China 'building runway in disputed South China Sea island'

They're called 'nationals' and no, there's no cannibalism anymore and hasn't been for a long time.
Except for out in the boonies of course where the cops are few and also hungry for meat.

A mate did some work in Moresby recently and the bus from the airport to the camp had mesh over the windows and armed guards in Landcruisers fore and aft.
The currency exchange at the airport has been robbed several times.
Roadblocks in the city are staffed by opportunists fleecing the eager customers and even the cops are alleged to do their bit too.
There's not many restaurants in town because it's not safe.

Meanwhile, Winnie is trying to promote lawnorder in the South China Sea and gets nothing but whining.

Malaysia Seeks Non-Militarization of South China Sea

Malaysia called Wednesday for non-militarization of the South China Sea, as Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad unveiled his Pakatan Harapan government’s first comprehensive foreign policy document since it took power last year.


The 80-page document, described by Mahathir as a “guiding framework,” said the nation would also adopt a non-aligned stance in its relations with major powers.

The document did not specifically mention China or the United States, but it formally laid out the Southeast Asian nation’s foreign policy on the South China Sea under the new government.


Last year, months after his stunning electoral victory, Mahathir told U.S. Vice President Mike Pence that his country did not wish to see warships in the disputed sea region.


“In its relations with major powers, Malaysia will practice the non-aligned policy and approach,” the document said, underscoring that Mahathir had proposed “non-militarization of the South China Sea and for the regional waters to be turned to a region of peace, friendship and trade.”


Mahathir, in a speech during the ceremony launching the foreign policy, said “multilateralism was under threat” and that “powerful countries [were] unilaterally imposing their will on others.”


“Malaysia is extremely concerned over this development,” he said, without elaborating.


China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – to which Malaysia belongs – have been negotiating a “code of conduct,” a pact aimed at averting aggressive acts by claimant states in the sea’s disputed territories.


In recent months, U.S. warships have sailed in the South China Sea as part of “freedom of navigation operations.” Those moves have led to Beijing accusing the United States of trespassing in its territorial waters.


Meanwhile, security analysts say, Beijing has installed anti-ship cruise missile and surface-to-air missile systems on three islands in the Spratlys, a disputed group of atolls and isles in the waterway. Beijing claims nearly all of the mineral-rich sea, which is also contested by Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam and Taiwan.


Mahathir’s comments on Wednesday came days after the U.S. Navy destroyer Wayne E. Meyer sailed near islands claimed by China in the busy waterway.


In its foreign policy framework, Malaysia said security threats from overlapping claims in the sea region “have been well contained and effectively managed diplomatically,” but it underscored that “there are some flashpoints which might beget crisis or war if not properly handled.”



Recognizing terrorism as a complex issue


In confronting militancy as part of its foreign policy, Malaysia will “continue to be a strong and active participant in global efforts to fight terrorism and violent extremism, in all its forms and manifestations,” Mahathir’s government said in the framework document.


“Resolving the problem of terrorism requires a strong and genuine political will,” it said.


The battle would require “a holistic plan of action, clear and systematic line of authority, the effective involvement of non-state actors, as well as transparent sharing of information” between nations involved in the fight, the document stated.


In its anti-terror campaign, Malaysia, a Muslim-majority nation of 32 million people, will promote the role of the Southeast Asia Regional Center for Counter-Terrorism as a reference point on militancy issues, the foreign policy framework said. The Kuala Lumpur-based agency under the foreign affairs ministry provides training for security officials in the region.


At least 154 fighters from Malaysia joined more than 40,000 foreign fighters from 110 countries in fighting for militant groups, including Islamic State (IS), in Syria and Iraq, according to security analysts.


https://www.benarnews.org/english/ne...019171217.html

I thought Mahathir stood down and handed the reins to Anwar ?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by docmartin

Meanwhile, Winnie is trying to promote lawnorder in the South China Sea and gets nothing but whining.

---

Winnie the Pooh is trying to annex it.

That is completely different.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by misskit

“In its relations with major powers, Malaysia will practice the non-aligned policy and approach,” the document said, underscoring that Mahathir had proposed “non-militarization of the South China Sea and for the regional waters to be turned to a region of peace, friendship and trade.”

---

Claiming a position of 'peaceful non-alignment' sounds all very lovely and John Lennon but it does not really provide any practical method in dealing with a belligerent China asserting its claims by force.

China Sends Coast Guard Ship to Scarborough Shoal


China has deployed a Coast Guard patrol ship to the Scarborough Shoal, the latest salvo in its sustained pressure campaign against Philippine-claimed features in the disputed South China Sea, ship-tracking data shows.


The China Coast Guard (CCG) ship 3302 was at Scarborough Shoal as of Wednesday, BenarNews can confirm. It left the port of Sanya, Hainan province, China, on Sunday.


Its deployment means CCG ships are patrolling nearly all of the hotspots disputed between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. That’s happening at a time of renewed diplomatic tension after Manila issued a statement on Wednesday directly criticizing China over the sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat.


At the Philippine-occupied Second Thomas Shoal, another CCG ship, the 5302, has been patrolling near since March 6, last week. The ship was still at that location on Wednesday.


Meanwhile, the CCG ship Haijing 5202 has been near Thitu Island, another feature claimed by the Philippines, since April 3.


Thitu Island has been the focus of a prolonged Chinese presence, as reported by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative. However, maritime militia appear to have left the area, leaving only the 5202, satellite imagery shows.


Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has sought closer ties with China since he took office nearly four years ago. He has sought to tamp down the tensions that flared under his predecessor, when Manila successfully challenged the legal basis of Beijing’s expansive South China Sea claims in a case before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague.


But bucking that trend, on Wednesday the Philippines joined Hanoi and Washington in criticizing Beijing over the April 2 sinking of the Vietnamese boat in a confrontation with a China Coast Guard ship.


