MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine president mentioned Friday that his nation doesn’t desire a confrontation however will staunchly defend its waters after its coast guard dismantled a floating barrier positioned by China at a disputed shoal within the South China Sea.
It was the primary time President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has spoken publicly in opposition to China’s set up of the 300-meter (980-foot) -long barrier on the entrance to Scarborough Shoal which was dismantled at his order.
“We’re not on the lookout for hassle, however what we’ll do is to proceed defending the maritime territory of the Philippines and the rights of our fishermen, who’ve been fishing in these areas for a whole lot of years,” Marcos mentioned in response to a query at a information briefing in southern Surigao del Norte province.
The newest flare-up between China and the Philippines within the South China Sea, one of many world’s busiest commerce routes, comes after Marcos determined earlier this yr to permit an enlargement of the U.S. navy presence within the Philippines beneath a 2014 protection pact.
The prospect of extra American forces in native navy camps within the northern Philippines throughout from Taiwan and southern China alarmed and infuriated Beijing.
After the Philippine coast guard dismantled the rope and web barrier on the mouth of Scarborough Shoal, Filipino fishing boats entered the shallow lagoon and caught about 164 tons of fish in sooner or later, Marcos mentioned.
“That’s what our fishermen lose, so there shouldn’t be a barrier there, and it’s clear the world is inside the Philippines,” he mentioned. “Our fishermen have been fishing in these areas for a whole lot of years so I can’t perceive why that has modified.
A Philippine surveillance plane deployed Thursday noticed two Chinese language coast guard vessels intently guarding the shoal’s entrance, making it nonetheless tough for Filipino fishermen to realize entry into the fishing lagoon, Philippine coast guard spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela mentioned throughout a information convention Friday.
Amid China’s effort to minimize the Philippine coast guard’s disabling of the barrier, Tarriela confirmed journalists considered one of two steel anchors he mentioned Filipino coast guard personnel eliminated just lately from Scarborough’s entrance to knock the barrier down.
Chinese language International Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin mentioned at a information briefing in Beijing on Wednesday that the shoal “is China’s inherent territory.”
“What the Philippines (has) achieved is nothing however a farce that entertains itself. China will proceed to safeguard the territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and pursuits of Huangyan Island,” he mentioned, utilizing the Chinese language title for Scarborough.
Though Marcos has tried to nurture regular ties with China, the long-simmering territorial disputes have put the Asian neighbors on a possible collision course, with the Philippine chief vowing his nation wouldn’t yield even “an inch” of territory within the strategic waterway.
Marcos’s extra confrontational stance contrasts with that of his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, who nurtured cozy ties with China and Russia whereas usually criticizing U.S. and Western safety insurance policies.
Beneath Marcos, who took workplace final yr, the Philippines has intensified its efforts to battle China’s more and more aggressive actions in one of many world’s most hotly contested waters. The Philippine coast guard usually invitations journalists to affix its patrols in an effort to show what it calls Chinese language bullying within the busy waterway.
Along with China and the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan are additionally concerned within the territorial conflicts within the South China Sea, which has lengthy been considered a possible Asian flashpoint and a fragile fault line within the U.S.-China rivalry within the area.
Washington lays no declare to the ocean passageway however U.S. Navy ships and fighter jets have carried out patrols for many years to problem China’s expansive claims and promote freedom of navigation and overflight. It has warned that it’s obligated to defend the Philippines beneath a 1951 Mutual Protection Treaty if Filipino forces, ships and plane come beneath assault, together with within the South China Sea.