Free and Open Indo-Pacific/FOIP
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China’s research ships linger longer than others near undersea cables, study shows
FORUM Staff China’s research vessels spend disproportionately more time near critical undersea communications cables across the Pacific than vessels from nearly 50 other nations, a new analysis found. The findings…
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U.S. monitoring China’s maritime presence off Alaska
Sentry The United States Coast Guard tracked four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) research vessels in international waters off Alaska in September 2026 amid indications that Beijing is increasing its Arctic presence.…
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Philippines, U.S. condemn China’s dangerous tactics at Second Thomas Shoal
FORUM Staff China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) warships and coast guard vessels blocked the Philippines from completing a routine resupply mission for troops aboard the BRP Sierra Madre in…
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Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore deepen integrated defense of vital maritime choke points
Sarah Chan Southeast Asian partners are moving beyond routine maritime patrols to an integrated defense of the Malacca and Singapore straits, critical conduits for global trade. Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore…
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Indonesia’s Navy, defense industry to develop, deploy uncrewed submersibles
FORUM Staff The Indonesian Navy will work with the nation’s defense industry to design uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUV) to overcome the vast archipelago’s maritime surveillance and security challenges. Adm. Muhammad…
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China’s Taiwan Strait traffic control scheme part of ‘salami slicing’ strategy
Lt. Col. Uilisone F. Tua/U.S. Army In early August 2026, China’s Guangdong Maritime Safety Administration (MSA) announced and sought to enforce a dayslong “traffic control scheme” for northbound vessels entering…
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Australia-Philippines-U.S. maritime cooperation boosts interoperability
Australian Defence Department/Armed Forces of the Philippines Naval and air units from Australia, the Philippines and the United States conducted a maritime cooperative activity (MCA) within the Philippines’ exclusive economic…
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Beijing drives maritime militia aggression in South China Sea
Sarah Chan The strategic contest in the South China Sea increasingly is waged not by warships but by dual-purpose fishing trawlers. State-directed maritime militias, operating in the murky space between…
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China set to militarize once pristine South China Sea reef
Reuters China has completed the first phase of construction on Antelope Reef in the Paracels archipelago, building an artificial island in the contested South China Sea that analysts say will…
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PACAF sets theater with prepositioned materiel
U.S. Pacific Air Forces The Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) is moving prepositioned materiel into key locations throughout the U.S. Pacific Command area of responsibility. This effort, central to the U.S.…
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