shares_border_with leyte 
___MASK34___ , officially the Republic of China ( ROC ), is a state in ___MASK75___ ___MASK93___ . Neighbors include China ( officially the People ' s Republic of China , abbreviated as PRC ) to the west , Japan to the northeast , and the Philippines to the south . ___MASK34___ is the most populous state that is not a member of the United Nations , and the one with the largest economy . The Philippines , officially the Republic of the Philippines , is a sovereign ___MASK86___ country in Southeast ___MASK93___ situated in the western Pacific Ocean . It consists of about 7 , 641 islands that are categorized broadly under three main geographical divisions from north to south : Luzon , Visayas , and Mindanao . The capital city of the Philippines is Manila and the most populous city is Quezon City , both part of Metro Manila . Bounded by the South China Sea on the west , the Philippine Sea on the east and the Celebes Sea on the southwest , the Philippines shares maritime borders with Taiwan to the north , Vietnam to the west , Palau to the east and Malaysia and Indonesia to the south . ___MASK32___ , officially the Socialist Republic of ___MASK32___ ( SRV ), is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast ___MASK93___ . With an estimated 90 . 5 million inhabitants , it is the world ' s 14th - most - populous country , and the eighth - most - populous Asian country . ___MASK32___ is bordered by China to the north , Laos to the northwest , Cambodia to the southwest , Thailand across the Gulf of Thailand to the southwest , and the Philippines , Malaysia and Indonesia across the South China Sea to the east and southeast . Its capital city has been Hanoi since the reunification of North and South ___MASK32___ in 1976 . The ___MASK38___ is a marginal sea that is part of the ___MASK82___ , encompassing an area from the Karimata and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around . The area ' s importance largely results from one - third of the world ' s shipping sailing through its waters and that it is believed to hold huge oil and gas reserves beneath its seabed . The ___MASK31___ is a small sea within the Philippine archipelago , situated between the Eastern Visayan and the Central Visayan regions . It is bordered by the islands of Leyte to the north and ___MASK75___ , ___MASK46___ to the south , and Cebu to the west . The sea is connected to the Visayan Sea to the ___MASK12___ , and to the ___MASK46___ Sea to the south by the Canigao Channel and Cebu Strait . It contains the Camotes Islands and Mactan Island . Southeast ___MASK93___ or Southeastern ___MASK93___ is a subregion of ___MASK93___ , consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China , east of India , west of New Guinea and north of Australia . The region lies near the intersection of geological plates , with heavy seismic and volcanic activity . Southeast ___MASK93___ consists of two geographic regions : Biliran ( Waray - Waray : " Probinsya han Biliran ") is an ___MASK86___ province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region ( Region VIII ). Biliran is one of the country ' s smallest and newest provinces . Formerly a sub - province of Leyte , it became an independent province in 1992 . ___MASK92___ , officially the City of ___MASK92___ or simply ___MASK92___ City , is a and capital of the province of , . According to the , it has a population of people . It has 70 barangays and located on the western part of the province with land area of . ___MASK68___ ( historically Belau or Pelew ), officially the Republic of ___MASK68___ , is an ___MASK86___ country located in the western Pacific Ocean . The country contains approximately 250 islands , forming the western chain of the Caroline Islands in Micronesia , and has an area of . The ___MASK72___ populous ___MASK86___ is Koror . The capital Ngerulmud is located on the nearby ___MASK86___ of Babeldaob , in Melekeok State . ___MASK68___ shares maritime boundaries with Indonesia , the Philippines , and the Federated States of Micronesia . ___MASK8___ Strait ( Tagalog :" Kipot ng Cebú "; also ___MASK46___ Strait ) is a strait in the Central Visayas region in the Philippines . The Philippine Sea is a marginal sea ___MASK75___ and northeast of the Philippines occupying an estimated surface area of 5 million km² ( 2 million mi² ). of the western part of the North Pacific Ocean . It is bordered by the Philippine archipelago ( Luzon , Catanduanes , Samar , Leyte and Mindanao ) on the ___MASK91___ ; Halmahera , Morotai , Palau , Yap , and Ulithi ( of the Carolines ) on the southeast ; the Marianas , including Guam , Saipan , and Tinian , on the ___MASK75___ ; the Bonin and Iwo Jima on the northeast ; the Japanese islands of Honshu , Shikoku , and Kysh on the north ; the Ryukyu Islands on the northwest ; and