Philippines
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Malaysia seeks hotline with Philippines on Sabah
MANILA, Philippines – Malaysia wants to establish a “hotline” between its security forces and that of the Philippines to prevent a repeat of the standoff in Lahad Datu, Sabah last year between over 200 Filipino militants and Malaysian troops. The Filipino militants, who called themselves the royal security forces of the sultanate of Sulu and […]
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Malaysia joins forces with Philippines and Vietnam against China in sea dispute
China, Diplomatic Relations, Foreign Policy, Malaysia, Militarization, Philippines, President Benigno Aquino III, South China Sea Dispute, USA, VietnamThe submerged reef would be easy to miss, under turquoise seas about 80 km (50 miles) off Malaysia’s Borneo island state of Sarawak. But two Chinese naval exercises in less than a year around the James Shoal have shocked Malaysia and led to a significant shift in its approach to China‘s claims to the disputed […]
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UNCLOS explained: Why China’s claims in South China Sea are invalid
MANILA, Philippines — With a little over a month before the Philippines submits its written arguments to the international Permanent Court of Arbitration, Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza publicly spoke for the first time about the basis of the Philippines’ case against China’s claim to nearly the entire South China/West Philippine Sea. “You need to have […]
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‘China action in sea row unacceptable’
ADIZ, Air Defense Identification Zone, China, European Union, Germany, Philippines, South China Sea Dispute, UNCLOSMANILA, Philippines – A former president and the longest serving member of the European Parliament called China’s actions in the West Philippine Sea and South China Sea “unacceptable,” and said no power should be allowed to dominate in the region. Hans-Gert Pöttering, chairman of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) and member of the European Parliament representing the […]
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Indonesia-Philippines border deal presages more united ASEAN South China Sea stance
At least one long-running maritime border dispute in Southeast Asia is heading towards peaceful settlement. On Monday, the Indonesian and Philippine foreign ministers announced that the two countries had settled their maritime border dispute, with a boundary treaty likely to be signed when President Yudhoyono visits the Philippines in May. This maritime border agreement follows […]
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9 other acts of harassment by China vs PH fishermen: DFA
MANILA – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has summoned the charge d’affaires of China to protest the firing of water cannons at Filipino fishermen in a disputed shoal last January 27. In a press conference on Tuesday, Foreign Affairs Spokesman Raul Hernandez said the incident involving a China Coast Guard vessel is only one […]
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PNoy: Phl to ask China to explain water cannon incident
MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine government will ask the People’s Republic of China to explain why the Chinese coast guard fired water cannons at the Filipino fishermen who were at the disputed Scarborough Shoal on January 27. President Benigno Aquino III said both the Department of Foreign Affairs and Department of National Defense are now […]
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PH won’t send Navy to Scarborough shoal
MANILA – The water cannon incident at Scarborough Shoal won’t merit any military response since the goal of the Philippines is to resolve the sea dispute in a peaceful manner, an official of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said. In a press conference, AFP Spokesman Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala said: “We have to […]
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Philippines protests China ‘water cannon’ attack on fishermen
Manila: The Philippines lodged a strong protest against China on Tuesday over allegations by Filipino fishermen that the Chinese coastguard had attacked them with water cannon near a disputed shoal. The foreign department summoned the Chinese charge d’affaires to receive the formal protest over the January 27 incident at the Scarborough Shoal, said department spokesman […]
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RI, Philippines set to sign boundary treaty
A bilateral meeting between Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa and his Philippine counterpart Albert F. del Rosario in Jakarta on Monday reached a historical agreement on a provisional maritime boundary line, among commitments to enhance cooperations in the areas of economy, defense, politics and sociocultural and consular affairs. The two countries, which have so far […]