Latest news with #U.S.7thFleet
Toronto Star
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Star
US, Philippines militaries conduct drills in waters adjacent to the China-claimed South China Sea
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The militaries of the U.S. and Philippines have carried out joint drills in waters adjacent to the South China Sea claimed by Beijing, amid a rising number of incidents between China and the Philippines in the vital Southeast Asian waterway. Participating in the maneuvers in the Sulu Sea this week were ships and aircraft from navies and coast guards, along with the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. 7th Fleet responsible for the Asia-Pacific said in a statement.
21-05-2025
- Politics
US, Philippines militaries conduct drills in waters adjacent to the China-claimed South China Sea
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- The militaries of the U.S. and Philippines have carried out joint drills in waters adjacent to the South China Sea claimed by Beijing, amid a rising number of incidents between China and the Philippines in the vital Southeast Asian waterway. Participating in the maneuvers in the Sulu Sea this week were ships and aircraft from navies and coast guards, along with the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. 7th Fleet responsible for the Asia-Pacific said in a statement. It said the drills included 'exercises in maritime domain awareness, division tactics, maneuvering" and search and seizure. There was no immediate comment from Beijing on the drills. In a new national map released in 2003, the Chinese government demarcated its claim to virtually the entire South China Sea, with vague dash lines that drew protests and rejections from rival coastal governments, including Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines. China has transformed seven disputed reefs into what are now missile-protected island bases, including Mischief Reef, which lies within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone. The Sulu Sea lies inside that zone. China has ignored a 2016 international arbitration ruling that invalidated China's extensive territorial claims based on historical grounds, and objects to activities by the U.S. military in the region — specifically those that challenge its island claims and threat to invade Taiwan, just north of the Sulu Sea. The U.S. lays no claims in the waters, but has declared that freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of the conflicts are in its core national interests. The U.S. also has a treaty obligating it to defend the Philippines if attacked and has been dispatching additional troops and weaponry to upgrade the island nation's ability to defend itself. China routinely harasses Philippine fishing boats in parts of the South China Sea, also within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, which extends 200 nautical miles (about 370 kilometers) from its coastline.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US, Philippines militaries conduct drills in waters adjacent to the China-claimed South China Sea
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The militaries of the U.S. and Philippines have carried out joint drills in waters adjacent to the South China Sea claimed by Beijing, amid a rising number of incidents between China and the Philippines in the vital Southeast Asian waterway. Participating in the maneuvers in the Sulu Sea this week were ships and aircraft from navies and coast guards, along with the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. 7th Fleet responsible for the Asia-Pacific said in a statement. It said the drills included 'exercises in maritime domain awareness, division tactics, maneuvering" and search and seizure. There was no immediate comment from Beijing on the drills. In a new national map released in 2003, the Chinese government demarcated its claim to virtually the entire South China Sea, with vague dash lines that drew protests and rejections from rival coastal governments, including Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines. China has transformed seven disputed reefs into what are now missile-protected island bases, including Mischief Reef, which lies within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone. The Sulu Sea lies inside that zone. China has ignored a 2016 international arbitration ruling that invalidated China's extensive territorial claims based on historical grounds, and objects to activities by the U.S. military in the region — specifically those that challenge its island claims and threat to invade Taiwan, just north of the Sulu Sea. The U.S. lays no claims in the waters, but has declared that freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of the conflicts are in its core national interests. The U.S. also has a treaty obligating it to defend the Philippines if attacked and has been dispatching additional troops and weaponry to upgrade the island nation's ability to defend itself. China routinely harasses Philippine fishing boats in parts of the South China Sea, also within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, which extends 200 nautical miles (about 370 kilometers) from its coastline.