Taiwan in the west . Samar is an ___MASK86___ in the Visayas , within central Philippines and the third largest ___MASK86___ in the country . The ___MASK86___ is divided into three provinces : Samar province ( the western two - fifths of the ___MASK86___ of Samar ), Northern Samar province , and Eastern Samar province . These three provinces , along with the provinces on the nearby islands of Leyte and Biliran are part of the Eastern Visayas region . The ___MASK20___ of the western ___MASK82___ is bordered on the north by the Sulu Archipelago and ___MASK81___ and Mindanao ___MASK86___ of the Philippines , on the east by the Sangihe Islands chain , on the south by Sulawesi ' s Minahassa Peninsula , and on the west by Kalimantan in Indonesia . It extends 420 miles ( 675 km ) north - south by 520 miles ( 837 km ) east - west and has a total surface area of , to a maximum depth of . The sea opens ___MASK91___ through the Makassar Strait into the Java Sea . Tacloban (; Waray : " Syudad han Tacloban "; Filipino : " Lungsod ng Tacloban ") is a highly urbanized city in the Philippines and the provincial capital of ___MASK40___ where it is geographically situated but governed administratively independent from it . It is southeast from ___MASK45___ . According to the , it has a population of and is the most populous city in the Eastern Visayas region . ___MASK8___ City , officially the City of ___MASK8___ , is the capital city of the province of ___MASK8___ and is the " second city " of the Philippines being the center of Metro ___MASK8___ , the second ___MASK72___ populous metropolitan area in the Philippines after ___MASK56___ . ___MASK8___ is a where political governance is independent and separate from the province of ___MASK8___ , and according to the , it has a population of , making it the fifth ___MASK72___ populated city in the country . ___MASK8___ City is a significant center of commerce , trade and education in the Visayas region . China , officially the People ' s Republic of China ( PRC ), is a unitary sovereign state in ___MASK75___ ___MASK93___ . With a population of over 1 . 381 billion , it is the world ' s most populous country . The state is governed by the Communist Party of China , and its capital is Beijing . It exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces , five autonomous regions , four direct - controlled municipalities ( Beijing , Tianjin , Shanghai , and ___MASK47___ ), and two mostly self - governing special administrative regions ( Hong Kong and Macau ), and claims sovereignty over Taiwan . The country ' s major urban areas include Shanghai , Guangzhou , Beijing , ___MASK47___ , Shenzhen , Tianjin and Hong Kong . China is a great power and a major regional power within ___MASK93___ , and has been characterized as a potential superpower . Camotes Islands is a group of islands in the ___MASK31___ , Philippines . The ___MASK86___ group is located east of Cebu ___MASK86___ , ___MASK91___ of Leyte ___MASK86___ , and north of Bohol ___MASK86___ . It is from Cebu City and is part of . According to the , it has a population of . Population has grown % since 1990 , equivalent to an annual growth rate of . ___MASK40___ is an ___MASK86___ in the Visayas group of the Philippines . ___MASK93___ is Earth ' s largest and most populous continent , located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres and sharing the continental landmass of Eurasia with the continent of Europe . ___MASK93___ covers an area of , about 30 % of Earth ' s total land area and 8 . 7 % of the Earth ' s total surface area . The continent , which has long been home to the majority of the human population , was the site of many of the first civilizations . ___MASK93___ is notable for not only its overall large size and population , but also dense and large settlements as well as vast barely populated regions within the continent of 4 . 4 billion people . ___MASK99___ is a federal constitutional monarchy located in Southeast ___MASK93___ . It consists of thirteen states and three federal territories and has a total landmass of separated by the South China Sea into two similarly sized regions , Peninsular ___MASK99___ and East ___MASK99___ ( Malaysian Borneo ). Peninsular ___MASK99___ shares a land and maritime border with Thailand and maritime borders with Singapore , Vietnam , and Indonesia . East ___MASK99___ shares land and maritime borders with Brunei and Indonesia and a maritime border with the Philippines and Vietnam . The capital city is Kuala Lumpur , while Putrajaya is the seat of the federal government . With a population of over 30 million , ___MASK99___ is the 44th most populous country . The southernmost point of continental Eurasia , Tanjung Piai , is in ___MASK99___ . Located in the tropics , ___MASK99___ is one of 17 megadiverse countries on earth , with