MANILA, Philippines — Beijing’s economic strategy cannot be separated from its security efforts in the South China Sea, US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said. Speaking at a forum in Washington, the top American diplomat noted that the trade between the US and China has not been “remotely reciprocal.” “But the threats that — the […]

A Supreme Court (SC) justice has expressed alarm over the Chico River irrigation loan agreement between the Philippines and China that is supposedly advantageous to Beijing. Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, in his speech at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila over the weekend, warned that China could seize oil and gas-rich Philippine assets in the […]

That was a common question when it became known that a complaint had been filed before the International Criminal Court or ICC against Chinese President Xi Jinping over his country’s island-building in the South China Sea. Xi is president for life. His government refused to participate in the proceedings at the Permanent Court of Arbitration […]

Japan lodged a protest with China on Saturday after the Japan Coast Guard detected a Chinese research vessel navigating in the nation’s exclusive economic zone. The incursion followed similar cases in March 2016 and December last year, according to the coast guard. China has said it was operating on the high seas, not in Japan’s […]

MANILA — The Philippine government should lodge complaints in all available platforms against China to focus international attention on its incursions in contested waters, a political risk analyst said Sunday. Filipino fishermen and former officials last week filed a complaint before the International Criminal Court, accusing Chinese President Xi Jinping of crimes against humanity in […]

In a move that may not sit well with Beijing, a House of Representatives panel has endorsed a bill that would make July 12 every year West Philippine Sea Victory Day to commemorate the Philippines’ successful challenge to China’s claim over nearly the entire South China Sea. The House committee on revision of laws chaired […]

Most of my friends are understandably very upset with China for its occupation of the entirety of the South China Sea (or West Philippine Sea, if you’d like to be fruitlessly politically correct). It’s not just because the Philippines won its case in international court in the Hague, but quite simply, even a 7-year-old would […]

China’s astonishing expansion into the South China Sea’s nearly 3.5 million square km and its subsequent militarization of the region over the past several years has cultivated a complex security environment. The initial phase of that growing complexity was predicated on geopolitical interest and expansion, notably during U.S. President Barack Obama’s second term in office. […]

If the Philippines can’t pay off its loans to China, Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio says ‘for sure, we will lose in all arbitrations’ MANILA, Philippines – Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio warned that the “expensive” Chico River Pump Irrigation project would allow China to take gas-rich Reed Bank (Recto Bank) […]

MANILA, Philippines — Despite calls to review the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) between the Philippines and the United States, there have been no requests from either side to do so. Patrick Murphy, US Department of State Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Southeast Asia, said the two countries have been regularly discussing the treaty. Lorenzana […]