The Philippine foreign office issued what it called a “statement of solidarity” with Hanoi. The statement rebuked Beijing for the incident in waters near the Paracel Islands – which both China and Vietnam claim. It described the sinking as a “provocation” amid a global crisis around the COVID-19 outbreak.


China claims it has historical rights to much of the South China Sea, despite conflicting claims by other governments in the region.


Chinese ships strayed into the Scarborough Shoal area in 2012, leading to a diplomatic rift between Manila and Beijing.


The following year, Manila filed its arbitration case against China, arguing that the triangular shoal in the South China Sea had long been a fishing ground for Filipinos and was well within the Philippine exclusive economic zone. But instead of pushing to enforce the 2016 decision, Duterte, who took office that year, chose to appease China.


The CCG ship that has just deployed there, the 3302, is a Zhaoyu-class patrol vessel modeled after the Chinese Type 056 warship. It was last seen in that area in November and forced out a Filipino-crewed ship, Rappler reported at the time. The 3302 weighs roughly 3,500 tons and is equipped with a helicopter deck and a 30-mm gun – it’s designed to be an ocean-going ship, as opposed to patrolling China’s coasts.

China Sends Coast Guard Ship to Scarborough Shoal

Quote:

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But instead of pushing to enforce the 2016 decision, Duterte, who took office that year, chose to appease China.

---

Of course he did.

I'm sure it had nothing to do with offshore bank accounts.

Attachment 48494

OOH scary warship with no NP&A-CBG to defend it, in the South China Sea.

Does it have any French MM40 Block 3 missiles to defend itself?

There is a big scary pole on the front, with a bright light at the top.

The ship does appear to have plenty of windows, to allow the crew to look out of, though.

Now all ameristani sailors, airmen (how do the pilot and navigator manage to keep 2m apart in an F666BCFT) and submariners can't reach their weapons, due to "social distancing" rules, China can attack the "Land of the Chamorros". Have the British a Battleship to scuttle in it's path?

What are you waffling about now Hoho?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OhOh

Attachment 48494

OOH scary warship with no NP&A-CBG to defend it, in the South China Sea.

Does it have any French MM40 Block 3 missiles to defend itself?

There is a big scary pole on the front, with a bright light at the top.

The ship does appear to have plenty of windows, to allow the crew to look out of, though.

Now all ameristani sailors, airmen (how do the pilot and navigator manage to keep 2m apart in an F666BCFT) and submariners can't reach their weapons, due to "social distancing" rules, China can attack the "Land of the Chamorros". Have the British a Battleship to scuttle in it's path?

---

Wrong boat!

The CCG ship that has just deployed there, the 3302, is a Zhaoyu-class patrol vessel modeled after the Chinese Type 056 warship. It was last seen in that area in November and forced out a Filipino-crewed ship, Rappler reported at the time. The 3302 weighs roughly 3,500 tons and is equipped with a helicopter deck and a 30-mm gun – it’s designed to be an ocean-going ship, as opposed to patrolling China’s coasts

Quote:

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Originally Posted by HermantheGerman

Wrong boat!

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Well it is HoHo.

Added: Prolly looks like this one. Nothing a half decent torpedo can't sort out. It's even got that nice low aft deck for throwing Uighurs off.


Attachment 48554

Quote:

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Originally Posted by HermantheGerman

Wrong boat!

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I believe the big number painted on the side gave it away. Damn. Or was it the big pole on the foredeck?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by HermantheGerman

3302

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No picture found either.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Prolly looks like this one.

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They all look the same to me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

nice low aft deck for throwing Uighurs off.

---

Just the right length for a magnetic catapult. Injected with a virus when landing on the carrier flight deck the Uighurs would have all the sailors running for their hot bunks.

It's really easy to get HoHo waffling, have you noticed Jerry?

:)

Beijing Deploys Aircraft Carrier as US Senators Criticize South China Sea Conduct

China has sent an aircraft carrier battle group to the East China Sea and South China Sea, according to statements from governments in the region and satellite imagery.


The maneuvers come at a time of increasing tension in the South China Sea and a denouncement by members of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee of the Chinese coast guard’s recent sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat near the contested Paracel Islands.


Japan’s military reported China’s naval exercise involving the Liaoning aircraft carrier on Friday. The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force said the Liaoning, accompanied by a battle group of two destroyers, two frigates and a support ship, passed through the Miyako Strait, between Okinawa and the Miyako Islands, on that day.


Satellite imagery shows the Liaoning at its homeport of Qingdao as of April 5, along with a Type 901 supply ship – a relatively new class of vessel for replenishing combat ships at sea. Last Wednesday, both sailed out of port and reappeared east of Shanghai, in the East China Sea, on Friday, along with escorts.


On Sunday, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense said the Liaoning battle group was observed moving off the island of Taiwan’s eastern coast down to its southern coast.


A Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy spokesman later confirmed the Liaoning and its battle group were engaged in a naval exercise at the Miyako Strait, the Bashi Channel south of Taiwan, and in the South China Sea. The ships were identified as two Type 052D guided missile destroyers, two Type 054A guided missile frigates, and a Type 901 support vessel.


This coincides with naval maneuvers in the region by the United States. The U.S. Navy sailed a destroyer through the Taiwan Strait on Friday, Reuters reported, and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force conducted a bilateral exercise with the U.S. in the East China Sea on Friday and Saturday.


All this takes place in the aftermath of the April 2 sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat in a confrontation with a China Coast Guard ship near the disputed Paracel Islands, which China maintained was the fault of the Vietnamese boat. The incident drew criticism from the U.S. State and Defense Departments, Vietnam itself and the Philippines.


Last week, the Philippine foreign office issued what it called a “statement of solidarity” with Hanoi. The statement rebuked Beijing for the incident in waters near the Paracel Islands – which both China and Vietnam claim.


