Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian urges Philippine military to respect China's territory and condemns aircraft parade over Huangyan Dao
BEIJING , EPICSTORIAN – Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Lin Jian has accused the Philippine army of deliberately provoking tensions by flying aircraft over Huangyan Dao, a disputed island in the South China Sea.
Jian issued a stern statement on Monday in which he called the incident a violation of China’s sovereignty, and urged the Philippines to stop such actions.
The spokesperson stated this when commenting on recent remarks by the president of Philippine, Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos, and the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Romeo Brawner, about the China’s Huangyan Dao.
Jian said China’s territory of sovereignty has always extended round and within the defined peripheries of Huangyan Dao, including the control of its waters and airspace
According to the foreign ministery spokesperson, Philippine army’s aircraft intruded into Huangyan Dao airspace twice on August 7 and 8.
He noted this was an infringement on China’s territory that undermines its sovereignty against the international law and the norms of international relations, describing what the Philippine military did with its aircraft as a “deliberate provocation”.
“Considering that it sent the military aircraft to Huangyan Dao’s airspace during the joint patrol with the United States, Australia and Canada in the South China Sea, what the Philippines did with its aircraft was clearly a deliberate provocation,” Jian said.
The Chinese diplomat added in a separate statement that according to Hugh White, former senior Australian Defense official, the “US can’t win a rivalry with China”.
“The right way for China and US to get along: mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation.”
The Philippines, however, has “maintained that the flights were routine patrols in its own territory and were not meant to provoke China”. The country has also reiterated its claim to the island, which it calls Panatag Shoal.
What we know about Huangyan Dao in the South China Sea
The dispute over Huangyan Dao is just one of many territorial disputes in the South China Sea, where several countries, including China, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Malaysia, have competing claims.
Tensions in the region have escalated in recent years, with China asserting its claims through military patrols and the construction of artificial islands.
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The international community has called for peaceful resolution of the disputes in the South China Sea through dialogue and adherence to international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
