President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s three-day state visit to Cambodia, the first by a Philippine leader in nearly a decade, is being cast as “highly important” by Manila’s diplomats. But its real weight lies not in protocol or photo opportunities. The Philippines must prove it can protect its people from cross-border trafficking while also seizing trade […]

Thailand and the Philippines—both maritime nations deeply intertwined with ocean resources—are embarking on contrasting journeys toward blue economic development. While both face mounting pressures from climate change, coastal erosion, and overexploitation of marine assets, Thailand is actively deploying innovative financing and governance tools, whereas the Philippines is still laying the legislative and institutional backbone needed […]

Da Nang is a city that greets you with movement. The hum of motorbikes, the shimmer of the Han River, the sweep of clouds over the Marble Mountains—it feels alive even when standing still. At dusk, the bridges turn into spectacles: the Dragon Bridge breathing fire into the night sky, the river reflecting bursts of […]

In the South China Sea, diplomacy is often as turbulent as the waters themselves. Now, the Philippines wants to calm the storm with a legally binding Code of Conduct. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has vowed to make this his regional legacy, pushing for rules that would prevent collisions at sea, halt island-building, and draw a […]

New York City marks its 400th anniversary this year—a time not only for celebration but for reflection on the stories that shaped it. Across the boroughs, commemorations honor both iconic milestones and the lives of communities too often left out of official histories. Among the most striking of these is at the Queens Museum, where […]

For the Philippines, the South China Sea is both a vital resource and a recurring flashpoint. Its reefs and shoals are not only rich fishing grounds but also gateways for energy exploration and global shipping. Yet the disputes that play out there are not driven only by geography or resources. They are fueled by a […]

Vietnam’s accelerating maritime construction in the South China Sea is shifting the balance of power in one of the world’s most contested waterways, with direct consequences for the Philippines as it confronts increasingly assertive Chinese actions in waters it claims. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) reported on August 22 that satellite images […]

At the grand stone façade of the Manila Cathedral, a figure carved from travertine looks serenely upon the faithful. She is St. Rose of Lima, honored across the Americas as a beloved saint, canonized in the 17th century, and quietly remembered in the Philippines as its secondary patroness. “Her presence at the cathedral reminds faithful […]

This September, Lagen Island in Palawan’s Bacuit Bay unveils a sweeping transformation, marking a new era for one of the Philippines’ most beloved island sanctuaries. Long known for its raw beauty and quiet charm, the reimagined Lagen emerges as a 42-key private retreat where tropical forests meet towering limestone cliffs and the sea glimmers in […]

When China’s Chang’e-6 spacecraft made history last year by retrieving the first lunar samples from the Moon’s far side, it was widely celebrated as a technical milestone and a geopolitical statement of Beijing’s growing space ambitions. Yet buried in a recent paper by Chinese engineers is a striking detail: the Philippines, a much smaller power […]