It described the sinking as a “provocation” amid a global crisis around the COVID-19 outbreak.


China claims it has historical rights to much of the South China Sea, despite conflicting claims by other governments in the region.


Malaysia has had its own issues with Chinese ships in the South China Sea. In February, a combination of Chinese Coast Guard ships and maritime militia were monitoring and harassing energy exploration efforts by Malaysia in the mineral-rich waters.


US senators speak out


On Friday, a bipartisan group of senior U.S. lawmakers joined the chorus of disapproval.


Leading figures from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee – Republican chairman James Risch, top-ranking Democrat Robert Menendez, and Republican Asia subcommittee chairman Cory Gardner and his Democratic counterpart, Ed Markey – issued a strongly worded statement over the sinking and China’s reported deployment of military aircraft in the South China Sea.


“The reports of a Chinese Coast Guard vessel sinking a Vietnamese fishing vessel and China’s other activities on illegally reclaimed features in the South China Sea are deeply concerning,” Risch said.


“These are just the latest examples of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) blatant intimidation of its neighbors to assert its excessive maritime claims. The CCP is undermining regional stability at a time when the international community should be coming together to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.”


Menendez echoed that sentiment.


“China’s continued divisive and aggressive behavior in the South China Sea is deplorable,” he said. “I strongly believe that the United States must stand up and support efforts by regional institutions and our allies and partners to ensure freedom of navigation and economic opportunity throughout the entire Indo-Pacific.”


On the same day the Liaoning was sailing with its escorts north of Taiwan, China conducted an aircraft exercise south of the self-ruled island, which China considers a “breakaway province.” A Xian H-6 bomber, KJ-500 early warning aircraft, and Shenyang J-11 fighter aircraft flew to the southwest of Taiwan, prompting the U.S. Air Force to send a reconnaissance aircraft in the same direction, according to a Taiwanese Ministry of National Defense press release.


Meanwhile, Chinese state media was blaming Vietnam for stoking tensions in the South China Sea after Hanoi formally protested the April 2 sinking of its fishing boat. Without providing any evidence, a commentary in the Global Times claimed that Hanoi was provoking anti-Chinese sentiment to distract from Vietnam’s domestic challenges in combating COVID-19.

Beijing Deploys Aircraft Carrier as US Senators Criticize South China Sea Conduct

The US should send one too, then they could have mutual exchange ship-to-ship visits.

Pomplem solved.

Chinese Survey Ship Moves to Malaysian, Bruneian Waters

A Chinese survey ship on Thursday commenced operations within Malaysia and Brunei’s exclusive economic zone, according to a vessel tracking software, in the latest sign of Beijing’s expansive reach across the contested South China Sea.


The Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 left China’s Hainan Island last week, and was spotted earlier this week moving through Vietnam’s waters toward Malaysia. On Thursday it was located at an area around 190 nautical miles (352 km) from the coast of Malaysia’s Sarawak state and Brunei.


The vessel moved back and forth, a tell-tale sign that it was exploring the area. China and Brunei have agreed in the past to a joint exploration over energy resources in Brunei’s part of the South China Sea, but it was not immediately clear if the current activities could be part of that deal.


Technically, a research vessel would need to request permission before operating within another country’s exclusive economic zone, experts said. The Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 was accompanied by at least six escort vessels belonging to the China Coast Guard (CCG), according to vessel tracking data analyzed by Radio Free Asia (RFA), an online news service affiliated with BenarNews.


That was reminiscent of its excursion into Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone in July 2019, near the disputed area of Vanguard Bank. Those survey activities appeared aimed at pressuring a Russian oil exploration vessel out of the area and sparked a months-long standoff with Vietnamese coast guard vessels.


This time, the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 was operating just past a part of the South China Sea jointly delimited between Malaysia and Vietnam, which may serve to avoid another confrontation with Vietnam.


The survey activity was very close to where the West Capella, a Malaysian-contracted drillship, was working in October. The West Capella was eventually tracked by a combination of CCG, Chinese maritime militia, and Vietnamese maritime militia ships, according to the Washington-based think tank Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative.


At least one CCG ship accompanying the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8, the Zhongguohaijing 1105, was spotted Thursday in the same area where the West Capella was last reported.


Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency ships could not be detected in the area of the Chinese survey ship on Thursday. A Malaysian offshore patrol vessel, KM Pekan, was last seen on Wednesday near a CCG ship patrolling the Luconia Shoals, which lies to the south.


Neither Malaysian nor Bruneian officials could immediately be reached for comment Thursday.


Beijing claims most of the mineral-rich South China Sea, including areas that reach the shores of its smaller neighbors. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan also have overlapping claims in the sea region.


Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines have directly disputed China’s expansive claims in diplomatic notes in recent weeks. China has also been criticized by the United States, which says Beijing is exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic to expand its “unlawful claims” in the South China Sea.

https://www.benarnews.org/english/ne...020172003.html

Time for a few more US "survey ships" to sail through the Taiwan Strait methinks.

China Ups Ante in South China Sea with New Place Names, Districts

China has upped the ante amid rising tensions in the South China Sea by declaring two new administrative districts for the contested region and releasing a new map naming all the islands and reefs it claims.


The provocative moves come as Beijing faces diplomatic pushback from some of its Southeast Asian neighbors against its sweeping assertion of sovereignty across the resource-rich sea.


It also takes place as the China’s Coast Guard and maritime militia pressure other claimants, even as they grapple with the global coronavirus pandemic. Most recently, China has deployed a survey vessel and escort ships near an oil field off the coast of Malaysia.


China’s announcement on the administrative measures came this weekend. The State Council, China’s top administrative body, approved the creation of two new municipal districts: Nansha District, which is based at Fiery Cross Reef, an artificial island built by China that it says will oversee all of the Spratly Islands and their surrounding waters; and Xisha District, based on Woody Island, which will oversee the Paracel Islands.


