The Philippines’ maritime sovereignty dispute with China shows no sign of easing. The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Monday (May 3) that the Philippine government is protesting against the Chinese Marine Police for “tracking, blocking and dangerous operations against Philippine Marine Police vessels, etc.”
This is the latest in a series of dozens of protests by the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs. In addition, the Philippine foreign minister and defense secretary have made what are seen as increasingly harsh and forceful statements about China’s actions in the disputed waters. Despite President Rodrigo Duterte’s friendly stance toward China, the high-profile dispute continues to escalate.
Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. tweeted Monday asking China to leave the waters claimed by the Philippines. He even used “foul language” in the tweet: “China, my friend, how can I put it politely? Let’s see…oh…get the fuck out of here.” Lossing’s tweet continued, “What have you done to our friendship?” “You’re like an ugly dumbass forcing your attention on a hot guy who wants to make friends ……”
Reuters reported that the Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately return a request for comment from a Reuters reporter. Chinese officials had previously said the boats in the waters around the disputed Whitsun Reef were fishing boats sheltering from offshore winds and waves. Whitsun Reef is known as Bull Yoke Reef in China and Julian Felipe Reef in the Philippines.
A day earlier, Philippine Defense Secretary Lorenzana rejected a Chinese request to the Philippines to end patrols in the disputed waters. The Associated Press reported that Lorenzana said in a video address Sunday evening that “while we recognize that China’s military capabilities are more advanced than ours, that does not prevent us from defending our national interests and our dignity as a people with all that we have.”
The Philippines has filed 78 diplomatic protests with China as of April 26 since Duterte became president in 2016, according to Department of Foreign Affairs data.
Reuters reported that Marie Yvette Banzon-Abalos, executive director for strategic communications at the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs, said, “Our statements are also more persuasive because these activities are more reckless, with the number, frequency and proximity of incursions.”
The Philippines claims sovereignty over parts of the South China Sea, which China has assigned almost all of its waters to China. The South China Sea is a busy international shipping lane, with about $3 trillion in goods passing through the waters each year. The South China Sea is rich in fisheries and undersea oil resources. China effectively occupied the waters in 2012 when it surrounded Huangyan Island, claimed by the Philippines, with maritime police and maritime surveillance vessels.
In 2016, an international arbitration tribunal in The Hague ruled that Beijing’s maritime sovereignty claims based on old maps were inconsistent with international law.
China’s foreign ministry has repeatedly asked the Philippines to respect what it claims is China’s sovereignty over the disputed waters and “stop actions that complicate the situation and escalate the dispute.” China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea. China’s military said Sunday (May 2) that a fleet of the aircraft carrier Shandong conducted a recent exercise in the South China Sea.
The latest escalating dispute between Manila and Beijing began when more than 200 Chinese vessels suspected by Philippine authorities of being operated by militias were spotted on Whitson Reef in early March. The Philippine government asked the boats to leave and then deployed coast guard vessels to the area. The waters of Whitson Reef are within the Philippines’ 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone. China says it owns the reef.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has largely sought friendlier relations with China since taking office in exchange for billions of dollars in promised investment, aid and loans from Beijing. At a time of escalating maritime sovereignty disputes between the Philippines and China, Duterte has so far regarded China as a “good friend”. However, Reuters reported that Duterte said last week that “there are things that don’t really require compromise.”
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