China’s military is turning up the heat on the Philippines, warning Manila to back off what it calls “provocations” in the South China Sea.
A spokesperson for the PLA’s Southern Theater Command on Sunday tied the warning to the big naval drills the Philippines has been running with the US and Japan near the disputed Scarborough Shoal.
“We sternly warn the Philippine side to immediately stop provoking incidents … bringing in external forces … efforts that are destined to be futile,” the statement said.
“Any attempt to stir up trouble or disrupt the situation will not succeed.”
The tough talk landed just days after Beijing revealed plans for a 3,500-hectare nature reserve on Scarborough Shoal — a move Manila formally protested. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also slammed the project as “another coercive attempt” by China to push its claims at the expense of its neighbours.
The South China Sea is one of the busiest shipping lanes on Earth, carrying more than $3 trillion in trade each year and sparking overlapping territorial claims by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
The joint maritime exercises, held from Thursday to Saturday in the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone, were designed to tighten security ties and show support for a “free and open” Asia-Pacific, the US Asia Pacific Command said.
“The US, along with our allies and partners, upholds the right to freedom of navigation and overflight and other lawful uses of the sea and international airspace,” the command added.
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