Philippines

[Crafty_Dog]

Philippine defense. Washington has supplied the Philippine navy with an undisclosed number of unmanned surface vessels for its operations in the South China Sea, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said during a visit to Manila this week. He also promised that the U.S. would provide more USVs to the Philippines before the end of the Biden administration’s time in office. The drones will support Manila’s surveillance and operational capabilities in the region.

[Crafty_Dog]

This could complicate standing up to the Chinese!

https://nypost.com/2024/11/23/world-news/philippine-vice-president-publicly-threatens-to-have-the-president-assassinated/

IIRC my previously expressed opinion here was that President Duterte had been bought by the Chinese.

[Crafty_Dog]

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/chinas-military-says-its-conducting-patrols-around-disputed-shoal-south-china-2024-11-28/


https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/china-issues-new-missile-warning-to-us-and-philippines/ar-AA1uVVEV?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=5cd02377c9374430ba8e1292a1ee754f&ei=75

[Crafty_Dog]

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gp46dm49yo

[Crafty_Dog]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/chinese-coast-guard-ship-rams-philippine-coast-guard-vessel-in-south-china-sea/vi-AA1vn4fe?ocid=msedgntp&pc=DCTS&cvid=e5dd81ec3c69484697431022aa595dc6&ei=11

From Harris-Biden?   Crickets , , ,

[Crafty_Dog]

(15) PHILIPPINES SECURES ALL WATER PASSAGES: The Philippine navy announced it is securing all major waterways to enter their archipelago as part of the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept. (This is likely in response to the Chinese submersible drone found in the middle of the Philippines last month, and will require regional allies to assist in securing the waterways. – J.V.)

[Crafty_Dog]

(10) JAPAN AND PHILIPPINES TIGHTEN TIES & OPTION MORE ALLIES: The Foreign Ministers of Japan and the Philippines held a joint press conference after their latest meeting and announced that the two nations would “further strengthen our bilateral and multilateral cooperation.”

Japan’s FM further promised additional defense equipment to the Philippines.

The Philippine FM floated the option of multilateral expansion by adding, “Any collaborative endeavor within our region is really meant to be inclusive” and “open to any like-minded countries.”

Why It Matters: During the U.S.’ transitional season, Japan continues to lead a regional resistance to Chinese aggression. The joint conference announcing a potential expansion of their multilateral ties shows Japan trying to be the premier power in the Asia Pacific with or without U.S. support. Ultimately, this aligns with the U.S.’ interests and may be a greater deterrence to China moving on Taiwan than anything the U.S. could do on its own. – J.V.

[Crafty_Dog]

(12) PHILIPPINES: CONTINGENCY PLANS IN PLACE FOR CHINA: The Armed Forces of the Philippines announced they have adopted contingency plans to respond to Chinese attempts to seize Philippines shoals and islands. These “red lines” for the Philippines government include an attempted seizure of the Scarborough Shoal. Officials say Chinese Coast Guard patrols are getting nearer to the shores.

[Crafty_Dog]

(11) PHILIPPINES ANNOUNCES PARTICIPATION IN TALISMAN SABRE 2025: After observing for several years, the Philippines announced it will participate in Australia’s Talisman Sabre military exercise this August for the first time.
Why It Matters: This is part of a larger regional security integration movement between America and her allies. Talisman Sabre is a major annual exercise comprising tens of thousands of troops at sea, in the air, and conducting amphibious warfare. - J.V.

[Crafty_Dog]

(12) PHILIPPINES EYEING CHINESE STAKES IN NATIONAL POWER GRID: The Philippines’ sovereign wealth fund announced yesterday that it would buy China’s 40% stake in the Philippines national power grid if it was available but they had not approached the Chinese yet. (This is likely a soft call to the Chinese to divest from the Philippine power grid. - J.V.)

(13) NEW ZEALAND AND PHILIPPINES DEVELOPING DEFENSE PACT: New Zealand and the Philippines are starting talks tomorrow to deploy troops to each others’ nations as part of a broader plan to counter Chinese aggression.

