China Dismisses Philippine Claims On Islands

Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del Rosario has asked an international tribunal to intervene in its long-standing South China Sea territorial dispute with China, January 22, 2013.

China Likely to Ignore Philippines' Challenge in South China Sea -- Voice of America

Analysts say China will likely ignore the Philippines' decision to take a long-running territorial feud to an international tribunal, continuing its insistence on solving maritime disputes without third party involvement.

Philippine foreign secretary Albert del Rosario said Tuesday his government will take the issue to an arbitral tribunal under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which has been ratified by both countries.

Read more ....

More News On The Philippine Government Challenging China's Maritime Border Claims

China says Philippines' U.N. request on seas complicates issue -- Reuters
Philippines Challenges China Maritime Claims at UN Tribunal -- Bloomberg Businessweek
China reiterates islands claim after Philippine UN move -- BBC
Philippines says it is challenging China’s claims in South China Sea at international tribunal -- Washington Post/AP
Philippines takes territorial fight with China to international tribunal -- CNN
South China Sea dispute headed to court? -- David Bosco, Foreign Policy

Chinese Navy Ship Refloated And Pulled Off Disputed Philippine Shoal

Image from Information Dissemination

Chinese Navy Ship Floated Off Disputed Shoal -- Voice of America

A Chinese navy ship that ran aground Wednesday in disputed waters near the Philippines was refloated Sunday and is heading home. A statement from China's defense ministry said its personnel are safe and the ship sustained light damage.

The vessel was in the South China Sea when it struck Half Moon Shoal in the Spratly Islands, about 110 kilometers off the western Philippine island of Palawan. The shoal is within the Philippines' 370-kilometer exclusive economic zone, in an area believed to be rich in mineral deposits.

Read more ....

More News On A Chinese Frigate Running Aground In Disputed Waters Near The Philippines

China Warship Refloated, Pulled off Disputed Shoal -- ABC News/AP
China frigate heads home, averts South China Sea standoff -- Reuters
Stranded naval frigate refloated: Chinese embassy -- AFP
Philippines says no protest as Chinese ship leaves -- AFP
Philippines urges China to explain stranded frigate -- BBC
Philippines says Chinese warship ran aground in its territory, seeks explanation from Beijing -- Washington Post/AP
Chinese Frigate Runs Aground -- Information Dissemination

Why The China-Philippines Fight In The South China Sea

Inside The China-Philippines Fight In The South China Sea -- International Herald Tribune

Fish, oil and bananas all play a role in the latest round of the high-stakes sovereignty dispute in the South China Sea, a problem that may rival Europe’s own 19th-century “Schleswig-Holstein Question.” That long-simmering territorial dispute, between Denmark and Germany, led the British politician Lord Palmerston to quip that only three people had ever understood it: a dead prince, a German professor who went mad, “and I, who have forgotten all about it.”

There’s less chance of forgetting in the South China Sea, a vast sea territory disputed by half a dozen Asian nations where trillions of dollars in oil and gas deposits are at stake and tempers have flared for weeks, with accusations of bullying between competing nations and even of war preparations by China.

Read more ....

My Comment: The old saying .... "might makes right" plays in China's favor in this dispute. But the Filipinos are a very proud and independent people .... and they are not going to be forgiving of the Chinese for what the Chinese have done in the South Chinese Seas.

The U.S. Will Not Actively Support The Philippines In Their Dispute With China Over The South China Seas

South China Standoff -- Washington Free Beacon

Growing tensions between Beijing, Manila over disputed fishing waters could lead to conflict.

Tensions between China and the Philippines remain high and U.S. officials say the likelihood Beijing will take some type of military action is growing.

Meanwhile, the Obama administration has taken a hands-off approach to the dispute over a 10-mile square South China Sea lagoon called Scarborough Shoal and is not vocally supporting Manila in its dispute over fishing rights.

One worrying sign was China’s dispatch this week of five warships, including a 20,000-ton amphibious landing ship to waters between Taiwan and the Philippines.

Read more ....

My Comment: Taking a 'hands-off' approach to this dispute may not be the sign that the Philippines (and most of Asia) may want to be seeing from Washington right now. But with a Presidential election being the priority in Washington today .... border conflicts and other disputes that do not involve the U.S. directly is something that will be ignored by American politicians and media outlets. Bottom line .... the Philippines should realize that they are on their own.

Update: India steps into Philippines-China spat over South China Sea -- Times of India

China Vows To Defend It`s Claims In The South China Seas

Newspaper: China Vows To Defend Island Claim -- CNN

(CNN) -- A Chinese military newspaper has warned that the country's armed forces will not allow anyone to challenge China's sovereignty of a tiny island outcrop in the South China Sea.

China and the Philippines have been involved in a tense standoff since April 10 when the Philippines Navy accused Chinese boats of fishing illegally in waters off the Scarborough Shoal, some 130 miles (200 kilometers) from the Philippines island of Luzon.

They attempted to arrest the crew but were blocked by Chinese surveillance vessels deployed in the area.

Read more ....

More News On China Vowing To Defend It`s Territorial Claims In The South China Seas

David against Goliath on the South China Sea -- FOX News
China, Philippines Intensify War of Words Over S. China Sea -- Voice of America
China-Philippines Dispute Over Island Gets More Heated -- New York Times
China beating war drums in dispute with Philippines -- WND
China Says Ready for 'Escalation' in Maritime Dispute With Philippines -- Voice of America
China warns Philippines on 'mistakes' in maritime spat -- BBC
China prepared for escalation of maritime standoff -- AFP
China bangs the war drum over South China Sea -- Damian Grammaticas, BBC
Commentary: Never test China's will to defend its own sovereignty -- Xinhuanet