Cadence of Conflict: Asia, May 24, 2021

A democratic Pacific alliance is on the rise. Many nations in the Far East may host US troops, but a bond is forming between them that runs deeper than any US influence. At the center: Taiwan; across the battlefield: China, the great enemy of the Pacific peoples. That’s how this rising alliance sees it.

Taiwan has breakthroughs in micro-tech. The Philippines steps up rhetoric against China—which may not mean anything as words are mere words, but it is a very different direction than bowing down. Japan and Southern Korea tell China to knock it off. And, the British set sail for the Far East with the brand new, shiny HMS Queen Elizabeth and her entourage. This new Pacific family has friends on both sides of the Atlantic.

Indo-Pacific

Ministry thanks S Korea, US for remarks on Strait // Taipei Times

China

More Japanese brands will lose out in China due to Xinjiang cotton ban: analyst // Global Times (China Govt)

Taiwan

Taiwan’s TSMC claims breakthrough on 1nm chips // Taiwan News

Philippines

Philippines protests China fishing ban in South China Sea // Rappler

Military Faceoff

Royal Navy Submarine HMS Anson Launched by BAE Systems // Naval News