Filipino fishermen from Zambales speak out and tell us their experiences with the China Coast Guard and maritime militia, which continue to encroach on the West Philippine Sea.

Jim Carouso and Ray Powell interview the Philippine Coast Guard's spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, Commodore Jay Tarriela, about China's continuing harassment of Philippine ships at a time when the mist of the previous day's water-cannoning near Scarborough Shoal was still dissipating. They discuss the importance of countering Chinese aggression and protecting the international rules-based order. They ask Jay to weigh the benefits of the Philippines' transparency campaign against its risks, and to comment on ASEAN's reluctance to publicly back Manila in its maritime struggles and its inability to produce a South China Sea Code of Conduct.

Well-produced Wendover Productions overview of the South China Sea dispute.

Join hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso as they delve into the crucial issues defining the 21st century's pivotal region--one that spans from Hollywood to Bollywood. Learn to navigate its most important geopolitical, economic, military, environmental and cultural challenges, with a practical emphasis on why it matters. Hosted by seasoned diplomatic and national security practitioners, each episode offers insightful analysis and thought-provoking discussions. From bustling cities like Beijing, Mumbai and Tokyo, through the diverse countries of Southeast Asia, down to the Australian Outback and the pristine islands of the South Pacific, expert guests help Jim and Ray explore the region's defining issues, emergent crises and future trajectories. Discover the interplay of the U.S.-China strategic competition against the interests of rapidly emerging powers like India and Indonesia. Explore the complexities of regional alliances old and new like ASEAN, AUKUS and "the Quad". Understand the forces driving hotspots like the Korean Peninsula, Taiwan Strait, South China Sea and the China-India border ... and most importantly, why we should care.

Infographic of China's artificial islands in the South China Sea overlaid with the Philippines' rights under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Join hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso as they delve into the crucial issues defining the 21st century's pivotal region--one that spans from Hollywood to Bollywood. Learn to navigate its most important geopolitical, economic, military, environmental and cultural challenges, with a practical emphasis on why it matters. Hosted by seasoned diplomatic and national security practitioners, each episode offers insightful analysis and thought-provoking discussions. From bustling cities like Beijing, Mumbai and Tokyo, through the diverse countries of Southeast Asia, down to the Australian Outback and the pristine islands of the South Pacific, expert guests help Jim and Ray explore the region's defining issues, emergent crises and future trajectories. Discover the interplay of the U.S.-China strategic competition against the interests of rapidly emerging powers like India and Indonesia. Explore the complexities of regional alliances old and new like ASEAN, AUKUS and "the Quad". Understand the forces driving hotspots like the Korean Peninsula, Taiwan Strait, South China Sea and the China-India border ... and most importantly, why we should care.

Philippine vlogger and journalist Richard Heydarian talks to SeaLight Director Ray Powell about ongoing tensions in the West Philippine Sea.

Managing Chinese Gray Zone Activity in the South China Sea and Indian Ocean Region

Ray Powell is the Director of SeaLight, a maritime transparency initiative of the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation at Stanford University, and a member of the South China Sea NewsWire Advisory Board. This interview was conducted on March 12, 2024.

How does a government respond to a threat or coercion by a larger and better-resourced military? That is a question faced by countries across the Indo-Pacific when it comes to actions conducted by the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Taiwan and the Philippines have experienced similar, yet unique, forms of PRC coercion that have resulted in both capitals developing analogous responses that fall within an analytical spectrum. This report focuses on how these two Indo-Pacific countries responded to actions conducted by the military apparatus of the PRC since 2022.

The Philippines and Singapore signed a defense pact Wednesday that will allow their militaries to broaden their engagement, but few details were given about how the agreement could help address their security concerns in a region rife with conflicts.

China is bullying its rivals in the South China Sea. For some tourists, that makes it a perfect holiday destination

Beijing, Manila give contradictory information on what was agreed over the disputed reef in the South China Sea.

Temporary deal agreed to prevent escalation of standoffs around the Sierra Madre, a Philippine ship grounded on the disputed Second Thomas Shoal.

Philippine president makes remarks as Beijing and Manila announce a provisional deal to defuse tensions at the Second Thomas Shoal.

In a span of around 15 hours, the Philippines went from announcing an “understanding on the provisional arrangement” with China on resupply missions to Ayungin Shoal to issuing a statement blasting Beijing’s foreign spokesperson an “inaccurate” statement about the bilateral deal.

The coast guards of the Philippines and Vietnam are in talks on holding their first joint exercises in August as the two Southeast Asian nations explore ways to settle their overlapping claims while grappling with China’s increasingly aggressive actions in the South China Sea.

For over two months now, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG)’s BRP Teresa Magbanua has been keeping watch over Escoda (Sabina) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea, because of concerns that China is trying to build yet another “artificial island.”

The Maritime Security Battalion aims to secure Philippine maritime routes and bring the Philippine Marine Corps into the littorals.

A recently signed agreement will open a direct line of communication between the presidential offices of China and the Philippines to help prevent any new confrontation from spiraling out of control in the disputed South China Sea, according to highlights of the accord seen by The Associated Press on Tuesday.