President Benigno Aquino III, aboard the BRP Emilio Jacinto, leads the Fleet Review en-route to the Philippine Navy Change of Command and Retirement Ceremony of Vice Admiral Jose Luis Alano at the Capt. Salvo Pier in Sangley Point, Cavite . Gil Nartea/ Malacañang Photo Bureau
The Philippines is ready for substantive help from the United States to ensure peace and stability in the region amid China’s massive reclamation activities in the West Philippine Sea, Malacañang said yesterday.
In a press briefing, Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said the Philippines has turned out to be not the only nation concerned with China’s growing aggressiveness.
In his state visit to the Philippines almost a year ago, US President Barack Obama – according to Coloma – emphasized the “pivot to Asia” foreign policy shift of the US.
“And the term he (Obama) used is ‘rebalancing of forces’,” Coloma noted.
Last week, Coloma said US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter again talked about the US strategy in the Asia Pacific and that – as Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario had pointed out – “we and other countries are waiting as to how this can be manifested.”
“In his (Del Rosario’s) view, the presence of the United States or the concrete manifestation as to how the United States is supporting the proposition that regional peace and stability is needed is important,” Coloma said.
Del Rosario said the US wanted to deploy advanced air and naval equipment to the Philippines, which was seeking “substantive support” from its long-time ally.
Last week, Obama accused China of using its “sheer size and muscle” to push around smaller nations after Beijing sketched out plans to use the Spratleys for military defense as well as to provide civilian services that would benefit other countries.
China claims most of the potentially energy rich South China Sea, through which $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year.
The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have overlapping claims.
Western and Asian naval officials have expressed fears that China could try to limit sea navigation once the reclaimed islands are fully established.
But Coloma said the Philippines is sticking to its rules-based approach to resolve the territorial dispute with China, reiterating that “right is might” and not “might is right.”
“We also saw that President Barack Obama himself spoke in Jamaica… and he had statements to the effect that China should not bully smaller countries in the region and specifically naming the Philippines and Vietnam,” Coloma said.
“That is why we and other countries, including the United States, expressed concern over this and had called the attention of China regarding its activities,” he said.
Problem not only Phl’s
He said China’s bullying in the region is a concern shared by other countries, including those outside the region. “We’re not the only ones paying attention to this, not only the countries with maritime entitlements, there are many other countries that already expressed concern,” Coloma said. “And in terms of foreign relations and diplomacy, (these) many voices (coming together) is a sign that points to the direction of the majority’s position.”Coloma noted the Philippines has been pushing for a legally binding Code of Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea as the absence of rules and regulations to guide the behavior of countries in the disputed seas has been causing anxieties.
On the coming Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ summit in Malaysia later this month, Coloma said he does not know yet what President Aquino and the Department of Foreign Affairs would discuss on the matter.
“This is always a topic with high level of interest and priority assigned by the ASEAN member-countries,” he said.
“And President Aquino is always pointing out the importance of South China Sea because a big part of international trade passes through this. ASEAN members are not the only ones involved but many other countries in the world,” Coloma said.
He said it was natural for Beijing to scoff at Aquino’s warning that China’s actions in the West Philippine Sea should “engender fear for the rest of the world.”
But despite the dispute, the President has been trying to improve relations with China and even attended the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Beijing last year.
The President stressed that China stands to benefit immensely from its friendly relations with the Philippines, specifically in terms of trade and tourism.
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2015/04/17/1444753/phl-ready-substantive-us-support-sea-row
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.