SHANGHAI/BEIJING: The U.S. attack on Venezuela will embolden China to strengthen its territorial claims over areas such as Taiwan and parts of the South China Sea but will not hasten any potential invasion of Taiwan, analysts said. Chinese President Xi Jinping‘s considerations about Taiwan and his timeline are separate from the situation in Latin America,…
As China carried out live-fire drills and rehearsed a military blockade in the waters surrounding Taiwan this week, 70-year-old Liao said she wasn’t worried about war. She was enjoying life as a retiree, playing mahjong with her friends and keeping an eye on the stock market. “Everyday life hasn’t been impacted,” Liao told Al Jazeera…
Two of China’s aircraft carriers, including its biggest and best, have docked at the same naval base near the Yellow Sea, raising suggestions that another dual-carrier exercise is on the horizon. In one of the images purportedly taken on Thursday, the Liaoning, China’s first aircraft carrier, docked on the other side of the pier with…
Senior US officials on Monday pushed back against suggestions of American retreat from the Indo-Pacific, declaring that Washington is recalibrating its foreign assistance to more effectively outcompete China in the strategically vital region while maintaining support for allies through targeted aid and security cooperation. The focus, they said, is shifting away from broad assistance towards…
An inherent “asymmetry” of power poses a challenge to resolving South China Sea disputes via the quiet diplomacy traditionally favoured by Southeast Asian nations, a leading Malaysian security expert has said. Chinese analysts said Beijing supported the “Asean way” too, so long as sovereignty claims were resolved bilaterally. They also warned against external interference and…
The U.S. Navy on Friday salvaged an F/A-18F Super Hornet and MH-60R Seahawk helicopter that went down in the South China Sea on Oct. 26, the U.S. 7th Fleet said this week. Task Force 73 — along with Task Force 75, Naval Sea Systems Command’s supervisor of salvage and diving and CTG 73.6’s Mobile Diving…
The United States has deployed three naval vessels—including two aircraft carriers—capable of operating F-35 stealth fighter jets across the Western Pacific this week amid China’s rapidly growing sea power and expanding maritime activity in the region. The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Why It Matters The F-35 is…
China continues to flex its fast-growing naval power by deploying multiple groups of warships across the western Pacific simultaneously, according to a Newsweek map. Lin Jian, spokesperson for China‘s Foreign Ministry, said last week that Chinese naval and Coast Guard vessels operate at sea in accordance with international law, urging “relevant parties” not to overreact…
The Philippines has released footage showing a patrol aircraft flying past a militarized Chinese artificial island on Saturday while conducting surveillance in the contested Spratly Islands, and claims the Chinese side fired flares toward the plane. Why It Matters China asserts sovereignty over more than 80 percent of the South China Sea, a crucial global…
China has carried out major upgrades to its electronic warfare and surveillance systems across its major bases in the Spratly Islands to strengthen its intelligence capabilities in the South China Sea, according to an American think tank. Satellite imagery analyzed by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative in a report last week showed new and enhanced…