Lithuanian Defense Minister Dovilė Šakalienė denounced China’s aggressive actions against Filipino fishermen in the West Philippine Sea, emphasizing the need for smaller nations to unite and resist intimidation from larger powers.
Šakalienė made the statement during her four-day working visit to Manila, where she and Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on defense cooperation on Monday, June 30.
The elevated partnership was prompted by a cooperation among “authoritarian states” which, Šakalienė said, threatens democracy in the current world.
“When we hear what China is saying about Taiwan Strait, about other states around it, neighbors that it should have nice relationship with, but we see these horrifying materials, videos, how we are threatening [Filipino] fishermen, how we are treating people who are simply making their living in their own waters, in their own territory, then I think it’s very clear, if they work together to threaten us, then we must work together to defend ourselves,” she said.
For years, China has carried out aggressive actions against Philippine vessels, including the use of water cannons, military-grade lasers, and other forms of intimidation. Chinese ships have also routinely driven away Filipino fishermen from their traditional fishing grounds within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
For Šakalienė, Lithuania and the Philippines should “send a very clear strategic message [that] we are not going to let ourselves be scared, we are not going to let them enter our territory, we are not going to let them change the current world order based on international rules.”
“We are going to stand up to them together,” she said in a message of protest against authoritarianism.
Šakalienė’s firm stance against authoritarianism stemmed from Lithuania’s historical experiences. During World War II, Lithuania experienced two occupations, first by the Soviet Union and then by Nazi Germany, lasting from 1940 to 1990.
“Democracy is already a minority in the current world and we do not have a luxury to allow it to be annihilated,” she said.
Satellite imagery and automatic identification system (AIS) data from May 2023 to April 2025 by Sealight showed a sharp rise in Chinese activity around the Panatag shoal.
SeaLight said 78 China Coast Guard (CCG) and maritime militia vessels transmitted more than 1.57 million AIS signals during the period — more than double the 724,000 signals from 57 ships the previous year.
The data also revealed a widening of the area covered by Chinese patrols, with activity building up toward the east, closer to the Philippine mainland.
“These moves show China’s intention to establish a de facto blockade,” said Ray Powell, director of the SeaLight program and a former US Air Force officer. “It is using sustained maritime pressure to create new facts on the ground.”
