Manila: The Philippines has aired serious concern over the militarisation of the South China Sea as the country’s top envoy pointed to the increasing boldness of China as “threats to regional peace and stability”.
In a speech he gave during the 46th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Ministerial Meeting in Brunei, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario on Sunday, expressed serious concern over the increasing militarisation of the South China Sea.
He said the massive presence of Chinese military and paramilitary ships in Scarborough Shoal and around Ayungin Shoal as threats to efforts to maintain maritime peace and stability in the region.
Scarborough Shoal and Ayungin Shoal, which are located less than 100 kilometres from the Philippines’ Zambales, are areas which Manila believes are integral part of country’s territory.
China had recently sent a large number of fishing boats and naval and fishery vessels to the territory.
“This is a violation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC),” Del Rosario said in an excerpt of the speech reaching Manila.
“We reiterate our continued advocacy for a peaceful and rules-based settlement of disputes in accordance with universally recognised principles of international law.”
The Philippines maintains that it would pursue a peaceful resolution of the dispute despite the apparent readiness of China to follow other avenues on the matter.
International law prescribes that countries with sea territories are entitled to claim and area 250 kilometres from its maritime baseline as part of its economic zone. However, China holds a different view on this issue and this is where disputes with nearby countries evolve.
In his speech, Del Rosario underscored that the clarification of maritime entitlements, which the Philippines seeks via its recourse to arbitration under the United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), promotes the primacy of the rule of law in inter-state relations.
“The legal track does not constitute abandonment of diplomatic avenues. We continue to exert efforts to move forward and enhance our relations with China on the basis of mutual respect and sovereign equality. Neither does the case diminish our zeal to pursue a binding Code of Conduct,” Del Rosario stressed.
“As we all exert efforts towards the early conclusion of a binding Code of Conduct, in the interim, it is our expectation that all parties would comply in utmost good faith with all the provisions of the DOC,” he said.
“If we are to live up to our vision of a politically cohesive, economically integrated and people-oriented Asean Community, then now, more than ever, is the time to reaffirm our own remarkable brand of unity amidst diversity,” Del Rosario said.