Commentary / World Mar 24, 2020
China wants to rule the waves; here's how the U.S. can stop it
by James Stavridis
It will take the right kind of 355-ship U.S. Navy to blunt Beijing's goals in the South China Sea and beyond.
Commentary / World Mar 3, 2020
The tiny island that's key to China's maritime ambitions
by Tobin Harshaw
Thitu Island is little more than a rock, but the Philippines will lose it at its peril.
Commentary / World Feb 25, 2020
Fresh Philippines fiasco leaves vacuum for China to fill
by Kuni Miyake
A recent decision by Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte to terminate the Visiting Forces Agreement with the United States further embolden Beijing in the South China Sea.
Commentary / World Feb 24, 2020
U.S. can't afford to lose the Philippines
by James Stavridis
Cancelling the Visiting Forces Agreement will help al-Qaida and bolster China's hand.
Asia Pacific Feb 13, 2020
Taiwan says U.S. flies B-52 bombers near island after Chinese drills
by Jesse Johnson
The U.S. military flew three Air Force planes — including two B-52 bombers — near Taiwan on Wednesday morning, the country's Defense Ministry and the U.S. Pacific Air Forces said, after China sent its own bombers and fighter jets for exercises near the island ...
Asia Pacific / Politics Feb 13, 2020
U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed concerns Wednesday about the Philippines canceling a major military accord, saying the decision would save Americans money. The 1998 Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) created a legal framework for the presence of U.S. troops in the Philippines and for organizing joint ...
Commentary / Japan Feb 12, 2020
Duterte poised to shake up the regional security order
by Brad Glosserman
Following through on his threat to terminate the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) could upend regional security arrangements — although not necessarily for the worse.
Commentary / Japan Feb 12, 2020
Japan and the U.S. should co-develop an anti-ship cruise missile system
by Richard Armitage and Zack Cooper
In the face of growing Chinese maritime capabilities, the U.S. and Japan cannot simply sit idle.
Asia Pacific / Social Issues Jan 31, 2020
The coronavirus outbreak has stoked a wave of anti-China sentiment around the globe, from shops barring entry to Chinese tourists, online vitriol mocking the country's exotic meat trade and surprise health checks on foreign workers. The virus, which originated in China, has spread to more ...
Asia Pacific Jan 28, 2020
U.S. Navy sails warship near disputed islands in South China Sea for first time in 2020
by Jesse Johnson
The U.S. Navy said Tuesday that it had sailed a warship near the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea — home to fortified islands built by China — on Saturday, in what was believed to be its first freedom of navigation operation ...
Asia Pacific | FOCUS Jan 17, 2020
Beijing sets sights on mighty Mekong as passage to South China Sea
by Aidan Jones
Ninety-seven kilometers of rocks in Thai waters stand between Beijing and dominance over the Mekong, a mighty river that feeds millions as it threads south from the Tibetan Plateau through five countries before emptying into the South China Sea. China has long wanted to dredge ...
Asia Pacific Jan 7, 2020
Indonesia mobilizes fishermen to join warships in territorial standoff with China
by Stanley Widianto
Indonesia will mobilize fishermen to join warships in the South China Sea and help defend against Chinese vessels, the government in Jakarta said on Monday, as the biggest standoff for years between Southeast Asia's largest country and China escalated off the coast. In an unusually ...