Philippines
-
Why Is China Building Islands in the South China Sea?
The BBC has published a multimedia report on the scramble for control over the South China Sea, with a particular focus on the clash between China and the Philippines. In the BBC report, entitled “China’s Island Factory,” reporter Rupert Wingfield-Hayes describes his journey on a Filipino fishing boat to visit “new islands” created by Chinese land reclamation in the South…
-
Beijing seeking to ‘change facts’ in South China Sea
“Millions of tonnes of rock and sand have been dredged up from the sea floor and pumped into the reef to form new land. There are cement-pumping trucks, cranes, large steel pipes, and the flash of welding torches.” These are the words of BBC journalist Rupert Wingfield-Hayes describing China’s construction activities at the Johnson South Reef in a disputed area…
-
China’s Island Factory
Ayungin Shoal, BRP Sierra Madre, China, Mabini Reef, Pagasa, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, South Johnson Reef, Spratlys, VietnamNew islands are being made in the disputed South China Sea by the might of the Chinese state. But a group of marooned Filipinos on a rusting wreck is trying to stand in the way. The boat pitches up and down and rolls from side to side in the heavy swell. The noise of the big diesel motor, just below…
-
Phl, Japan lawmakers call for rule of law in sea disputes
China, Diaoyu, East China Sea, Japan, Philippines, Rule of Law, Senakaku Island Chain, Smile Diplomacy, South China Sea DisputeMANILA, Philippines – Filipino and Japanese lawmakers signed yesterday a Joint Document for Cooperation on Promotion of the Rule of Law at Sea. Hiroshi Nakada led Japanese lawmakers in signing the document. The document reaffirmed the two countries’ valuable partnership and sharing of common values like freedom, democracy and respect for basic human rights, as well as their common goals…
-
China-ASEAN Relations: Hamstrung Soft Power In South China Sea? – Analysis
China’s multi-faceted relations with Southeast Asia is often hamstrung by Beijing’s hard line position on territorial claims in the South China Sea. Is it possible to isolate the maritime disputes from other aspects of the Sino-Southeast Asian relationship? By Lim Kheng Swe CHINA AND Southeast Asia are more intertwined than ever. Trade between these two regions is booming, and Chinese…
-
China’s Occupation on Disputed South China Sea Continues, Says Philippines Government
Calderon Reef, China, Gaven Reefs, Mabini Reef, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, UNCLOS, VietnamThe Philippines government has released a latest picture of reclamation work being done by China on one of the disputed Kennan [Chigua] reefs in the South China Sea. Obtained from intelligence sources in the government, the picture shows huge cranes, construction raw material, tin containers to be used as shelter for people and a cemented portion that the Philippines government…
-
China Seeks to Protect South China Sea Submarine Gateway
ADIZ, Air Identification Zone, China, Cowpens, East China Sea, Hainan Japan, Jet Fighters, Military Conflict, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, Submarine WarfareChina’s efforts to protect its submarine gateway to the South China Sea could broaden from standoffs with U.S. military planes to announcing an air defense identification zone, according to two retired army officers. China could seek to restrict the air space around Hainan Island as the U.S. routinely runs surveillance flights in the area, retired Colonel Yue Gang said. The…
-
China hastening work on reclamation projects in disputed waters–DFA
Albert del Rosario, ASEAN, China, Fiery Cross Reef, itlos, Military Bases, Philippines, Reclamation, South China Sea Dispute, Spratlys, Subi Reef, UNCLOSMANILA, Philippines – China is working double time on their reclamation projects in the South China Sea in order to complete their expansion agenda before the arbitration case is concluded, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Friday. “DFA Secretary Albert del Rosario has mentioned that these activities are now being hastened in anticipation of the arbitral decision and the…
-
Chinese naval push could affect global trade
Tensions in the South China Sea—scene of naval standoffs in the past year as China has pressed its smaller neighbors on the open sea—may seem far off to many Western investors, but any conflict in the region could affect the global economy. Coast guard vessels from China (rear) and Vietnam in a disputed part of the South China Sea near…
-
What China wants
Analysis, China, Diplomatic Relations, Domestic Policy, Economics, Foreign Policy, History, Military Upgrade, Oil Rig, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, USA, VietnamMATTHEW BOULTON, James Watt’s partner in the development of the steam engine and one of the 18th century’s greatest industrialists, was in no doubt about the importance of Britain’s first embassy to the court of the Chinese emperor. “I conceive”, he wrote to James Cobb, secretary of the East India Company, “the present occasion to be the most favourable that…