The Philippine Islands has a problem. It has international law on its side in its quarrel with China over maritime territory, but no policeman walking his beat to enforce the law.
A war between China and the US would be “intense, destructive, and protracted”, according to an analysis for the US Army that warns the fast-growing Asian power is quickly closing the technological gap and could match America’s military within a decade.
A new study has warned US policy makers that a war between China and US could erupt if regional disputes, such as the South China Sea, continue to inflame tensions.
The future of the global maritime commons and the Asian balance of power is at stake in the South China Sea.
It seems if the People’s Republic of China is going to make a push to radically alter the status-quo in the South China Sea by reclaiming the hotly disputed Scarborough Shoal that is clearly within the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Philippines.
China is preparing for its go or go home moment in the South China Sea and it appears they have chosen the right time to make a play for regional and, ultimately, global dominance.
Canada has as much interest in the stability of the Asia-Pacific as it does Eastern Europe, if not more. Not only does Canada have extensive economic interests in the region, the many partners Canada has been attempting to build relationships with do too.
In a seminal article in 1978 Robert Jervis outlined the concept of the security dilemma. Jervis observed that ‘many of the means by which a state tries to increase its security decreases the security of others’.
On July 12, an International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) ruling dismissed much of China’s claim to the South China Sea. Since then, there has been a great deal of discussion on the legal ramifications, China’s response and public opinion.
Last month, the Hague’s Permanent Court of Arbitration sharply rebuked China over its bogus claims to sovereignty over the South China Sea — claims it’s used to bully and intimidate every country bordering the sea’s shores.