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Second Thomas Shoal Laser Incident
On February 6, 2023, the China Coast Guard and Philippine Coast Guard had an encounter near the Second Thomas Shoal, one of the features of the Spratly Islands which is subject to a wider South China Sea dispute, dispute in the South China Sea. The Second Thomas Shoal is claimed by multiple countries, including China and the Philippines. The latter controls the feature by having grounded the BRP Sierra Madre, BRP ''Sierra Madre'' on the shoal. The BRP Malapascua (MRRV-4403), BRP ''Malapascua'' of the Philippine Coast Guard was heading towards the shoal for a rotation and resupply mission for the BRP ''Sierra Madre'' crew when CCG 5205 of the China Coast Guard blocked the Filipino coast guard ship to act what it views as an intrusion of the Philippine vessel and aimed a green laser light towards it. The Philippine side alleged the laser was "military grade" and caused its crew to suffer from temporary blindness, which China denies. The incident led to the Philippines filing a dipl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Territorial Disputes In The South China Sea
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea involve conflicting island and maritime claims in the region by several sovereign states, namely Brunei, the People's Republic of China (PRC), Taiwan (Republic of China/ROC), Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Vietnam. The disputes involve the islands, reefs, banks, and other features of the South China Sea, including the Spratly Islands, Paracel Islands, Scarborough Shoal, and various boundaries in the Gulf of Tonkin. The waters near the Indonesian Natuna Islands, which some regard as geographically part of the South China Sea, are disputed as well. Maritime disputes also extend beyond the South China Sea, as in the case of the Senkaku Islands and the Socotra Rock, which lie in the East China Sea. An estimated US$3.37 trillion worth of global trade passes through the South China Sea annually, which accounts for a third of the global maritime trade. 80 percent of China's energy imports and 39.5 percent of China's total trad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
PBBM Summons Huang Xilian
Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. ( , , ; born September 13, 1957), commonly referred to by the initials PBBM or BBM, is a Filipino politician who is the 17th and current president of the Philippines. He previously served as a senator from 2010 to 2016. He is the second child and only son of tenth president Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and former first lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos. In 1980, Marcos became Vice Governor of Ilocos Norte, running unopposed with the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan party of his father, who was ruling the Philippines under martial law at the time. He then became Governor of Ilocos Norte in 1983, holding that office until his family was ousted from power by the People Power Revolution and fled into exile in Hawaii in February 1986. After the death of his father in 1989, President Corazon Aquino eventually allowed his family to return to the Philippines to face various charges. Marcos and his mother, Imelda, are currently facing arrest in the United States ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2023 In The Philippines
2023 in the Philippines details notable events that occurred in the Philippines in 2023. On July 21, 2023, President Bongbong Marcos announced that the government will formally lift the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, COVID-19 state of public health emergency, marking the end of the three years of the pandemic. The emergency was officially lifted the following day. Incumbents * President of the Philippines, President: Bongbong Marcos (Partido Federal ng Pilipinas, PFP) * Vice President of the Philippines, Vice President: Sara Duterte (Independent (politician), Independent) * Philippine Congress, Congress (19th Congress of the Philippines, 19th): ** Senate of the Philippines, Senate President: Migz Zubiri (Independent (politician), Independent) ** House of Representatives of the Philippines, House Speaker: Martin Romualdez (Lakas-CMD) * Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, Chief Justice: Alexander Gesmundo Ongoing events * COVID-19 pandemic in the Phi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
June 2024 Second Thomas Shoal Incident
On June 17, 2024, the China Coast Guard interfered with a resupply mission by the Philippine Navy near the Second Thomas Shoal, which is part of the internationally contested Spratly Islands. Background The Second Thomas Shoal is a submerged reef and is among the maritime features which form part of the Spratly Islands, which is claimed as a territory by several nations including China and the Philippines. The Philippines has deliberately grounded the BRP ''Sierra Madre'' in 1999 in an attempt to enforce its sovereignty claims, which remains a commissioned ship of the Philippine Navy over the feature which it believes to be within its exclusive economic zone. Meanwhile, China virtually claims sovereignty over most of the South China Sea. On June 15, 2024, the China Coast Guard released new guidelines on implementing its 2021 law which authorizes its officers to use lethal means on foreign ships which enter waters China claims. The guidelines allow the detention of non-Chin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whitsun Reef Incident
On March 22, 2021, a diplomatic incident started after the Philippines filed a diplomatic protest against China due to the presence of more than 200 Chinese fishing vessels at Whitsun Reef as early as March 7, 2021. The reef is part of the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. The Chinese presence at Whitsun Reef caused tensions, with the Philippines alleging that the ships are part of a militia and the mooring of the ships at the reef is a prelude to a Chinese takeover of the maritime feature. China denied such allegations, claiming that the ships were seeking shelter at the reef due to rough weather conditions. Both countries claim sovereignty over Whitsun Reef, as does Vietnam which has filed its own protest against Chinese presence in the reef. Over time, the Chinese presence in the Whitsun Reef declined. However, the ships' dispersal to other parts of the Spratly Islands prolonged diplomatic tensions. Background Whitsun Reef is among the maritime features in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scarborough Shoal Standoff
