European Investor to Pour €4 Billion Euros to Revive National Steel Corporation in Iligan City

Iligan City — A new, state-of-the-art fully integrated steel mill is poised to rise again in this once touted as the industrial city of the south.

Iligan City Mayor Celso Regencia has acknowledged last week the intent of a foreign-funded consortium in the amount of 4B euros for the rebirth of the new National Steel Corporation.

The development came as a big surprise after a series of failed investment proposals — mostly from Chinese groups — were presented before the pandemic to Mayor Regencia for the plan to rebuild the defunct NSC.

Mayor Regencia had expressed optimism the latest investment proposal would push through as it were considering the seriousness of the consortium to proceed amid the growing threat of Covid-19.

“We are bullish with the development to re-construct the mothballed NSC as this would place Iligan City once again in the country’s industrial map”, Regencia said.

The reconstruction phase is set to start late this year by a European supplier of equipment and physical plants to the metal industry.

National Steel Corporation (NSC) was the Asia's Largest Steel Factory before it was sold by former President Fidel V. Ramos to Malaysia and was become so controversial for the alleged Corruption but Ramos denied the accusation. 

Read related article: - Ramos Killed NSC Asia's Biggest Steel Factory in ILigan City to allow China Dominates the Philippines 

The 400-hectare property of the old NSC is now owned by the city government of Iligan after undergoing a series of legal battles with bank liquidators.

Settlement for the buy-out of the property is now in the last ditch of negotiations with the consortium group.

As a driver of economic growth, the new NSC is expected to generate thousands of jobs to the people of Iligan and the rest of the region.

The country has lost its presence in the steel industry sector after the old NSC had experienced a series of downfalls, latest of which was in the hands of Global Steel, a Malaysian manufacturing group.

With the revival of the old NSC into a modern steel making plant, the economy of Iligan City and the rest of Mindanao will definitely shoot up to an unprecented level of progress, Regencia added.

From Ruffy Magbanua of Mindanao Daily News

Continue reading

Malaysia inspects North Korean coal ship for possible U.N. sanctions breach

North Korean Cargo Ship "KUM YA" (former Lucky Star 7)

By James Pearson, Rozanna Latiff and Tom AllardKUALA LUMPUR, March 29 

(Reuters) - Malaysia briefly prevented a North Korean ship carrying coal from entering its port in Penang because of a suspected breach of United Nations sanctions, a port worker and Malaysian maritime officials told Reuters on Wednesday

The KUM YA (Formerly Lucky Star 7) was carrying 6,300 metric tons of anthracite coal, according to a worker at Penang Port who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity. It was later allowed to dock, where an inspection team accompanied by an armed escort boarded the ship.
 
A December 2016U.N. Security Council resolution placed a cap on exports of North Korean coal, and urged member states to apply extra scrutiny on North Korean ships.

Production of coal in North Korea is state-controlled and its exports are a key source of hard currency for the isolated country's banned nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
 
Relations between North Korea and Malaysia, which have been friendly for decades, have soured following the February assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's half-brother at Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
 
The North Korean ship had been initially prevented from entering Penang Port due to a possible breach of U.N. sanctions, MMEA deputy director-general of operations Zulkifli Abu Bakar, told Reuters without offering further details.
 
It was unclear what the inspectors were checking on. The United Nations in its annual reports on how members have complied with sanctions have cited a number of instances over the past decade in which North Korean missile parts and coal connected to sanctioned entities were trans-shipped through Malaysia.
 
Malaysia is one of the few countries in the world which buys North Korean coal, with China by far the biggest importer.

LUCKY STAR
 
The KUM YA was recently re-flagged as a North Korean ship, changing its name from Lucky Star 7 in November last year, according to the Equasis shipping database.
 
 It was registered on Feb. 13 to North Korean shipping company Sonchonggang Water Transport, according to copies of the ship's registration documents, which were issued by North Korea'sMaritime Administration, and seen by Reuters.
 
The ship was carrying 20 crew members, and was scheduled to sail onto Singapore, the port worker said.
 
The ship listed its port of origin as Busan, South Korea. However, shipping data in Thomson Reuters Eikon shows the cargo was loaded at the Huaneng Shandong Power Station Weihai, a coal-fired power plant. It then sailed to Penang through the South China Sea and the Malacca Strait, the data shows.

Source: (http://tmsnrt.rs/2ofxNXe)
 
China halted all coal imports from North Korea starting on Feb. 26, amid growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula following one of a series of Pyongyang's missile tests.
 
Malaysia's foreign ministry told officials at Penang Port not to let the ship dock before an inspection team had it "declared safe," the port worker said.
 
The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) confirmed the ship had been stopped following instructions from Malaysia's foreign ministry, which did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
 
 "Many North Korean ships call on our ports and we never had problems. Just over the recent months, there have been problems," the port worker told Reuters. "We have never received directives to stop North Korean ships before."

NOT CONFISCATED
 
The KUM YA was first stopped at sea before being allowed to dock in port where it was immediately cordoned off, the port worker said.
 
 "Minerals and Geoscience Department officials were then called to inspect the cargo on board. The department officers were told to confirm it was indeed coal on board," the port worker said.
 
The coal was being unloaded on Wednesday afternoon and has not been confiscated, the port worker said.
 
Since 2011, Malaysia has imported over 2 million metric tons of coal a year, according to government statistics, which are not broken down by country of origin.
 
