Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Tuesday summoned China’s ambassador to the country, following the Philippine Coast Guard’s allegation of the use of a military laser by a Beijing patrol in the South China Sea.
“The president summoned the Chinese ambassador, Huang Xilian, this afternoon to express his serious concern about the increasing frequency and intensity of China’s actions against the Philippine coast guard and our fishermen,” says the statement released by the presidential palace of Malacanang.
Huang Xilian had already been summoned by the Philippine government twice since April 2021 for such incidents. In 2022, the Philippines filed 159 diplomatic protests against China. There have been eight in 2023 alone.
The Philippine Coast Guard report points out that a Chinese patrol used the military laser to harass a Philippine ship.
“The Philippines has the right to carry out legitimate activities in its exclusive economic zone (…) spokeswoman for the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs, Teresita Daza.
Daza’s position responds to Xilian’s justification of the Chinese action, which accused the Philippine ship of entering “without permission” the waters of the Ren’ai reef, over which China claims to have sovereignty.
Diplomatic relations between China and the Philippines have taken another hit recently with the agreement between the Filipinos and the United States to give the Americans access to four new military bases on Philippine soil.
Historically, China, the Philippines and other Asian countries such as Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan and Brunei have discussed the sovereignty of various territories in the South China Sea.
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