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State Media News

22 Feb 2024

Five Killed After Barge Hits Bridge Near China's Guangzhou

(Photo: social media)

Five people were killed after a barge collided with a bridge over a waterway in China's Pearl River Delta near Guangzhou city, causing part of the bridge to break off, plunging vehicles into the water, Chinese state media reported on Thursday.The barge was travelling from Foshan city to a southern district of Guangzhou when it crashed into the bridge at 5:30 a.m. (2130 GMT) on the Hongqili Waterway, the Guangzhou Maritime Safety Administration said in a statement.Images on state…

20 Feb 2024

Taiwan Says China Triggered Panic by Boarding Tourist Boat

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The boarding of a Taiwanese tourist boat by China's coast guard near sensitive frontline islands triggered "panic" among Taiwan's people, a government minister said on Tuesday, but Taiwan's military added it was not planning to get involved.Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory despite the island's rejection, has been wary of efforts by Beijing to ramp up pressure on Taipei following the election last month of Lai Ching-te as president, a man Beijing views as a dangerous…

15 Feb 2024

Iran Will Reciprocate If Its Ships Are Seized, Official Says

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Iran will reciprocate if its ships are seized, the legal adviser to Iran's President told state media on Thursday, in response to a statement by the United States Department of Justice.This month, the Department of Justice issued a statement announcing the seizure of more than 500,000 barrels of Iranian fuel to clamp down on the "Revolutionary Guards' financing network"."If an Iranian ship is seized, we will reciprocate and the legal way is not closed in this regard," legal adviser Mohammad Dehghan said, adding that he was not able to confirm whether U.S.

01 Feb 2024

Kim Jong Un Inspects Shipyard

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected a shipyard and underscored the importance of a strong naval force in "war preparations", state media KCNA said on Friday.Kim's visit is being made public after North Korea tested its new submarine-launched cruise missiles (SLCM) on Sunday, firing an upgraded missile for the second time in a week and accelerating its navy's nuclear armament, according to state media."Strengthening naval force is the most important issue in pushing ahead with war preparations", KCNA cited Kim as saying during his visit to Nampho dockyard, a military shipbuilding base als

30 Jan 2024

Heavy Fog Suspends Shipping at Chinese Ports

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Heavy fog has suspended the operation of ships travelling through the Qiongzhou Strait off the coast of China's Guangdong province and several cities, including Shanghai, have issued warning advisories, Chinese state media reported on Wednesday.Several ports suspended the flow of traffic starting late Tuesday and the specific time of the resumption of navigation will be determined as sea visibility improves, state broadcaster CCTV news reported.Port cities in the southwestern region of Guangxi…

26 Jan 2024

China Presses Iran to Rein in Houthi Attacks in Red Sea

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Chinese officials have asked their Iranian counterparts to help rein in attacks on ships in the Red Sea by the Iran-backed Houthis, or risk harming business relations with Beijing, four Iranian sources and a diplomat familiar with the matter said.The discussions about the attacks and trade between China and Iran took place at several recent meetings in Beijing and Tehran, the Iranian sources said, declining to provide details about when they took place or who attended."Basically, China says: 'If our interests are harmed in any way, it will impact our business with Tehran.

22 Jan 2024

BYD's First Chartered Vessel Sets Sail with 5,000 EVs for Europe

(Photo: BYD)

BYD's first chartered vehicle carrier has set sail from China's southern city of Shenzhen, carrying more than 5,000 electric vehicles to Europe, state media Xinhua reported on Tuesday.Chinese automakers including BYD, Chery Automobile and SAIC Motor, have been placing orders for vessels to counter rising shipping costs as they boost exports.The new roll-on, roll-off vehicle carrier named "BYD Explorer No.1" departed on Monday for Flushing Port in the Netherlands and the German port of Bremerhaven…

14 Jan 2024

TankerTrackers Locates Seized Tanker off Iran's Qeshm Island

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The Marshall Islands-flagged tanker seized by Iran in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday has been located east of Iran's Qeshm Island, monitoring service TankerTrackers.com said in a post on social media platform X.Iran seized the St Nikolas, loaded with Iraqi crude destined for Turkey, in retaliation for the confiscation last year of the same vessel and its Iranian oil cargo by the United States, Iranian state media reported."The Greek-owned, UK-insured and Marshall Islands-flagged Suezmax tanker ST NIKOLAS...laden with 1 million barrels of Iraqi crude oil…

