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☆ US ally says it expects America to intervene if China tries to take a rusting World War II warship in the South China Sea
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

The Philippines would expect US intervention should China take the BRP Sierra Madre warship. Tensions between China and the Philippines are increasingly high in the contested South China Sea. Go to newsletter preferences Thanks for signing up! download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementAs pressure builds in the South China Sea amid frequent clashes, the Philippines is drawing a line: should China take a rusted warship outpost marking Manila's territory, the Philippines would expect US intervention.

Persons: Thomas, —, of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro Organizations: BRP Sierra, Service, CBS, of National Defense, Business Locations: Philippines, China, Sierra, South, Philippine, Manila, Beijing

China’s Risky Power Play in the South China SeaChina’s coast guard ships have swarmed and collided with Philippine boats. A New FlashpointFor months, the latest target of China’s power play was a Philippine coast guard ship, the Teresa Magbanua. Philippine coast guard Chinese ships Noon, June 17 A group of Chinese ships moved to block the Philippine vessel. SECOND THOMAS SHOAL SABINA SHOAL A Chinese ship began tailing a Philippine ship around 8 a.m. More Chinese ships waited here. 6 p.m. SECOND THOMAS SHOAL SABINA SHOAL The Chinese ships followed the Philippine ship.

Persons: Teresa Magbanua, Sabina, Thomas, ”, Jay Batongbacal, Sabina Shoal, Hu Bo, Ferdinand R, Marcos Jr, Mr, Hu, Marcos, Manlia, Jan, Thomas Shoal, “, Rommel Ong, Wu Yanan, Samuel Paparo, General, Lei Organizations: South China, Bank, University of the, Philippine Coast Guard, Coast Guard, Associated Press, Armed Forces, Facebook, Ateneo School of Government, Philippine Navy, Philippine, China Coast Guard, Reuters, THOMAS, SECOND, Strategic, International Studies, Pacific Command, Theater Command, United, Liberation Army’s Academy of Military Sciences, People’s Liberation Army Locations: South, Philippine, China, Philippines, United States, Chinese, Spratly, Scarborough Shoal, Vietnam, PHILIPPINES SPRATLY, Palawan, SPRATLY, PHILIPPINES Palawan, Sabina, Manila, Asia, University of the Philippines, South China, Beijing, Shoal, Palawan ., China’s, U.S, United

☆ Philippine celebrity pastor pleads not guilty to sex trafficking charge
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-13 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine celebrity pastor Apollo Quiboloy, the self-proclaimed “Appointed Son of God,” pleaded not guilty on Friday to a charge of sex trafficking, his lawyer said. “He is innocent,” lawyer Israelito Torreon told reporters after an arraignment in Manila. Quiboloy was also due to enter his plea later on Friday to charges of child abuse before another court. Quiboloy and four other co-accused arrived in a police minibus around 45 minutes before his scheduled arraignment. Handcuffed and in an orange detainee shirt, the preacher was almost unrecognizable underneath a bulletproof helmet and vest.

Persons: Apollo Quiboloy, “, ”, Israelito Torreon, Quiboloy, ” Joahna Paula Domingo, Rodrigo Duterte Locations: MANILA, Philippines, Philippine, Manila, Torreon, United States

☆ Philippine police say ‘alarming details’ uncovered in new allegations against celebrity preacher
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-11 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

The abuse they endured shows an alarming pattern of manipulation and exploitation,” Philippine police chief General Francisco Marbil said in a statement. The statement did not say how many people had come forward. The pastor has denied wrongdoing and his lawyers, Ferdinand Topacio and Israelito Torreon, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Quiboloy is a longtime friend of Rodrigo Duterte, who was Philippines’ president until two years ago and frequently appeared on the pastor’s television shows. Marbil urged victims who were suffering in silence to come forward and assured them protection.

