An independent foreign policy

Jun 16, 2022 | In the trenches, Opinion

After a two-year hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic, Asia’s premier security conference, Shangri-la Dialogue, resumed with rivals United States and China trading barbs, accusing each other of raising tensions in the region.US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and...

Independent foreign policy: Taking a look at SCO

Jul 31, 2021 | In the trenches, Opinion

When Rodrigo Duterte rose to power five years ago, he promised an independent foreign policy, declaring the Philippines is a friend to all countries and an enemy to none.The policy was supposed to attract more foreign investments, enhance trade and protect more than...

Sacrificing sovereignty

Jul 7, 2021 | In the trenches, Opinion

Philippine presidents, not only Rodrigo Duterte and his defense and military officials, are violating the 1987 Constitution just for the sake of a security alliance.The charter prohibits any foreign military on Philippine soil unless allowed by a treaty ratified by...

‘Foreign policy should be 2022 campaign issue’

Jun 27, 2021 | Nation

President Rodrigo Duterte’s repeated delays of his earlier decision to end the Philippines’s Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States means the country’s independent foreign policy has yet to have a clear direction, a party-list lawmaker said.“Ang...