Fueled by China’s growing assertiveness as a rising global power, tensions over territorial disputes have mounted in the Asia-Pacific region. In November last year, Beijing unilaterally expanded its Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) to cover most of the East China Sea, triggering a bitter dispute with Tokyo as the ADIZ also covers the airspace above […]
As China brings in a $1 billion oil exploration rig, parking it in a disputed region of the South China Sea and unleashing a deadly anti-China protest in Vietnam, nearby Southeast Asian neighbors appear relatively mute and impotent. Burma (also known as Myanmar), which hosted the meeting of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations, […]
The coincidence of the China-Vietnam tussle and the ASEAN Summit of 2014 re-focused discussions on the South China Sea dispute but failed to create a significant impact. The foreign ministers of the ASEAN countries issued a standalone declaration that called for “restraint by all parties involved in the maritime dispute and to avoid resorting to […]
MANILA—The Philippines said Vietnam was considering joining its challenge to Beijing at an international tribunal, the clearest sign yet the two countries could join forces over maritime disputes with China. Vietnam has “exhausted all dialogue channels” with Beijing, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung told the World Economic Forum in Manila on Thursday. “China not only […]
America tackles China’s assertiveness in the South China Sea from a legal angle, but the law it refers to is one the U.S. itself isn’t a party to. As Andrew Browne writes in this week’s China’s World column: In the contest for control over the South China Sea and its natural resources, China always has […]
General Fang Fenghui, the Chief of the General Staff of the PLA, arrived in Washington, DC today for formal meetings with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey. According to Dempsey and Fang’s comments during their joint press conference, they held extensive discussions on the military relationship, including counterterrorism, the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, […]
“What would America fight for?” exclaimed The Economist, as it cautioned the Obama administration against strategic retreat and neo-isolationism. It dismissed President Obama’s foreign policy as a cerebral doctrine that excuses inaction — one that is based on visceral recoil at confrontation and distaste for strategic gamble. It warned Washington about increasing doubt among allies, […]
China is downplaying an incident in which Chinese and Vietnamese vessels collided in a disputed area of the South China Sea, where Beijing has set up a state-run oil rig over the objections of Hanoi. Speaking Thursday in Beijing, Vice Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping declined to describe the incident as a “clash.” He also said […]
“IS this how the Philippines should deal with its powerhouse neighbor?” Former President Fidel V. Ramos raised this question in 2011 following conflicting reports on the dates of President Benigno S. Aquino’s state visit to China. But back then, relations between the Philippines and China were still in good shape. Hu Jintao was then the […]
President Benigno Aquino III will be clarifying the terms of support of the United States to the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea dispute during US President Barack Obama’s visit next week, Malacañang hinted Wednesday. At a press conference, Presidential Communications Operations Office head Herminio Coloma Jr. said Aquino and Obama will discuss defense, political, […]