Philippines says it has no intention of 'attacking anyone' amid escalating tensions with China

ISTANBUL

The Philippines has no intention of “attacking anyone,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Monday amid escalating tensions with China in the disputed South China Sea.

His remarks coincided with Manila's fresh claim that at least eight Chinese vessels have been spotted in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) within the jurisdiction of its exclusive economic zone.

The West Philippine Sea is the official designation by the government of the Philippines of the parts of the South China Sea that are included in the country's exclusive economic zone.

"What we are doing is defending our sovereign rights and our sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea, and we have no intention of attacking anyone with water cannons or any other such offensive," Marcos said on the sidelines of celebrations for Corporations Day in Pasay City.

"We have to call them weapons because it causes damage. So no, that is not something that's in the plan," he said.

Marcos said that Manila does not want to escalate tensions in the disputed waterway "amid the China Coast Guard's constant bullying and shadowing of Philippine vessels."

"The last thing we would like is to raise the tensions in the West Philippine Sea," he added.

Beijing lays responsibility on Manila

Reacting to Marcos’s comments, China’s Foreign Ministry laid responsibility on Manila to calm down the situation.

“If the Philippines truly wants to lower tensions in the South China Sea, they should immediately stop intruding in the waters adjacent to China’s Nansha Qundao and Huangyan Dao,” ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters in Beijing.

Huangyan Dao is also known in the Philippines as Bajo de Masinloc or Scarborough Shoal.

Lin said Manila should also “stop sending construction materials to the warship illegally ‘grounded’ at Ren’ai Jiao and building permanent facilities and stop illegal landing activities on relevant uninhabited islands and reefs,” according to a transcript of the news conference.

Manila also needs “to stop bringing countries into their scheme, flexing muscles, spreading disinformation and misleading the international community,” he said, apparently referring to the US and its allies, which have extended support to the Philippines against China.

China and the Philippines have conflicting claims over the Second Thomas Shoal – also known as the Ayungin Shoal, Bai Co May and Ren'ai Jiao – a submerged reef in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.

Beijing claims vast maritime territory in the South China Sea under its so-called nine-dash line, which The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration said in 2016 has no legal basis under international law.

China says the ruling is not valid and has been in negotiations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) since 2002 for a code of conduct for the disputed sea.

Vessels from China and the Philippines have collided several times in the recent past, including when Manila shipped supplies to a rusting World War II era warship, the BRP Sierra Madre, which Beijing wants the Philippines to remove.

*Aamir Latif contributed to the story from Pakistan.