Mr. Don McLain Gill is a geopolitical analyst, author, and lecturer at the Department of International Studies, De La Salle University, Manila. He is also a non-resident fellow at the Stratbase ADR Institute, a visiting senior fellow at the Impact and Policy Research Institute (IMPRI), and a non-resident fellow at the USANAS Foundation. He specializes in Philippine foreign policy, Indo-Pacific geopolitics, and India-Southeast Asia security relations. He has written several books, book chapters, peer-reviewed international journal articles, newspaper columns, and commentaries for renowned international affairs publishers. He is also regularly invited as reviewer by various scopus-indexed journals on international security. He attained his Masters of Arts (MA) with Distinction in International Relations at Oxford Brookes University, United Kingdom.

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Dr. Benjamin Blandin is an expert in maritime security and a Non-Resident Research Fellow at the Yokosuka Council on Asia-Pacific Studies (YCAPS), the Korea Institute of Maritime Strategy (KIMS), and Stratbase. He holds MSc degrees in Business and Political Science (Geostrategy, Geopolitics), as well as a PhD in Political Science. Before his academic career, he worked as a Senior Consultant in strategy for leading firms, including Accenture, Deloitte, Capgemini, and Airbus Defence and Space.

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Dr. Mateusz Chatys is a senior expert at the Centre for Asian Affairs at the University of Łódź in Poland. He studies the rivalry between China and the United States in Southeast Asia, focusing on the disputes in the South China Sea. His doctoral thesis examined the idea of patron–client relationships in China’s diplomacy with neighboring countries, using its ties with Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines as examples. His current research looks at China’s “gray zone” tactics and how other countries with competing claims—especially the Philippines—have responded since Rodrigo Duterte became president.

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RADM Rommel Jude Ong (Ret) served in the Philippine Navy until his compulsory retirement.in 2019. His last posting was as Vice Commander, during which he chaired various committees covering naval diplomacy, naval modernization, basing and infrastructure development, and career management
program for the uniformed and civilian personnel. Earlier in his career he has successfully commanded three (3) commissioned naval vessels, and later the Naval Intelligence Security Force, the Naval Task
Forces 11 and 80, Director of the Fleet Marine Warfare Center, and the Naval Forces West, which has operational jurisdiction over the West Philippine Sea. He has also occupied senior staff positions such as the Assistant Chief of Staff for Naval Operations (N3), the Assistant Deputy Chief for Joint Operations (AJ3)
and the Naval Inspector General. While he was still in the active service, he has written four (4) naval manuals focusing on the following subjects: naval decision-making process, naval exercises, naval operations, and protocols of the naval inspector general service. He is currently affiliated with the Ateneo School of Government (ASOG) as a Professor of Praxis and Senior Research Fellow.
RADM Ong is a graduate of the Philippine Military Class of 1987. He completed his GSC-equivalent training at the US Naval War College and his Senior Executive
Course on National Security (MNSA-equivalent) at the National Defense College of the Philippines. He
completed his Masters in Development Management at the Asian Institute of Management.

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Renato Cruz De Castro is a distinguished professor at the Department of International Studies, De La Salle University, Manila, and holds the Dr. Aurelio Calderon Chair in Philippines-American Relations. He is an adjunct faculty at the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP), where he handles the module International Security Studies. (ISS). He was a visiting fellow at the National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS) of the Japanese Ministry of Defense in the summer of 2018. He was a visiting researcher at the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA) from June to August 2017. From September to December 2016, he was based in the East-West Center in Washington D.C. as the U.S.-ASEAN Fulbright Initiative Researcher from the Philippines. He is an alumnus of the Daniel Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DIAPCSS) in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A. In 2009, he became the U.S. State Department ASEAN Research Fellow from the Philippines and was based in the Political Science Department of Arizona State University.

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