Tag Archives: Scarborough Shoal

PH says China fired water cannon at fishermen in Scarborough

MANILA (UPDATED) – The Philippines’ military chief on Monday accused China’s coast guard of firing water cannon at Filipino fishermen for the first time to drive them away from a disputed sea shoal. General Emmanuel Bautista said Chinese vessels fired cannon on January 27 near Scarborough Shoal — the subject of a bitter territorial row […]

China planning permanent structures on Bajo de Masinloc?

MANILA, Philippines – China has maintained a continued naval presence on Bajo de Masinloc or Scarborough Shoal, which is widely seen as a preparation for the establishment of a permanent structure well within Philippine territorial waters in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). A confidential Philippine government report acknowledged that Beijing will use its […]

China Orders Foreign Fishing Vessels Out of Most of the South China Sea

China has ordered foreign fishing vessels to obtain approval from regional authorities before fishing or surveying in two thirds of the South China Sea, setting up the potential for new confrontations between Beijing and its neighbors over maritime sovereignty claims to disputed islands. The new orders went into effect Jan. 1 after they were issued […]

Study: Testimony before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Committee Hearing on China’s Maritime Disputes in the East and South China Seas

Peter A. Dutton Professor and Director China Maritime Studies Institute U.S. Naval War College This testimony reflects the personal views of the author and not the official views of the U.S. Navy or any other entity of the U.S. Government. Questions presented: What are the origins of China’s territorial claims in the East and South […]

Chinese vessels beef up patrols in West Phl Sea

MANILA, Philippines – Chinese surveillance ships and missile cruisers have increased the frequency of their maritime patrols in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), a senior maritime security official said yesterday. This came after a Chinese naval vessel came dangerously close to a US warship during a tense incident in the area last week. […]

China’s geopolitical weight is emboldening its territorial creep

China’s growing geopolitical heft is emboldening its territorial creep in Asia. After laying claim to 80 percent of the South China Sea, it has just established a so-called air defense identification zone in the East China Sea, raising the odds of armed conflict with Japan and threatening the principle of freedom of navigation of the […]

THE RULE OF LAW IN THE WEST PHILIPPINE SEA DISPUTE

(Publication Version) Speech delivered before the Philippine Bar Association 29 August 2013 Justice Antonio T. Carpio In the 17th century, England, Spain and Portugal, the naval superpowers of the day, claimed ownership of the oceans and seas they discovered, and enforced their claims through the barrel of the naval cannon. In 1609, Hugo Grotius, the […]

China should take more territory from Phl – Chinese general

That’s the so-called cabbage strategy that China is employing to stake its maritime territorial claims, and a ranking Chinese military officer says his country should take more disputed territory from the Philippines, The New York Times Magazine has reported. Quoting Maj. Gen. Zhang Zhaozhong of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, the Sunday magazine cover article […]

Philippines says China moving to occupy disputed reef

(Reuters) – China plans to occupy a disputed chain of reefs and rocks in the South China Sea to expand its territory before regional rules on maritime behaviour come into effect, the Philippines’ top diplomat said on Wednesday. The Philippines believes China’s incursion into the Scarborough Shoal is a threat to peace in Southeast Asia, […]

China’s not-so-great wall

Whatever happened to the much-heralded Chinese policy of a “peaceful rise”? While the other great powers lauded the awakening giant for the emphasis it placed on “peaceful,” China’s smaller neighbors noted with increasing concern its single-minded focus on “rise.” In Asia, the reality is clear and stark: The operative term in the famous Chinese policy […]