Persons: Apollo Quiboloy, “, ” Quiboloy, Quiboloy, Aaron Favila, Francisco Marbil, Marbil, Ferdinand Topacio, of Jesus Christ, Rodrigo Duterte, Duterte, ” Organizations: MANILA — Police, Israelito, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Quiboloy Locations: MANILA, Philippines, United States, Israelito Torreon, of, Davao City, Quiboloy

☆ U.S. and Chinese military commanders speak by phone for the first time in years
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-10 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Courtney-Kube-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Courtney Kube | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

The call was the first time in years that the two regional military commanders have engaged in a formal conversation. Citing multiple recent “unsafe interactions” between China’s People’s Liberation Army and U.S. allies, Paparo said the Chinese military had an obligation “to comply with international laws and norms to ensure operational safety,” the readout said. Paparo also urged the Chinese military to reconsider what he said was its use of “dangerous, coercive and potentially escalatory tactics in the South China Sea and beyond,” it added. Both countries announced plans for a call between their military theater commanders after a visit to Beijing late last month by Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser. A phone call raises the possibility of another in-person meeting between the two leaders before the end of Biden’s term.

Persons: WASHINGTON, Adm, Samuel Paparo, Wu Yanan, Paparo, Wu, John Aquilino, Xi Jinping, Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden, Xi, Jake Sullivan, Biden, Courtney Kube, Carol E, Lee, Jennifer Jett Organizations: United, United States ’, Pacific Command, China’s, Chinese Ministry of Defense, People’s Liberation Army, U.S, Theater, Eastern, Command, South China, Philippine, Daily, Global Times Locations: United States, U.S, South China, South, Taiwan, China, Beijing, Taiwan Strait, Philippines, Philippine, Manila, California, Washington, Hong Kong

It was a stunning denouement for the self-proclaimed appointed son of God, a Filipino evangelist preacher who had millions of followers and influence at the highest levels of government but was wanted by Philippine authorities and the FBI on charges of human trafficking and sexual abuse. That changed in March, when a Philippine court ordered the arrest of Quiboloy and several other people on suspicion of child and sexual abuse and human trafficking. After he surrendered, officials said, Quiboloy was flown by military transport to Manila, the capital, and placed in police detention. After he won the presidency in 2022, Marcos set about dismantling Duterte’s power alliances, including the one with Quiboloy. Marcos said that he did not understand Duterte’s apology but that it was “her prerogative” to make it, local media reported.

Persons: God, Apollo Quiboloy, Rodrigo Duterte, Duterte’s, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Marcos, Quiboloy, ” Marcos, of Jesus Christ, ”, “, Jean Fajardo, ” Sen, Risa Hontiveros, Benhur Abalos, Duterte, Ted Aljibe, colluding, Sara Duterte, Christ Organizations: Philippine, FBI, Philippine Department of Justice, U.S . Treasury Department, Police, Philippine Senate, Getty, U.S Locations: Philippine, Davao, U.S, of Jesus, Philippines, Torreon, Davao City, of, Manila, AFP, Hawaii

CNN —Filipino pastor Apollo Carreon Quiboloy, who is wanted by both the FBI and local law enforcement officers on sexual abuse and human trafficking charges, has been arrested weeks after a standoff with the police. The arrest concludes a fraught showdown between the pastor’s supporters and police who had surrounded a compound in the country’s south where Quiboloy had holed up. ET), the detainees were issued a 24-hour ultimatum to come out from the church’s sprawling 30-hectare (75 acre) compound. Nearly 2,000 officers surrounded the church compound where Quiboloy was believed to be hiding. “Although he is a very prominent person… we will treat him like any other arrested person and will respect his rights.

Persons: Apollo Carreon Quiboloy, Quiboloy, Benhur Abolos, “, God ”, of Jesus Christ, Nicolas Torre III, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, ”, Israelito Torreon, Rodrigo Duterte Organizations: CNN, FBI, Facebook, Philippines ’, ” National, Philippine News Agency, Police, PTV Locations: Philippines, of, Davao, Manila, Brig, California, Philippine

☆ When Do Women Have the Right to Kill in Self-Defense? - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-04 | by ( Rachel Louise Snyder | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +45 min

Mr. Ford kept their daughter at home to ensure Ms. Ford wouldn’t tell anyone in the emergency room how Robert’s injury happened. Ms. Ford, now 65, is serving a sentence of life without parole at the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla. Leigh Goodmark, the author of the book “Imperfect Victims,” said that self-defense law imagines two parties of equal strength, size, weight and physical capability. But where self-defense law really fails to capture a woman’s experience is around the question of imminence. For women like Ms. Ford, Ms. Ayobi and many others, killing their way out of a relationship was an act of salvation — for themselves, for their children.

