Santa Claus is coming to the South China Sea, on a mission to spread Christmas cheer to Filipino fisherfolk, troops and coast guard officials while hopefully avoiding an international dispute with China. At 1am on Sunday, the convoy of 40 fishing boats loaded with Christmas donations, Father Christmas figurines and nativity displays set sail from El Nido, Palawan, in the Philippines, on its way to disputed areas that Beijing claims, without legal grounds, as its own. The trip, organised by the coalition Atin Ito (meaning “It’s ours”), involves dozens of…
Tag: South China Sea
The Clock is Ticking on Improving China-U.S. Relations, Experts Say
“There isn’t a clear message from the U. S., or the rest of us saying, ‘Here is an economic proposition. Here is why we think that working with us is going to be good for you in the long term. And here is what flows from that,’” she said. “Like who is a friend, right? Why are they a friend? What are the benefits of being a friend? What are the risks of not being a friend? “ The discussion also veered into larger geopolitical issues — mainly Taiwan and…
Australia and Philippines begin joint patrols in South China Sea as regional tensions rise
Australia and the Philippines have begun joint sea and air patrols in the South China Sea as Pacific nations warily eye an increasingly assertive China. The three-day exercises follow discussions earlier this year on joint patrols to underscore what the countries say is their commitment to closer cooperation and a rules-based order in the region. It also comes days after Manila took similar steps with the US, concluding patrols that started in waters near Taiwan. Australia’s defence minister, Richard Marles, said the inaugural patrols represent the practical implementation of the…
Philippines military accuses China of bullying and vows to continue South China Sea missions
The Philippines has accused China of seeking to bully smaller countries into submission and vowed it will continue its missions to deliver supplies to a grounded derelict warship that serves as an outpost in the South China Sea. The Philippines deliberately grounded BRP Sierra Madre at Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef in the Spratly Islands, in 1999 to guard against expansion by China, and the ship has become a growing flashpoint in the fiercely disputed water. Beijing has demanded the warship’s removal, and over recent months has repeatedly tried…
How China Dominates South China Sea with Its Ships
Dots show Chineseships’ movements Pacific Ocean South China Sea East China Sea SouthKorea Philippines Philippines Philippines exclusive economic zone Mischief Reefoccupied by China Second Thomas Shoaloccupied by the Philippines Mischief Reefoccupied by China Second Thomas Shoaloccupied by the Philippines Union Bankoccupied by Chinaand Vietnam Subi Reefoccupied by China Spratly Islands Spratly Islands Chinese militia Philippinecoast guard Chinese coast guard Beijing says many of these boats are just fishing. But they bristle with machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and high-velocity water cannons. They’re here for intimidation. ● Chinese militia and coast guard…
Behind Public Assurances, Xi Jinping Spread Grim Views on U.S.
When President Xi Jinping of China made his first state visit to the United States in 2015, he wrapped his demands for respect in reassurances. He courted tech executives, while defending China’s internet controls. He denied that China was militarizing the disputed South China Sea, while asserting its maritime claims there. He spoke hopefully of a “new model” for great power relations, in which Beijing and Washington would coexist peacefully as equals. But back in China, in meetings with the military, Mr. Xi was warning in strikingly stark terms that…
Philippine Ship Is an Unlikely Outpost That Is Angering China
For more than two decades, it has been an unlikely flashpoint in the South China Sea: a rusty, World War II-era ship beached on a tiny reef that has become a symbol of Philippine resistance against Beijing. The Philippine government ran the vessel aground in 1999 on the Second Thomas Shoal, a contested reef 120 miles off the coast of the western province of Palawan. The dilapidated warship, known as the Sierra Madre, will never sail again. But it has remained there ever since, a marker of the Philippines’ claim…
Why the rusting wreck of a second world war ship is so important to China
It is perhaps the most unlikely kind of military base. For more than two decades, a second world war-era ship, BRP Sierra Madre, has stood deliberately grounded in the remote, shallow waters of the fiercely contested South China Sea, carrying the Philippine flag and guarding against Chinese expansion. But its future is increasingly precarious, and the ship has become a growing flashpoint in one of the world’s most disputed waters. The Sierra Madre, marooned on Second Thomas Shoal, in the Spratly Islands, since 1999, is effectively a shipwreck. Rust has…
Chinese Jet Flies Within 10 Feet of B-52, U.S. Says
A Chinese fighter jet came within 10 feet of a U.S. Air Force B-52 bomber over the South China Sea this week in a nighttime maneuver that nearly caused a collision, the United States military said on Thursday. The pilot of the J-11 jet that drew close to the B-52 in international airspace on Tuesday night “flew in an unsafe and unprofessional manner” and with “uncontrolled excessive speed,” the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement. The U.S. military also released a grainy, black-and-white video that it said showed the…
China and the Philippines trade blame over two South China Sea collisions
Beijing and Manila have traded blame for two separate collisions on Sunday between Chinese vessels and Philippine boats on a resupply mission to Filipino troops on a remote outpost in the disputed South China Sea. The incidents occurred near Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands – a hotly contested region where Beijing deploys ships to assert its claims over almost the entire sea. The Philippines accused China’s coast guard of colliding with a supply boat, saying the “dangerous blocking manoeuvres of China Coast Guard vessel 5203 caused it to…