"China’s aggression must be stopped and the rule of law must prevail."
"China’s aggression must be stopped and the rule of law must prevail."
China’s renewed swarming maneuvers in our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) have sparked international outrage raising tensions in the Indo-Pacific Region. The crescendo of public condemnation against China’s new wave of expansionist aggression, and even across the political spectrum, is most inspiring. Still, it is in stark contrast to the muted response from the President; the spokesman said it was the President’s prerogative to “privately” deal with the situation as the chief architect of Philippine foreign policy.
Strong demands thrown by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and daily diplomatic protests and sharp words from Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. was disrespected by lame excuses and undiplomatic behavior from the Chinese embassy in Manila which persisted until, the United States, in the strongest demonstration of its commitment to honor the Mutual Defense Treaty with the Philippines, responded by deploying a powerful naval force with the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, assault ship USS Makin Island and its escort of cruisers, destroyers, and submarines.
The Philippines has mobilized four warships—two are brand-new missile-guided frigates and supported by monitoring sorties of the Philippine Air Force. These closely coordinated maneuvers by the U.S. and the Philippines is by far the strongest response to Chinese incursions in the West Philippine Sea.
This allied challenge has driven the over-200 strong fleet of Chinese vessels that were suspiciously moored in phalanx formation in Julian Felipe (Whitsun) Reef since December, to withdraw to positions in the WPS, for now.
Timely was the recent launching of the Foreign Policy Forum series of the Stratbase ADR Institute. It thoroughly exposed the layered geopolitical issues and presented well-studied and feasible approaches to address the Chinese aggression now threatening the peace and stability of the Indo-Pacific region.
In the forum, former Supreme Court of the Philippines Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio emphatically said that the nations of the world must unite to strongly push back China. Otherwise, the rule of law established under the United Nations Convention of the Seas (UNCLOS) will collapse and “that will mean the beginning of a maritime order created and enforced by naval guns and the entrenchment of the ‘might is right’ concept.”
He denounced China’s imposition of “claims outside the compulsory dispute settlement mechanism of UNCLOS by authorizing its Coast Guard to fire on foreign vessels fishing in the high seas or in their own Exclusive Economic Zones, hundreds of nautical miles from China’s own Exclusive Economic Zone.”
Quite interesting was the presentation of Ms. Liz Derr, the founder and CEO of US based geospatial technology company Simularity, where latest satellite images revealed China’s illegal construction activities and the need for the government to strategically occupy key features in the WPS to prevent foreign occupation and illegal exploitation of many unprotected areas in the Philippine’s EEZ.
Dr. Chester Cabalza, President and Founder of the International Development and Security Cooperation, explained that China’s maritime power equates to having a top navy, the largest coast guard, a world-class merchant marine and fishing fleet, a globally recognized shipbuilding capacity, and the ability to extract important maritime resources. Hence, the rationale to control the SCS and the new coast Guard Law that authorizes the use of fire power.
For his part, Dr. Jay Batongbacal, Director of the UP Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea, gave an analysis of China Coast Guard (CCG) operations which effectively substantiates their attempt to effectively occupy or de facto administer control over the South China Sea. Thus, enabling them coverage of the entire South China Sea to demonstrate the extent of their jurisdiction/sovereignty over the area.
Dr. Renato de Castro, Trustee and Program Convenor, Stratbase ADR Institute, urged the Philippine government to strengthen its strategic alliance with the U.S. and enhance its security partnership with Japan, Australia, South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, the QUAD, and even Taiwan. He raised the urgency to develop a credible defense capability by focusing its limited resources on building the navy and the air force.
Stratbase ADRi president Professor Dindo Manhit’s statement fittingly underlined the collective sentiment of the forum condemning China’s expansionist ambitions, deceptive rhetoric, and acts that undermine the precepts of peaceful resolution and stability in the region.
Prof. Manhit called on the Duterte administration to re-pivot its foreign policy stance where “paramount consideration shall be national sovereignty, territorial integrity, national interest”, and where its “prime duty is to serve and protect the people” as stated by the 1987 Constitution.
The President’s policy of “appeasement” has allowed China’s reckless disregard of our sovereign rights, and immeasurably drained and damaged our exclusive maritime resources. China’s aggression must be stopped, the rule of law must prevail, and we have friendly nations ready to help us.