Archive
Pieces
FACT CHECK: Philippine fishermen versus Chinese coast guard, what the record confirms
Ten years after an international arbitral ruling favorable to the Philippines, does the reality on the water still match what local fishermen describe? This…
PORTRAIT: the chip war intensifies, the context we keep forgetting
Two measures, two capitals, a single battlefield: semiconductors. This portrait retraces the forgotten context of a confrontation that has been intensifying for months between…
COMMENTARY: decoding $282 billion in three movements
A single figure can hide at least three different stories, and China's $282 billion defense budget for 2026 is the perfect example.
COLUMN: seven nations, between rhetoric and reality
Seventeen thousand soldiers. Seven countries. One month of joint military exercises. The numbers behind Balikatan 2026 impress on paper, but this column sets out…
INVESTIGATION: two Type 055 destroyers, what Western observers are taking away
Two ships just joined the ranks of the Chinese navy, and their commissioning says far more than a simple line in a military inventory.
REPORT: starved of silicon, China builds its own industry at forced march
The phrase has become a convenient shorthand in diplomatic circles: China, starved of Western silicon, supposedly chose to build its own industry.
ANALYSIS: Balikatan 2026, a cold read one month after the exercise
A month after the exercise wrapped up, it becomes possible to judge Balikatan 2026 without being distracted by the noise of official statements issued…
NOTE: why Scarborough matters more than it looks
Ten years after the international arbitral ruling of 2016, Filipino fishermen are still, according to Reuters, being driven away from Scarborough Shoal by a…
FACT CHECK: Manila sanctioned, five numbers to verify before commenting
On June 11, 2026, Beijing barred Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro from entering its territory, according to Al Jazeera.