PHILIPPINES Trends and Developments Contributed by: Valeriano Del Rosario and Maria Francesca Bautista, VeraLaw
VeraLaw 2nd Floor A&V Crystal Tower 105 Esteban Street Legaspi Village Makati City 1229 Philippines Tel: +63 2 8550 1888 Fax: +63 2 8550 2888 Email: veralaw@veralaw.com.ph Web: www.veralaw.com
The “Pearl of the Orient” was the historical sobri - quet of the Philippines. The archipelago of over 7,600 islands is like a string of pearls that lie off the coast of South-East Asia, stretching 1,150 miles (1,850 kilometres) from north to south. The Philippine islands occupy a strategic posi - tion along the coast of South-East Asia. From the South China Sea (which, due to political reasons, we now refer to as the West Philippine Sea), there are two viable westward sea routes to the Pacific Ocean: the San Bernardino Strait in North Central Philippines and the Surigao Strait in the Southern Philippines. On a historical note, during one of the decisive sea battles of World War II in the Pacific, one of the Japanese fleets attempted to break out to the Pacific Ocean through the Surigao Strait but was destroyed by American naval forces. The Battle of Leyte Gulf, which provides access to the Surigao Strait, is celebrated as one of the pivotal battles in the year 1944 and allowed General Douglas Mac - Arthur to fulfil his promise, “I shall return,” as he departed in defeat from the Philippines in 1942. The above historical notes are important for a proper understanding of the strategic location of the Philippine archipelago and the continu - ing tensions being caused by China in the West
Philippine Sea. The Republic of the Philippines is different from other littoral states. The territory of the Philippines, in simple terms, is a block of ocean, and within this block are the over 7,600 islands of the Republic. The block of ocean has baselines from which the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Republic extends eastward. In 2016, the Republic of the Philippines won a landmark arbitration award against China, which China refuses to recognise. Currently, China has occupied and militarised these islands in the Philippines’ EEZ. China has claimed most of the West Philippine Sea within what China calls the nine-dash line, and has continually harassed and threatened Philippine vessels that attempt to resupply Phil - ippine outposts in its EEZ. A third of world trade in 2024 transited through the West Philippine Sea (Nick Martin, “How South China Sea ten - sions threaten global trade”, DW , 25 Aug 2024). Powers such as the USA, Australia, Japan and France have conducted so-called “freedom of navigation” transits through the West Philippine Sea. The threat of conflict between China and the USA in the West Philippine Sea looks set to continue in the foreseeable future. The Republic of the Philippines is a treaty ally of the USA, and
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