The United Nations’ call to conserve and sustainably develop the oceans perhaps resonates most with Southeast Asia than in any other part of the world. With a maritime territory thrice the size of its landmass, the region is among the world’s most bountiful and diverse maritime areas. The 10 Asean states account for a quarter […]

  Indonesia has long been cautious in confronting China’s claims in the South China Sea, so its announcement on July 14 that it was renaming a part of the area the “North Natuna Sea” may have come to many as surprise. The new name encompasses a region north of the Natuna islands that partly falls […]

China and India’s moves to de-escalate tensions over the Doklam standoff inspired commentary about how Beijing’s coercive strategies can be countered. Some may argue that after all, India can be deemed a peer competitor to China in terms of relative power, especially militarily. Both countries are nuclear-weapon states and if push ever comes to shove […]

As part of an effort to manage the South China Sea disputes, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) has set up and begun convening a newly-launched South China Sea Expert Working Group that brings together prominent experts on maritime law, international relations, and the marine environment. The objective is for the group to […]

  How can regularized FONOPs benefit U.S. interests in the South China Sea? Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Department of Defense, for the first time under the Trump administration, had decided to set up a schedule of regular freedom of navigation operations (FONOPs) in the South China Sea under […]

  Last Saturday, I wrote about and extensively quoted from Associate Justice Antonio Carpio’s commencement speech to the 2 PHD in Leadership and 32 Masters in Public Management graduates of the Ateneo School of Government. The speech is entitled “My Journey in Public Service” and it is full of lessons for public servants and for […]

Vietnam’s capitulation shows China’s neighbors fear the U.S. no longer has their backs. The Week Donald Trump Lost the South China Sea Vietnam’s history is full of heroic tales of resistance to China. But this month Hanoi bent the knee to Beijing, humiliated in a contest over who controls the South China Sea, the most […]

Taipei, Sept. 8 (CNA) The Republic of China (Taiwan) could play an important role in resolving the South China Sea dispute as it was the ROC that first claimed sovereignty over the region and it still has many historic documents on the issue, a visiting UK expert said on Friday. “I think Taiwan could play […]

JAKARTA (NYTIMES) – When Indonesia recently – and quite publicly – renamed the northernmost waters of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea despite China’s claims to the area, Beijing quickly dismissed the move as “meaningless.” It is proving to be anything but. Indonesia’s increasingly aggressive posture in the region – including a […]

MARIANAS — Representatives of National Youth Movement for the West Philippine Sea (NYMWPS) recently met with Magdalo Partylist Representative Gary Alejano to encourage him to challenge China’s incursions in the West Philippine Sea and the “lackadaisical stance” of the Duterte administration government in defending Philippine sovereignty. In that meeting, members of the group has expressed […]