The KUM YA shipment was handled by Malaysian freight forwarding company Alim Maritime Sdn Bhd, the port worker said. An Alim Maritime official reached by telephone declined to comment.
 
The KUM YA can hold up to 6,843 metric tonnes of cargo, according to Equasis, meaning it was 92 percent full when it arrived in Penang.

Continue reading

Silverpack investing ₱500 Million for Philippine plant

In an interview, a Silverpack official said the company plans to conquer Southeast Asia over the next decade through aggressive expansion of its manufacturing facilities and sales office across the region. image: philSTAR

MANILA, Philippines - Multinational packaging firm Silverpack Sdn Bhd is looking to invest ₱500 million to put up its first manufacturing plant in the country in the next two to three years.

In an interview, a Silverpack official said the company plans to conquer Southeast Asia over the next decade through aggressive expansion of its manufacturing facilities and sales office across the region.

"Our plan is to set up manufacturing plants in Asean in 10 years' time. We already have a factory in Malaysia and China. We have sales offices in Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand. We also need to set up sales offices in the entire Southeast Asia," Silverpack regional sales director Jeffrey Ng said.

In the Philippines, Ng said the company intends to gather a sizable market share initially before putting up a manufacturing plant in two to three years.

Ng said Silverpack is currently in talks with large food manufacturing companies in the Philippines for the export of its products.

"We are expanding because companies are also expanding. When they do well, we will do well as well," he said.

Silverpack's clients in Philippines are still mostly small and medium enterprises which import about ₱3 million to ₱4 million worth of products a month.

The company is looking to tap large Filipino conglomerates which invest in their own packaging plants for their businesses.

Ng said a candy manufacturer, for instance, spends 10 percent of its total cost for packaging alone while a high value goods manufacturer spends five to seven percent.

Silverpack's packaging materials are used by a wide range of food industries such as coffee, tea, confectionery, milk products, snacks, biscuits, instant food items, oil, seafood, pet food, sweets, jelly top seal, fruit drinks, personal care series, and moon cakes.

The Embassy of Malaysia Trade Office (Matrade) Manila said Silverpack is among the top five packaging companies in Malaysia at present.

Matrade commissioner Nyaee Ayup said Silverpack's expertise in packaging would help support a wide range of food industries in the Philippines.

"Instead of setting up their own packaging division, the food manufacturers in the Philippines can focus on their main line of business, if they will tap Silverpack for their packaging needs," Ayup said. - With Pia Lee Brago @philSTAR

Continue reading

PHOTOS: Philippines challenges China's Claim of West Philippine Sea at UNCLOS Tribunal in The Hague

Philippines challenges China's Claim of country's exclusive economic zone at UNCLOS Tribunal in The Hague. image: inquirer.net

IN PHOTOS: Philippines challenges China in The Hague

In photos emailed to Rappler, the Permanent Court of Arbitration gives us a glimpse of the closed-door hearings pitting Manila against Beijing

MANILA, Philippines – Behind closed doors, the Philippines recently waged a legal battle against China in The Hague, Netherlands, in a historic case over the disputed West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

The Philippines on Thursday, July 23, is set to submit a new document to The Hague to bolster its case.

While Manila pursues this, a question remains: What exactly happened during hearings from July 7 to 13?

The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague, which serves as the venue for the arbitration proceedings, emailed Rappler high-resolution photos to give us a glimpse of the closed-door hearings.

China claimed the shores of Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei and Japan as their own

The photos show a powerhouse team, led by internationally acclaimed lawyer Paul Reichler, defending the Philippines' case before an equally high-caliber arbitral tribunal in The Hague.

The tribunal said around 60 members joined the Philippine team. (READ: Binay hits Philippine team vs China in The Hague))

Check out these photos from the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague.

TOP DIPLOMAT. Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario delivers an opening statement. Photo courtesy of PCA

IN SESSION. Early on, the arbitral tribunal in The Hague decides to hold the hearings behind closed doors. Photo courtesy of PCA

TOP GOVERNMENT LAWYER. Philippine Solicitor General Florin Hilbay, who serves as agent for his country, delivers a statement. Photo courtesy of PCA

TEAM OF EXPERTS. The counsel team for the Philippines, including Professor Bernard Oxman, Professor Alan Boyle, and Mr Lawrence Martin, in the closed-door hearings. Photo courtesy of PCA

HISTORIC CASE. The arbitral tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, listens to the first country that brought China to court over the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). Photo courtesy of PCA

'GIANT SLAYER.' Internationally acclaimed lawyer Paul Reichler, the Philippines' chief counsel, delivers a statement. Photo courtesy of PCA

REPRESENTING GOVERNMENT. Members of the Philippine delegation, including Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, and Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs Menardo Guevarra. Photo courtesy of PCA

OBSERVER DELEGATIONS. The tribunal allowed observers from the following countries – Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Japan – to attend the hearings. Photo courtesy of PCA

HIGH-CALIBER TRIBUNAL. The arbitral tribunal is led by Judge Thomas Mensah (president, C), the first president of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. The high-caliber tribunal also includes the following (L to R): Judge Jean-Pierre Cot, Judge Stanislaw Pawlak, Judge Rüdiger Wolfrum, and Professor Alfred H. A. Soons. Photo courtesy of PCA

TEAM PHILIPPINES. Representing all 3 branches of Philippine government, the Philippine delegation comes in full force in The Hague. Photo courtesy of PCA

The 5-member tribunal said it "now enters its deliberations" on whether it has the right to hear the Philippines' case. It said it expects to rule on this matter "before the end of the year."

