Post by account_disabled on Feb 24, 2024 20:23:58 GMT -8
After Taiwan's presidential election last month, China was quick to rebuke countries that congratulated the winner, Lai Ching-te, whom Beijing has called a separatist. But he reserved his strongest condemnation for the Philippines, warning the country to “not play with fire” and its president to “read more books” to understand the dispute over Taiwan, comments Manila described as “low and small” talk. The bitter exchange marked the latest episode in a growing dispute between China and the Philippines, which has taken a more assertive stance under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. against Beijing's coercive actions in the disputed waters of the South China Sea. “Marcos is showing that he is not interested in simply kowtowing to Beijing,” said Jay Batongbacal, director of the Institute of Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea at the University of the Philippines. The Chinese reaction was perceived as derogatory in the Philippines, he added. "That doesn't improve the state of relations at all." The latest fight over Taiwan follows increasingly aggressive Chinese activity over the past year in territories claimed by Manila. Experts said the upcoming Senate elections in the Philippines, where public opinion has turned against China, could lead to more provocative rhetoric that further fuels tensions.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea and rejected a 2016 arbitration tribunal that dismissed those claims under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Instead, its coast guard and maritime militias have intensified their confrontational tactics, attempting to block Philippine replenishment missions, particularly around the Second Thomas Shoal, by ramming ships and using water cannons and lasers against Filipino sailors. Analysts cautioned Algeria Mobile Number List that Marcos was not necessarily formally tightening Manila's policy. But the firmer stance emerged in response to a “steady trend of Chinese threats and intimidation” since late 2022, a foreign diplomat in Manila said. In an interview with the Financial Times at the World Economic Forum in Davos last year, Marcos, son of late autocrat Ferdinand Marcos, said his country “must respond in some way” to incidents of Chinese bullying. Analysts and security officials described Marcos' visit to China a year ago as a moment of disillusionment that triggered change. a professor of international relations at De La Salle University in Manila. Shortly thereafter, Marcos backed the resumption of joint patrols with the United States in the South China Sea and approved access by American forces to four additional Philippine military bases, ignoring some government officials who warned that such a move could damage relations with China.
Beijing then denounced the decision and fiercely opposed, in particular, the choice of three bases in the northern Philippines, near Taiwan. The Marcos administration has also publicized Chinese behavior in the South China Sea by bringing journalists on coast guard patrols and publishing footage of Chinese harassment of Philippine ships. The trip marked a “turning point” towards a new transparency policy “to tell the world that regardless of our diplomatic efforts and even the visit of our president, we suffer harassment of Filipino fishermen and the Philippine coast guard has been a victim.” of military pressure.” grade laser,” said Jay Tarriela, spokesman for the Philippine coast guard. A rising wave of anti-China public opinion in the Philippines could lead to a deterioration in relations ahead of Senate elections next year, with another foreign diplomat in Manila warning that the rhetoric was becoming “emotional and politically motivated.” A survey released last month by OCTA Research showed that more than 70 percent of Filipinos believe Manila should assert the country's territorial rights in the South China Sea, including through military actions such as naval patrols and troop presence.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea and rejected a 2016 arbitration tribunal that dismissed those claims under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Instead, its coast guard and maritime militias have intensified their confrontational tactics, attempting to block Philippine replenishment missions, particularly around the Second Thomas Shoal, by ramming ships and using water cannons and lasers against Filipino sailors. Analysts cautioned Algeria Mobile Number List that Marcos was not necessarily formally tightening Manila's policy. But the firmer stance emerged in response to a “steady trend of Chinese threats and intimidation” since late 2022, a foreign diplomat in Manila said. In an interview with the Financial Times at the World Economic Forum in Davos last year, Marcos, son of late autocrat Ferdinand Marcos, said his country “must respond in some way” to incidents of Chinese bullying. Analysts and security officials described Marcos' visit to China a year ago as a moment of disillusionment that triggered change. a professor of international relations at De La Salle University in Manila. Shortly thereafter, Marcos backed the resumption of joint patrols with the United States in the South China Sea and approved access by American forces to four additional Philippine military bases, ignoring some government officials who warned that such a move could damage relations with China.
Beijing then denounced the decision and fiercely opposed, in particular, the choice of three bases in the northern Philippines, near Taiwan. The Marcos administration has also publicized Chinese behavior in the South China Sea by bringing journalists on coast guard patrols and publishing footage of Chinese harassment of Philippine ships. The trip marked a “turning point” towards a new transparency policy “to tell the world that regardless of our diplomatic efforts and even the visit of our president, we suffer harassment of Filipino fishermen and the Philippine coast guard has been a victim.” of military pressure.” grade laser,” said Jay Tarriela, spokesman for the Philippine coast guard. A rising wave of anti-China public opinion in the Philippines could lead to a deterioration in relations ahead of Senate elections next year, with another foreign diplomat in Manila warning that the rhetoric was becoming “emotional and politically motivated.” A survey released last month by OCTA Research showed that more than 70 percent of Filipinos believe Manila should assert the country's territorial rights in the South China Sea, including through military actions such as naval patrols and troop presence.