The Scarborough Shoal standoff refers to the tensions between the Republic of the Philippines and the People's Republic of China over the disputed Scarborough Shoal. Tensions began on April 8, 2012, after the attempted apprehension by the Philippine Navy of eight mainland Chinese fishing vessels near the shoal. Overview The Scarborough Shoal is claimed by the Philippines and China. On April 8, 2012, a Philippine Navy surveillance plane spotted eight Chinese fishing vessels anchored in the waters of Scarborough shoal. '' BRP Gregorio del Pilar'' was sent on the same day by the Philippine Navy to survey the vicinity of the shoal, and confirmed the presence of the fishing vessels and their ongoing activities. On April 10, 2012, ''BRP Gregorio del Pilar'' came to inspect the catch of the fishing vessels. The Filipino inspection team claimed that they discovered illegally collected corals, giant clams, and live sharks inside the first vessel boarded by the team. ''BRP Gregorio del ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
August 2023 Second Thomas Shoal Standoff
On August 5, 2023, a China Coast Guard ship blocked a Philippine Coast Guard ship en route to the Philippine-occupied Second Thomas Shoal in the disputed Spratly Islands. Background The Second Thomas Shoal (named ''Ren'ai Jiao'' by China; ''Ayungin Shoal'' by the Philippines) is part of the Spratly Islands which is disputed territory claimed in full or in part by multiple countries including China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. The sea itself is claimed by China under its nine-dash map, nine-dash map line claim. Second Thomas Shoal is occupied by the Philippines, which intentionally grounded the Philippine Navy ship on the shoal in 1999. Incident On August 5, 2023, the Philippine Coast Guard and the Philippine Navy were heading to the Second Thomas Shoal to conduct what it describes as a routine resupply mission for personnel aboard the marooned at the feature. The mission involved two wooden boats of the Philippine Navy; ''Unaizah May 1'' (UM1) and ''Unaizah May ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atin Ito Christmas Convoy
The West Philippine Sea – Atin Ito () is a civilian-led initiative to deliver donated goods to Filipino troops stationed in the Spratly Islands, a feature claimed by several countries including the Philippines and China. The organization supports the Philippines' sovereignty claims in the South China Sea. Background West Philippine Sea – Atin Ito () is a civilian-led initiative to launch expeditions in support of the Philippines' claim in the South China Sea dispute. It is also in opposition to the People's Republic of China's assertions of its own territorial claim over the sea. Its name bears the designation West Philippine Sea, a name introduced by the Philippine government to refer to parts of the South China Sea covering waters and islands claimed by the Philippines including the Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal. Atin Ito includes members of Akbayan, Pambansang Katipunan ng mga Samahan sa Kanayunan (PKSK), and the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM). ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States Department Of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United States, foreign policy and foreign relations of the United States, relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nations, its primary duties are advising the President of the United States, U.S. president on international relations, administering List of diplomatic missions of the United States, diplomatic missions, negotiating international treaties and agreements, and representing the United States at the United Nations Security Council, United Nations conference. Established in 1789 as the first administrative arm of the Executive branch of the U.S. Government, U.S. executive branch, the State Department is considered among the most powerful and prestigious executive agencies. It is headed b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West Philippine Sea
West Philippine Sea ( fil, Karagatang Kanlurang Pilipinas; abbreviated as WPS) is the official designation by the government of the Philippines to the parts of the South China Sea that are included in the country's exclusive economic zone. The term is also sometimes incorrectly used to refer to the entire South China Sea. Background The first use of the term "West Philippine Sea" by the Philippine national government was as early as 2011, during the administration of President Benigno Aquino III. The naming was intended for purposes of the national mapping system and to symbolize disagreement with China's sovereignty claim over the whole South China Sea. In the House of Representatives, Akbayan representative Walden Bello filed a resolution in June 2011 urging the government to look into the process of changing the name of the South China Sea to "Western Philippine Sea". The proposal to have a different naming for the sea has received support from the Armed Forces of the Phi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mutual Defense Treaty (United States–Philippines)
The Mutual Defense Treaty between the Republic of the Philippines and the United States of America (MDT) is a treaty that was signed on August 30, 1951, in Washington, D.C., between representatives of the Philippines and the United States. The overall accord contains eight articles and dictates for both nations to support each other if an external party attacks the Philippines or the United States. History The Philippines became a colony of the United States following the Spanish–American War and the subsequent Philippine–American War. In 1935, under the terms of the Tydings–McDuffie Act, the Philippines became a self-governing commonwealth, the Philippine Commonwealth, with full independence planned for ten years later. Delayed by World War II and the Japanese invasion and occupation of the Philippines, the Philippines became fully independent on July 4, 1946. Following independence there remained in the Philippines a strong American military presence including a numbe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Department Of Foreign Affairs (Philippines)
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA; fil, Kagawaran ng Ugnayang Panlabas) is the executive department of the Philippine government tasked to contribute to the enhancement of national security, protection of the territorial integrity and national sovereignty, to participate in the national endeavor of sustaining development and enhancing the Philippines' competitive edge, to protect the rights and promote the welfare of Filipinos overseas and to mobilize them as partners in national development, to project a positive image of the Philippines, and to increase international understanding of Philippine culture for mutually-beneficial relations with other countries. The head of the department is currently Enrique Manalo and is nominated by the president of the Philippines and confirmed by the Commission on Appointments. The secretary of foreign affairs is a member of the Cabinet. History Post-War Philippines During the period when the Philippines was a colony of the Un ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
