About $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year though the energy-rich, strategic waters of the South China Sea. China routinely carries out exercises in the South China Sea, where its territorial claims overlap in parts with Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. Photo: ReutersBeijing: China will hold military drills around the disputed Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, the maritime safety administration said on Sunday, ahead of a decision by an international court in a dispute between China and the Philippines. Tensions have been rising ahead of a 12 July ruling by an arbitration court hearing the dispute between China and the Philippines over the South China Sea in the Dutch city of The Hague. China says it is perfectly within its rights to do what it wants on the islands in the South China Sea, saying they have been Chinese territory since ancient times.

Source: Mint July 03, 2016 13:52 UTC