South East Asia

How Will France’s Growing Naval Presence in Asia Affect Its China Ties?

France is stepping up its naval activities in the Asia-Pacific. Last month, the French navy conducted joint exercises with the United States, Australian and Indian navies, just weeks after a separate naval drill with India that involved two aircraft carriers. In April, the French frigate Vendemiaire made a rare passage …

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Duterte’s Ingratiating Approach to China Has Been a Bust

Philippine Foreign Minister Teodoro Locsin Jr. was peeved at Beijing. It was early May, and hundreds of Chinese vessels had been regularly intruding into the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea, where the Chinese government has made expansive maritime territorial claims. After lodging numerous complaints through formal …

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Pakistan: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: Menacing Landmines

On June 29, 2021, at least 10 persons were killed and eight injured, when terrorists triggered a landmine explosion that struck a van in the Godar area of Kurram District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). On June 2, 2021, an Army soldier, identified as Lance Naik Waqas Ahmed, was killed in …

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India-Pakistan: The Third Route

In the first ever successful offensive use of drones in India, in the night of June 26-27, 2021, two explosive payloads were dropped, within a span of six minutes, on the Indian Air Force (IAF) station in Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), by drones/unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Two Security Forces …

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CPC transforms China as a world class power

The CPC’s centennial marks a historic breakthrough for China by far exceeding the predictions of most foreign observers. In a nutshell, the CPC has achieved the twin collective goals of getting rid of poverty and standing up to bullying by foreigners. The CPC is omnipotent in China and has become …

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Taliban has won the war in Afghanistan, says Lord Dannatt, former British army head

The Taliban has “prevailed” in its battle with the West in Afghanistan, said General Lord Dannatt, the former head of the British Army as it emerged all UK and U.S. troops will be withdrawn on Sunday. Writing in The Telegraph, General Lord Dannatt said: “Ultimately, Taliban force of arms has …

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China’s nuclear deterrence buildup cannot be tied down by the US: Global Times editorial

Commenting on a report in the Washington Post about China’s nuclear capability building, US State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Thursday that the build-up of nuclear forces had become more difficult for China to hide and it appeared to be deviating from decades of nuclear strategy based on minimal …

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The Centenary of the Chinese Communist Party: Looking Forwards Not Backwards

Undoubtedly, China’s communists have achieved a great deal. But the party remains nervous about its hold on power, and hesitant to implement necessary political and economic reforms. Given the inauspicious start of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) – worried about police surveillance, it moved its founding meeting from Shanghai to …

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After Afghanistan Withdrawal: A Return to ‘Warlordism?’

As the United States withdraws from Afghanistan, Washington is considering options to ensure its intelligence-gathering and counterterrorism capabilities are maintained. Recent reporting suggests that United States is looking to use bases in Pakistan and in the former Soviet Republics in Central Asia — although without success so far. Washington is …

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