Diplomatic solution needed

Chinese harassment of Philippine vessels on humanitarian missions in the disputed South China Sea is continuing, with Beijing accusing Washington of encouraging Manila to provoke China for its own purposes.

China has not offered any direct evidence to support its accusation, but observers noted the continuing acrimonious confrontations underline China’s baseless claim to practically the whole of the South China Sea.

Washington has said the actions by China’s ships “were dangerous and unlawful” and undermined regional stability, and renewed a vow it would defend Philippine forces if they faced an armed attack.

Britain itself on Monday condemned what it called “unsafe and escalatory tactics deployed by Chinese vessels” against the Philippines last weekend in the South China Sea.

“The UK opposes any action which raises tensions, including harassment, unsafe conduct and intimidation tactics which increase the risk of miscalculation and threaten regional peace and stability,” the foreign office said in a statement.

“Both China and the Philippines must adhere to the findings of the 2016 Arbitral Award proceedings, which are legally binding on both parties, it added.

More than a dozen countries, including the United States, Japan, the European Union, Germany, France, Canada and Australia, have expressed support for the Philippines and concern over the incidents, Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Teresita Daza said.

Daza, who rejected the Chinese foreign ministry’s claims regarding the incident, said: “The mere fact that they actually followed, shadowed, had dangerous maneuvers, and had challenging [radio] calls—this is not how friends work together.”

The chief of the Philippine military, Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., was with his forces aboard a supply boat when it was blasted with a water cannon, surrounded and shoved by Chinese coast guard ships last weekend in the |South China Sea.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines told Beijing it should “restrain its forces” from committing “provocative acts that will endanger lives” in the West Philippine Sea.

Acting Defense Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. also said China’s action was “offensive and unsafe.”

Using the new direct communication line between the two countries’ foreign ministries for the first time, the Chinese side made the first call, telling Manila that the CCG had no military-grade laser on the ship that was involved in the incident, Daza said.

More than 100 official Chinese and other government-linked ships have swarmed the high seas around the contested Second Thomas Shoal, where a marooned Philippine navy ship that Brawner visited has stood for decades.

“It’s pure aggression,” Brawner said. “I witnessed how many times the big Chinese coast guard and militia ships cut our path. They water-cannoned us, then bumped us. It’s angering.”

“This really needs a diplomatic solution at the higher level,” he said, adding the armed forces would continue to support frontline troops and protect fishermen.

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