Manila, Philippines – The Philippine government will no longer deploy Navy ships to the West Philippine Sea, as emphasized by the National Maritime Council (NMC) on Monday, following the collision of two Chinese ships in the Scarborough Shoal.
According to NMC Spokesperson Alexander Lopez, this is the solution they’ve seen to prevent any further escalation of tension in Philippine waters.
It was August 11, when a People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) ship and a Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) ship collided while harassing and dangerously maneuvering towards a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) ship in the Bajo de Masinloc area.
This was followed by an incident in which a Chinese Aircraft intercepted a PCG Aircraft in the same part of the country’s Exclusive economic zone while conducting Maritime Domain Awareness on August 13.
Until now, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is still in the process of filing a new diplomatic protest or note verbal against China.
This year, the Philippines has filed more than 30 diplomatic protests against China.
The DFA previously said that the Philippines is not responsible for the collision between the two Chinese ships.
However, the Philippines’ request to China, demanding to return the confiscated weapons from the Philippine Navy personnel in the June 17 2024 incident, remains pending.
As of now, DFA Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro has assured that Manila continues to communicate with Beijing through diplomatic channels, including the recent incident at Scarborough Shoal.
There is no final date yet for the bilateral consultative mechanism between Beijing and Manila, which will be led by the Philippines.
The last bilateral consultation mechanism was held in Fujian, January this year.—Alvin Pelobello, Eurotv News