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Territorial Disputes in the South China Sea

China Conducts Naval Drills in South China Sea

  • Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported Chinese military frigates conducted a three-day drill in the South China Sea (Reuters)

China Sanctions Pelosi Over Taiwan Visit

  • China sanctioned Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi and her immediate family in response to her “provocative” visit to Taiwan last week (Reuters)
  • Separately, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken vowed that the United State will come to the defense of the Philippines should it be attacked in the South China Sea (CNN)

China Begins Military Drills Around Taiwan as Pelosi Vistis South Korea

  • Taiwan’s defense ministry said that China conducted its largest ever military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, including air and naval drills that have encircled Taiwan, following U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s controversial visit to the island (The Guardian)

Nancy Pelosi Visits Taiwan, Prompting Chinese Retaliation

  • U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi became the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit Taiwan since 1997, meeting with Taiwanese lawmakers and President Tsai Ing-wen as well as the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC); China imposed new trade restrictions on Taiwan and is set to begin military exercises encroaching further into Taiwan-claimed waters than any previous drills (Wall Street Journal)
  • Meanwhile the U.S. and Indonesian militaries kicked off their annual joint exercises amid rising assertiveness from China’s military in the South China Sea; for the first time, the exercises include forces from Australia, Japan, and Singapore (Associated Press)

Pelosi Kicks Off Asia-Pacific Tour

  • U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) will lead a congressional delegation to Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan this week; China warned the delegation against visiting Taiwan, saying it will not “sit idly by” if a potential visit goes ahead (Nikkei)
  • Meanwhile, the United States redeployed a U.S. aircraft carrier and its strike group to the South China Sea without explicitly linking the move to heightened tensions around Pelosi’s visit (Reuters)

Second U.S. Navy Challenge to South China Sea Sovereignty Claims

  • A U.S. Navy warship sailed near Spratly Islands in its second “freedom of navigation operation” (FONOP) in a week as it challenges the requirement of advance notification or permission to navigate the disputed passage by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam (CNN)

U.S. Destroyer Performs “Freedom of Navigation” Exercise in South China Sea

  • A U.S. Navy Destroyer performed a second “freedom of navigation” operation in the disputed islands, continuing to challenge China, Vietnam, and Taiwan’s claims in regional waters (CNN)

Taiwan Rebuffs Philippines Complaint About South China Seas Exercises

  • The Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs raised an objection to Taiwanese live fire drills on a disputed island claimed by both countries; Taiwan rebuffed the complaint, claiming its right to conduct exercises on the island with advanced notice (Reuters)

U.S. State Department Says it Supports Philippines in South China Sea Dispute

  • The U.S. State Department issued a statement affirming its support for the Philippines which has been engaged with China in diplomatic rows surrounding Chinese coast guard incursion on the Second Thomas Shoal, a strip claimed by both nations (Reuters)

Australia: Chinese Fighter Plane Threatened Australian Plane Over South China Sea

  • The government of Australia said that a Chinese fighter plane threatened the safety of an Australian maritime surveillance plane over the South China Sea by conducting dangerous maneuvers, forcing the Australian plane to return home (Associated Press)

Biden: U.S. Would Use Military Force to Defend Taiwan

  • At a news conference in Tokyo, U.S. President Joe Biden said the United States made a commitment to use military force to defend Taiwan if it were ever attacked, a departure from the U.S. policy of strategic ambiguity on Taiwan (New York Times)

China Holds Military Drills in South China Sea During Biden’s Asia Visit

  • The Chinese government launched military drills in the South China Sea, coinciding with U.S. president Joe Biden’s trip to South Korea and Japan that will last until Monday (Associated Press)

China Warns United States as Warship Sails Through Taiwan Strait

  • China said it warned a U.S. warship that sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait in what the United States called a routine transit through international waters (Reuters)

China, Solomon Islands Sign Security Pact

  • China and the Solomon Islands signed a new security pact, which Beijing said would complement existing security cooperation; Washington said it would destabilize the Pacific Island region and plans to send U.S. officials to the Pacific nation (South China Morning Post)

China, Philippines Call for Restraint in South China Sea

  • During a telephone summit, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping called for restraint in the South China Sea to maintain peace (Reuters)

The Philippines, Japan Increase Military Cooperation

  • The defense ministers of Japan and the Philippines announced plans to bolster security cooperation and expand joint drills amid China’s increasingly assertive military actions in the region (Associated Press)

Philippines, United States Begin Largest-Ever Joint Military Drills

  • Amid rising tensions in the South China Sea, nearly nine thousand soldiers form the United States and the Philippines began military exercises in the largest-ever joint military drills between the two nations (Al Jazeera)

Taiwan Says It Will Not Militarize Largest South China Sea Island

  • Following reports that China had fully militarized at least three islands in the disputed South China Sea, Taiwan’s defense minister said it will not respond with its own fortification efforts on the two islands it controls (Newsweek)

China Pushes Back Against Criticism of Militarization in the South China Sea

  • China said it has the right to develop its man-made South China Sea islands as it sees fit, in response to U.S. accusations that it had fully militarized at least three islands in disputed waters (Associated Press)

China Fully Militarizes Three Islands in the South China Sea

  • According to the United States, Beijing has fully militarized at least three of the man-made islands it has built in the disputed South China Sea (Associated Press)

Vietnam Says Chinese Military Drills Violate Its EEZ

  • A spokesperson for the Vietnamese foreign ministry asked China not to violate its continental shelf and exclusive economic zone (EEZ) during ongoing military drills (Bloomberg)

China Announces New Military Drills in the South China Sea

  • Beijing announced that it would carry out more than a week of military drills in the South China Sea, near the Vietnamese coast (Reuters)
  • Separately, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi criticized the United States for increasing military ties with the Quad nations of Australia, India, and Japan (Associated Press)

Civilian Chinese Aircraft Flies Near Taiwanese-Controlled Island

  • Taiwan’s defense ministry said a small civilian Chinese aircraft flew close to a Taiwanese-controlled island off the coast of China’s Fujian province, adding that Beijing may be trying a new strategy to test reactions (Reuters)

U.S. Navy Fires Submarine Commander After Crash in South China Sea

  • The U.S. Navy announced it had fired the commanding officer, executive officer, and the top enlisted sailor of the USS Connecticut after the nuclear-powered submarine crashed into an underwater mountain in the South China Sea last month (Al Jazeera)

Investigation Into Damaged U.S. Submarine in South China Sea Concludes

  • U.S. defense officials reported the damage sustained by the USS Connecticut in October was a result of hitting an uncharted seamount in the South China Sea (U.S. Naval Institute News)