Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Oct. 10 called for a reduction in tensions in the South China Sea and condemned China for harassment and intimidation during a summit with Southeast Asian leaders and the Chinese communist regime’s premier, Li Qiang.
The regional summit in Laos follows a series of tense aerial confrontations and clashes in the South China Sea between Beijing and Manila. In August, there were three confrontations near the disputed Sabina Shoal, also known as Xianbin in Beijing and Escoda in Manila. This atoll, situated about 75 nautical miles west of the island province of Palawan in the Philippines, is within the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, according to international law.
Marcos has accused China’s coast guard of resorting to aggressive tactics, including blasting horns, firing water cannons, and ramming Philippine maritime boats in three separate clashes.
There were also incidents involving the Chinese navy’s missile-bearing ships targeting civilian Filipinos’ boats and planes, according to Marcos.
“It is regrettable that the overall situation in the South China Sea remains tense and unchanged,” Marcos said during the meeting at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit, according to his office. “We continue to be subjected to harassment and intimidation. Parties must be earnestly open to seriously managing the differences and to reduce tensions.”
The Philippine president said that the Chinese regime’s aggression demonstrates its “continued disregard of international law and standards.”
“Such behavior is not unnoticed by our respective publics and the international community as well,“ he said. ”They will require a concerted and urgent effort to adopt measures to prevent their recurrence.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken landed in Vientiane, Laos, on Oct. 10 to attend the summit. According to the State Department, Blinken is expected to raise “the importance of upholding international law in the South China Sea” along with other topics during meetings with regional leaders.
The South China Sea is a region of significant geopolitical importance due to its abundant natural resources and its role in global trade. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has asserted sovereignty over nearly the entire waterway, including reefs and islands located within the 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zones of ASEAN members such as the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei.
An international tribunal in 2016 rejected the CCP’s expansive sovereign claims, concluding that China has no legal basis to claim historic rights to the South China Sea. The CCP refused to accept the ruling and instead enacted its own maritime rules in 2023, granting power to its coast guard to detain for up to 60 days foreigners who enter the waters it claims.
In the latest incident in the disrupted waters, Hanoi stated that its fishermen were beaten with iron pipes by Chinese law enforcement officers while working on a boat near the Paracel Islands on Sept. 29.
As the CCP becomes increasingly aggressive in pursuing sovereignty claims, Asian countries have more closely aligned. The Philippines and Vietnam, despite their conflicting claims in the South China Sea, have agreed to strengthen their defense and military cooperation. Philippine Defense Minister Gilberto Teodoro Jr. announced in August that the two countries aim to ink a defense cooperation memorandum before the end of this year.
The escalating tensions in the South China Sea have sparked fears of larger conflicts in the strategic waterway. The United States, which has no territorial claims in the waters, regularly sends military ships and planes to conduct patrols in the South China Sea, with the intention of upholding freedom of navigation and overflight.
Last month, Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, urged the Chinese regime to “reconsider its use of dangerous, coercive, and potentially escalatory tactics” in the South China Sea during a call with his Chinese counterpart, Gen. Wu Yanan.
