Philippine Navy warships BRP Gregorio Del Pilar (PS15) and BRP Jose Rizal (FF150), along with the USS Gabriel Gifford (LCS 10) conduct tactical maneuvers in the West Philippine Sea on Thursday afternoon. Photo from the Armed Forces of the Philippines
Published November 24, 2023
MANILA, Philippines—Philippine senators on Friday (Nov. 24) turned the tables on China, saying it was the Asian giant, not the Philippines, that is causing trouble in West Philippine Sea, which is inside Philippine exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
In a statement, Sen. Risa Hontiveros said the Philippines has the right to patrol its waters.
“It has always been China who stirs up trouble in the West Philippine Sea, not the Philippines,” Hontiveros said.
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SOURCE: www. Globalnation.inquirer.net
RELATED: China Angrily Protests US-Philippine Patrol, Goes to “High Alert”
U.S. Air Force F-15 fighters and Philippine FA-50s fly overwatch for the joint patrol (USAF)
Published November 23, 2023
The South China Sea is a hotspot for confrontation between China and the West, and it’s heating up this week. In response to a small-scale U.S.-Philippine patrol in the Philippine EEZ – the first of its kind in a long time – China’s PLA Navy was “at the scene and on high alert” with a series of live-fire drills.
“The Philippines rallied forces from outside the region and conducted a patrol in the South China Sea, stirred up tensions and troubles and hyped the event,” PLA Southern Theater Command spokesman Senior Colonel Tian Junli said in a statement.
If Manila “rallied forces from outside the region,” it did not rally very many. The activity this week consisted of one lightly-armed U.S. patrol ship, an Independence-class LCS, along with three Philippine Navy vessels. A handful of U.S. Air Force F-15 Eagles flew overwatch with fighters from the Philippine Air Force, and a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol plane accompanied the force.
“The more the Philippines provokes, the heavier it will end up landing,” warned Zhang Junshe, a researcher at the People’s Liberation Army Naval Military Academic Research Institute. “The only right path for the Philippines is to return to talks and negotiations with China.”
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SOURCE: www.maritime-executive.com
RELATED: US, Philippines Conduct Patrols in South China Sea
In this handout photo released by the Philippine Air Force, a Philippine Air Force FA-50PH jet fighter, joins the maritime patrol of the Philippines and the United States over Batanes and areas in the West Philippine Sea on Nov. 21, 2023.
Published November 22, 2023
The United States and the Philippines were conducting joint air and maritime patrols in the South China Sea, which come as the two countries step up cooperation in the face of growingly aggressive Chinese activity in the area.
The Philippine Air Force said on Wednesday its aircraft had taken part in joint patrols on Tuesday in the vicinity of Batanes, the northernmost province of the Philippines, which is only about 200 kilometers from Taiwan, a self-governed island that China claims as its own.
The patrols run through Thursday and include both the U.S. and Philippine navies.
They come only days after Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. called the situation in the South China Sea increasingly “dire” as China seeks to assert its presence in an area where multiple nations have competing territorial claims.
China claims virtually the entire South China Sea as its own waters, which has led to disputes not only with the Philippines but also with Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei, which have long been regarded as potential flashpoints in the region and the U.S.-China rivalry.
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SOURCE: www.voanews.com