The tribunal said it "is conscious of its duty under the Rules of Procedure to conduct proceedings 'to avoid unnecessary delay and expense and to provide a fair and efficient process.'"

Once the tribunal decides it has jurisdiction over the case, the Philippines can already present the meat of its arguments. (READ: EXPLAINER: Philippines' 5 arguments vs China)

The Philippines said it expects a definitive ruling against China by 2016 – Rappler.com

Continue reading

Japan-Asean Anti-terrorism meet in Cebu; Military Clash with Abu Sayyaf al Qaeda linked kills 11 in Basilan

A platoon of the Philippine Marines marches in this file Photo.  —File Photo by Reuters

Philippine forces clashed with Muslim extremists on a southern island Thursday (July 26, 2012), leaving seven soldiers and four militants dead, the military said.

Elite rangers battled members of the al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group on the troubled southern island of Basilan, with three soldiers and two insurgents also wounded in the clash.

“Firefight is ongoing as of this report,” the military statement said.

It was the latest in a series of deadly clashes in the heavily-forested island of Basilan, a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf.

The group was founded in the 1990s with seed money from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

Cebu meet tackles Japan-Asean cooperation to fight terrorism

A $4.1 billion fund is being proposed for anti-terrorism cooperation between Japan and Southeast Asian nations.

“There should be mutual cooperation in the area of combating terrorism.” said Tomatsu Shinotsuka of the Japanese Foreign Ministry during the 7th Asean-Japan counter-terrorism dialogue at the Marco Polo Plaza Hotel yesterday.

The dialogue will give the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and Japan, a major economic player in the region a chance to discuss the substantive progress, achievement and implementation of useful projects in fighting counter-terrorism.

“Terrorism is a common threat not only in Asia but also to the world as a whole.” said Shinotsuka.

“There should be speed of cooperation and mutual trust. We will take up various aspects of cooperation between Japan and the Asean,” Shinotsuka added.

Undersectary Nabil Tan said the anti-terrorism cooperation between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and Japan will be boosted by the $4.1 billion Japan-Asean Integration Fund (JAIF).

Tan said the counter-terrorism dialogue is a global undertaking aimed at fostering closer collaboration and exchange of information among the ten ASEAN member states – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Executive Secretary Pacquito Ochoa, Jr. who also chairs the Philippine Anti-Terrorism Council, said border security is necessary to ensure safety in the country. Ochoa said this is on top of the country’s anti-terrorism policy.

“Effective law enforcement, strong institutional mechanisms and addressing social problems like poverty and education form the core of the country’s three-point agenda to fight counter-terrorism,” Ochoa said.

For the institutional mechanisms, Ochoa said the amendments of the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) and the Human Security Act is important for it to prevent and suppress terrorist financing and to put in check terrorism activities in the country.

Abu Sayyaf in Southern Philippines, and Qaeda link groups Jemaah Islamiyah of Indonesia operating in Malaysia and Southern Thailand remains a threat in the troubled area of the ASEAN region.

Continue reading

Japan & Philippines Tighten Defense Ties Sea disputes

Bolstering defense Japan - Philippines

Japan and the Philippines agreed on during the visit of the Philippines' president to Japan September 27, 2011 to strengthen maritime security ties, while also underscoring the importance of preserving peace and stability in the West Philippines Sea (South China Sea) amid rising tensions with China.

China has pronounced many times that they owned everything the in West Philippines Sea that worries other tiger economies in Asia such as Japan & South Korea which major of their trades are passing the world's most busiest sea in the West Philippines Sea and South China Sea – Spratlys archipelago.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and the Philippines President Benigno Aquino III met, on a four-day visit to Japan. Japanese Prime Minister told reporters that the two sides committed to bolstering "cooperation between coastguards and defense-related authorities."

A joint statement said bilateral ties have evolved from friendly relations to a "strategic partnership," and called for more collaboration on "regional and global issues of mutual concern and interest." The two countries also agreed to conduct frequent discussions on defense at more senior levels and increase the number of Japan Coast Guard missions to help train their Philippines counterparts.

Although the agreement does not directly mention China, it is a major symbolic step toward a multilateral consensus in Asia on dealing with increasing territorial friction with China.

China maintain its claim to the whole West Philippines Sea & South China Sea  with its 9 dotted map inspite of criticism of the ASEAN neighbor with 200 Nautical Miles Exclusive Economic Zone claim in the sea.

The Philippines and China both lay claim to the Spratly Islands; an archipelago in the West Philippines Sea and South China Sea that geologists think may lie atop significant oil and gas deposits and rumored to be the 4^th largest oil and gas deposit in the world. Philippines' officials have accused Chinese vessels of hindering oil and gas exploration in a portion of the waters known as Recto Bank (Reed Bank) which is just few kilometers off Palawan Province – Philippines says this is not part of the disputed areas. Vietnam, which also claims part of the Spratly chain, has likewise complained of China's increasingly assertive claims in the region.

China's Fishing Vessel tactics

China has been noticed by the neighbors that they are using fishing vessel tactics which equipped with high powered weapon to enter other waters. Japan learned from China's tactic after China invaded the Mischief Reef few kilometers off Palawan province of the Philippines using the fishermen vessel to erect a fishermen shelter then later converted it into a Military Garrison even inside the Philippines territory.

