An aerial view taken on March 9, 2023 shows Thitu Island in the South China Sea. - As a Philippine Coast Guard plane carrying journalists flew over the Spratly Islands in the hotly disputed South China Sea, a Chinese voice issued a stern command over the radio: "Leave immediately." (Photo by JAM STA ROSA / AFP) (Photo by JAM STA ROSA/AFP via Getty Images)
BEIJING, China- Nagsagawa ang United States destroyer USS Preble (DDG 88) ng navigational rights and freedoms sa South China Sea malapit sa pinag-aagawang Spratly Islands, alinsunod sa international law, base sa U.S. Navy nitong Biyernes.
Hamon umano ang pagdaan ng USS Preble, isang Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, sa mga restriksyon sa “innocent passage” na ipinatupad ng People’s Republic of China, Taiwan at Vietnam na kapwa may claim sa Spratly Islands, anito.
Tinawag ng navy ang “unilateral imposition” ng anumang authorisation o advance notification requirement para sa pagdaan na “unlawful”.
Nagsagawa ang US ng ilang freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) sa South China Sea na kinondena ng China.
Sinabi naman ng Armed Forces of the Philippines na hindi ipinagbigay-alam dito ang tungkol sa paglalayag ng US Preble malapit sa Spratlys.
Subalit, naglayag kamakailan ang mga militar ng Pilipinas, Japan, at US sa Philippine exclusive economic zone bilang bahagi ng isang multilateral maritime cooperative activity (MCA).
“Under the UNCLOS, they are allowed to freely sail..All freedom of navigation operations pass the high seas, not the territorial waters,” wika ni Philippine Navy spokesperson Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad. RNT/SA
