Nicholas Khoo, Author at Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative

Manila’s Pyrrhic Victory: ASEAN in Disarray Over the South China Sea

By Nicholas Khoo | October 6, 2016 | Categories: ASEAN, Strategy

Once celebrated as a model multilateral organization and an agent of positive regional change, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is in disarray. On July 12, a tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague issued a judgment on the South China Sea that is widely seen as a victory for ASEAN […]

Moving Toward Casus Belli? Interpreting Recent Chinese Activity in the South China Sea

By Nicholas Khoo | May 21, 2015 | Categories: ASEAN, China, South China Sea, United States

Satellite imagery of the South China Sea has established that over the previous twelve months, China has expanded its presence there by up to 1500 acres. The Chinese have been actively reclaiming land at the following reefs: Cuarteron, Fiery Cross, Gaven, Hughes, Subi, and the Union reefs (Johnson South and Johnson North reefs). One perspective […]

A Year for Optimism in the South China Sea?

By Nicholas Khoo | December 23, 2014 | Categories: China, Philippines, South China Sea, Year in Review

In recent weeks, the international politics of the South China Sea has seen a number of encouraging developments. At their meeting on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Beijing in November, Benigno Aquino claimed to have had a “meeting of minds” with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Also at the APEC […]