[Rappler’s Best] 2026 and your neighborhood bullies

Annyeonghaseyo!

I hope you opened the New Year with cheer, Donald Trump and Nicolas Maduro notwithstanding.

I’m writing this from picturesque Nami Island in South Korea, on the last day of a short New Year break spent with family. Nami, surrounded by the Bukhan River that’s sliced by rocks of snow in some parts, is stunning despite the dead color of winter. I guess it’s the myth around it, built over time since the iconic Winter Sonata was shot here in the early 2000s.

Through their blockbuster telenovelas, K-pop music, and skin care, this East Asian cultural giant has colonized many parts of the world. Yet, this holiday visit reminded me of how, not too long ago, we also conquered Asia through our songs. In two Ubers that we took, the drivers instantly hummed “Anak” upon sensing we were Filipinos. Freddie Aguilar, the drivers blurted with a smile. One even played the Korean version on his phone. The Gen Zs with us sat clueless; we elders were thrilled.

Aguilar’s “Anak” — released in 50 countries and translated into 53 languages — continues to ripple four decades after it touched the hearts of millions around the world. The Filipino folk artist died in May 2025 (of course, we have not forgotten the fact that he did hook up with a minor).

South Korea has built a fortress around itself — culturally, psychologically, physically — as it is forced to live with an irrational, errant neighbor separated from it by a demilitarized strip of 250 kilometers.

It made me wonder: In military tactics, which is easier to secure from invasion? Land separated by land, or, in the case of the West Philippine Sea, land separated by treacherous waters from a bully like China?

Indeed, our borders have never been so insecure as they are now, as Trump showed us in a brazen reminder over the weekend when, on his orders, US military forces attacked Venezuela’s capital, kidnapped President Maduro, boarded him and his wife Cilia into a helicopter and a ship, and then put him in a New York detention center.

As if to also flex its military muscle, North Korea fired ballistic missiles on Sunday, January 4, as South Korean President Lee Jae-myung embarked on a state visit to China.

China also earlier staged military drills around Taiwan, prompting the latter to vow it will defend its sovereignty. 

• The US’ attack on Venezuela is a marked departure from a leader who has criticized others for overreaching on foreign affairs, writes Reuters.
• But Walden Bello, in his critique of the US’ recently released National Security Strategy (NSS), spells out America’s policy shift towards economic and regional interests that precisely make sense of the attack on Venezuela. Read Walden’s piece here.
• The Venezuelan diaspora celebrated the dictator Maduro’s abduction but know how uncertain the coming months will be. 
• Who is Nicolas Maduro? Read all about him here.

To Mamamayang Liberal Representative Leila de Lima, Trump’s audacious move should serve as a reality check for the Philippines. “As a US ally, this leaves the Philippines with a compromised moral ascendancy in protesting, condemning, opposing and fighting China’s aggression in the West Philippine Sea,” De Lima said.

Other analysts agree that the Venezuela strike will embolden China’s territorial claims.

Chinese incursions into Philippine territory have been without letup in the last few years, the latest of which was China’s apparent Christmas gesture, but which Philippine officials have pooh-poohed as mere propaganda. Prior to this, Chinese coast guard ships fired water cannons at Filipino fisherfolk in Escoda Shoal. The US condemned China’s aggression.

But Manila’s major ally against Chinese aggression “uses that same aggression against a smaller neighbor (Venezuela) like what the Philippines is to China,” De Lima stressed.

Even if the US government’s NSS skipped mention of America’s presence and interest in its most enduring ally in the Asia-Pacific, it’s a fact that the Americans are here. And in a big way, as Marites Vitug tells us in this story.

This year alone, the Philippines will witness more than 50 joint exercises and engagements between both countries.

• In November, both countries announced the creation of the US’ Task Force Philippines. Bea Cupin tells us what it will do in Philippine waters.
• Former Navy vice commander retired rear admiral Rommel Ong lays out in this piece what seems unthinkable: a Philippine defense posture without America.

Back home, the President signed the P6.793-trillion 2026 budget, the driver of both growth and corruption. How this will serve the public good and not fill our lawmakers’ pockets is the challenge.

Here are some of Rappler’s bests that you shouldn’t miss:

James Patrick Cruz tells us how much money has been recovered by the government so far in the wake of the flood control scandal.

Curtis Chin and Jose Collazo show us Asia’s worst in 2025 — from scam cities to Labubu.

JC Punongbayan tackles the difference between the 2025 budget and the new one.

James Patrick Cruz lists down the agencies that got the biggest budget based on what was approved by both houses of Congress. The President needs to sign off on it.

2026 budget under Palace review, will be signed first week of January

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is expected to sign this week the national budget that will also reflect how serious he is in getting rid of items that go to the pockets of legislators.

Visionary tech innovator Dado Banatao dies at 79

The Philippines’ tech pioneer and icon died in America on Christmas Day, leaving behind a legacy that remains unmatched. 

[Finterest] Start 2026 strong with these personal finance tips

Start the year right by adopting these practices. 

Who is Dorado, the only foreign finalist on South Korea’s ‘Sing Again 4’?

Gwyn Dorado is taking South Korea by storm. 

Venezuela moves to cut oil output due to US export embargo

An ongoing US oil blockade has reduced Venezuela’s exports to zero.

– Rappler.com

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The views expressed by the writer are his/her own and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Rappler.