large numbers of endemic species . ___MASK11___ is a list of current and former national capital cities in the Philippines , which includes during the ___MASK9___ of the Spanish colonization , the First Philippine Republic , the Commonwealth of the Philippines , the Second Republic of the Philippines ( Japanese - Sponsored Republic ), the Third Republic of the Philippines , the Fourth Republic of the Philippines and the current Fifth Republic of the Philippines . The Visayas or the Visayan Islands ( Visayan : " Kabisay - an ", ), is one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines , along with Luzon and Mindanao . It consists of several islands , primarily surrounding the Visayan Sea , although the Visayas are considered the northeast extremity of the entire ___MASK81___ . Its inhabitants are predominantly the Visayan people . ___MASK8___ ( or ) is a of the Philippines located in the region , and consisting of the main ___MASK86___ itself and 167 surrounding islands and islets . Its capital is ___MASK8___ City , the oldest city and first capital of the Philippines , which is politically independent from the provincial government . ___MASK8___ City forms part of the ___MASK8___ Metropolitan Area together with four neighboring cities ( Danao City , Lapu - Lapu City , Mandaue City and Talisay City ) and eight other local government units . Mactan - ___MASK8___ International Airport , located in Mactan ___MASK86___ , is the second busiest airport in the Philippines . Mactan or Maktan is a densely populated ___MASK86___ located a few kilometres (~ 1 mile ) from Cebu ___MASK86___ in the Philippines . The ___MASK86___ is part of Cebu Province and it is divided into Lapu - Lapu City and the municipality of Cordova . The ___MASK86___ is separated from Cebu by the ___MASK42___ which is crossed by two bridges : the Marcelo Fernan Bridge and the Mactan - Mandaue Bridge . The ___MASK86___ covers some and is home to some 430 , 000 people , making it the nation ' s most densely populated ___MASK86___ . Along with Olango ___MASK86___ Group , the isles are administered as 1 city and a municipality covering . Mandaue , officially the City of Mandaue and often referred to ___MASK52___ Mandaue City , is a in the region of Central Visayas ( Region VII ), Philippines . It is one of three highly urbanized cities on Cebu island and forms a part of the Cebu Metropolitan area . Mandaue City is located on the central - eastern coastal region of Cebu ; its ___MASK91___ coast borders the northeast of Mactan Island , where Lapu - Lapu City is located . Mandaue is connected to Mactan Island via two bridges : the Mactan - Mandaue Bridge and Marcelo Fernan Bridge , and is bounded south and the west by the provincial capital , Cebu City , and north by Consolacion , to which it is linked by the Cansaga Bay Bridge . The city has an area of . According to the , it has a population of . Mindanao is the second largest and southernmost ___MASK25___ island in the Philippines . It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country ( the other two being Luzon and the Visayas ), consisting of the island of Mindanao and smaller outlying islands . Davao City is the largest city in Mindanao . As of the 2010 census , the island ' s population itself is 20 , 281 , 545 people , while the Mindanao island group has 21 , 968 , 174 inhabitants . Davao City is the most populous in Mindanao as 1 , 632 , 991 population , and the 2nd is Zamboanga City as 861 , 799 population , the 3rd is ___MASK69___ City as 675 , 950 population , and followed by General Santos City as 594 , 446 population as of 2015 census . The Visayan Sea is a sea in the Philippines , surrounded by the islands of the Visayas , Eastern Visayas and Western Visayas located to the ___MASK75___ and west , while the Central Visayas is located to the south . It is bounded by the islands ___MASK19___ to the north , Leyte to the ___MASK75___ , Cebu and Negros to the south and Panay to the west . An ___MASK86___ or isle is any piece of sub - continental land that is surrounded by water . Very small islands such ___MASK52___ emergent land features on atolls can be called islets , skerries , cays or keys . An ___MASK86___ in a river or a lake ___MASK86___ may be called an eyot or ait , and a small ___MASK86___ off the coast may be called a holm . A grouping of geographically or geologically related islands is called an archipelago , e . g . the Philippines . ___MASK66___ ( or ; Indonesian : ), officially the Republic of ___MASK66___ , is a unitary sovereign state and transcontinental country located mainly in Southeast ___MASK93___ with some territories in Oceania . Situated between the Indian and Pacific oceans , it is the world ' s largest island country , with more than seventeen thousand islands . At , ___MASK66___ is the world ' s 14th - largest