Philippine President Warns of Dangerous Chinese Coast Guard Actions in South China Sea

2024-03-28 19:28:22
A Chinese Coast Guard ship blocks the path of the Philippine replenishment ship Unaizah May 4 near a disputed atoll in the South China Sea (Armed Forces of the Philippines via AP)

The president of the Philippines warned Thursday that his government will take action against what he described as dangerous attacks by the Chinese Coast Guard and suspected militia ships in the disputed South China Sea, and said that “the Filipinos do not give in.”

Ferdinand Marcos Jr. did not offer more details about the measures that will be taken in the coming weeks, but noted that they will be “proportionate, deliberate and reasonable in the face of the open, incessant and illegal, coercive, aggressive and dangerous attacks of the Coast Guard and the Chinese maritime militia.”

“We do not seek conflict with any nation,” Marcos wrote on X, formerly Twitter, but added that Filipinos will not “be cowed.”

The president’s warning is the latest episode in the confrontation between Beijing and Manila over the disputed waters, which has caused minor clashes between the coast guard and other vessels of the claiming countries, starting a war of words and straining relations.

China and the Philippines, as well as Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei, have overlapping claims to the busy, resource-rich seaway through which most of the world’s trade and oil transits.

Chinese officials in Manila or Beijing did not immediately respond to Marcos’ public warning, which coincided with Holy Week, one of the holiest periods in the majority-Catholic country.

China’s Defense Ministry accused the Philippines of escalating disputes in the South China Sea by taking provocative measures and spreading “misinformation to mislead the international community.”

File photo of the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr (EFE/EPA/JOEL CARRETT)

“It is veering further down a dangerous path,” Maj. Col. Wu Qian, the Defense Ministry’s top spokesman, said in a statement issued Thursday by the Chinese embassy in Manila.

Both China and the Philippines said they were acting to protect their sovereignty. Wu indicated that China remained “committed to properly managing maritime differences,” while Marcos said he has been in contact with international allies who have offered to help the Philippines.

Marcos said the statement came after a meeting with the country’s senior defense and national security officials, who presented their recommendations to him. These include using faster military vessels instead of chartered civilian vessels when the Philippine navy brings new personnel and supplies to the disputed Second Thomas Shoal, two Philippine security officials said.

The sandbar, the site of frequent hostilities since last year, is occupied by a small Philippine naval contingent but surrounded by the Chinese coast guard and other vessels in a decades-long territorial standoff.

It is unclear whether Marcos approved the recommendations. The two Philippine officials spoke separately to the AP on condition of anonymity in accordance with regulations.

In Saturday’s hostilities, the Chinese coast guard used water cannons, injuring Filipino crew members and causing significant damage to a timber replenishment ship near the Second Thomas Shoal sandbar.

(With information from AP)

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