what you have to worry about is what china is doing in the south china sea. if china owns the south china sea, it's not about owning water, it becomes a protected space for them so it makes their missile force almost invulnerable. it pushes back the distance where the u.s. navy can operate. that military competition is huge because if the chinese win that, they could push us out of asia. the stuff in the middle east is interesting, but it's not the big fight. >> all right. meanwhile china is also reorganizing its military command structure. they're trying to rebalance their armed forces. how would this change the people's liberation army as we know it. >> china has two concerns with their military. one is essentially china has a alo long term strategy of a navy without america in it where the

the south china sea and east china sea are very central to china's long-term strategic ambitions. in order to secure ssp ends, assure the projection of its feature amphibious maritime power projection fleets into assure access to deep space, china needs to -- and to assure access to deep space, china needs to control the south china sea. here is a depiction from a chinese source of how controlling the spratly islands group assists china's production of power. -- projection of power. in the east china sea, control of the senkaku daiyukai to threaten another island group, japan's ryukyu islands, whereas to control the spratly islands would control taiwan's axis from the south. china and russia is pitted against the united states is gaining steam. i believe it is at the end of may, china and russia held their first missile defense command post exercise. when you cooperate in missile defenses, you must immediately question whether they have also contemplated cooperation in missile offenses. in 1969, the united states signaled with its nuclear forces against former soviet union to prev

scott rear admiral mike mcdevitt : knows the south china sea, and the spratly islands. now retired, he did seven tours in the pacific, including at the command of a destroyer squadron . last september when china's president was in the rose garden and he said that china did not intend to pursue militarization. >> clearly his definition of militarization is different than for example admiral harris's definition of militarization. scott: the south china sea is home to the busiest shipping corridor in the world. 5 trillion dollars worth of goods pass through every year. how alarming is it to you? admiral mcdevitt: i would use the term disappointing in many ways, different ways chosen to play fast and loose with the law of the sea. is this a litmus test -- of the sea. scott: although the international law of the sea permits free passage of ships and planes, the chinese are already beginning to push back. last may, the u.s. navy's p-8 poseidon patrolled the area. and received this warning. this is the chinese navy, chinese coast guard, please go away armed services committee.

kishida told the president territorial disputes in the south china sea should be resolved peacefully according to international law. he said tokyo supports the philippines' position on the issue. kishida also discussed china's activities in the east china sea and sought the philippines' understanding for tokyo's position on that matter. duterte said the philippines will cooperate with japan to resolve disputes peacefully based on the rule of law. he indicated that territorial disputes with china over the south china sea should be resolved based on the ruling of the hague tribunal. kishida and duterte also agreed to work with other nations to urge china to respect international law. >>> it is now time to go on to the latest business news. investors on wall street are in a bullish mood as major indices mark record highs. let's turn to ramin mellegard now from our business desk. good morning. what's behind the move? >> good morning, catherine. basically the three major indexes, as you said there, hitting record highs. we're talking about highest levels ever, in fact, sharp gains in oil p

officials here are arranging a meeting of foreign ministers from japan, china and south korea next week with an eye on flash points in the region. foreign ministry officials are planning to hold the meeting in tokyo on tuesday and wednesday. toings of discussion are expected to include north korea's ballistic missile launches. officials say the meeting would lay the trilateral summit they hope to schedule in japan by the end of this year. some government officials say the timing is inappropriate because chinese patrol boats have repeatedly entered japan's territorial waters around the senkaku islands in the south china sea. japan controls the islands. the government maintains that they are an inherent part of japan's territory. china and taiwan claim them. >>> officials in seoul have announced one of the highest profile defections in years from north korea. they say a senior diplomat in london has fled to south korea with his family. thae yong ho had been serving as deputy ambassador at the north korean embassy in london. a south korean spokesperson said on wednesday that thae and his f

