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NYT: Philippines concerned about China

9/24/2014

by RICK GLADSTONE

Image from Wikimedia Commons

From the New York Times
"The president of the Philippines expressed concern on Tuesday about what he called the “hot to cold” messages from China in the protracted territorial disputes with his country — and others in the region — over areas of the South China Sea.

In an interview, the president, Benigno S. Aquino III, who was visiting to attend a United Nations summit meeting on climate change, made it clear that the territorial disputes had created a tense backdrop to the relationship between the Philippines and China and a geopolitical point of contention that also has entangled the United States, an ally of the Philippines.

T.T. Nhu Op Ed : Vietnamese reaction to China's moves building

9/23/2014

By T.T. NHU, special to the Mercury News

I lived in Hanoi from 2004 until 2009, down the street from the Chinese Embassy. Demonstrations were rare, if not forbidden by Vietnam's controlling government. That's why in December 2007, I was startled to see people gathered with banners outside the embassy protesting the disputed Paracel and Spratly Islands. The protests were quiet, somewhat half hearted. Security police were smoking, playing badminton, laughing and being generally inattentive.

Subsequent actions by China over the years have provoked greater reaction from increasingly aggravated Vietnamese worldwide. Even my artist and writer friends and relatives usually disdainful of politics became incensed and became sudden patriots hotly defending Vietnam's possession of the islands.

Jane's : Satellite shows China continues Johnson's reef island construction

9/21/2014

By JAMES HARDY and SEAN O'CONNOR

Satellite imagery dated 14 August 2014 shows ongoing construction and development of the new island on Johnson South Reef in the Spratly Islands. (PLEIADES © CNES 2014, Distribution Airbus DS / Spot Image S.A. / IHS)

NYT : U.S. Military courts old enemy Vietnam

9/21/2014

By JANE PERLEZ

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam — The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, courted Vietnam over the past several days. He was the first chairman in more than 40 years to visit the old enemy of Washington, now envisioned as a new partner that will acquire American weapons and help offset the power of China.

NYT : Malaysia may host U.S. spy planes

9/14/2014

From the NYT, By JANE PERLEZ

BEIJING — Malaysia’s reported invitation to the United States to fly spy planes out of East Malaysia on the southern rim of the South China Sea seems likely to intensify China’s anger at American surveillance of the strategic waterway and its disputed islands, analysts say.

The United States’ chief of naval operations, Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert, told a forum in Washington last week that the recent offer by Malaysia for P-8 Poseidon aircraft to fly out of the country’s most eastern area would give the United States greater proximity to the South China Sea.

Malaysia, which has had warm ties with China, has not confirmed whether it made the offer. The United States has vowed to maintain its influence in the region in the face of China’s rise, and this year won an agreement with the Philippines to give American troops, warships and planes greater access to bases there.

Read more at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/14/world/asia/malaysia-risks-enraging-china-by-inviting-us-spy-flights.html?ref=world&_r=0

AP : Southeast Asian countries beefing up militaries

9/14/2014

A Chinese guided missile destroyer takes part in a weeklong joint navy exercise with Russia in May in the East China Sea. Russia is the top military exporter to Asia, followed by the U.S. Photo: Associated Press

Beijing -- Vietnam has nearly doubled its military spending, Japan is requesting its biggest-ever defense budget and the Philippines is rushing to piece together a viable navy.

Several Asian nations are arming up, their wary eyes fixed squarely on one country: a resurgent China that's boldly asserting its territorial claims all along the East Asian coast.

The scramble to spend more defense dollars comes amid spats with China over contested reefs and waters. Other Asian countries such as India and South Korea are quickly modernizing their forces, although their disputes with China have stayed largely at the diplomatic level.

Associated Press. Read more at SFGate.com

Philstar : "Designs of China's planned base surface"

9/14/2014

Photo: China State Shipbuilding Corporation via Philstar

MANILA, Philippines — Chinese designs of a proposed man-made island on Philippine-claimed Mabini (Johnson South) Reef in the South China Sea were recently released by an arm of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation.

Read more at Philstar online : http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2014/06/04/1330967/designs-chinas-planned-base-mabini-reef-surface

From the BBC: China is building islands in the SCS

9/10/2014

Image from the Philippine armed forces, screenshot from BBC report.

The BBC reports that the Chinese are bringing in material and dredging around the Johnson South Reef, building new islands. A report by Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, "China's Island Factory," is up today on the BBC website. Some of the report is quoted below.

From the Nation: China-ASEAN ties: Soft power snagged in South China Sea

9/7/2014

Original article at www.nationmultimedia.com : http://www.nationmultimedia.com/opinion/China-Asean-ties-Soft-power-snagged-in-South-China-30242614.html

BY LIM KHENG SWE

Beijing's multifaceted relationship with Southeast Asia is hamstrung by its hard line on territorial claims

China and Southeast Asia are more intertwined than ever. Trade between the two regions is booming and Chinese investors are pouring into Southeast Asia. China is fully involved in most regional security meetings organised by Asean. This era of Sino-Southeast Asian relations should thus be a golden age that brings mutual peace and prosperity for all concerned.

NY Times: David E. Sanger on Obama's foreign policy

9/5/2014

Commitments on Three Fronts Test Obama’s Foreign Policy

By DAVID E. SANGER SEPT. 3, 2014

WASHINGTON -- In vowing in Estonia on Wednesday to defend vulnerable NATO nations from Russia “for as long as necessary,” President Obama has now committed the United States to three major projections of its power: a “pivot” to Asia, a more muscular presence in Europe and a new battle against Islamic extremists that seems very likely to accelerate.

<<Previous

NYT: Philippines concerned about China

T.T. Nhu Op Ed : Vietnamese reaction to China's moves building

Jane's : Satellite shows China continues Johnson's reef island construction

NYT : U.S. Military courts old enemy Vietnam

NYT : Malaysia may host U.S. spy planes

AP : Southeast Asian countries beefing up militaries

Philstar : "Designs of China's planned base surface"

From the BBC: China is building islands in the SCS

From the Nation: China-ASEAN ties: Soft power snagged in South China Sea

NY Times: David E. Sanger on Obama's foreign policy

Commitments on Three Fronts Test Obama’s Foreign Policy

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