National Affairs

No Picture

WPS: Testing Our National Will

n his book “The New Rules of War” Professor Sean McFate describes the post-WWII era as a period of “durable disorder.” He cites the following evidence to support his finding: increasing challenges on the “rules-based” world order; rising number of “fragile” or “failed” states; half of the countries in the world are experiencing some form of conflict; armed conflicts today…

Read More

No Picture

Why PNOY and BBM Leaned on America, Not China

The world’s predominant superpower will always create the conditions to perpetuate its global dominance and weaker nations will always be subsumed by these conditions. Like it or not, that’s just how the world works. It was true during the ancient Byzantine and Roman empires as it was true during the recent British and American empires. How do superpowers create the…


No Picture

The Philippine Blue Economy Insights and Foresights Presented at the Beacon Expo 2023, on 8-September-2023

INTRODUCTION. To all distinguished guests from various agencies of government and the private sector, subject matter experts, and all  our attendees, a pleasant morning to all. Foremost, I would like to congratulate the Maritime League and the Department of Transportation for spearheading the Blue Economy Annual Trade and Conference, or BEACON 2023. It is my distinct honor to represent the…


Rightsizing and Retooling Defense Forces

In April this year, the President ordered a review of numerous government positions for rightsizing to “upgrade and reskill the workforce in order to improve state services and programs.” The call emanated from the President’s 2022 State of the Nation Address. Consequently several legislators proposed a National Rightsizing Act that is well-aligned with the Revised Administrative Code. The review and…


Why PNoy and BBM Leaned on America, Not China

The world’s predominant superpower will always create the conditions to perpetuate its global dominance and weaker nations will always be subsumed by these conditions. Like it or not, that’s just how the world works. It was true during the ancient Byzantine and Roman empires as it was true during the recent British and American empires. How do superpowers create the…


Restructuring Defense Forces For Maritime Domain Protection

One of the pillars of the 1995 and the amended AFP Modernization Law is force restructuring and organizational development. The original law focused on external defense given the transfer of the Internal Security Operations (ISO) from the AFP to the newly created Philippine National Police. Through Congressional Joint Resolution No. 28, the ground forces were supposed to be reorganized into…


DEFENDING OUR PATRIMONY :The need to Reshape the AFP’s Operational Plan

The 2023 budget deliberations and recent legislative hearings once more brought to the fore their observation about our present inability to confront intrusions into the West Philippine Sea and the Philippine Rise. One senator urged “the government to expedite the buildup of defense forces in the WPS.” Another congressman was advocating to stress lethality in the development of this force….



Getting to Know the New Coast Guard Commandant ADM Artemio M Abu

Much has been written about this honorable and patriotic man.  He is known as the man who is making the PCG radiate.  “R.A.D.I.A.T.E.S.” as an acronym for Responsible, Accountable, Disciplined, Inspired, Able, Team-spirited, Servant leaders, which he always reminds to the men and women of PCG, for them not to forget to pursue professional excellence, have commitment to public service,…


Three Rounds of Coercion in Philippine Waters in 2022

In three separate incidents in the months of March and April, Chinese law enforcement vessels have challenged marine research and hydrocarbon exploration activities within the Philippine exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea. Round One: China Squares off with Taiwan and Philippines over Marine Research The Legend, a research vessel belonging to the Taiwan Ocean Research Institute under the Ministry…


South China Sea Disputes – A Zero Sum Undertaking

Conflicting island and Maritime claims are the subject matters for the South China Sea (SCS) territorial disputes. The sovereign states involved are some ASEAN nations; outside ASEAN would be Taiwan and China. An estimated 3.37 Trillion worth of global trade passes though SCS annually which accounts for a third of the global maritime trade 80mpercent of China’s energy imports and…


DEFENDING THE MARITIME ZONES

Some researchers contend that a sovereign state has three (3) interrelated functions in the maritime domain: maritime safety, maritime security and maritime defense. These functions require legislation, compliance to some international conventions, and executive issuances that are directed to various maritime agencies. Maritime safety, the first function, refers to actions that promote safety of life at sea including search and…


Dangerous Ground

The first time I came across the term “dangerous ground” was during my sea phase training in September 1976 on board BRP Rizal, a fleet minesweeper, when the ship conducted resupply of the marines deployed in Spratlys. The nautical charts then were blueprint copies but one could not miss the words “dangerous ground” printed in the charts in bold letters….


