What’s Really Going On In the South China Sea Between the Philippines and China

What’s Really Going On In the South China Sea Between the Philippines and China

by Tina Antonis

Maritime clashes between the Philippines and China had been mostly over the Philippines’ military outpost, BRP (BRP—Barko ng Republika ng Pilipinas, which translates to “Ship of the Republic of the Philippines”—the ship prefix for the Philippines) Sierra Madre, in the Spratly Islands, which is disputed by Brunei, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan (a province of China, as recognized by the United Nations’ Resolution No. 2758), and Vietnam. The BRP Sierra Madre was intentionally run aground on a reef near the Second Thomas Shoal in the disputed Spratly Islands, in 1997, so that the Philippines could stake their territorial claim.

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For Want of an Oiler: The Fragile State of America’s Afloat Logistics Fleet

What’s Going On With Shipping?

Salvatore R. Mercogliano, Ph.D. – 

The Navy oiler – a tanker designed to refuel other ships while at sea – shuddered from the hit. Almost immediately, water began to flood into the engine room and at least one of the ship’s rudders was out of service. The damage and flow of water proved challenging for the crew. As the only US Navy fuel ship in the area capable of supporting a carrier strike group came to a stop, the vulnerability of the thin lifeline of American afloat logistics became apparent. How would an entire carrier strike group remain operational without fuel for its planes and escorts? With one stroke, the hitting power of a substantial portion of the U.S. Navy was reduced.

For Want of an Oiler: The Fragile State of America’s Afloat Logistics Fleet

(Primer) A Decade of EDCA: US military bases and its expanding war games in the Philippines

The outright re-establishment of US military bases in the country and its relentless and escalating war games on land, sea, and air are flagrant manifestations of US imperialist domination of the Philippines. This further tightens the grip of US imperialism on the Philippine neocolonial state, especially on the puppet Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

(Primer) A Decade of EDCA: US military bases and its expanding war games in the Philippines

Financier John Phelan Tapped to be Next Navy Secretary

Financier John Phelan Tapped to be Next Navy Secretary

[John] Phelan is the founder of private equity firm Rugger Management LLC and previously served as the chairman and chief investment officer of the firm that oversaw the fortune of Dell Technologies founder Michael Dell. He is also on the board of the Spirit of America [front group] non-profit, a non-partisan group with a mission to support American troops abroad that has also supported troops in Ukraine.

Related:

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US Foreign Policy vs. China Continues Under Trump

The incoming Trump administration is poised to pick up where the Biden administration has left off on the decades-spanning centerpiece of US foreign policy ‒ the encirclement and containment of China.

US Foreign Policy vs. China Continues Under Trump (archived)

Related:

AFPI: America First Policy Institute

Por la Pesca:

The Walton Family Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and a coalition of fishermen’s associations and environmental institutions join forces to promote responsible fishing practices.

Front Organizations

China’s A2/AD (ACE Concept/Joint All-Domain Operations)

National Archivist Sanitized US Museum

Historians and other critics are responding with fierce condemnation to this week’s Wall Street Journal reporting that “U.S. Archivist Colleen Shogan and her top advisers at the National Archives and Records Administration, which operates a popular museum on the National Mall, have sought to de-emphasize negative parts of U.S. history.”

‘Obeying Fascism in Advance,’ National Archivist Sanitized US Museum

Lansdale native, Marine veteran killed in action Sunday as volunteer fighter with Ukraine Army

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Lansdale native, Marine veteran killed in action Sunday as volunteer fighter with Ukraine Army

Former USMC 1st Sgt. Corey John Nawrocki was killed during a recon and sabotage mission near Bryansk, Russia.

According to The Moscow Times, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) claimed responsibility Monday for killing four “saboteurs” of a Diversion Reconnaissance Group who attempted to cross into Bryansk with the A3449 military unit of UkrainePer reports, he was issued a military ID on Sept. 4, 2024.

Nawrocki, a North Penn High School graduate, spent 20 years with the U.S. Marine Corps, serving multiple tours of duty, finally retiring in 2021. He was a gunnery sergeant at the Marine Barracks Washington and served with the 1st Battalion, 4th Marines B-Co. and the 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Blackfoot Co.

In February, Nawrocki, who received a Bronze Star for valor, was the distinguished keynote speaker at the Veterans Appreciation Brunch at Generations of Indian Valley in Souderton.

Related:

A3449: International Legion of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine

The International Legion of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, is a separate unit of foreign fighters subordinated to the Main Directorate of Intelligence and the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine. The unit consists of several foreign units structured at various levels, typically being structured as either a battalion, or a squadron split into several teams – functioning completely separate from the regular International Legion under the Ground Forces.

Ilya Ponomarev (Free Russia Legion)