SOUTH CHINA SEA

WORLD

China consolidates sea claims as Asian diplomacy struggles

April 23, 2013, 6:35 am | Reuters WORLD

Masinloc: For decades, fishermen along the northwestern Philippine coast treated the teeming fishing grounds of the Scarborough Shoal as their backyard, less than a day's boat ride away. Now, they see it as a foreign country. "I lost my livelihood when we lost the Scarborough Shoal to the Chinese," said Mario Forones, a 53-year-old who owns three fishing boats that worked the reef for about a dozen years before armed Chinese vessels arrived in force in April 2012. Reuters interviews with fishermen in two coastal Philippine towns - some of whom tried to fish the shoal as recently as in April 2013 - show how the Philippines has effectively ceded sovereignty of the reef about 124 nautical

WORLD

China to set up tsunami warning system in South China Sea

December 27, 2012, 6:53 pm | Press Trust of India WORLD

Beijing: Amid a row over South China Sea with its maritime neighbours, China today said it is leading a plan to set up a tsunami and other natural disaster warning systems in the area. "Tsunamis don't occur frequently, but they always result in significant damage. In the South China Sea, occurrence of earthquakes and tsunamis in the Manila Trench near the Philippines is highly possible," Zhang Zhanhai, head of the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) said. Zhang told media here that China is now capable of sending tsunami warnings to other countries around the South China Sea. These countries have reached a consensus on China leading the construction of the warning system, state-run Xinhua quoted him as saying. The

INDIA

Southeast Asia looks to India amid tensions with China

December 19, 2012, 5:07 pm | Reuters INDIA

New Delhi: The dozens of vehicles that roared into northeast India this week on a rally from Indonesia symbolize deeper ties between the South Asian giant and Southeast Asia, but the dreadful roads along several parts of the 8,000 km journey also show how much remains to be done. The caravan crossed jungles and mountains in eight nations before reaching the remote Manipur, bordering Myanmar, in an event promoting a high-level meeting between India and leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in New Delhi on Thursday and Friday. "The roads crumbled to begin with and then ceased to exist," said participants Bijoy Kumar and Vinod Nookla in a blog published by Mahindra & Mahindra, the

INDIA

'India will protect its interests in South China Sea'

December 3, 2012, 6:15 pm | Press Trust of India INDIA

New Delhi: Viewing the rapid modernisation of Chinese Navy as a "major concern", Navy Chief Admiral DK Joshi on Monday made it clear that India would protect its interests in the disputed South China Sea, even if it means sending forces there. "Yes you are right. The modernisation (of Chinese Navy) is truly impressive... It is actually a major cause of concern for us, which we continuously evaluate and work out our options and our strategies," he told a press conference. The Navy Chief was replying to a question on contingencies in South China sea to protect Indian interests there and impression about the Chinese Navy's modernisation. Answering a volley of questions about South China Sea over

WORLD

Take action against India, Vietnam: Chinese paper

August 2, 2012, 12:41 pm | CNN-IBN WORLD

New Delhi: India and Vietnam should be given a strong response if they remain defiant about exploring oil and gas in China's waters, a Chinese newspaper said on Thursday. The report by the hardline Global Times comes after the ONGC's recent announcement that it had accepted Vietnam's proposal to continue explorations in the South China Sea, an act that China claims violates its sovereignty. The text read, "China must first insist on exerting political pressure over both India and Vietnam, warning them that their joint exploration activities in the South China Sea are illegal and violate China's sovereignty. If they conduct oil and gas exploration in waters under China's sovereignty, China should give a strong response."

INDIA

India, Indonesia discuss South China Sea

July 27, 2012, 5:34 pm | Press Trust of India INDIA

New Delhi: India and Indonesia on Friday inked a treaty on avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and discussed strategic bilateral and regional issues, including South China Sea in the backdrop of increasing Chinese influence in the region. External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and his Indonesian counterpart Marty M Natalegawa co-chaired the fourth meeting of the India-Indonesia Joint Commission and identified specific areas in which both countries would be working together to take the relationship to the next high level. "Prior to the Joint Commission Meeting, Foreign Minister Marty and I had very useful discussions on the current status of our bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional

WORLD

US, China square off over South China Sea

July 12, 2012, 1:56 pm | Associated Press WORLD

Phnom Penh: The Obama administration pressed Beijing on Thursday to accept a code of conduct for resolving territorial disputes in the resource-rich South China Sea, a difficult US mediation effort that has faced resistance from the communist government. It has endeared US, however, to once-hostile countries in Southeast Asia. US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' annual conference, where several governments have expressed worry about China's expansive maritime claims. Tensions have threatened to boil over in recent months, with a standoff between Chinese and Philippine ships and sharp disagreements between China and Vietnam. China claims virtually the entire area and

