China’s DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missile has extended the attack range of the People’s Liberation Army Navy all the way to the Philippines, according to the US Navy’s first unclassified assessment report of the Chinese navy in six years. In The PLA Navy: New Capabilities and Missions for the 21st Century, released April 10, America’s Office […]
SINGAPORE — China is rapidly building coast guard ships, the vessels that China most commonly uses for patrols in the South China Sea, and in the last three years has increased the number of ships in that category 25 percent, a new report by the United States Navy says. China has the world’s largest coast […]
The April 9 editorial “ ‘Great Wall of sand’ ” asked the right question: “Why is China paving over these Pacific atolls?” The “why” is clear: to gain unchallenged hegemony in the South China Sea. And the threat is stark: The sea is a vital commercial and security link between the Pacific and Indian oceans. […]
Zhang Wenmu [张文木] is a major fixture of the Chinese foreign policy debate. Unlike many of his colleagues in the Beijing foreign policy scene, he does not frequent seminars and workshops with Western counterparts. He has remained noticeably apart from the “jet-set” of Beijing talking heads that are racking up thousands of airline miles with […]
MANILA – China’s land reclamation activities at Panganiban Reef, internationally known as Mischief Reef, could be its first step in gradually restricting the Philippines’ access to Ayungin Shoal and the Recto Bank in the West Philippine Sea. But for one analyst, the bigger objective of China is to put in place a “strategic triangle” in […]
(Reuters) – China’s plans for islands it is creating in the South China Sea show for the first time the scale of civilian architecture it will extend across the disputed waterway, entrenching its reach in the maritime heart of Southeast Asia, experts say. China’s Foreign Ministry gave rare detail on Thursday, saying reclamation and building […]
On Thursday, the the U.S. and Indonesian navies carried out a joint maritime air patrol in the waters around the Natuna archipelago. The patrol involved 88 personnel overall. The United States committed a P-3C Orion fleet comprising four ships and 21 personnel. In terms of Indonesian hardware, the Indonesian navy committed CN-235 and NC-212 short […]
Washington: The clusters of Chinese vessels busily dredge white sand and pump it onto partly submerged coral, aptly named Mischief Reef, transforming it into an island. Over a matter of weeks, satellite photographs show the island growing bigger, its few shacks on stilts replaced by buildings. What appears to be an amphibious warship, capable of […]
MANILA – The Department of National Defense (DND) on Thursday expressed deep concern over China’s reclamation project on Mischief Reef, one of the disputed areas in the West Philippine Sea. “It’s a major or critical concern. They have to dismantle it. It’s a concern not only for our country and region but for the whole […]
In the waters of the Pacific lies the area known as the South China Sea. The area, which can generally be described as the waters south of Hong Kong between Vietnam and the Philippines, is a mishmash of tiny islands — some little more than rocks — and competing territorial claims. China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, […]