Category: Security

An administration lawmaker denounced the alleged destabilization plot against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., noting that this will hurt the country’s economy and won’t do any good to the country.

Cavite 4th District Rep. Elpidio Barzaga added that political instability “is the last thing the country needs right now” as it continues to face economic challenges, particularly controlling inflation.

His statement comes after Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief Romeo Brawner revealed in an event in Zamboanga City last Friday of a supposed destabilization plot involving retired officers.

A day later, Brawner, alongside National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano and other military and police officials, denied that there were plots to oust the Marcos administration and instead described them as “passionate exchanges.”

But Barzaga believes that any talk regarding a brewing plot by these retired officers against the Marcos administration “will only cause the economy another black eye.”

“We don’t need their adventurism. We have a working government duly elected by an overwhelming majority of the people, more than 31.6 million margins. They have to respect the people’s decision,” Barzaga said.

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(c) 2023 The Manila Times

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Monday that stable ties between China and Australia served each other’s interests and both sides should expand their cooperation, sending a clear signal that Beijing was ready to move on from recent tensions.

China and Australia should promote the development of their strategic partnership as they build up mutual understanding and trust, Mr Xi told Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the first Australian leader to visit Beijing since 2016, at the Great Hall of the People in the heart of the Chinese capital.

A strong relationship “will be beneficial into the future”, Mr Albanese told Mr Xi in their second face-to-face talks in a year, a meeting that lasted more than an hour.

For decades, China and Australia had built a relationship on trade, with Beijing becoming Canberra’s biggest commercial partner with purchases of Australian food and natural resources.

But ties soured after Australia in 2017 accused China of meddling in its politics. The following year, Australia banned equipment from Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies for its 5G network out of national security fears.

An Australian call in 2020 for an international inquiry into the origin of the Covid-19 pandemic, which was first reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019, infuriated Beijing, which responded by blocking various Australian imports.

As relations deteriorated, China warned its students against studying in Australia, citing racist incidents, threatening a multibillion-dollar education market.

Earlier on Monday, Mr Albanese stopped by Beijing’s Temple of Heaven, and posed for a photograph at the circular Echo Wall where Australia’s then Prime Minister Gough Whitlam had stood in 1973, a year after the two countries established ties.

“In China we often say that when drinking water, we should not forget those who dug the well,” Mr Xi said. “The Chinese people will not forget Prime Minister Whitlam for digging the well for us.”

Mr Albanese took steps to stabilise relations after he became prime minister in May 2022, and met Mr Xi on the sidelines of a Group of 20 summit in Indonesia in November the same year.

China soon began lowering trade barriers, allowing imports of coal in January 2023 and ending tariffs on barley in August. In October, Beijing agreed to review tariffs of 218 per cent on Australian wine.

“I noted very much unimpeded trade was in the interest of both countries, was good for Chinese consumers as well as Australian exporters,” Mr Albanese told reporters after the meeting. “He certainly agreed that Australian wine is good.”

China’s January-September imports from Australia increased 8.1 per cent from a year earlier to US$116.9 billion (S$158 billion), Chinese Customs data shows. In 2022, imports had plunged 12.7 per cent to US$142.1 billion.

The meeting was “very positive”, Mr Albanese said, adding that he had invited Mr Xi to visit Australia.

“Both of us certainly agreed that we shouldn’t be defined by our differences, recognise that they are there, but also recognise the mutual benefit that we have.”

Obstacles remain in their relationship.

Australian backing of a United Nations ruling rejecting China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea has also angered Beijing, which has told Canberra the issue is not its concern.

Australia says the South China Sea is an important passageway for its trade with Japan and South Korea.

Beijing’s projection of power among Pacific Island nations also alarmed Australia, while Canberra’s security alliance with the United States and Britain in the Indo-Pacific — known as Aukus — stoked Chinese worries about containment.

“Aukus didn’t come up explicitly. We discussed, though, regional stability,” Mr Albanese said, without giving specifics. “I spoke about guard rails and military-to-military cooperation between the US and China. That’s important.”

Mr Albanese also raised the case of Australian writer Yang Hengjun, who has been jailed in Beijing for four years on espionage charges. 

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(c) 2023 the Asia News Network

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

A new University of Georgia study found one in eight military families with children have visited a food bank in a recent 12-month stretch.

