Philippines promotes coastguard officer in ‘deliberate signal’ on South China Sea dispute

President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr’s decision to promote coastguard officer Jay Tarriela – despite Beijing’s calls for him to be sanctioned – is being read by analysts as a calibrated signal of how the Philippines intends to manage its maritime dispute with China. Rather than a routine personnel move, they say, the elevation of one of the government’s most outspoken maritime voices suggests Marcos is doubling down on a strategy that pairs public exposure of Beijing’s actions in the South China Se...

By Raissa Robles