Persons: Anita Ford, Barry Ford, They’d, Robert, they’d, she’d, didn’t, wouldn’t, Ford, Ford’s, ” Mr, Debra Gomes, “ It’s, ”, I’m, —, George Wright, Wright, — Lionel Cashman, John Aldridge —, Aldridge, Cashman, Ms, “, Theresa Jones, Caroline Light, Michal Goldstein, Agatha Nyarko, they’ve, Cynthia Gillespie, doggedly, Gillespie, Leigh Goodmark, Nancy Grigsby, She’s, ” Ms, Grigsby, she’s, Shajia Ayobi, Ghulam Ayobi, Ayobi, Masiula, he’d, Debbie Mukamal, Andrea Cimino, what’s, proctors, proctor, we’d, Weeks, Miranda Gallegos, Janeen Snyder, Debby Saravia, Jamie Monroe, Malinda Jones, Mukamal, We’re, Lenore Walker, Walker, Karla Porter, Porter, It’s, Michal Buchhandler, Raphael, Mary Anne Franks, shouldn’t, Angelique Lyn Lavallee, Kevin Rust, Bertha Wilson, ’, Justice Wilson, Elizabeth Sheehy, George Zimmerman, Kyle Rittenhouse Organizations: Defense, Fords, Stanford, School’s Criminal, Center, Central, Central California Women’s, National Commission, An Ohio Supreme, Northwest Women’s Law Center, Violence Network, Ford, Stanford Criminal Justice Center, California Institution, Women, Research, Widener University, George Washington University, University of Ottawa Faculty of Law Locations: United States, Central California, Chowchilla, Mexico, Huntington Beach, Calif, Lakewood, An Ohio, Florida, Seattle, Ohio, Afghanistan, Sacramento, Canada, California, manila, Chino Hills, Los Angeles, D.U.I.s, San Jose, Maryland, New York , California, Oklahoma

☆ Who is the real Alice Guo? Fugitive mayor accused of spying for China faces legal reckoning after weeks on the run
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-04 | by ( Kathleen Magramo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The official inquiry into Alice Guo, disgraced former mayor of a small town not far from the capital Manila, has been compulsive viewing for Filipinos since it began in May. But who exactly is Alice Guo? The Bureau of Immigration (BI) says Indonesian authorities have informed them that former Mayor Alice Guo has been arrested in the country on September 4, 2024. Guo shows her chicken farm in Bamban, Tarlac province, in the Philippines in a YouTube video posted on April 20, 2022. The real concern about Guo arose from her alleged ties with business associates from China currently in prison.

Persons: Alice Guo, Guo, “, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, lawbreakers, ”, Alice L, David Buenaventura, Ditjen, she’s, Alice Leal Guo, scammers, Senator Risa Hontiveros, Marcos Jr, ” Marcos, Guo Hua Ping, hasn’t, Zhang Ruijin, Lin Baoying, Zhang, Lin, AMLC, Shiela, Cassandra Li Ong Organizations: CNN, absconding, Ang Law, Immigration, Philippine Bureau, YouTube, Philippine Offshore Gaming, Philippine News Agency, Philippine senate, Facebook, National Bureau of Investigation, Money, Yuan Technology Inc, Hongshen Gaming Technology Inc, QJJ, Inc Locations: Philippines, Manila, China, South China, Southeast Asia, Indonesia, Bamban, Tarlac province, Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippine, what’s, POGOs, Beijing, Singapore

☆ One of China's neighbors is sending out more naval patrols to challenge its attempts to dominate the South China Sea
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-04 | by ( Thibault Spirlet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Read previewThe Philippines says it has stepped up its naval patrols and air surveillance around a disputed island in the South China Sea to counter the growing number of Chinese vessels in the area. In June, Chinese coast guards armed with swords and knives attacked Philippine vessels in the contested waters, resulting in injuries and one soldier losing a thumb. Chinese coast guards holding knives and machetes as they approached Philippine troops in the disputed South China Sea in June. "We once again warn the Philippines to face reality and give up illusions," Liu Dejun, a spokesperson for China's coast guard, said. Advertisement(Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan also lay claim to parts of the South China Sea.)

