The United States moved to reassure its jittery allies in the Asia-Pacific that it has enough firepower to maintain stability in the region that has seen increased Chinese muscle-flexing in recent years. Admiral Scott Swift, the commander of the US Pacific Fleet, said that the US could increase deployment of combat ships, if necessary, and […]
After decades of operating legacy Soviet platforms, Vietnam’s navy is acquiring advanced new frigates from Russia and the Netherlands, capable new Russian diesel-electric submarines, and a host of modern anti-ship cruise missiles. The Philippines has nearly doubled its fleet of surface combat vessels in the last five years and is working to acquire two advanced […]
On December 7, 2014, China’s Foreign Ministry was authorized to release the “Position Paper of the Government of the People’s Republic of China on the Matter of Jurisdiction in the South China Sea Arbitration Initiated by the Republic of the Philippines.” Various explanations have been offered for this by media outlets both in China and […]
In the discussion of China’s intentions on its ocean frontier, little attention is paid to the evolution of the academic underpinnings of its policy, especially in the field of international law. When I was writing my 1998 book, China’s Ocean Frontier: International Law, Military Force, and National Development, there was really only one place to […]
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — An Arbitral Tribunal of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague will convene on Friday (July 10) to deliberate its jurisdiction over the Philippines’ case against China’s activities in the West Philippine Sea. Throughout the first round of arguments, the Philippine delegation explained to the five-member court that […]
The dispute over the strategic waterways of the South China Sea has intensified, pitting a rising China against its smaller and militarily weaker neighbors who all lay claim to a string of isles, coral reefs and lagoons mostly in the Spratly and the Paracel islands. Only about 45 of them are occupied. The area is […]
Indonesia is developing a plan to build a new military base in the South China Sea, according to local media reports. On Friday, the Jakarta Post reported that Indonesian officials are preparing a plan to build a new military base somewhere in the South China Sea, which has seen an uptick in tensions over competing […]
In the face of growing international condemnation for its building artificial islands in the South China Sea from which to project its military power in the region, China appears to have reduced itself into an island. From world leaders and international organizations to opinion writers around the world, China has drawn criticism for its massive […]
MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang yesterday rejected China’s renewed offer of bilateral talks to settle the West Philippine Sea dispute, saying only by engaging other members of the Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN) can any negotiation on the issue be acceptable. “The Philippine position is clear: the principle of ASEAN centrality should be recognized in accordance […]
According to American scholar Robert D. Kaplan, the South China Sea (SCS) has become “Asia’s Cauldron”. Some refer to the SCS as “unchartered waters”. All recent developments clearly indicate that the SCS has transformed into a dangerous playing field for global powers. During the 1970s, Southeast Asia was considered a“troubled” region as a result of […]