A China Coast Guard spokesperson said a Philippine Navy gunboat intruded into the waters adjacent to China’s Huangyan Island on Tuesday disregarded repeated warnings. China Coast Guard vessels took necessary measures, such as tracking and controlling the ship’s route, to drive away the Philippine vessel after multiple verbal warnings were ineffective. The on-site operations were professional, standardized, and lawful.
China has indisputable sovereignty over Huangyan Island and its surrounding waters, as well as sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the relevant maritime areas, said Gan Yu, spokesman for China Coast Guard.
Gan noted the actions of the Philippine side violated China’s sovereignty and seriously violated international law and basic norms of international relations. We urge the Philippine side to immediately stop its infringement. China Coast Guard will continue to carry out law enforcement activities to safeguard national sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in China’s jurisdictional waters.
The remarks of Gan were made after China’s Foreign Ministry on Monday urged the Philippines to take seriously China’s concerns, stop making provocations and creating troubles at sea, and to stop groundless attacks and smears on the Ren’ai Jiao (also commonly known as Ren’ai Reef) issue.
A spokesperson for the Armed Forces of the Philippines said on Saturday that China’s claim of “indisputable sovereignty” over the “West Philippine Sea” is disputable, adding that China’s “unfounded” claim and its actions in the “West Philippine Sea” are irresponsible.
In response, the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated that recently the Philippines has taken a series of steps at Ren’ai Jiao that seriously violate China’s territorial sovereignty, and China has made serious démarches to the Philippines on multiple occasions.
(Global Times)