WORLD

India for resolution of South China sea dispute

July 6, 2012, 5:02 pm | Press Trust of India WORLD

Hanoi: Amid increasing sparring between China and its neighbours over disputed oil blocks in the South China Sea, India on Friday said the region was key to its energy security and the conflict must be resolved peacefully as per international laws. India's Ambassador to Vietnam Ranjit Rae also noted that half of India's export and import go through the South China Sea. "The dispute should be resolved as per international laws. The South China Sea is very important and there should be safety and security of the international ships so that import and export are not affected," he told a group of visiting Indian journalists in Hanoi. China has been opposing resolution of the dispute under international

INDIA

India for peaceful resolution of South China Sea

July 6, 2012, 1:25 pm | Press Trust of India INDIA

Hanoi: Amid increasing sparring between China and its neighbours over disputed oil blocks in the South China Sea, India on Friday said the region was key to its energy security and the conflict must be resolved peacefully as per international laws. Expressing concern over the escalating tension in the area, India's Ambassador to Vietnam Ranjit Rae said half of India's export and import go through the South China Sea and India considers itself as an integral part of the archipelagos and its development. "The dispute should be resolved as per international laws. The South China Sea is very important and there should be safety and security of the international ships so that import and export are not affected,"

WORLD

Don't make waves in South China Sea, China warns US

June 3, 2012, 10:14 pm | Press Trust of India WORLD

Beijing: It was no time to "make waves" in the disputed South China Sea and dance behind a "Pied Piper", China's official news agency warned on Sunday, after the US said it would shift the bulk of its naval fleet to the Pacific Ocean by 2020. "It is advisable for some to refrain from muddying the waters and fishing therein and for some others to desist from dancing behind a Pied Piper whose magic tone, as tempting as it is, might lead its followers astray," said Xinhua in a commentary, referring to the sea, which is part of the Pacific and the subject of overlapping territorial claims. China claims the South China Sea in full, and it

WORLD

US will put more warships in Asia: Panetta

June 3, 2012, 3:56 am | Reuters WORLD

Singapore: The United States will shift a majority of its warships to the Asia-Pacific region by 2020, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said on Saturday, giving the first details of a new US military strategy. Fleshing out details of a strategic shift to Asia announced in January, Panetta said the United States would maintain six aircraft carriers in the region over the long run and rebalance its fleet so that 60 per cent of its other warships would be assigned to the Pacific by 2020, compared to 50 per cent now. The US defense secretary, speaking at an annual security forum in Singapore, also sought to dispel the notion that the shift, after more than a decade of war

INDIA

'India concerned over China's military spending'

June 3, 2012, 2:57 am | Press Trust of India INDIA

Singapore: India on Saturday expressed concern about the hike in Chinese military spending, but said it does not perceive Beijing as a threat. "China has increased their military capabilities and spending more on defence," Defence Minister AK Antony said at a Security Forum in Singapore. "We are concerned over it," he said. The Defence Minister said "even though we don't believe in an arms race, but in our own way, to protect our national interest, we are also strengthening our capabilities on our borders." Saying New Delhi favoured stable relations with its neighbour, Antony said the two countries had begun military-to-military cooperation. "We had contacts at the army level, but of late, we have started extending

INDIA

South China Sea standoff: India urges restraint

May 10, 2012, 5:15 pm | Press Trust of India INDIA

New Delhi: India on Thursday expressed concern on recent territorial stand-off between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea and asked them to exercise restraint and resolve the issue diplomatically as per international law. "We have been following with concern recent developments involving China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. Maintenance of peace and security in the region is of vital interest to the international community. India urges both countries to exercise restraint and resolve the issue diplomatically according to principles of international law," official spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs Syed Akbaruddin said. The standoff started on April 8 when Philippine military forces spotted Chinese fishermen taking marine species from the area.

WORLD

'Calling South China Sea a global property a mistake'

April 10, 2012, 3:30 pm | Press Trust of India WORLD

Beijing: Countering External Affairs Minister SM Krishna's assertion that the South China Sea belonged to the world, a Chinese daily has said "territory" of a country can not be denoted as a global property because it amounts to surpassing its sovereign right. While China has never objected to the freedom of the navigation in South China Sea, (SCS), "describing it as a global property is a mistake", state-run Global Times said in an editorial questioning Krishna's comments. "Other countries can't denote one country's territory as global property. "China claims sovereignty over the disputed area between itself and Vietnam, and according to international law, the rights of freedom of navigation and free trade in the South China Sea

INDIA

South China Sea property of the whole world: India

April 6, 2012, 4:50 pm | Press Trust of India INDIA

Bangalore: Countering China's objections on its oil exploration projects in the South China Sea, India on Friday said the region must be freed from any "national interference". "India maintains that South China Sea is the property of the world. I think those trade-ways must be free from any national interference," External Affairs Minister SM Krishna told reporters while replying to a question. Notwithstanding the Chinese warning, Krishna said the area should be used for increasing trade-related activities amongst nations which come within the rim of the South China Sea. "This has been accepted by the ASEAN countries and by China in their dialogue with ASEAN group of nations. So I think India subscribes to the theory that