Bring China incursions to UN, says ex-envoy
BY VICTOR REYES and ASHZEL HACHERO
OVER a hundred Chinese maritime vessels and two from the China Coast Guard (CCG) remain in two areas in the contested West Philippine Sea (WPS) in the South China, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said yesterday.
At a public briefing, PCG spokesman for the WPS Commodore Jay Tarriela said the Chinese vessels are still at the unoccupied Julian Felipe Reef and Philippine-occupied Ayungin Shoal based on latest monitoring.
Meanwhile, former Ambassador to Washington Jose Cuisia urged President Marcos Jr. to bring the repeated intrusions and harassment of China on Filipino vessels to the United Nations.
Cuisia, who served as envoy to the US from 2011 to 2016, said the government should not rely on promises made by Chinese officials and diplomats since most of the time they say one thing and do something else.
“We have to take a more aggressive action in the United Nations that every opportunity we have, we should bring this up,” Cuisia told CNN Philippines.
“This is to show to the United Nations that China refuses to recognize the ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration. This despite the fact that they are a party to the United Nation Convention on the Law of the Seas or UNCLOS,” he added.
He was referring to the 2016 arbitral ruling that junked China’s sweeping claim in the South China Sea, including the parts claimed and named by the Philippines as the WPS. However, China refused to abide by the ruling and has insisted on bilateral talks to address the maritime territorial dispute, a move that experts said would be in its favor considering the economic and military heft it could bring to the table.
Tarriela, at the “Laging Handa” briefing, said the over 100 Chinese maritime militia vessels were initially seen at Julian Felipe Reef during a routine patrol last April 22, according to Tarriela.
The two CCG vessels – with bow number 5201 and 4202 – were spotted at Ayungin Shoal on April 23. One of them, the vessel with bow number 5201, even harassed a PCG vessel, BRP Malapascua, during the patrol.
BRP Malapascua was approaching Ayungin Shoal when the CCG vessel radioed the PCG vessel to alter course, saying China has “indisputable sovereignty over islands in the South China Sea and the adjacent waters.”
The PCG vessel responded, saying it was merely “conducting lawful routine maritime patrol within the Philippine (200 nautical miles) exclusive economic zone.”
The CCG vessel crossed the path of the PCG vessel and came as close as 36 to 46 meters.
Fortunately, the PCG maneuvered to avoid a potential collision.
Tarriela, at the briefing, said: “Based on our monitoring, the Chinese Coast Guard vessels remained in Ayungin shoal. These are the China Coast Guard 5201 and China Coast Guard Guard 4202.”
The shoal is occupied by military personnel staying at the rusting BRP Sierra Madre which the Armed Forces intentionally grounded in the area to serve as an outpost.
“With regard to the Chinese maritime militia that we were able to document last April 22, the 100 (Chinese maritime militia vessels) the numbers still remain. There are still more than a hundred Chinese maritime militia in Julian Felipe,” said Tarriela.
Tarriela reiterated that it was not the PCG vessel that provoked the near-collision, which was made public in reports last week, disputing the statement of the Chinese foreign ministry.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning has said the PCG was responsible for the near-collision. She called the incident a “premeditated and provocative” action, noting that the Philippine vessel was carrying journalists.
Mao said the Philippine objective was to “deliberately find fault and take the opportunity to hype up the incident.” Mao also claimed that the CCG ship was merely safeguarding China’s “territorial sovereignty and maritime order,” adding it took steps to avoid the collision.
Tarriela said the PCG vessel followed procedures to avoid collision, stressing it was the CCG vessel that made the “dangerous maneuver” against the PCG vessel.
“So its not correct to say that we are the one who provoked the China Coast Guard. It is actually their vessels which are provoking our vessels,” he said.
INTIMIDATION
Days after the Ayungin incident became public, the United States asked Beijing to stop harassing Filipino vessels in the South China Sea.
“The United States stands with the Philippines in the face of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Coast Guard’s continued infringement upon freedom of navigation in the South China Sea,” an April 29 statement from the US State Department said.
On Tuesday, a senior US official said the US stands with treaty ally the Philippines in the face of harassment by China’s coast guard and remains deeply concerned about “intimidation” by Beijing.
“We remain deeply concerned by (China’s) continued intimidation and harassment of Philippine vessels as they continue to undertake really routine patrols within the Philippine exclusive economic zone,” Reuters quoted US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel J. Kritenbrink as saying.
“Such actions and behavior on the part of Beijing are truly unacceptable,” he added.
President Marcos Jr. and US President Joe Biden, in a meeting on May 1, reaffirmed their countries’ decades-old security alliance.
Biden told Marcos, who is on official visit to the US, that the US commitment to defending its treaty ally was “ironclad.” Marcos said the region had “arguably the most complicated geopolitical situation in the world right now.”
Tarriela said despite the latest Chinese harassment, the PCG will continue patrolling the WPS.
“Let me take this opportunity to inform the public that despite the bullying and aggressive behavior of the Chinese coast guard, you can rely on the national government… in ensuring the presence of our government in the West Philippine Sea,” said Tarriela.
Tarriela said PCG and Armed Forces vessels and aircraft will continue their presence in the area.
“We are not going to be threatened. Our presence will still be there. The Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Coast Guard vessels and aircraft will continuously patrol our West Philippine Sea,” said Tarriela.
CAN’T RELY ON CHINA
Cuisia said being the cases on incursion to the UN would shine a spotlight on China’s provocative actions despite its repeated denials and promises of cooperation.
“China talks about provocative when they are the ones who are taking the provocative action.This is what I’ve been saying that we cannot rely on the words of these Chinese diplomats, of Chinese officials because they say one thing they do something else,” Cuisia said.
“In fact, the word used by Ambassador del Rosario again is they are duplicitous. I think it was an apt term to describe these Chinese officials,” he added.
Cuisia was referring to the late DFA chief Albert del Rosario who spearheaded the filing in 2013 of the historic arbitration case against China that resulted in the 2016 ruling in favor of Manila. Del Rosario also urged the government to bring to the UN’s attention the aggressive acts of Chinese vessels in the WPS in contravention of the arbitral ruling.
Last February, the Department of Foreign Affairs filed a diplomatic protest and Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian was summoned to Malacañang after a CCG ship pointed a military-grade laser at a PCG vessel doing a resupply run to Filipino soldiers in Ayungin Shoal, temporarily blinding its crew.
Cuisia said by bringing such incidents to the UN and other international gatherings, Manila would be able to garner the support of other nations to its cause.
“I think we need to take every opportunity that we have to bring it up to the United Nations and to get other nations to support our stand because we keep on advocating the rule of law, we talk about the international order and China being part of the international community must respect our rights, so I think, we need to keep hammering it,” he said.
At the House, Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said “the aggressive harassment and bullying activities of China in the West Philippine Sea are pushing our country to be closer to its long-time ally, the United States.”
“The US is our only defense treaty ally. They are bound to come to our defense under our 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty. US officials have repeatedly declared that their obligations under the treaty would kick in the moment a foreign power attack us, including in the South China Sea. That is very reassuring,” he said.
Rodriguez welcomed the assurances of President Biden and President Marcos that diplomatic and economic ties between the Philippines and the US would be further strengthened, and that the US would continue to assist the Philippines, especially in the area of defense and security.
“Those ties have been disrupted by the ouster of the US military bases during the Aquino administration and by the previous government’s so-called ‘China pivot,’” he said. — With Wendell Vigilia and Reuters
