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ABC News
14 hours ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Intelligence reveals scale of China's base-building in the South China Sea
China has built a 3,200-hectare network of island military bases in the South China Sea, some of which are now capable of launching nuclear bombers, intelligence reveals. The latest satellite images tracked by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) show the true extent of China's rapid expansion across the region. Gregory Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, said the base development was alarming for Australia and regional allies like Japan and the US. "China has a lot of military infrastructure on these bases now," Mr Poling told the ABC. "They include: harbours, large runways, more than 72 fighter jet hangars across three big island bases, surface-to-air missile and anti-ship cruise missile emplacements, and a lot of radar, sensing and communications infrastructure. "These bases are the result of the quickest example of mass dredging and landfill in human history." China now has 20 outposts in the Paracel Islands and seven in the Spratly Islands. Four of those are fully operational naval and air bases. Imagery captured in May this year, and first reported by Reuters, revealed the deployment of two Chinese H6K nuclear-capable bombers on Woody Island, in the Paracel Archipelago. Dr Abdul Rahman Yaacob, a research fellow at Lowy's South East Asia Program, said the bases were "extremely concerning" for Australia. "These are long 3,000-meter runways that China has built, clearly with the intent to deploy advanced H6K bombers. These bombers can launch missiles within range of Australia." "Three of the bases in the Spratly island chain are now capable of landing those bombers, too," he told the ABC. China also controls Scarborough Shoal, which it seized in 2012, via a constant coast guard presence. "China is trying to turn the area into a Chinese lake," Dr Yaacob said. China considers the islands to be a legitimate extension of its territory, claiming historic rights to the South China Sea. According to the United Nations and international law, the bases are unlawful. That is a position that the Australian government backs. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade says China's conduct in the South China Sea is "deeply concerning." China occupied virtually zero dry land in the South China Sea at the start of the 2010s. "Since then, China has created seven military bases on the Spratly Islands, 800 or so miles [1,300 kilometres] from mainland China's coast, some of which have airstrips and deepwater ports," Mr Poling said. CSIS analysis of one of those bases, at Mischief Reef, shows combat aircraft hangars, missile shelters and high-frequency radar systems. It is a level of detail that provides a clearer understanding of China's capabilities in the region. "China can see and hear and communicate across the whole South China Sea in a way that nobody else, including the United States, can," Mr Poling said. "One of the bases could hold all of the United States's Pearl Harbour Naval Base in its lagoon, and almost all of Washington DC can fit inside the lagoon at Mischief Reef." The South China Sea is one of the world's most contested locations, where more than $3 trillion of trade passes through each year. "What was an occasional point of friction between China and its neighbours has now become a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week campaign of coercion. It's made possible by that island-building spree," Mr Poling said. China has had a presence in the Paracel Islands Chain since the late 1950s. It then took up its first outpost in the Spratlys in the late 1980s. "But these were tiny bases … think of pillboxes on stilts," Mr Poling said. "China can now see and hear pretty much everything that takes place in the South China Sea. It's an impressive capability." The team Mr Poling leads has been documenting the island build-up for the last decade. They have published their findings online. It reveals the scale and capability that China has developed. It is not just China that has been building bases in the South China Sea. Vietnam is also rapidly building bases in response to China. Five nations occupy nearly 70 disputed reefs and islets spread across the South China Sea. Besides China, they are Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Taiwan. They have built more than 90 outposts on these contested features. "These countries, particularly in South East Asia, are pushing back, with some success, against China's coercive tactics," Mr Poling said. "But China clearly has an upper hand. "It's actually closer to Australian territory than it is to Chinese territory at its southernmost end." Brunei also lays claim, but has not built bases on the reefs. China lays claim to territory in the South China Sea according to what is known as the "nine-dash line". China's Communist Party created the nine-dash line map in 1953. The nine-dash line