Defense chief positions Philippines as Indo-Pacific convergence hub

THE PHILIPPINES has positioned itself as a convergence hub for like-minded countries committed to a rules-based maritime order, Defense Secretary Gilberto Eduardo C. Teodoro, Jr. said on Sunday, as he unveiled the country’s vision to be a guardian of the seas.

Speaking at the International Institute for Strategic Studies Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Mr. Teodoro underscored this role, noting that the country’s allies, even those with differences, found a common ground in Philippine waters.

“In a fragmenting world, the Philippines is thus providential, and providentially blessed to convene international actors of every stripe, in defense of shared principles, particularly freedom of the seas, respect for the rule of law, particularly the rights of smaller and archipelagic sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states,” he said in a livestreamed speech.

Mr. Teodoro introduced the Philippine vision, the Archipelagic Sentinel and Guardian of the Freedom of the Seas, anchored on four key principles: sovereignty and territorial integrity, international rule of law, ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) centrality, and deterrence.

“Ultimately, as Strategic Sentinel, we will stand watch over our sovereign rights and entitlement, and as Guardian of the Freedom of the Seas, we will stand watch with the international community for this part of the world.”

The Defense chief said this vision is already coming to life through the Philippines’ expanding network of allies and partners, including the United States, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, France and India. He noted the Philippines’ openness to the participation of other countries that share its commitment to a “free and open Indo-Pacific.”

“May I make note that none of the ASEAN countries has ever claimed that these maritime cooperative activities are destabilizing regional peace and security,” he said, even citing Indonesia’s recent move to enhance defense ties with Australia, Japan and the United States, all of which are Philippine treaty partners.

CHINA’S ACTIONS
“Nonetheless, this exercise has been facilitated by growing concern over a certain actor’s behavior against its much smaller neighbors,” he said referring to China, which continues to disregard the 2016 arbitral ruling that invalidated its claims over the South China Sea.

Mr. Teodoro earlier said the Philippines remained under threat from China despite a recent easing in US-China tensions.

China’s military and coast guard said they carried out patrols near disputed waters in the South China Sea on Sunday. 

Philippine and US forces held a five-day maritime exercise in the same waters last week near the Scarborough Shoal, the third such drill this year, to strengthen interoperability and maritime security, the Philippine military said on Sunday.

Scarborough Shoal, in waters that Manila calls the West Philippine Sea, is one of Asia’s most contested maritime features and has become a frequent flashpoint between China and the Philippines over sovereignty and fishing rights.

CHINA CLAIMS ‘RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, PROVOCATIVE ACTS’
The People’s Liberation Army’s Southern Theater Command said in a statement on the WeChat platform that its naval and air units carried out combat readiness patrols in the “territorial sea and airspace” of the atoll and its surrounding areas.

“Such patrols serve as an effective countermeasure to cope with all sorts of rights violations and provocative acts,” the command said. It did not mention specific countries.

China’s coast guard said in a separate statement it conducted law enforcement patrols near the Scarborough Shoal, adding that since this month it had dealt with ships engaged in “illegal rights-violation activities in accordance with laws and regulations,” without elaborating.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines said the exercise with the US from Tuesday to Saturday, including visit-board-search-and-seizure drills, underscored both countries’ commitment to stronger defense ties, improved maritime domain awareness and support for a rules-based order at sea.

The Philippine Embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond to an e-mailed request for comment.

‘SEVERE THREAT’
China’s patrols took place as defense ministers, military chiefs and policymakers from the Asia-Pacific region and beyond gathered in Singapore for the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia’s premier defense forum.

Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of the meeting, Mr. Teodoro said Manila remains under “severe threat” from China territorially and politically, despite a recent thaw in US-China tensions following a summit between Presidents Donald J. Trump and Xi Jinping this month.

“We have no choice but really to be resilient and to stand up against Chinese aggression,” he said.

The Philippines and China have been locked in repeated maritime standoffs in the South China Sea in recent years, at times resulting in collisions between vessels and injuries to personnel.

China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea via a “nine-dash line” on its maps that cuts into the exclusive economic zones of the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia. — Pexcel John Bacon and Reuters