In the pre-dawn hours of 1999, retired Philippine Navy Vice Admiral Eduardo Santos orchestrated one of the most quietly audacious maneuvers in modern maritime history. Without fanfare, he piloted the aging landing ship BRP Sierra Madre across the restless waters of the South China Sea and deliberately ran it aground on the reef known internationally…
The South China Sea, a vital artery of global trade, has once again become the stage for a dangerous confrontation. In August 2025, the unprecedented collision between a Chinese naval destroyer and a China Coast Guard vessel while attempting to block a Philippine ship turned a simmering dispute into a geopolitical powder keg. The Philippine…
The Philippines stands at a critical crossroads, one that blends questions of justice, sovereignty, and survival. China’s aggression in the West Philippine Sea is intensifying, water cannons, ramming incidents, swarms of coast guard ships and Filipinos are asking: what more can Manila do? Among the loudest answers is a bold one: rejoin the International Criminal…
The South China Sea isn’t just a patch of water on the map, it’s one of the world’s most valuable crossroads. A third of all global shipping passes through its waters, carrying more than $3.4 trillion in trade every year. Beneath its surface lie what experts believe are vast reserves of oil and natural gas,…
The Batanes Islands are the northernmost jewels of the Philippines, tiny, windswept, and breathtakingly beautiful. But geography is destiny. Just 200 kilometers from Taiwan, perched at the gateway of the Luzon Strait, these islands have transformed from a cultural treasure into a frontline chokepoint, a watchtower, and a potential tripwire in the Indo-Pacific. Their significance…
Footage just dropped: two small Filipino boats approaching Chinese Coast Guard vessels near Ren’ai Jiao or Second Thomas Shoal. The incident at Ren’ai Jiao unfolded in mid-August 2025, another chapter in the ever-tense standoff over the Second Thomas Shoal. To understand why every confrontation at Ren’ai Jiao feels like a spark in a powder keg,…
If you thought our last video on the Balikatan exercises was already intense, wait ‘til you hear this, just days ago, a fleet of U.S. A-10 “Warthog” attack jets thundered into Clark Air Base in the Philippines. That sound of engines ripping the skies? That wasn’t just aircraft landing, it was history touching down right…
In a region already on edge, from the rising tension in the South China Sea to China’s creeping military muscle, the United States and the Philippines just made a bold move. They’ve approved more than 500 joint military activities for 2026, the most ambitious defense cooperation in our history, and a clear message that Manila…
Australia and the Philippines Reaffirm South China Sea Order Amid Rising Tensions MANILA, August 2025 — In an explicit show of solidarity, Australia and the Philippines have strengthened their resolve to uphold a rules-based international order in the increasingly contentious South China Sea region, responding to mounting confrontations with China. A United Front in the…
The South China Sea, long a hotbed of geopolitical tension, is now witnessing a dramatic shift in power. To understand why, we need to step back into the bigger picture of the dispute that has shaped our region for decades. And then, boom, the numbers hit you: a historic fleet expansion, the kind of transformation…