Persons: —, Roy Vincent Trinidad, BRP Teresa Magbanua, Trinidad, Sabina Shoal, Jay Tarriela, Tarriela, Teresa Magbanua, Liu Dejun, Liu, Sari Arho Havrén, Collin Koh, Koh, Adm, Samuel Paparo, Alexander Lopez Organizations: Service, Coast Guard, Navy, Air Force, Daily Tribune, Business, BRP, Armed Forces, AP, The Daily Tribune, Liberation Army Navy, US Department of State, Royal United Services Institute, Institute of Defence, Strategic, Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, CNN, Pacific Command, Mutual Defense, Philippine National Maritime Council Locations: South, Philippine, Sabina, Escoda, China, Philippines, South China, China's, Sabina Shoal, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Taiwan, Washington, Manila

☆ Travel news: World’s best city for nightlife, according to Time Out
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-24 | by ( Maureen O'Hare | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Editor’s Note: Sign up for Unlocking the World, CNN Travel’s weekly newsletter. Get the latest news in aviation, food and drink, where to stay and other travel developments. CNN —In travel news this week: the world’s best party spots, the city taking a stand against electric scooters, plus the story of how the world’s tallest bridge transformed a continent. Best nightlife citiesSun, sea and samba: Rio de Janeiro in Brazil has been declared the best place in the world to party right now, according to Time Out’s new survey of thousands of people worldwide. The best place to party in Europe, unsurprisingly, is Germany’s legendary clubbing capital Berlin.

Persons: Dolly Parton —, we’ve, Dolly Parton, you’ve, James Beard, Harry Styles, they’ve Organizations: CNN, Rio, •, CNN CNN Travel, Wall Street Locations: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Manila, Philippines, Europe, Berlin, Melbourne, New Jersey, Monterey , California, California, Knoxville , Tennessee, Tennessee

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government said Tuesday that it had filed a diplomatic protest against Beijing after Chinese jets flew dangerously close and fired a volley of flares in the path of a Philippine air force patrol plane over a disputed shoal in the South China Sea. The Southern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army said Saturday that a Philippine air force aircraft “illegally” entered the airspace above the shoal, which China claims, disrupting its combat training activities. The command sent jets and ships to identify, track and drive away the Philippine aircraft, it added. In 2013, China announced a new Air Defense Identification Zone over the East China Sea that covers a chain of disputed islands also claimed by Japan. Washington has repeatedly warned that it is obligated to defend the Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea.

Persons: Romeo Brawner Jr, ” Brawner, Teresita Daza, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, ”, Jay Batongbacal, ” Batongbacal, Thomas Shoal Organizations: Philippine military’s, Scarborough, seaway, ” Department of Foreign Affairs, ”, China, Southern Theater Command, People’s Liberation Army, Philippine, U.S, Air Defense, East China, Institute for Maritime Affairs, Law, University of the, Washington Locations: MANILA, Philippines, Beijing, Philippine, South China, Manila, China, People’s Republic of China, United States, Australia, Canada, East, Japan, Washington, University of the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Scarborough, Asia

☆ Philippines condemns China’s ‘illegal and reckless’ actions for dropping flares in the skies above South China Sea
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-11 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The Philippine military condemned “dangerous and provocative actions” when two Chinese aircraft dropped flares in the path of a Philippine aircraft during a routine patrol around the shoal on Thursday. The Chinese military’s Southern Theater Command countered that the Philippines had disrupted its training, accusing Manila of “illegally intruding” into its airspace. On Sunday, Marcos urged China to act responsibly both in the seas and in the skies. Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea, a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual shipborne commerce, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. China rejects a 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague that Beijing’s expansive claims had no basis under international law.

Persons: Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Marcos, ” Marcos, Chester Cabalza, ”, Cabalza Organizations: Sunday, South China, Southern Theater Command, Presidential Communications Office, International Development, Security Cooperation Locations: South, Manila, Beijing, Scarborough, Philippines, Philippine, “, China, South China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, The Hague

☆ Philippine military condemns China air force for ‘dangerous’ acts in South China Sea
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-10 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

The Philippine military said on Saturday it strongly condemns “dangerous and provocative actions” by China’s air force at a contested shoal in the South China Sea. It was the first time the Philippines has complained of dangerous actions by Chinese aircraft, as opposed to navy or coast guard vessels, since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr took office in 2022. Two People’s Liberation Army Air Force aircraft executed a dangerous maneuver and dropped flares in the path of a NC-212i Philippine air force propeller aircraft conducting a routine maritime patrol over the Scarborough shoal on Thursday morning, the military said in a statement. Filipino fishermen frequent the Scarborough Shoal one of two flashpoints in a longstanding maritime rivalry with China. A China Coast Guard ship monitors a Philippine fisherman aboard his wooden boat in the disputed South China Sea.