The research, published recently by the Public Health Nutrition journal, also showed that Asian, Black and multiracial military families were roughly 50% more likely to use food assistance than white families. The survey was conducted in 2021, about a year into the COVID-19 pandemic. It included 8,326 families across the country with an active duty member of the U.S. Army or Air Force.

A family’s chances of going to a food pantry jumped by 35% for each dependent child, according to the study.

“If we look at the American population in general, about half of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck,” said Catherine O’Neal, the study’s lead author and a UGA assistant professor, in a written statement. “So it’s not really all that surprising that what we’re seeing with the military reflects the broader population.”

The study’s authors wrote that understanding more about food insecurity among military families “is vital” because it has implications for retaining service members. About a quarter of military families experience some food insecurity, according to previous research, meaning more families may need help with food than are currently receiving it.

“Broadly, the relatively small number of families in the current study who utilized such resources may indicate the need to grow resource utilization. It may be that those who need the resources are not using them,” states the study.

O’Neal pointed to stigma as a reason why some may not use food pantries.

The study found that Army families were more likely to visit a pantry than those in the Air Force. Families with two income-earners were less likely to seek food assistance than those with just one.

The authors suggested that community service agencies partner to spread awareness of available resources. They suggested that childcare centers provide a list of food distribution sites and educate the families they serve about those offerings, while food banks “can cross-promote other community supports.”

They also said efforts to help spouses obtain employment “can improve military families’ financial well-being and reduce food insecurity.” The authors said that “targeted information campaigns” could inform those most in need, such as single-income families, of available resources.

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© 2023 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Got some cash? You can own a pair of sunglasses, a lapel brooch or a cashmere coat once owned by Prince.

A collection of Prince’s clothing, jewelry and memorabilia is on the auction block, with some bids starting at an affordable $100.

Highlights from the vast private collection include Prince’s classic white ruffled shirt worn on stage during the 12th annual American Music Awards in 1985, his “Purple Rain” era black and purple gloves and his iconic high-heeled blue boots from his Act I tour (valued at $20,000), according to RR Auction’s website, where anyone can vie for the items.

In all, there are 203 items up for bidding, according to Bobby Livingston, executive vice president at the company.

Most of what’s offered is clothing and other items spanning from the mid-1980s to the late ’90s, from Prince’s “Purple Rain,” “Lovesexy,” “Parade” and “Sign ‘O’ the Times” eras.

“The collector who owns it has spent the last decade or so collecting these things from various designers and auction houses,” Livingston said. “So it’s a pretty comprehensive fashion collection that follows the whole career of Prince.”

The collector (who is unnamed) decided it was time to share his private cache with other Prince fans, Livingston added. The auction includes items with bids at $100 while bidding on Prince’s blue boots was at about $11,000 as of publication.

“You can see the metal bracket braces that are holding up the heels if you look underneath it,” he said. “It just shows an intense amount of wear — how he was jumping on stage and dancing. You can really get a sense of the performer.”

Some the the quirkier items include collections of dyed fabric samples for his tours, a handwritten note with wardrobe changes for his 1990 Nude Tour and Polaroid photographs of his wardrobe collection.

“Each new project came out and not only did he change his music but he changed his fashion and design sense,” Livingston said, “That’s what makes this collection so remarkable. You can tell the whole story from Purple Rain on.”

Bids close at 6 p.m. on Nov. 16. Those interested in bidding can go to rrauction.com.

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© 2023 StarTribune

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) seized over 220 pounds of drugs last week, including 20 pounds of pink, heart-shaped fentanyl pills, in what is believed to be the largest single-location drug bust in Massachusetts.

According to a Justice Department press release, an FBI task force seized an estimated 10 million doses of drugs, valued at $8 million, on Nov. 1 in Lynn, Massachusetts, which is located north of Boston. The FBI seizure included eight million doses of methamphetamine and fentanyl-laced powder and pills.

The FBI task force discovered 20 pounds of pink, heart-shaped pills laced with fentanyl that were designed to “look like candy,” according to the Justice Department. The FBI also discovered fake Adderall pills that were believed to contain methamphetamines, as well as brown powder-like and rock substances that tested positive for cocaine and other drugs.

