MANILA, Philippines- Nakabase lamang ang mga aksyon ng Pilipinas sa West Philippine Sea (WPS) sa national interest, ayon kay Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo nitong Sabado upang kontrahin ang pahayag ng China na bahagi ang mga ito ng “foreign-backed agenda.”
Inihayag ito ni Manalo matapos ilarawan ni Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi ang mga aksyon ng bansa upang igiit ang karapatan nito sa rehiyon bilang isang “plot” sa umano’y “screenplay” ng foreign force upang siraan umano ang China.
Ang isyu sa WPS, ayon kay Manalom, ay “being cast in the light of the strategic rivalry among the big powers, when actually the issue is really an issue of Philippine interests.”
“The Philippines has no connection to any kind of strategic rivalry among the big powers — it should not be viewed that way,” pahayag niya sa panayam sa sidelines ng kanyang pulong kasama si British Foreign Minister David Lammy MP sa Taguig City.
“If that’s unfortunately the way they view it, then certainly it won’t really lead to any productive talks. So, we really hope that we look at this as an issue which concerns Philippine interest specifically, and not any other country,” dagdag niya.
Noong March 7, sinabi ni Wang sa isang press briefing na “for every move on the sea by the Philippines, there is a screenplay written by external forces, the show is livestreamed by Western media, and the plot is invariably to smear China.”
Inaangkin ng China ang malaking bahagi ng South China Sea, kabilang ang mga lugar saklaw ng exclusive economic zone ng Pilipinas.
Sa 2016 decision, ibinasura ng Arbitral Tribunal ang claims ng Beijing na lampas sa internationally-recognized maritime zones nito sa South China Sea, at tinawag ang nine-dash line na walang “legal basis” at taliwas sa United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. RNT/SA
