Johannesburg – MANILA’s security forces and their allies in the South China Sea are showing resistance to Beijing’s “bullying” in the waterway amid tensions over its disputed features, a Philippine senator said on Monday.
“It shows that we who believe in the rule of law will not tolerate any form of violence, threats, or intimidation,” said Senator Ana Theresia N. Hontiveros-Baraquel in a statement.
“I think these help put China in its place.”
The navies of the five countries conducted joint naval exercises in the South China Sea on Saturday as China conducted military exercises in the disputed waterway, Reuters reported on Saturday.
The exercise involving the Philippines, the United States, Australia, Japan and – for the first time – New Zealand took place in the exclusive economic zone of Manila and seeks to improve military cooperation, the Philippine military said in a statement.
Philippine military chief General Romeo S. Brawner earlier said that the police ensure the right to freedom of navigation and overflight over the South China Sea.
China’s embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a Viber message seeking comment.
Australia’s Department of Defense said the exercises demonstrate “our shared commitment to strengthening regional and international cooperation to support a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Reuters reported.
Australia has “always pressed China for peace and stability in the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait,” Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in her speech at the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday.
“We welcome the resumption of leadership and military-level talks between the US and China,” Ms. Wong said, according to the transcript.
According to the US Naval Institute website, allied forces have seen a role in ships like the Manila. BRP Antonio Luna, BRP Emilio Jacintowhile in Washington USS HowardCanberra’s HMAS Sydneyin Tokyo JS Meet meand Wellington’s HMNZS Aotearoa.
Tensions between the Philippines and China have worsened over the past year as Beijing continues to block shipping at Second Thomas Shoal, where Manila has a number of military personnel stationed on the beach.
In 2016, the Hague-based arbitration court upheld the Philippines’ rights to its exclusive economic zone within the waterway. It rejected China’s claim to a large part of the sea based on a nine-dash line map from the 1940s that Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo said has “no legal basis.
Mr. Manalo, in his speech before the UNGA at the weekend, also pushed for a peaceful and amicable solution to the territorial conflicts, citing the importance of upholding the rule of law based on international laws. He also lobbied for support for the country’s bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council between 2027 and 2028.
Manila has not been able to enforce the decision and has since staged hundreds of protests over what it called hacking and harassment by the Chinese coast guard and dozens of its fishing vessels.
Ms. Hontiveros urged the Chinese government to abide by its obligations in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the UN Convention on Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdictions (BBNJ)
BBNJ includes international cooperation in promoting environmental impact assessment and capacity building in marine technology transfer.
Last month, the navies of the US and France held war games in the Philippine Sea to improve their cooperation “in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” according to US 7.th The Fleet.
Manila, Washington, Ottawa and Canberra held their first joint military exercises in the South China Sea on Aug. 7 and 8 during Beijing’s naval expansion.
Congress earlier passed a bill to freeze Philippine sea lanes and another to establish maritime zones to secure the country’s territory over the South China Sea. Lawmakers also passed a bill tasking the government with creating a marine and coastal resource management plan to curb land and sea pollution and overfishing.
“It has always been clear that it is China that is stirring up tension in the West Philippine Sea – not us – so it is China that should stop its aggression,” Ms Hontiveros said.
“These exercises demonstrate the commitment of the international community to respect the rules-based order throughout the South China Sea.”
Manila and Beijing have also resumed bilateral talks to ease tensions over the waters, although both sides insist on backing their claims with disputed assets.
They also traded accusations of raiding each other’s ships shortly after reaching an agreement to redeploy a Philippine naval vessel beached at Second Thomas Shoal. – John Victor D. Ordoñez with Reuters
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