It follows the July 2012 declaration of Sansha City on Woody Island as China’s administrative center for the region. The two new districts cover a vast but largely uninhabited area. They are incorporated under Sansha, which itself has only 1,800 permanent residents.


China’s Global Television Network on Saturday described Sansha as a prefecture-level city that compromises only 20 square kilometers of land area but oversees “nearly two million square kilometers.”


The declaration comes despite unresolved territorial disputes across that area, and efforts by China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to forge a binding code of conduct.


Vietnam, which claims both the Paracels and the Spratlys, immediately condemned the announcement of the two new districts by China, calling it a serious violation of its sovereignty.


Pooja Bhatt, author of Nine-Dash Line: Deciphering the South China Sea Conundrum, said China’s move was intended to cement its territorial claims, which were undermined by a Permanent Court of Arbitration verdict from 2016. That verdict found that most of the land features it occupies in the South China Sea were actually rocks originally, due to lack of human habitation and economic activity. By inhabiting them now, China in time seeks to have these features regarded as islands entitled to territorial waters and exclusive economic zones, she said.


“Second, having administrative units can justify the presence of military and defense installations for protection purposes,” Bhatt said. “Furthermore the establishment of these cities increases the area of operation over the vast maritime domain in the South China Sea.”


China has constructed airstrips and military infrastructure at a number of the artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea in recent years, including at Fiery Cross Reef, where commercial satellite imagery provider ImageSat International recently spotted military aircraft.


On April 6, the U.S. State Department had mentioned the landing of military aircraft at Fiery Cross. In that statement, the U.S. accused China of exploiting nations’ distraction over COVID-19 to expand its “unlawful claims” in the South China Sea.


Also on the weekend, in a move calculated to demonstrate Chinese jurisdiction of the new districts, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and Ministry of Natural Resources released a new map naming each feature in the South China Sea it claims – an exhaustive list that was last updated in 1983.


The move by China to assert jurisdiction comes after a dueling series of diplomatic notes by China and rival claimants that were submitted to the United Nations. Malaysia’s initial submission claiming a part of the seabed in December sparked a protest from China, which in turn sparked further protests against China’s claim from the Philippines and Vietnam.


China issued its latest statement on Friday, and adopted a notably more aggressive tone towards Vietnam.


“China always opposes the invasion and illegal occupation by Viet Nam of some islands and reefs of China’s Nansha Qundao, and the activities infringing upon China’s rights and interests in the waters under China’s jurisdiction,” its submission to the United Nations’ Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) read. Nansha Qundao refers to the Spratly Islands.


“China resolutely demands that Viet Nam withdraw all the crews and facilities from the islands and reefs it has invaded and illegally occupied,” the note added.


Bhatt believes the continental shelf dispute and China’s new districts will figure prominently in the year’s discussions between China and ASEAN. Vietnam is currently protesting Chinese actions the loudest and may be best-placed to press the issue further as the current chair of the 10-nation ASEAN bloc, she said.

https://www.benarnews.org/english/ne...020182553.html

United States Sends 2 Warships as China Continues Survey near Malaysia

The United States has sent an amphibious assault ship and a guided missile cruiser to the site of an ongoing survey by a Chinese ship operating in Malaysian waters, the U.S. military said Tuesday, signaling Washington’s support for other countries in the region as China presses its advantage in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.


Lt. Cmdr. Nicole Schwegman, spokeswoman for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, confirmed that the USS America and USS Bunker Hill have been deployed in the South China Sea.


“Through our continued operational presence in the South China Sea, we are working with our allies and partners to promote freedom of navigation and overflight, and the international principles that underpin security and prosperity for the Indo-Pacific,” she wrote in an email. “The U.S. supports the efforts of our allies and partners to determine their own economic interests.”


Schwegman did not state the exact location of the warships but satellite imagery from Tuesday provided by the European Union through the EO Browser service confirms that the USS America is less than 60 nautical miles from the West Capella, a Malaysian-contracted oil exploration ship. In close proximity, there are a combination of Chinese survey vessels, coast guard, and maritime militia ships, according to vessel tracking software.


The Chinese survey vessel, named the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8, arrived in Malaysian waters on April 16 and is surveying an area within Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone, between the West Capella and Malaysia’s coast.


As of Tuesday morning, the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 was roughly 180 nautical miles from the Malaysian coast – but only 100 nautical miles from the Luconia Shoals, which are claimed by China and Malaysia in the southernmost part of the South China Sea. On April 17, the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 was also within 200 nautical miles of Indonesia’s Natuna Island.


Vessel-tracking software shows that the survey is being conducted in a back-and-forth manner over an area about 150 nautical miles wide, and creeping ever-closer to Malaysia’s Sarawak state.


Malaysia’s coast guard last week confirmed that the Chinese survey ship was in Malaysian waters.


Zack Cooper, a research fellow at the Washington-based think tank the American Enterprise Institute said there were many possible reasons for the U.S. to have sent warships to the area of the survey ship but it was unlikely that Malaysia had asked for the U.S. to intervene.


“I don’t think the United States has any intention to directly engage on behalf of Malaysia, especially because Malaysia may not have asked for assistance and is not a U.S. treaty ally,” Cooper explained. “But it is useful for U.S. forces to be there to help monitor Chinese activities and show other claimants that China is not the only outside military capable of operating in the South China Sea.”


The commander of the USS America Expeditionary Strike Group said that his forces had interacted with Chinese naval forces in the South China Sea this week.


“All our interactions continue to be safe and professional with them,” Rear Adm. Fred Kacher told Reuters by phone from the USS America.




A graphic representation of the path of the Chinese survey ship Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 since it arrived off the coast of Malaysia on April 16. (MarineTraffic with annotation by BenarNews)
China has said that the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 is conducting normal activities and has accused U.S. officials of smearing Beijing. That followed statements from the U.S State and Defense departments strongly critical of China’s recent activities in the South China Sea, particularly the April 2 sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat in a confrontation with a China Coast Guard ship.


