Taiping Island is the largest naturally formed island in the Nansha chain and boasts freshwater, a permanent contingent of Coast Guard Administration personnel and infrastructure like a hospital, airport and wharf. (Courtesy of CGA) President Ma Ying-jeou called for peaceful resolution of South China Sea disputes through negotiations April 14, urging proper recognition of Taiping […]
FILE – Filipino student activists set fire mock Chinese ships to protest recent island-building and alleged militarization by China off the disputed Spratlys group of islands in the South China Sea, in Manila, March 3, 2016. FILE – Filipino student activists set fire mock Chinese ships to protest recent island-building and alleged militarization by China […]
CORRECTION: A previous version of this post had attributed comments made by Justin Nankivell with the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies on April 14, 2016 to James Kraska of the U.S. Naval War College. The post as been amended to reflect the change. With the United States and the Philippines now conducting […]
The foreign ministers of the Group of Seven major countries are expected to take up issues in the South China Sea at their meeting in Hiroshima from Sunday, despite China’s opposition to such talks, a U.S. Department of State spokesman said Friday. Such issues are “important to the stability of the region, so I would […]
A forum held in Sydney last Saturday was billed as a chance to “clarify facts and standardise understanding” about the maritime territorial dispute to Australia’s north. An official news report of the gathering, written in Chinese and translated for the ABC’s AM program, said the aims of convening the forum “were to unify thoughts through […]
The Group of Seven industrialized countries (G7) Foreign Ministers have released a statement airing concern on the situation in West Philippine Sea and East China Sea. The G7 ministers – composed of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States (European Union is also represented in the G7) – noted China’s […]
SAN FERNANDO CITY, April 11 – The Philippine government expects an international tribunal hearing an arbitration case it filed to invalidate China’s claims in the South China Sea to issue a decision in the coming weeks. Department of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Charles Jose said the United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague will […]
Tensions in the South China Sea are rising, pitting China against smaller and weaker neighbors who all lay claim to islands, coral reefs and lagoons in waters rich in fish and potential gas and oil reserves. China’s recent construction of artificial islands complete with airstrips and radar stations, and U.S. patrols challenging Beijing’s vast territorial […]
An interview with Bill Hayton, author of The South China Sea: The Struggle for Power in Asia. This interview was previously published on the Young China Watchers’ blog and is reprinted here with kind permission. Young China Watchers is a global network of China-focused young professionals across nine chapter cities, engaging with the most pressing […]
The South China Sea has been at the center of tensions since Beijing decided to push its initiatives in the region. With more nations stepping up their claims and defenses, analysts say that China is working on a more robust strategy to claim the region. Will South China Sea eventually belong to China? Beijing has […]