Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Friday said he would file a new diplomatic protest against China after Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana pointed out in a television interview that Chinese military ships and research vessels are sailing through the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Philippines without prior notice.
“Okay, got it, General. @DFAPHL firing off diplomatic protest,” Locsin said in his Twitter account.
Secretary Locsin earlier said he would only rely on military information and recommendations before confirming if foreign survey vessels were operating in Philippine waters.
“Don’t hope, it’s done,” Locsin said.
This would be the third time in about the same number of weeks that Locsin has complained to China regarding Chinese vessels intruding into the country’s exclusive economic zone.
During the first week of July, Locsin sent two diplomatic protests against China, first over the reported swarming of 100 Chinese vessels off Pag-Asa Island in the West Philippine Sea, and then for the unannounced passage of a Chinese aircraft carrier in Sibutu Strait in Southern Philippines.
In an ANC television interview Friday Lorenzana urged the government to ask why Beijing’s research vessels have been conducting studies on Philippine waters without prior notice.
Lorenzana was responding to a question on why two Chinese marine research vessels are seen operating in waters near Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte last August 7.
Prior to that, map images also showed Chinese oceanographic survey ship “Zhanjian operating in Philippine waters since Saturday, August 3.
These incidents were reported by US Naval War College’s Ryan Martinson, who tweeted images of the “Dong Fan Hong 3, operating in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte waters. Martinson is an assistant professor at the China Maritime Studies Institute at the Naval War College.
The Defense chief said the ships of other countries sailing through Philippine waters—Japan, the US, and French ships–usually inform them or sometimes allow Filipino marine scientists to board to verify their activities.
Lorenzana said the defense establishment is unable to keep track of Chinese or other nation’s intrusions in Philippine waters and exclusive economic zones (EEZ), because of the lack of military radars.
“We lack radar equipment to monitor the 2 Chinese research ships that were spotted by a US-based maritime expert in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone this week, Lorenzana said on the ANC News program.
“What we need really is to allay the fears of the neighbors of China, to inform the other countries what their ships are doing there — not only the survey ship, but also their warships passing through our territorial waters,” Lorenzana said.
He added that nobody is prevented from conducting research in our EEZ as long as the proper authorities are informed about it beforehand.
“If the intention is only to study the sea or the fish, marine life there, then it is not a security threat. But if they’re doing other things like spying or making reconnaissance or surveillance activities, then it’s a threat,” he added.
Manila has lately been at odds over Chinese aggressive behavior in the South China Sea/West Philippine Sea where both countries are trying to forge a joint venture agreement to explore hydrocarbon deposits in Recto Bank/Reed Bank.
The SCS is claimed not only by the Philippines and China but also Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and Brunei.
Last week, Lorenzana dubbed China a “bully” after its ambassador Zhao Jianhua, said Beijing “will not take the first shot” in the maritime dispute.
The Chinese envoy said China’s activities in the WPS are for defensive purposes.
However, Lorenzana argues that in military parlance, a defense posture could easily be converted into an offensive one.
“But recently, they have not been bullying us because they have not occupied any new feature in the West Philippine Sea,” he added.
President Duterte last week said he is visiting China later this month to discuss with President Xi Jinping the country’s 2016 arbitral victory, which invalidated China’s historic claims over the strategic waters where roughly $3.4 trillion in shipping passes each year.
Image credits: AP/Manman Dejeto, AP/Bullit Marquez