After Scarborough Shoal spanking, Philippines Senator seeks peace with PRC

[SinoChallenger]

Senator urges joint Spratly exploration with China

The Philippine Star Updated April 18, 2012 02:32 PM

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine government should push for a joint oil exploration in the Spratlys Islands with China to ease the tension over the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), a senator said Wednesday.

"Every stand-off, the territorial tension only escalates and we're not gaining anything - zero. We could pursue a different tact by working out a possible joint exploration without impinging on our sovereignty," Sen. Ralph Recto said in a statement.

Recto, a member of the Senate national defense and security and foreign relations committees, said pushing for a joint exploration with China is better than waiting for members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to side with the Philippines as its members are trading with China.

He said the only practical solution left for the country is to pursue a possible joint exploration deal of the whole of Spratlys for gas and other natural resources.

"I'm not saying that we back track from our claim. In fact, we should do it relentlessly. But while the natural finds of Spratlys lay underneath, idle and untapped, a joint exploration appears to be the more logical engagement with China," Recto said.

"The engagement policy should be pegged on how both countries could benefit from the subterranean wealth of Spratlys -- not on how fast each country could annihilate each other in case mad men from both sides take over," he added.

The senator said the country could put on the table its proximity to the Spraltlys for the build-up of infrastructures and other logistics needed for the joint exploration.

Recto said as an emerging power, China would naturally gravitate toward the country that is nearest to the disputed islands in case it would want to conduct exploration projects unmolested.

"We must tone down the rhetoric but we must have well-toned diplomatic and trade muscles to convince China to a joint economic exploration," Recto said.

President Benigno Aquino III had assured that the Philippines will not start a war with China over the recent incursion of its ships in the disputed Scarborough (Panatag) shoal.

Philippine Defense chief Voltaire Gazmin said yesterday that tension at the shoal wwas still high, citing reports of Chinese aircraft buzzing a Filipino fishing boat.

Buzzing is defined by the military as flying less than 500 feet over a particular area or target.

He said a Chinese fishing vessel was also spotted in the area.

The tension at the shoal started last weekend after the Philippines warship, BRP Gregorio del Pilar, spotted at least eight Chinese fishing boats last April 8 in the disputed area.

The Philippine warship's crew was able to board the Chinese fishing vessels and found illegal harvest of corals, giant clams and live sharks but were prevented from arresting the fishermen and seizing their catch by responding Chinese maritime vessels.

The Gregorio del Pilar eventually left and was replaced by a smaller and lightly armed coast guard search and rescue ship.

The Philippine Coast Guard reported today that the Chinese maritime vessels are still in the area.

International legal arena

Malacañang on Wednesday said that the Philippine government will continue to push for the resolution of the dispute over Scarborough Shoal through the international legal procedures.

“The best way to resolve the issue is through international law and international legal procedures which all nations have promised to adhere to so naghahanap po tayo ng mapayapa, maayos at malinaw na solusyon sa isyu na ang tinatawag ng Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) ay Baha de Masinloc,” Communications Secretary Ricky Carandang said in a press briefing in Malacañang.

Carandang said that part of this tactic is the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) appeal to China to settle the dispute at the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS).

"... as the President said, we don’t intend to go to war over this. If we can resolve this diplomatically, peacefully and legally then that is what we are going to do., so in adherence with our stand that it should resolved in consistency with the international law, that is what we are asking from China,” he added.

Carandang, meanwhile, said that China has not responded to the Philippines' appeal.

He, however, assured said that China and the Philippines are both finding ways on how to resolve the dispute through diplomatic means.

The DFA is currently in talks with Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Ma Keqing, which Carandang sees as a "good news" and a positive sign that the dispute will be resolved peacefully.

“The good news is both parties are talking and we’re both trying to find a way out of this that will save face for both parties without escalating tension… the important thing is that talks continue,” Carandang said.

“We are confident that this can be resolved in a way that does not escalate tensions any further,” he added.

