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East China Sea

East China Sea
Like the South China Sea, the East China Sea has been an area of much contention. China's long-standing feud with Japan has continued with friction over the Diaoyu Islands, which both countries lay claim to, and arguments over who owns a swathe of sea territory. China is also at loggerheads with South Korea over Socotra Rock, a submerged reef that hosts a Korean scientific research station, and which Beijing says intrudes on its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
Illustration: Craig Stephens
Japan

Opinion | The domestic dynamics driving Japan’s remilitarisation

Sanctions, diplomatic warnings and aggressive rhetoric create a perilous loop, reinforcing the very domestic tendencies China seeks to deter.

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China's military weapons

Why Beijing’s weaponised cargo ship could be crucial in the Taiwan Strait

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Diplomacy

Opinion | Without diplomacy, deterrence in Asia is a path to escalation

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China-New Zealand relations

China complains of ‘harassment’ from New Zealand aerial patrols near coastline

Beijing said the plane had been operating over the Yellow and East China Seas and urged Wellington not to put civilian aircraft in danger.

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A New Zealand P-8A is alleged to have been involved in “reconnaissance and harassment”. Photo: NZDF
China-Japan relations

The next frontier: China maps seabed resources as Japan races to tap rare earths

Atlas charts location, concentration and distribution patterns of dozens of elements in seabed sediments.

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China-Japan relations

Chinese navy arrives in Sea of Japan just as Tokyo deploys long-range missiles

Five ships transit Tsushima Strait and are tracked heading northeast after China warned of strong response to ‘neo-militarism’.

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The Philippines

Why Japan’s troops are returning to Philippine soil for first time since WWII

The return marks an upgrade from the region’s previous ‘hub and spoke’ strategy to one of overlapping minilaterals, experts say.

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Japan Ground Self-Defence Force personnel on board amphibious assault vehicles take part in a joint landing exercise with Philippine and US troops in San Antonio, Zambales province, in 2018. Photo: AFP
China-Japan relations

Why Beijing is blaming Japanese PM as Tokyo moves to downgrade China ties status

Tokyo’s annual diplomatic blue book set to describe China ties as ‘strategic’ and ‘mutually beneficial’, a step down from ‘most important’.

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China’s military drills

New Type 055 destroyers for PLA East China Fleet tested in first live-fire drill

Exercise will ‘rapidly integrate’ the advanced vessels into the joint combat system covering Taiwan and the seas near Japan.

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China-Japan relations

China slams Japan’s ‘kill network’ as long-range missile deployment looms

PLA Daily describes upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missiles as offensive weapons capable of targeting neighbouring countries.

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A Japanese Type-12 surface-to-ship missile is launched by the Japan Ground Self-Defence Force at Beecroft Weapons Range near Jervis Bay, Australia, on July 22, 2025. Photo: Australian Department of Defence via AP
China-Japan relations

Why Japan’s Type-12 missile deployment may complicate China’s regional strategy

Analysts say it could be interpreted as crossing a ‘strategic threshold’ and reinforce Beijing’s suspicions about Tokyo’s Taiwan intentions.

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Japan’s upgraded Type-12 missile has a range of about 1,000km. Photo: AP
Asia travel

The quiet Japanese islands where Christians once hid their religion

Those searching for solitude in these tranquil Japanese isles follow in the footsteps of persecuted Christians forced to practise their faith in secret.

US-China relations

Taiwan tensions No 1 in Beijing’s top 10 geopolitical risks of 2026: think tank

Most consequential external security variable may be uncertainty in the US ahead of the midterm elections in November, report warns.

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China's military weapons

What will first Type 055 destroyers for PLA East China Fleet mean for Taiwan?

Two of the guided-missile destroyers with hull numbers assigned have been spotted at a naval base on the East China Sea coast.

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China’s Type 055 destroyer, designated “Renhai-class” by Nato, is a cruiser-sized vessel with robust air defence, anti-submarine and surface warfare capabilities. Photo: Handout
China-Japan relations

What next for China ties as Japan’s Takaichi targets Chinese ‘coercion’?

Japan facing ‘most severe and complex’ security scenario since World War II, prime minister says.

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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi addresses parliament in Tokyo on Friday. Photo: AP
Japan

Takaichi vows to make Japan ‘strong’, says no to ‘reckless’ fiscal policy

The prime minister said Tokyo was facing ‘the most severe and complex security environment’ since World War II, citing China and Russia.

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China's military weapons

Why the growing network of American MQ-9 drones is a challenge for China

Reapers can carry out both reconnaissance and strike missions and an increasing number of US allies and partners are buying them.

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China-Japan relations

Beijing and Tokyo in maritime stand-off after Japan seizes Chinese boat, captain

Beijing urges Tokyo to protect Chinese crew members’ rights after incident off southwestern Nagasaki prefecture.

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Japan’s Fisheries Agency says this photo taken on February 12 shows a patrol vessel, Hakuo Maru (left), and a Chinese fishing vessel sailing within Japan’s exclusive economic zone off Nagasaki prefecture. Photo: AFP
Japan

Opinion | Will Japan’s election result trigger a security spiral with China?

The result of Japan’s election has altered Tokyo’s domestic political calculus while raising the stakes for regional stability.

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US-China relations

China may overtake US economically, still risk war in Taiwan Strait: survey

Most forecasters expect US military dominance to endure, even as many believe mainland China may try to seize Taiwan within a decade.

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Rare earths

Video | Japan recovers rare earth samples from ocean depths of 6,000 metres (20,000ft)

Japan still relies on China for about 70 per cent of its rare earths, despite continuous efforts to find alternative sources.

This photo provided by SIP/Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, shows rare earth–rich mud recovered aboard a vessel and placed into bottles off Minamitorishima, south of Tokyo, on Feb. 1, 2026. (SIP/Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology via AP)
US-China relations

US banks on strength – not confrontation – to deny China in Indo-Pacific

Pentagon says it will focus on the first island chain while urging partners to contribute more to the collective defence.

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The US says it will deter China through strength but allies will be urged to do more for collective defence. Photo: AP
The Philippines

New deal eases logistics for Japan-Philippines drills amid China tensions

The agreement removes taxes on military supplies, including weapons and fuel used in joint exercises.

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South China Sea

‘Strategic patience’ key for Beijing in South China Sea and other disputes

SCSPI’s Hu Bo said maritime disagreements with Manila and Tokyo would continue but that Beijing had ‘overwhelming advantages’.

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Japan

Japan launches world’s first mission to lift rare earth from deep sea

Tokyo has been reducing its dependence on China for the critical minerals amid a major diplomatic dispute with Beijing.

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Japan’s deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu is anchored at a pier in Shimizu port, Shizuoka prefecture, in 2013. Photo: AFP
China-Japan relations

‘Real and accelerating’: China-Japan military tensions surge amid missile race

Analysts hold out little hope that security pressures will ease, given US insistence that regional allies boost first island chain defences.

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Illustration: Henry Wong
China-Japan relations

Beijing hits back at ‘extremely hypocritical’ critics of drills around Taiwan

Japan, Australia, Britain and the EU express concern about live-fire and blockade exercises around island.

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Mainland China

Xi promotes PLA commanders overseeing Taiwan Strait, Beijing to full general

Announcements suggest the dust has begun to settle following a massive purge in the military over corruption concerns.

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