The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) confirmed on Tuesday that Chinese naval drills were conducted near Bajo de Masinloc on July 31 and August 1, 2026, marking the first time Manila directly observed such activity after previously disputing Beijing’s claims of exercises in the area.

The Philippines is looking to Ukraine’s expertise in drone warfare as it seeks to strengthen its maritime capabilities in the West Philippine Sea, where the country exercises sovereign rights under international law. While analysts see potential in the proposed partnership, they caution that adapting battlefield technology for grey-zone maritime operations will require careful consideration.

The Philippines has formally presented its case for an extended continental shelf (ECS) in the West Palawan Region before the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS), marking a significant milestone in the country’s 15-year effort to secure sovereign rights over thousands of square kilometers of seabed in the West Philippine Sea.

Vietnam has protested China’s activities at Antelope Reef, saying the reclamation is “completely illegal and invalid,” according to the Inquirer report quoting Vietnamese foreign ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang. China, for its part, insists the Paracel Islands are part of its territory and says the work is meant to improve living conditions on the islands.

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. condemned the latest confrontation in Ayungin Shoal as “unacceptable” after a Philippine Navy personnel was injured in a clash with the China Coast Guard on Monday, July 20. Palace officials said the government views the incident as another dangerous escalation in the West Philippine Sea.

MANILA, Philippines — Chinese rubber boats moved toward the BRP Sierra Madre, an old World War II LST-542-class tank landing ship, during an encounter at Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal) within the West Philippine Sea. The Philippines said Chinese coast guard personnel approached at close range and injured a Filipino sailor, while Beijing accused Manila of provocative maneuvers. The incident underscores the deepening dispute over control of the shoal, where the Philippines

MANILA — The European Union has escalated its criticism of China, accusing Beijing, alongside Moscow, of trying to reshape the global order and revive a spheres-of-influence model, in language that underscores growing Western alignment on security concerns from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific. Reuters reported that the EU’s new strategic paper describes China as a “key enabler” of Russia’s war in Ukraine and flags Beijing’s increasingly assertive behavior in the South China Sea a

The reaffirmation comes as the 10th anniversary of the ruling drew international attention. On 12 July 2026, the Philippines and 13 partner countries issued a joint statement reaffirming the award as “final and binding” and saying there is no legal basis for China’s expansive maritime claims. Beijing responded by denouncing that statement and urging the countries to stop “spreading lies” about the arbitration.

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines and 13 other countries have called on China to abide by the 2016 arbitral award on the West Philippine Sea, reaffirming that the ruling is “final, legally binding, and definitive” between the Philippines and China on the maritime claims covered by the tribunal.

On 12 July 2016, an arbitral tribunal constituted under Annex VII of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) issued a landmark award in The Republic of the Philippines v. The People’s Republic of China. The tribunal held that China’s claims to historic rights within the “nine-dash line” had no lawful effect beyond entitlements available under UNCLOS, and it found multiple Chinese actions unlawful vis-à-vis the Philippines’ rights in its exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

The 12 July 2016 Award rendered by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague determined that China’s claims of historic rights within the South China Sea, as represented by its so-called nine-dash line, have no legal basis under international law.