In 2011 alone, Japan intercepted Chinese Fishing vessel entering their waters. Moreover, Indonesia's coastguard also arrested Chinese entering their seas using a fishing vessel.

The recent issue that escalate tension between Vietnam and China happened also this year when Chinese fishing vessel cut the cable of the Petro Vietnam, a Vietnam Government Owned Oil exploration which china alibi as it is just a Chinese Fishing vessel and mistakenly drag the cable but later admitted that Vietnam is illegally operating in the area as they said its owned and they do not violated any law and they are not invading.

The Philippines didn't escape from China's harassment. China harassed Filipino Fishermen in the Philippines Waters saying to leave the area because it belongs to china, then another incident happened when China fired the Filipino Fishermen in the Palawan Sea and put markers in the Island and waters in Palawan shore.

Japan too, has seen its relations with China strained by a territorial dispute, this one over islands in the East China Sea. A war of words broke out between Beijing and Tokyo last autumn following the arrest of a Chinese fishing crew by the Japanese coast guard, and the year since has brought a series of incursions by Chinese ships into the disputed waters. Mr. Noda earlier this month voiced concern over China's military build-up and increased maritime activity near Japan.

The agreement between Japan and the Philippines stresses the two countries' shared interests, bringing the similar but separate maritime squabbles with China under a larger cooperative umbrella.

"The peaceful settlement of disputes serves the interests of the two countries and the whole region," said the joint statement, signed by both leaders. Japan and the Philippines "share the recognition that these same interests should also be advanced and protected in the West Philippines Sea and South China Sea."

Responding to the Japan-Philippines meeting, China's foreign ministry on Tuesday (September 27, 2011) reiterated its claim to the disputed waters in the South China Sea.

"China has indisputable sovereignty over the island and surrounding waters of the South China Sea," said ministry spokesman Hong Lei in Beijing.

Regardless of many criticisms, China never leaves the phrases; "we owned everything" & "China has indisputable sovereignty over the island and surrounding waters". Philippines Challenged China to bring the disputes to the United Nations to end it but China refused and said we are only open to bilateral settlement not to the United Nations. 

Continue reading

The next ASEAN tiger cited by Asia Inc & Business leader could be the Philippines

The Philippines has a most unique economy in the world which is highly dependent on domestic consumption that drives their economy that could be hardly hit for any possible global economic recession. Inspite of rich resources, Philippines did not rely on exports to drive a better and fast forward economy.

The Philippines now tagged with fresh opportunities in Asia, boosting and high grades gold mining, boosting of oil and gas exploration,  good political leader,  revived confidence from global investors and now named as to be Asia’s next tiger economy, potentially regaining the glory lost decades ago, according to a visiting regional business leader from Brunei.

Dato Timothy Ong, a leading Brunei businessman who founded and now chairs regional dialogue platform Asia Inc. Forum, said in a press briefing on last September 26, 2011 that he has seen signs that the Philippines could return to its goal of being the next Asian tiger despite staying at the bottom half of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in terms of economic performance for years.

Ong is also the convener of ASEAN 100 Leadership Forum, which will be hosted by the city of Makati on Sept. 28-29, 2011 at the Makati Shangri-La. This year’s ASEAN meet aims to foster insightful and intelligent discussions on the future of ASEAN and how the region can emerge as one of the world’s significant economic blocs.

According to Dato Timothy  Ong, the Philippines can join the ranks of Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea and Hong Kong, the so-called Asian “tiger” economies or newly industrializing countries. He cited five reasons why the country, though a “dark horse,” or a sick man in Asia had the makings of the next move to be the next “tiger.”

The Chair of the regional dialogue platform Asia Inc. Forum cited 5 following reasons why the Philippines could be the next ASEAN Tiger as:

1.      The new leadership under President Aquino has promised to weed out corruption in the country, which has been creating a lot of optimism. It’s widely perceived that the high level of corruption in the country has driven up the cost of doing business.

2.      Mr. Ong said that the Philippines’ would be vast pool of hardworking professionals and skilled manpower, many of whom have been deployed across the globe. “With this wealth of human resources, it’s important to ask then why the Philippines aren’t more successful economically,” he said. Many countries had been dependent on Filipino Professionals and skilled workers to drive their economy like for example banning the Filipino to work in Taiwan will paralyze the Taiwan’s economy. Banning the Filipino to work in the Middle-east might paralyze their economy. Deporting Filipinos in (North Borneo) Sabah might paralyze the Sabah’s economy which the world knew how important the human resources are.  The continues development in the other north Asian countries had been dependent on Filipino skilled workers like for example the Billion Dollar projects of Korea’s builder Hyundai Engineering in Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan which been dependent on Overseas Filipino Workers as highly skilled which the builder could not outsource such kinds from the local man power pool in the 2 ‘stan countries. Many Leading fortune 200 companies in the world are talents hungry but the Philippines have vast and awashing man power pool. Many countries take advantage of Filipinos for not just for cheap labor but also trustworthy multi-tasker and English speaker that could compete globally.

3.      The third factor would be the Philippines’ “centers of excellence,” Ong said, noting that the country has become a competitive hub for business process outsourcing. He likened the Makati central business district to a “First World” city in a Third World country.  “If the Philippines is capable of being first world in these centers of excellence, why can’t it be First World in every respect?” he said.

4.      Ong said the fourth reason would be the Philippines’ homegrown companies that were at par with the world’s best.  He cited fast-food giant Jollibee Foods Corp., international port operator International Container Terminal Services Inc. and the Ayala group of companies. “There is a sense of optimism that characterizes the country as a whole.  As the new government takes its steps in leading the country towards change, it may be able to experience higher standards of governance,” he said.