Persons: Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Romeo Brawner, Ted Aljibe Organizations: People’s Liberation Army Air Force, China Coast Guard, Getty Locations: Philippine, South China, Philippines, Scarborough, Manila, China, Beijing, Bajo, Masinloc, AFP, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Hague

☆ He won gold for the Philippines. Then the gifts started pouring in — including a $600,000 condo and a lifetime supply of ramen.
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-07 | by ( Erin Liam | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

These freebies are in addition to the Philippine House of Representatives' cash incentive of 3 million Philippine pesos granted to all gold medalists. In the US, gold medalists take home $37,500. Hong Kong — which offers the highest bonus — awards 6 million Hong Kong dollars, or about $768,000, to its gold medalists, per CNBC. AdvertisementCorrection: August 7, 2024 — An earlier version of this story misdescribed Hong Kong. It's 6 million Hong Kong dollars, not 600,000 Hong Kong dollars.

Persons: —, Carlos Yulo, freebies, Yulo, Megaworld, Virgil Lo, Bucket, Marcus Luer, Luer, James Crane, Buchwald, Joseph Schooling, Nestlé's Milo, Yakult, Hugo Boss, it's Organizations: Service, Olympics, Paris, McKinley, Business, Apollo Home Depot, Philippine, Hong, CNBC, Total Sports Asia, Olympic Games Locations: Megaworld, Taguig, Manila, Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines, China

☆ One Small Slip Stalls Biles’s Medal Run in Paris
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-05 | by ( Juliet Macur | More About Juliet Macur | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

But after falling during her routine — as many other gymnasts did, too — Biles ended up in fifth. Alice D’Amato of Italy won the gold medal, with 14.366 points, and Zhou Yaqin of China won the silver, with 14.1 points. Another Italian, Manila Esposito, won the bronze, with 14.0 points. Of the eight gymnasts competing, four fell off the beam, including Sunisa Lee, the other American in the event, who finished sixth. Zhou lost her balance and had to grab the beam to steady herself, miscalculating one of the easier skills in an otherwise stellar routine.

Persons: Simone Biles, Biles, Alice D’Amato of, Zhou Yaqin, Manila Esposito, Sunisa Lee, Zhou, miscalculating Organizations: Paris Games, Rio Games, China Locations: Tokyo, Alice D’Amato of Italy

☆ Olympic moment of the day: Philippines’ Carlos Edriel Yulo gets his nation a historic gold – and himself a new house
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-03 | by ( Kyle Feldscher | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

With his victory in the men’s floor exercise final, Yulo on Saturday became the first Filipino man ever to win an Olympic gold medal, the first Filipino to win any medal in gymnastics and the second Filipino to ever win a gold medal. Just before the 2023 World Championships, Yulo and his longtime coach Munehiro Kugiyama decided to part ways. That didn’t change when he took to the podium to receive the first gold medal ever put around a Filipino man’s neck. But this (pointing at his gold medal) is what really matters to me. I am happy that I won a gold medal and also a house.”

Persons: Paris CNN — Carlos Edriel Yulo, who’d, Yulo, ”, “, I’m, Munehiro Kugiyama, he’s, – it’s, he’ll, “ I’m Organizations: Paris CNN, Bercy, Eiffel Locations: Manila, Paris

☆ Stitch by Stitch, Pacita Abad Crossed Continents and Cultures
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-01 | by ( Andrew Russeth | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

However, in New York, where Abad lived briefly in the 1970s, while studying painting at the Art Students League, her work has been scarce. The Museum of Modern Art owns nothing by her, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art just acquired its first piece. During her life, she proposed shows to U.S. museums and received around 100 rejection letters, her family has said. MoMA PS1 is hosting the first retrospective dedicated to Abad, which was organized by Victoria Sung at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, where it ran last year. It consists of more than 50 works, and while it should be two or four times larger — she was protean and prolific — it is still thrilling.

