Jeff Bates

ANALYSIS

Analysis

Tensions in the South China Sea have escalated between certain countries and have also de-escalated with others. Vietnam—who shares a border with China—is particularly concerned about China’s aggressiveness in the region. Beijing has recently engaged in oil drilling in the Sea near Vietnam’s territorial waters. China placed a deep-water oil rig in the Sea close to the Paracel Islands but later removed it when Vietnam said that the rig was violating its territorial rights (Zhou, Laura. 2019). In further confrontations with Vietnam, Chinese coast guard ships have repeatedly entered Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone. A Chinese survey ship came within 56 nautical miles of Vietnam prompting Hanoi to dispatch naval vessels to counter the aggression. These events show that Vietnam is still highly engaged in defending its own territorial sovereignty in the Sea.

In the last few months, Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, has been rocked by a series of bombings. Although Bangladesh has struggled with terrorist attacks in recent decades, the pace at which they are happening seems to be more frequent. This report reviews ISIS’s history in Bangladesh and an analysis of what the Bangladeshi authorities can do about the situation.

With Indonesia being the fourth most populous nation on the planet, and with the largest Muslim majority of any country, the threat of Islamic extremism emanating from Indonesia cannot be overlooked. Malaysia, the Philippines, Afghanistan, Australia, and the United States are all keenly aware of the threat of terrorism coming from Indonesia. These countries have been involved in investigating attacks that have happened within Indonesia as well as outside of the country. Recently, one of the most potent Indonesian terrorist group that has instigated much havoc in, and outside the country, is the terrorist group Jemaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD).

See Part I Here

See Part I here

Image of the church that was bombed on Mindanao. (Holcombe, Madeline; Simonette, Virma. 2019).