The Philippines—not China—is still in possession of Sandy Cay, the sandbar closest to the island of Pagasa in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana asserted on Thursday. The defense chief told a virtual forum organized by the National Defense College of the Philippines that the government could have taken control of […]

Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte recently reversed his decision to terminate his country’s Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States. The move comes despite the fact that relations between the Philippines and the US have not been cordial in recent years as the Southeast Asian nation has grown closer to China. China has promised to […]

Relations between the U.S. and China — the world’s top two economies — could worsen further as both countries have signaled that they are prepared to fight each other in many more ways, according to a political risk expert. “There’s a lot of room for escalation here. I think that it’s, by now, quite clear […]

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 2, 2020) — Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said India has expressed its intent to carry out navigation activities in the South China Sea. In an online forum on Thursday, Lorenzana said navigation in the South China Sea is open to all countries. “We do not prevent other countries from passing […]

HANOI/MANILA (Reuters) – Vietnam and the Philippines on Thursday criticised China’s holding of military drills in a disputed part of the South China, warning it could create tension in the region and impact Beijing’s relationship with its neighbours. Philippine Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said China’s exercises in the waters near the Paracel Islands were “highly […]

On Wednesday, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) began exercises in the South China Sea focused around amphibious assault activities. Prior to the exercises, a PLAN amphibious assault ship was seen at Woody Island, the largest natural Chinese-held feature in the South China Sea and host to major military facilities in the Paracel Islands. […]

  The fishermen of Masinloc and Sta. Cruz, Zambales had fished the Scarborough Shoal for generations. In the past several years, Filipino fishing boats had been harassed and prevented from fishing near the fish-rich shoal by incursions of Chinese fishing and militia boats. In June 2019, a Chinese militia ship sank a Filipino boat in […]

  Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 27) – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations said Saturday international law must be followed, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, amid the South China Sea row. The UNCLOS is an international treaty that covers a comprehensive regime of law and order in […]

MANILA, Philippines — Southeast Asian leaders said a 1982 U.N. oceans treaty should be the basis of sovereign rights and entitlements in the South China Sea, in one of their strongest remarks opposing China’s claim to virtually the entire disputed waters on historical grounds. The leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations took the […]

  In a bold move, the US moved three aircraft carriers and their accompanying strike groups to the Western Pacific, positioning them to control the South China Sea. On Sunday, the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) and USS Nimitz (CVN 68) strike groups commenced dual carrier flight operations in the Philippine Sea. While at sea, […]