Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Carlos Sorreta wrongly stated that the Supreme Court (SC) upheld a “literal description” of the national territory in its decision to declare the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) unconstitutional. The JMSU is a 2005 exploration agreement among the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC), Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PETROVIETNAM), and China National […]
MANILA, Philippines — The world’s seven most powerful democracies back the Philippines’ claims in the South China Sea as they opposed Beijing’s expansive maritime claims and strongly opposed its militarization in the region. The Group of Seven (G7) — comprising Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States — plus the […]
In my column last week, I pointed out the reasons why former president Noynoy Aquino and President Bongbong Marcos elected to lean on the US rather than China. There are at least six reasons for their decision: Philippine sovereignty is not under threat with the US, as it is with China. China’s bullying tactics have […]
SUMMARY China told the Philippines on Monday, August 7, to remove its grounded warship from the Ayungin Shoal, also known as Second Thomas Shoal, in the South China Sea after blocking two Manila supply ships with water cannons over the weekend as both sides asserted their claims of the area. The Philippines accused the Chinese coast guard of […]
The United States has accused a Chinese fighter jet of performing an “unnecessarily aggressive” manoeuvre against one of its aircraft during a flight over the South China Sea, a disputed region of significant strategic importance. Read More –>> US denounces China’s ‘aggressive’ manoeuvre over South China Sea
SUMMARY MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines’ top security adviser said on Friday, May 26, that there was nothing provocative about the country’s decision to place navigational buoys within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) Describing them as “safety measures,” National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said their placement is based merely on the “international order,” referring to […]
SUMMARY MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines’ top security adviser said on Friday, May 26, that there was nothing provocative about the country’s decision to place navigational buoys within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) Describing them as “safety measures,” National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said their placement is based merely on the “international order,” referring to […]
In view of inaccurate information on the subject of whether or not the U.S. is prepared to respond to its commitment to the Philippines under the Philippines-U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), the Department of Foreign Affairs would like to establish as a matter of record that: 1. The Philippines and the United States entered into […]
MANILA, Philippines – The following is the statement of Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario on the Philippines-US Mutual Defense Treaty: In view of inaccurate information on the subject of whether or not the US is prepared to respond to its commitment to the Philippines under the Philippines-US Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), the Department of […]
A Chinese coast guard ship and a Vietnamese fisheries patrol boat apparently had a tense encounter during the weekend in the South China Sea, coming as close as 10 meters to each other, according to data from Marine Traffic, a ship-tracking website. The data, based on the ships’ automatic identification system (AIS) signals, shows that […]