sea and recent developments related to the south china sea, including the ruling by the tribunalsedbitral panel and the case that the philippines brought against china on maritime issues in the south china sea. i am sure that president obama will reiterate the u.s. views that this ruling is a final and binding. but at the same time, we also see it as an opportunity, a turning point for using more diplomacy to try to resolve some of these disputes. another topic will be north korea and the need to enforce u.n. sanctions against north korea and its recent behavior. also, there will be more discussion than before on the issue of human trafficking and migration. finally, in addition to these summits, president obama will be meeting with the 10 asean leaders as a group, and there will be limited time to have other bilateral meetings with some asian leaders. i am told he will not have much time, so i do not think there will be a lot of bilateral. of course, he has met with a lot of southeast asian leaders recently. he was in vietnam in may. a member late last year. the one southeast asian

the south china sea and east china sea are very central to china's long-term strategic ambitions. secure ssp ends, assure the projection of its feature amphibious maritime power projection fleets into a ssure access to deep space, china needs to -- and to assure access to deep space, china needs to control the south china sea. here is a depiction from a chinese source of how controlling the spratly islands group assists china's production of power. -- projection of power. in the east china sea, control daiyukai toku threaten another island group, japan's real good islands -- whereas tods, control the spratly islands would control taiwan's axis from the south. china and russia is pitted against the united states is gaining steam. i believe it is at the end of held theirand russia first missile defense command post exercise. cooperate in missile must immediately question whether they have also contemplated cooperation in missile offenses. in 1969, the united states with its nuclear forces against former soviet union to prevent the soviet union from using nuclear weapons against chin

you and susan mentioned geopolitical issues as part of your expertise could you comment on the south china sea in terms of the recent decision, next steps, particularly whether you think there's a fundamental change on china's part about how their policy is playing in the region and the world, or just a tactical ploy for g-20. prime minister lee: your last sentence? >> do you think there's been a change in china's basic policy unannounced as a result of the decision leading to more nuanced policy to reduce tensions or is it a tactical pause until the g-20 meeting and maybe the u.s. election? prime minister lee: i don't think the chinese have changed their policy as a result of the decision. they rejected ity have meltly they said so before, they said so after but they have said they made a decision what they want to do in the south china sea and i think they will maintain that over the long term. they have said that they have a nine dash line claim that is historical indisputable. they haven't quite exactly specified in legal terms what it is which is being claimed but they said this is ou

about south china sea issue, china have already declared that are not -- any internationally. can the president did any political reaction from president xi? it's on a steady increase in the east china sea in south china sea and the big move by china would be to do and proclamation. you will see it first on a mti. that would be a big move, the 4g204 china. very self-defeating and could be before the election, but we are moving largely indifferent directions picked the administration in the philippines and others are remaining calm and not to victorious about the decision in the hope to get traction going, but i hope-- he talks about the tract in the idea that rising power seems to fight and if you want to avoid that you need to agree to this new model and make concessions to china. the operations, the caliber of weapons on the chinese side are on the increase in the east china sea into the south china is she. the south china sea. you will see it first on a mti, our website. that would be a very move for china. -- andself-the feeding it could be before the -- a very .elf-defeat

and in the south china seas. "the new york times" reports evidence that china h plans from the disputed islands. it shows what appears to be aircraft hangars in the south china seas. they said that the islands were being built up for peaceful purposes. >>> "the washington post" reports a gaffe between ivanka trump's words. workplace policies help women with children but the company that designs their clothing line leave. one designer said she had to struggle to make ends meet after giving birth to her son last year. >>> the dallas morning news reports a lawsuit filed for a texas student who was arrested last fall. ahmed muhammad's father said his son's civil rights were violated were a boy's homemade clock was mistaken for a bomb last november. the suit is seeking unspecified damages. >>> the san francisco chronicle reports that marijuana candies may have sickened 19 people at a teenage girl's birthday party. she were hospitalized for dizziness, and heart palpitations. officials don't know where the candies came

