South China Sea

US holds drills in South China Sea amid tensions over balloon spy

The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps are holding joint exercises in the South China Sea at a time of heightened tensions with Beijing over the shooting down of a suspected Chinese spy balloon. The 7th Fleet based in Japan said Sunday that the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier strike group and the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit have been conducting integrated expeditionary strike force operations in the South China Sea. It said exercises involving ships, ground forces and aircraft took place Saturday but gave no details on when the began or whether they had ended. China claims virtually the entire South China Sea and strongly objects to military activity by other nations in the contested waterway through which $5 trillion in goods are shipped every year. The U.S. takes no official position on sovereignty in the South China Sea, but maintains that freedom of navigation and overflight must be preserved. Several times a year, it sends ships sailing past fortified Chinese outposts in the Spratly ..

Chinese intercept over South China Sea could have caused air collision: US

The US military says a Chinese navy fighter jet flew dangerously close to an Air Force reconnaissance plane over the South China Sea earlier this month, forcing the American pilot to maneuver to avoid a collision. US Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement Thursday that the incident occurred December 21 when the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy J-11 flew in front of and within 6 metres (20 feet) of the nose of an RC-135, a type of large reconnaissance plane operated by the US Air Force. The US plane was lawfully conducting routine operations over the South China Sea in international airspace, the statement said. Its pilot was forced to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision," it said. China frequently challenges military aircraft from the US and its allies, especially over the South China Sea, which China claims in its entirety. Such behaviour led to a 2001 in-air collision in which a Chinese plane was lost and pilot killed. The US Indo-Pacific Joint Force is dedicated t

Beijing building up unoccupied land features in South China Sea, says West

While China has previously built out disputed reefs, islands in the area, the West presented images of what they called the first known instances of a nation doing so on the territory

Stocks sputter as growth fears offset China's shift in Zero-Covid policy

World stocks eased on Wednesday and bonds remained supported after a chorus of Wall Street bankers warned about a likely recession ahead

Navy Chief Kumar arrives in Tokyo for quadrilateral naval Exercise Malabar

Exercise Malabar includes sophisticated naval drills, in which the navies of The US, India, Japan, and Australia, practice engaging a hostile power

Will oppose any attempt to challenge sovereignty in South China Sea: China

China said on Thursday that it will respect freedom of navigation in the South China Sea but oppose any attempts to challenge its sovereignty in the disputed area as Germany announced plans to send warships to the Indo-Pacific region. "I want to reiterate that China always upholds a defence policy (that) is defensive in nature," China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a media briefing here. He was reacting to reports quoting German General Eberhard Zorn's assertion that his country will expand its military presence in the Indo-Pacific along with allies by sending more ships to counter China's enormous build-up. "China develops necessary military capabilities to defend its legitimate national security interests, which is entirely legitimate and reasonable," Wang said. "China always respects countries' freedom of navigation and overflight enshrined in international law including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea," he said. "We firmly reject any country'

South China Sea conflict threatens 90% of Australia's fuel imports: Study

Conflict in the South China Sea threatens 90% of Australia's fuel imports: study

G7 concerned over China's actions in Hong Kong, Xinjiang & South China Sea

Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) countries rebuked China on issues concerning Hong Kong, human rights violations in Xinjiang, and military build-up in South China Sea

China condemns G7 criticism of Beijing's presence in East, South China seas

China has reacted sharply against a joint communique issued by foreign ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) countries that criticised Beijing's increasing presence in the East and South China seas

Australia says China threatened plane over South China Sea

Australia said a Chinese fighter jet carried out dangerous maneuvers threatening the safety of one of its maritime surveillance planes over the South China Sea

PM Narendra Modi, Vietnam's Trong discuss Ukraine, South China Sea

The leaders agreed to enhance defence partnership between the two countries, the PMO said

South China Sea level has risen by 150 mm since 1900, reveals study

South China Sea's sea level has risen by 150 mm since 1900, according to researchers from the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology.The study, carried out by the researchers under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and other institutions in the country, focused on Porites coral, a wide-spread coral in the South China Sea with a high growth rate, clear annual growth layer and sensitive response to the change of seawater environment, Xinhua News Agency reported.The researchers analyzed the correlation mechanism between the oxygen stable isotopes of Porites coral and sea level, sea surface salinity, sea surface temperature and rainfall of the South China Sea, and reconstructed the sea level record at an annual resolution.The study showed that the sea level fell by 0.73 mm per year from 1850 to 1900, and then rose by 1.31 mm per year from 1900 to 2015. The sea-level rise in the South China Sea has accelerated, rising by 3.75 mm per year since 1993, Xinhua reported.The study found ...

China says military development of islands within its rights

US military activities in the area aimed to stir up trouble and make provocations, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said

PM Modi discusses threat in South China Sea with Japan's Kishida

Amid threat in the Indo-Pacific region, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida on Saturday discussed the security challenges in the South China Sea.

US Navy recovers crashed F-35C Lightning II aircraft from South China Sea

The U.S. Navy says it has recovered an F-35C Lightning II aircraft that crashed while attempting to land on an aircraft carrier in the South China Sea in January

US has become 'troublemaker' in South China Sea, says Chinese military

US has become a "troublemaker" and "accident-maker" in the South China Sea, rather than a "defender" of free navigation and overflight, a Chinese military said on Thursday.

India steps up warship patrols like never before to counter China

The waters off India haven't seen this many naval vessels together since World War II as both China and Western allies deploy more warships in the area

Negotiating pitfalls: Are there basic lacunae in India's practices?

As cumulative experience should teach us, fuzzy approaches have costs, so the homework has to be done before signing of contracts, not after, writes T N Ninan

US Navy warship challenges Chinese territorial claims in South China Sea

A US warship challenged Chinese claims of sovereignty in the South China Sea on Thursday, stating that such claims violate international law and 'pose a serious threat to the freedom of the seas'

US State Department releases study on China's South China Sea claims

US State Department released a study on China's South China Sea claims challenging many of Beijing's assertions in the strategically important region.