Taiwan's coast guard on Saturday commissioned its biggest ships for duty in the form of two 3,000-ton patrol vessels, as the island boosts defenses amid concerns about China's growing footprint in the disputed South China Sea.

• June 6, 2015

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Thursday the situation with Russia had taken a "sad turn" and he was gathering U.S. military leaders and diplomats to assess the effectiveness of NATO strategy toward Moscow in response to the Ukraine crisis.

• June 4, 2015

Vietnam took delivery of two new missile boats on Tuesday made locally and modeled on Russian vessels, the latest move by its military to strengthen maritime defenses as tensions simmer over sovereignty in the South China Sea.

• June 2, 2015

Western and Arab states carrying out air strikes on Islamic State fighters backed on Tuesday Iraq's plan to retake territory from the jihadist movement after being accused by the Iraqi premier of not doing enough to help Baghdad push back the insurgents.

• June 2, 2015

A separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine is revealing increasing evidence, but not yet conclusive legal proof, of Russian state involvement, senior United Nations human rights officials said on Monday.

• June 1, 2015

French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to rapidly implement measures agreed under the Feb.12 Minsk ceasefire, Hollande's office said in a statement.

• May 29, 2015

The United States said on Friday that China had placed mobile artillery weapons systems on a reclaimed island in the disputed South China Sea, a development that Republican Sen. John McCain called "disturbing and escalatory."

• May 29, 2015

From his hospital bed in the Ukrainian capital, Russian fighter Alexander Alexandrov feels abandoned by his country, its leaders and even the local Russian consul.

• May 29, 2015