Persons: Pacita Abad, Abad, Victoria Sung Organizations: Art Students League, Modern Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Walker Art Center Locations: Singapore, Asia, Manila, New York, Minneapolis

☆ Groundbreaking executive White House chef steps down
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Betsy Klein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —White House executive chef Cristeta Comerford has retired after nearly three decades cooking for five commanders-in-chief and their families, a White House official tells CNN. Comerford cooked for America’s first families over 29 years, including the Clintons, Bushes, Obamas, Trumps and Bidens, overseeing all White House cuisine from family meals to state dinners in the executive chef role. Her last day was Friday, the White House official said. “To be a White House chef, it’s really your temperance that really counts for a lot. In 2005, she was one of about 450 applicants for the executive chef role, which included what she described as a final “cook-off” round.

Persons: CNN —, Cristeta Comerford, Comerford, Clinton, Laura Bush, “, Chef Cris, Joe, ”, Jill Biden, Susie Morrison, it’s, Caesar, cobb Organizations: CNN, CNN — White House, White, White House Locations: White, Pennsylvania, United States, Manila, Chicago, Washington, DC, Vienna, Austria

☆ U.S. Pledges $500 Million in New Military Aid to the Philippines, as China Asserts Sea Claims
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( Edward Wong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Biden administration announced on Tuesday an additional $500 million of military aid to the Philippines, further bolstering the defense alliance between the two nations while the Philippine military is grappling with aggressive actions by Chinese ships in the South China Sea. The U.S. and Philippine governments have deepened their military alliance since Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. became president of the Philippines two years ago. Unlike his predecessor, who favored an opening with China, Mr. Marcos has leaned into ties with the United States. It was the first time that such a so-called 2+2 session between the allied nations has taken place in the Philippines. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III arrived in Manila on Monday night as part of a diplomatic mission to the Indo-Pacific region.

Persons: Ferdinand R, Marcos Jr, Marcos, Biden, Antony J, Blinken, Lloyd J, Austin III Organizations: Biden, Mr Locations: Philippines, Philippine, South China, The U.S, China, United States, Hawaii, Manila, Europe, Asia, Russia

☆ Blinken chides Beijing's 'escalating actions' at sea, concerned over Taiwan
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken criticised Beijing's "escalating and unlawful actions" in the South China Sea at a summit on Saturday, while his Russian counterpart said Washington has stoked anxiety with its plan for a nuclear deterrence with ally Seoul for the Korean peninsula. Blinken singled out China over its coast guard's hostile actions against U.S. defense treaty ally the Philippines in the South China Sea. The Philippines' small troop presence on a grounded former U.S. navy ship at the Second Thomas Shoal has angered China for years. Blinken discussed Taiwan with Wang and concerns about Beijing's recent "provocative actions", included a simulated blockade during the inauguration of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, a senior U.S. State Department official said. Wang told Blinken that although communications had been maintained between China and the United States, Washington had not stopped its containment and suppression of Beijing and had even intensified it.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Wang Yi, Beijing's, Blinken, Thomas Shoal, Wang, Lai Ching Organizations: China's, 57th Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Washington, Seoul, U.S, ASEAN Regional Forum, EU, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, Foreign, Taiwan, U.S . State Department Locations: Vientiane, South, China, Philippines, South China, Manila, Russia, India, Australia, Japan, Gaza, Ukraine, North, U.S, Laos, Beijing, Taiwan, United States, Washington

☆ Blinken meets China’s top diplomat in Laos as global giants keep communication lines open
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Nectar Gan | Kylie Atwood | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as China’s increasingly assertive moves in the South China Sea and threats toward Taiwan, have in recent years soured the Washington-Beijing relationship. In contrast, both Putin and Russia’s top diplomat Sergei Lavrov have been greeted in Beijing multiple times since the invasion. against a backdrop of increasingly violent clashes between Manila and Beijing in the South China Sea. “We are pleased to take note of the successful resupply today of the Second Thomas Shoal, which is the product of an agreement reached between the Philippines and China,” Blinken said. His running mate JD Vance has advocated halting military aid to Ukraine in favor of focusing on Taiwan’s defense.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Blinken, Wang Yi, Joe Biden’s, China’s, Xi Jinping’s, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Wang, Dmytro Kuleba, Beijing “, ”, Putin, Sergei Lavrov, Kuleba, Lavrov, Russia …, “, ” Lavrov, Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, Beijing’s, Shoal, Thomas, ” Blinken, Biden, Donald Trump, JD Vance, Kamala Harris Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, United, Foreign, ASEAN, Laos –, North American Aerospace Defense Command, NATO, Ukraine, European Union, Ukrainian Foreign, South China, Republican, Democratic Locations: Hong Kong, China, Laos, Asia, Vietnam, Japan, Philippines, Singapore, Mongolia, Ukraine, South, Taiwan, Washington, Beijing, Alaska, Russia, Moscow, Russia’s, Southeast Asia, South Korea, Manila, South China

