By Neil Jerome Morales MANILA (Reuters) – The armed forces of five countries conducted joint maritime exercises in a portion of the South China Sea on Saturday as China carried out its own military drills in the disputed waterway. The exercises involving the Philippines, United States, Australia, Japan and – for the first time – New Zealand took place in Manila’s exclusive economic zone and sought to improve the militaries’ interoperability, the Philippine armed forces […]
Tag: drills
N. Korea condemns drills by US, Japan, S. Korea as ‘Asian NATO’
SEOUL, June 30, 2024 (AFP) – North Korea denounced on Sunday joint military drills by South Korea, Japan and the United States, calling them an “Asian version of NATO” and warning of “fatal consequences”. It comes a day after the allies wrapped up three-day exercises, dubbed “Freedom Edge”, in ballistic missile and air defences, anti-submarine warfare and defensive cyber training. US, South Korean and Japanese leaders agreed at a trilateral summit last year to conduct […]
China says military pressure on Taiwan to ‘continue’
BEIJING, May 29, 2024 (AFP) – China on Wednesday vowed military pressure on Taiwan would carry on as long as “independence” provocations continued on the self-ruled island. Last week, China held two days of military drills around Taiwan that saw warships and jets loaded with live munitions practise seizing and isolating the self-ruled island. The exercises were launched three days after Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te took office and made an inauguration speech that China […]
Taiwan’s president says wants to work with China after drills
By Dene-Hern CHEN TAIPEI, May 26, 2024 (AFP) – Taiwan’s new president said Sunday he was still ready to work with China, despite this week’s military drills around the self-ruled island. Three days after Lai Ching-te was sworn in, Chinese warships and fighter jets encircled Taiwan in drills that China said were a test of its ability to seize the island. During the two-day drills, China vowed that “independence forces” would be left “with their […]
China ends military drills around Taiwan
By Ludovic EHRET and Glenda KWEK in Beijing, with Amber WANG in Taipei BEIJING, May 25, 2024 (AFP) – China has ended two days of military drills around Taiwan that saw jets loaded with live munitions and warships practise seizing and isolating the self-ruled island. The exercises simulated strikes targeting Taiwan’s leaders as well as its ports and airports to “cut off the island’s ‘blood vessels’”, Chinese military analysts told state media. Beijing considers the […]
China says drills around Taiwan test ‘seizure of power’ capability
By James EDGAR BEIJING, May 24, 2024 (AFP) – Beijing on Friday said ongoing drills encircling Taiwan were testing the military’s ability to seize power over the self-ruled island, days after its new president was sworn in. China’s military kicked off the war games Thursday morning, surrounding Taiwan with naval vessels and military aircraft, while vowing the blood of “independence forces” on the island would flow. The exercises — codenamed “Joint Sword-2024A” — come after […]
China’s military drills around Taiwan: key things to know
SHANGHAI, May 23, 2024 (AFP) – China on Thursday announced two days of war games around self-ruled Taiwan, encircling the island with naval vessels and military aircraft. Here’s what you need to know. – Why has China launched these drills? – Taiwan has been self-governed since 1949, when nationalists fled to the island following their defeat by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in a civil war on the mainland. Beijing considers the democratic island part […]
China holds military drills around Taiwan as ‘punishment’
By James EDGAR BEIJING, May 23, 2024 (AFP) – China on Thursday launched two days of military drills to surround self-ruled Taiwan in what it said was “strong punishment” for the island’s “separatist acts”. The drills come after Lai Ching-te was sworn in as Taiwan’s new president this week and made an inauguration speech that China denounced as a “confession of independence”. Communist China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to […]
China conducts military drills in South China Sea
BEIJING, April 7, 2024 (AFP) – China conducted military “combat patrols” Sunday in the disputed South China Sea, its army said, the same day as joint drills by the Philippines, the United States, Japan and Australia. The announcement comes one day after defence chiefs from four countries including the Philippines — which has been engaged in several contentious maritime disputes with Beijing recently — said they would conduct joint drills Sunday in the area. Beijing’s […]
Philippines, US, Australia, Japan to hold joint drills in disputed sea
MANILA, April 6, 2024 (AFP) – The United States, Australia, Japan and the Philippines will hold joint naval and air drills in the disputed South China Sea on Sunday, their defence chiefs said in a statement, as they deepen ties to counter China’s growing assertiveness in the region. The exercise will take place in the disputed waterway — which Beijing claims almost entirely — days before US President Joe Biden is due to hold the […]
China, Russia, Iran holding joint naval drills
BEIJING, March 11, 2024 (AFP) – The navies of China, Russia and Iran are staging joint drills in the Gulf of Oman this week, Beijing said Monday. The military activities — to be conducted from Monday through Friday — are aimed at “jointly maintaining regional maritime security”, according to a statement published on social media platform WeChat by China’s defence ministry. “China will send… guided-missile destroyer Urumqi, guided-missile frigate Linyi and comprehensive supply ship Dongpinghu […]
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversees live-fire drills targeting South Korean capital
SEOUL, March 8, 2024 (AFP) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a large-scale live-fire artillery drill involving a unit Pyongyang says is capable of striking the South Korean capital, the North’s state media said Friday. So far this year, Pyongyang has declared South Korea its “principal enemy”, jettisoned agencies dedicated to reunification and outreach, and threatened war over “even 0.001 mm” of territorial infringement. Pyongyang’s latest announcement came after Washington and Seoul started […]





