As the Filipino and American governments formally signed the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) Monday, US Ambassador Philip Goldberg said that the forging of this latest initiative will greatly aid in the modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). “It (EDCA) will also support the shared goal of promoting the long term modernization […]
Baby steps, baby steps. Last week, some twenty Pacific navies meeting at the Western Pacific Naval Symposium in Qingdao agreed to what participants are styling as a Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES). CUES, like the Cold War-vintage INCSEA agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union/Russia, calls on mariners to forego provocative […]
Quần đảo Hoàng Sa or Paracel Islands include over 30 islets, sandbanks and reefs over a maritime area of around 15,000 square kilometres (5,800 sq mi) with less than 8 square kilometres (3.1 sq mi) of land. It had been under the administration of Vietnam since 15th century until ARVN forces were repelled by the PLA navy in 1974. […]
During his recent China visit, US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel reportedly got an earful from his Chinese counterpart and others on his country’s perceived meddling in regional affairs. While maintaining necessary courtesies during such visits, his Chinese hosts did not hold off from saying their piece. China’s Minister of Defence, Chang Wanquan, said that Beijing […]
KUALA LUMPUR: US President Barack Obama’s visit to Malaysia this weekend will provide assurance to Malaysia in terms of national security in regard to the territorial dispute over the Nine-Dash Line in the South China Sea, said the Jeffrey Cheah Institute on Southeast Asia. “It think it will bring us assurance on the Nine-Dash Line […]
The South China Sea has become the focal point of maritime disputes in Asia. Two of the claimants are China and Taiwan, while the other four—Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam—are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. While Asean as a grouping is not a party to the disputes, the organization has an […]
BEIJING—China, the United States, Japan and more than a dozen other Asia-Pacific countries have signed a naval agreement aimed at ensuring miscommunication between ships at sea does not escalate into conflict. The Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea, which was agreed Tuesday in the eastern port city of Qingdao, would reduce the potential for “situations […]
In his April 14 Forbes Magazine column, former Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew seems to justify China’s territorial expansionism in the South China Sea. “Much more is at stake than rocks and resources. China sees the South China Sea as one of its key interests. A rising China is asserting its position by claiming […]
(Reuters) – China will not “swallow the bitter pill” of ceding its sovereign rights to others, a senior military official told foreign naval leaders on Wednesday, as the country takes an increasingly assertive approach to guarding its maritime territory. “No country should expect China to swallow the bitter pill of our sovereignty, national security or […]
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, […]