Tag: South China Sea

Duterte declares upcoming Philippines-U.S. war games ‘the last one’

  (REUTERS)  Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte plunged one of the United States’ most important Asian alliances deeper into uncertainty on Wednesday by declaring upcoming U.S.-Philippines military exercises “the last,” and ruling out any joint navy patrols. The firebrand Duterte pledged to honor a longstanding security treaty with the United States, but said China opposed joint marine drills in the Philippines starting next week and there would be no more war games with Washington after that. […]

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Singapore accuses Chinese paper of fabricating South China Sea story

BEIJING (Reuters)– 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 disputed waterway and an international tribunal’s ruling in favor of the Philippines in a case it lodged against […]

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Philippines tells world not to interfere in Duterte drugs war

  (Reuters)  By David Brunnstrom | UNITED NATIONS Philippines Foreign Minister Perfecto Yasay told the United Nations on Saturday his country’s new president, Rodrigo Duterte, had an “unprecedented” mandate and the world should not interfere in his crackdown on crime. Addressing the annual U.N. General Assembly, Yasay said the Duterte government was “determined to free the Philippines from corrupt and other stagnating practices, including the manufacture, distribution and use of illicit drugs. “Our actions, however, […]

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China says Japan trying to “confuse” South China Sea situation

BEIJING, Sept 19 (Reuters) – China on Monday accused Japan of trying to “confuse” the situation in the South China Sea, after its neighbor said it would step up activity in the contested waters, through joint training patrols with the United States. Ties between Asia’s two largest economies have long been overshadowed by arguments over their painful wartime history and a territorial spat in the East China Sea, among other issues. China has repeatedly denounced […]

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China, Russia to stage military drills in S.China Sea

BEIJING, China (AFP) — China and Russia were to start war games in the South China Sea on Monday, Beijing’s defense ministry said, in a show of force after an international tribunal invalidated the Asian giant’s extensive claims in the area. The eight-day joint drills will include exercises on “seizing and controlling” islands and shoals, Chinese navy spokesman Liang Yang said in a statement. They will involve surface ships, submarines, fixed-wing aircraft, ship-borne helicopters, marine […]

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China, Russia naval drill in South China Sea to begin Monday

  (REUTERS)  China and Russia will hold eight days of naval drills in the South China Sea off southern China’s Guangdong province starting from Monday, China’s navy said. The exercises come at a time of heightened tension in the contested waters after an arbitration court in The Hague ruled in July that China did not have historic rights to the South China Sea and criticized its environmental destruction there. China rejected the ruling and refused […]

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U.S. President forges closer ties with ASEAN allies in last meeting

  (Reuters) — U.S. President Barack Obama held a meeting with Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders for the last time on Thursday (September 8) and reiterated U.S. commitment to rebalancing Asia. Obama became the first incumbent U.S. president to visit Laos this week for a series of meetings with the heads of state of the 10-nation regional bloc. “I’ve now met with leaders of ASEAN eight times, visited Southeast Asia more than any […]

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South China Sea: facts on a decades-long dispute

VIENTIANE, Laos (AFP) — The disputed South China Sea was in focus Thursday at a regional summit in Laos as US President Barack Obama warned Beijing it cannot ignore a tribunal’s ruling that rejected its sweeping claims to the waters. China claims most of the sea, even waters approaching neighbouring countries, based on a vaguely defined “nine-dash-line” found on Chinese maps from the 1940s. The Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations dispute this. Commentators say […]

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Obama warns China over South China Sea ruling

by Andrew BEATTY Nicholas PERRY VIENTIANE, Laos (AFP) — US President Barack Obama warned Beijing Thursday it could not ignore a tribunal’s ruling rejecting its sweeping claims to the South China Sea, driving tensions higher in a territorial row that threatens regional security. The dispute has raised fears of military confrontation between the world’s superpowers, with China determined to cement control of the strategically vital waters despite a July verdict that its claims have no […]

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Obama focuses on Asia security threats

by Jerome TAYLOR Nicholas PERRY VIENTIANE, Laos (AFP) — North Korea’s defiant missile testing and the South China Sea territorial row were among a barrage of security threats in focus Thursday as US President Barack Obama gathered with East Asian leaders in Laos. The annual event this year comes at a time of heightened tensions on a wide range of fronts across the region, with terrorism also a concern after deadly bomb blasts in Thailand […]

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Obama says South China Sea ruling ‘binding’

VIENTIANE, Laos (AFP) — US President Barack Obama warned Thursday an international tribunal’s ruling that China’s sweeping claims to the South China Sea had no legal basis was “binding”, after Beijing vowed to ignore the verdict. “The landmark arbitration ruling in July, which is binding, helped clarify maritime rights in the region,” Obama told a summit of Asian leaders in Laos. The comments are sure to draw ire from Beijing, which has taken an increasingly […]

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