(14) USCG TRAINS SCS NATIONS ON BOARDING: The United States Coast Guard (USCG) finished training its Philippine, Indonesian, and Vietnamese counterparts on Friday in maritime law enforcement that included vessel boarding, evidence collection, and arresting techniques to “address maritime threats.” Australian Border Forces joined as observers.
Why It Matters: Intramural Coast Guard training in the SCS has normally focused on interdicting illegal fishing. The announcements for this neglect that entirely and focus on “maritime threats.” Maritime law enforcement will be a critical piece of any potential blockade laid on China so this training may play into those plans as all of the participants have open maritime border disputes with China. - J.V.

[Crafty_Dog]

(7) PH TO CHINA: STOP AGGRESSION AND WE WON’T THREATEN YOU: "Let's make a deal with China: Stop claiming our territory, stop harassing our fishermen and let them have a living, stop ramming our boats, stop water cannoning our people, stop firing lasers at us and stop your aggressive and coercive behavior, and we'll return the typhoon missiles," Philippine President Marcos told China via a public interview yesterday.
Why It Matters: This is the most aggressive Marcos has ever been with China because the Typhon actually threatens China. China will likely take this as a significant threat and increase aggressive actions against the Philippines. The Philippines is likely to continue arming themselves and increase their own aggression against China. - J.V.

[Crafty_Dog]

https://www.urbanwarfareinstitute.com/the-battle-of-marawi

[Crafty_Dog]

(9) USMC PRE-STAGING EQUIPMENT IN PHILIPPINES: The United States Marine Corps will return to Subic Bay in the Philippines to pre-stage equipment for disaster relief and humanitarian aid for the first time in 32 years.
The USMC Commanding Officer said the site would house “motor transportation, communication, and engineering” equipment but no munitions.
Why It Matters: The equipment listed fills a combat support role. Subic Bay also has a new Philippine Navy base and regularly hosts visiting American forces. This is likely a means to establish a permanent supply chain in preparation for a potential Pacific war against China. - J.V.

[Crafty_Dog]

(10) U.S. TO DEPLOY ADDITIONAL WEAPONS TO PHILIPPINES: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced at a joint conference with his Philippine counterpart that the U.S. would deploy the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) and unmanned surface vessels (USV) for Balikatan this year.
Why It Matters: The Marine Corps publicized a Pacific prepositioning plan over a year ago and is likely to leave the NMESIS in the Philippines following Balikatan. This will significantly enhance the U.S.’ forward-deployed presence and threaten Chinese surface combatants within 100nm of the Philippines. - J.V.

[Crafty_Dog]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/philippines-adds-speedy-warship-to-maritime-arsenal/ar-AA1CvApy?ocid=msedgntp&pc=DCTS&cvid=4f8797d7043249e4a309aa45fad2ccc2&ei=168

[Crafty_Dog]

Deepening partnership. Australia has donated 20 advanced drones worth $590 million to the Philippines, along with specialized training for their operators. The drones will boost the Philippines’ ability to patrol the West Philippine Sea, detect illegal fishing, intercept unauthorized vessels and respond to other maritime threats.

[Crafty_Dog]

Global Rollup
(7) PHILIPPINES CONFIRMS BALIKATAN IS JOINT DEFENSE: A spokesman for the Philippine armed forces confirmed the Balikatan exercise is meant to train for defense of the Philippines with its allies “in consonance with our Mutual Defense Treaty” when asked about Chinese reactions to the exercise.
( GOOGLE RECOGNIZES PHILIPPINE CLAIMS ON MAPS: Google Maps now recognizes the West Philippine Sea alongside the South China Sea. (The name dispute matters for each claimant to the islands in this body of water. China is likely to take retaliatory action against Google for this. - J.V.)

[Crafty_Dog]

The Chinese army occupied the disputed Sandy Cay reef, which is part of the Spratly Archipelago in the South China Sea and is located just a "few miles" from an important military post in the Philippines, Titu Island - reported the "Financial Times," citing Chinese media.
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Slicing the salami , , , smells to me like they are about to put us to the test , , ,

[ccp]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandy_Cay_Reef#/media/File:Filipino_scientists_inspects_feature_Sandy_Cay,_South_China_Sea.jpg

Not sure how this would help in an invasion.

They can put a hot dog stand on it for the passing ships perhaps.

[ccp]

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2025/04/29/2439121/nsc-refutes-china-claim-sandy-cay-seizure

I guess they might be able to increase it's size and mabye make into a landing strip or storage site or attach a dock or something .