MANILA, Philippines- Inakusahan ng Pilipinas ang Tsina na nagpadala ng Navy ships nito para tiktikan ang mga barko sa Bajo de Masinloc.
Sinabi ni National Maritime Council Spokesperson Undersecretary Alexander Lopez na ito ang kauna-unahang pagkakataon na ang People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy vessels “came quite near and participated in the blocking or aggressive movements of the Chinese vessels.”
“Before, the PLA Navy, kumbaga nasa background lang sila. Rightly so… What we would not want to happen is actually, when you put a Navy vessel against a Navy vessel, it will only escalate tension,” ayon kay Lopez.
Sinabi naman ni PCG Spokesperson on the West Philippine Sea Commodore Jay Tarriela na namataan na nagsisilbing shadow ng PCG vessel 9701 ang PLA ship 300 yarda ang layo, dakong alas-7:20, para makabuwelo sa target nitong bombahin ng water cannon ang BRP Datu Pagbuaya at nagsilbing hagad at tagahawi para sa Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) ships.
“There are two PLA Navy [vessels]. The PLA Navy 500 and 567, however the PLA 500 is the only vessel that we documented who are doing shadowing, and the PLA Navy 567 kept a distance of 7 nautical miles away from the presence of the PCG vessel,” ang sinabi ni Tarriela.
“On those 2 incidents that the Chinese government did, from water cannoning [to] the sidesweeping, this is just clear evidence that it is not the Philippines that aggressively deployed our vessel. The one that is aggressive here, the one that is provocative and escalating tensions in Bajo de Masinloc are Chinese Coast Guard vessels,” dagdag niya.
Binalaan naman ng Chinese Embassy sa Mynila ang Pilipinas na “immediately halt its infringements, provocations and inflammatory actions” at sinabi na intensyon ng Philippine vessels na magpabangga sa CCG ship.
“The Philippines will be held accountable for all consequences arising from this,” ayon kay CCG spokesperson Liu Dejun.
Sa kabilang dako, tiniyak ni Lopez na kaya pa ring tugunan ng Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) ang isyu at ang bansa ay dadaan sa tamang diplomatic channels at mekanismo sakaling magkaroon ng “unfavorable events.”
“We can only surmise na they really want to drag the message na kanila yun. It’s really based on fantasy. It’s not theirs. These are waters that are clearly within our jurisdiction. Their presence there is illegal, what the PLA Navy is doing there is illegal, what the CCG is doing there is illegal. Their mere presence there in the area is actually illegal,” ayon kay Lopez.
“That area is definitely ours. We are anchoring our claim, our jurisdiction, our sovereignty and sovereign rights on the UNCLOS and the 2016 arbitral ruling. While they are trying to claim that area, we deem it as illegal,” patuloy niya.
Samantala, bukod sa Pilipinas at Tsina, ang mga bansang umaangkin din sa WPS ay ang Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, at Brunei. Kris Jose
