MANILA (ANN/PDI) – Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr on Sunday rejected China’s assertion of a “new model” for Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.
An unnamed Chinese embassy spokesperson claimed on Saturday that officials in the Department of National Defence and the National Security Advisor had approved a “new model” to manage tensions at the shoal, where a Philippine navy outpost is situated.
Teodoro called this claim a “devious machination” and criticised its timing, coming just after the condemnation of China’s actions in a recent SQUAD meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii. This tension escalated after the China Coast Guard used water cannons against a Philippine vessel in Ayungin Shoal on March 23, resulting in serious injuries to three Navy personnel, and was condemned by United States Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin III. The rotation and resupply mission of the Philippines in the BRP Sierra Madre, a Navy ship grounded in Ayungin Shoal since 1999, has become a major point of contention between Manila and Beijing.
Panatag pact
On Thursday, the Chinese embassy claimed that there was also a “temporary special agreement” with Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal between Manila and Beijing.
Under the purported agreement on Panatag Shoal, Filipino fishermen could fish with small fishing boats while the PCG, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and other Philippine government vessels and aircraft were barred from entering the 12 nautical miles and corresponding air space of the sandbank.
Beijing asserts sovereignty in the entire South China Sea — including most of the West Philippine Sea — despite the July 2016 arbitral tribunal ruling that effectively invalidated its claims based on a case filed by Manila in 2013.
This landmark decision also included Panatag Shoal, which was declared a traditional fishing ground that should be shared by the Philippines, China, and Vietnam.
Commodore Jay Tarriela, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, promptly denied China’s claim.
China’s ‘methods of manipulation’
“Let us not be influenced by their fabricated stories once again, which aim to confuse the Filipino people and divert the public discourse from the real issue of their harassment and provocative actions in Bajo De Masinloc,” Tarriela said.
Teodoro also enjoined the public to be careful in heeding what he deemed as China’s “methods of manipulation.”
“I am issuing this statement to generate awareness on this clear attempt by China to advance another falsehood in order to divide our people and distract us from their unlawful presence and actions in our EEZ (exclusive economic zone),” he said.
“We advise our citizens, the media, and the international community to beware of China’s methods of manipulation, interference, and malign influence in furthering its own interests,” he added.
