Monthly Archives: June 2018

China, ASEAN agree to move forward with negotiations on South China Sea code of conduct

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 29) — Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes the Philippines, struck an agreement with China to move forward with negotiations for a code of conduct (COC) in the South China Sea. The code, which will define what the six claimants to the South China Sea […]

Australia to ‘ANGER’ China with £4billion surveillance drones to ‘SPY’ on South China Sea

AUSTRALIA will invest nearly £4billion in surveillance drones to patrol and spy on the activity in surrounding waters and specifically the disputed South China Sea, in a bid to increase its maritime security. Australia will invest nearly £4 billion in surveillance drones Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said he will spend £3.875 billion (AU$6.9 […]

Beijing Takes South China Sea Issue Off the Table in Relations With US

China won’t give up “even one inch” of lands it inherited from its ancestors. This is what Chinese President Xi Jinping explicitly stated in his negotiations with US Defense Secretary James Mattis. In an interview with Sputnik, Konstantian Sokolov, a specialist in geopolitics at the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, has branded the Chinese leader’s […]

Xi makes surprise visit to fleet in South China Sea drill

The region has become a potential flashpoint, with the US saying China’s activities in the area pose a threat to freedom of navigation in the strategically vital waterway, where Beijing has built an archipelago of artificial islands capable of hosting military equipment. Chinese President Xi Jinping Thursday stressed the “urgent” need to build a powerful […]

Why it matters: U.S.-China standoff over South China Sea

China’s militarization of the South China Sea was at the top of Defense Secretary James Mattis’ agenda on his trip to Beijing this week, and Chinese state media reports President Xi Jinping told him China will not give up “any inch of territory passed down from ancestors.” Data: Center Strategic and International Studies’ Asia Maritime […]

ASEAN, China agree to pursue South China Sea code consultations

MANILA, Philippines — Senior officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China have agreed to move forward with consultations on the proposed Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC). The officials recently met in China’s Hunan province for the 15th Senior Official’s Meeting on the Implementation of the Declaration of Conduct […]

China says it will increase its military presence in Africa

For decades, China’s presence in Africa has largely focused on economic, commercial and peacekeeping activities. Now, Beijing is building on that by establishing greater military links to protect its national assets on the continent and gain greater geopolitical influence. The People’s Liberation Army conducts regular joint training exercises across the region and, in certain countries […]

The Coming Tech Battle With China

Arriving in Beijing last month, I knew I would not be able to connect to Google, Facebook or Uber. As strange as it was to go without these staples of online life in the West, it was even stranger to find that local Chinese didn’t seem to feel deprived at all. They search through Baidu, […]