Manila, Jan 21 (AP) The Philippines said today that itwon't get embroiled in a fresh spat between the US and Chinainvolving Beijing's protest of an American warship passingnear a Chinese-controlled shoal also claimed by thePhilippines.
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr said that "theUnited States can take care of its own interest" and added "wedo not wish to be part of a US-China intramural" in thedisputed South China Sea.
The Chinese government had yesterday accused the US oftrespassing in its territorial waters when a US guided missiledestroyer sailed near Scarborough Shoal to promote freedom ofnavigation in the disputed waters.
The Philippines also claims the shoal, which is a tiny,uninhabited reef that China seized from the Philippines in2012 after a tense maritime standoff.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has revived once-frosty relations with China since taking power in 2016 andoften criticises US security policies.
He has rejected planned joint patrols by the US andPhilippine navies in disputed South China Sea waters alongwith joint combat exercises that could offend China.
His predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, backed a continuedUS presence in the region to serve as a counterweight toChina.
Under Aquino, the Philippines brought its disputes withChina in the South China Sea to international arbitration in2013 and overwhelmingly won the case three years later. Chinarefused to participate and ignored the decision.
Duterte has refused to demand immediate Chinesecompliance with the 2016 arbitration ruling, which invalidatedChina's vast territorial claims to the South China Sea onhistorical grounds.
He has promised, however, to take up the arbitrationruling with China at a still-unspecified time during his six-year presidency.
China claims virtually the entire South China Sea and hascarried out extensive land reclamation work on many of theislands and reefs it claims, equipping some with air stripsand military installations that have alarmed rival claimantcountries and Western governments led by the United States.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said yesterdaythat China would take "necessary measures" to protect itssovereignty after the USS Hopper sailed within 12 nauticalmiles of Scarborough Shoal on Wednesday evening withoutChina's permission.
Philippine Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said theUS, Manila's treaty ally, did not notify the Philippines ofits naval operation near Scarborough.
"We have no say over whatever the Americans do in theSouth China Sea. They do not inform us beforehand of theiractivities there," Lorenzana said.
Asked if the passage of the US warship in Philippine-claimed waters was a concern, Lorenzana said: "No, for as longas they are on innocent passage. International law allowsinnocent passage even in territorial waters."The United States does not claim territory in the SouthChina Sea but has declared it has a national interest inensuring that the territorial disputes there are resolvedpeacefully in accordance with international law.
The US Navy regularly sails through the area to assertfreedom of navigation.
Lt Cmdr Nicole Schwegman, a spokeswoman for the US Navy'sPacific Fleet, said yesterday that such operations are "notabout any one country, nor are they about making politicalstatements." Instead they aim to "demonstrate our commitmentto uphold the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea andairspace guaranteed to all nations under international law."Scarborough is known in Chinese as Huangyan Island andcalled Panatag or Bajo de Masinloc by the Philippines. It liesabout 200 kms west of the main Philippine island of Luzon, andabout 600 kms southeast of China. (AP)KIS.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.