(Bloomberg) — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said his nation won’t deploy Navy warships to the South China Sea in response to recent clashes with Beijing in disputed waters.
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“It will be provocative and will be seen as an escalation. We don’t do that,” Marcos told reporters on Tuesday when asked if the government plans to send Navy warships. “We are not at war, we don’t need Navy warships.”
Marcos made the remarks after the Philippines accused the China Coast Guard last week of using water cannon twice and a Chinese Navy ship of doing “dangerous maneuvers” against Filipino vessels around the disputed Scarborough Shoal.
China has said it implemented control measure after Philippine ships “dangerously approached” its patrol vessels.
The Philippines also earlier said that a Chinese Navy chopper harassed Filipino fishing boats at a contested reef. Beijing has said its actions were “reasonable and lawful.”
Manila will continue to perform its mission, Marcos said, including resupplying Filipino fishermen and protecting the nation’s territorial rights. “The Philippines has never been an agent of escalation of tensions,” he said, adding that the country has been trying to do the opposite.
Marcos’ government has been pushing back against China’s expansive claims in the South China Sea — a key global trade route that’s also rich in energy resources — citing a 2016 international tribunal decision that dismissed those claims in favor of Manila.
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