Philippines accuses Chinese Navy of reckless flight maneuvers near shoal

By John Victor D. Ordoñez and Adrian H. Halili, Reporters

THE Philippine Coast Guard accused the Chinese Navy of performing dangerous flight maneuvers on Tuesday when it flew close to a government aircraft patrolling a disputed shoal in the South China Sea.

“This reckless action posed a serious risk to the safety of the pilots and passengers,” it said in a statement.

The Philippine Coast Guard said the government fishery aircraft was conducting what it called a maritime domain awareness flight over Scarborough Shoal, a rocky atoll and prime fishing patch inside the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.

The People’s Liberation Army Navy helicopter flew as close as three meters to the aircraft, which the Philippine Coast Guard said was a “clear violation and blatant disregard” of aviation regulations.

The Philippine plane “intruded” into China’s airspace over the disputed shoal, the Southern Theater Command of China’s military said in a statement.

The move by the Philippines severely “violated” China’s sovereignty, it said, adding that the Chinese military had organized naval and air forces to track, monitor and drive away the plane.

The Chinese Embassy in Manila, quoting Colonel Tian Junli, a spokesman for the Southern Theater Command, said the Philippine government had “reversed right and wrong and spread false narratives.”

“The Philippine actions seriously violated China’s sovereignty and seriously violated relevant provisions of international law and Chinese laws. Huangyan Island (Scarborough Shoal) is China’s inherent territory,” it added.

“The Theater troops remain on high alert and will resolutely defend national sovereignty and security and peace and stability in the South China Sea.”

Named after a British ship that was grounded on the atoll nearly three centuries ago, Scarborough Shoal is one of the most contested maritime feature in the South China Sea, where Beijing and Manila have clashed repeatedly.

“The People’s Liberation Army Navy offensive action seen in their reckless helicopter flight maneuvers over the West Philippine Sea is an unfair fortification of their air power in our air space,” Chester B. Cabalza, founding president of Manila-based think tank International Development and Security Cooperation, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.

“Our rules should be recognized and respected in our own air space. China’s low-flying light combat aircraft has no right to risk the safety of our Filipino coast guardians by sheer intimidation,” he added.

“There seems to be no foreseeable off-ramp, so it is important to have a working hotline and crisis management mechanism to avoid serious accidents or miscalculation,” Lucio B. Pitlo III, a research fellow at the Asia-Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation, said via Messenger chat.

“Worryingly, dangerously close run-ins are becoming a new norm in the maritime spat between the Philippines and China,” he added.

China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, a vital waterway for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce, putting it at odds with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

A United Nations-backed tribunal in 2016 voided China’s claim for being illegal, but Beijing does not recognize the ruling.

“Unless the two parties come to terms to settle their differences on the use of waters and air space in the South China Sea, such incident can occur again,” Rommel C. Banlaoi, president of the Philippine Society for International Security Studies and former deputy national security adviser, said in a Viber message.

“Both parties need to learn how to coordinate their actions in the South China Sea if they want to prevent unintended violent encounters at sea,” he added. — with Reuters