12 Jan 2024

China Media Warns Against Taking China's Indian Ocean Research as Threats

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Chinese state media warned on Friday that a report by a prominent U.S. think tank on the military uses of Chinese scientific research across the Indian Ocean gave "ammunition" to countries bent on concocting threats from China.The report this week by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) "comes at a time when some countries need to manufacture a 'China threat' narrative in the Indian Ocean region and provides them with ammunition", the state-controlled tabloid Global Times said in an editorial."The timing of this report is delicate…

11 Jan 2024

Iran Confirms Seizure of Oil Tanker Involved in US-Iran Dispute

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Iran seized a tanker with Iraqi crude destined for Turkey on Thursday in retaliation for the confiscation last year of the same vessel and its oil by the U.S., Iranian state media reported, a move likely to stoke regional tensions.The seizure of the Marshall Islands-flagged St Nikolas coincides with weeks of attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militias targeting Red Sea shipping routes."After the theft of Iranian oil by the United States last year, St Nikolas tanker was seized by Iran's Navy this morning with a judicial order ...

03 Jan 2024

China Unveils New Images of its Aircraft Carrier Newbuilding

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a New Year message via China Media Group and the Internet in Beijing. (Xinhua/Ju Peng) (Source: China Military)

Chinese state media unveiled new images of China's most advanced aircraft carrier yet, including next generation launch tracks that can catapult a wider range of aircraft from its deck.First shown to the public in June 2022, the Fujian was entirely designed and built domestically.Yet to conduct its first sea trials, the aircraft carrier is larger and technologically more advanced than the Shandong, commissioned in 2019, and the Liaoning, which China bought second-hand from Ukraine in 1998 and refitted domestically.On state television late on Tuesday…

02 Jan 2024

Ethiopia Signs Pact to Use Somaliland's Red Sea Port

Source: Somaliland Government

Landlocked Ethiopia signed an initial agreement with Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland on Monday to use its Red Sea port of Berbera, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's office said.The Horn of Africa country currently relies on neighbouring Djibouti for most of its maritime trade."This has been now agreed with our Somaliland brothers and an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) has been signed today," Abiy said at the signing ceremony with Somaliland President Muse Bihi Abdi in the Ethiopian capital…

18 Dec 2023

China to Conduct Sea Trials for Its First Ultra-deepwater Drilling Ship

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China will on Friday conduct sea trials for its first ocean research drilling vessel, capable of drilling at depths of more than 10,000 meters (32,800 feet), a key step towards beefing up the country's deep-sea oil and gas exploration capabilities.It is China's first vessel capable of ultra-deepwater research and drilling, Chinese state media reported on Monday. It can travel 15,000 nautical miles (27,780 kilometers) and operate for 120 consecutive days without returning to port.

13 Dec 2023

Why the Indian Ocean Could be China's Achilles' Heel in a Taiwan War

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Every day, nearly 60 fully loaded very large crude-oil carriers sail between the Persian Gulf and Chinese ports, carrying about half of the oil that powers the world's second-largest economy.As the vessels enter the South China Sea, they ply waters increasingly controlled by China's growing military, from the missile batteries and airfields at its bases on disputed islands to its stealthy Type 055 destroyers.But when crossing the Indian Ocean, joined by others headed to China from Africa and Brazil…

05 Nov 2023

Ukraine Hits Russian Shipyard

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Ukraine rained 15 cruise missiles on Russia's shipyard in the Crimean port city of Kerch on Saturday, damaging one ship, Russian defence ministry said, in an attack that could further undermine Moscow's striking capabilities.Thirteen of the missiles were destroyed in the air, while one hit a ship, the Russian defence ministry said in a typically laconic statement when reporting on Ukraine's strikes on Russian territory or infrastructure. It did not give the ship's name.Ukraine's top Air Force commander said the Russian Navy stationed there one of its most modern ships…

01 Nov 2023

Biggest Chinese Antarctic Fleet Sets Off to Build Research Station

Credit: Timo Palo - Wikimedia Commons - CC BY-SA 3.0 DEED

Two Chinese icebreaker research vessels and a cargo ship set sail on Wednesday for the Antarctic with more than 460 personnel on board to help complete construction of China's fifth station on the world's southernmost continent.China's biggest flotilla of research vessels deployed to the Antarctic will focus on building the station on the rocky, windswept Inexpressible Island near the Ross Sea, a deep Southern Ocean bay named after a 19th century British explorer.Work on the first Chinese station in the Pacific sector began in 2018.

