Unpacking the Philippines' National Security Policy 2023-2028: Examining the South China Sea Dispute and Cross-Strait Relations (original) (raw)

Unpacking the Philippines' National Security Policy 2023-2028: Examining the South China Sea Dispute and Cross-Strait Relations

In 2023, for the third consecutive time in Philippine history, the government publicly released its National Security Policy (NSP). Under the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., the NSP 2023-2028 was written in the context of a volatile and uncertain regional security. Indeed, the NSP 2023-2028 discusses the country's security challenges, including the South China Sea (SCS), and Taiwan, which are two potential flashpoints in the Indo-Pacific region. In this regard, this paper seeks to discuss how the NSP seeks to promote Philippine national interests in light of the linkage between the SCS and Taiwan issues. In particular, this paper also seeks to address the following questions: How does the NSP 2023-2028 view the Philippines' strategic environment, in particular the SCS and Taiwan? and How does the NSP 2023-2028 seeks to address or manage security challenges in the SCS and Taiwan?