Sep 19, 2023 | South East Asia (SEA), IUU Fishing - Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing, Regional, Environmental Concerns, Maritime Incidents, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic, Extraction of Marine Resources, Foreign, West Philippines Sea Update
Sen. Francis “Tol” Tolentino believes there’s something deeper in China’s coral harvesting endeavors in Iroquios or Rozul Reef in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), saying that it might be a prelude to reclamation. “May iba pang plano siguro po riyan, di...
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Sep 17, 2023 | Regional, South East Asia (SEA), Environmental Concerns, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic, Extraction of Marine Resources, Foreign, West Philippines Sea Update
Released / WESCOM MANILA, Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) confirmed that the Rozul Reef — an area within West Philippine Sea where Chinese vessels were seen swarming — has been completely stripped off of its naturally occurring corals. ...
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Sep 15, 2023 | South East Asia (SEA), Maritime Violations, Regional, Environmental Concerns, Foreign Intrusion, Maritime Incidents, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic, Foreign, West Philippines Sea Update
Chinese fishing vessels continue to swarm in three key areas in the West Philippine Sea, the Western Command (Wecom) has disclosed citing its recent aerial patrols. In a statement, the Wescom said the heightened presence of Chinese fishing vessels were noticed in...
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Sep 5, 2023 | Maritime Violations, Environmental Concerns, Others, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic
Authorities have responded to avert the spread of an oil spill to other areas as a motor tugboat sank off Naga, Cebu, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) bared Monday, Sept. 4. The PCG said that MTug Sugbo 2 sustained a hull damage on its steering portion inside the...
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Dec 16, 2022 | Environmental Concerns, Maritime Incidents, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic
Several ships believed to be Chinese maritime militia were spotted by fishermen in Iroquois Reef in the West Philippine Sea in this photo taken in September. The military said an average of 25...
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Dec 15, 2022 | Activities, Environmental Concerns, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic
The Philippines must find a way to explore for oil and gas in the South China Sea even without a deal with China, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Thursday, emphasizing his country’s right to exploit energy reserves in the contested waterway. “That’s a big thing...
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Dec 13, 2022 | Activities, Environmental Concerns, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture (DA) has teamed up with the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) to curb the entry of smuggled agricultural commodities to local markets....
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Dec 5, 2022 | Environmental Concerns, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic
MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippines must find a way to explore for oil and gas in the South China Sea even without a deal with China, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on Thursday, emphasizing his country’s right to exploit energy reserves in the contested...
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Nov 29, 2022 | Environmental Concerns, Others, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic
Representative Edward Hagedorn of Palawan’s 3rd District is trying to get a bill passed that would make the area around Kalayaan Island Group and Scarborough Shoal a marine protected area. House Bill No. 6373 proposes to designate as a marine protected area (MPA) the...
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Nov 9, 2022 | Environmental Concerns, Others, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic
CEBU, Philippines — The Bureau of Customs-Port of Cebu and the Philippine Coast Guard-Central Visayas have agreed to work together to prevent the entry and proliferation of illicit goods through intensified maritime patrol and interdiction operations. Newly-installed...
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Nov 2, 2022 | Environmental Concerns, Others, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic, Foreign
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) yesterday reiterated that discussions on joint oil and gas exploration in the West Philippine Sea should fall within the limits of the Philippine Constitution. “We are open to talks with any country which...
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Jun 1, 2022 | Environmental Concerns, Others, Maritime Situational Awareness, Domestic
The Department of Foreign Affairs has protested China’s unilateral fishing ban in the disputed South China Sea, where the Philippines and other neighboring Asian states have overlapping claims. Manila said it does not recognize China’s fishing moratorium from...
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