PH Claims China Did Another Risky Move in the Disputed Water
It seems to be a huge question mark if China will ever stop from its dangerous moves against Philippines in the disputed West Philippine Sea.
It’s been years now that the Philippines and China are in a territorial dispute over the West Philippine Sea. Despite that there were several occassions when PH and China shook hands in front of the press, there is no denying to the fact that the countries are not at a settled ground with regards to the territorial claims.
In 2016, the arbitral tribunal released its decision over the territorial dispute between the Philippines and China. The international body sided the Philippines. However, although the decision placed the country in a higher ground in the eyes of the world, China did not recognize the result.
The Philippines is clearly after a diplomatic pursuit of resolving the territorial dispute. On the part of China, the Chinese government is building its ground on the disputed areas. It built artificial islands and increased its maritime presence.
Unfortunately, amid the PH’s pursuit for a diplomatic resolution of the issue, there were several reports about China’s dangerous moves in the West Philippine Sea. Some three (3) weeks ago, two (2) collissions between the Philippine and Chinese vessels took place. The said PH vessels involved were in a resupply mission.
There were also several reports of dangerous maneuvers of Chinese vessels as well as Chinese ships blocking the PH vessels in the disputed waters. Recently, the Philippines’ Task Force for the West Philippine Sea claimed that a Chinese vessel also fired water cannon against the PH transport ships.
As for China, they consider the move as control measures. The Chinese Coast Guard also said that “the Philippines’ actions infringe on China’s territorial sovereignty”.
Will China ever stop from its dangerous moves against the Philippines? Visibly, it is so unfair that while PH is on a diplomatic pursuit of the resolution of the issue, the other party leads actions that may be risky for everyone involved. The territorial dispute needs a more effective action and it may need the hands of countries or international organizations that have sovereign power over the issue.
Disclaimer: The content of the article posted above is an opinion of the writer. Also, the citations provided are based on the information deemed as facts by the different legit sources that contribute to the basis of the making of the whole viewpoint. The writer does not, in any form, intend to create inaccurate understanding of the topic or influence the readers instead, express one’s viewpoint in a formal manner.