country in terms of land area and world ' s 7th - largest country in terms of combined sea and land area . It has an estimated population of over 260 million people and is the world ' s fourth most populous country , the most populous Austronesian nation , ___MASK52___ well ___MASK52___ the most populous Muslim - majority country . The world ' s most populous island of Java contains more than half of the country ' s population . Luzon is the largest and ___MASK72___ populous island in the Philippines and the 15th largest in the world . Located in the northern region of the archipelago , it is the economic and political center of the nation , being home to the country ' s capital city , ___MASK45___ , as well as Quezon City , the country ' s ___MASK72___ populous . With a population of 52 . 99 million , it is the fourth ___MASK72___ populous island in the world ( after Java , Honshu , and Great Britain ), containing about 53 % of the country ' s total population . An ___MASK86___ country is a country whose primary territory consists of one or more islands or parts of islands . ___MASK52___ of 2011 , 46 ( approximately 24 %) of the 193 UN member states are ___MASK86___ countries . The ___MASK46___ Sea , also called the Mindanao Sea , is located between Visayas and Mindanao in the Philippines . It lies south of ___MASK46___ and Leyte and north of Mindanao . Siquijor and Camiguin are its two ___MASK25___ islands . ___MASK46___ is a of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region , consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands . Its capital is Tagbilaran . With a land area of and a coastline long , ___MASK46___ is the tenth largest island of the Philippines . To the west of ___MASK46___ is Cebu , to the northeast is the island of Leyte and to the south , across the ___MASK46___ Sea , is Mindanao . Metropolitan ___MASK45___ , commonly known as ___MASK56___ or simply ___MASK45___ , is the capital region of the Philippines , is the seat of government , the 2nd most populous and the most densely populated region of the country . The National Capital Region ( NCR ) is composed of ___MASK45___ , the capital city of the country , Quezon City , the country ' s most populous city , and the cities of Caloocan , ___MASK14___ , Makati , Malabon , Mandaluyong , Marikina , Muntinlupa , Navotas , Parañaque , Pasay , ___MASK53___ , San Juan , Taguig , and Valenzuela , including the only remaining municipality of Pateros . ___MASK40___ ( also Northern ___MASK40___ ; Filipino : Hilagang ___MASK40___ ; Cebuano : Amihanang ___MASK40___ ; Waray - Waray : Norte san ___MASK40___ ) is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region , occupying the northern three - quarters of ___MASK40___ ___MASK86___ . Its capital is the city of Tacloban . ___MASK40___ is situated west of Samar ___MASK86___ , north of Southern ___MASK40___ and south of Biliran . To the west of ___MASK40___ across the Camotes Sea is Cebu Province . The historical name of the Philippines , `` Las Islas Felipenas '' , named by Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos in honor of Prince Philip of Spain , used to refer to the islands of ___MASK40___ and Samar , until it was adopted to refer to the entire archipelago . ___MASK40___ is also known ___MASK52___ the site of the largest naval battle in modern history , the Battle of ___MASK40___ Gulf , which took place during the Second World War . On 8 November 2013 , the province was largely destroyed by Super Typhoon Yolanda ( Haiyan ) , killing a reported 10 , 000 people , having previously suffered similar destruction and loss of life in 1991 during Tropical Storm Thelma . ___MASK45___ ( or ), officially City of ___MASK45___ , is the capital of the Philippines . ___MASK17___ City ( also known ___MASK52___ QC ) is the ___MASK72___ populous city in the Philippines . It is one of the cities that make up ___MASK56___ , the National Capital Region of the Philippines . ___MASK17___ City was named after Manuel L . ___MASK17___ , second President of the Philippines , who founded the city and developed it to replace ___MASK45___ ___MASK52___ the national capital for 28 years from 1948 to 1976 . ___MASK17___ City is not located in and should not be confused with ___MASK17___ Province , which was also named after the president . It is the largest city in ___MASK56___ in terms of land area and ___MASK72___ populated local government unit in the country . ___MASK78___ is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region . Its capital is the city of Maasin . ___MASK78___ was a sub - province of Leyte until it was made into an independent province . ___MASK78___ includes Limasawa , an ___MASK86___ to the ___MASK43___ where the first Roman Catholic Mass was held and considered to be the birthplace of Roman Catholicism in the Philippines .