Category: Military
Tensions Flare in South China Sea Following China’s Use of Water Cannon Against Unarmed Philippine Navy Supply Boat
The Philippine military condemned the Chinese Coast Guard's use of a water cannon against a much smaller unarmed supply boat that took place in disputed waters in the South China Sea on Saturday. The use of a cannon to block the ...
China’s Use of a Water Canon Against Philippines Vessels Was Planned in Advance to Set an Example for Others, Says U.S. Analyst
The following is an excerpt from an article written by Ray Powell, director of the Project Myoushu at Stanford University's Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation, that tracks Chinese maritime activity in the South China Sea. Powell spent more than 30 ...
China’s Foreign Ministry Signals Support for Niger’s Deposed President But Fails to Provide Any Specific Information
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs broke its silence regarding the recent coup in Niger. It issued a curt statement late last week that expressed support for deposed president Mohamed Bazoum but failed to provide any specific details about the status of key Chinese interests and personnel in ...
Guessing China’s Military Basing Ambitions
By Lukas Fiala Occasionally, a new report reignites the debate over where China might place its next military base. And just in time for the PLA’s 96th anniversary on Tuesday this week a recent study from AidData sheds new light on the topic. ...
Backgrounder: How Does Niger’s Coup Affect China?
China says it is closely monitoring the situation in Niger following last week’s announcement that a military junta arrested the democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum and established a military government. The coup potentially drives a wedge between Niger and Western powers, who ...
Chinese State Media Responds to Australia’s Closer U.S Military With Threat of “Counterattack”
The Chinese Communist Party's mouthpiece Global Times denounced Australia's decision to significantly increase military cooperation with the United States with a threat of military countermeasures if Canberra is involved in a U.S. conflict with Beijing. "If Australia provides strongholds or arms ...
U.S. South America and Caribbean Commander Raises Alarm About China’s Influence
Gen. Laura Richardson, the head of the U.S. Army’s Southern Command, which oversees Central and South America, and the Caribbean, says China is enlarging its presence in the Western hemisphere. In a football metaphor-strewn interview with Newsweek, Richardson said: "They're on ...
Where Will China’s Next Naval Base Be? New Report Lays Out the Options
Amid worries in Washington about the expansion of China’s global military reach, a new report by AidData, a research lab at the College of William and Mary, identifies eight locations for possible future bases. Recent reports that a pier at the Ream ...
Chinese-Funded Naval Base in Cambodia Looks Strikingly Familiar
Cambodia’s Chinese-built Ream naval base is reportedly nearing completion. The base has long been controversial, with U.S. defense officials charging that it could serve as a Chinese naval base. Satellite images show that a pier that could house an aircraft ...
Indian Navy Transfers Fully Operational Warship to Vietnam, Adding Yet More Naval Hardware to the South China Sea
The Indian Navy gifted the Vietnam People's Navy with an aging yet still functioning warship on Saturday during a handover ceremony for the INS Kirpan in the central Vietnamese port city of Cam Ranh. The transfer comes one month after Indian Defense ...
New Philippine Military Head Signals China Focus
The Philippine government announced that its new military chief will be Lt. Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., the former head of its army. Brawner’s appointment seems to strengthen the Marcos administration’s hardening towards China in relation to territorial disputes in the South China Sea/West Philippine Sea. ...
Iraqi Air Force Denies Rumors It Agreed to Buy Chinese JF-17 Fighter Jets From Pakistan
Reports began circulating late last week that Iraq had finalized a deal to purchase 12 JF-17 Thunder fighter jets from Pakistan for $664 million. The news lit up Pakistani Twitter as hundreds of posts emerged celebrating the deal that would make ...