MANILA: The Philippines has asked China to explain its deployment of a patrol ship to guard disputed territory it claims in the South China Sea, Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said yesterday.
Del Rosario said Chinese diplomats have previously said that Beijing will only assert its claims, including by possibly intercepting foreign ships, in waters off its southernmost province of Hainan. But China also claims that most of the South China Sea falls under Hainan’s jurisdiction, he said.
The Philippines has asked China to specify the limits of the territory it will guard, del Rosario said.
“Everybody’s hot and bothered,” del Rosario told reporters. “That’s why we are saying, please define for us, but they’re not answering.”
The Chinese patrol ship, equipped with a helipad, left the southern city of Haikou for the South China Sea on Dec. 27, China’s official Xinhua News Agency reported late last month.
Chinese officials established last year what they called Sansha city on a remote island 350 kilometers (220 miles) from Hainan to administer hundreds of thousands of square miles (kilometers) of offshore territory and islands that are also claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. Sansha is administered by Hainan.
Philippines has described China’s move as unacceptable. Vietnam called it a violation of international law. Washington has also criticized China’s formal establishment of Sansha city and a military garrison there, saying the move risked an escalation in tensions.
Although China and the Philippines have taken steps to patch up relations that were strained by the territorial disputes last year, del Rosario said Manila has not changed its policy of pursuing its claims. The Philippines, he said, will continue raising the issue with other countries, a move rejected by China, which wants to resolve the disputes through bilateral negotiations with each of the claimant countries.
Separately, Philippines’ President Benigno Aquino insisted yesterday that civilians had the right to carry guns for self-defense, after a series of deadly shootings prompted calls for a total firearms ban.
“Total gun ban’ would be a nice headline, but a knee-jerk reaction. It’s not in my nature to humor people. We should look for means to really solve the issue,” Aquino told reporters.