you and susan mentioned geopolitical issues as part of your expertise, could you comment on the south china in terms of the recent decision, next steps, particularly whether you think there's a fundamental change on china's part about how their policy is playing in the region and the world, or just a g-20.al pause until prime minister lee: your last sentence? >> do you think there's been a change in china's basic policy as a result of the decision leading to more nuanced policy to reduce tensions or is it a tactical pause until the g-20 meeting and maybe the u.s. election? prime minister lee: i don't think the chinese have changed their policy as a result of the decision. they rejected it vehemently, they said so before, they said so after but they have said they made a decision what they want to do in the south china sea and i think they will maintain that over the long term. they have said that they have a nine dash line claim that is historical, indisputable. they haven't quite exactly specified in legal terms what it is which is being claimed but they said this is ours and, well, the ot

new south china policy. that means that the new government in taiwan tried to avoid direct dealing with chinese government and directly to make good relationship with those in southeast asia countries. i'm not optimistic about the results actually because i think of those south asia countries, they are very sensitive to the confrontations between mainland china and the taiwan. so even if those southeast asia countries, such as philippines and vietnam, they have the south china sea disputes with mainland china, that does not mean that they will have more willingness to cooperate with the new government in taiwan. it's different thing. that's kind of the conclusion of my presentation today. taiwan can benefit from its role in practicing universal but if taiwan tried to take advantage of the perceived, deteriorating relationship between mainland china and the united states, it will be miscalculations, very dangerous. i know some people here disagree about the conclusion but that's kind of my -- my observations.

new concerns over china's expansion to claims of islands in the south china sea. lucas has it has latest. >> reporter: new satellite imagery shows china's military build up in the south china sea continues despite assurances from china's president last year. >> china does not plan to ensue it. >> reporter: they say otherwise. experts say they show aircraft hangars capable of housing bombers and fighter jets visible on reefs. according to the pentagon, china built more than 3,000 acres of artificial islands in two years. that's about the size of los angeles international airport. the runway is 10,000 feet long, one of three china built recently. >> a smoking gun. you do not build nearly 80 hangars on these tiny spits of land. they are meant for forward deployment of chinese air force assets. they have pulled the gun and not put the bullet in yet. >> reporter: it's part of the islands, disputed territory between china, philippines, vietnam and others in the region. $5 trillion of goods transit each year. last month, claims had no legal basis. china responded by launc

the tribunal has rejected china's claims over the south china sea. china opposes the ruling, as well as any discussions based on the decision, but it's indicated its willingness to discuss with the philippines the possibility of talks. a chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said this week that china would welcome a visit by a special envoy at an early date. >>> people in thailand marked the queen's birthday on friday. it's also mother's day. because the queen is the one woman everyone in thailand calls mother. this year, queen sirikii turned 84. as people pay tribute to her, they celebrate their own mothers too. nhk world's tayamon huttaporn reports from bangkok. >> reporter: people across thailand have put up images of the queen. the whole country celebrates this day. and the color of the day is light blue. colors are important in thailand. each day of the week has its own colors. friday is light blue. the queen was born on a friday, so light blue is her color. people honor her by wearing it. jasmine flowers are mother's day tradition. vendors sell

about south china sea issue, china have already declared that are not -- any internationally.an the president did any political reaction from president xi? .. it's on a steady increase in the east china sea in south china sea and the big move by china would be to do and proclamation. you will see it first on a mti. that would be a big move, the 4g204 china. very self-defeating and could be before the election, but we are moving largely indifferent directions picked the administration in the philippines and others are remaining calm and not to victorious about the decision in the hope to get traction going, but i hope-- he talks about the tract in the idea that rising power seems to fight and if you want to avoid that you need to agree to this new model and make concessions to china. depressed" except that. the present will talk about the things amy said it will come out with essentially no resolution in my view and then it depends on how much risk he wants to take and how firmly we are about freedom of navigation operations and continuing to work with the philippines, but i th

