Monthly Archives: January 2014

Chinese warships patrolling contested waters in South China Sea PETALING JAYA: Press in China recently reported that the China’s Armed forces had sent warships to patrol the South China Sea with its personnel taking oaths to protect the sovereignty of their nation. The report by China Military Online, showed a picture of armed forces members from three warships from the South China Sea Fleet of the Navy of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLAN) at a sovereignty oath taking ceremony on Sunday morning. The three warships named ‘Changbai Mountains’, ‘Haikou’ and ‘Wuhan’ was seen forming a triangle at the waters of the Zengmu Reef, while the officers lined up and held a sovereignty oath-taking and signing ceremony on the rear decks of the warships.

PETALING JAYA: Press in China recently reported that the China’s Armed forces had sent warships to patrol the South China Sea with its personnel taking oaths to protect the sovereignty of their nation. The report by China Military Online, showed a picture of armed forces members from three warships from the South China Sea Fleet […]

China is playing dangerous game with the US in the South China Sea

By Benjamin Carlson, GlobalPost Posted: 01/30/14, 1:37 PM EST | HONG KONG — As anyone who has seen “Rebel Without a Cause” knows, playing chicken is dangerous for California teenagers in hot-rods. But playing chicken with warships, cruisers, and fighter jets — well, that’s just another level of crazy. Unfortunately, vessels from the U.S. military […]

A response to navy chief’s denial of Chinese incursion – Arulsothy Ragunathan

Royal Malaysian Navy chief Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Jaafar, in comments published by the New Straits Times today, said the Chinese exercise, involving its newly-commissioned aircraft carrier and a submarine, took place 1,000 nautical miles away from Malaysia’s 200 nautical mile economic exlusion zone. “There has been no act of provocation on the part of […]

US-China Rivalry More Dangerous Than Cold War?

The prominent realist international relations scholar John Mearsheimer says there is a greater possibility of the U.S. and China going to war in the future than there was of a Soviet-NATO general war during the Cold War. Mearsheimer made the comments at a lunch hosted by the Center for the National Interest in Washington, DC […]

If no one will, then P-Noy must stop Zambales mines

Below is the appeal of Dr. Benito Molino, of Sta. Cruz, Zambales, against destructive mining in his town. Addressed to Noynoy Aquino, it is in Filipino, the language the President uses in major speeches. Townsfolk of Sta. Cruz, Masinloc, Candelaria, and Palauig request its publication, in the hope that presidential action can save them. “Urgent: […]

US to maintain edge in Asia-Pacific

WASHINGTON – Adm. Samuel Locklear, head of the US Pacific Command, said America will continue to build and buy the most advanced defensive and offensive military weapons systems to maintain its edge in the Indo-Asia Pacific, which he described as the most militarized region in the world. He said there were now many weapons developers […]

An opportunity for diplomatic negotiations thrown away

There are always two sides to the question. This is especially true with the recent Chinese reiteration of rules about fishing in the South China Sea. The rules are not new. It has been there for decades but those who were more interested in escalating conflict between the two countries worked overtime to interpret it […]

Why China and the Philippines are Battling Over Rocks, Reefs

MANILA—The Philippines cried foul this week when China announced plans to begin regular patrols of the South China Sea, known here as the West Philippines Sea. The two countries have been engaged in a tense dispute over the region since 2012, when Chinese ships took control of Scarborough Shoal, which is just one of the […]

Lessons from the Battle of the Paracel Islands

On January 16, 1974, the Republic of Vietnam Navy (RVN) discovered the presence of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the Crescent Group in the western Paracel Islands, which was held by South Vietnam. This was an unexpected development, because notwithstanding the reduced U.S. military assistance to Saigon after the signing of the Paris […]

Is US Pacific “Dominance” Up For Grabs?

Recent comments by U.S. Navy Admiral Samuel Locklear III set the internet afire (well, at least for strategic studies followers) in suggesting that the United States was losing dominance in the Pacific Ocean. While no news to those of us who follow events closely in this part of the world, such remarks are a stark […]