South China Sea - up-date ; Arbitral tribunal issues rules and timeline. The five-judge tribunal hearing the Philippine’s case against China’s claims in the South China Sea released a statement announcing that it has adopted formal rules and scheduled an initial timetable for proceedings, according to an August 27 statement from the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), which serves as the registry for the case. The tribunal has ordered that Manila present its memorial—which includes the facts of the case, arguments for jurisdiction, and relevant evidence—by March 30, 2014. Beijing, in a diplomatic note written to the PCA on August 1, reiterated that it will not participate in the arbitration. Taiwan to create warship dock at Itu Aba. Taiwanese lawmaker Lin Yu-fang said on August 29 that the country’s coast guard submitted a plan to Taiwan’s parliament for a $112.4 million upgrade to an existing dock on Itu Aba Island, the largest of the disputed Spratlys. The upgrade will allow the renovated dock to accommodate large supply ships and naval frigates. It will also extend the 3,800-foot runway on the island, according to Lin. The dock is scheduled to be operational in 2016. Philippine, Vietnamese defense ministers discuss defense cooperation. Vietnamese defense minister General Phung Quang Thanh visited Manila from August 25 to 27 and met with Philippine defense secretary Voltaire Gazmin to discuss defense cooperation. During their meeting the two discussed a 2010 agreement between Vietnam and the Philippines on joint cooperation on defense capabilities and on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief initiatives. Their discussion focused on security concerns in the South China Sea, according to Philippine Defense Department spokesman Peter Paul Galvez. China, ASEAN foreign ministers hold special meeting in Beijing. Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi and his 10 ASEAN counterparts discussed tensions in the South China Sea at an August 29 meeting in Beijing. Wang said that the ministers “did not shy away from any problems” during their meeting, which focused mainly on strengthening China-ASEAN relations. It was held in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the China-ASEAN strategic partnership. Chinese and ASEAN officials will meet on September 14–15 for official discussions on the South China Sea. csis.org/publication/southeast-asia-corner-18th-k-streets-engaging-myanmars-military-carpe-diem-part-ii?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+SoutheastAsiaFromTheCornerOf18andKRelatedPublication+%28Southeast+Asia+from+the+Corner+of+18th+and+K%29
Posted on: Sat, 07 Sep 2013 07:54:42 +0000