Did Barack Obama torpedo his own ‘Asia pivot’ strategy at G20?

Did Barack Obama torpedo his own ‘Asia pivot’ strategy at G20?

Special to WorldTribune.com GIS/Defense & Foreign Affairs Can the United States recover its position in East Asia and the Indo-Pacific, or has the tide turned, isolating Washington’s support base in the region? Growing evidence now points to the reality that the last major summit attendance of U.S. President Barack Obama — the G20 Leaders’ Summit […]

ISIL supporters free 8 comrades in Philippines prison break

ISIL supporters free 8 comrades in Philippines prison break

by WorldTribune Staff, August 29, 2016 A group of jihadists aligned with Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) stormed a Philippine prison on Aug. 27 and freed eight of their comrades, according to a report. The Philippine star reported that about 20 Maute Group gunmen armed with RPGs, AK-47s and M-14s raided the Lanao […]

ISIL calls for attacks on Miss Universe pageant

ISIL calls for attacks on Miss Universe pageant

by WorldTribune Staff, August 9, 2016 Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) is calling on jihadists to attack the 2017 Miss Universe pageant. In a thread posted to a Telegram Messenger group called “IS Philippines supporters,” a jihadi, noting next year’s pageant, encourages “everyone who can” to launch attacks at the event. The Miss […]

Beijing responds to landmark ruling on the South China Sea by landing airliners on militarized islets

Beijing responds to landmark ruling on the South China Sea by landing airliners on militarized islets

Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — In a major legal setback for Beijing, an international tribunal has rejected and rebuffed many of Mainland China’s claims regarding exclusive sovereignty and rights in the disputed South China Sea. The landmark ruling in the Hague, by the Permanent Court of Arbitration stated there was […]

International court unanimously rejects Beijing’s claim to most of South China Sea

International court unanimously rejects Beijing’s claim to most of South China Sea

by WorldTribune Staff, July 12, 2016 China has no legal basis for its claim to most of the South China Sea, a tribunal ruled unanimously on July 12. Additionally, Beijing has aggravated regional disputes with its construction of artificial islands that “destroyed coral reefs and infringed on the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone,” a five-member panel […]

U.S. sends two aircraft carriers to Philippine Sea exercise in Pacific showdown with China

U.S. sends two aircraft carriers to Philippine Sea exercise in Pacific showdown with China

by WorldTribune Staff, June 19, 2016 The United States has sent two aircraft carriers to an exercise in the Philippine Sea in a show of force ahead of a key arbitration decision on a South China Sea territorial dispute. The Nimitz-class supercarriers USS Ronald Reagan and USS John C. Stennis conducted air defense and sea […]

Washington’s growing China problem is becoming impossible to ignore

Washington’s growing China problem is becoming impossible to ignore

Special to WorldTribune.com By Sol W. Sanders The U.S.’ confrontation with an increasingly powerful and incipiently aggressive China is getting much more complicated. There is no question of its high priority among the U.S.’ foreign policy issues. But were you a Chinese strategist attempting to measure an American opponent’s intentions, the contradictory U.S. positions might […]

Saudi cleric on ISIL hit list shot in Philippines

Saudi cleric on ISIL hit list shot in Philippines

Special to WorldTribune.com A prominent Saudi cleric who is on Islamic State of Iraq and Levant’s (ISIL’s) hit list was shot and wounded in the Philippines on March 1. Sheikh Aaidh al-Qarni and Saudi diplomat Sheikh Turki Assaegh were both wounded in an assassination attempt as they left a university auditorium in the southern port […]

Report: China threat spurs ‘long overdue’ military upgrades throughout Asia

Report: China threat spurs ‘long overdue’ military upgrades throughout Asia

Special to WorldTribune.com Asian Pacific nations are spending big on “long overdue” military upgrades to counter the threat posed by China, according to a IHS Jane’s report. In 2015, nine of the 20 fastest-growing defense budgets were in the Asian Pacific, the report said. By 2020, total military spending in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region is […]

Healing history’s bitter Japan-Philippines wounds

Healing history’s bitter Japan-Philippines wounds

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, EastAsiaIntel.com MANILA ― No city suffered more in World War II than this sprawling metropolis of more than 10 million people. No enemy was more cruel, more hostile, more destructive than the Japanese after defeating U.S. forces in the Philippines at the outset of the war in the Pacific. […]