The South China Sea's ‘White-Hull’ Warfare

Coast guard–type forces, commonly called “white hulls,” ought to constitute a stabilizing presence compared to regular navy forces (or “grey hulls”), as sea-power theorist Harold Kearsley wrote in Maritime Power and the Twenty-First Century in 1992. “White hulls” do not convey the same overtly militaristic, war-fighting impression as regular naval forces employed for this purpose.

26/03/2016

China v the rest

For years China has sought to divide and rule in the South China Sea. It worked hard to prevent the countries challenging it over some or all of its absurdly aggrandising territorial claims in the sea from ganging up against it. So when tensions with one rival claimant were high, it tended not to provoke others.

26/03/2016

Philippines Creates New South China Sea Task Force

The Philippine government said that it had created a new task force to coordinate its policy on the South China Sea amid rising tensions with China and ahead of a verdict on a case which it has filed against Beijing.

25/03/2016

Beijing Faces Twin Threats of New U.S. Military Presence and Pushback from an Old Frien

China suffered two major setbacks in the South China Sea this week. First, sparks flew between the PRC and Indonesia when the bungled seizure of a Chinese fishing vessel in Indonesian waters almost led to a direct conflict. Later in the week, the United States and the Philippines announce a new decade-long pact that will allow American troops to rotate between five PH bases.

25/03/2016

Delhi dives in to the South China Sea dispute

The Cold War between the United States and China over the South China Sea is heating up. Washington has raised the stakes on China’s “militarisation” of the South China Sea, warning that “specific actions will have specific consequences,” if it continues down the path of militarising the region.

24/03/2016

China's hold on South China Sea tightening

The saga of the South China Sea twists and turns, with a flurry of developments this week peppering the region that China seeks to dominate.

23/03/2016

Weekly Bulletin 14/03 - 20/03

China to build International maritime judicial center; US Navy admiral accuses Beijing of ‘might makes right’ attitude over SCS; Malaysia, Australia to discuss China moves in disputed SCS; 18th ASEAN-India SOM voiced their deep concerns over the complicated developments in the SCS.

22/03/2016

After Natuna incident, the SCS tensions likely to get worse

A recent high-level visitor to China told The Diplomat that he detected a new sense of urgency in Beijing to complete its consolidation of control over the South China Sea before the United Nations Arbitral Tribunal hands down its decision on the claims made by the Philippines against China.

22/03/2016

Indonesia feels efforts 'sabotaged' after latest dispute with China

Indonesia "feels sabotaged" in its efforts to maintain peace in the disputed South China Sea and may bring its latest maritime dispute with China to an international court, a minister said on Monday (March 21).

21/03/2016

Is Indonesia Ready to Be a Major Player in the South China Sea?

Last Sunday’s incident north of Indonesia’s Natuna Islands, in which two armed Chinese coastguard ships forced an Indonesian patrol craft to release an intruding Chinese trawler, shows once again that Jakarta must confront the reality of an overlap between its 200-mile economic zone and China’s "historic" nine-dash line of maritime sovereignty that penetrates deep into the South China Sea. 

21/03/2016