Category Archives: South China Sea

South China Sea: US unveils first sanctions linked to militarisation

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The latest US move against Beijing cracks down on firms whose goods may support Chinese military activities

The United States has blacklisted 24 Chinese companies and targeted individuals it said were part of construction and military efforts in the South China Sea, its first such sanctions move over the disputed strategic waterway.

The US Commerce Department said the companies played a “role in helping the Chinese military construct and militarise the internationally condemned artificial islands in the South China Sea”.

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Why is Xi Jinping pitting China against the world?

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Xi has stifled dissent at home and is increasingly willing for China to assert itself abroad

Earlier this week, Chinese leader Xi Jinping held a rare meeting in Beijing with business leaders. Admitting that the Covid-19 pandemic had a “huge impact” on the country’s economy, Xi used a Chinese idiom to assure his listeners.

“While the green hills last, there will be wood to burn,” he said. “If we maintain our strategy … we will find opportunity in crisis and turbulence. The Chinese people will surely prevail over all difficulties and challenges ahead”.

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Asean summit: US condemns Chinese ‘intimidation’ in the South China Sea

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National security adviser Robert O’Brien says Beijing has bullied smaller nations by militarising resource-rich waters

The US has condemned Chinese “intimidation” in the South China Sea, alleging it has bullied smaller south-east Asian nations by militarising the resource-rich waters and seeking to control the global trade route.

Speaking at an Asean-US summit in Bangkok, the US national security adviser, Robert O’Brien, said China’s sweeping exclusive claims in the South China Sea – already rejected by the court of arbitration – were illegitimate and a form of realist imperialism.

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Avoid irresponsible remarks on Hong Kong, China warns UK MPs

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Ambassador Liu Xiaoming says politicians free to express their opinion – within limits

China’s ambassador to the UK has accused British politicians of exhibiting a “colonial mindset” when they express support for demonstrators in Hong Kong or raise concerns about Huawei or freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.

Liu Xiaoming said British MPs were free to express their opinion about the Hong Kong crisis but needed to recognise there were limits. Critical comments were not a problem “as long as you do not interfere in Hong Kong’s affairs,” he said.

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Mike Pompeo urges Australia to stand up for itself over trade with China

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US secretary of state dismisses warning by top security analyst, arguing ‘you can sell your soul for a pile of soy beans or you can protect your people’

The US secretary of state Mike Pompeo has declared “you can sell your soul for a pile of soy beans, or you can protect your people”, dismissing a warning from prominent Australian security analyst Hugh White that Australia should avoid following Donald Trump into a confrontation with Beijing that America probably can’t win.

Pompeo issued the provocative declaration during a question-and-answer session at the Centre for Independent Studies in Sydney on Sunday.

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Australia giving ‘serious consideration’ to US request to help it confront Iran

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Mike Pompeo hails ‘unbreakable’ relationship between Washington and Canberra as he urges Australia to join coalition to protect shipping in the Gulf

Australia’s defence minister Linda Reynolds says the Morrison government is giving “very serious consideration” to a formal request from the Trump administration to join a US-led coalition to protect shipping in the Gulf from Iranian military forces.

Reynolds told journalists on Sunday after annual security talks between the Australian and American foreign affairs and defence ministers that the Morrison government was deeply concerned by the heightened tensions in the region, and strongly condemned the attacks on shipping in the Gulf.

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China says war with US would be a disaster as tensions mount

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Defence minister Wei Fenghe said China would ‘fight to the end’ on trade issues but was open to talks

Chinese defence minister Wei Fenghe criticised the United States on Sunday for its support for self-ruled Taiwan and for naval operations in the disputed South China Sea, but said conflict or war between the two countries would be a disaster.

Wei told the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Asia’s premier defence summit, that China would “fight to the end” if anyone tried to split China from Taiwan, which Beijing considers a sacred territory to be taken by force if necessary.

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US won’t ‘tiptoe’ around Chinese behaviour in Asia, says US defence chief

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Acting US defence secretary Patrick Shanahan warns stability in the region is under threat, including the South China Sea

The United States will no longer “tiptoe” around Chinese behaviour in Asia, with stability in the region at threat on issues ranging from the South China Sea to Taiwan, acting US defence secretary Patrick Shanahan has said.

Shanahan did not directly name China when making accusations of “actors” destabilising the region, but went on to say on Saturday that the United States would not ignore Chinese behaviour, the latest acerbic exchange between the world’s two biggest economies.

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US warship sails in disputed South China Sea amid trade tensions

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Destroyer moved near Scarborough Reef to ‘challenge excessive maritime claims’, says commander of Seventh Fleet

A US warship has sailed near the disputed Scarborough Shoal claimed by China in the South China Sea, a move likely to anger Beijing at a time of tense ties between the world’s two biggest economies.

The destroyer USS Preble carried out the operation on Sunday, a US military spokesman said. The busy waterway is one of a growing number of flashpoints in the US-China relationship, which also include a trade war, the blacklisting of tech company Huawei US sanctions and Taiwan.

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Two US warships sail through Taiwan Strait in challenge to China

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Destroyers William P Lawrence and Stethem transited through the waterway on Sunday as Pentagon ups the ante with Beijing

The US military has sent two navy warships through the Taiwan Strait as the Pentagon increases the frequency of movement through the strategic waterway despite opposition from China.

Sunday’s voyage risks further raising tensions with China but will likely be viewed by self-ruled Taiwan as a sign of support from the Trump administration amid growing friction between Taipei and Beijing.

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Okinawa referendum rejects new US military base but Abe likely to press on

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Tokyo sees controversial plan for new base at Henoko as key to US security alliance

Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, has vowed to push on with the controversial relocation of a US military base in Okinawa, hours after the island’s voters overwhelmingly rejected the move in a referendum.

Just over 70% of voters – or 434,000 people – opposed construction of a new base on Okinawa’s northeast coast that will replace an existing US marine corps base 30 miles away. Just 19% voted in favour of the move, with turnout at 52%.

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