The State Department accused China of exploiting other nations’ distraction over COVID-19 to expand its “unlawful claims” in the South China Sea.


The Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 is accompanied by China Coast Guard (CCG) and People’s Armed Forces Maritime Militia ships. Two CCG ships, the Zhongguohaijing 4203 and 1105, are sailing alongside the Hai Yang and shadowing supply ships supporting the West Capella, according to vessel-tracking software. Another CCG ship, the Haijing 5203, has been sailing in and around Luconia Shoals since April 1.


The apparent standoff near the West Capella occurs as Beijing faces diplomatic pushback from some of its Southeast Asian neighbors against its sweeping assertion of sovereignty across the resource-rich sea.


Over the weekend, China’s upped the ante when it announced two new administrative districts for the South China Sea and released a new map naming all the islands and reefs it claims in the contested region – though Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have sovereignty claims that overlap with China.


In recent weeks the U.S. has withdrawn key assets from the Pacific. The aircraft carrier the USS Theodore Roosevelt had to be pulled out of active deployment on March 26 because of dangerous rates of coronavirus infections among its crew. The U.S. Air Force announced last Friday it would stop deploying strategic bombers to its base on the Pacific island of Guam.


But Cooper said the arrival of the USS America and Bunker Hill “serves as a reminder that the U.S. Navy is large and not dependent on one ship to show regional presence.”


He said the U.S. is using this deployment to remind China and other claimants in the South China Sea that China has no legal basis to economic rights in the area the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 is operating in.

United States Sends 2 Warships as China Continues Survey near Malaysia

Get right up close. :bananaman:

The Chinese are masters of advancing slowly and gradually, using the thin end of the wedge.

Can't some US nuclear submarines just sink half a dozen Chinese vessels then let the Chinese respond if they dare...

F'kin boring watch the Chinese slowly choke the small nations around them.

Philippines Files Diplomatic Protests against Beijing’s Moves in South China Sea


The Philippines filed two diplomatic protests against Beijing on Wednesday, saying it violated international law through recent actions in the South China Sea, including by declaring parts of the disputed waters as Chinese districts, according to Manila’s top envoy.


The protests were delivered to the Chinese Embassy in Manila after office hours, Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said.


They were for the “pointing of a radar gun at a Philippine Navy ship in PH waters” and for “declaring parts of the Philippine territory as part of Hainan province,” Locsin posted on Twitter. He said both actions constituted “violations of international law and Philippine sovereignty.”


“China created Nansha district under the jurisdiction of Sansha city, akin to something we already protested in 2012,” the foreign secretary added. “Old hat but bears repeating in the protest.”


Locsin did not elaborate on the alleged radar-gun incident.


Late Wednesday, officials from the Philippine Navy and the armed forces declined to comment. China’s embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to phone calls from BenarNews.


Manila made the accusations against Beijing as the U.S. Pacific Fleet announced that an Australian frigate, the HMAS Parramatta, joined three U.S. Navy ships during exercises in the South China Sea on April 18.


“It is great to be operating with the Australians again,” the Pacific Fleet quoted Capt. Kurt Sellerberg, commanding officer of the USS Bunker Hill, as saying in a statement. The guided missile-cruiser was with an amphibious U.S. assault ship and another warship, USS America, during the maneuvering exercise with the Australians, which was observed or participated in by over 3,000 sailors, it said.


This comes after the USS America and Bunker Hill sailed near the Chinese survey ship Hai Yang Di Zhi 8, which is operating at the site of recent oil exploration inside Malaysian waters.


On Tuesday, the USS America was within 60 nautical miles of the West Capella, the Malaysian-contracted drillship being shadowed by China’s survey vessel and coastguard, according to vessel-tracking software.


According to Patrick Buchan, a former Australian government official and the director of the U.S. Alliances Project at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, this latest joint effort by their navies demonstrates the closeness of the alliance between the United States and Australia.


“This is yet another example of Australia increasing its interoperability with the U.S. Navy on the high seas, but it’s particularly gratifying to see Australia operating with U.S. vessels at this time in the South China Sea,” he said.


Australia has participated in freedom of navigation and freedom of flight exercises in the South China Sea, but has a neutral stance on the various claims made by states in the area.


Nonetheless, Buchan emphasized that Australia has a stake in the stability and openness of the region. Australia’s top trading partners are all in Northeast Asia, he pointed out. “It’s critical for its trade links that no single country dominates the South China Sea,” he said.


Manila, Hanoi, US criticize China


The Philippines lodged the new diplomatic protests barely two weeks after Manila joined Hanoi and the United States in criticizing China over the alleged sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat by a Chinese coast guard ship near the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea.


The “statement of solidarity” from Manila rebuked Beijing for the incident, and said it was an act of needless provocation at a time when countries in the region were busy trying to contain a pneumonia-like virus, which has killed thousands and left millions sick around the world.


In the wake of the April 2 sinking, China claimed that the Vietnamese boat sank itself by ramming into its coast guard ship.


Locsin issued his statement about the diplomatic protests three days after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte had a one-on-one call with U.S. President Donald Trump, during which the two discussed bolstering bilateral ties as their countries continued to battle the COVID-19 pandemic.


“Both leaders agreed to continue working together as long-time allies to defeat the pandemic, save lives and restore global economic strength,” the U.S. Embassy in Manila said on Monday.


“The two leaders also discussed how the United States and the Philippines can continue building upon the strong and enduring economic, cultural and security ties binding the two nations,” it said.


On Tuesday, the U.S. military said it had sent an amphibious assault ship and a guided missile cruiser to the site of an ongoing survey by a Chinese vessel in Malaysian waters in the South China Sea, signaling Washington’s support for other countries in the region as Beijing pressed its advantage in the middle of the coronavirus outbreak.


