Here鈥檚 a quick roundup of today鈥檚 top stories:
A recently signed agreement will open a direct line of communication between the presidential offices of China and the Philippines to help prevent any new confrontation from spiraling out of control in the聽,聽聽according to highlights of the accord seen by The Associated Press on Tuesday.
China and the Philippines have created such emergency telephone hotlines at lower levels in the past to better manage disputes,聽particularly in two fiercely disputed shoals聽where the Philippines has accused聽聽and China says Philippine ships have encroached despite repeated warnings.
Top defense and security officials of the聽聽met on Wednesday (Philippine time) to discuss the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) between the two nations as well as maritime domain awareness to combat 鈥渋llegal and coercive鈥� activities.
In a readout, US Joint Chiefs of Staff Spokesperson Navy Capt. Jereal Dorsey said Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Charles Brown met with key Philippine leaders聽 鈥� Security Advisor Eduardo A帽o, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff聽聽Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. in Manila.
Marcos pre-Sona approval, trust ratings dip; VP gets modest gain
Just before his third State of the Nation Address (Sona), a Pulse Asia survey showed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.鈥檚 approval and trust rating slightly dropped.
Marcos鈥� approval rating dipped to 53 percent in June from 55 percent in March 2024. His trust rating dropped from 57 percent to 52 percent in the same period.