Articles and notes about Philippines.
Three Chinese theater commands moved as one formation from the Ryukyus to Basilan in the same fortnight that Keen Sword put Japanese anti-ship missiles and American launchers on Yonaguni, 110 kilometers from Taiwan. Each capital published its own count, and the counts measure pressure at home more than ships at sea.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a phone call with Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Maria Theresa Lazaro, made at her request, that relations between the two countries are facing “malicious interference”. Wang said a “handful” of Philippine politicians have attacked and smeared China out of political bias and self-interest and have crossed Beijing’s “red lines”. Lazaro said the Philippines attaches great importance to its relations with China, remains committed to the one-China policy and is willing to handle maritime issues through dialogue and consultation.
Top diplomats from the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) met in Atlanta on Saturday to finalize preparations for next month’s summit in the Philippines, the first in two years, according to the South China Morning Post. Without naming China, the ministers expressed “grave concerns” about overcapacity disrupting global supply chains in critical industries.
Former rebel leader Abdulraof Macacua has been elected chief minister of the Philippines' Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, securing 51 of 80 assembly votes in a historic vote after decades of conflict. Macacua defeated former interim chief minister Ahod “Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim, chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), according to Rappler.
China’s coast guard carried out an exercise featuring water cannons and drones near two disputed reefs at the center of its simmering contention with the Philippines in the South China Sea, according to the South China Morning Post. The drill simulated a foreign fishing vessel entering the waters of Second Thomas and Sabina shoals for “illegal fishing”.
China has accused the Philippines of setting up “numerous obstacles” to its participation in a meeting with defense ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), according to the South China Morning Post.
China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier strike group sailed beyond the first island chain to reach the southernmost waters of the Philippines before heading northeast on Friday, a move that suggests an intent to position itself closer to joint US-Japan exercises, according to the South China Morning Post (SCMP). Philippine news channel BNC, cited by the paper, reported that the group reached about 25 nautical miles (46km) east-southeast of Balut Island, the southernmost point of the country. The group has four ships, including the Type 055 large guided-missile destroyers Wuxi and Anshan and the Type 052D destroyer Huainan. According to the SCMP, the USS Theodore Roosevelt is taking part in the Keen Sword exercise in the Philippine Sea alongside warships from Japan, Australia, Canada and France.
Four pilots of the Philippine Air Force were killed after two SF-260 training aircraft were involved in an accident during a training flight at Fernando Air Base on Friday, the air force said in a statement on Saturday, according to the Hindustan Times. All remaining SF-260 aircraft have been temporarily grounded and an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the accident.
The Philippine government offered a bounty of 50 million pesos (US$786,000) on Friday for the capture of Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, a former national police chief, according to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), in a text by Agence France-Presse (AFP). “As of today, Senator Bato will be considered armed and dangerous. We are placing a bounty of 50 million pesos (US$786,000) for his capture,” Interior Secretary Juanito Victor Remulla said at a news conference. Dela Rosa is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC), which unsealed a November 2025 arrest warrant against him in May. Former president Rodrigo Duterte, whose anti-drug crackdown dela Rosa spearheaded, goes on trial on November 30 for crimes against humanity, including murder and attempted murder.
The China Coast Guard said the Philippines delivered supplies to its warship BRP Sierra Madre, grounded at the Second Thomas Shoal, on Wednesday, “with permission from the Chinese side”, according to the South China Morning Post. Spokesman Jiang Lue said the coast guard carried out confirmation checks and maintained “full supervision” throughout the operation, and that it would keep patrolling and enforcing the law in the area.
The Philippines has summoned China’s ambassador to Manila after he said Beijing could “easily win” a conflict between the two countries, TRT World reported. Foreign Secretary Maria Theresa Lazaro conveyed Manila’s “serious concern and strong objection” to Ambassador Jing Quan over his public remarks on October 15, according to the outlet. The ambassador said the Philippines should feel fortunate to have China as a neighbor and that Beijing would not choose force: “If we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not choose force, and we love peace,” he said.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his government on Friday (October 16) protested remarks by China’s ambassador to Manila, Jing Quan, calling them “a thinly veiled threat of the use of force”, the latest flare-up in the two countries’ longstanding territorial dispute in the South China Sea, according to The Hindu. Jing said the characterization was “nonsense” and added that the Philippines should feel fortunate to have China as a neighbor: “If we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not choose force and we love peace”.
The Philippine Coast Guard accused China Coast Guard vessels of obstructing an emergency evacuation, including with a water cannon in an apparent attempt to block a Philippine patrol ship, in a mission delayed by nearly 10 hours that forced the Philippine vessel to withdraw for safety, without the jet hitting the ship, according to the South China Morning Post.
Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) found former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte fit to stand trial on charges of crimes against humanity, Al Jazeera reported.