Scuffle in the South China Sea #55

China is sending strong but somewhat mixed signals: on the one hand, they are stating they ought to be ready to fight in the South China Sea.  On the other, China states they want peace.

China has a naval exercise underway just before the ruling from the tribunal.  Vietnam is protesting those Chinese naval drills in the South China Sea.

China and Russia may hold a joint naval exercise in the South China Sea.

The Taiwanese navy accidentally fired an antiship missile and destroyed a fishing boat.

The Philipines is ready to talk to China after the tribunal makes its ruling over the South China Sea.  China has offered to negotiate if Philippines ignores the tribunal.

The Philippines has disqualified an Indian firm from its frigate procurement.

Scuffle in the South China Sea #16

The US has inked an agreement with Singapore to station P-8 Poseidon sub hunter planes.  The Poseidons also have 'spy plane' capabilities.  This has angered China.

The US Navy has stated it will be continuing its patrols through waters close to the artificial islands China built in the South China Sea.

The Su-35 deal with Russia was rushed because of the South China Sea disputes.

China is planning on quadrupling the number of airstrips in the South China Sea.

Indian Presidential Tour of Disputed Border Region Causes Chinese Concern

China on Saturday urged India not to aggravate problems on the border shared by the two nations, a day after the Indian president toured a disputed region and called it an integral part of the country.

The two countries, which fought a brief border war in 1962, only last month signed a pact to ensure that differences on the border do not spark a confrontation.

But Indian President Pranab Mukherjee's visit to the state of Arunachal Pradesh in the remote eastern stretch of the Himalayas that China claims as its own provoked a fresh exchange of words.

"We hope that India will proceed along with China, protecting our broad relationship, and will not take any measures that could complicate the problem, and together we can protect peace and security in the border regions," China's official news agency, Xinhua, quoted Qin Gang, a spokesman of the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as saying.

"Currently Sino-India relations are developing favorably and both sides are going through special envoy meetings and amicable discussions to resolve the border dispute between our two countries."

Mukherjee was on a routine visit to Arunachal which has been part of the Indian state for decades, and where India has regularly been holding elections. But China has of late grown increasingly assertive and questioned New Delhi's claims over the territory, calling it instead South Tibet.

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