South China Sea Heats Up After Clash Coast Guard Brings Fire, Philippines Invites China To Negotiate

UNSPLASH/NOAA ILLUSTRATION

JAKARTA - The Philippines wants to invite China back to the negotiating table to resolve differences in the South China Sea.

The two countries held a working group meeting last week in preparation for a possible meeting of the Bilateral Consultation Mechanism in July, Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo said in a Senate investigation, Tuesday, June 25.

"Whatever steps we achieve, it will not sacrifice the increase in our sovereignty, sovereign rights, and our rights and jurisdictions in the West Philippine Sea," Manalo said.

The Philippines uses the name of the West Philippine Sea as part of the South China Sea it claims.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea with the so-called nine line-dash lines, which overlap with the exclusive economic zones of other plaintiffs, namely Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam.

The 2016 arbitration court's decision, which Beijing does not recognize, overturned China's claim to the strategic waters.

Earlier, the Philippine Defense Minister said China used "aggressive and illegal forces" to disrupt supply missions in the South China Sea.

The Philippines said last week's maritime incident, which injured a sailors, was neither a misunderstanding nor an accident.

We do not underestimate the incident, Defense Minister Gilberto Teodoro reported by Reuters, Monday, June 24.

A Philippine sailors suffered serious injuries after what the Philippine military described as "deliberately high-speed complaints" by the Chinese Coast Guard, aimed at disrupting a troop supply mission stationed at Second Thomas Shoal on June 17.

The Philippines also described this incident as a pirate act as China's coast guard carrying an ax and other sharp objects while boarding the Philippine ship.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs denies the Philippines' statement. Spokesman said the actions taken by the coast guard were legitimate and professional actions.

We see the latest events in Ayungin not as a misunderstanding or accident. This is a deliberate action by Chinese officials to prevent us from completing our mission, "said Teodoro, using local names for Second Thomas Shoal.