Authorities arrested three men for allegedly running a “large-scale drug trafficking organization,” according to the Justice Department. Emilio Garcia, age 25, known as “6,” and Sebastien Bejin, age 33, known as “Bash,” were both charged with two counts, including the possession of controlled substances with the intent to distribute the substances. Deiby Felix, age 40, was only charged one count for the possession of controlled substances and the intent to distribute.

According to The Daily Wire, the three men are scheduled for court on Nov. 13. If the men are convicted, they could face up to 20 years in prison, as well as a fine of up to $250,000 per charge.

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The Justice Department noted that an investigation conducted in July regarding an overdose death in Salem, Massachusetts, led the investigators to a drug trafficking organization that was allegedly led by Bejin, Garcia, and Felix. The three men were reportedly under surveillance for three months before authorities received search warrants for the locations identified through the investigation.

“This seizure by the FBI’s North Shore Gang Task Force saved lives in communities throughout Massachusetts,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said. “Not only was this seizure one of the largest in the history of Massachusetts, but some of the pills were created to look like candy, potentially presenting an enormous risk to children. The FBI will continue to relentlessly pursue those involved in narcotics trafficking to keep drugs off our streets, and out of the hands of children.”

Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, Joshua S. Levy indicated that the number of doses seized in the FBI raid is greater than the total number of people currently living in the state.

“The fact that we now are seeing fentanyl-laced pills pressed to resemble candy only underscores the urgency of this fentanyl crisis,” Levy said.

In the Justice Department’s press release, Attorney General Merrick Garland highlighted the “depraved” nature of “trafficking deadly fentanyl” meant to look like candy in order to “appeal to teenagers.”

“The Justice Department is focused on attacking every link in the global fentanyl trafficking chain, and we will not stop until those responsible for the fentanyl poisoning epidemic are brought to justice,” he stated. “We also continue to urge families to have open and honest conversations about the urgent threat posed by this epidemic and the fact that just one pill can kill.”

A video comprised of multiple dash cameras, surveillance camera, and body camera sources shows a runaway semi-truck crashing into over 32 cars and injuring 11 people before crashing into a car dealership and starting a fire last Friday.

According to KSL 5, the runaway semi-truck crashed into dozens of vehicles at multiple road intersections on Friday in Tooele, Utah, before it eventually crashed into a car dealership and started a fire.

KSL 5 reported that the semi-truck incident resulted in 11 people receiving injuries, as well as the destruction of at least 32 cars.

“How this didn’t end up in a fatality is shocking,” Tooele Police Department Lt. Jeremy Hansen said. Hansen told KSL 5 that one woman who was critically injured in the accident was expected to survive her injuries.

According to KSL 5, the video, comprised of multiple different types of camera footage, shows the first crash involving the semi-truck and three cars at the Vine and Main Street intersection. The footage also shows the semi-truck attempting to drive past cars stopped at a red light, a second crash involving the semi-truck and two cars at 400 N. Main Street, the semi-truck flipping cars into the air, and the truck crashing into the Tooele Motor Company parking lot, which resulted in the building catching on fire.

Hansen told KSL 5 that he was a witness to a significant part of Friday’s semi-truck incident, as both he and his partner were stuck in traffic as they were returning to the police station after an unrelated police call. While stuck in traffic, Hansen and his partner watched as the semi-truck flipped cars into the air before it smashed into the Tooele Motor Company parking lot.

READ MORE: Video: 8 dead, 63 injured in 168-vehicle crash

After the crash, Hansen ran to check on the driver of the semi-truck, who was able to walk away from both the crash and the fire. “I didn’t think there was any way the driver made it out of that,” Hansen said.

Hansen applauded the local community for working together to save those who were injured in the runaway semi-truck incident and for working to limit the destruction of the fire caused by the crash.

“This spread is super thin, so for the community to come together, seeing the citizens grab the first-aid kits out of their vehicles and start rendering aid while we’re waiting for fire units to respond, the ambulances to respond, we had Dugway Fire, North Tooele Fire, Mountain West, Gold Cross even helped to come to the hospital afterward to transfer patients out, this was a community effort between all first-responders,” Hansen stated. “We’ve never had an accident of this scale in the city in my 17 years here.”

