Manila condemns PLA’s aggressive moves over Scarborough Shoal

Reuters

The Philippines has urged Beijing to de-escalate tensions in the South China Sea after what it described as “very dangerous” actions by People’s Liberation Army (PLA) fighter jets, which came after the nations agreed to better manage maritime disputes.

Two PLA jets executed a dangerous maneuver and dropped flares in the path of Philippine Air Force aircraft conducting a routine patrol over Scarborough Shoal in early August 2024, officials said.

The hostile moves are part of a “continuous pattern” by Beijing to assert its claims and presence in the South China Sea, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said.

“It is a response we should be acclimated to,” Teodoro said, calling on the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to abide by international law and heed appeals by the Philippines and other countries to temper its actions.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. condemned the aggression and the Philippines’ National Security Council demanded the PRC “cease all forms of provocative and hazardous acts.”

Beijing claims almost all the resource-rich South China Sea, including Scarborough Shoal, despite an international tribunal’s 2016 ruling that the territorial assertion has no legal basis. The PRC’s claims encroach upon other nations’ exclusive economic zones (EEZ).

“They will stick to their narrative that we know there is no international support [for] whatsoever,” Teodoro said. “All they have on their side is brute force and strength and might.”

Philippine military chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. called the PLA’s maneuvers “very dangerous” but said the Armed Forces will keep patrolling waters within the country’s EEZ. “That is our right,” he said.

It was the first time Manila has condemned dangerous actions by PLA aircraft, rather than Chinese naval or coast guard vessels, since Marcos took office in 2022.

Manila and Beijing reached a provisional arrangement in July 2024 on resupply missions to a Philippine military outpost at Second Thomas Shoal. They agreed to ease tensions and manage differences after Chinese ships repeatedly harassed and blocked Philippine vessels conducting those missions.