Author Archives: admin

US Navy warship closely sails off Mischief Reef

The US Navy carried out a freedom of navigation operation in one of China’s artificial islands in the South China Sea on Friday, news agency Reuters reported, citing US officials. The USS Mustin sailed 12 nautical miles off Mischief Reef (Panganiban Reef) in the Spratly Islands, a group of islands also being claimed by the […]

Philippines plans marine base on island near Taiwan to deter poaching

MANILA, March 22 (Reuters) – The Philippines will start building a marine base next month on its northernmost uninhabited island, near Taiwan, to boost defence arrangements and discourage poachers from its fishing grounds, a military spokesman said on Thursday. The two nations’ coast guard ships have confronted each other in the rich fishing waters where […]

Eastern Mediterranean starting to resemble disputed South China Sea

The eastern Mediterranean Sea has become a very busy place, and pressure abounds among coastal neighbors there. Governments are declaring exclusive economic zones (EEZs), but they overlap. States are granting duplicate licenses for natural gas exploration and drilling. Mammoth energy corporations and coastal states are signing hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of hydrocarbon agreements. […]

China is ramping up its presence in the South China sea — and it’s all about oil

While it’s no secret that China has been intensifying its building frenzy, including military installations on islands, reefs and inlets in the heavily disputed South China Sea, it is also becoming increasingly clear that Beijing is not afraid to draw a line in the sand over these mostly dubious claims. Late last week, while downplaying […]

Jakarta pushes for patrols by S-E Asian nations in South China Sea

SYDNEY • Indonesia has lobbied South-east Asian countries to carry out maritime patrols in the disputed South China Sea, claimed in most part by China, to improve security, Defence Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said yesterday. Indonesia said it is a non-claimant state in the South China Sea dispute. However, it has clashed with China over fishing […]

US, Japan Conduct Anti-Submarine Warfare Drill in South China Sea

The Carl Vinson Strike Group, led by the Nimitz-class nuclear-powered supercarrier USS Carl Vinson, kicked off a bilateral naval exercise that includes practicing joint anti-submarine warfare (ASW) operations with the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) in the South China Sea on March 11. The USS Carl Vinson and the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer […]

U.S. aircraft carrier and MSDF helicopter destroyer conduct joint exercises in disputed South China Sea

The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group has kicked off bilateral exercises with the Maritime Self-Defense Force, including one of the largest vessels in Japan’s fleet, in the disputed South China Sea, the U.S. Navy said Tuesday. The navy, which said the Vinson was on a “regularly scheduled deployment in the Western Pacific,” said […]