5.      Finally, Ong noted the Philippines’ “sharply improving competitiveness” as another factor supporting its aspiration to be the next tiger economy. He cited recent reports that the Philippines had jumped 10 notches to 75 from 85 in the latest ranking of the World Economic Forum. Ong said this happened only within the first 15 months of the term of the new president.

Meanwhile, Ong said ASEAN would likely partly meet its target to establish an integrated economic community by 2015.

“A One ASEAN is important for our collective future to accelerate the economic growth, social progress and economic stability in the region; to promote active collaboration and mutual assistance in economic, social, cultural, technical and administrative spheres,” Ong said.

“At the moment, Southeast Asia is like a big gated community where neighbors barely know each other. They know each other by name, they exchange pleasantries but they wouldn’t really go out of their way to have dinner at each other’s house,” he said.

Once integrated, he said, ASEAN could be a very influential bloc as it could become Asia’s third-largest economy next to China and Japan and the ninth-largest in the world.

The Philippines hinting to be a the second ASEAN tiger is so closed to achieve.

Continue reading

Hainan China Mounted Nuclear Weapon Facing Philippines

When China’s largest offshore petroleum producer launched a $1 billion oil rig this summer from Shanghai, Lt. Gen. Juancho Sabban, the commander of Philippine military forces commented that China of 1,500 miles away in the South China Sea, began preparing for trouble.

The drilling platform, said China, would soon be heading in the 38 general’s direction - southward into waters rich in oil and natural gas, and also in volatile fuel for potential conflict.

China pointing the Map down south adjacent to the City of Puerto Princesa Palawan, Province of the Philippines. China is willing to face war and conflict just to drill the oil and gas with or without approval from the Philippines government as they claim the area as undisputable and it core interest.

Regardless of the UNCLOS provision of 200 Nautical Miles Exclusive Economic Zone for the Philippines and other neighboring country within the proximity of the West Philippines Sea (South China Sea), china believed their map is right and will surpassed / overpower the United Nations International laws of Sea as they have their own laws and concept.

Red Alert- Philippines for the unexpected attack of China

Few information leaked that china is preparing to sink the new Philippines Navy Warship Flagship BRP Gregorio del Pilar, a newly acquired and refurbished from the USA high endurance Hamilton Class Cutter Frigate.

Chinese nuclear submarine armed with nuclear missiles has been mounted in Hainan island south of China and high powered weapon are now facing Manila for ready to attack anytime.

Leaked information mentioned that China will target to paralyze the Philippines by attacking the BRP Gregorio del Pilar prior of their planned launching of the $1 billion Dollar oil rig in the area near Pruerto Princesa this year or early next year in 2012.

The Philippines is not yet aware of this china’s plan. The United Nations is now the only chance to intervene or to mediate prior the leaked information to happen.

The cooling of the West Philippines Sea (South China Sea) issue is the preparation of China for their ready to launch $1 billion Dollar oil rig and a simultaneous attack to destroy the BRP Gregorio del Pilar.

“We started war-gaming what we could do,” said Sabban, a barrel-chested, American-trained marine who, as chief of the Philippines’ Western Command, is responsible for keeping out intruders from a wide swath of sea that Manila views as its own 200 Nautical Miles Area from the shore but that is also claimed by Beijing.

China oil hungry giant to attack Spratlys

Arguments over who owns what in the South China Sea have rumbled on for decades, ever since the doomed Chinese government of Chiang Kai-shek in 1947 issued a crude map with 11 dashes marking as Chinese almost the entire 1.3 million-square-mile waterway. The Communist Party toppled Chiang but kept his map and his expansive claims, though it trimmed a couple of dashes.

Today, China’s insatiable thirst for energy has injected a highly combustible new element into long-running quarrels over cartography, arcane issues of international law and ancient shards of pottery that Beijing says testify to its “indisputable sovereignty” over the West Philippines Sea (South China Sea).

China, which imports more than half its oil, will nearly double its demand for the stuff over the next quarter-century, according to the International Energy Agency in Paris. Its demand for natural gas — which is believed to be particularly abundant beneath an archipelago of contested islands and reefs, known as the Spratlys, just west of here — is projected to more than quadruple.

With consumption soaring and the price of imports rising, China is desperate for new sources to boost its proven energy reserves, which for oil now account for just 1.1 percent of the world total — a paltry share for a country that last year consumed 10.4 percent of total world oil production and 20.1 percent of all the energy consumed on the planet, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy.

As a result, Beijing views disputed waters as not merely an arena for nationalist flag-waving but as indispensable to its future economic well-being.

“The potential for what lies beneath the sea is clearly a big motivator” in a recent shift by China to a more pugnacious posture in the West Philippines Sea (South China Sea), said William J. Fallon, a retired four-star admiral who headed the U.S. Pacific Command from 2005 until 2007. China is wary of pushing its claims to the point of serious armed conflict, which would torpedo the economic growth on which the party has staked its survival. But, Fallon said, such a thick fog of secrecy surrounds China’s thinking that “we have little insight into what really makes them tick.”

A big factor in this uncertainty is a meshing of Chinese commercial, strategic and military calculations. Like other giant energy companies in China, the China National Offshore Oil Corp., or CNOOC, the owner of the new Chinese rig, pursues profit but is ultimately answerable to the party, whose secretive Organization Department appoints its boss.