Senator urges joint Spratly exploration with China » Nation » News | Philippine News | philstar.com

 

[Rajaraja Chola]

I think before ur megatoning comments come, if china has b*lls, y cant fight it legally in International court?
http://www.defence.pk/forums/world-...es-china-go-un-court-end-spratly-dispute.html

 

[CarbonD]

whats up with Sino challenger's spanking, you watch too much P**n bro chill with the spanking relax for a bit
Philipines have US backing china will not risk it this decade maybe next US is too advance for china at this time

 

[SinoChallenger]

Michael Auslin: Scarborough Scare in the South China Sea - WSJ.com


Scarborough Scare in the South China Sea
Beijing bests Manila in a naval standoff, worrying its neighbors.

By MICHAEL AUSLIN

Chinese and Philippine naval ships faced off for nearly a week over eight Chinese fishing boats operating off a shoal in the South China Sea claimed by both countries. In the end, the Philippines became the latest victim of China's no-limits-fishing strategy, and the fishing boats made off with their haul from the Scarborough Shoal late last week. This one-sided outcome shows China's smaller neighbors are losing out to its continued aggression.

The conflict was a mere 124 nautical miles from the Philippines and occurred well within Manila's exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The Philippines moved forcefully in the first stages of the confrontation, sending its largest warship to intercept the ships last week. Two Chinese maritime surveillance ships arrived, however, blocking the Philippine vessel and protecting the fishing ships. A standoff ensued and China sent in another ship.

Both sides started urgent diplomatic negotiations. But while top Philippine diplomats asserted that the two countries would not go to war over Scarborough, Philippine politicians were calling for an international diplomatic offensive to pressure Beijing into accepting widely recognized EEZ definitions. That Beijing came out on top will embolden China's rogue fishermen and further worry smaller states who feel they have no recourse against China's demands in similar disputes.

It is clear that Beijing is doing little, if anything, to rein in the fishing boats that have precipitated nearly every maritime confrontation in Asia over the past several years. Before the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia were forced to act against Chinese fishermen in disputed waters. Tellingly, China now no longer hesitates to send armed maritime patrol ships (not regular navy) to prevent those fishermen from being arrested by foreign nations. The Scarborough incident reflects at least the second time that these Chinese ships have faced down the navies of smaller nations.

Other Asian nations regularly capitulate to Chinese pressure in these incidents. The Philippines immediately tried to defuse the situation by replacing its flagship on the scene with a smaller coast guard cutter. Several years ago, Chinese patrol boats trained their guns on a smaller Indonesian navy vessel trying to arrest Chinese fishermen. And in 2010, Japan lost a diplomatic standoff with China after arresting the captain of a fishing boat that had rammed Japanese Coast Guard vessels sent to chase him out of waters around the disputed Senkaku Islands.

While it is a good thing that open conflict did not break out in any of these cases, the fact that China has come out on top in every dispute is shifting the perceived balance of power in Asian waters. Aggrieved nations protest and cite the rule of law, but they are ultimately accepting the principle that might makes right. Chinese fishermen themselves will be emboldened to act, since they know now that Beijing has their back.

At this rate, the United States will find it increasingly hard not to be drawn into future confrontations. While Manila made it clear it was not officially seeking U.S. intervention, Philippine Senator Joker Arroyo called for diplomatic pressure on Beijing from both the U.S. and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. In 2010, Tokyo explicitly asked Washington to confirm that any Chinese aggression against the disputed Senkaku Islands would fall under the mutual defense clause of the U.S.-Japan alliance.

President Obama's "pivot" to Asia itself will raise expectations for an enhanced U.S. security role, even if America is not directly involved in a dispute. Countries with which Washington has security treaties will likely not be satisfied by American reticence to challenge China's abuse of maritime norms. As Philippine Senator Gregorio Honasan asks, "If (the treaties) are meaningless, why should we pursue them?"

This week the Philippines and the U.S. are holding a joint war game in Palawan with nearly 7,000 troops. But war games and training exercises won't count for much if Asian capitals believe Washington is sidestepping Chinese provocations. Such doubt over America's credibility will only be deepened if defense budget cuts begin to limit the number of port visits by the U.S. Navy. This comes at a time when China is increasing the number of patrols it is sending out into the South China Sea.

There is also the possibility of greater Russian involvement complicating these maritime disputes. Russian gas giant Gazprom just announced plans to develop gas fields off of Vietnam's coast, in waters China has strenuously claimed. BP quietly ended joint exploration with Hanoi after Chinese threats, but Moscow is less likely to buckle under pressure, despite having no navy capable of projecting power down to the South China Sea.

