Philippines won't invoke mutual defense treaty with US after Chinese confrontation at disputed shoal

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippines said Friday it has no plan to invoke its mutual defense treaty with the United States after the Chinese coast guard reportedly rammed, boarded and used machetes and axes to damage two Philippine navy boats in a chaotic faceoff that injured Filipino navy...

Vietnam says it's ready to hold talks with Philippines on overlapping continental shelf claims

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam is ready to hold talks with the Philippines to settle their overlapping claims to the undersea continental shelf in the South China Sea, official Vietnamese media said Friday, in a diplomatic approach that contrasts with China’s increasingly assertive actions to...

Philippines demands China return rifles and pay for boat damage after hostilities in disputed sea

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine military chief demanded Wednesday that China return several rifles and equipment seized by the Chinese coast guard in a disputed shoal and pay for damages in an assault he likened to an act of piracy in the South China Sea. Chinese...

Fresh Malaysian durians will make their way to China as trade deals signed during Premier Li's visit

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Fresh Malaysian durians will soon make their way to China as the two countries signed a slew of trade and economic deals Wednesday during a visit by Premier Li Qiang to celebrate a half-century of diplomatic relations. Li held private talks with...

Philippine officials say Chinese forces seized 2 navy boats in disputed shoal, injuring sailors

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Chinese forces seized two Philippine rubber boats that were delivering food and other supplies to a military outpost in a disputed South China Sea shoal in a tense confrontation in which some Filipino navy personnel were injured, Philippine security officials said...

Chinese and Philippine ship collision just the latest in a string of South China Sea confrontations

BANGKOK (AP) — China has been at odds with many other countries in the Asia-Pacific for years over its sweeping maritime claims, including almost all of the South China Sea, a strategic and resource-rich waterway around which Beijing has drawn a 10-dash-line on official maps to...

China says a Chinese vessel and Philippine supply ship collided in the disputed South China Sea

Philippines seeks UN confirmation of its vast continental seabed in the disputed South China Sea

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippines has asked a United Nations body to formally recognize the extent of its undersea continental seabed in the South China Sea, where it would have the exclusive right to exploit resources, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Saturday, in a move that...

US and Filipino forces end drills that tested their endurance in brutal heat and volatile weather

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Hundreds of American and Filipino troops concluded Monday a new combat exercise in the northern Philippines that tested their endurance in more than a week of brutal heat and volatile weather, and braced them to respond to any threat in tropical jungles and on scattered...

Philippines says China coast guard seized food dropped by plane for Filipino forces in disputed sea

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine military chief on Tuesday said the Chinese coast guard seized one of four food packs dropped by a plane for Filipino navy personnel at a territorial outpost that has been surrounded by Chinese vessels in the disputed waters of the South China Sea. ...