Our National Security Interests

National Security Policy 2017-2022 is a declaration of the government’s commitment to continuously develop a national security system that is rules-based, able to effectively respond not only to security threats but also to opportunities beneficial to the national interest. Enhancing the process, scope, and organizational cohesiveness of the national security system is imperative for the Government, with the support of…


Speech of Senator Aquilino “KOKO” Pimentel

Honored trustees, officers, and esteemed members of the Maritime League, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, a pleasant morning to all! I would like to begin by thanking the Maritime League and your President and Chairman, retired Vice Admiral Eduardo R. Santos, for the opportunity to address today’s Maritime Conference. Thank you too to retired Vice Admiral Edmund Tan for coordinating…


The Ukraine Crisis and the ‘West Philippine Sea:’ The Necessity of Self-Defense in International Law

There have been a number of comments in the domestic discourse on the Ukraine crisis – both on social media and mainstream media – but unfortunately, a discussion of the legal aspect seems to be wanting. An understanding of these issues cannot be sufficiently had without taking into account the pertinent rules of international law. For weeks the United States…


SBMA and PNP-MG Partner to Provide Security for Subic Bay

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) and the Philippine National Police (PNP), through its Maritime Group (PNP-MG), signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) that will provide better security for the waters of Subic Bay. The MOA signing transpired between SBMA Chairman and Administrator Rolen C. Paulino and PNP-MG Director Police Brigadier General Harold B. Tuzon, and was witnessed by Deputy…


PPA PMO NCR South Conducts Live Simulation Exercise to Handle Various Port Threats

The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) Port Management Office (PMO) of NCR-South, through its Port Police Division (PPD), conducted a live Simulation Exercise (SIMEX) on bomb threat or bomb attack, drug interdiction, and arson scenarios on 8-June-2022 at the Terminal Management Office of Pasig. The simulation was spearheaded by Station Commander Billy L. Estrada, in cooperation and participation by the Philippine…


PCG Installs 5 Buoys Carrying Flag in the WPS

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) successfully installed five 30-FOOT-LONG NAVIGATIONAL BUOYS CARRYING THE PHILIPPINE FLAG in four critical islands in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) – Lawak Island, Likas Island, Parola Island, and Pag-asa Island. On 18-May-2022, PCG Commandant, CG Admiral Artemio M Abu led the arrival ceremony for the five Coast Guard vessels that laid out the SYMBOLS OF…


Protecting the Protectors

In the early 2000s, the AFP created an ad hoc committee to conduct a feasibility study on the acquisition of three (3) 90-meter corvettes offered by a Canadian firm. As former skipper of a similar vessel, I was designated as the vice chair. The “project” did not materialize because the proposal lacked certain requirements. Had the government pursued it, the…


PH-US BALIKATAN in 2022

Manila, April 8, 2022—Members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the U.S. military gathered today to celebrate the successful completion of Balikatan 22, the 37th iteration of the annual bilateral exercise. Over the last two weeks, nearly 9,000 exercise participants from the AFP and U.S. military trained shoulder-to-shoulder from the northern coast of Luzon to Palawan, focusing…


Bridges Opened to Public in April 2022

CEBU-CORDOVA LINK EXPRESSWAY The Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) Corporation has announced that it will be open in April-2022. CCLEX is the first toll expressway in the Visayan region of the country and comes with a massive investment of at least Php30 billion pesos. CCLEX will be the third connection between Mactan Island and mainland Cebu. The 8.9-kilometer toll expressway connects…



Engaging the Enemy at the Littorals: A History of Coastal Defense in the Philippines from the Pre-Spanish period to the Second World War (Part 2)

The American Era: Coastal Defense Fortifications Take Shape The importance of Corregidor Island in the military complex dates back as far as the beginning of the Spanish Colonial period during the 1500’s, as Spanish Galleons used to anchor at the Island or on other nearby islands. Apart from being a naval anchorage, it was an outpost to alert Manila and…


Preparation for the Proposed New Naval Forward Operating Base Facing the Pacific

01-March-2022, Bagamanoc, Catanduanes – CAPTAIN SALVADOR G LAVAPIE JR PN(GSC), Chairman, Technical Working Group (TWG) Forward Operating Base (FOB) Catanduanes and Commander, Naval Task Force – 31 (NTF-31), paid a courtesy call to Catanduanes Governor, Hon. Joseph Chua Cua on 01 March 2022. The courtesy call is in connection with the proposed construction of a Forward Operating Base (FOB) for…