WASHINGTON: The United States on Friday rejected Chinese accusations that political motives were behind a top Beijing space official not receiving a visa in time to attend the start of an international conference in Washington this week. Wu Yanhua, vice-chairman of the China National Space Administration, was the only official absent from the International […]
SENIOR Associate Justice Antonio Carpio will remain a staunch defender of judicial independence and rule of law even after his retirement. United States Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim and Sen. Aquilino Pimentel 3rd stressed this on Friday as they lauded Carpio for his integrity and “long, productive and trailblazing career in the Supreme […]
“Hounds follow those who feed them,” remarked the great Prussian statesman Otto von Bismarck, underscoring the centrality of patronage to political influence. Something very similar has been taking place in the realm of geopolitics amid mutual estrangement between the West and the Philippines under President Rodrigo Duterte. The United States has even threatened withdrawal […]
Under current President, Xi Jinping, China has begun to increase its use of social surveillance but has also rolled out a new-age form of policing its citizens. Used in the north-west region of Xinjiang, the social credit system aims to collect the data of its public in order to produce a self-governed society. Speaking […]
China has significantly increased its soft power in the region over the past decade and stands to lose a lot if its aggressive behavior in the South China Sea continues. But instead of softening its approach, it has recently stepped up its kinetic pressure on several of its rival claimants in the South China […]
China and the Philippines signed six deals last week that boosted Beijing’s funding for the Southeast Asian nation to a total of US$924 million, but the amount is a long way from the US$9 billion pledged in 2016. The discrepancy has left critics asking what Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has to show for his […]
DONALD TRUMP has seen his ongoing trade war with China provoke a shocking rant from China President Xi Jinping’s administration as Beijing goes on the verbal offensive referring to Washington as “arrogant” and accusing the White House of “slander”. China’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday that the US should focus on its own domestic […]
MANILA — Sharing resources in the West Philippine Sea with China is only “fair” as long as Manila gets the bigger cut, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said Friday. The 60-40 sharing agreement, in favor of the Philippines, gives the country an “upper hand” against China since the latter would be spending for the […]
Days before the 2019 Asean Summit and Related Summits in Thailand, it is fitting to reflect on the relevance and responsiveness of Asean to its more than 650 million people in Southeast Asia. Amid all its geoeconomic and geopolitical challenges in the region, Asean remains the best platform to settle differences and unite on […]
CHINA has been left humiliated after aggressive water grabs and persistent bickering with Asian neighbours has only resulted in a withdrawal from Vietnamese waters, and their status as top dog could be further challenged as the Philippines look to bolster the defence of their own waters amid escalating tension. A Chinese oil survey vessel […]