Coastline protection conference

Noted here, an international conference on "Coastline Security":

A two-day conference on securing international coastlines kicked off on Tuesday in Taipei, with over 90 military officials and experts from Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, India, the Philippines and the United States presiding over discussion panels focusing on maritime security in the Southeast Asian region.

Noting that the theme of this year's conference is "Maintaining the Coastlines of World Peace," the Ministry of National Defense stated in a press release that the participants in "The 24th Annual International Coastline Security Conference" will discuss topics such as the U.S.' global military strategy, the situation in the Indian Ocean, the conflict between North and South Korea, and last but not least, relations between Taiwan and China.

The MND noted that Taiwan's participation in the conference was especially important as the nation is located in the middle of a chain of islands in the West Pacific Ocean and between two of Asia's most important waterways -- the Taiwan Strait and Bashi Channel -- giving it strategic command over the sea lanes in East Asia.

That last sentence is an important reminder.