Monthly Archives: November 2019

Goading the country to go to war

A Greek-owned tanker carrying a Liberian flag on its way to Longkou, China passed though the South China Sea on Sept. 30, 2019. The ship named Green Aura is owned by the Aegean Company and manned by a Filipino ship captain named Manolo Ebora with 22 Filipino crew members on board. Ebora is a reserve […]

Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand: the new frontiers in US-China battle for influence

AS US-CHINA RIVALRY INTENSIFIES, SMALLER STATES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA SEEK A WAY TO THRIVE When it comes to establishing a new regional partner, American relations with its former cold war nemesis Vietnam surprisingly hold the most promise. From security and energy to aviation, bilateral ties show encouraging gains, although problems persist. In Hanoi, Esper met […]

South China Sea tensions hot and getting hotter

  The United States and China have doubled down on their struggle for dominance of the South China Sea and broader Indo-Pacific, as recent sea confrontations and fiery rhetoric threaten to escalate into conflict. Bolstered by its ever-expanding and rapidly modernizing Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), China has shown diminishing restraint in deterring, intercepting and […]

NGCP on security risk: Chinese just technical advisers

  MANILA, Philippines — The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) on Wednesday played down concerns that China had control over the country’s power grid and disputed claims that the Chinese could remotely access the company’s computer network. In a statement on Wednesday, NGCP president and CEO Anthony Almeda said the company welcomed “senators […]

Beijing turns South China Sea code into barrier for US and Japan

  TOKYO — China has changed tack on a proposed South China Sea code of conduct with Southeast Asian countries, potentially paving the way to exclude rivals, including the U.S. and Japan, from the hotly contested waters. Initially aimed to curb Beijing’s maritime expansion, the draft code includes language that could bar Washington and Tokyo […]

South China Sea crisis: China warns US not to provoke ‘mishap’ after intercepting US ship

CHINA has sent a chilling warning to the US President Donald Trump not to provoke a “mishap” after US warships patrolled the contested waters of the South China Sea last week, infuriating Beijing. President Xi Jinping urged the US to stop “provocative actions” in the region, as the two superpower leaders battle for political and […]