PH not yet seeking foreign help on Ayungin tensions

GANGING UP A video grab released by the Public Affairs Office of the Armed Forces of the Philippines on June 19 shows China Coast Guard boats (left) ganging up on Philippine boats (center) during the June 17 incident at Ayungin Shoal in West Philippine Sea. —Agence France-Presse
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines will not yet seek any help from other countries to resupply its troops at Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal despite the increasingly aggressive efforts by China to prevent this, a government spokesperson said on Saturday.
In the military’s latest rotation and resupply (Rore) mission, members of the China Coast Guard (CCG) on eight vessels brandished bolos, knives and spears, and used high-pitched sirens and bright strobe lights as they ganged up on two Philippine Navy boats to stop the delivery of essential supplies to the men on the BRP Sierra Madre, the rusted warship that serves as the military’s outposts on the shoal.
One Navy sailor lost a finger as his rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB) was repeatedly rammed by a CCG RHIB. The Chinese deployed tear gas as other Navy men tried to give first aid to the wounded sailor during the June 17 encounter, just a few meters from the Sierra Madre.
READ: PH Navy sailor loses thumb, others injured in CCG ramming incident
Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Commodore Jay Tarriela, spokesperson for the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea, repeated Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin’s statement on Friday that the Chinese action was not an “armed attack” that could activate the Philippines-US Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT).
Article continues after this advertisementBersamin said the encounter between the Filipinos and the Chinese at Ayungin was “probably a misunderstanding or an accident.”
Article continues after this advertisementREAD: Palace on China’s aggression in Ayungin Shoal: No MDT discussions
‘No intention’ to hurt
During the encounter, the CCG men punctured and slashed one Navy RHIB, immobilizing it, seized several high-powered firearms that were disassembled and packed, and destroyed the navigation and communications equipment of the Filipino boats.
Tarriela, who has been issuing stinging rebukes of CCG’s belligerent actions in the West Philippine Sea, said the Chinese had “no intention” of hurting the Filipinos with their bolos and knives. The sailor lost his finger due to the ramming of his boat, Tarriela said during a press forum.
He said the mission of the Armed Forces of the Philippines was to bring provisions to the troops on the Sierra Madre and China’s intention was to block the Rore.
“So, there is no reason for us to interpret this is an armed attack,” he said.
“Again, our objective is to resupply. The Chinese’s objective is to prevent the resupply from happening,” Tarriela said. “This is the only (thing) that happened there. There’s no intention from any country to have a widespread armed aggression due to this incident.”
He said the AFP and the PCG still had the capability to conduct legitimate resupply operations.
“And right now, we don’t see any reason (to request) any foreign actors to support our ordinary and routine resupply mission to BRP Sierra Madre,” he said.
The AFP condemned the “coercive, aggressive and barbaric actions” by the Chinese. AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the CCG conduct was akin to “piracy.”
Following the most violent action by the Chinese against a resupply mission to Ayungin, several quarters and many Filipinos on social media have urged President Marcos to invoke the MDT or call for help, specifically from the United States.
China claims sovereignty over Ayungin and nearly all of the South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea, waters within the Philippines’ 370-kilometer exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
In 2016, an international arbitral tribunal ruled that Beijing had no legal basis for its expansive claim and upheld Manila’s rights to Ayungin and its EEZ. China refuses to accept the ruling and calls the Filipinos’ voyages in the West Philippine Sea as illegal intrusions into Chinese waters.
Speaking at the same forum, maritime law expert Jay Batongbacal said that despite what he called was an armed attack by the Chinese, it could not yet be considered an “act of war.”
Not sufficient ground
“A single incident, even though it might be serious and might constitute an unlawful act under international law, [may] not yet [be] sufficient ground for the initiation of hostilities in the exercise of self-defense,” Batongbacal explained.
The head of the Institute of Maritime Affairs and the Law of the Sea of the University of the Philippines’ College of Law said the country would not benefit from making knee-jerk reactions to every incident in the West Philippine Sea.
Having a level-headed outlook “would be useful to give space for a more deliberate effort to seek a diplomatic and peaceful solution,” according to Batongbacal.
He said that there was no question that China had flouted the United Nations Charter by engaging in an “unlawful use of force” against Filipino troops and vessels.
In an interview with reporters later, he said that if the Philippines and China were to hold talks to prevent a repeat of the June 17 encounter, Beijing should replace its current embassy staff.
“Clearly, the current crop, the staff of the embassy here, they’ve never helped and we cannot speak to China through them because there is absolutely no trust with respect to that staff,” he said. “If they want to start fresh, they should replace the people.”
International law professor Romel Bagares said the Philippines should sue China in the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (Itlos) for damaging the Philippine Navy’s boats, seizing the military’s firearms, and for violating Manila’s sovereign immunity in the West Philippine Sea.
In a series of posts on X on Friday, Bagares of the Center for International Law, cited the case Ukraine brought against Russia in the Itlos concerning seizure by Russia of Ukrainian navy ships and auxiliaries.
“In that case, the Itlos issued a provisional measure recognizing immunity of such ships and auxiliaries from seizure,” Bagares said.
According to him, the 2016 arbitral award said that Ayungin is part and parcel of the Philippines’ EEZ, “so the Philippine Navy boats have a right to be there.”
“A ruling from the Itlos that echoes the arbitral award will bolster the Philippine position,” he said.
Brawner has demanded that China return the firearms and also pay for the damage.
Tarriela had said China’s actions highlighted its “flagrant violation of international law.”
“It is evident that their greedy ambition has driven them to resort to violence,” he said in a post on X. —with a report from Nestor Corrales
For comprehensive coverage, in-depth analysis, visit our special page for West Philippine Sea updates. Stay informed with articles, videos, and expert opinions.