refers to a line consisting of nine dashes depicted in various official and unofficial Chinese maps. It extends off the coast of China's Hainan Island and runs close to the coast of Vietnam, deep into the South China Sea, enclosing the Spratly Islands. "The dash line is a revisionist historical fantasy by China's Communist Party, but that doesn't make it any less dangerous," Dr Yaacob said. "What we have seen is that these historical narratives can have real-world consequences, look at Russia's idea of Ukraine belonging to its territory and what has happened there with a full-scale invasion." Countries, including Australia, have been conducting freedom of navigation exercises in the region with allies like Japan. In 2023, Australian Navy Divers were injured when a Chinese warship deployed strong sonar pulses. China has also deployed military-grade lasers against Royal Australian Air Force aircraft, which risk blinding pilots. China and Vietnam have destroyed thousands of acres of coral reefs due to base building in the South China Sea, according to the US Government and the CSIS. The means and methods China has employed to construct so many bases in such a short span have relied upon a specialised sea-dredging technology. The artificial islands were created by dredging sand onto reefs, which were then concreted to make permanent structures. Large vessels hoover up coral reefs and then churn that material indiscriminately, providing the sand for the islands. "It's complete indiscriminate destruction," Mr Poling said. "China has destroyed more than 4,000 acres of reef in the Spratly and Paracel Islands, which it has covered over. It's severely destroyed at least another 20,000 acres of the seabed and reefs that it's dug up to make the sand. "That is easily, and there's not even anything comparable, the most egregious intentional destruction of coral reefs in human history." The destruction of the coral reefs led to the then-US Pacific Fleet commander, Admiral Harry Harris, to coin the island chains China's "Great Wall of Sand". A US government report found that China's dredgers deposited sand and gravel on top of about 13 square kilometres of coral reefs, a process that destroys the coral underneath. Frank E Muller-Karger, professor of biological oceanography and remote sensing in the College of Marine Science at the University of South Florida, explained that in the process of island building, the sediment deposited on the reefs "can wash back into the sea". "This could form plumes that can smother marine life and could be laced with heavy metals, oil, and other chemicals from the ships and shore facilities being built." One study estimated that China (65 per cent) and Vietnam (33 per cent) were behind 98 per cent of all coral reef destruction in the South China Sea.
CNA
22-07-2025
- Business
- CNA
Trump says US, Philippines ‘very close' to finalising trade deal
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (Jul 22) that Washington and Manila were nearing completion of a 'big' trade agreement, as he welcomed Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to the White House. 'We're going to talk about trade today and we are very close to finishing a trade deal, a big trade deal actually,' Trump told reporters at the start of the meeting. Marcos is the first Southeast Asian leader to meet Trump during his second term. The visit comes as the US looks to strengthen regional ties amid its ongoing strategic competition with China. TARIFF TALKS Trump said the two countries 'do a lot of business' together and expressed surprise at the 'very big numbers' in bilateral trade, which he said would only grow under a trade pact. The United States recorded a US$4.9 billion trade deficit with the Philippines last year on two-way goods trade totalling US$23.5 billion. Earlier this month, Trump increased proposed 'reciprocal' tariffs on Philippine imports to 20 per cent, up from 17 per cent in April. The US president has already concluded trade deals with Vietnam and Indonesia, Manila's regional neighbours, but has taken a tough stance even with close allies. Vietnam agreed to a 20 per cent baseline tariff on its goods, while Indonesia settled at 19 per cent. Gregory Poling, a Southeast Asia expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said Marcos might be able to secure better terms than those reached by Vietnam and Indonesia. MILITARY TIES, BUSINESS TALKS Trump also highlighted the significance of the US-Philippine defence relationship, calling the Philippines 'a very important nation militarily'. 'We've had some great drills lately,' he added. Marcos arrived in Washington on Sunday and met with US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon on Monday. He also held talks with Secretary of State Marco Rubio. During his visit, the Philippine leader is scheduled to meet with American business leaders investing in the Philippines. Philippine officials say Marcos will emphasise that bolstering Manila's economy is essential for it to serve as a strong US partner in the Indo-Pacific.