Lt. Cmdr. Nicole Schwegman, spokeswoman for the Hawaii-based U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, confirmed that the USS America and USS Bunker Hill had been deployed to the South China Sea.


“Through our continued operational presence in the South China Sea, we are working with our allies and partners to promote freedom of navigation and overflight, and the international principles that underpin security and prosperity for the Indo-Pacific,” she wrote in an email. “The U.S. supports the efforts of our allies and partners to determine their own economic interests.”


Satellite imagery from Tuesday provided by the European Union through the EO Browser service confirmed that the USS America was then less than 60 nautical miles from the West Capella, a Malaysian-contracted oil exploration vessel. In close proximity, there were a combination of Chinese survey vessels, coast guard and maritime militia ships, according to vessel tracking software.


The Chinese survey vessel, named the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8, arrived in Malaysian waters on April 16 and was last tracked surveying an area within Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone, between the West Capella and Malaysia’s coast.


As of Tuesday morning (local time), the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 was around 180 nautical miles from the Malaysian coast – but only 100 nautical miles from the Luconia Shoals, which are claimed by both China and Malaysia. On April 17, the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 was also within 200 nautical miles of Indonesia’s Natuna Islands.


China has said that the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 was conducting normal activities.


At the weekend, announced two new administrative districts for South China Sea and released a new map naming all the islands and reefs it claims in the contested region.


The United States, for its part, in recent week had withdrawn key military assets from the Western Pacific region.


The aircraft carrier the USS Theodore Roosevelt had to be pulled out of active deployment on March 26 due to dangerous rates of coronavirus infections among its crew. On April 17, the U.S. Air Force announced that it would stop deploying strategic bombers to its base on the Pacific island of Guam.


China claims most of the South China Sea on historical grounds, including areas that reach the shores of its smaller neighbors. Apart from the three countries, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have overlapping claims over the region.

Philippines Files Diplomatic Protests against Beijing’s Moves in South China Sea

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Originally Posted by misskit

Philippines Files Diplomatic Protests against Beijing’s Moves in South China Sea

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Unfortunately bullies normally need a bloody nose to get the message and the Phils are not able to give them one.

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Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Files Diplomatic Protests

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The Chinese and Russians do that all the time.

It's a diplomatic way of keeping their claim valid, politely.

Note verbale

A note verbale (French pronunciation: ​[nɔt vɛʁ.bal]) is a formal form of note and is so named by originally representing a formal record of information delivered orally.

Example:

Ukrainian protest of the Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation.^[5]

"The Ukrainian party categorically denies extension of sovereignty of the Russian Federation on Ukrainian territory, and reserves the right to exercise measures in accordance with international law and the laws of Ukraine."

Diplomatic correspondence - Wikipedia

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Originally Posted by Bettyboo

F'kin boring watch the Chinese slowly choke the small nations around them.

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Yes; seen it time after time
A good handfull of countries south of Mexico is still in ICU

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Originally Posted by helge

A good handfull of countries south of Mexico is still in ICU

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Hadn't they been seen already a century ago?

US Calls Out Intimidation as China Pressures Malaysian Ship

The top U.S. diplomat has accused China of deploying an energy survey ship to contested waters off Malaysia to intimidate other South China Sea claimants from developing hydrocarbon resources in the region’s resource-rich waters.


Malaysia’s foreign minister, meanwhile, called for disputes in the South China Sea to be resolved peacefully and came under pressure from his predecessor to take firmer action against China.


China’s survey ship, the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8, which arrived off the Malaysian coast with an escort of China Coast Guard ships a week ago, continued to operate within Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone on Thursday, according to vessel-tracking software. It is near the West Capella, a drillship contracted by Malaysian state petroleum company, Petronas.


The U.S. statement, issued late Wednesday in Washington by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, followed a conference call with Southeast Asian counterparts to discuss the response to COVID-19. Pompeo reiterated the U.S. position that China is taking advantage of the pandemic to press its claims in the South China Sea and engage in “provocative behavior.”


“The PRC (People’s Republic of China) has dispatched a flotilla that included an energy survey vessel for the sole purpose of intimidating other claimants from engaging in offshore hydrocarbon development,” Pompeo’s statement said, referring to the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8.


“The U.S. strongly opposes China’s bullying and we hope other nations will hold them to account, too,” Pompeo said.




His remarks follow maneuvers by U.S. warships in the area this week as Southeast Asian nations face pressure from China in the region’s disputed waters. The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said the presence of the USS America and USS Bunker Hill showed the U.S. “supports the efforts of our allies and partners to determine their own economic interests.”


Pompeo also cited the sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat and the establishment of new research stations and administrative districts on islands and reefs as evidence that China is exploiting the distraction caused by COVID-19 in its neighborhood.


Geng Shuang, spokesman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, shot back at these accusations on Thursday during a press conference in Beijing. He asserted China’s sovereignty over islands and reefs in the South China Sea and adjacent waters.


“We are committed to resolving differences with parties directly concerned through dialogue and consultation,” he said. “Some people in the US want to replace facts with rumors and lies and sow discords among neighbors. Such attempts will not succeed.”


Australia Foreign Minister Marisa Payne also expressed concern over China’s actions. Her remarks followed the deployment of an Australian frigate that joined the U.S. warships for a joint exercise in the South China Sea this week.


“It is vital at this time that all parties refrain from destabilizing activities and work to ease tensions so the international community can devote full attention to responding cooperatively to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Payne was quoted as saying Wednesday by the Sydney Morning Herald.


While the current area of tension is located within Malaysian waters, Malaysia itself had stayed mostly silent, until Thursday’s statement by Foreign Minister Hishammuddin Hussein.


He said that issues in the region should be solved peacefully based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. He said that Malaysia remains steadfast in its commitment to safeguarding its interests and rights in the South China Sea, but added: “We must avoid unintended, accidental incidents in these waters.”


