Archives AUKUS Military Alliance - Page 2 of 3 - New Eastern Outlook

Just a few years ago, the US and its allies made a strategic decision to increase their presence in the Pacific Ocean region. After the “agreement of the century” with Australia in 2021 to lay down a shipyard for the construction of Virginia-class nuclear submarines, the Americans placed emphasis on developing military cooperation with the countries of Southeast Asia. A Japan-Philippines-U.S. (JAPHUS) trilateral alliance with similar strategic goals to AUKUS and an even larger geographic scope is in the process of being established…

Last year, 17,600 troops from the Philippines took part in Balikatan, a record for an annual military exercise between the Americans and the Tagalogs.  According to Manila’s statement, the interaction between the US, Philippine and Australian Armed Forces will be even bigger in 2024. What’s more, this year’s joint military exercise will take place in the Philippines’ northern islands, which are just 150 kilometres (93 nautical miles) from Taiwan. Already this weekend, military officials from the three countries will travel to the uninhabited…

The term “Malacca Dilemma” was first coined by former Chinese President Ho Jintao in 2003. The term refers to potential menacing factors that could hamper Chinese economic growth and threaten its military might by choking its oil imports from the East Asian and Middle Eastern region through the Malacca Strait. The strait stretches to 1100 km in length and 2.8 km wide at its narrowest point, which makes the strait a great source of vulnerability for China. China is the top oil importer in the world…