By Alexis Romero (The Philippine Star)
MANILA, Philippines - The reported deployment of five Chinese warships near the Philippines’ maritime domain should not be a source of serious concern as long as these remain in international waters, the Department of National Defense (DND) said yesterday.
DND spokesman Peter Galvez said the vessels of other countries are also plying areas in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) as this is guaranteed by their freedom of navigation.
“As long as they are in international waters, this (report) should not be of serious concern,” Galvez said in a phone interview.
“It should not be given any color. There are also ships from other countries that go to the area,” he added.
Galvez said the West Philippine Sea is a “heavily transited maritime area,” but declined to comment on the notion that the deployment of the five Chinese warships was a response to the recent visit of a US submarine in Subic Bay, Zambales.
“It’s not for us to speculate on the actions of other countries,” he said.
The DND official, however, said other countries can ply the route and can do port calls when needed subject to prior approval.
Galvez said they would continue to monitor developments in the West Philippine Sea, which is the subject of a territorial row in the region.
Earlier, Duowie News, a news outlet operated by overseas Chinese in Taiwan, reported that five Chinese warships have been sent on a training mission in a yet unspecified location near the Philippines.
The ships deployed for the mission were two Type-052B destroyers, two Type-054A frigates and a Type-071 amphibious transport vessel, the report said.
Talk about the supposed deployment of the five Chinese warships came after the US submarine USS North Carolina surfaced in Subic Bay last week.
There have been speculations that the five ships may be used to support the Chinese vessels around Panatag Shoal if the standoff over the disputed area worsens.
Known internationally as Scarborough Shoal, Panatag is 124 nautical miles from the nearest base point in Zambales.
The area is within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to which China is a signatory.
The Panatag Shoal standoff started on April 10 after two Chinese maritime surveillance vessels barred the Philippine Navy from arresting Chinese fishermen who had poached endangered maritime species from the area.
The Philippines has been calling for a rules-based multilateral approach to the territorial row but China said this would only complicate the issue. China has rejected an invitation by the Philippines to bring the standoff before an international body.
The US has declined to take sides on the territorial row but has promised to help the Philippines improve its maritime security capabilities.
The submarine USS Carolina surfaced last Sunday but officials claimed that the port call was not related to the standoff.
Philippine security officials said the visit of the submarine was a routine port call scheduled on April 3, a week before the standoff started.
The submarine is designed to operate with stealth, agility and endurance in the world’s littoral regions, as well as the deep oceans.
MANILA, Philippines - The reported deployment of five Chinese warships near the Philippines’ maritime domain should not be a source of serious concern as long as these remain in international waters, the Department of National Defense (DND) said yesterday.
DND spokesman Peter Galvez said the vessels of other countries are also plying areas in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) as this is guaranteed by their freedom of navigation.
“As long as they are in international waters, this (report) should not be of serious concern,” Galvez said in a phone interview.
“It should not be given any color. There are also ships from other countries that go to the area,” he added.
Galvez said the West Philippine Sea is a “heavily transited maritime area,” but declined to comment on the notion that the deployment of the five Chinese warships was a response to the recent visit of a US submarine in Subic Bay, Zambales.
“It’s not for us to speculate on the actions of other countries,” he said.
The DND official, however, said other countries can ply the route and can do port calls when needed subject to prior approval.
Galvez said they would continue to monitor developments in the West Philippine Sea, which is the subject of a territorial row in the region.
Earlier, Duowie News, a news outlet operated by overseas Chinese in Taiwan, reported that five Chinese warships have been sent on a training mission in a yet unspecified location near the Philippines.
The ships deployed for the mission were two Type-052B destroyers, two Type-054A frigates and a Type-071 amphibious transport vessel, the report said.
Talk about the supposed deployment of the five Chinese warships came after the US submarine USS North Carolina surfaced in Subic Bay last week.
There have been speculations that the five ships may be used to support the Chinese vessels around Panatag Shoal if the standoff over the disputed area worsens.
Known internationally as Scarborough Shoal, Panatag is 124 nautical miles from the nearest base point in Zambales.
The area is within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to which China is a signatory.
The Panatag Shoal standoff started on April 10 after two Chinese maritime surveillance vessels barred the Philippine Navy from arresting Chinese fishermen who had poached endangered maritime species from the area.
The Philippines has been calling for a rules-based multilateral approach to the territorial row but China said this would only complicate the issue. China has rejected an invitation by the Philippines to bring the standoff before an international body.
The US has declined to take sides on the territorial row but has promised to help the Philippines improve its maritime security capabilities.
The submarine USS Carolina surfaced last Sunday but officials claimed that the port call was not related to the standoff.
Philippine security officials said the visit of the submarine was a routine port call scheduled on April 3, a week before the standoff started.
The submarine is designed to operate with stealth, agility and endurance in the world’s littoral regions, as well as the deep oceans.