Continue reading

₱5 Billion Armament Budget to Secure West Philippines Oil and Gas Field Approved by Pres. Aquino

President Benigno Aquino III has approved the release of ₱4.9 Billion from the Malampaya fund to strengthen the defenses of natural gas exploration in northern Palawan, National Treasurer Roberto Tan said Wednesday (September 14, 2011).

The fund to be released this month, will be disbursed to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) for the purchased of New smaller patrol vessel, 4 radar Station, Tanks, and modern assault rifles and ammunitions. The AFP was tasked to acquire and deploy a support fleet of ships smaller than the Hamilton class BRP Gregorio del Pilar.

As early as last March, the Philippine military sent an aircraft to the disputed Recto Bank ( Reed Bank) near Palawan following reports that Chinese patrol boats were trying to harass a Filipino oil exploration team there.

Lt. Gen. Juancho Sabban, chief of the AFP Western Mindanao Command, said the Chinese were claiming the exploration team from the Department of Energy was in Chinese territory where in fact the Recto Bank is just in the backyard of the Philippines, within 200 Nautical Miles Exclusive Economic Zone, while china is within thousands of Kilometers.

BRP Gregorio del Pilar, the Philippine Navy's largest and newly acquired ship, is a symbol of the Philippines' "seriousness" in fortifying the protectors of the country's maritime resources.

The Gregorio del Pilar, however, is less than half the size of China's first aircraft carrier that is expected to go on sea trials by the end of September. The Philippines' largest ship is 367 feet long, compared to China's Shi Lang that measures 1,000 feet.

₱100 Billion Malampaya "Commingled" Fund Missing?

The National Treasurer also disclosed Wednesday at the joint congressional oversight committee hearing on the comprehensive tax reform package that the Malampaya fund, with a remaining balance of ₱99.45 Billion, exists as a "commingled" special account in the government's general fund.

He said the Malampaya collections from 2002 to August 2011 totaled ₱121.97 Billion, of which ₱21.645 Billion was disbursed partly to pay for the Hamilton class ship which the Philippines bought from the United States of America.

During the hearing, Senator Ralph Recto made an issue out of the "commingled" status of the Malampaya fund and said that the fund was missing. Recto argued that the fund cannot be used for any purpose other than those for which it was created.

In a July 5 statement, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad explained the Malampaya fund was "…not actual cash but an accounting of revenue inflows and expenditure items charged against the Fund since revenues were remitted to the government from the Malampaya Natural Gas Project since it started in 2002."

The Malampaya special account is known at the Department of Budget and Management as Fund 151 and is managed by the Bureau of Treasury and the Energy Department.

Abad also said back in July that the Aquino administration had charged ₱2.87 Billion to the Malampaya account for "necessary energy-related" expenditures:

·        ₱2 Billion for fuel requirements of the National Power Corporation-Small Power Utilities Group (NPC-SPUG), to avert a power shortage in off-grid areas

·        ₱450 million for the Pantawid Pasada program as direct support to jeepney and tricycle drivers affected by the recent spate of oil price hikes and

·        ₱423 million for the purchase of the USS Hamilton cutter marine vessel to strengthen the security perimeter of the Malampaya Natural Gas Project.

Abad claimed that during the Arroyo administration only ₱250 million out of the ₱19.64 billion drawn from the fund was spent on an energy-related project that provided electricity to 211 villages in 2006

"The rest of the 98.73 percent or ₱19.39 billion was released for non-energy related projects," Abad noted and broke it down as follows:

·        In 2006, ₱1 billion for the Armed Forces Modernization Fund (What AFP modernization happened in 2006?)

·        In 2008, ₱4 billion for the Department of Agriculture

·        In 2009, a total of ₱14.39 billion to various agencies, including ₱7.07 billion for the Department of Public Works and Highways, ₱2.14 billion for the Philippine National Police, ₱1.82 billion for the Agriculture Department, ₱1.4 billion for the National Housing Authority, and ₱900 million for the Department of Agrarian Reform.

National Treasurer Tan said the ₱4.9 billion for the security build-up in northern Palawan will likely be raised through borrowings and then credited to Fund 151.

Budget Secretary Abad in a statement September 7 described how government will disburse the money for Malampaya defenses.

"The amount is divided between the capability requirements of the Philippine Navy and Philippine Air Force. Of this amount, ₱2.65 billion will fund base support and logistic system, coast watch requirements; and the acquisition of a high-endurance cutter sea vessel and three helicopters of the Philippine Navy."

"Meanwhile, the Air Force will be using ₱2.30 billion to purchase three helicopters and develop a base-hangar," Abad said.

Continue reading

Vietnam will conduct a live Fire Drill in the Paracels - June 13

China’s Claims with undisputable over Spratlys is true as it is baseless according to the UNCLOS

After the Philippines’ protests to the United Nations for China’s navy harassing Philippine Oil Research Ship in the Philippine Waters - UNLOS International Law of Seas 200 Nautical Exclusive Economic Zone of the Philippines, China pronounced their undisputable claim over Spratlys as it is 1000 Nautical Mile from their shore. China’s invasion is a purely invasion to the waters of the Philippines and Vietnam as they are not part to be called as having a reliable claim over the area.

The same word by “hong” (China’s Spokesperson)  to Vietnam as Vietnam and the Philippines have almost the same rights over Spratlys as part of Spratlys is Within Philippine Sea and other parts are within the Vietnam Waters.

