Amount does not cover severed finger of sailor—Brawner
Manila is demanding P60 million (close to $1 million) in damages from Beijing for the brutal harassment by China Coast Guard personnel against Philippine Navy troops on a resupply mission near Ayungin Shoal on June 17.
Armed Forces chief of staff Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the P60 million does not yet include compensation for the Filipino soldier who lost a finger during the clash.
“In my letter, I demand the return of our seven firearms, those guns were in a box taken by the CCG, these seven rifles were in a box that they just took, and they damaged our equipment and we estimate the cost of all the damage at P60 million,” the military chief said.
Brawner said his letter was already forwarded to Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., who will in turn transmit it to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Despite recent talks to de-escalate tensions following the June 17 incident, Beijing’s biggest CCG vessel, dubbed “The Monster,” reportedly “kept watch” over the Philippine Coast Guard’s BRP Teresa Magbanua stationed in Escoda Shoal, former US Air Force official Ray Powell said.
Powell said CCG and maritime militia vessels were also deployed in a two-line “blockade” formation around Ayungin Shoal and Escoda Shoal.
BRP Teresa Magbanua has been stationed in Escoda Shoal since April amid reports of China’s reclamation activities in the area.
Escoda Shoal, which lies about 139 kilometers (75 nautical miles) from the coast of Palawan, is the assembly point of Philippine vessels conducting resupply missions to Ayungin Shoal.
Ayungin Shoal lies about 200 kilometers (120 miles) from Palawan and more than 1,000 kilometers from China’s nearest major landmass, Hainan island.
As this developed, Brawner expressed hope that the Reciprocal Access Agreement that would allow joint military exercises with Tokyo will be finalized during the 2nd Philippines-Japan Foreign and Defense Ministerial Meeting (2+2) on Monday.
“We are hoping that the RAA will be signed during the PH-Japan meeting. The RAA is important because it will allow Japanese forces to come to our country to conduct training. It will also allow our troops to go to Japan to train,” Brawner said.
President Marcos previously said the Philippines and Japan would greatly benefit from the RAA in maintaining regional peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.
“The agreement would be extremely significant between the two countries because it will give them greater capability in terms of security, disaster preparedness, alleviation, and adjustment,” Mr. Marcos said.