SINGAPORE: ASEAN defence ministers inked the world’s first multilateral air guidelines on Friday (Oct 19), in a move aimed at managing unexpected encounters between military aircraft especially over contested areas like the South China Sea. The ministers also strengthened regional counter-terrorism cooperation and established a network against chemical, biological and radiological threats. The defence chiefs […]
Two U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortress bombers fly over the Pacific Ocean during a routine training mission Pacific Air Forces Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and his Chinese counterpart Gen. Wei Fenghe, the Chinese defense minister, met Thursday to discuss a number of issues, particularly their disputes in the South China Sea. Two days prior, […]
China and Southeast Asian states will hold their first joint maritime exercises next week, officials said Friday, in a move aimed at easing tensions but which may spark U.S. alarm. Beijing’s expansive claims to the South China Sea have long been a source of friction with rival claimants in Southeast Asia, as well as Washington […]
Defence ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have agreed a set of guidelines for warplanes flying over the disputed South China Sea, and will invite China and the US to sign up to the same code of conduct. Singapore’s Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen announced the agreement at the annual Asean defence ministers’ […]
With Washington taking a new, profoundly aggressive tack in its dealings with Beijing, analysts speak of ‘active competition with occasional confrontation’ as the new normal Despite a glimmer of optimism sparked by the possibility of a meeting next month between Trump and Xi to resolve increasing tensions between the planet’s two largest economies, Sino-US relations […]
SINGAPORE (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis plans to meet on Thursday in Singapore with his Chinese counterpart amid escalating tensions over China’s purchase of Russian fighter planes and missiles as well as ongoing friction in the South China Sea. Shortly after Mattis arrived in Singapore on Wednesday after a visit to Vietnam, a […]
A US Navy research vessel docked in Taiwan Monday, sparking concern in Beijing at a time of heightened tension between the US and China. The Thomas G. Thompson (T-AGOR-23), a research ship owned by the Office of Naval Research, arrived in Kaohsiung earlier this week to refuel and make crew changes, the Associated Press reported. […]
Two US B-52 bombers flew near contested islands in the South China Sea Tuesday, according to a statement from Pacific Air Forces. The two B-52H Stratofortress bombers, which are based in Guam, “participated in a routine training mission in the vicinity of the South China Sea,” the statement said, adding that the flight was part […]
While the United States and China are competitors on the world stage and appear to be working separately, the two powers that are currently locked in a trade war, may be able to collaborate outside Asia where they have fewer overlapping interests, the California-based Rand Corp said in a study of China’s policies with the […]
Japan’s navy has been taking part in military exercises in the South China Sea over the past two months. The exercises are evidence of increased Japanese activity in an area where Japan has long-term interests, including controlling China’s influence. In September, a Japanese submarine, helicopter carrier and two destroyer warships explored parts of the South […]