In this edition of #MattersofFact, a maritime law expert expresses doubts over President Rodrigo Duterte’s promise to raise Manila’s arbitral victory over Beijing in the South China Sea dispute during his meeting with Chinese president Xi Jinping this week. Jay Batongbacal, director of the University of the Philippines’ Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law […]

  In an unusually strong statement by the Pentagon, the U.S. has accused Beijing of employing “bullying tactics” in the disputed South China Sea, citing what it said was “coercive interference” in oil and gas activities in waters claimed by Vietnam. “China will not win the trust of its neighbors nor the respect of the […]

  BEIJING: China accused the United States on Tuesday (Aug 27) of “maliciously hyping up” the South China Sea situation and making warrantless criticism, after the Pentagon said China was carrying out “coercive interference” in waters claimed by Vietnam. A Chinese survey vessel on Saturday extended its activities to an area closer to Vietnam’s coast, […]

  The recent passage of Chinese warships through the Sulu Sea generated an outburst of criticism by Philippine officials and pundits. Since February 2019, at least 14 Chinese warships including its aircraft carrier have passed through Philippines’ territorial and archipelagic waters in the Sulu Sea using the Balabac Strait -Sibutu Passage route in a manner […]

Whether Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who is scheduled to visit China from Wednesday to Sunday, will discuss the South China Sea issue with Beijing has caused quite a stir among some Western and Philippine media outlets. The interaction between China and the Philippines over the South China Sea issue in 2019 has seen interference by […]

  MANILA – The Philippines may have lost credibility and valuable support for its arbitration win against China’s sweeping claims in the South China Sea after the government decided to shelve the victory for the past 3 years, an analyst said Tuesday. A United Nations-backed court in 2016 junked Beijing’s “historic rights” to nearly 90 […]

Zhao Jianhua, Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines says they will not accept Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) on July 2016 or Arbitral ruling on South China Sea in a statement on Sunday, August 25. Zhao told, “We expressed that we will not accept it. We will not recognize that. That remains. Our position has not […]

  Supreme Court Justice Antonio Carpio’s keynote speech at the Democracy and Disinformation conference in Davao last Friday presented the case against what he called “the fake news of the century,” the “disinformation of the millennium.” He was referring to China’s claim to almost the entire South China Sea, based on fraudulent, fabricated history. “This […]

  Beijing may have ordered its navy not to stray into Philippine waters after the recent string of sightings of Chinese warships passing unannounced through the Sibutu Strait triggered a series of protests from Manila, a ranking military official said Sunday. “I think there’s been guidance from the national leadership of China to their navy […]

  MANILA- A lawmaker urged the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte Monday to view National Heroes’ Day as a reminder to protect Philippine sovereignty. Magdalo party-list Rep. Manuel Cabochan III said present-day Filipinos owe it to heroes of the past to “protect the peace and sovereignty of our nation which they have fought for.” “At […]