China Coast Guard recently deployed 2 ships around Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, warning PH supply boats against carrying construction materials to repair the Philippine Navy’s BRP Sierra Madre. We recently joined a resupply mission there. globalnation.inquirer.net/20…

11 nations. One region. A thousand stories, connected by the sea. 🌊 🎬 Seas Unbroken: piped.video/D25tO6nchVs

Students worry AI is about to kill their future ft.trib.al/aeFWjFc

World number one Elena Rybakina won her fourth title of an outstanding season with a ruthless straight-sets victory over Leylah Fernandez in the Ningbo Open final on Sunday. u.afp.com/SyoQ

Amazing work by Pete Hegseth. One of my proudest achievements is that I helped shut down nearly all the Confucius Institutes in Australia. Took me years of campaigning.

The Confucius Institutes are part of a political apparatus the CCP uses to "break and shatter the enemy." Keeping the pressure on the united front system's efforts to evade U.S. countermeasures is an unequivocal good. But why leave it there? Many other similar organizations exist, but we (and our allies & partners) largely ignore them.

First known deployment of the @wps_ph donated vessel to the PCG involves shadowing the PLAN CSG traversing the Celebes Sea.

For The Sunday Times UK —The authorities in the Philippines confirmed that the investigation into Markle Sr had been prompted by Thomas Jnr, who had voluntarily handed over and provided an inventory of all the material. thetimes.com/uk/royal-family…

Taiwan's coast guard says five China Coast Guard ships shadowed eight Japanese coast guard vessels sheltering from Typhoon Champi near the Penghu Islands, with Taipei urging Beijing not to exploit the storm to assert jurisdiction over the Taiwan Strait. bit.ly/4zQkUGa

👍👍 that #China’s propaganda & influence operations such as #ConfuciusInstitutes are rooted out from the #US by the @DeptofWar. It’s time for other democracies to follow suit & kick them all out. We are done with the #PRC’s brainwashing and tech theft.

The United States appears to be preparing to resume large-scale strikes against Iran, but there is unlikely to be a military solution for either side in the devastating conflict, experts say. u.afp.com/Syke

The War Department has designated Confucius Institutes as a threat to our national security.

The carrier group’s passages not far from Taiwan, Japan and the Philippines have raised alerts. defensenews.com/global/asia-…

SeaLight Investigation: A Conspiracy Made in 🇨🇳#China Whoever wrote the obviously fake 🇵🇭Teodoro letters thinks in Chinese official lingo, argues like China's foreign ministry and found his distributors among Beijing's friends. Imagine the #Philippines' Harvard Law-trained defense secretary Gilberto Teodoro writing a formal, unclassified letter to an obscure 🇺🇸US Embassy officer -- on official letterhead and over his own signature -- to confess to everything his critics say about him. That's what the "Teodoro letters" ask you to believe, but whoever made them forgot to cut off the "Made in China" tag. The letters don't read like a Filipino official, or frankly anyone proficient in English. They read like Chinese bureaucratese translated word for word from Mandarin. One sentence pairs "complete qualifications" with "good reputation," a stock formula Chinese agencies use when choosing contractors. The May letter calls Washington "the US side", while the Armed Forces of the Philippines is inverted into the "Philippine Armed Forces" by its own Secretary; and what the China Coast Guard does in the West Philippine Sea is referred to as "law enforcement." Oh, and the author has a real problem with the article, "the". Almost as if it was written by someone whose language doesn't have an equivalent. In other words, someone used to reading Chinese accounts in the Chinese language. The July letter even recasts Beijing's own talking points about the July 20 clash as a Teodoro confession. Because that's totally what a highly educated Filipino politician and attorney would do. 🙄 And the people who had the letters first? All friends of Beijing, without exception. The Philippine Department of National Defense says the letters are fake. They clearly are, and they're bad fakes at that ... right down to the 100% identical signatures. The more interesting question is who wrote them. SeaLight Director @GordianKnotRay lays out the evidence, and it points directly back to Beijing. Full investigation at the link in the comments below. 👇

"Peace should not be portrayed as a favour China extends to the Philippines...because it chooses not to use its military might. It should be a mutual commitment grounded in respect for sovereignty, international law & the peaceful settlement of disputes." lowyinstitute.vercel.app/the…

Taiwanese diplomats have been blocked abroad, while foreign allies have been sanctioned for visiting Taipei and meeting government officials. What do analysts make of the intensifying pressure campaign? ft.trib.al/zPWdcpc

🇺🇸 The Pentagon and Lockheed Martin have announced a 10-year agreement for the production of 850 F-35 warplanes, underscoring Washington's long-term commitment to the high-tech stealth aircraft. ➡️ u.afp.com/SCCU

East Asia is bracing for the latest in a string of powerful storms fueled by El Niño, with Typhoon Champi disrupting flights and threatening heavy rainfall as it tracks toward Taiwan. bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

The Philippines is seeking deeper cooperation with Taiwan to protect undersea internet cables, according to Deputy Ambassador to the US Felipe F. Carino III. He said Manila is exploring knowledge-sharing and capacity-building with Taipei despite its “one China” policy.

Beijing’s transnational repression has crossed a dangerous line. The alleged plot to injure a Taiwanese comedian for criticizing the CCP is an attack on free speech and Taiwan’s democracy. We must stand firm against intimidation and hold those responsible accountable.

MEET THE INAUGURAL COHORT OF THE MANILA DIALOGUE YOUNG LEADERS PROGRAM!🌏 🌏 Selected from 260 applicants from around the world, 28 emerging leaders will converge in Manila for a series of engagements designed to foster dialogue, collaboration, and a deeper understanding of maritime security challenges in the Indo-Pacific. Their activities will include: 🔹 Maritime Crisis Tabletop Exercise – Simulating a maritime crisis to explore decision-making, crisis management, and regional cooperation. 🔹 Policy Roundtables – Engaging with policymakers, practitioners, and experts on maritime security, international law, and regional challenges. 🔹 The Manila Dialogue on the South China Sea – Participating in one of the region's major Track 1.5 maritime security conferences, alongside senior government officials, diplomats, and leading experts. 📍 Manila, Philippines 📅 15–18 November 2026 1/8