Archive
Pieces
INVESTIGATION: Filipino fishermen against the Chinese coast guard, the context we keep forgetting
A decade. Ten years since an international tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines, and yet, according to Reuters, Filipino fishermen report today that…
REPORT: The chip war escalates between Washington and Beijing in three moves
There was no dramatic announcement, no televised crisis summit. The chip war between Washington and Beijing advances in stages, through legislative texts, through administrative…
DECODING: $282 billion, between rhetoric and reality
A single figure, $282 billion, now serves as shorthand for describing Chinese military ambition in 2026. But this shorthand, as is often the case…
ANALYSIS: Seven nations, one message to Beijing
Seventeen thousand troops, seven nations, one implicit message aimed at Beijing: that is the first takeaway from the Balikatan 2026 exercise, held in the…
NOTE: Xi Jinping changes tactics on Taiwan, what Western observers are taking away
The daily average of Chinese air incursions into the Taiwan Strait has fallen by half compared to 2025, according to the Straits Times of…
FACT CHECK: Two new Type 055 destroyers for the Chinese navy, a strategic reading
In early 2026, according to IDSA, the Chinese navy commissioned two new Type 055-class destroyers, the Dongguan and the Anqing.
PORTRAIT: Where things stand on Starved of Silicon
On June 22, 2026, China added ten American companies to its export control list, according to Modern Diplomacy of July 12, 2026.
COMMENTARY: The American MATCH Act targets China's chipmaking machines, a cold read a month later
On April 3, 2026, Reuters reported that the United States proposed the MATCH Act to restrict exports of semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China.
COLUMN: Why Balikatan 2026 matters more than it looks
Every year, the Balikatan military exercise brings together Philippine and American forces in a routine joint drill. In 2026, however, something changed in scale:…