Philippines
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Taiwan formula may settle sea dispute
TAIPEI: A Taiwanese official has called for a peaceful settlement of maritime disputes in the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea). Joseph S.C. Hua, director-general of Taiwan’s Department of Cultural and Educational Affairs at the Mainland Affairs Council, on Wednesday said Taiwan’s peaceful approach to resolving maritime disputes with Japan and the Philippines “can be applied in settling issues in…
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‘Stronger global action sought on China moves’
Artificial Islands, China, G7, Great Wall of Sand, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, USAMANILA – Stronger international action is needed to counter China’s rapid reclamation activities in the West Philippine Sea, Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said yesterday. Belmonte noted that statements of condemnation from global powers on the continued encroachment of China in the disputed waters have been ineffectual. “The whole world is unable, unwilling or afraid to help us, the US included,”…
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China opposes PH seeking ASEAN unity vs reclamation
Artificial Islands, China, Foreign Relations, G7, Mutual Defense, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea, USABEIJING, China – China on Monday said it opposed the Philippines seeking Southeast Asian unity to denounce its reclamation in the South China Sea, and hoped Washington and Manila, who have been conducting a military exercise in the disputed waters, do more to benefit regional peace and stability. Earlier on Monday, an official said Philippine President Benigno Aquino will ask…
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A Big Deal: China Reveals Its South China Sea Strategy
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, China, Code of Conduct, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, SpratlysConcerned nations should also demand that the Chinese pledge that they will refrain from using these new outposts for destabilizing and coercive conduct. This should include promises not to interfere with freedom of navigation and to forego establishing an ADIZ over disputed maritime areas. To make such commitments palatable to Beijing, they could be included in a Code of Conduct…
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Why China’s island building is so foreboding
Airstrips, Artificial Islands, China, History, Maps, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, SpratlysOver the past six months, China has gotten a little bit bigger. China’s expansion, which has amounted to less than two square miles of new land, is making waves not for how big it is, but where it is. Chinese engineers, with the help of barges and dredging machines, have been enlarging tiny reefs, sand spits, and islets in the…
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China ignores global outcry vs reclamation
MANILA, Philippines – Beijing shrugged off yesterday the expression of concern raised by the Group of Seven industrialized countries over threats to stability in the South China Sea and West Philippine Sea, saying China’s activities in the region – including its massive reclamation – are “beyond reproach.” On Wednesday, G-7 foreign ministers issued a Declaration on Maritime Security expressing alarm…
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Palace defends legal tack in sea row
MANILA, Philippines – There is nothing weak about taking the legal and diplomatic approach to push for the country’s claims in the disputed West Philippine Sea, Malacañang maintained yesterday. On Friday, Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares led a rally in front of the Chinese consulate in Makati City to protest China’s massive reclamation activities in the Spratly island group to…
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Prudent diplomacy best in handling maritime row
Airstrip, Artificial Islands, China, Diplomatic Relations, Justice Antonio T. Carpio, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, USAOur dispute with China over its claims on certain islets, reefs and shoals in the South China/West Philippine Sea may not be resolved soon. Of late, China’s aggressive unilateral acts have been making news – it has been frenetically undertaking land reclamations and construction in some of the contested maritime areas. This has spurred, besides protests from all the aggrieved…
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China building runway on disputed islands: reports
Airstrip, Artificial Islands, China, Fiery Cross Reef, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, SpratlysBEIJING — China is rapidly building an airstrip on an artificial island in disputed South China Sea waters, recent satellite pictures show, potentially ramping up tensions with several Southeast Asian neighbors. Fiery Cross in the Spratly Islands was little more than a reef when China began land reclamation works to turn it into an island in late 2014. Now satellite…
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China’s activities in South China Sea good for maintaining security, navigation freedom: ambassador
Artificial Islands, ASEAN, China, Code of Conduct, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea DisputeWASHINGTON, April 16 (Xinhua) — The Chinese Ambassador to the United States said Thursday that China’s buildup of its capabilities in the South China Sea provides public goods to all and “serves the interests of maintaining security, stability and freedom of navigation there.” In a keynote speech to the International Conference on China-U.S. cooperation in global security affairs, organized by…