what do you think jack ma's intentions are with the south china morning post? >> alibaba recently purchased the south china morning post in hong kong which is the major english paper. i met with jeff who purchased the "washington post." that is not really an accurate comparison for jack because jack could have fought but did it for the company. and then you think about why is the company doing it. it is taking them into choppy waters. they have had rough times in the past with tension with the u.k. hong kong is a divided society. i think joshua wong set-up a new political policy so why would you wander into that. the faction mag gene -- magazines and other stakes. the company defended it by saying they are investing in the business. i would say they probably saved the paper because of the slow decline they got rid of the payroll and scrapped it. it is how china and the u.s. interaction. so i don't know. i think it is too early to say. i don't think we will use it for tutorials. and the panama papers were not in that. and they were a columnist showing that. they

latest threat comes weeks after an international court rejected china's territorial claims in the south chinaea. china also is set to hold joint drills and exercises with russia in the south china sea and we only have to wait until next month for that. joining us tonight former u.s. investor to the united nations american enterprise institute senior fellow john bolton, "fox news" contributor. ambassador good to have you with us. i heard not a word about the exercises from this administration and a nonexistent response, not even a tepid one. your thoughts? >> and quite remarkable in that the president was meeting today with the prime minister of singapore who was directly affected by these extraordinary chinese territorial claims in the south china sea and by the military drills a you say include not only the chinese navy that the russian navy. china's building of blue water naval capability for the first time in 600 years. they are directly threatening what people have long called the first island chain that separates china's territorial waters from the pacific ocean itself and its belligeren

the reason why the united states is unhappy about the south china seas ruling is because the chinese government behavior and suchan attitude -- that is one answer from my interviews. neighboring me countries are disappointed about it's not what china claims that how china has responded. this is the first type of trust. this actually involves one that not onef party has the ability to do harm. how interviews commented on china is the major threat in asia. despite that, china does not rose any immediate threat to the united states. i have found china has shown many behaviors or actions that u.s. cannot tolerate a top power in asia. china is not reaching that level of latino but no one knows if china will do so in the future. to sum up, whether china toually have enough power challenge the united states is less important than how such .apacity is interpreted it's very different from the first type. the second is based on one parties judgment about what changes in the other parties material power. in my view, regardless of which , ie of trust is involved lost trust continues to be on the

the south china sea is probably the most valuable commercial route, ocean in the world. with china's increasing assertiveness in the east china sea and the south china sea, what advice would you give a president concerning how to maintain freedom of commerce on the high seas while not provoking china to do something more aggressive? and do you think any of them are smart enough to take the advice? [laughter] >> a one-two. steve, can i put this one to you? because you've done so much work on this issue, and then i'll add. >> well, you know, the problem with this issue, i was at this track ii u.s./china dialogue a week ago, someone said, you know, the problem with this issue is the united states has framed it as a freedom of navigation issue. and china has framed it as a sovereignty issue. as have a number of its neighbors. and, of course, the problem of framing something as a sovereignty issue is you almost make it impossible to compromise. because who wants to go down in history as having compromised their nation's strategy? their nation's sovereignty? so i think we have

we have a declaration of conduct on the south china sea. it's just a declaration of good intentions. we are negotiating a code of conduct on the south china sea with china, which is going to be binding but therefore will be more complicated to attain. we hope to make progress in small steps like having a code on unplanned encounters at sea. what happens if two ships come almost eyeball to eyeball, how do i avoid physically bumping into one another or exchanging fire or spraying each other with water hoses which has happened before. and to have a hot line between the capital so can you talk and defuse issues. i think these modest measures we can do but solving the problem, to have countries having taken possessions, claiming sovereignty, claiming right to maritime sea bed resources, to have countries walk back from thosend say it's not so absolute, it wasn't quite clearly mine after all, i think we have to wait a long time to see that happening. very few countries do that. ms. schwab: thank you. is that the media table? i am not allowed to -