There is no quick fix for these maritime troubles. The Scarborough Shoal dispute shows that Chinese assertions aren't stopping, and that Beijing's ability to intimidate neighbors is shifting the balance of power. As it becomes harder to contain Chinese muscle-flexing, America's allies in the region will increasingly call for it to live up to its commitments and help defend the freedom of the seas.

Mr. Auslin is a scholar in Asian studies at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington and a columnist for wsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @michaelauslin

 

[Bond]

Sino- I thought you had given the final warning to Philippines... and I though you had already sent Megaton nuclear bomb for Manila..

 

[SinoChallenger]

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/anc/04/18/12/china-will-be-aggressive-over-scarborough-expert-warns


China will be aggressive over Scarborough, Philippines expert warns

Posted at 04/18/2012 10:53 PM | Updated as of 04/18/2012 10:53 PM

MANILA, Philippines - China will act aggressively in claiming Scarborough Shoal, an expert warned on Wednesday.

La Salle professor Renato de Castro told ANC that China will capitalize on its economic and military strength to claim the territory.

"The current crisis is just the beginning, this is not the end," he told ANC Primetime. "We may manage this, but this will be a continuation because we will be expecting more."

"This is what the Chinese will say, the saying 'kill the chicken, frighten the monkeys,'" he added.

For former UN ambassador Lauro Baja Jr., the Philippines will be at a disadvantage if force is used, so it must be aggressive in its diplomatic strategies.

"Any territorial claim, any maritime claim will take years, if not generations to resolve," he said. "In the meantime, I think there are other ways to defuse the tension, going into some non-controversial cooperative endeavors and having some sort of modus vivendi with China in the meantime."

"I know our position is that we do this on a multilateral or regional basis, but there is room for bilateral consultations with China," he added. "Vietnam did it." - ANC

 

[Fanling Monk]

??????????????????????_??_??? (outline Anyone?)


China has been evacuated more than 30,000 workers from Philippines soils. Is war imminent?

 

[ahfatzia]

??????????????????????_??_??? (outline Anyone?)


China has been evacuated more than 30,000 workers from Philippines soils. Is war imminent?

Are you serious? I'm in Manila now and I better take the next flight out.

 

[Killswitch]

If china really did attack the Phillippines, it would force many nations in Asia to create an Alliance against it along the lines of NATO.

I don't think China wants that.

 

[oct605032048]

I think before ur megatoning comments come, if china has b*lls, y cant fight it legally in International court?
http://www.defence.pk/forums/world-...es-china-go-un-court-end-spratly-dispute.html

International court is for chicken states like India or Philipines while real true power like US or China does not give a d**m s**t.

 

[Rechoice]

Super power China stand-off on sea of Philippine, it's Spanking ?

 

[oct605032048]

If china really did attack the Phillippines, it would force many nations in Asia to create an Alliance against it along the lines of NATO.

I don't think China wants that.

Will India sacrifice itself for the Phillipines?

Look at what you've done after the attack on Indian Parliament you'll find out the answer.

Super power China stand-off on sea of Philippine, it's Spanking ?

Restraint is not equal to weak.

What did superpower Vietnam did to rescure your fishermen arrested by the Philipines last week?

 

[shuntmaster]

If china really did attack the Phillippines, it would force many nations in Asia to create an Alliance against it along the lines of NATO.

I don't think China wants that.

Its already happening.. slowly but surely, the smaller nations in east and south-east asia, who are being bullied by China, will form anti-China alliance.. This is not good news for china in the long run.
These countries have realised that the self-proclaimed slogan of 'peaceful and harmonious rise of China' is just that, an empty slogan, with the reality being exactly opposite.

 

[oct605032048]

What happening during the stand off is the Vietnamese military leader and Thai PM visiting Beijing.

 

[Battle of Bach Dang River]

Restraint is not equal to weak.

Well, the Philippines is having Restraint, I think so.

What did superpower Vietnam did to rescure your fishermen arrested by the Philipines last week?

If they (fishermen) violated territorial waters of the Philippines, they have to bear personal responsibility for for things they did. Even so-called "super power" is not allowed to violate the territorial waters of other country.