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The sixth meeting of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference's (CPPCC) Standing Committee, the highest-level advisory body of the People's Republic of China, met ahead of the general plenary that is taking place in Beijing from June 22 to 27. During one of the committee's working group meetings on June 18, the former deputy chief of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and standing committee member of the CPPCC, General Zhang Li, recommended that China build an airport and seaport on Mischief Reef located in the Spratly Islands in the South China...

The Trump administration is demanding that China remove all advanced missiles deployed on disputed islands in the South China Sea, the first time such a demand has been made public. The call to take out the anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles was disclosed in a fact sheet from the State Department on Friday outlining the results of a strategic dialogue between senior U.S. and Chinese officials. “The United States called on China to withdraw its missile systems from disputed features in the Spratly Islands, and reaffirmed that all countries should avoid addressing disputes through coercion or intimidation,” the statement said. The...

China warned the United States on Wednesday not to adopt punitive currency policies that could disrupt U.S.-China relations after Donald Trump's win in the Nevada caucus. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters in Beijing that "we are following with interest the U.S. presidential election." Hua was asked about China's response to a possible Trump presidency and his announced plan to punish China for currency manipulation with a tax on Chinese goods. "Since it belongs to the domestic affair of the U.S., I am not going to make comments on specific remarks by the relevant candidate," she said. -- Actaully...

The missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur sailed within 12 nautical miles (22 kilometers) of Triton Island in the Paracel chain "to challenge excessive maritime claims of parties that claim the Paracel Islands," without notifying the three claimants beforehand, Defense Department spokesman Mark Wright said Saturday in Washington.. China, Taiwan and Vietnam have overlapping claims in the Paracels and require prior notice from ships transiting what they consider their territorial waters. The latest operation was particularly aimed at China, which has increased tensions with the U.S. and its Southeast Asian neighbors by embarking on massive construction of man-made islands and airstrips...

story from AP, so, not risking an excerpt.

The Civil Aviation Department of Hong Kong has received a pilot’s report that a large amount of debris was spotted in Vietnamese waters. The pilot, flying a Hong Kong to Kuala Lumpur plane, says the debris is located about 60 kilometres southeast of Vietnamese city Vung Tau, some 500 kilometers from where the Malaysian jetliner lost contact with air traffic controllers. The department has submitted the message to the relevant authorities.

<p>ABC News correspondent Bob Woodruff has obtained a letter that an oil rig worker in Vietnam wrote to his employer claiming he saw Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 go down in flames.</p> <p>Mr. Woodruff tweeted an image of the letter saying, “Oil rig worker claims in employer confirmed letter-he saw the plane go down. Vietnamese say they found nothing.”</p>

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: Now, the Malaysian airline. I've got a theory. Let me try this theory on you. Of all the search teams, which do you think is the best, has the highest available tech? Well, you got a ChiCom search team; you got the Malaysian airline search team; you got a US search team. Which team do you think probably -- (interruption) It is us. If you want to find out where the plane is, my theory is look at where the US is searching. How about this? How about this theory? How about the jet is flying along...

[Red] China said it landed a test flight on a newly completed airfield in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, a sign of its growing military capabilities in the region. The flight drew a quick protest from Vietnam, which said China had “seriously violated” its sovereignty. A Philippines foreign ministry spokesman said Manila, another claimant in the Spratlys, also planned to lodge a protest with the Chinese.

On Friday, we reported the latest provocation in what has truly become a very dangerous, if largely pointless, staring contest between Beijing and Washington over China’s reclamation of land in The South China Sea. Responding to suggestions that the US was set to sail warships around the islands Beijing has constructed atop reefs in the Spratlys, China served noticed that it would “never allow any country to violate China's territorial waters and airspace in the Spratly Islands, in the name of protecting freedom of navigation and overflight.” This was simply a formalized version of the more concise phrasing the PLA...

Philippine Navy acquires biggest warship By DJ Yap Philippine Daily Inquirer The biggest ship ever to be acquired by the Philippine Navy, the renamed BRP Gregorio del Pilar, will begin its three-week journey to the Philippines from California on Monday. The 378-foot Hamilton-class cutter is a decommissioned United States Coast Guard patrol vessel that the Philippines was able to acquire under the United States Excess Defense Act. (The cutters are called “Hamilton class” after their lead ship, the Hamilton, named after Alexander Hamilton, the first US Secretary of the Treasury.) Armed Forces Chief Eduardo Oban Jr. earlier said the transfer...

Manila to send World War II warship into disputed area 04:47 AM Jun 18, 2011 MANILA - With tensions rising over territorial disputes in the South China Sea, the Philippines said yesterday it will send its biggest warship, a World War II vessel, to the area after China deployed one of its largest civilian maritime patrol ships. Philippine President Benigno Aquino III also said his government will continue to seek dialogue but insisted his country will not be bullied by China. "We will not be pushed around because we are a tiny state compared with theirs," Mr Aquino said. "We...

Chinese jets buzz PAF patrol planes By Jaime Laude (The Philippine Star) Updated May 20, 2011 12:00 AM Manila, Philippines - Chinese jet fighters reportedly buzzed two Philippine Air Force (PAF) planes on a routine reconnaissance patrol on Thursday last week at the vicinity of the Kalayaan Island Group, which is part of the disputed Spratlys. Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Eduardo Oban Jr. said yesterday that the military is still validating the report, but sources have confirmed the recent intrusion into Philippine air space by Chinese jet fighters. “We are validating reports pertinent to that,” Oban...

Philippines deploys 2 warplanes after local ship reports harassment by Chinese patrol boats By Jim Gomez (CP) – 8 hours ago MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine military deployed two warplanes near the disputed South China Sea region after a local ship searching for oil complained it was harassed by two Chinese patrol boats, officials said Thursday. The Chinese vessels later left without confrontation, said Philippine military commander Lt. Gen. Juancho Sabban. The incident happened Wednesday at the Reed Bank, which is near the disputed Spratly Islands that are claimed by the Philippines, China and other nations, said Sabban, who heads...

Energy: Big Oil is easy to kick around — just ask any Democrat in Congress. But China's threats to Exxon Mobil are in another league. Its bid to use Exxon Mobil as a wedge against its rival Vietnam is a case in point.What China's doing in the South China Sea these days is not trade, but blackmail to assert regional dominance. On Sunday, the South China Morning Post reported Chinese officials are threatening to exclude Exxon Mobil from doing business in China if it doesn't pull out of an exploration deal with Vietnam's state oil company, PetroVietnam. The region in...

Vietnam's Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Dung Protests in front of Chinese diplomatic buildings in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City Sunday were unapproved by local governments, said Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Dung. The demonstrations in front of the Chinese Embassy in the capital and the General Consulate in HCMC Sunday were spontaneous acts, according to Dung. The spokesman also said that local taskforces had explained to the protesters that their assemblies were not allowed and persuaded them to halt the demonstrations. Last week Vietnam had reasserted its sovereignty over the Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagos in...