Militarization
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Manila air-drops supplies to troops on disputed South China Sea reef
Manila: The Philippines air-dropped food and water to soldiers posted on a grounded transport ship on a disputed South China Sea shoal, after China blocked two supply ships from reaching the troops, a senior navy official said on Wednesday. Chinese ships patrolling waters around Second Thomas Shoal, known in China as the Ren’ai reef, on […]
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China claims it forced Philippine ships away from disputed shoal
China said on Monday that coast guard ships had driven away two Philippine vessels which had tried to approach a shoal in the South China Sea in the latest flare-up of a long-running territorial dispute. The Chinese ships were patrolling waters around Second Thomas Shoal, known in China as the Ren’ai reef, when they spotted […]
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China’s Military Modernization: Why It Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Means
The National People’s Congress is wrapping up in Beijing this week, but the final meetings are still attracting widespread attention. On March 11, Chinese President (and Chairman of the Central Military Commission) Xi Jinping attended a meeting of NPC delegates from the People’s Liberation Army. Interestingly, both Chinese and Western media focused on similar themes […]
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DF-21D missile could sink US aircraft carrier: report
The People’s Liberation Army Navy’s DF-21D anti-ship missile has a range of 2,000 kilometers and has the capability to sink a US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, according to the Hindu, an English-language Indian newspaper on Mar. 5, citing a recently published report. The report released by the National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bangalore states that […]
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US Freedom of Navigation ops in 2013 targeted PHL, China, Iran
WASHINGTON – The US military carried out freedom of navigation operations challenging the maritime claims of China, Iran and 10 other nations last year, asserting its right to use the seas in defiance of their restrictions, a Pentagon report said Thursday. The Defense Department’s annual Freedom of Navigation Report to Congress for the 2013 fiscal […]
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US, Japan to Jointly Develop Littoral Combat Ship
Amid escalating tensions between Japan and China, a 12.2 percent budget increase in China’s defense spending, and fears that budget cuts for the U.S. military could have a negative impact on the United States’ ability to “pivot” to Asia, U.S. and Japanese officials have announced plans to co-develop a new high-speed vessel capable of carrying […]
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China’s aircraft carrier leaves for tests, training
QINGDAO, March 2 (Xinhua) — China’s first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, Sunday left its homeport of Qingdao in east China’s Shandong Province on tests and training missions. The journey is the first of its kind for Liaoning in 2014 and is part of its yearly tests and training schedule, according to sources with he People’s […]
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Malaysia joins forces with Philippines and Vietnam against China in sea dispute
China, Diplomatic Relations, Foreign Policy, Malaysia, Militarization, Philippines, President Benigno Aquino III, South China Sea Dispute, USA, VietnamThe submerged reef would be easy to miss, under turquoise seas about 80 km (50 miles) off Malaysia’s Borneo island state of Sarawak. But two Chinese naval exercises in less than a year around the James Shoal have shocked Malaysia and led to a significant shift in its approach to China‘s claims to the disputed […]
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Over the past few years, China has steadily increased its assertiveness in the South China Sea. Its most recent claim to fishing rights over most of this territory has given other countries in the region cause to worry that China may soon try to implement an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) across the South China […]
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Indonesia to boost military in South China Sea
The Indonesian National Defense Forces (TNI) says Jakarta will increase its presence around the Natuna waters in the South China Sea as a preemptive measure to avert instability in the area. TNI Chief Gen. Moeldoko stated on Thursday that Jakarta will deploy additional forces and increase the presence of its army and air force around […]