Balanced News: Malaysian, Japanese coast guards hold South China Sea security drill

The Japan Coast Guard on Friday concluded security drills to train its Malaysian counterpart on how to repel foreign intruders in the disputed South China Sea where Beijing has grown increasingly assertive against other claimant states. The four-day exercise marked the first time Malaysia was trained in using long-range acoustic devices, called sound cannons, said Saiful Lizan Ibrahim, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency’s deputy director of logistics. Unlike Malaysia, Japan is not a direct party to the South China Sea dispute with China, but is an interested stakeholder.