On March 1, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated: “any armed attack on Philippine forces, aircraft or public vessels in the South China Sea will trigger mutual defense obligations under Article IV of our mutual defense treaty.” To many analysts, Pompeo’s statement appeared to be the most significant action the Trump administration has taken to […]

The country will develop an “island city” in the disputed waters. However, the Trump administration criticised their move to transform three islands into a “national key strategic service and logistics base,” the South China Morning Post reported. Senior policy analyst Jeffrey Engstrom revealed to Newsweek the project could raise tensions between China and the US. […]

Chinese friction with Philippines and Vietnam raises odds of miscalculation The USS Blue Ridge, the command ship of the U.S. Navy’s Seventh Fleet, sits anchored near Manila on March 13. The U.S. recently reiterated its pledge to defend the Philippines and keep the South China Sea open. © AP TAIPEI/MANILA — The chances of an […]

What happened? Warfare is tragic and unpredictable. Any difference in training, maintenance or secret capabilities of both navies — things we wouldn’t know until the shooting starts — could have decisively impacted the scenario. The year is 2016, and two of the U.S. Navy’s latest ships are backing a key ally in the tinderbox of […]

A US navy commander on Monday said China’s reported plan to exclude America from military exercises with Southeast Asian nations in the South China Sea is unacceptable and a violation of international law. Vice Admiral Phillip Sawyer, commander of the Japan-based US 7th fleet, the largest forward deployed maritime force in the region, said Washington […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Chinese bombers. Chinese hypersonic missiles. Chinese cyberattacks. Chinese anti-satellite weapons. To a remarkable degree, the 2020 Pentagon budget proposal is shaped by national security threats that acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan has summarized in three words: “China, China, China.” The U.S. is still fighting small wars against Islamic extremists, and Russia remains […]

“In vagueness lies the best deterrence,’’ Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin said as he commented on the almost seven-decade-old Mutual Defense Treaty with the United States during his joint press conference with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo after their meeting last week. Locsin said he was confident about the assurances given by Pompeo, and […]

Opposition Senator Leila de Lima on Monday urged the Duterte administration to heed United States Secretary Mike Pompeo’s and Malaysia Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s advice to be wary with its loan agreements with China. Doing so, de Lima said, would prevent the Philippines from falling into a debt trap, which may eventually lead to commitments […]

MANILA, Philippines — The U.S. Navy won’t alter its so-called “freedom of navigation” sail-bys in the disputed South China Sea and has pressed ahead with such operations despite a dangerous maneuver by a Chinese navy ship against an American destroyer, a senior U.S. Navy commander said Monday. Vice Adm. Phillip Sawyer, commander of the U.S. […]

In this what-if scenario, Beijing’s SCS war will bring ‘unimagined’ results. China’s claims of South China Sea (SCS) ownership are illegal, but Beijing’s hyper-nationalistic officials increasingly encourage its forces to attack U.S. Navy ships operating lawfully there. The People’s Republic of China (PRC) appears to be calling for war—a war it may well get. But […]