Defense Sec. Gilberto Teodoro on Tuesday rejected Beijing’s opposition to Manila’s plan to acquire a US-built mid-range missile system, telling China’s communist leaders to stop their “saber-rattling” and “interference” in internal affairs.
On Monday, the Philippine Army announced plans to acquire the US Typhon missile system as part of a push to protect the country’s maritime interests, swiftly drawing a warning from China about a regional “arms race”.
China’s navy and coast guard have engaged in escalating confrontations with the Philippines in recent months over disputed reefs and waters in the South China Sea.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis.
“The Philippines is a sovereign state, not any country’s ‘doorstep’,” Teodoro said in a statement.
“Any deployment and procurement of assets related to the Philippines’ security and defense fall within its own sovereign prerogative and are not subject to any foreign veto,” he added.
Teodoro explained that all defense-related decisions and procurements are made under the country’s independent foreign policy and rooted in the Philippines’ national interest, specifically the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept.
He also dismissed China’s claims that these deployments are directed at any specific country, stating they are focused on addressing a range of security risks, threats, and challenges.
Teodoro called out the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for criticizing the Philippines’ defense initiatives, instead, urging it to de-escalate regional tensions by adhering to international law and respecting the sovereignty of neighboring states.
“If the Chinese Communist Party is truly intent on reducing tensions and instability in the region, they should cease their saber rattling, stop their provocative actions, halt their interference in other countries’ internal affairs, withdraw their illegal presence from the Philippines’ EEZ, and adhere to International Law,” he remarked.
The Philippine official also highlighted the apparent hypocrisy of China’s criticisms, pointing to their continued build-up of nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities, sponsorship of subversive organizations abroad, and failure to uphold human rights domestically.
Reacting to Manila’s missile acquisition announcement, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that the Philippines’ deployment of the weapon would only intensify geopolitical confrontation and trigger a regional arms race.
“It is an extremely irresponsible choice for the history and people of itself and the whole of Southeast Asia, as well as for the security of the region,” she said.
Earlier this year, the US Army deployed the Typhon missile system in the northern Philippines for annual joint military exercises with its longtime ally this year and decided to leave it there, despite criticism by Beijing that it was destabilizing to Asia.
Philippine military officials said the Typhon system would be able to protect vessels up to 370 kilometers (200 nautical miles) of the coast, the limit of its maritime entitlement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Filipino troops are in training to operate the land-based missile launcher, developed by US firm Lockheed Martin for the US Army and which has a range of 480 kilometers (300 miles). With AFP
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “Typhon acquisition a ‘sovereign decision, not provocation’—Teodoro.”
