The Philippines Monday took delivery of two Japanese military surveillance aircraft to help it patrol vital sea lanes in the South China Sea, despite Manila’s increasingly conciliatory stance to Beijing’s claims over the disputed waters. Japan will lease a total of five surplus Beechcraft TC-90 planes to the Philippines, according to Manila’s defence secretary Delfin … Read more
China Wednesday denied plans to build an environmental monitoring station on a disputed shoal near the Philippines’ coastline, after a local official last week announced the plan. “As we have learned from relevant authorities, the report on establishing an environmental monitoring station is false. This is not true at all,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying … Read more
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said Sunday he could not stop China from building on a disputed shoal near his country’s west coast because it was too powerful. The mayor of China’s Sansha city has reportedly said his country would set up an environmental monitoring station on Scarborough Shoal, which China seized from the Philippines in … Read more
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said Monday he had agreed to allow Chinese surveillance ships into Filipino waters, contradicting his defence minister who described their presence as “very concerning”. Duterte also told reporters he did not want to have a “fight” with China over Benham Rise — waters recognised by the United Nation as indisputably Philippine … Read more
Chinese survey ships have been entering waters recognised by the United Nations as Philippine territory, Manila’s defence secretary said Thursday, in a move he described as “very concerning”. Delfin Lorenzana said the ships were seen last year near Benham Rise — a Philippine territory 250 kilometres (155 miles) off the east coast of the main … Read more