Khaleej Times
21-07-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Philippines' President Marcos to meet Trump hoping to secure trade deal
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will meet US President Donald Trump this week, hoping Manila's status as a key Asian ally will secure a more favorable trade deal before an August 1 deadline. Marcos will be the first Southeast Asian leader to meet Trump in his second term. Trump has already struck trade deals with two of Manila's regional partners, Vietnam and Indonesia, driving tough bargains in trade talks even with close allies that Washington needs to keep onside in its strategic rivalry with China. "I expect our discussions to focus on security and defense, of course, but also on trade," Marcos said in a speech before leaving Manila. "We will see how much progress we can make when it comes to the negotiations with the United States concerning the changes that we would like to institute to alleviate the effects of a very severe tariff schedule on the Philippines." The United States had a deficit of nearly $5 billion with the Philippines last year on bilateral goods trade of $23.5 billion. Trump this month raised the threatened "reciprocal" tariffs on imports from the Philippines to 20 per cent from 17 per cent threatened in April. Although US allies in Asia such as Japan and South Korea have yet to strike trade deals with Trump, Gregory Poling, a Southeast Asia expert at Washington's Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said Marcos might be able to do better than Vietnam, with its agreement of a 20 per cent baseline tariff on its goods, and Indonesia at 19 per cent. "I wouldn't be surprised to see an announcement of a deal with the Philippines at a lower rate than those two," Poling said. Marcos, who arrived in Washington on Sunday, went to the Pentagon on Monday morning for talks with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and will see Secretary of State Marco Rubio later in the day, before meeting Trump at the White House on Tuesday. He will also meet US business leaders investing in the Philippines. 'Mutually beneficial' deal Philippine officials say Marcos' focus will be on economic cooperation and Manila's concerns about the tariffs. They say he will stress that Manila must become economically stronger if it is to serve as a truly robust US partner in the Indo-Pacific. Philippine Assistant Foreign Secretary Raquel Solano said last week trade officials have been working with US counterparts seeking to seal a "mutually acceptable and mutually beneficial" deal for both countries. Trump and Marcos will also discuss defense and security, and Solano said the Philippine president would be looking to further strengthen the longstanding defense alliance. Philippine media quoted Manila's ambassador to Washington, Jose Manuel Romualdez, as saying on Sunday that the visit would see a reaffirmation of the seven-decade-old mutual defense treaty and "discussions on how we can continue to cooperate with the United States, our major ally". With the Philippines facing intense pressure from China in the contested South China Sea, Marcos has pivoted closer to the US, expanding access to Philippine military bases amid China's threats towards Taiwan, the democratically governed island claimed by Beijing. The United States and the Philippines hold dozens of annual exercises, which have included training with the US Typhon missile system, and more recently with the NMESIS anti-ship missile system, angering China. Manila and the US have closely aligned their views on China, Poling said, and it was notable that Rubio and Hegseth made sure their Philippine counterparts were the first Southeast Asian officials they met. Poling said Trump also seemed to have a certain warmth towards Marcos, based on their phone call after Trump's reelection.
Daily Mail
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
China and Philippines' war on the high seas: How two countries have rammed each others' ships and blockaded tiny South China Sea islands in territorial battle that threatens to spiral into WW3
Each time China sends its warplanes and navy vessels to encircle Taiwan in alarming war games, the world is forced to confront the chilling prospect of a blockade or even full-blown invasion of the vital island nation. But further south, there is a second conflict brewing between China and another key ally of the United States - the Philippines. Under authoritarian President Xi Jinping, Beijing has continued to expand its reach into the South China Sea's strategically vital and resource-rich waters bordered by several Southeast Asian nations. Each of these countries, including the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam, all lay claim to different parts of the sea and a litany of small islands, shoals and reefs adrift within it. But China insists it should own virtually the entire sea and its strategic outposts, including swathes of territory within the 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) off the shores of all its island neighbours. On Monday, the Philippines rejected China's claim to Sandy Cay - a group of three sandbars less than 200 kilometres off the Philippine coast - after a Chinese state-owned newspaper last week published images of coast guard officers holding up a Chinese flag there. That prompted the Philippines' coast guard, along with a navy and maritime police team, to land on the sandbars and unfurl the Philippines flag, a move that was in turn harshly condemned and branded 'illegal' by Beijing. But this is just the latest in a long line of disputes which are growing ever more frequent and intense. Now, fears are mounting that a protracted spat could descend into an armed conflict between China and the US-allied Philippines - a scenario which could hasten a regional or even global fallout. At the heart of the tensions between China and the Philippines lies a scattering of rocks, shoals, reefs and atolls across the South China Sea, most notably the Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal, over which both countries assert sovereignty. The Philippines bases its claims on proximity