Vietnam
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Hard-headed realism needed in the South China Sea
Hopes of resolving the South China Sea’s bitter territorial disputes have once again proven illusory. Meeting in Myanmar over the week-end, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) shied away from backing the Filipino proposal for a freeze on destabilising unilateral challenges to the territorial status quo. Although this is typical of ASEAN’s limp diplomacy, […]
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China to build lighthouses on five islands in South China Sea
BEIJING: China plans to build a lighthouse each on five islands in the disputed South China Sea after it had completed the site surveys for the construction. According to state-run China News Service today, the islands are North Reef, Antelope Reef, Drummond Island, South Sand and Pyramid Rock. Drummond Island and Pyramid Rock are located […]
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China’s Epic Fail in the South China Sea
By whatever metric you choose, China’s recent oil-drilling adventure in the South China Sea was a disaster. No new oil will reach Chinese consumers, no new maritime territory has been gained and regional advantage has been handed to the United States. ASEAN solidarity has held firm and the positions of ‘pro-Beijing’ forces in crucial countries, […]
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Vietnam’s Communists Urged to Sue China
Dozens of prominent members of Vietnam’s Communist Party (VCP), voicing concerns over China’s actions in the South China Sea, are calling on their leaders to file a legal case against Beijing with the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea. The petition, obtained by VOA’s Vietnamese service, has been sent to the Central Committee, […]
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Vietnam buckles under Chinese pressure
Since China’s July 16 withdrawal of its HYSY-981 oil exploration rig from waters claimed by Vietnam, tensions in the South China Sea have momentarily defused. But Beijing’s months-long placement of the rig roughly 130 nautical miles from Vietnam’s coast presented the most divisive threat in years to Hanoi’s Communist Party leadership Hanoi showed itself to […]
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‘Maritime disputes could lead to war’
MANILA, Philippines—China’s maritime disputes with countries like the Philippines and Vietnam in the South China Sea are increasingly raising anxieties among their neighbors that the row could lead to armed conflict, according to a poll survey released by a US research group two weeks ago. A study conducted in 44 countries by the Pew Research […]
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China’s foreign policy faces acute challenges
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, China, East China Sea, Japan, Oil Rog, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, VietnamThe 18th Party Congress in November 2012 produced new leadership for China, but it did not produce much optimism for the future of China’s relationship with its East Asian neighbors or the United States. Chinese President Xi Jinping frequently refers to the “Chinese Dream,” or “the great resurgence of the Chinese nation.” Coinciding with this, […]
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US Should Help Vietnam Counter China’s Coercion
Last October, during a visit by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung promised to buttress “political trust” between the two South China Sea (SCS) claimants. Last week, while I was speaking at a conference in Da Nang, Vietnam where the Chinese were visibly absent, verbal accusations were flying both on land […]
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21st-century energy wars
Global conflicts are increasingly fuelled by the desire for oil and natural gas and the funds they generate. Iraq, Syria, Nigeria, South Sudan, Ukraine, the East and South China Seas: wherever you look, the world is aflame with new or intensifying conflicts. At first glance, these upheavals appear to be independent events, driven by their […]
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South China Sea: China’s Unfolding Strategic Blueprint For Full-Spectrum Dominance – Analysis
Analysis, China, Diplomatic Relations, Japan, Oil Rig, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, USA, Vietnam, WarSouth China Sea has emerged as an explosive regional and global flashpoint endangering the security and stability of the wider Indo Pacific region. This arises mainly from China’s propensity to use force to settle territorial disputes. Paracel Islands under full military occupation of China and Spratlys Islands under partial military occupation of China coupled with […]