According to Hansen, the accident appears to have been caused by the semi-truck’s brakes failing; however, KSL 5 reported that state investigators are continuing to review the incident.

Regardless of the cause, Hansen expressed his gratitude that the major accident did not result in the loss of life. “We’re truly blessed it wasn’t worse than what it was,” he said.

Bright green liquid was spotted leaking out of a New York City Manhole and sewer grates last week, causing social media users to speculate regarding the cause of the mysterious liquid.

According to ABC News 7, the mysterious green liquid was seen coming out of a manhole cover and multiple sewer grates located near the World Trade Center.

A picture posted on X by a social media user named Dan Pantelo showed the green liquid, along with the caption, “So there’s literal green sludge bubbling up from the ground next to World Trade Center right now.”

Pantelo also shared a video of the bubbling liquid, adding, “Can anybody explain this or are we just living in full blown Gotham rn.”

In reaction to the video and the pictures on X, social media users provided humorous theories about the mysterious liquid. One social media user commented, “Yeah it’s called Ooz and it’s how the Ninja Turtles came about.”

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A day after his initial post, Pantelo tweeted, “UPDATE: it’s still there, people are walking through it casually, sometimes a small crowd gathers around and stares at it. Follow for updates on the green sludge lol.”

UPDATE: it’s still there, people are walking through it casually, sometimes a small crowd gathers around and stares at it.

Follow for updates on the green sludge lol pic.twitter.com/Qc2uKBLTDt

— Dan Pantelo (@danpantelo) November 3, 2023

According to The Western Journal, while the mysterious liquid generated some confusion on social media, the identity of the liquid was eventually released in an X community note that explained the light green liquid was “water full of green dye.”

“Plumbers frequently use harmless, fluorescent green dye to detect leaks in plumbing and sewage systems,” the note read.

A staff member at O’Hara’s Restaurant and Pub, located near the place where the green liquid was observed, told The Daily Mail that New York City workers were using a green foam to test a hotel’s sprinkler system. The green foam is believed to have caused the mysterious liquid that was spotted in the manhole and the sewer grates.

According to ABC News 7, last week’s mystery liquid was not the first time this year that New York City residents have been disturbed by the presence of green water. In March, a similar situation occurred when a green puddle was seen in a subway station located in Brooklyn.

A powerful fire ripped through one of two 17-story hangars still standing at the long-shuttered Tustin Air Base early Tuesday morning, Nov. 7, leading to a catastrophic collapse of most of the iconic facility’s outer shell.

Dozens of Orange County firefighters responded when the blaze was first reported at the north hangar just before 12:55 a.m. By midmorning, however, they stood by watching the structure burn, helpless to stop its demise.

Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Thanh Nguyen said sending firefighters into the building was too dangerous.

“The biggest fear is collapse and getting our firefighters injured,” Nguyen said.

The cause of the fire and where it began were not clear Tuesday.

No injuries were reported and firefighters did not believe anyone was inside the building when the fire broke out, Ngueyn said.

OCFA Chief Brian Fennessy said early Tuesday the fire was expected to stretch across the length of the hangar, which will ultimately need to be demolished.

He said it could take a lengthy amount of time before the fire was out. When firefighters arrived, the blaze was intense.

“We expect the fire to continue … possibly until it gets to the other side of the hangar, and whether that be the end of the day, tomorrow — whether it stops at some point in between, we don’t know,” Fennessy said. “So at this point we’re standing back, keeping people and firefighters away and we’re watching.”

Fire officials confirmed early Tuesday they would allow the blaze to continue burning.

Just before 6:30 a.m., firefighters said the plan was to allow the hangar to collapse. Only after the roof came down would fire officials send in ground crews.

Fire officials sent helicopters and a Boeing CH-47 Chinook to help fight the blaze earlier Tuesday. Nguyen said helicopters are typically not used to douse a structure fire with water.

“This is not a regular fire,” Nguyen said.

But it later became clear dumping water on the structure was having no effect.

“It was felt that perhaps…it was possible for us to maybe slow it down and maybe get our ladder trucks in close enough to be able to slow it down,” Fennessy said. “That was not the case, so we cancelled them and returned them.”

Both hangars once housed blimps used in World War II and later provided cover for military helicopters.

