The US and China will hold a second round of high-level diplomatic and security talks in Washington on Friday in a show of willingness for the two sides to continue communications amid rising tensions in the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defence James Mattis will […]

A CHINESE naval commander warned a US warship those on board would “suffer consequences” if it did not change course in the run-up to a near-miss in the South China Sea, according to military documents obtained by the MoD. The Luyang destroyer issued the verbal warning to the USS Decatur seconds before the Chinese ship […]

The crew of a Chinese warship sent a friendly greeting to Japanese sailors aboard a helicopter carrier they encountered in the South China Sea recently in what analysts said was a further sign, albeit superficial, of the warming ties between the two Asian giants. The incident happened late last month when China’s Luyang-II class guided-missile […]

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 6) — Malacañang said it will await confirmation on reports that China has set up weather stations on areas in the South China Sea and assured that the government will take action if this is proven true. “The government will undertake appropriate actions once these reports are properly validated,” Presidential […]

MANILA, Philippines — It would never be too late to assert the Philippines’ claims in the West Philippine Sea because an international arbitral court had ruled in favor of Manila on the maritime row, Malacañang said Monday. The Philippines calls the portion of the South China Sea within its exclusive economic zone the West Philippine […]

China’s commander-in-chief has ordered the military command overseeing the contested South China Sea to “concentrate preparations for fighting a war,” according to the South China Morning Post. Chinese President Xi Jinping inspected the Southern Theater Command Thursday, again stressing the need build a force that can “fight and win wars” in the modern age. “We […]

MANILA, Philippines — Adm. John Richardson, United States chief of naval operations, received an update on the situation in the South China Sea during his recent visit to the Philippines. Richardson went to Palawan to get an update on the disputed waterway from Lt. Gen. Rozzano Briguez, commander of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ […]

“We must be extra careful not to have a mishap like EP-3 in the current environment,” Susan Thornton, the former acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, told the South China Morning Post in an interview. “I’m not confident that we have adequate communication mechanisms in place to prevent escalation.” Thornton, […]

China should stop making noise in the South China Sea. It isn’t good for peace. It isn’t good for trade. And it isn’t good for financial markets of the region. China claims the South China Sea as its own sea. All of it, the sea surface, the resources beneath, and the airspace above. “From China’s […]

The Philippines will court Beijing for further investment when Chinese President Xi Jinping visits Manila next month, temporarily sidestepping issues in the South China Sea as it hedges its bets in the ongoing trade and strategic tussles between China and the United States, observers say. While the nation’s strongman President Rodrigo Duterte has made waves […]