The Philippines has demanded anew that China immediately leave the vicinity of Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal and other areas inside the Philippinesâ maritime territory in the West Philippine Sea.
Foreign Undersecretary for bilateral relations and Asean affairs Ma. Theresa Lazaro on Monday conveyed the Philippinesâ âstrongest protestâ against the âaggressive actionsâ by the China Coast Guard (CCG) and Chinese maritime militia in a phone call to Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Chen Xiaodong.
The Department of Foreign Affairsâ (DFA) move was prompted by the CCGâs water cannon assault on a Philippine supply boat headed to Ayungin Shoal on March 23, causing injuries to at least three sailors onboard and heavy damage to the wooden vessel.
Earlier this month, the DFA issued the same demand when it summoned Deputy Chief of Mission Zhou Zhiyong of the Chinese Embassy after a water cannon attack by the CCG on March 4 targeting a Philippine supply boat. Four Filipino crew members were injured in that attack. Also that day, a CCG ship collided with a Philippine Coast Guard ship.
The DFA said these incidents put into question Chinaâs âsincerity in lowering the tensionsâ in the South China Sea.
The department also conveyed its protest to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Philippine Embassy in Beijing and the Chinese Embassy in Manila.
Foreign Deputy Assistant Secretary Raphael Hermoso relayed the protest to Zhou, who was summoned to the DFA.
âIn these demarches, the Philippines stressed, among others, that China has no right to be in Ayungin Shoal,â the DFA pointed out.
The DFA said âChinaâs continued interference with the Philippinesâ routine and lawful activities in its own exclusive economic zone (EEZ) was unacceptableâ and âinfringes upon the Philippinesâ sovereign rights and jurisdiction.â
âThe Philippines demands that Chinese vessels leave the vicinity of Ayungin Shoal and the Philippine [EEZ] immediately,â the DFA stressed.
This was the 14th diplomatic protest the Philippines filed against China this year and the 147th since President ĂŰŃżapp assumed office in June 2022, according to the DFA.
The Chinese Embassy, for its part, said it also made ârepresentationsâ with the DFA over the ârecent illegal trespassingâ by Philippine resupply vessels into waters adjacent to Renâai Jiao, the Chinese name for Ayungin Shoal.
The Chinese Embassy had accused the Philippine resupply mission of transporting construction materials to Ayungin Shoal, where Philippine troops are stationed in the grounded BRP Sierra Madre warship.
Why not âarbitrateâ?
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. on Monday also questioned Chinaâs sincerity to promote peace and stability in the South China Sea as it continues to do otherwise.
âIt is China that is intruding into our territory⌠No country in the world believes in their narrative. This is just their way of threatening the PhilippinesâŚWhy are you threatening us?â Teodoro asked.
âTheyâre always saying through the media that they want peace, consultation and dialogue. If China is not afraid to state its claims to the world, then why donât we arbitrate under international law?â he said.
Ayungin Shoal is a low-tide elevation that lies within the Philippinesâ EEZ and continental shelf in accordance with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2016 international arbitral award, the DFA pointed out.
China claims nearly the entire South China Sea, overlapping its claims with those of the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan. Beijing continues to ignore the 2016 arbitral ruling that invalidated Chinaâs sweeping claims.
Teodoro also described as an âinsultâ Chinaâs allegation that the Philippinesâ foreign policy over the South China Sea dispute was being influenced by the United States and other countries.
âThey are saying we are provoking them but we are not the ones blocking them in the West Philippine Sea, itâs them. So are we just going to sit back? We wonât do that,â Teodoro said.
Start maritime research
Sen. Grace Poe on Monday called on the ĂŰŃżapp administration to use all legal means to hold China accountable for its latest harassment.
âThis uncivilized action should stop. We must hold the Chinese vessel responsible for the injury inflicted on our troops,â she said in a statement.
The senator said the March 23 incident near Ayungin Shoal only proved that Beijingâs actions were âgeared to heighten the already tense situationâ in the waters within the countryâs 370-kilometer EEZ.
âWhile the Philippines continues to deal with the attacks in legal, legitimate and calm manner, we must also seek accountability,â she said.
For Sen. Francis Tolentino, the DFA should drum up international support for the countryâs efforts to protect its territory by initiating partnerships with other coastal nations in conducting maritime research in the West Philippine Sea.
He said the department and other concerned agencies could enter into âjoint exercises for peaceful marine science research and developmentâ with countries that have no existing defense treaty with the Philippines.
READ: Chinaâs chopper harasses PH researchers near Pag-asa
Among these countries, he said, are the Netherlands and Norway, which became one of the worldâs leading oil exporters after developing oil fields in its sea regions.
âWe should involve not just⌠our regular allies in terms of defense agreements, but also nondefense allies concerned about peaceful resolutions in upholding the norms of international law,â he said. âWITH REPORTS FROM MARLON RAMOS AND MELVIN GASCON INQ