The Philippines will soon decide on an international platform to sue China for alleged damage to the marine environment, its justice minister said, as it pursues a second high-profile legal challenge against Beijing over the South China Sea.

The US secretary of state opens his term by reaffirming Washington’s commitment to the Philippines and other regional allies.

The United States is not a party to the issue of the South China Sea and has no right to interfere in maritime issues between China and the Philippines, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Thursday after Washington and Manila made unwarranted remarks against Beijing.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized the United States' defense commitment to the Philippines in a conversation with Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo, discussing China's destabilizing actions in the South China Sea and the strengthening of economic and security cooperation within the region.

Caught off guard, the Philippines’ only available counter was to run a U.S.-donated World War II-era Navy ship, the BRP Sierra Madre, aground at nearby Second Thomas Shoal in 1999. As we will see below, this makeshift military outpost would become a key flashpoint in the years to come.

A Philippine security official says China is “pushing us to the wall” with growing aggression in the disputed South China Sea and warned that “all options are on the table” for Manila’s response, including new international lawsuits.

Foreign Affairs Minister Sugiono and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio exchanged views on maritime security in the South China Sea.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday met virtually with his counterparts from Japan and the Philippines to advance cooperation among the three countries, the White House said.

Beijing and Manila have agreed to continue talks on settling their territorial differences despite Philippine protests about the presence of a Chinese "monster ship" near the contested Scarborough Shoal.

New U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed China's "dangerous and destabilizing actions in the South China Sea" with his Philippine counterpart on Wednesday and underscored the "ironclad" U.S.