US aircraft carrier heads west from S.China Sea amid Middle East tensions

HANOI, June 16 (Reuters) - U.S. aircraft carrier USS Nimitz left the South China Sea on Monday morning heading west, according to data from ship tracking website Marine Traffic, after a reception for its planned port call in central Vietnam was cancelled.
The carrier had planned to visit Danang City later this week, but two sources, including one diplomat, said a formal reception slated for June 20 had been called off.
One of the sources said the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi had informed him about the cancellation, due to "an emergent operational requirement".
The embassy didn't immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The Nimitz Carrier Strike Group conducted maritime security operations in the South China Sea last week, as "part of the U.S. Navy's routine presence in the Indo-Pacific," according to the website of the Commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.
Data from Marine Traffic showed the carrier on Monday morning was moving west in the direction of the Middle East, where the battle between Israel and Iran is escalating.

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Reuters

5 days ago

• Reuters

US aircraft carrier heads west from S.China Sea amid Middle East tensions

HANOI, June 16 (Reuters) - U.S. aircraft carrier USS Nimitz left the South China Sea on Monday morning heading west, according to data from ship tracking website Marine Traffic, after a reception for its planned port call in central Vietnam was cancelled. The carrier had planned to visit Danang City later this week, but two sources, including one diplomat, said a formal reception slated for June 20 had been called off. One of the sources said the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi had informed him about the cancellation, due to "an emergent operational requirement". The embassy didn't immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The Nimitz Carrier Strike Group conducted maritime security operations in the South China Sea last week, as "part of the U.S. Navy's routine presence in the Indo-Pacific," according to the website of the Commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Data from Marine Traffic showed the carrier on Monday morning was moving west in the direction of the Middle East, where the battle between Israel and Iran is escalating.

Daily Mail​

14-06-2025

• Daily Mail​

THE CANNY COOK: Prawn rice-paper dumplings

Full disclosure: this week's recipe repeatedly popped up on my Instagram feed for a couple of months before I tried making my own version. Usually I'm sceptical about trying viral dishes. A few years ago I reviewed some of TikTok 's most popular recipes for this magazine and, although some were better than expected, I didn't rush to remake any. But I'm happy to report that these dumplings are worthy of a Canny Cook appearance. I'm a huge fan of summer rolls – the Vietnamese soft rice- paper rolls stuffed with prawns, herbs and rice noodles, and these use the same rice-paper wrappers but are fried till crispy. Most videos I've seen make it all look very easy, but it did take me a few attempts to get the dumpling assembly right. You need to work quite quickly because the wrappers continue to soften after soaking and you want a roughly even layer on all sides, as they'll tear during cooking if too thin. Making the dumplings bite-sized proved the easiest method (and great for eating), but you can make them bigger if you prefer. In terms of the filling, you could add some grated ginger or shredded cabbage, swap the prawns for minced chicken or pork, or use chopped shiitake mushrooms for a vegetarian option. The recipe here is a very simple but satisfying option. METHOD Finely chop the spring onions and grate the carrot. Tip into a large mixing bowl. Chop the prawns using a large, sharp knife. Keep running the knife through them until they're really chopped. Add to the bowl with a pinch of salt and pepper, 1½ tsp soy sauce and ½ tsp toasted sesame oil. Mix well. Fill a large, rimmed plate with cold water and have a chopping board ready. Soak a rice-paper wrapper in the water for 5 seconds, then lay it on the chopping board. Cut in half. Add a teaspoon of the prawn mixture to the middle of each half. Wrap the dumplings one at a time, folding the top and bottom edges over the filling, then folding one side of the wrapper over the top to seal and the other side underneath, so you have an even layer of wrapper all round. Repeat the process to make all the dumplings (brush the outsides with oil if they're sticking). Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Fry the dumplings for about 4-5 minutes on each side until golden. Serve with extra soy sauce for dipping. *This cost assumes you already have some basic store-cupboard ingredients. prices taken from aldi and correct at time of going to press.

The Independent

08-06-2025

• The Independent

Chinese ship runs aground off Philippines-occupied island in the disputed South China Sea

A Chinese ship ran aground in stormy weather in shallow waters off a Philippines-occupied island in the disputed South China Sea, prompting Filipino forces to go on alert, Philippine military officials said Sunday. When Filipino forces assessed that the Chinese fishing vessel appeared to have run aground in the shallows east of Thitu Island on Saturday because of bad weather, Philippine military and coast guard personnel deployed to provide help but later saw that the ship had been extricated, regional navy spokesperson Ellaine Rose Collado said. No other details were immediately available, including if there were injuries among the crewmembers or if the ship was damaged, Collado said. Confrontations have spiked between Chinese and Philippine coast guard and navy ships in the disputed waters in recent years. "The alertness of our troops is always there,' Col. Xerxes Trinidad of the Armed Forces of the Philippines told reporters. But when they saw that a probable accident had happened, 'we tried to provide assistance as professionals' in accordance with international law on helping distressed vessels at sea. "We're always following international law,' Trinidad said. Filipino villagers living in a fishing village on Thitu, which they call Pagasa island, immediately informed the Philippine military and coast guard after seeing the Chinese ship lying in the shallows about 1.5 nautical miles (2.7 kilometers) from their village, said MP Albayda, a local Filipino official, told The Associated Press. 'They got worried because the Chinese were so close but it was really the strong wind and waves that caused the ship to run aground," said Albayda, adding that other Chinese ships pulled the stricken vessel away. The stricken ship resembled what the Philippine military had repeatedly said were suspected Chinese militia ships, which had backed the Chinese coast guard and navy in blocking and harassing Philippine coast guard and military vessels in the disputed waters, a busy conduit for global trade and commerce. Thitu Island is home to a Philippine fishing village and Filipino forces and is the largest of nine islands and islets occupied by the Philippines. It lies about 26 kilometers (16 miles) from Subi Reef, which China transformed into an island base along with six other barren reefs to reinforce its claim to virtually the entire South China Sea. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan are also involved in the long-simmering territorial standoffs, an Asian flashpoint that many fear could pit China and the United States in a major conflict. The U.S. does not lay any claim to the South China Sea but has repeatedly warned that it's obligated to defend the Philippines, it's longtime treaty ally, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea.