Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. on Friday turned the tables on China after it accused the Philippines of stirring up trouble in the West Philippine Sea with its joint patrols with the US military.
“Who was encroaching on the South China Sea? Especially the West Philippine Sea? It is China,” Teodoro said in an ambush interview.
“The Philippines is not stirring up trouble. This is a reverse of the truth. It’s an absolute falsity for China to say that and it is once again reversing the truth consistent with its narrative,” he added.
Teodoro said the Philippines is only upholding its sovereign rights in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
China, on the other hand, can only claim to follow international maritime laws while doing the exact opposite, the Defense chief said.
“I think their credibility is very, very low,” he said.
News reports earlier quoted the Chinese military as saying that the Philippines has enlisted “foreign forces” to patrol the South China Sea.
“The Philippines enlisted forces out of the region to patrol…stirred up trouble and engaged in hype, undermining regional peace and stability,” the Southern Theatre Command of the Chinese military said.
The Philippines and US conducted joint patrols in the WPS area for three days this week.
For his part, National Security Adviser Eduardo Año described Beijing’s narrative as “unfounded.”
“The joint patrols conducted by the Philippines with the United States are well within our rights as a sovereign nation and in accordance with international law, the RP-US Mutual Defense Treaty, and the Visiting Forces Agreement,” he said.
“The joint patrols were conducted within 40 to 140 nautical miles from mainland Luzon and Palawan and are well-within the country’s exclusive economic zone. China’s claim that our actions are allegedly ‘stirring up trouble’ in the region is unfounded.”
“We will continue to exercise our rights and fulfill our obligations to maintain peace and stability in the region in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific. We reject any attempt to undermine our legitimate actions to safeguard our sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction,” Año said.
Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the joint maritime and air patrols in the WPS were successful despite China’s shadowing activity.
“We are confident that we are now more able to operate with our ally, the US,” Brawner said.
On Thursday, three ships — two Filipino and one American — were sailing together at 30 nautical miles off the Malampaya gas field facility in northern Palawan when they spotted a Chinese People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN) vessel that, Brawner said, appeared to be shadowing them from a distance of 6.5 nautical miles.
Meanwhile, Senator Risa Hontiveros rebuked China for committing provocative actions in the WPS.
“Our country should be free to patrol our waters with whomever we choose, whenever we want. This is our right as a sovereign nation,” she said.
