Tag - islands

 
 

ISLANDS

Philippine fishermen along with volunteers from nongovernmental organization Atin Ito aboard fishing boats arrive at a meeting point in South China Sea on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 16, 2024
Philippine boat convoy won't proceed to China-held reef, organizers say
An "advance team" that distributed supplies to Filipino fishermen about 46-56 kilometers from the disputed Scarborough Shoal was "sent away by various Chinese vessels."
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi called a South Korean opposition party leader's landing on Takeshima "totally unacceptable."
JAPAN / Politics
May 14, 2024
Japan protests Takeshima trip by high-profile South Korea politician
Former South Korean Justice Minister Cho Kuk on Monday visited the small, rocky group of isles, known as Dokdo by Seoul.
Commodore Jay Tarriela, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 13, 2024
Philippine coast guard will block China reclamation at disputed shoal, official says
The shoal is the rendezvous point for vessels carrying out resupply missions to Filipino troops, where Manila and China have had frequent maritime run-ins.
Soldiers load boxes of relief goods into a U.S. CH53 Sea Stallion aircraft at Lal-lo Airport in Cagayan province, northern Philippines, last August. The Lal-lo Airport is one of the additional sites for the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) between the Philippines and the United States.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 11, 2024
China woos Philippine elites near base U.S. needs to defend Taiwan
The moves come as Washington and Beijing remain locked in a struggle for influence that is still playing out.
In response to the Manila Times report, Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., the chief of staff of the Philippine Armed Forces, said that transcripts could be fabricated and audio recordings could be manufactured using deepfake tools.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 9, 2024
Philippine military chief accuses China of 'malign influence effort'
He said Beijing's claim of a secret deal to de-escalate tensions in the South China Sea is a distraction from its coast guard's aggression in the waterway.
Philippine Marines wave to Philippine Navy personnel and the media during a resupply mission at their military outpost, the BRP Sierra Madre, a warship run aground in the disputed Second Thomas Shoal in 1999, in the South China Sea, in March 2014.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
May 8, 2024
Stormy seas ahead as Beijing and Manila trade barbs over secret deal
China has accused the Philippines of reneging on a "gentlemen's agreement" concerning activities in the South China Sea.
U.S. and Philippine Marines fire M198 155mm Howitzer artillery during a live-fire exercise against an imaginary "invasion" force as part of the joint U.S.-Philippines annual Balikatan military drills on a strip of sand dunes in Laoag on Luzon island's northwest coast on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 6, 2024
Philippines and U.S. fire at 'invasion' force in South China Sea war games
Lt. Gen. Michael Cederholm, commander of the U.S. First Marine Expeditionary Force, said the exercise was "to prepare for the worst."
Crew members check an SH-60K helicopter on the deck of the Maritime Self-Defense Force's Hyuga-class destroyer JS Ise during a three-day maritime exercise between the United States and Japan in the Philippine Sea on Jan. 31.
JAPAN
May 3, 2024
MSDF chopper crash likely caused by human factors
The accident off the Pacific island of Torishima on the night of April 20 left one crew member dead and seven other still missing.
Solomon Islands’ newly elected Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele speaks during a press conference outside the Parliament House in Honiara on Thursday. Manele was elected defeated an opposition leader intent on curbing Beijing's reach in the Pacific nation.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 2, 2024
China-friendly Manele elected as Solomon Islands PM
Manele chosen over an opposition leader intent on curbing Beijing's reach in the Pacific nation.
Solomon Islands’ Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare arrives at Parliament House to attend the new prime minister’s voting session in Honiara on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 2, 2024
Solomon Islands lawmakers to elect PM, with consequences for China
Incumbent Manasseh Sogavare withdrew from the contest after failing to secure an election majority.
An aerial view of the remote islands known as Takeshima in Japan and Dokdo in Korea
JAPAN / Politics
May 1, 2024
South Korean lawmakers land on Japanese-claimed islets
Seventeen people, including three lawmakers of South Korea's main opposition Democratic Party, visited Takeshima, which is known as Dokdo by Seoul.
The Philippine Coast Guard ship BRP Bagacay being hit by water cannon from China Coast Guard vessels near the Chinese-controlled Scarborough shoal in the disputed South China Sea in this screen shot from video taken and released Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 30, 2024
Philippines says China Coast Guard fired water cannon at its vessels
The incident was the latest to occur between the two countries at the disputed atoll in the South China Sea.
Solomon Islands' Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare speaks during a bilateral meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing last July.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 30, 2024
Solomon Islands pro-China PM says not standing for new term
During four spasmodic spells as the Pacific nation's leader, the 69-year-old Sogavare has maneuvered through armed coups, riots and the rise of China.
A Japan Coast Guard vessel sails near one of the disputed East China Sea islands that Japan calls the Senkakus and China calls Diaoyu, in August 2013.
JAPAN
Apr 28, 2024
China confronts Japanese politicians visiting near disputed East China Sea islets
The Japanese group, including former Defense Minister Tomomi Inada, was on an inspection mission organized by the city of Ishigaki, in Okinawa Prefecture.
The city government of Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture, has conducted its third marine survey around the Senkaku Islands.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 28, 2024
Okinawa's Ishigaki uses drone for first time during marine survey around Senkakus
During the survey, China Coast Guard vessels entered Japanese waters around the islands and attempted to interfere with the city's ship.
Chinese President Xi Jinping. Ever-growing tensions in the South China Sea all point to an uncomfortable truth for Southeast Asian nations, as well as the U.S.: In this standoff, China is winning.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 24, 2024
Xi’s armada is winning the battle for energy in South China Sea
China’s increasingly assertive stance has sparked a flurry of diplomatic and military efforts aimed at countering Beijing’s footprint.
Lt. Gen. William Jurney, U.S. director for the Balikatan joint military exercise, talks during an opening ceremony in Quezon City, suburban Manila, on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 22, 2024
U.S. and Philippine troops kick off drills as China tensions mount
The U.S. and Philippine militaries will exercise outside of Philippine territorial waters in the South China Sea for the first time since 1991.
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare speaks during a visit to Beijing last July.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 22, 2024
Pro-China Solomon Islands PM fails to secure outright majority
Manasseh Sogavare's Our Party has won 12 seats with six contests still in play — well short of a majority in the 50-seat parliament.
Crew aboard a Philippines Coast Guard vessel eye a Chinese Coast Guard ship in waters off the Philippines in November 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 18, 2024
Philippine Coast Guard to attend joint military drills with U.S. in first
More than 16,700 Filipino and American troops will participate in the drills, set to focus on potential flashpoints in the South China Sea and near Taiwan.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks during a news conference at the Pentagon in Washington in May last year. Austin held talks with his Chinese counterpart on Tuesday for the first time in nearly a year and a half.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 17, 2024
U.S. and China defense chiefs hold first talks in nearly 18 months
While the talks signaled improving military-to-military ties, the two superpowers remain at odds over a number of issues.

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