Chinese present at Ayungin, both sides on wait-and-see mode - Wescom chief

From InterAksyon (Jul 11): Chinese present at Ayungin, both sides on wait-and-see mode - Wescom chief

It’s confirmed: Chinese ships and fishing boats are very much present on Ayungin Reef, a maritime area that is part of the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) town off Palawan.

The confirmation comes from Lt. Gen. Rustico Guerrero, commander of the Western Command (Wescom) that has jurisdiction over the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

 The number of boats and government ships varies every day, however, based on the Wescom monitoring, Guerrero said Thursday.

“Pabago-bago. Minsan isa, minsan tatlo, minsan dalawa [It varies. Sometimes you see one, sometimes three, sometimes two]. It’s very dynamic,” Guerrero said.

Reliable military sources said earlier a Chinese Navy ship with bow No. 83 was still in the area with several fishing boats, contrary to a newspaper report claiming Ayungin had been cleared of Chinese ships.

Throughout this time, Guerrero said, Marine troops stationed in Ayungin continued monitoring the movements of the Chinese Navy and fishing boats in the area.

Ayungin is deemed strategic by both sides, and it is near where the Armed Forces of the Philippines deliberately grounded its derelict BRP Sierra Madre a few years ago to block passage of foreign intruders. China recently demanded that Manila take out the ship—used as a garrison of sorts by a Marine contingent---because, it claimed, it owned the entire maritime territory.

Despite the continuous surveillance by either side, however, Guerrero indicated both Chinese and Philippine forces were acting prudently: “As far as the Wescom is concerned we are continuously monitoring our good friends in that area with what is available with my command, and we provide the reports to the national leadership for their appreciation.”

But, he quickly added, “rest assured that we will not leave Ayungin,” affirming a determined Philippine stand on the matter.

Still, he said the Chinese had not shown any overt sign that could be deemed hostile to the Marine troops at Ayungin.“They (Chinese) are not taking over, they are just monitoring. Actually, at the same time they are coming to our detachment. So we are protecting our respective outposts…There is no overt action from both sides. We will maintain our detachment in that area,” Guerrero said.

“We’re doing our best to protect our territory. Our outpost is properly manned and we are continuously monitoring the activities of other nations in that area. There is no [disruption] of our resupply activities,” he added. He was apparently referring to earlier reports that Chinese ships tried to block the small resupply boats that ferried the things needed by the Marines in the garrison.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/66127/chinese-present-at-ayungin-both-sides-on-wait-and-see-mode---wescom-chief