Balita.org: Your Premier Source for Comprehensive Philippines News and Insights! We bring you the latest news, stories, and updates on a wide range of topics, including politics, culture, economy, and more. Stay tuned to know everything you wish about your favorite stars 24/7.
The country’s headline inflation rate rose to 5.3 percent in August 2023 from the 4.7 percent recorded in the previous month. This brings the year-to-date inflation rate to 6.6 percent, higher than the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) assumption of 5.0 to 6.0 percent for full year 2023.
MANILA: The Philippine president said Friday that his country does not want a confrontation but will staunchly defend its waters after its coast guard removed a floating barrier placed by China at a disputed shoal in the South China Sea. It was the first time President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has spoken publicly against China's installation of the 300-metre (980-foot) -long barrier at the entrance to Scarborough Shoal which was dismantled at his order. "We're not looking for trouble but what we'll do is to continue defending the maritime territory of the Philippines and the rights of our fishermen, who have been fishing in those areas for hundreds of years," Marcos said in response to a question at a news briefing in southern Surigao del Norte province. The latest flare-up between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea, one of the world's busiest trade routes, comes after Marcos decided earlier this year to allow an expansion of the US military presence in the Philippines under a 2014 defence pact. The prospect of more American forces in local military camps in the northern Philippines across from Taiwan and southern China alarmed and infuriated Beijing. After the Philippine coast guard dismantled the rope and net barrier at the mouth of Scarborough Shoal, Filipino fishing boats entered the shallow lagoon and caught about 164 tons of fish in just one day, Marcos said.
MANILA: Two Philippine supply boats breached a Chinese coast guard blockade in the South China Sea on Wednesday in a recurring confrontation near a disputed shoal some fear could spark a larger security crisis that could draw in the United States. Two Philippine coast guard ships escorted the smaller supply boats, but it wasn't immediately clear whether the ships were blocked by the Chinese coast guard from coming closer to the Second Thomas Shoal, where a small contingent of Filipino marines has stood guard for years aboard a long-marooned but still actively commissioned warship, the BRP Sierra Madre. China also claims the shoal and has surrounded it with its coast guard ships and militia vessels to prevent the Philippines from delivering construction materials that Beijing fears could be used to reinforce the Sierra Madre and turn it into a permanent territorial outpost. "Despite attempts by a significant number of China coast guard and Chinese maritime militia vessels to block, harass, and interfere with the routine rotation and resupply mission," the two Philippine boats managed to deliver provisions to the Filipino forces at the shoal, a Philippine government body overseeing the disputed waters said in a statement late Wednesday. "The Philippines' resupply missions and maintenance of BRP Sierra Madre are part of regular operations in line with domestic and international law and ensures safety and well-being of our stationed personnel," the inter-agency body said.
MANILA: The Philippines is investigating a maritime incident to find out what killed three Filipino fishermen in a ramming incident that sank their boat in the South China Sea, its president said on Wednesday. "We assure the victims, their families, and everyone that we will exert every effort to hold accountable those who are responsible for this unfortunate maritime incident," Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on the X social media platform. Three Filipino fishermen died after their fishing boat was rammed by an unidentified foreign commercial vessel while it was moored in the South China Sea, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said on Wednesday. The incident occurred on Monday while the boat was moored 85 nautical miles (157 km) northwest of the disputed Scarborough Shoal, it said in a statement. Eleven crew members survived when the boat sank.
MANILA: The Philippines is investigating a maritime incident to find out what killed three Filipino fishermen in a ramming incident that sank their boat in the South China Sea, its president said on Wednesday. "We assure the victims, their families, and everyone that we will exert every effort to hold accountable those who are responsible for this unfortunate maritime incident," Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on the X social media platform. Three Filipino fishermen died after their fishing boat was rammed by an unidentified foreign commercial vessel while crossing the South China Sea, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said on Wednesday. The incident occurred on Monday while the boat was transiting 85 nautical miles (157 km) northwest of the disputed Scarborough Shoal, it said in a statement. Eleven crew members survived when the boat sank.
MANILA: Forces from Manila, Britain, Canada, Japan and the United States kicked off on Monday two weeks of joint naval exercises in Philippine waters as a "show of force", amid flaring regional tension. With more than 1,800 participants, the drills follow last week's move by Beijing to block Philippine fishermen from Asia's most contested maritime feature, the Scarborough Shoal, held by China in the South China Sea. This year's "Sama Sama" drills are being held in the southern part of the island of Luzon, featuring naval exercises in areas such as anti-submarine warfare, air defence and search and rescue, the Philippine navy said. "With this show of force and active engagement of our allies and partners, 'Sama Sama' transcends mere military exercises," Philippine navy chief Rear Admiral Toribio Adaci said at the opening event.
ABOARD BRP SINDANGAN (AP) — A Chinese coast guard ship came within a meter (3 feet) of colliding with a Philippine patrol ship it was trying to block in the South China Sea, in an alarming incident that intensified fears that territorial disputes in the waters could spark a larger crisis.
This is what it looks like when a Chinese naval vessel bears down on your fishing boat.