Atty. Elma Christine R. Leogardo

  • Asean agrees on South China Sea

    HUA HIN – Southeast Asian foreign ministers on Wednesday agreed to a code of conduct for the South China Sea, where territorial disputes have raised tensions with Beijing. Asean foreign ministers pose for a group photograph during the Asean foreign ministers meeting in Hua Hin on Wednesday. (AFP photo) Of the 10 nations in the […]

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  • Sea row not part of Aquino’s agenda if he pushes with China trip: Palace

    … If the President decided to go to China, Lacierda ruled out that the territorial row would be discussed if he would have a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “Our concern with the West Philippine Sea is already being handled in the Unclos (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) arbitral […]

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  • China does best to dispel pact hope

    Optimism over a relaxation of tensions in the South China Sea generated by China’s agreement to discuss a code of conduct with the 10-member Association of … Read more: China does best to dispel pact hope

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  • Negotiation—Not War—Can Resolve China’s Conflict With Japan

    Sino-Japanese relations do not look promising at the moment. Obviously, the Diaoyu-Senkaku dispute is not the only factor in play, but it does focus nationalist passions on both sides. Yet both countries are capable of wiser conduct if their leaders can manage to rise above the dangerous temptations to beat military drums. As China and […]

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  • Asians must avoid rocky ride ahead

    Disputes over islands are sowing mistrust and risk sparking an unintended conflict. OUR little boat bobbed about in the churning waters for several hours before we caught sight of the tiny island, 45km east of Singapore. A mere speck on the vast sea, it looked forlorn with its solitary lighthouse. As we approached the rock, […]

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  • On protest rally against China provocations on 24 July 2013

    For those who are looking for specifics about the 24 July protest rally by the West Philippine Sea Coalition headed by Secretary Rafael Alunan III, here is the permit (courtesy of Nick Sotelo, one of the convenors): … Read more:On protest rally against China provocations: West Philippine Sea …

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  • PH to China: Be a ‘responsible nation’

    MANILA, Philippines – Turning the tables on China in their latest word war, the Philippines on Thursday, July 18, said the rising superpower has “no choice” but to subject itself to international law to show it is “a responsible nation.” “To be accepted as a responsible nation, China has no choice,” said Department of Foreign […]

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  • PH: China turning sea into its lake

    MANILA, Philippines—China is turning the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) into “one country’s lake,” Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said on Tuesday, pressing Manila’s effort to roll back Beijing’s expansive claims in the strategic waterway. Speaking before an experts’ roundtable on maritime security in Brussels, Belgium, Del Rosario said China’s assertion of ownership over […]

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  • ‘Reponsible’ China has a ways to go

    China has significantly moderated its attitude toward its neighbors in Southeast Asia, without withdrawing any of its territorial claims in the South China Sea. Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Brunei last week for an annual meeting with his counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, said that the new Chinese leadership under President Xi […]

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  • UN arbitral tribunal on PH case vs China meets in Hamburg on jurisdiction

    MANILA – The five-member United Nations tribunal that will hear the arbitration case the Philippines sought over its territorial dispute with China is now meeting in Hamburg, where it will decide whether it has jurisdiction over the case, University of the Philippines law professor Atty. Harry Roque said. Roque, of UP’s Institute of International Legal […]

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