The hangars were built in 1942, Fennessy said, and are two of the largest wooden structures ever constructed. They were named historic civil engineering landmarks in 1993.

The hangars have been featured in television and films, among them “JAG,” “The X Files,” “Austin Powers,” “Pearl Harbor” and “Star Trek.”

For some time, there were plans to raze the north hangar and use the space to construct homes and a regional park. But the plans were never realized, and in August 2021, the City Council voted to scrap the park and maintain the site.

Tustin Mayor Austin Lumbard called Tuesday a sad day for the city. He described the two hangars as more than just structures.

“It’s a personal thing to a lot of (the) Tustin community,” Lumbard said. “They mean so much to the city’s past, to the region’s military history.”

Before the fire, Lumbard said, a decision hadn’t been made on the ultimate faith for the north hangar. It was damaged by heavy winds in 2013 and had been supported by two cranes.

“It’s just been kind of sitting there, damaged,” Lumbard said. “There’s community sentiment that wants to save the hangars, (but it’s) very, very cost prohibitive to repair those things and bring them up to commercial code.”

Lumbard said the city looks forward to collaborating on what ultimately will happen to the remaining hangar and the 85 acres surrounding it.

The city, he said, has recently invested in new fencing, adding signs and cutting overgrown vegetation in the area.

Councilmember Letitia Clark said the U.S. Navy needed to do more.

“I think we did everything we could in our power to really ensure that the site was clean and safe,” Clark said. “I think the hindsight, 20/20 part is really more on the Navy.”

Clark said the city has an operational agreement with the Navy, which owns both hangars.

“I hope that the Navy is now aware that there’s probably more that they could have done,” Clark said. “And, hopefully, there’s more they can do now in terms of helping us move forward with making sure the site is clean and that we can move forward to fully transitioning ownership of the (south) hangar from them to us.”

U.S. Navy officials could not be reached comment.

Tuesday morning, every few minutes, the dying structure emitted a loud, low rumble as the metal and wood inner lattice still holding up the curved roof started to give way, sending debris crashing down to the hangar floor in burning heaps.

By 9 a.m., fire crackled along the edges of the gaping hole now making up nearly half of the old hangar. Flames ripped through the interior, bursting through the hangar’s roof in spots.

Amid billowing columns of brownish, white smoke, pieces of the hangar’s outer covering were ripped from its walls. The pieces twirled up in the air like confetti before raining back down on the fields and streets around the building.

The loud snaps and pops of flames and the explosions periodically rumbling through the old structure served as the death throes of one of Orange County’s most iconic buildings.

Like giant soda cans tipped over in the sand, the twin, hulking hangars at the air base have sat here for longer than many locals have called Orange County home.

The air base was one of the first sights Curtis Schneider, 61, could remember when his family first drove through the area after moving here in the 1970s.

In a T-shirt, shorts, sandals and sunglasses, Schneider stood just behind the open driver’s side door of his car, holding his phone up to capture the destruction. When one loud blast roared from the burning building, he tensed up.

“Whoa!” he said, as others in the group of about 50 onlookers hooted and hollered. Still watching, Schneider took a quick drag from his vape pen.

He recalled standing on the floor of the hangar beneath its towering walls for different events over the years, when visitors were still allowed inside.

“We saw car shows in there, helicopter shows,” Schneider said. “We had some good times in that hangar.”

Tammy Murphy, 65, looked on in horror and wonder as decades of Southern California history burned to the ground in front of her. Murphy stood with her two grandchildren just behind a chain-link fence about a quarter of a mile from the hangar.

“Oh my god — so many emotions,” she said. “These were here when I was a kid growing up.”

She remembered seeing the Blue Angels perform here. Her father was in the military and would take her to shop at the base grocery store.

“It was bustling,” Murphy said, before the facility was closed for good in the 1990s.

Local officials tried for years to develop a plan for what to do with the hangars. It’s a history Schneider said he knew well. He answered his cellphone and spoke to the caller on speaker phone.

“That’s a historic building,” the caller said.

Schneider replied: “It was.”

Red embers could be seen along the remaining roof edge, with and smoke billowing up.

Lori Spiak, a lifelong Tustin resident, gasped at the sight.

