From my understanding of the rules, yes, it’s the fact they protrude at High Tide that gives them an EEZ, if they were fully submerged at all times there wouldn’t be the slightest “legal reason” for the current problems.

But, since China insanely claims almost all of the “South China Sea” as their own, it probably wouldn’t deter them from continuing to push the Philippines (& other countries in the area) around.

To put it in prospective, Chinas claim to the South China Sea would be like Italy claiming the Mediterranean Sea, or Australia claiming the Coral Sea, it’s just utter nonsense. =/

Thanks!

I’ve noticed a few traffic referrals from your blog to mine over the last 2 or 3 months, so thanks for that as well. xD

Thanks! ;)

Yes I’d love the RAN to operate the Virginia class, but realistically, our best bet would be the new Type-216/U-216 by HDW

---
Germany developed a new generation of 216-type submarines
goo.gl/q6UZv

Type 216 / U-216 Conventional Submarine (SSK)
goo.gl/i66aG

It’s because the Hamilton class Cutter were & the F-16s (they’ve been talking about getting) would be free (Excess to USA Requirement), I’ve heard lately that their looking at "New Build" South Korean T-50, Italian M346 & the Russian Yak-130 aircraft as well.

So who knows what’s going to happen in the near future.

Yes I LoL'd to! :D

<quote> The crackdown on opium cultivation “isn’t solving the problem,” Kramer says. “It’s only hitting the poor poppy farmers, and it’s high time to re-evaluate these policies.”

Even UNODC’s communications chief in Bangkok, John Bleho, admits that some drug control measures “have driven opium growing communities towards chronic poverty and increased food insecurity.” </quote>

Sorry, but I don’t give a damn, if they want “Food Security” they can grow potatoes or Carrots or some other food crop, you can’t justify the growing of a drug for illicit purposes, now if you could guarantee that it would only be used for medical purposes that’s different, let them grow it under controlled circumstances for a drug company.

"friends and partners"

Not so much at the moment it would appear.

*sigh*

Politicians have a unique way of screwing things up! =/

I’ve always been a fan of carrier aviation & was very disappointed when we retired the “HMAS Melbourne”.

I’d love to see us back in the game, but the problem is lack of man power, if there was a small, conventionally powered CATOBAR carrier (something like the old French Clemenceau class) with all the crew minimization systems available today installed, we just might get 1 (or even 2), but the BIG carriers are just out of our league & the new French CdG class is nuclear powered which wouldn’t be acceptable to the tree-huggers down south, our best bet for “carrier aviation” is F-35B’s on the new LHD’s sometime in the future.

When the Australian Carrier (HMAS Melbourne) was decommissioned, she was sold to china as scrap, china spent years studying it before cutting her up, I bet that’s where they worked out how Arrestors work & how to build their own.