Overview

• The Philippines is building defense alliances with the US and other security partners to pave the way for resource exploration in the oil-and-gas-rich South China Sea, amid heightened tensions with Beijing.
• Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnr suggests that energy exploration could be the next flashpoint in the territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
• The Philippines will not allow any joint exploration that doesn’t recognize the nation’s right to exclusively exploit these resources.
• In the face of a 'more aggressive' China, the Southeast Asian nation is also planning 'more robust' military activities with the US and its allies.
• China and the Philippines have agreed to manage their disputes on the South China Sea, amid heightened tensions between the two rival claimants.