Almost 70 per cent of Filipino respondents in a survey said Congress should focus immediately on curbing rising commodity prices.

Wang Yi vows China will continue to invest more in Cambodian infrastructure and promote production capacity cooperation: foreign ministry.

This year’s ‘biggest ever’ Balikatan exercises kicked off as Manila took delivery of a state-of-the-art missile system from India – and had hopes for US$2.5 billion in US military aid.

The Mobile Cooperation Team initiative was first set up in 2017 as part of Tokyo’s efforts to train and equip the coastguards of Southeast Asian nations that felt threatened by China’s presence.

America’s top envoy pledges to continue raising atrocities with responsible governments days before he is expected to meet senior officials in Beijing.

Cambodian Foreign Minister Chenda Sophea Sok tells Chinese counterpart Wang Yi that Phnom Penh opposes ‘troublemaking in the region by extraterritorial forces’.

At a naval symposium in Qingdao, senior PLA commander Zhang Youxia calls for dialogue and abandoning ‘cold war mentality’ amid elevated regional tensions.

Manila has received its first batch of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles from India, in a carefully timed shipment observers say is the start of a ‘clear push’ to expand military sales with Southeast Asia.

Intelligence officers have been sent to investigate potential national-security threats in Cagayan, where about 4,600 Chinese students reportedly live.

The US$868 million Subic-Clark railway will link the former American military bases turned commercial hubs.

Next week’s iteration of the annual joint exercise will be the biggest and a clear signal to Beijing, observers say.

The remarks came after some lawmakers expressed alarm over the some 4,000 non-local students in the province that also houses military bases accessed by US troops.

China rejects Philippine leader Ferdinand Marcos Jnr’s claims that its ‘gentleman’s agreement’ with his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte was a ‘secret’ and urges Manila to stick to its commitments on the disputed Second Thomas Shoal.

Location is ‘deterrent signal’ to Beijing as tensions spike with Manila, analyst says, while another sees Washington readying for hot conflict over Taiwan or South China Sea.

Wang Yi makes several veiled swipes at the US in a press conference with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi, also hitting out at trade protectionism.

Mid-range launcher now in the Philippines is a ‘powerful weapon’ capable of retaliatory strikes on mainland China, analysts say.

Up to 17,000 participants are expected to take part in the exercises, including 16,000 members of the Philippine and US military forces.

Six vessels would participate in the Balikatan exercise that involves a simulation of an armed recapture of an island near the South China Sea.

Washington should offer ‘alternatives to what our competitors are offering’, says Foreign Relations committee chair, referring to Beijing’s advances.

The call between Dong Jun and Lloyd Austin comes after a series of clashes between the Chinese coastguard and the Philippines, a US ally.

Some 4,600 Chinese nationals have been recorded to be living in the Cagayan area and enrolled in private universities in the city of Tuguegarao.

Firebrand ex-leader Rodrigo Duterte says his successor is a ‘crybaby’, with the two trading jibes over drug-use accusations and their opposing South China Sea stances. Will they ever bury the hatchet? ‘It’s complicated’.

The video call between Secretary Lloyd Austin and Admiral Dong Jun, who was appointed defence minister in December, is the latest sign of a thaw in US-China relations.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi will travel to the three countries this week as Beijing steps up diplomacy with Southeast Asia amid US rivalry.

The Philippine leader says the US has given its commitment to honour the Mutual Defence Treaty with Manila.