis presents an opportunity, and the turn of events in the South China Sea represents both — a crisis and an opportunity. The crisis is China’s development of islands and shoals within the Spratlys group, followed by last week’s US navy trip through the area. The opportunity is one that […]
-
China stiff-arms UN tribunal over territorial row
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USABEIJING — Responding to an international tribunal’s decision to take up a territorial dispute in the South China Sea, The Chinese government reiterated Friday its hard-line stance of boycotting arbitration efforts. The ruling by the Arbitral Tribunal is “null and void, and has no binding effect on China,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs […]
-
A big power game in South China Sea?
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, Artificial Islands, China, Militarization, Military Conflict, Philippines, Reclamation, Regular Patrols, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAIn a setback for China, the Permanent Court of Arbitration based in The Hague ruled last Thursday that it has jurisdiction to hear the case brought by the Philippines over disputed islands in the South China Sea. This unfavourable, albeit expected, ruling for China coincidentally took place a few days after Washington sent a guided-missile […]