Russia’s subsequent transfer – tensions in hotspots elsewhere have continued to simmer.
That is very true within the South China Sea. The early weeks of 2025 have seen an increase in harsh rhetoric and confrontation within the space, particularly between China and the Philippines. In February, a Chinese language navy helicopter flew inside 10 ft of a Philippine patrol aircraft over the contested Scarborough Shoal, in an try and pressure the Philippine plane out of China-claimed airspace. The identical month, China claimed it had efficiently pushed away three Philippine planes “illegally” flying over the disputed Spratly Islands.
