At the G20 Hangzhou summit earlier this month, China made clear that Russian president Vladimir Putin was a top guest. Both China and Russia claim that their bilateral relations are the “best ever’ and demonstrate an “unprecedentedly high level of trust.” Putin described the relationships as a “comprehensive partnership and strategic collaboration.” The China–Russia relationship […]

The U.S. military’s top commander in the Pacific is arguing behind closed doors for a more confrontational approach to counter and reverse China’s strategic gains in the South China Sea, appeals that have met resistance from the White House at nearly every turn. Adm. Harry Harris is proposing a muscular U.S. response to China’s island-building […]

The situation surrounding the South China Sea has started to change, as the positions of such relevant players as the Philippines and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are wavering in regard to the Chinese buildup of military bases. The governments of Japan and the United States, which have called for China to exercise self-restraint, […]

Singapore’s ambassador to China on Tuesday accused a major state-run Chinese newspaper of fabricating a report about Singapore’s position on the South China Sea, but the paper stuck by its story. The Global Times said on Sept. 21 that at a summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in Venezuela, Singapore had raised the issue of the […]

Following the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s (PCA) unanimous ruling undermining the legal basis for China’s “nine-dash line” claim, Beijing repeated its prior threat to establish an aircraft defense identification zone (ADIZ) above the South China Sea (SCS). An ADIZ is an area of airspace, adjacent to but beyond the national airspace and territory of the […]

AN official of the Department of National Defense told a recent Japan-Asean Vice-Ministerial Meeting that the Philippines needs the support of the international community as Beijing remained recalcitrant in not recognizing and abiding by an international tribunal ruling against its sweeping claims to the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea). At the same meeting, Defense […]

Tsai Ing-wen is new to the job and the strain is beginning to show. Elected president of Taiwan in a landslide victory, she took office in May, buoyed by high approval ratings. Yet in a few short months, Tsai’s popularity has plunged by 25%. The reason may be summed up in one word: China. Suspicious […]

Duterte has picked fights with Obama and with the EU. His behaviour is shaking the US-Philippine alliance and stability in Southeast Asia. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte speaks during a news conference in Davao after Norwegian national Kjartan Sekkingstad was freed from the al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf Islamist militant group in Jolo, Sulu in southern Philippines […]

“China appears to be testing opportunities on its maritime borders – where is the weak spot it can exploit?” http://thediplomat.com/2016/09/south-china-sea-how-to-prevent-china-from-changing-the-status-quo/

Managing Director of Risk Cooperative / Co-author of “Global Risk Agility and Decision Making”. Even after The Hague decision, China’s government continues to vociferously argue that its ‘nine-dash line’ of sovereignty over the entire South China Sea is based on centuries of maritime history, and that China’s claim is air tight. In a letter to […]