World | Sun Jun 8, 2014 6:02am EDT
Related:
World, China
Philippine, Vietnamese troops drink beer, play volleyball on disputed isle
MANILA/HANOI | By
Manuel Mogato and
Nguyen Phuong Linh
Vietnamese and Philippine troops got together on a disputed island in the South China Sea on Sunday to play soccer and volleyball - as well as drink beer - in a display of unity that will not go unnoticed in Beijing.
Philippine naval officials billed the event on the Vietnamese-held island as a chance to show the world there can be harmony in the South China Sea despite a web of overlapping claims to the potentially energy-rich waters.
The gathering on Southwest Cay in the Spratly archipelago also symbolises how once-suspicious neighbours are cooperating in the face of China's growing assertiveness in disputed waters.
About 40 Philippine naval personnel sailed to the island for the day-long event, Philippine naval officials said.
Coincidentally, the Philippines occupied Southwest Cay until early 1975, when troops from then South Vietnam seized it after Philippine forces sailed a couple of miles to Northeast Cay, which was under Manila's control, for a party.
The South Vietnamese were soon displaced by the communist forces of a victorious Hanoi.
Besides playing soccer and volleyball, the troops held a tug-of-war competition, put on cultural shows involving singing and dancing and shared food and beer, said Philippine naval spokesman, Lieutenant-Commander Gerard Fabic.
They also shared information on maritime security, natural disaster warnings and search and rescue operations.
Colonel Le Xuan Thuy, a Vietnamese naval official, said the event reflected the goodwill between the two countries.
He told troops from both sides that current conditions in the region were complicated by the "unruly actions of China seriously violating international laws".
The gathering underscores the growing cooperation between Hanoi and Manila - the two capitals most feeling China's wrath over the South China Sea - even though both still claim Southwest Cay and dispute other islands. Southwest Cay is almost equidistant from Vietnam and the Philippines.
"We are not only bringing down walls of mistrust and suspicion with one another but building trust and confidence towards peacefully resolving our competing claims," said a senior Philippine naval official who declined to be identified.
The Philippines would hold a similar event next year, officials said.
