Edcel John A. Ibarra
Assistant Professor
Bulwagang Silangang Palma
Africa Street
University of Philippines Diliman, Quezon City
eaibarra@up.edu.ph
Google Sites | Google Scholar
Edcel John A. Ibarra is an assistant professor at the Department of Political Science, University of the Philippines Diliman, and the managing editor of the Philippine Political Science Journal. He is also Young Leader and US-Philippines Alliance Next-Generation Leader at the Pacific Forum in Honolulu, Hawaii. In 2025, Ibarra was selected as an exchange scholar for the Institute on US Foreign Policy at the University of Delaware under the Study of the US Institutes for Scholars program of the US Department of State. In 2024, he received the Aileen San Pablo Baviera Prize, a research award by the Graduate Research and Development Network on Asian Security based at the Australian National University in Canberra. In the same year, he also testified on China’s military capabilities and the regional security architecture before the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission based in Washington, DC. Ibarra was previously a research fellow of the Strategic Studies Program of the Center for Integrative and Development Studies, University of the Philippines. He was also previously the officer-in-charge of the Strategic, Territorial, and Maritime Issues Section at the Philippine Foreign Service Institute’s Center for International Relations and Strategic Studies, the in-house think tank of the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs. Ibarra obtained his master’s in international studies and bachelor’s in political science, magna cum laude, from the University of the Philippines Diliman.
Education
- Master in International Studies, University of the Philippines Diliman, 2022
- Bachelor of Arts (Political Science), magna cum laude, University of the Philippines Diliman, 2015
Research Interests
Philippine foreign policy; territorial and maritime disputes; South China Sea; maritime security and ocean governance; regional security
Recent Publications
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2025, June 23). Entangled fronts: The Philippines’ anxiety over a Taiwan crisis. National Bureau of Asian Research. https://www.nbr.org/publication/entangled-fronts-the-philippines-anxiety-over-a-taiwan-crisis
- Arugay, A. A., Hermo, M. V., Ibarra, E. J. A., & Valenciano, A. K. B. (2025, April). Localization of the United States-China rivalry: Cases from the Philippines. ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. https://www.iseas.edu.sg/articles-commentaries/trends-in-southeast-asia/localization-of-the-united-states-china-rivalry-cases-from-the-philippines-by-aries-a-arugay-miguel-antonio-v-hermo-edcel-john-a-ibarra-and-aletheia-kerygma-b-valenciano/
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2024, December). This is fine: What lies ahead for the Philippines under another Trump term. Counterpoint Southeast Asia, (13), 4-6. https://lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/docs/default-source/cag/counterpoint-southeast-asia-137f285f7b46bc6210a3aaff0100138661.pdf#page=4
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2024, November 28). Manila takes a bold stance on the South China Sea. East Asia Forum. https://doi.org/n3xv
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2024, November 4). The Philippines’ near-standoff with China at Sabina Shoal: Bolstering preventive deployment. Fulcrum. https://fulcrum.sg/the-philippines-near-standoff-with-china-at-sabina-shoal-bolstering-preventive-deployment/
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2024). Articulating a Philippine grand strategy: Policy continuities on the South China Sea. Asian Politics and Policy, 16(3), 317-366. https://doi.org/g6rtdw
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2024). “Pendulum swings” in the Philippines’ South China Sea approach? Policy continuities from the Ramos to the Duterte administrations (Discussion Paper 2024-02). University of the Philippines Center for Integrative and Development Studies. https://cids.up.edu.ph/discussion_paper/pendulum-swings-philippines-south-china-sea-approach/
- Ibarra, E. J. A., & Arugay, A. A. (2024). Something old, something new: The Philippines’ transparency initiative in the South China Sea (ISEAS Perspective 2024/27). ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. https://www.iseas.edu.sg/articles-commentaries/iseas-perspective/2024-27-something-old-something-new-the-philippines-transparency-initiative-in-the-south-china-sea-by-edcel-john-a-ibarra-aries-a-arugay/
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2024). Partnership diplomacy for Philippine maritime security: Revival under Marcos Jr. and strategic convergence with the Republic of Korea (KIMS Periscope No. 350). Korea Institute for Maritime Strategy. https://en.kims.or.kr/issubrief/kims-periscope/peri350/
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2024, 21 March). Testimony before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission: Regional views on China’s military capabilities and implications for regional security architecture. https://www.uscc.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/Edcel_Ibarra_Testimony.pdf
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2022). Issue-based cooperation on conflict resolution in the South China Sea: Exploring roles for ASEAN beyond the code of conduct. Journal of Territorial and Maritime Studies, 9(1), 97–115. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48684181
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2022). Advancing the Philippines-US alliance for conflict resolution in the South China Sea: Policy options from an issues approach. Issues & Insights, 22(SR1), 38–44. https://pacforum.org/publication/issues-insights-vol-22-sr1-resilient-alliance-moving-the-u-s-philippines-security-relations-forward
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2022). The controversy surrounding Sandy Cay: Examining the public evidence. FSI Insights, 7(2). https://fsi.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/FSI-Insights-November-2021.pdf
- Estrada, D. V., & Ibarra, E. J. A. (2021). Don’t get the wrong impression: Revisiting the Philippines-China relationship of comprehensive strategic cooperation. FSI Insights, 7(1). https://fsi.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/FSI-Insights-March-2021.pdf
- Ibarra, E. J. A. (2021). Revisiting the need for a legally binding code of conduct in the South China Sea. CIRSS Commentaries, 6(2). https://fsi.gov.ph/revisiting-the-need-for-a-legally-binding-code-of-conduct-in-the-south-china-sea-chasing-a-moving-target/
Courses Taught
- Political Science 121: Society and Politics
- Political Science 181: Philippine Foreign Policy
- Political Science 184: Diplomatic and Consular Practice
- Social Science 2: Social, Economic, and Political Thought