GPS News
FLOATING STEEL
Philippines to upgrade outposts in disputed South China Sea
Philippines to upgrade outposts in disputed South China Sea
by AFP Staff Writers
Manila (AFP) Jan 15, 2024

The Philippines will upgrade outposts in waters off its coast and acquire more ships, its military chief said Monday, as the country seeks to push back against China's growing assertiveness in the disputed South China Sea.

Manila and Beijing have a long history of maritime territorial disputes in the waterway, but relations sharply deteriorated recently over a series of incidents involving vessels from both countries.

Philippine military chief General Romeo Brawner said the country would develop "the islands and other features" it held.

The Philippines has outposts on nine reefs and islands in the Spratly Islands, located in the South China Sea.

Brawner said Thitu and Nanshan islands were among those where facilities would be improved with the installation of desalination machines and communications equipment.

"We are just trying to make it more liveable, more habitable for our soldiers because they really have poor living conditions," he told reporters.

The plan, however, did not include "fortifying the Sierra Madre", Brawner said, referring to the crumbling World War II-vintage ship grounded on Second Thomas Shoal by the Philippine Navy in 1999 to assert the country's territorial claims.

The Philippines would also acquire "more ships, more aircraft, radars", Brawner said, as part of a modest modernisation programme that began more than a decade ago.

Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea and has ignored an international tribunal ruling that its assertions have no legal basis.

This month, China held military drills in the South China Sea as the United States and the Philippines conducted their own joint exercises in the same waters.

The drills followed a month of tense standoffs between China and the Philippines in disputed reefs in the area that saw a collision between vessels from the two countries and Chinese ships blasting water cannon at Philippine boats.

The Philippine Congress, meanwhile, has earmarked 800 million pesos ($14.3 million) for the transport department to build a port facility on Nanshan where boats, including those for fishing, could seek shelter.

Another 1.5 billion pesos had been allocated for the expansion of the airstrip on Thitu, Luis Campos, the vice chair of the House of Representatives' appropriations committee, said Sunday.

Related Links
Naval Warfare in the 21st Century

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
FLOATING STEEL
Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania join forces to hunt Black Sea mines
Istanbul (AFP) Jan 11, 2024
NATO members Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania signed an agreement Thursday on demining the Black Sea to ensure safe passage after Russia's war in Ukraine. The Russian navy mined Ukraine's Black Sea coastline in the early stages of its invasion nearly two years ago. Some of the mines have since been found in the waters of the three countries, endangering shipping and complicating Ukraine's efforts to break through a Russian naval blockade. Top defence officials from Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania ... read more

FLOATING STEEL
Norwegian Seaweed Farming: A Case Study in Sustainability and Local Community Involvement

Innovative aquaculture technologies lead the way in sustainable seafood production

Syrian farmers abandon the land for steadier jobs

UH trains future agri-scientists to outsmart climate change threats to food crops

FLOATING STEEL
TSMC to launch chipmaking plant in Japan, but US plant to face delays

Taiwan's TSMC to launch Japan chipmaking plant in February

Solid-state qubits: Forget about being clean, embrace mess

Breakthrough in controlling magnetization for spintronics

FLOATING STEEL
Ukraine says hit two Russian command aircraft

NASA, Lockheed Martin Reveal X-59 Quiet Supersonic Aircraft

Volocopter flying taxi seeks to seduce Paris

France orders 42 new Rafale fighter jets

FLOATING STEEL
EU agrees tougher C02 curbs for trucks, buses

Hertz to shrink EV rental fleet over sluggish US demand

Honda unveils futuristic EV designs to hit US market in 2026

Uber, Kia sign electric vehicle partnership

FLOATING STEEL
Ukraine's Zelensky, Chinese Premier Li share Davos spotlight

Markets swing on dimming rate cut hopes, weak China outlook

Asian markets track Wall St higher after tech surge

China sees one of its worst years of growth since 1990 as recovery stalls

FLOATING STEEL
China-funded nickel hub stoking deforestation on Indonesia island: report

Pacific kelp forests are far older that we thought

Soil fungi may help explain the global gradient in forest diversity

Deforestation in Brazilian Amazon halved in 2023

FLOATING STEEL
Pixxel inaugurates advanced satellite manufacturing hub in India

Climate change isn't producing expected increase in atmospheric moisture over dry regions

NASA's PACE To Investigate Oceans, Atmospheres in Changing Climate

Sidus Marks Key Progress in AI sat tech ahead of LizzieSat-1 launch

FLOATING STEEL
Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.