U.S. maritime expert Greg Poling said Malaysia is in an untenable position and is likely to halt its exploration.


“If anybody is unclear about when Hai Yang Di Zhi 8 is going to leave Malaysia waters, they are going to leave when the West Capella leaves, and not before, and that is going to be a waiting game that I suspect Malaysia can’t win,” Poling told Malaysian journalists on Thursday. He is director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank.


Anifah Aman, Malaysia’s former foreign minister, called for his nation to adopt a “consistent and principled stance” and take “appropriate action in relation to surveillance activities being carried out by Chinese vessels in Malaysian maritime areas.”


“Smaller Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency and Royal Malaysian Navy vessels may not be able to stop the Chinese ships, but at least we can express our resolve to not let Chinese ships do as they like in Malaysian maritime space,” Anifah said in an open letter. He served as Malaysia’s top diplomat between 2009 and 2018.


It wasn’t clear if the current foreign minister’s comments Thursday were prompted by Anifah’s letter, but Hishammuddin pushed back against suggestions that the government wasn’t doing anything.


“We have open and continuous communication with all relevant parties, including the People’s Republic of China and the United States of America,” Hishammuddin’s statement said.


Beijing claims most of the South China Sea, including areas that reach the shores of its smaller neighbors. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan also have overlapping claims in the sea region.


Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines have directly disputed China’s expansive claims in diplomatic notes in recent weeks. On Wednesday, the Philippines filed two diplomatic protests against Beijing, saying it violated international law through recent actions in the South China Sea.


On Thursday, Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr., called for all countries in the region to focus on the COVID-19 crisis and its potential aftermath. The World Bank released a report earlier this month on the dire outlook of Southeast Asia’s economic recovery out of the crisis.


“In Asia, that recovery hinges on China’s recovery from the ravages of the pandemic; but it can never be at the price of our honor and sovereignty,” Locsin said.

US Calls Out Intimidation as China Pressures Malaysian Ship

https://teakdoor.com/images/TD/misc/quote_icon.png Originally Posted by Bettyboo https://teakdoor.com/images/TD/butto...post-right.png
F'kin boring watch the Chinese slowly choke the small nations around them.

https://teakdoor.com/images/TD/misc/quote_icon.png Originally Posted by helge https://teakdoor.com/images/TD/butto...post-right.png
A good handfull of countries south of Mexico is still in ICU

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Originally Posted by Klondyke

Hadn't they been seen already a century ago?

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Why the "small nations around them" do not want to be developed like the "good handful of countries south of Mexico" had profited from "seeing" by (please no names here) for century long...

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“We have open and continuous communication with all relevant parties, including the People’s Republic of China and the United States of America,” Hishammuddin’s statement said.

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So he probably trousered some of that Belt and Owed money then.

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Originally Posted by Bettyboo

F'kin boring watch the Chinese slowly choke the small nations around them.

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Change is inevitable. A chance of a better way. The past system has failed it is dead.

They of course could follow the previous Empire builders SOP, raping, killing, running away and leaving millions of unexploded mines, biological warfare destroyed lands, maimed and burnt civilians ... systematic plunder.

But no they are building stuff, roads, railways, schools, hospitals, factories ... Will their be a profit in it, of course. Better than running away and turning you back on countries for 60+ years. For the whole of Asia, Africa, South America and all others if they desire to join.

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Originally Posted by OhOh

Will their be a profit in it, of course. Better than running away and turning you back on countries for 60+ years. For the whole of Asia, Africa, South America and all others if they desire to join.

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It's only for profit. And when they run away they leave land and water poisoned and lifeless.

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Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

t's only for profit

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Surely the CCP confiscates it?

Manila Downplays Chinese Laser-Gun Incident in South China Sea


The Philippines’ defense chief on Tuesday downplayed Beijing’s latest aggressive move in the South China Sea, saying it appeared that Chinese sailors had no real intention of hurting Filipinos when they pointed a laser gun at a Philippine navy ship.


Although the Chinese move was seen as aggressive, it likely was meant to enforce their presence in the disputed sea region, which is claimed by China, the Philippines and other countries, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said.


“I don’t think they have an intention to harm our men with this latest incident of pointing a laser gun,” Lorenzana said on state-run television. “Maybe they are testing what our reaction will be. And we have already filed a protest to the Chinese government.”


“But it’s offensive. Why do they need to aim their target acquisition radars on our airplanes and ships?” he said.


According to Lorenzana, the Chinese were challenging the Philippine ship by saying “You are traversing Chinese territory.”


“But our ships and airplanes say: ‘We are traveling within our EEZ or within Philippine territory,’ so it’s only an exchange of messages,” the defense secretary added, referring to waters in Manila’s exclusive economic zone.


Lorenzana issued the statement several days after the Philippine foreign office said it had filed a diplomatic protest with China for “pointing a radar gun at a Philippine Navy ship” in the EEZ. Manila took that action on April 22, the same day it filed a separate diplomatic note to protest Beijing’s declaration of parts of the disputed sea as Chinese districts.


In the incident with the laser gun, the Philippine ship BRP Conrado Yap was on its way to the Rizal Reef Detachment in the South China Sea when it reported that it had detected “a radar contact of a gray-colored vessel.”


Lorenzana said the Chinese had used a target-acquisition laser meant to guide a missile toward an enemy target.


“It’s like when they will use their missile they will first strike on the target that they have already marked,” Lorenzana said.


The incident was the latest accusation that Chinese forces had used lasers to harass other nations’ naval personnel.


In February this year, the U.S. Navy accused a Chinese naval destroyer of firing off a laser beam at a U.S. surveillance aircraft flying west of Guam and over the Philippine Sea, which lies far to the north and east of the South China Sea.