08 Sep 2023

North Korea Is Growing Its Navy with Submarines and Nuclear Drones. But Why?

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Over the past year North Korea has moved to boost its navy with new nuclear weapons, including an underwater drone, warships, and its first operational missile submarine, unveiled on Friday.North Korea's navy has historically been dwarfed by the country's land forces, and overshadowed by its rapidly advancing ballistic missile program.Now, leader Kim Jong Un has said the navy will play a key role in the country's nuclear deterrence, and analysts say it may also assure support among naval commanders and boost national pride."Until quite recently…

31 Aug 2023

Iran's Oil Output, Exports Rise as Washington, Tehran Talk

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Iran's oil output and exports jumped in August despite U.S. sanctions, according to consultants and companies that track tanker shipments, as Tehran sells to buyers including China.Analysts said the higher exports appear to be the result of Iran's success in evading U.S. sanctions and Washington's discretion in enforcing them as the two countries seek better relations.The United States has sought to limit Iran's oil exports since Donald Trump exited a 2015 nuclear accord in 2018 and re-imposed sanctions aimed at curbing revenues to Iran's government.

11 Aug 2023

Panama-flagged Tanker Catches Fire Near Iranian Coast

Credit: Alexander/AdobeStock

A Panama-flagged tanker called White Pearl has caught fire near Assaluyeh on Iran's Gulf coast, Iranian state media reported on Thursday, adding that all crew members were safe."Twenty-two of the ship's crew have been rescued by Iranian rescue teams after the ship's captain requested assistance from the port authorities," state TV quoted a local ports official as saying. The official said that the tanker, carrying 40,000 tons of liquefied petroleum gas, had experienced "a problem in the engine room due to a fire."Panama's vessel registry…

21 Jul 2023

Iran Denies Oil on Tanker Seized by Indonesia Belongs to Tehran

Iran said the oil cargo of an Iranian-flagged supertanker seized by Indonesia last week does not belong to Tehran, Iranian state media reported on Friday. A statement from Iran's oil ministry did not identify the owner of the cargo of MT Arman 114, an Iranian-flagged supertanker suspected of involvement in the illegal transshipment of crude oil, which Indonesia's coast guard said on July 11 it had seized. "Published news linking the cargo of this ship to... Iran has no validity, and this is done with the aim of creating a negative atmosphere against our country," Iran's oil ministry statement said, without elaborating. On Thursday the…

14 Jul 2023

China Drives Japanese Fishing Ship from Contested Islands

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Chinese coast guard authorities said it took "necessary control measures" and drove away a Japanese fishing vessel that had entered "territorial waters" around Senkaku Islands, state media reported."We urge the Japanese side to immediately cease all illegal activities in the waters and ensure that similar incidents do not recur," China Marine Police spokesperson Gan Yu said, according to the report late Thursday.China calls the islands Diaoyu while Japan calls them Senkaku.

21 Jul 2023

Iran Loses Bid to Host Shipping Event after Vote at UN Agency Meeting

Iran's offer to host a maritime event in October has been rejected after a proposal led by the U.S. to rescind the bid was approved in a vote at the UN shipping agency's Council, an agency spokesperson said on Thursday.The move is likely to further raise tensions between Washington and Iran after Tehran tried to seize the Richmond Voyager tanker, which was managed by U.S. oil major Chevron, earlier in July in international Gulf waters.Iran had proposed to host a shipping event in Tehran in late October this year in conjunction with an annual maritime day hosted by the UN's International Maritime Organization (IMO), which was accepted in 2015 by the IMO's executive Council.The U.S.…

20 Jul 2023

Iran Warns Against Unloading Iranian Oil from Seized Tanker

Iran would retaliate against any oil company unloading Iranian oil from a seized tanker, the Revolutionary Guards' navy commander Alireza Tangsiri said on Thursday, according to state media. In April, the U.S. confiscated Iranian oil on a tanker at sea in a sanctions enforcement operation, according to a maritime security firm. Tangsiri added that Tehran would hold Washington responsible for allowing the unloading of the tanker's content. Sources familiar with the matter, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue, had said Washington took control of the oil cargo aboard the Marshall Islands tanker Suez Rajan after securing an earlier court order. The tanker's last reported position was near southern Africa on April 22, ship tracking data showed. On Monday, the U.S.