Spiak said she hopes the south hangar is maintained — she and her friends have talked about how it could be turned into a concert venue or a soundstage.

Adora Cole said the hangar has been a fixture in her life since she was a child; she remembers Marines going by in with their pickups trucks when it was an active base.

“My heart is just broken,” Cole said. “It’s so close to home. It’s very, very upsetting.”

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© 2023 MediaNews Group, Inc

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LL

This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.

U.S. and European officials have begun talks with Ukraine about what possible peace negotiations with Russia might entail to end the conflict, according to one current and one former high-ranking U.S. official, the U.S. network NBC reports.

The talks are reported to have included very broad outlines of what Ukraine might need to give up to reach a deal, the officials said.

Some of the talks, which officials described as delicate, took place last month during a meeting of representatives from more than 50 nations supporting Ukraine, including NATO members, known as the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, the officials told NBC News.

This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.

The leaders of Japan and the Philippines signed a military aid package on Friday and pledged to begin negotiations on a defense pact as both countries encounter rising tensions with China.

In addition to providing military assistance to Manila, visiting Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida promised a slew of development aid packages to the Philippines, bolstering a bilateral relationship that shares common allies and rivals, according to a report by BenarNews, a news outlet affiliated with Radio Free Asia.

“First of all, under the increasingly severe and complex international situation, we are deepening our cooperation in the area of security,” Kishida said at a press conference alongside Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. 

“And a further decision was made to start negotiations of a Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) … to further strengthen trilateral cooperation among Japan, United States and the Philippines.”

The RAA is a defense agreement that Japan has pursued with a handful of countries, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, serving as a framework for the country’s military and security operations and training with other nations. It could pave the way for troop deployments in joint military drills and other security operations, such as joint patrols.

Before he concludes his two-day visit, Kishida will address a special joint session of Congress on Saturday, becoming the first Japanese leader to do so. During World War II, Imperial Japan occupied the Philippines.

‘Like-minded states’

After landing in Manila on Friday, Kishida began his visit by laying a wreath on the tomb of Jose Rizal, the Filipino national hero known for his activism against Spanish colonial rule. The prime minister was then whisked to the presidential palace in Manila, where he held a closed-door meeting with Marcos.

“As leaders of like-minded states, we affirm our commitment to peaceful negotiations to resolve maritime conflicts, and the need for a stable and secure environment, for mutually inclusive growth and development for our peoples,” Marcos said in the news conference organized after their meeting.

The Philippine Department of National Defense will receive a grant of 600 million yen (U.S. $4.02 million) to purchase coastal radars as the first project under Japan’s newly launched Official Security Assistance (OSA) funds, the leaders said.

Japan will also provide aid grants worth U.S. $6 million to purchase trucks, bulldozers, and other heavy equipment to repair transport networks and infrastructure damaged by natural disasters in Bangsamoro, an autonomous region predominantly inhabited by Muslims and marked by conflicts between militants and the Filipino military.

The Filipino president also noted Japan’s financing of the ongoing Metro Manila Subway and the North-South Commuter Railway projects, estimated to cost billions of dollars.

Kishida’s visit followed Marcos’s trip to Tokyo in February. From Manila, the Japanese leader will travel on to Malaysia on Saturday for an official visit.

Both leaders discussed a wide range of political, security, and economic issues, but the rising tensions surrounding disputed waters in the South China Sea featured prominently in the talks, officials with the Philippine foreign office said. 

‘Rules-based approach’

In a joint statement, both leaders reaffirmed their support for a “rules-based approach to resolving competing claims in maritime areas” and “their commitment to freedom of navigation and overflight in the East and South China Seas.”

While the Philippines and China are locked in a territorial dispute in the South China Sea, Japan and China have contending territorial claims in the East China Sea. 

In 2016, an international arbitration court ruled in favor of the Philippines when it rejected China’s territorial claims to most of the South China Sea on historical grounds.

In recent months, China and the Philippines have engaged in increasingly tense rhetoric as both countries assert their claims over the contested waters amid standoffs at sea between Chinese and Filipino coast guards and other vessels.

As recently as last week, the Chinese military said it had warned off a Philippine warship that it accused of “trespassing” into the waters around the Scarborough Shoal, while Filipino National Security Adviser Eduardo M. Año called it “routine patrol operations.”