BEIJING: China’s military said on Sunday it had conducted routine patrols in the South China Sea and warned the Philippines against any provocations.
The two countries have been engaged in a long-running maritime standoff in the strategic waterway that has included regular clashes between coast guard ships and massive naval exercises.
A spokesperson for the Chinese military’s Southern Theater Command said the Philippines must immediately stop provoking incidents and escalating tensions in the South China Sea.
“We sternly warn the Philippine side to immediately stop provoking incidents and escalating tensions in the South China Sea, as well as bringing in external forces for backing such efforts that are destined to be futile,“ the spokesperson said.
“Any attempt to stir up trouble or disrupt the situation will not succeed.”
The Philippine maritime council and armed forces did not immediately respond to questions outside office hours, while the Philippine embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement that Japan, the Philippines and the United States conducted joint maritime exercises in the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone from Thursday to Saturday to strengthen regional cooperation and support a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
“The U.S., along with our allies and partners, upholds the right to freedom of navigation and overflight and other lawful uses of the sea and international airspace, as well as respect to the maritime rights under international law,“ it said.
The United States stands with the Philippines, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday, rejecting what he described as China’s “destabilising plans” for a disputed atoll in the South China Sea.
Calls to Japan’s foreign ministry on Sunday went unanswered outside of business hours, and a person answering a call at the defence ministry said no one could respond to a query on the issue over the weekend.
China claims almost all the South China Sea – a waterway carrying more than $3 trillion of annual commerce – despite overlapping claims by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam – REUTERS
