It is official: Our policy on the West Philippine Sea is the appeasement of China. This is confirmed by the statement of Foreign Secretary Alan Cayetano at the recent meeting of Asean ministers that “…South China Sea claimants will suffer if they are harsh on China.” What acts will be harsh on China will presumably […]

  (CNN)When it comes to the disputed waters of the South China Sea, Vietnam’s leaders must feel very lonely these days. Their fellow Southeast Asian claimants have either reversed course after years of escalating tensions with Beijing, or are keeping their heads down and letting Hanoi take up the fight.   In June, the Vietnamese […]

  MANILA, Philippines – Saying it is not about any particular country or about making a political statement, the United States has stressed that it will invoke freedom of navigation and challenge excessive maritime claims anywhere in the globe. In a recent press briefing in Washington, US State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said US forces […]

  To prevent conflicts and maintain order in the South China Sea, it is indispensable to lay down legally binding international rules. It will be difficult to achieve this objective as long as China, which is continuing its self-righteous maritime advances, takes the lead in discussions on this. China and the Association of Southeast Asian […]

  The world’s second-largest economy has been deploying disruptive technology that could strengthen its territorial ambitions in the South China Sea.   Late last month, Beijing dropped a dozen underwater drones, also known as unmanned underwater vehicles, in an unspecified location in the international waterway to carry out “scientific observations,” state-run media outlet Xinhua reported. […]

Beijing voiced displeasure on Friday after a US warship sailed near an artificial island in the disputed South China Sea, an operation that prompted the Chinese navy to warn off the American destroyer.   Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said the actions of the USS John S. McCain had violated Chinese and international law, “seriously” […]

  MANILA, Philippines — A U.S. warship sailed close to a Chinese man-made island in the disputed South China Sea, CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports.   Two Chinese frigates and a Chinese coast guard vessel shadowed the USS John S. McCain as it sailed in a freedom of navigation operation within 12 […]

  A Washington-based think tank has belied the claims of Philippine and China foreign ministers that Beijing has stopped its reclamation activities in disputed areas in the South China Sea.   “This is false,” the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (AMTI-CSIS) said on Wednesday, referring to Foreign Affairs […]

  The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain at sea in this 2010 handout photo courtesy of the U.S. Navy. REUTERS WASHINGTON – A U.S. Navy destroyer carried out a “freedom of navigation operation” on Thursday, within 12 nautical miles of an artificial island, Mischief Reef (Filipino name: Panganiban Reef) built up by China in […]

  China has for some years intensified its land reclamation, facility construction and defence installation in the South China Sea. Its contentious activities in the hotly disputed waters have unnerved rival claimant states and other countries such as the United States, Japan and Australia.   Yet, each time its island-building and militarization in the strategic […]