Winnipeg Free Press
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
US, Philippines militaries conduct drills in waters adjacent to the China-claimed South China Sea
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The militaries of the U.S. and Philippines have carried out joint drills in waters adjacent to the South China Sea claimed by Beijing, amid a rising number of incidents between China and the Philippines in the vital Southeast Asian waterway. Participating in the maneuvers in the Sulu Sea this week were ships and aircraft from navies and coast guards, along with the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. 7th Fleet responsible for the Asia-Pacific said in a statement. It said the drills included 'exercises in maritime domain awareness, division tactics, maneuvering' and search and seizure. There was no immediate comment from Beijing on the drills. In a new national map released in 2003, the Chinese government demarcated its claim to virtually the entire South China Sea, with vague dash lines that drew protests and rejections from rival coastal governments, including Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines. China has transformed seven disputed reefs into what are now missile-protected island bases, including Mischief Reef, which lies within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone. The Sulu Sea lies inside that zone. China has ignored a 2016 international arbitration ruling that invalidated China's extensive territorial claims based on historical grounds, and objects to activities by the U.S. military in the region — specifically those that challenge its island claims and threat to invade Taiwan, just north of the Sulu Sea. The U.S. lays no claims in the waters, but has declared that freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of the conflicts are in its core national interests. The U.S. also has a treaty obligating it to defend the Philippines if attacked and has been dispatching additional troops and weaponry to upgrade the island nation's ability to defend itself. China routinely harasses Philippine fishing boats in parts of the South China Sea, also within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, which extends 200 nautical miles (about 370 kilometers) from its coastline.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
A flurry of international naval drills around the Philippines prompts complaints from Beijing
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A flurry of naval drills surrounding the Philippines involving the United States and its partners has prompted complaints from Beijing, which claims the entire South China Sea and accuses Manila of colluding with others to destabilize the region. The U.S. 7th Fleet based in Japan said forces from Australia, Japan, the Philippines, and the U.S. conducted a 'multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity' within the Philippines' Exclusive Economic Zone on Wednesday. Such drills 'strengthen the interoperability of our defense/armed forces doctrines, tactics, techniques, and procedures," the fleet said in a news release. The maneuvers were taking place within the Philippines' zone, but the fleet gave no details on the exact location. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. More exercises involving the U.S., Japan and France were planned for later this week in the Philippines Sea, which China does not claim. That exercise 'is designed to advance coordination and cooperation between French, Japanese and U.S. maritime forces while simultaneously demonstrating capabilities in multi-domain operations,' the fleet said. The U.S. aircraft carrier Carl Vinson, French carrier Charles De Gaulle and Japan's Izumo-class multi-functional destroyer Kaga will take part in the drill starting Saturday, along with their escorts and air wings, the fleet said. France's participation is especially significant because of the distance from its home base, 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miles) away in Toulouse, commander of the Carrier Strike Group Rear Adm. Jacques Mallard was quoted as saying. Meanwhile, Tian Junli, spokesperson for China's Southern Theater Command, accused the Philippines of 'colluding with outside countries to organize 'so-called joint patrols', " which he said 'destabilize the region," Chinese state media said on Thursday. Tian said the Philippines actions were 'an attempt to endorse its 'illegal claims' in the South China Sea and 'undermine China's maritime rights and interests." He specifically pointed to U.S.-Philippines joint patrols on Tuesday and said China had carried out its own patrols in the region on Wednesday. China is one of six regional powers that claims the strategic South China Sea in part or in whole, ignoring a ruling by a United Nations-backed court that tossed out most of its claims and building human-made islands equipped with airstrips and other infrastructure of military use. China's coast guard and maritime militia frequently clash with ships from fellow claimants Vietnam and the Philippines. Though it claims not to disrupt shipping or overflights in the sea, through which an estimated $5 trillion in global trade transits each year, China is adamantly opposed to foreign military shipping in the area. The waterway is also believed to be sitting atop vast undersea deposits of oil and gas and while China says it wants to come to a negotiated agreement about the use of the sea, such efforts have made little progress. China says the U.S. and other countries that don't border on the sea should have no say in affairs concerning it, although the U.S. — which takes no formal stand on sovereignty issues involving the sea — has maintained bases and alliances in the region long before China made its formal claim to sovereignty using the so-called 'eight dash line.' Beijing is especially angered over U.S. 'freedom of navigation operations' in which Navy ships sail close to Chinese-held maritime features to show Washington does not recognize China's sovereignty claims.