and china ratchets up tensions in the south china as those are some of the headlines on the morning newsstands. "the new york times" reports evidence that china has military plans from the disputed islands. recent satellite photos show what appear to be reinforced aircraft hangars on the reefs in the south china seas. they said that the islands were being built up for peaceful purposes. >>> "the washington post" points out a gaffe between ivanka trump's words. with children but the company that designs their clothing line does not offer paid maternity leave. one designer said she had to struggle to make ends meet after giving birth to her son last year. >>> the dallas morning news reports a lawsuit filed for a texas student who was arrested last fall. ahmed muhammad's father said his son's civil rights were violated when the boy's homemade clock was mistaken for a bomb last september. officials for the city of irving, its school district and the schoolri are reviewing the case. the suit is seeking unspecified damages. >>> the san francisco chronicle reports that marijuana candies may have sick

. >> rose: china and the south china sea. what should we be doing with respect to chinese aggression in the south china sea potentially building bases there. >> so, can i back up a second and then take the 25,000 foot view and then come back to the south china sea. here i think, i think president obama and secretary clinton understand this perfectly. the most important bilateral relationship for the future of east asia, for the future of the world i think is the relationship between washington and -- there are two things, a strong statement but i believe it to be true. there are two things that are pulling us together in a good way and two things that are pulling us apart. two things pulling us together, charlie, are one, we both have an interest, we both have an interest and success with the chinese economy particularly a reforming chinese economy. >> rose: because of its impact on the global economy. >> yes. >> rose: and the confidence it gives them. >> absolutely, absolutely. and the disincentive it gives them for messing

charlie: south china sea. what should we be doing. potentially building bases there?ike: so, can i back up a second and take the 25,000 foot view and come back to the south china sea. and i think president obama and secretary clinton understand this perfectly. the most important bilateral relationship for the future of east asia yeah and the future of the world is the relationship between united states and beijing and there are two things, two things that are pulling us together in a good way and two things that are pulling us apart. the two things that are pulling us together are one, we both have an interest in the success of the chinese economy, particularly reforming the chinese economy. charlie: because of the impact of the chinese economy. mike: absolutely. two, and i base this on my own conversations with chinese officials, my counterparts, conversations with my counterparts in china, i believe there are a growing number of places in the world where our national security interests overlap than where they are in conflict and i believe there is potential for us -

new concerns over china's expansion to claims of islands in the south china sea. cas has it has latest. >> reporter: new satellite imagery shows china's military build up in the south china sea continues despite assurances from china's president last year. >> china does not plan to ensue it. >> reporter: they say otherwise. experts say they show aircraft hangars capable of housing bombers and fighter jets visible on reefs. according to the pentagon, china built more than 3,000 acres of artificial islands in two years. that's about the size of los angeles international airport. the runway is 10,000 feet long, one of three china built recently. >> a smoking gun. you do not build nearly 80 hangars on these tiny spits of land. they are meant for forward deployment of chinese air force assets. they have pulled the gun and not put the bullet in yet. >> reporter: it's part of the islands, disputed territory between china, philippines, vietnam and others in the region. $5 trillion of goods transit each year. last month, claims had no legal basis. china responded by launchi

international tribunal recently rejected claims to virtually all of the south china sea.'m leland vittert. more on those stories as well as politics at the top of the hour. i'll see you with elizabeth prann then. >>> want to make my day and make dirty harry happy at the same time? then get off my lawn and stop being so damn pc. clint eastwood uncloseding on political correctness saying in part secretly everybody's getting tired of political correctness, kissing up. he went on to say everybody is walking on eggshells. he went on to say more things that can't say on saturday morning. is he right or wrong some. >> i think he's right. political correctness is damaging the american brand of rigid individualism. and the government says they is how you should think, this is how you should act. if you have an opinion on a controversial issue like the transgender bathroom issue, you better go about it the way the government is telling you to think. and it doesn't allow for the national dialogue that we need in many of these cultural war issues that we're seeing. >> so positithink

