As the May 2022 Presidential Election draws near, with the impending change of administration in the Philippines, there have been different views and perspectives on how Philippine foreign policy should adjust to the changes in the strategic environment underpinned by the United States (US)-China geopolitical competition in the Indo-Pacific region and the US-Russia geopolitical tussle in Eastern Europe amid the Ukraine crisis. Indeed, the rivalry and competition of major powers, more

The Philippines and the United States (US) will kick off the largest-ever joint military drills in the archipelago nation next week, US officials said Tuesday, showing off their strong defence ties in the face of growing Chinese assertiveness.Nearly 9,000 Filipino and American soldiers will take part in the 12-day war games on the main island of Luzon, which are usually an annual affair but were cancelled or curbed during the pandemic.The exercises, which start on 28 March, will cover among o

The South China Sea (SCS), one of the most in-demand waterways in the world, is the object of contention of several claimant states with overlapping territorial and maritime sovereignty and sovereign rights claims over the disputed waters. The dispute is still unresolved today and can be dated back to the 1950s.The six-primary claimant states of the contested waters of the SCS are China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, and Taiwan.

European countries are currently divided over whether to join United States (US) President Joe Biden’s diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing. The episode underscores yet again that when it comes to dealing with China, Europe and the US truly are an ocean apart.

In the area of foreign policy, President Rodrigo Duterte was successful in the historic return of the “Balangiga Bells” from the United States (US).

United States (US) Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday urged China to cease "aggressive actions" in the Asia-Pacific, speaking during a visit to the region, as Washington seeks to bolster alliances against Beijing.President Joe Biden's administration is trying to reset relations and reassert its influence in Asia after the turbulence and unpredictability of the Donald Trump era. Blinken's comments came in Indonesia, the first leg of a Southeast Asian tour

As the world’s largest, strongest, and longest-surviving dictatorship, contemporary China lacks the rule of law. Yet it is increasingly using its rubber-stamp parliament to enact domestic legislation asserting territorial claims and rights in international law.

After the exchange of words between Manila and Beijing on the unfortunate incident in the South China Sea (SCS) involving the Philippines and China on 16 November 2021 where three Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) vessels had fired water cannons on two Philippine supply boats have subsided, the area of Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal or Rén'ài Jiāo) is now quiet, and the supply run is back to normal. Thanks to the quiet diplomacy and negotiations through bilateral diplomatic channels

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday condemned the latest flare-up in the disputed South China Sea (SCS) after Chinese coastguard ships fired water cannon at Filipino boats. Duterte made the remarks at an Asian regional summit hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping, who vowed his country would "never seek hegemony, and certainly not bully the small".China claims almost all of the waterway, through which trillions of dollars in trade passes annually, with competin

The South China Sea (SCS), one of the most in-demand waterways in the world, is the object of contention of several claimant states with overlapping territorial and maritime sovereignty and sovereign rights claims over the disputed waters. The dispute is still unresolved today and can be dated back to the 1950s.The six-primary claimant states of the contested waters of the SCS are China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, and Taiwan.