Christopher Cushing News

China's military on Tuesday said it had begun joint army, navy and rocket force exercises around Taiwan to "serve as a stern warning and powerful deterrent against Taiwanese independence", calling Taiwan's President Lai Ching-Te a "parasite".More than 10 Chinese military ships have approached close to Taiwan's 24 nautical mile (44.4 kilometre) contiguous zone, and Taiwan sent its own warships to respond, two senior Taiwan officials told Reuters.Taiwan has not yet detected any live fire by the Chinese military so far…

Japanese trading house Mitsui could consider studying a project to liquefy natural gas (LNG) in the U.S. state of Alaska, but no decisions have been made yet, Chief Financial Officer Tetsuya Shigeta said on Tuesday.Japan is considering offering support for a $44-billion gas pipeline in Alaska as it seeks to court U.S.

President Donald Trump issued an order on Monday for the U.S. to resume processing export permit applications for new liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects, part of an effort to raise U.S. energy output and dismantle his predecessor's climate policies.The Republican's executive order, which was expected, effectively reverses a pause on permits for new projects that former President Joe Biden put in place in early 2024. Biden, a Democrat, paused the approvals so U.S. national laboratories could study the environmental and economic effects of the booming export industry.U.S.

The U.S. Trade Representative's office on Thursday said it has found China's targeted dominance of the global shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors is "unreasonable" and is "actionable" under U.S. trade law.The findings of a USTR probe, first reported by Reuters on Tuesday, did not include a specific recommendation of penalties against Beijing, leaving next steps up to President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Monday.USTR said its report "supports a determination that China's targeting of the maritime…

Russia's navy began planned exercises involving most of its fleet in the Arctic and Pacific oceans as well and the Baltic and Caspian seas, the defense ministry said on Tuesday.Russia is considered by most military analysts to have the world's third most powerful navy after those of the United States and China, and Russia has a significant ballistic-missile nuclear submarine fleet.The Russian drills, which include 20,000 personnel and 300 ships, will test the readiness and capabilities of the navy at all levels…

The Russian navy started planned exercises involving most of its fleet as well as 20,000 personnel and 300 ships, Russian news agencies reported on Tuesday, citing the defence ministry.The drills are to test the navy's military command bodies of three fleets as well as the Caspian Flotilla, TASS news agency reported. Russia's Navy comprises of four fleets, the Caspian flotilla and several task forces.The Northern Fleet in Russia's Arctic, the Pacific Fleet in the Pacific Ocean…

A tanker that fled the scene of a fiery Friday collision off Singapore entered the area of Malaysia's Bertam floating oil terminal on Monday after being tracked down and intercepted by Malaysian authorities, shipping data from LSEG and Kpler showed.The Sao Tome and Principe-flagged supertanker Ceres I had left the scene of the collision with the Singapore-flagged tanker Hafnia Nile about 55 km (35 miles) northeast of the Singaporean island of Pedra Branca without explanation.The Ceres I…

A tanker that was involved in a collision near Singapore last week entered the area of Malaysia's Bertam floating oil terminal on Monday morning after it was intercepted by local authorities on Sunday, shipping data from LSEG and Kpler showed.The Sao Tome and Principe-flagged supertanker Ceres I left the scene of a fiery collision with another tanker, the Singapore-flagged Hafnia Nile, on Friday.The Ceres I was found in Malaysian waters with two tugboats towing it, the coast guard…

The mayor of the Russian Black Sea port city of Novorossiisk issued a sea drone alert on Thursday morning, he said on the Telegram messaging app.Mayor Andrei Kravchenko urged locals to stay away from the shoreline. Ukrainian sea drones have in the past attacked Russian ships near the port, disrupting traffic.Novorossiisk is Russia's largest Black Sea port and a key outlet for crude oil and oil product exports in Russia's south.

British security firm Ambrey said early on Friday that a merchant vessel reported two explosions about 21 nautical miles (39 km) west of Yemen's Mocha.One "missile" impacted the water and another exploded in the air, the vessel reported to Ambrey, adding that both explosions occurred within 0.5 nautical miles of the vessel."The vessel was withholding its automatic identification system transmissions at the time.

