Foreign Policy Blogs

Tag Archives: Spratley Islands

Climate Change v. Artificial Islands

Climate Change v. Artificial Islands

Rough seas are seen underneath a maritime platform in Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago. Photo: Tuoi Tre The new year rang in a series of devastating winter storms ranging from the “bomb cyclone” hitting the Eastern Seaboard of the U.S. to the deadly storm Eleanor battering Western Europe – examples of extreme weather which many scientists […]

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Duterte Backs Off Hawkish Rhetoric Over Spratly Islands

Duterte Backs Off Hawkish Rhetoric Over Spratly Islands

The unpredictable Duterte, has again changed course in the South China Sea, cancelling his plans to plant a flag on Thitu Island over Philippine Independence Day.

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Washington Requests China to Stop Intimidating Fishermen

Washington Requests China to Stop Intimidating Fishermen

The U.S. State Department has issued a request for China’s navy to refrain from harassing fishermen of other countries in the disputed South China Sea.

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Waters Heat Up Again in South China Sea

Waters Heat Up Again in South China Sea

Local fishermen in the South China Sea have long gone unprotected when fishing in their own waters or in waters claimed by other countries. But this may soon change, following attacks this year on Vietnamese fishing boats.

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Beijing Attempts to Stifle South China Sea Discussion at ASEAN

Beijing Attempts to Stifle South China Sea Discussion at ASEAN

Beijing attempted to quash any mention of the South China Sea dispute prior to Tuesday’s meeting in Kuala Lumpur of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

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Vietnam Seeks Greater Defense Ties with India

Vietnam Seeks Greater Defense Ties with India

The disputed waters of the South China Sea have been quiet recently, as a nationalistic Beijing has sought to reassure its neighbors of its peaceful intentions by toning down the rhetoric and hesitating from taking any further aggressive actions.

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Beijing Seeks to Improve Relations with Hanoi

Beijing Seeks to Improve Relations with Hanoi

Lately, it seems China’s aggressive foreign policy stance toward territorial disputes in the South China Sea is backfiring, especially in Vietnam. Last month, Vietnamese officials offered India two oil-exploration blocks in the disputed South China Sea waters, which Vietnam calls the East Sea, which drew strong condemnation from Beijing. In turn, India promised to sell […]

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Why is China Building Artificial Islands?

Why is China Building Artificial Islands?

When planning an international beach holiday, few holidaymakers think of China when choosing to spend their time on a beach.  China does boast one top destination for beachgoers, Hainan island, but the quality of most of its mainland beaches has diminished greatly in recent years by floating trash, oil slicks, or abundant algae. Given the […]

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As Beijing Asserts, Hanoi Reacts

As Beijing Asserts, Hanoi Reacts

This week, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung oversaw the launch of the Vietnam Fisheries Resources Surveillance force, set up to ensure the enforcement of fishing laws in the East Sea, otherwise known as the South China Sea. As established under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the force will assist deep-sea fishermen and […]

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Is Beijing Prepared to go to War over a Fishing Incident?

Is Beijing Prepared to go to War over a Fishing Incident?

  After Beijing unilaterally declared an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the East China Sea last month, to include the disputed Tokyo-controlled islands called Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese, the reaction by regional neighbors and the U.S. was swift. But with each action, a subsequent and escalating reaction has been triggered. China’s […]

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Noy Noy, Corruption Pays, and Vietnam in the Dragon's Shadow

Noy Noy, Corruption Pays, and Vietnam in the Dragon's Shadow

Cambodia: Corruption and illiberalism pays according to an article running at the Asian Times.  The author believes that Cambodian foreign aid has continued to increase, despite Hun Sen’s continued political oppression of the opposition, due to the West’s fear that any decline in aid flows would create a void that will most certainly filled by […]

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U.S. Expands Trade in Southeast Asia to Check China

U.S. Expands Trade in Southeast Asia to Check China

The United States maybe  in the initial stages of a Southeast Asian foreign policy overhaul; the Obama Administration is not only reconsidering its sanctions against Myanmar, but also reevaluating America’s policy toward the entire Southeast Asian region.  Brian McCartan has an informative article on the recent removal of Cambodia and Laos from the United States’ […]

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