and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), under which most of the contested features lie within its EEZ. China, meanwhile, claims almost the entire sea via its so-called 'nine-dash line', a sweeping boundary drawn on a map in the 1940s that has no legal basis under international law. That illegality was confirmed in 2016, when a Hague-based tribunal ruled overwhelmingly in favour of the Philippines, declaring China's claims invalid. Dr Gregory Poling, Director of the Southeast Asia Programme at the CSIS think tank, said: 'The very existence of the Nine-Dash Line, I think, is an affront to these countries... China is imposing the idea that these waters are disputed on smaller countries, where everybody else gets 200 miles, the Chinese get 1,000 miles.' But instead of pulling back, China has only looked to expand its presence since the ruling, militarising several natural and artificial islands - including Scarborough Shoal - and deploying coast guard ships and naval vessels to patrol the contested waters. As a result, Chinese and Philippine military and civilian vessels have routinely come to blows in the South China Sea as of late. These clashes, several of which have resulted in injuries to crew and damaged vessels amid ramming attacks, the use of water cannons and even lasers, are stoking tensions as the Philippines defies what it views as Beijing's policy of imperialist expansion and disregard for territorial sovereignty. In August, a Philippine coast guard vessel, the BRP Teresa Magbanua, sustained significant damage when it was repeatedly rammed by a Chinese ship close to Sabina Shoal, about 130 kilometres west of the Philippine province of Palawan, which is part of the hotly contested Spratly Islands. The shoal is well within the internationally recognised EEZ of the Philippines. Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine coast guard said the Magbanua dropped its anchor just off the coast of the Shoal and said it would not withdraw from the region 'despite the harassment, bullying activities and escalatory action of the Chinese coast guard'. Video released by the Philippine coast guard appeared to clearly show the Magbanua being rammed by a Chinese coast guard ship, even as Beijing claimed the Philippine vessel had altered its path and pursued a collision course. Close to Sabina Shoal lies the Second Thomas Shoal, where a small Philippine military detachment is stationed. This outpost has become a litmus test of Philippine resolve and Chinese intent as Beijing's ships hassle Philippine vessels conducting supply runs to and from the shoal. In February 2023, the Philippines accused a Chinese coast guard ship of hitting a coast guard boat with a military-grade laser. Manila said the laser temporarily blinded some of its crew in the disputed South China Sea, calling it a 'blatant' violation of Manila's sovereign rights. The Chinese ship also manoeuvred dangerously close, about 450 feet, to block the Philippine patrol vessel BRP Malapascua from approaching Second Thomas Shoal. A Chinese coast guard shoots water cannons at a Philippine boat in the South China sea Then in December of that year, another video shared by the Philippine coast guard showed Chinese ships blasting powerful water cannons at much smaller Philippine vessels off Scarborough Shoal. Scarborough Shoal is 240 kilometres west of the Philippines' main island of Luzon and nearly 900 kilometres from the nearest major Chinese land mass of Hainan, but China in 2012 assumed control of the territory in a blatant land grab. Chinese state television said the country's coast guard had used 'control measures in accordance with the law' against the Philippine vessels that had 'intruded' into waters around the shoal. These incidents, in which Chinese vessels seek to intimidate or attack Philippine vessels without resorting to overt military force, have been characterised as a cornerstone of Beijing's 'grey-zone tactics' to expand its influence in the South China Sea. 'By resorting to an array of grey zone tactics, Beijing aims to progressively eat away at the status quo in the South China Sea while staying under the threshold of crisis,' said Dr Euan Graham, an expert in Indo-Pacific Defence and Strategy at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. 'Through the skilful coordinated use of assets... grey zone tactics have already enabled Beijing to exert effective control over large tracts of the South China Sea... If China succeeds in dominating the South China Sea, it is likely to dominate Southeast Asia at large, as well as gaining strategic leverage over the major maritime economies of Northeast Asia,' he said in a policy paper for the Prospect Foundation. At first glance, the fervent competition over a small collection of reefs, sandbars and uninhabited spits of land adrift in a huge sea may seem unwarranted. But the South China Sea is one of the world's most important trade arteries through which more than $2 trillion in trade flows on an annual basis. It is also believed to contain vast, untapped reserves of oil and natural gas, and the waters surrounding many of the shoals, atolls and reefs are crucial for fishing, an industry that supports millions of livelihoods in the Philippines alone. Establishing a strong military presence and maritime infrastructure at key locations in the South China Sea is therefore a priority for China and its export-based, resource-hungry economy. Control of the sea also allows Beijing to challenge the United States' role as regional security guarantor. America has made a concerted effort to strike security alliances with members of the 'first island chain', a ring of territories running from Japan to the Philippines, to form a natural barrier against Chinese military expansion into the Pacific. The Philippines, along with Taiwan, is a key part of this chain and the US has ramped up joint patrols and military aid to the Philippines while expanding access to Philippine bases under the 2014 Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). Western-aligned allies Japan and Australia have also increased naval cooperation with the Philippines as part of the united front to deter China.