☆ The U.S. Must Stand Up to Beijing in the South China Sea - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-25 | by ( Oriana Skylar Mastro | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Over the past 15 years, China has expanded its once-minimal military presence in the South China Sea into a significant one. China has used nonmilitary assets such as its Coast Guard, fishing vessels and maritime militia to bully its neighbors, blockade their ships and build Chinese military bases on disputed islands. Like any unchallenged bully, China has become increasingly aggressive. Last month, Chinese Coast Guard personnel attacked a Philippine supply vessel with axes and other crude weapons — Manila says a Filipino sailor and several others were injured — in one of the worst acts of violence between China and its rivals in the South China Sea in years. The shoal lies about 120 miles off the Philippine island of Palawan and is well within the nation’s exclusive economic zone.

Persons: —, Shoal Organizations: Coast Guard Locations: China, South, Beijing, America, United States, Philippine, Manila, Filipino, Sierra Madre, Philippines, Palawan

☆ Typhoon Gaemi (Carina): Thousands stranded by floods in Philippine capital as deadly typhoon prompts calls for climate action
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-25 | by ( Helen Regan | Kathleen Magramo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Much of the Philippine capital remained underwater Thursday after deadly Typhoon Gaemi worsened torrential monsoon rains that lashed the country, trapping thousands of people in rising flood waters and causing widespread damage. Lisa Marie David/ReutersA road is seen flooded caused by Typhoon Gaemi and monsoon rains on July 24, 2024 in Quezon city, Metro Manila, Philippines. Ezra Acayan/Getty ImagesRescuers evacuate residents from their flooded homes on July 24, 2024 in Quezon city, Metro Manila, Philippines. An aerial view shows Xindian river's rising water level at New Taipei City as typhoon Gaemi passes Taiwan on July 25, 2024. Residents wade a flooded road caused by Typhoon Gaemi and monsoon rains on July 24, 2024 in Marikina, Metro Manila, Philippines.

Persons: Carina –, Gaemi, Typhoon Gaemi, Lisa Marie David, Ezra Acayan, “, Hsiao Huan, Sam Yeh, Armando Balilo, Vico Sotto, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Rai, Odette –, Haiyan, Marcos, ” Marcos, Khevin Yu Organizations: CNN, Metro Manila, Philippine News Agency, Rescuers, Reuters, Central Emergency Operations Center, National Fire Agency, New, Getty, Philippine Coast Guard, PCG, CNN “, Philippine, Super, Greenpeace Locations: Philippine, Philippines, Taiwan, Manila, Luzon, Metro, Marikina City, Metro Manila, Quezon city, Taiwan’s, Tanzanian, Kaohsiung, China, Fujian, New Taipei City, AFP, Bataan, Quezon City, Pasig City, Marikina, –, Pasig, Asia’s, Greenpeace Philippines

☆ Philippines battles to contain oil spill as tanker sinks, leaving one dead
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-25 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A tanker carrying 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel capsized off the coast of Philippines, leading to one casualty and a vast oil spill, local authorities said Thursday. The vessel had departed Limay and was bound for fellow Philippines' port of Iloilo, according to data from MarineTraffic.com. The Coast Guard said it is now addressing the oil spill and intends to finish siphoning the fuel from the sunken tanker to prevent further spreading within seven days. The Philippine Coast Guard Aviation Command separately alerted that it had deployed air assets on a search-and-rescue mission to the sunken tanker. The Philippines-flagged tanker MT Princess Empress suffered engine troubles in rough seas and sank with its load of 800,000 litres of industrial fuel oil off the central Oriental Mindoro province.

Persons: Armando Balilo, Gavan, Balilo, Gaemi, Carina —, Bongbong Marcos Organizations: country's Cost Guard, Authorities, Coast Guard, Philippine Coast Guard Aviation Command, Metro Manila Council, Philippines, Bataan, Terra Nova Locations: Philippines, Philippine, Limay, Bataan, Iloilo, Manila, Taiwan, Mindoro

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