Tag: S. China Sea

The Philippines Coast Guard says one of its ships was damaged after a collision with a Chinese Coast Guard vessel in the South China Sea Tuesday. In a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Jay Tarriela said Chinese coast guard ships carried out “dangerous maneuvers” against two Philippine coast guard ships, one of which sustained minor structural damage. A separate statement by the Philippines’ task force on the South China Sea said four crewmen aboard the other vessel were injured when…

MELBOURNE, Australia —  Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. told Australia’s Parliament on Thursday that the strategic partnership between the two nations was more important than ever with the rule of law and peace in the region under threat from China. Marcos told a special joint sitting of the two chambers during a state visit that the Philippines would not allow a foreign power to “take even one square inch of our sovereign territory.” It is a declaration he has often repeated since taking office in 2022 and refers to China’s…

Taipei, Taiwan —  Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, once a fierce critic of China, has emerged as the likely winner of Indonesia’s presidential election. His presumed victory, analysts say, is unlikely to lead to any major shifts in the Southeast Asian nation’s relations with Beijing. However, concerns about work safety and environmental pollution linked to Chinese investments, as well as Beijing’s claims in the South China Sea, could test the stability of the relationship. While President Joko Widodo was in office, China became Indonesia’s largest trading partner, tapping into its rich…

Vietnam and the Philippines agreed on Tuesday to boost cooperation between their two coast guards to prevent incidents in the South China Sea, waters claimed in their entirety by Beijing. Both Southeast Asian nations dispute China’s claim to the resource-rich maritime territory that is a major shipping route, and each nation has had tense run-ins with China in the strategic waterway. The two memoranda of understanding on maritime cooperation were announced during a state visit to Hanoi by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and are “aimed at strengthening the understanding,…

China summoned the ambassador of the Philippines Tuesday to officially protest President Ferdinand Marcos’ message of congratulations to Taiwan’s newly elected president. In a post on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, President Marcos congratulated Lai Ching-te, the candidate of Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, on his election last Saturday, and said he looked forward to “close collaboration” with him. The DPP has long been a proponent of Taiwan’s self-rule status, pushing back against Beijing’s claims of sovereignty over the island. Speaking to reporters in Beijing, foreign…

MANILA, PHILIPPINES —  Two Chinese navy vessels shadowed Philippine and U.S. ships conducting joint patrols in the South China Sea, the Philippine military said on Thursday, as tensions flare in the region over disputed territorial claims. “We confirm the presence of two PLA-N [People’s Liberation Army Navy] vessels from a distance shadowing the participants of the Maritime Cooperative Activity,” said Xerxes Trinidad, chief of the Philippine military’s public affairs office. The two-day maritime exercises involving Manila and Washington, which ended as planned on Thursday, were the second in less than…

Manila, Philippines —  The Philippines is not provoking conflict in the South China Sea, its military spokesperson said on Tuesday, responding to China’s accusationthat Manila was encroaching on Beijing’s territory. It was the latest salvo amid rising tension as the two have traded accusations in recent months over a series of maritime run-ins, including China allegedly ramming a ship this month carrying the Philippines’ military chief. “The Philippines is not provoking conflict,” Medel Aguilar told state broadcaster PTV. “We follow international law and we are only implementing our domestic law,…

China’s military on Monday said a U.S. Navy ship illegally entered waters adjacent to the Second Thomas Shoal, a disputed South China Sea atoll that has recently seen several maritime confrontations. “The U.S. seriously undermined regional peace and stability,” a spokesperson for China’s Southern Theater of Operations said in a statement, adding that the U.S. disrupted the South China Sea and violated China’s sovereignty. China is in disputes with several of its neighbors over its extensive claims of territorial waters in the South China Sea. The U.S. Navy said the…