Korean shipbuilders have been exploring opportunities to enter the U.Navy's maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) market, aligning with the United States' efforts to revitalize its declining shipbuilding industry through collaboration with its Asian allies. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Hanwha Ocean are pursuing partnership and acquisition deals with shipyards authorized to build and repair U.warships as the U.is seeking to revive its dormant shipyards and boost maritime competitiveness in response to China's rapid naval expansion.

In a nutshell: DARPA's Manta Ray program is designed to develop a new generation of autonomous drones capable of operating underwater. The drone has finally been built after roughly four years, and Northrop Grumman recently tested the prototype off the coast of Southern California. Under the Manta Ray program, US research agency DARPA aimed to develop a completely new class of uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs), drawing inspiration from the massive "winged" fish of the same name.

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- For the first time, China has publicized what it claims is an unwritten 2016 agreement with the Philippines over access to South China Sea islands. The move threatens to further raise tensions in the disputed waterway, through which much of the world's trade passes and which...