A statement from U.S. Pacific Fleet said the laser, which was detected by sensors on the P-8A Poseidon aircraft on Feb. 17, was not visible to the naked eye. The U.S. Navy described the Chinese move as an act deemed unsafe and a violation of international codes and agreements.


China’s defense ministry, however, refuted the U.S. claim.


Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang told reporters in Beijing last month that Chinese ships were conducting routine exercises in international waters when the incident allegedly happened. He accused the P-8A Poseidon aircraft of carrying out an “unfriendly” behavior, including long periods of low-altitude reconnaissance “despite repeated warnings from the Chinese side.”


Sending a message to China


The Chinese moves in the sea that drew the diplomatic protests from Manila occurred as the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nation were busy with curtailing the spread of the coronavirus in their territories.


A Filipino maritime expert, Jay Batongbacal, said China was taking advantage of its medical assistance to help Southeast Asian nations battle the pandemic to prevent a pushback in the maritime region.


“One could argue that [Beijing] is using this cooperation as a way to leverage against any actions or protests against China for its activities in the West Philippine Sea,” Batongbacal, told local television ANC on Monday, using the Philippine name for the South China Sea.


“This is taking place simultaneously with their medical aid and assistance and offers of cooperation on this pandemic,” said Batongbacal, director of the University of the Philippines’ Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea.


On Monday, retired Philippine Supreme Court judge Antonio Carpio told foreign correspondents in Manila that the Philippines should join forces with neighbors Vietnam and Malaysia, and possibly other countries, in conducting joint patrols to deter further Chinese aggression in the South China Sea.


Doing so, he said, would send “a message that China cannot pick us out one by one.”


But Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said the government did not agree with Carpio, although he acknowledged that the former justice’s suggestion of joint patrols with neighbors appeared to be sound.


“Suggestion well-taken, although we do not agree with the personal opinions of Justice Carpio on what China is doing. But the suggestion on joint patrol is well-taken, it will be considered,” Roque told reporters on Tuesday, as he reiterated that the government would assert territorial sovereignty against China.


“We do not agree with that conclusion, although the current policy is that we will defend all our national territory and our sovereign rights,” he said.


US sends combat ship to sea region


Meanwhile, the USS Gabrielle Giffords, a littoral combat ship, left port in Singapore for the South China Sea on April 25 and sailed near the site of a survey being conducted by the Chinese vessel Hai Yang Di Zhi 8, according to vessel-tracking software.


The presence of the USS Gabrielle Giffords in the disputed sea region was confirmed by the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in a news release.


As of Tuesday, the Hai Yang Di Zhi 8, a survey ship at the heart of current tensions in the South China Sea, was operating in waters jointly claimed by Vietnam and Malaysia. It has been escorted by Chinese coast guard ships.


The USS Gabrielle Giffords joins the USS America, USS Bunker Hill, and USS Barry in demonstrating the American naval presence in the South China Sea. They were recently joined last week by Australian frigate HMAS Parramatta in a joint exercise. The KD Kelantan, a Royal Malaysian Navy warship, has also been patrolling the area.


On Tuesday, Beijing sent an aircraft battle group through the Miyako Strait, between Japan and Taiwan, according to a news release from the Japanese defense ministry. The release said China’s aircraft carrier Liaoning was spotted moving with two frigates, two destroyers and a high-speed support ship toward the East China Sea.


Meanwhile, the People’s Liberation Army-Navy Southern Theater released a statement on Tuesday accusing the USS Barry of violating China’s territory in the Paracel Islands.


China claims most of the South China Sea on historical grounds, including areas that reach the shores of its smaller neighbors. Apart from the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have overlapping claims over the region.

Manila Downplays Chinese Laser-Gun Incident in South China Sea

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Originally Posted by misskit

We are traveling within our EEZ or within Philippine territory,’

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Originally Posted by misskit

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana

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One hopes the Defence Secretary will check with a lawyer and educate himself regarding the extent of Philippine territory.

As far as the chinkies are concerned, they haven't got any.

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Originally Posted by OhOh

One hopes the Defence Secretary will check with a lawyer and educate himself regarding the extent of Philippine territory.

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Take a look at a map and see how close the Spratleys and Paracels actually are to the Philippines, you utter clod.

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Originally Posted by OhOh

As you are aware the extent of a countries sovereignty is...

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irrelevant to the chinkies because they just take what they want, and if they can't get it they bribe their way to it.

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Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

irrelevant to the chinkies because they just take what they want, and if they can't get it they bribe their way to it.

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Never disappointing us to miss a chance...
Wondering that he is not expecting a remark: "It's so exceptional nowadays by others (please no names...)"

Or does he expect? (as an agent provocateur paid for encouraging more clicking?)

Chinese military expels USS Barry from Paracel Islands

April 28 (UPI) -- Chinese authorities say they sortied ships and aircraft to "track, monitor, verify, identify and expel" the guided-missile destroyer USS Barry from the Paracel Island chain in the South China Sea on Tuesday.

The People's Liberation Army's Southern Theatre Command accused the USS Barry of intruding into "waters around the Paracel Islands without permission," the South China Morning Post reported.

Navy officials told USNI News, however, that the Barry had conducted a "freedom of navigation operation" in the island chain off Vietnam.

The vessel had transited the Taiwan Strait twice earlier this month, provoking a similar reaction from China. The Chinese Liaoning Carrier Strike Group also transited the Taiwan Strait April 22, a day after Barry transited the same area.

PLA Southern Theatre Command spokesman Li Huamin said the operation was "incompatible with the current atmosphere as the international community is fighting pandemic."

The United States and China have each accused the other of using the COVID-19 pandemic as a distraction to exercise more military control in the South China Sea.

The Barry has been active in the South China Sea operating with the guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill and the amphibious assault ship USS America off the coast of Malaysia.

Chinese military expels USS Barry from Paracel Islands - UPI.com