For the common understanding to the International community it is  the right time for China to back off as they are not part of the Spratlys in the West Philippine Sea. The same thing with Vietnam to follow the UNCLOS and must not extend their claims to the Philippine waters so the peace will be re-established in the disputed sea.

Hong reiterated last June 7, 2011 that China has indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea islands and their adjacent waters. His claim is very true because UNCLOS International Law of the Sea defined 200 Nautical Mile and China’s distance to the Spratlys is 1,000 Miles(One Thousand Miles).

What’s china did is just to bully the neighbors  and to annoy them as they have no rights and sovereignty over West Philippine Sea – The Spratlys.

Vietnam’ s Live Fire Drill in Paracel - June 13, 2011

A fall out over territory in the South China Sea escalated Friday when Vietnam announced a live ammunition drill in an apparent response to China's demand that the Vietnamese halt all oil exploration in the area.

The verbal clash between the two communist neighbors follows a similar one between China and the Philippines earlier in the week over another area of the South China Sea & West Philippines Sea, where several countries are eyeing potentially rich oil and gas reserves.

The disputes generally pit China against its neighbors and have pulled in the United States, which has said it considers some of China's sea claims to be an infringement of international waters and a possible damper on international trade.

Vietnam said it would carry out two exercises totaling nine hours Monday in an area off the country's central Quang Nam province in the East Sea of Vietnam adjacent to the Paracel . The announcement on the website of the state-owned Northern Maritime Safety Corp. warned boats and ships to stay out of the area. It was the first time Vietnam has issued such an alert about conducting live-fire maritime drills.

It came a day after China and Vietnam traded diplomatic punches, with each demanding that the other stay out of waters they claim.

China had accused Vietnam of endangering its fishermen's lives. Earlier Thursday, Vietnam slammed China for interfering with its seismic survey off the central Vietnamese coast, saying the Chinese fishing boat supported by two patrol boats had damaged an exploration cable of the Petro Vietnam a state-owned Vietnamese research boat.

Vietnam said it was the second time China had hindered the operation of an oil and gas exploration boat in two weeks, adding that its actions were "completely premeditated" and accusing it of flaring regional tensions in the South China Sea.

Hanoi says both incidents occurred well within the 200 nautical miles guaranteed to Vietnam as an exclusive economic zone by international law UNCLOS.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said the Chinese fishing boat crew had instead been in waters around the Spratly Islands of the West Philippine Sea in the Philippine Waters, which are claimed by China and Vietnam and some other Asian nations. He said the crew had merely been protecting itself after being dragged backward for over an hour by a Vietnamese oil and gas exploration vessel - one, he said, that was "illegally working at the scene."

"The claims made by Vietnam are complete misrepresentations of the truth. As is known to all, China has indisputable sovereignty rights over the Spratly Islands and the waters nearby," Hong said.

"It needs to be pointed out that in illegally exploring for oil and gas and forcing out Chinese fishing boats from the Wan'an bank of the Spratly Islands in the West Philippine Sea, Vietnam has seriously violated China's sovereignty and maritime rights," he said.

"China demands that Vietnam stop all invasive activities," Hong said.

Last weekend, thousands of Vietnamese marched in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in rare demonstrations demanding that China stop invading Vietnam's territory.

On Thursday, China denied an allegation by Filipino officials that Chinese forces had intruded into Philippines-claimed areas in the West Philippine Sea around the Spratly Islands six times since February and of firing shots at least once to Filipino Fishermen. Beijing said it would use violence only when attacked but the armless Filipino Fishermen were attacked by the China’s navy opposite from the liar Beijing.

Although the tension is unlikely to escalate beyond a war of words, the conflict could draw in the United States, which worries that the disputes could hurt access to one of the world's busiest sea lanes.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said last year that the peaceful resolution of disputes over the Spratly and Paracel island chains was in the American national interest.

One of the Legal ground of Secretary Clinton is the American – and the Philippines signed agreement to protect the Philippines from any invaders and the Spratlys is within the Philippine Waters in the West Philippines Sea 200 Nautical Mile Exclusive Economic Zone of the country which is America is obliged to act on every invasion. 

 

Continue reading

China is embarrassed in the International Community over invasion in the Philippine Waters in the Spratlys

China stepped up criticism of the Philippines in a fresh exchange of invectives over disputed waters, calling on Manila to stop infringing its sovereignty with irresponsible claims over the Spratlys, after thousands of protest online denouncing China’s invasion and incursion to the Philippine waters UNCLOS 200 nautical Mile Exclusive Economic Zone.

“China demands that the Philippines stop unilateral actions that damage China’s  believed sovereignty and interests at sea and could lead to the expansion and complication of the South China Sea & West Philippine Sea dispute, and stop issuing irresponsible comments that are inconsistent with facts,” said foreign ministry spokesperson Hong Lei. As UNCLOS law of sea showing that China is violating the international law, China is embarrassed in the international community of being called the “UNCLOS international law violator China”.

Malacañang of the Philippines shrugged off the Chinese statement.

“We are very careful in crafting these statements and we see to it that we back up our statements and base it on facts,” President Aquino’s deputy spokesperson Abigail Valte told reporters in Manila on Wednesday ( June 8, 2011).

“We stand by what we believe in and what is ours,” she added.

The Philippines is confident of their stands as Tomas Cloma, a Filipino Business man and navigator is the first person in the world pronounced his Ownership in the whole Spratlys Archipelago in 1955 and then turned it over to the Philippines.

