President Marcos strongly condemned the hostile maneuvers executed by Chinese fighter planes against a light transport aircraft over Bajo de Masinloc, also known as Scarborough Shoal, in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), describing the aggressors’ actions as “reckless and illegal.”
In a statement released by the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) on Sunday, the President expressed his full backing for the Philippine Air Force (PAF), which was conducting a routine maritime security operation when the aerial harassment occurred.
“The actions of the People’s Liberation Army – Air Force (PLAAF) aircraft were unjustified, illegal, and reckless, especially as the PAF aircraft was undertaking a routine maritime security operation in Philippine sovereign airspace,” Mr. Marcos said.
The President expressed serious concern over this latest episode in the Philippines’ struggle for sovereignty in its territories amid the expansionist claims of the People’s Republic of China. This is despite the two countries’ agreeing to de-escalate ongoing tensions in the contested region.
“We have hardly started to calm the waters, and it is already worrying that there could be instability in our airspace,” Mr. Marcos said.
“The Philippines will always remain committed to proper diplomacy and peaceful means of resolving disputes. However, we strongly urge China to demonstrate that it is fully capable of responsible action, both in the seas and in the skies,” he concluded in his statement.
The Philippine military on Saturday accused China’s air force of “dangerous and provocative actions” against one of its planes patrolling over a disputed South China Sea reef.
Two China air force aircraft “executed a dangerous maneuver at around 9:00 a.m. and dropped flares in the path of our NC-212i,” armed forces chief General Romeo Brawner said in a statement, recounting the alleged incident Thursday “over” Scarborough Shoal.
He said the Chinese action “endangered the lives of our personnel undertaking maritime security operations,” adding that the pilot and crew were unharmed and “safely returned” to a northern Philippines air base.
The Chinese embassy in Manila had no immediate comment on the alleged incident.
Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea, brushing off rival claims of several Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines, and an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis.
Scarborough Shoal, a triangular chain of reefs and rocks, is 240 kilometers west of the Philippines’ main island of Luzon and nearly 900 kilometers from the nearest major Chinese land mass of Hainan. – With Agence France Presse
