Monthly Archives: September 2018

A British warship got involved in a showdown with the Chinese military in the South China Sea

Following in the wake of the US Navy, a British warship recently challenged China’s claims to the disputed South China Sea, provoking a confrontation with the Chinese military and triggering outrage in Beijing, Reuters reported Wednesday. The warship HMS Albion, an amphibious assault ship carrying a contingent of UK Royal Marines and one of three […]

China furious at Britain over warship near disputed islands in South China Sea

China lashed out at Britain on Thursday for sending a warship close to disputed islands in the South China Sea, where Beijing has built military installations despite competing claims from other nations. The US and its allies have in recent times sent planes and warships to the area for “freedom of navigation” operations intended as […]

World View: Tensions Grow in Philippines as Duterte Turns Against China in South China Sea

Philippines President Rodrigo R. Duterte was taking office in 2016 at just about the time that the Philippines won a historic case in the United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague thoroughly humiliating China by ruling that all of China’s activities in the South China Sea are illegal and in violation of international […]

Second Thoughts?: Duterte and the South China Sea

In August 2018, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte did something unusual: he publicly criticized China. He asserted that China did not have the right to drive away aircraft and ships passing by its man-made islands in the South China Sea. He explained that no country can create an island and then claim sovereignty over the airspace […]

China has developed the world’s largest flying boat, and it could be used to ferry troops into the South China Sea

China claims to have successfully tested a new sea plane, purportedly the largest in the world, and while its primary purposes are firefighting and water rescue, this new aircraft could be used to advance the country’s ambitions in the disputed South China Sea. The AG600 Kunlong, a domestically-built Chinese aircraft roughly the size of a […]

DFA: WPS joint exploration deal will be legal

THE Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Thursday gave assurances of the constitutionality of a planned joint exploration agreement between the Philippines and China in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). In a news conference following the DFA’s 2019 national budget hearing, Foreign Secretary Alan Peter S. Cayetano said, “Rest assured that we are […]

Armada of US warships inches through South China Sea with Japan risking China’s fury

THE UNITED States risks infuriating China after American warships performed a military exercise in the hotly contested South China Sea with Japan. The Ronald Reagan Strike Group operated a gathering of its magnificent aircraft carriers on waters the Chinese are notoriously territorial about. Up to five ships were spotted in the waters and surrounding areas […]