The Philippines is also confident as the Spratlys which is become disputed is just within the Philippine waters within UNCLOS 200 Nautical Mile Exclusive Economic Zone of the West Philippine Sea and Palawan shore.

The Philippines is also confident as the called disputed Spratlys is the traditional fishing ground of the Filipinos since the ancient times.

The comments, posted on the ministry’s website on Tuesday, were China’s most vitriolic in weeks of tension as the Philippines denounced what it said was the increasing assertiveness of Chinese ships in the region. It also cited the United States’ stake in the stability and security of the world’s second-busiest sea lane.

Hong said China had stood by its position for centuries. He said conducting missions and patrols by Chinese vessels in waters under Chinese jurisdiction was “completely reasonable.” The China’s beliefs which for them reasonable as they are giants is definitely not reasonable to the small  ASEAN countries who owned the Islands and Sea which China’s tried to invade. The Old map also of China didn’t show that Spratly’s is part of their claim. The China’s Claim over the Spratly’s of the Philippines started after the rumored of its contain the 4^th largest Oil and Gas Deposit in the World.  The Oil thirsty china needs the Spratlys to survive from their oil needs.

The Philippines is the strongest bone which China’s fear of as most part of the islands and waters they tried to invade are within the Philippines Waters in the West Philippines Sea - UNCLOS 200 Nautical Mile Exclusive Economic Zone. China’s shame of being called as UNCLOS International law violator as so embarrassing and unacceptable for them in the international communities and lost their credibility to lead in both power and economy.

Diplomatic solution

“President Aquino of the Philippine has also already said that we are preparing reports on these alleged incursions and that we want to present them to the appropriate body,” Valte said.

Asked if the Chinese statement would affect Mr. Aquino’s plan to report the intrusions to the United Nations, Valte said, “It will not hold us back as far as we still reiterate our stand that we will handle these conflicts in the most diplomatic way possible.”

China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan all claim territories in the West Philippine Sea and  South China Sea, which covers an important shipping route and is thought to hold untapped oil and gas reserves which ranked 4^th largest oil and gas deposit in the World. Though the Philippines have started their Oil and Gas Exploration within the Archipelago’s 200 Mile Exclusive Economic Zone, it is not yet to the fullest which China; the oil thirsty country want to be part of what’s the Philippines have now in Malampaya Gas Exploration Project in Palawan Province.

China claims most of the sea, some 1.7 million square kilometers, including the Paracel  which is within their UNCLOS 200 Nautical Mile Exclusive Economic Zone and the Spratly of the Philippines which is within the Philippines Waters UNCLOS 200 Nautical Mile Exclusive Economic Zone. Paracel and Spratlys are Different because Paracel is within the waters of Vietnam and China which the 2 countries are fighting for; while Spratlys – most part is within the Philippine Waters and some part is in Vietnam Waters, Malaysia, & Brunei.

6 incidents of intrusions

Manila has accused China of intrusions into its territory, citing six instances, including one in March when two Chinese patrol boats tried to ram a Philippine survey ship.

Vietnamese officials have also complained about Chinese activity in the contested waters, accusing Chinese patrol boats of harassing an oil-exploration ship conducting a seismic survey 120 kilometers (75 Miles)  off Vietnam’s south-central coast.

One incident this month, in which Chinese vessels placed a buoy and posts in a part of the sea it claims, spurred protests in the cities of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh.

Hong said China was willing to negotiate directly with the Philippines to “seek an appropriate resolution to the relevant dispute.”

Aircraft carrier

The Chinese blast against the Philippines came amid reports that China could launch its first aircraft carrier this year, a year earlier than US military analysts had expected.

The Hong Kong Commercial Daily on Wednesday reported that a top Chinese general had confirmed that Beijing was building an aircraft carrier, marking the first acknowledgement of the ship’s existence from China’s secretive military.

In an exclusive interview, the newspaper quoted Chen Bingde, chief of the General Staff of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), as saying the 300-meter refurbished Soviet carrier “is being built, but it has not been completed.”

He declined to elaborate although there has been wide speculation that the vessel was nearly finished after the ship, then called the Varyag, was reportedly purchased in 1998. It is currently based in the northeast port city of Dalian.

The ship, which an expert on China’s military has said would be used for training and as a model for a future indigenously built ship, was originally built for the Soviet Navy. Construction was interrupted by the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

End of month launch

The Hong Kong paper quoted anonymous sources as saying the carrier would be launched by the end of June at the earliest.

Qi Jianguo, assistant to the chief of the PLA’s general staff, told the newspaper that the carrier would not enter other nations’ territories, in accordance with Beijing’s defensive military strategy.

“All of the great nations in the world own aircraft carriers—they are symbols of a great nation,” he was quoted as saying.

Despite its growing naval might, China says it poses no threat to its neighbors and that its long-term double-digit increases in military spending are in line with overall growth.

China clashes with Tokyo

In addition to China’s claims in the South China Sea, Beijing has clashed with Tokyo over the disputed Senkaku Islands, known as the Diaoyu Islands in China, located in the East China Sea.

In April, Adm. Robert Willard, head of the US Pacific Command, said China’s Navy had adopted a less aggressive stance in the Pacific after protests from Washington and other nations in the region.

The PLA—the largest army in the world—is hugely secretive about its defense programs, which benefit from a big military budget boosted by the nation’s runaway economic growth

 

Continue reading