Walt Disney unveiled plans on Tuesday to launch a new cruise ship that will set sail from Tokyo starting in fiscal 2028, adding a ninth vessel to the brand's growing fleet.The new ship, to be built by Germany's Meyer Werft and modelled after the Wish that is the largest vessel in the group, is a partnership with Oriental Land Company (OLC), the operator of Tokyo Disneyland. It is part of a 10-year, $60 billion expansion of Disney's theme parks and cruise business.Disney currently has five cruise ships in operation.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Sunday it had received a report of an incident 13 nautical miles southwest of Yemen's Al Mukha, but that the vessel and its crew were safe.An UKMTO advisory note said a merchant vessel had reported being approached by 12 small craft which remained in the vicinity of the vessel for about an hour before leaving the area.The vessel and crew were reported safe, and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call, the advisory note added.Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi group has been launching drone and missile strikes in shipping lanes sin

The U.S. military said on Thursday it destroyed two Houthi patrol boats, one uncrewed surface vessel and one drone over the Red Sea in its latest effort to degrade the capabilities of the Iran-backed group.The Houthis, who control the most populous areas of Yemen, targeted the Verbena in the Arabian Sea as well as the Seaguardian and Athina in the Red Sea, the Iran-aligned group's military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a televised speech earlier on Thursday.The attack on the Palau-flagged Verbena cargo ship sparked a fire and severely injured one of her crew, U.S.

Missiles fired by Yemen's Houthi militants struck the Palau-flagged Verbena cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday, sparking a fire and severely injuring one of her crew, U.S. Central Command said.The Iran-allied Houthis have launched dozens of attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea region since November in solidarity with the Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas.Thursday's attack marked their second direct hit on a merchant ship in two days, and the…

British security firm Ambrey said on Friday merchant vessels transiting the Gulf and Western Indian Ocean were advised to stay alert in case of increased uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) activity in the region.Ambrey said it had received information that indicated an "Israeli military strike" was conducted on Isfahan, Iran.Earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said it had seen similar reports but that there were no indications commercial maritime vessels…

Australian shipbuilder Austal said on Tuesday it had rejected an A$1.02 billion ($662 million) takeover offer from South Korea's Hanwha Ocean as it was unlikely to be approved by Australian and U.S. regulators due to the sensitivity of its operations.The Western Australia-based firm said it had received a bid at A$2.825 per share, representing a premium of 28.4% to Austal's last closing price.Austal's shares rose 8.2% in early trade, while the Australian S&P/ASX200 index .AXJO…

Australian shipbuilder Austal said on Tuesday it had rejected an A$1.02 billion ($662 million) takeover offer from South Korea's Hanwha Ocean as it was unlikely to be approved by Australian and U.S. regulators due to the sensitivity of its operations.The Western Australia-based firm said it had received a bid at A$2.825 per share, representing a premium of 28.4% to Austal's last closing price.Austal's shares rose 8.2% in early trade, while the Australian S&P/ASX200 index was flat.The…

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Thursday it expects to open a new channel to the Port of Baltimore by the end of April, freeing up commercial shipping blocked by a collapsed bridge, and then restore port access to full capacity by the end of May.The main channel has been blocked by wreckage since the fully loaded container ship Dali lost power and rammed into a support column of the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, killing six road workers and causing the highway bridge to tumble into the Patapsco River.The Army Corps…

Houthi forces in Yemen said on Sunday they had launched rockets and drones at British, U.S. and Israeli ships, the latest in a campaign of attacks on shipping in support of Palestinians in the Gaza war.The Iran-aligned group said it had targeted a British ship and a number of U.S. frigates in the Red Sea, while in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean it had attacked two Israeli vessels heading to Israeli ports.The operations took place during the last 72 hours, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a televised statement…

China's military carried out a second day of war games around Taiwan on Friday, with drills to test their ability to "seize power" and control key areas, exercises it has said were launched to punish Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te.The two days of drills in the Taiwan Strait and around groups of Taiwan-controlled islands near the Chinese coast started just three days after Lai took office. Taiwan has condemned China's actions.China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and denounces Lai as a "separatist"…

The Philippines on Tuesday accused China's coast guard of harassment and of damaging two of its boats in a disputed area of the South China Sea, rejecting Beijing's position that it had expelled those vessels from the hotly contested shoal.The Philippines' task force on South China Sea issues said a coast guard ship and a fisheries vessel were damaged by water cannons used by Chinese coast guard ships, as the vessels headed to Scarborough shoal to assist Filipino fishermen in the area.The fisheries vessel was rammed thrice both by the Chinese coast guard and maritime vessels…

China's coast guard said on Monday it "expelled" a Philippine coast guard ship and another vessel from waters adjacent to the Scarborough Shoal, Chinese state media reported.The coast guard did not provide additional information, according to the report from Chinese state media broadcaster CCTV, but the incident was the latest to occur between the two countries at the disputed atoll in the South China Sea.Beijing and Manila have repeatedly clashed in recent months at the submerged reef…

Chinese automakers and shippers are ordering a record number of car-carrying vessels to support a boom in EV exports, data showed, putting China on course to amass the world's fourth-largest fleet by 2028.China currently has the world's eighth-largest fleet with 33 car-carrying ships, showed data from shipping consultancy Veson Nautical. Japan has the world's largest with 283 ships, followed by Norway's 102, South Korea's 72 and Isle of Man's 61.But Chinese companies have 47 ships on order, accounting for a quarter of all orders globally.