Despite Xi’s visit and repeated Chinese aid pledges, ties remain uncertain amid a domestic backlash Chinese President Xi Jinping’s recent trip to the Philippines should have left his hosts basking in the glow of reflected glory, the warmth of friendship and the satisfaction of opening up some big economic presents. But the Chinese leader’s Nov. […]

China and the United States appeared to put their South China Sea disputes on the back-burner when their leaders met on the weekend, a move analysts said was to avoid derailing discussion on trade. There was no mention of the disputed waters in statements released after the meeting, despite the two countries’ deep divisions over […]

China will keep talks going while strengthening its political, economic and military positions, rendering the South China Sea COC moot. China’s Premier Li Keqiang said last month Beijing hoped consultations with Southeast Asian nations on a code of conduct (COC) for the South China Sea would be completed in three years, so that it will […]

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has greatly increased its presence in the Taiwan Strait, part of the greater South China Sea, in response to the growing number of freedom of navigation operations (FONOPs) by the U.S. Navy, the South China Morning Post reported on Monday. The Post confirmed the news with the Taiwanese Defense Ministry, […]

MANILA, Philippines — Pointing out that China’s operation of weather monitoring stations in the Spratly Islands are not a cause of concern, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana admitted that the Philippines cannot physically verify such reports. On November 1, the Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed that Beijing started operating a maritime observation center, a meteorological observatory and […]

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang on Tuesday said flying inside the China-claimed territories in the West Philippine Sea to confirm the presence of its weather stations there may instigate armed confrontation. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said this after Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana admitted the government may never confirm if China has indeed built weather stations in […]

The Navy sent the USS McCampbell near Peter the Great Bay as the United States and Russia are clashing over a variety of issues. The Navy sent a guided-missile destroyer into Russian-claimed waters in the Sea of Japan in what it called a “freedom of navigation” operation on Wednesday. The operation comes as the United […]

Tokyo has lodged an official complaint with Beijing after a Chinese exploration vessel was identified operating in a contested part of the East China Sea, with analysts in Japan suggesting Beijing was “testing” Tokyo’s resolve. The Chinese ship was sighted in mid-November apparently drilling test boreholes into the seabed in search of oil or gas […]

  Despite warmer ties over the past two years, China’s maritime row with the Philippines did not escape discussion during President Xi Jinping’s historic visit to Manila on November 20 and 21. It was tackled in the context of dispute management, confidence-building and the pursuit of practical cooperation, however, reaffirming both sides’ commitment to the […]

HAWAII, USA – The international court was unambiguous about China’s illegal occupation of Mischief Reef, an underwater feature that Beijing has reclaimed to host a runway and a missile system, among other structures that neighbors are protesting. The 2016 landmark ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration said China violated the sovereign rights of the […]