are seeking hegemony over the south china sea. they one of the products did except, the picture in the wall street journal this week u.s. gas of the first shipment arriving in china. the first one from the lower 48 to arrive in china. mark, youhink mentioned donald trump is an international businessman. chinesethe trump the are hoping will show up should he be elected. thatwould agree with assessment of what he might be. in terms of other issues, intellectual property theft, barrierson-ttariff that limit access to the chinese market. china's increasing belligerence in the western pacific, these are major issues. thatee these are things and the american president will have to deal with. i don't think either the democratic party or the republican party would argue this is the nature of the challenge from china. it is precisely as you describe. host: minneapolis, next on the democrats line, good morning. heard him say it was legal that china was building these islands in the south china sea? i don't know how he could say that is legal

south china sea is probably the most viable commercial route ocean in the world. ith china's increasing assertiveness in the east china sea and the south china sea, what it basically to give the president concerning how to maintain freedom of commerce on the high sea to do some reading. you think any of them are smart enough to take the advice? >> steve, can i put this one to you because he didn't so much work on this issue. >> you know, the problem with this issue but this track to u.s.-china dialogue, the problem with this issue as the united faces framed it as a freedom of navigation issue and china has framed it as a society issue i've have a number of its neighbors. the problem of framing something of a sovereignty issue is you almost made it impossible to compromise. he wants to go down in history as to your -- as having compromise strategy. so i think we have got to insist on international standards and freedom of navigation and the like what we are doing is in some sense my understanding is we fail to do this as often as we should in the south china sea and

of course we have the spat in the south china sea with claims and counterclaims from with chinantries to them in its entirety. how is that digested amongst australian business, if at all, and austrian politicians? >> again, the business community has tended to ignore these sorts of difficult issues, not seeing it as their role. to the degree it is discussed, it is quite simplistic, making demands on the austrian government that they not mess up or not create too much trouble to which would undermine business interests in australia. the political class, the national security establishment, and australia, they are quite concerned about what is happening in the south china sea. they are getting more concerned about china's long-term intentions in the region, and of course the liberating what australian security policy should do about it. rishaad: it was said many years ago that if you look at a country's trade policy, you will see their foreign-policy. australia isng is essentially not playing by that old maxim. see thatks to australia is doing everything it can to wrestle with this thei

they're building a massive military fortress in the middle of the south china sea that they're not allowedto do. they're doing that and yet they're ripping us economically. we have tremendous power over china. economic power. tremendous. we don't do anything. >> host: a couple of things there. we have tremendous power over china, economic power, and they will like us better. what is your thought on howl the chinese views statements like that. >> guest: china and the united states have tremendous economic influence on each other through the trade relationship. it's not the case that the united states has a whole lot of very powerful chips we could play to instantly have our way with china that we're holding back. that's not true. a number of the statements, china is building a massive military fortress in the middle of the south china sea. also not true. china is building out islands in the south china sea and put something military asset underh really small locks. it's not a massive military fortress and heron military leaders are all of one mind in saying that in the event of conflict, wh

what do you think jack ma's intentions are with the south china morning post? >> alibaba recently purchased the south china morning post in hong kong which is the major english paper. i met with jeff who purchased the "washington post." that is not really an accurate comparison for jack because jack could have fought but did it for the company. and then you think about why is the company doing it. it is taking them into choppy waters. they have had rough times in the past with tension with the u.k. hong kong is a divided society. i think joshua wong set-up a new political policy so why would you wander into that. the faction mag gene -- magazines and other stakes. the company defended it by saying they are investing in the business. i would say they probably saved the paper because of the slow decline they got rid of the payroll and scrapped it. it is how china and the u.s. interaction. so i don't know. i think it is too early to say. i don't think we will use it for tutorials. and the panama papers were not in that. and they were a columnist showing that. they