Philippine News

MANILA, August 1 ------ The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said it was closely monitoring reports of a People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLA-N) vessel and an unmanned surface vessel allegedly operating within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ). AFP spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad (Reserve) said the military was coordinating with other maritime agencies to verify and track the reported presence of the foreign vessels.

MANILA, August 1 ------ Domestic fuel prices are expected to decline by as much as PHP1.50 per liter in the first week of August, despite supply risks stemming from the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran. Based on price movements during the first four trading days of the week, Jetti Petroleum President Leo Bellas said on Friday that diesel prices could be rolled back by PHP0.50 to PHP1.00 per liter next week, while gasoline prices may fall by PHP1.00 to PHP1.

July 31 ------ ABOUT 1,000 Filipino seafarers aboard some 500 vessels run by shipowners from Southeast Asia are stuck in the Strait of Hormuz, said Mohamad Safwan bin Othman, chairman of the federation of shipowners in the region. Othman, chairman of the Federation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Shipowners Associations, said this was down from the peak period of the crisis when there were 2,000 or more ships stuck in the strait. He estimated that a “big

MANILA, Philippines, July 31 ------ The Philippines has presented its claim to an extended continental shelf in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) before a United Nations commission, asking it to consider the landmark 2016 South China Sea arbitral ruling as it evaluates Manila’s bid, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said. The presentation before the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) on Wednesday marked the next step to the Philippines’ partial subm