HEADLINE-ASIA GEOPOLITICS | US lawmakers condemn China over WPS collision

 

 

MANILA, Philippines — Four American lawmakers yesterday condemned the China Coast Guard (CCG) and maritime militia’s act of “intentionally hitting” Philippine ships in Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal last Sunday.

In a statement, US House of Representatives foreign affairs committee chairman Michael McCaul, ranking committee member New York Rep. Gregory Meeks, subcommittee on the Indo-Pacific chair California Rep. Young Kim and California Rep. Ami Bera expressed their support for the Philippines and the joint patrols between the US, the Philippines and other countries in the South China Sea.

“We unequivocally support the Philippines and condemn the unlawful actions by the Chinese Coast Guard in South China Sea,” the lawmakers said.

“The Chinese Coast Guard and maritime militia vessels intentionally hit Philippine Coast Guard ships over the weekend and continue to violate international law, endanger Filipino crew members and obstruct Philippine vessels’ access in their own exclusive economic zone (EEZ),” they added.

The incident is part of a larger pattern of the People’s Liberation Army Navy, the maritime militia and the CCG’s aggressive and provocative behavior in the South China Sea, where China actively intrudes in other states’ EEZs, according to the lawmakers.

“We condemn Beijing’s maritime intimidation and welcome the Biden administration’s announcement to increase joint patrols with the Philippines and other partners in South China Sea and its reaffirmation to uphold its commitment under the US-Philippine Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT),” they said.

An arbitral tribunal constituted under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea rejected China’s expansive claims in South China Sea, including areas determined by the tribunal to be part of the Philippines’ EEZ and continental shelf and resources.

The US reiterated its support for the Philippines following China’s dangerous and unlawful actions in Ayungin Shoal last Sunday as the US renewed its warning that it would defend its treaty ally in case of an armed attack in the disputed waters.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke over the phone with Philippine National Security Adviser Eduardo Año and emphasized the ironclad US alliance commitments to the Philippines under the US-Philippines MDT, which extends to armed attacks on Philippine public vessels, aircraft and armed forces – including those of its Coast Guard – in the Pacific, including in South China Sea.

Washington slammed China’s “dangerous, unlawful and provocative” actions in Ayungin Shoal, jeopardizing Filipino crew members’ safety, to enforce its expansive and unlawful maritime claims.

The US State Department said China’s conduct jeopardized Filipino crew members’ safety and impeded critically needed supplies from reaching service members stationed at the BRP Sierra Madre.

The US State Department added that obstructing supply lines to this longstanding outpost and interfering with lawful Philippine maritime operations undermine regional stability.

‘False narratives’

Meanwhile, the Department of National Defense (DND) is calling on Filipinos to rally behind the Philippines as it pushes back against Chinese aggression in the West Philippine Sea following reports of local influencers echoing pro-China disinformation campaigns.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. said that while the government is not alarmed by China’s information operators spreading disinformation on the South China Sea dispute, the DND and other agencies have taken steps to counter these “false narratives.”

Earlier this week, the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism reported that a group of Filipino influencers has been replicating Chinese sentiments over the disputed waters, triggering suspicions of a strong presence of Chinese information operations within the Philippines.

“We’ve presumed there (are) Chinese information operations (in the Philippines). They operate everywhere in the world, but we started really being alarmed when we saw that there were Filipinos parroting the Chinese narrative,” National Security Council (NSC) assistant director general Jonathan Malaya told the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ).

While there has been no reported traction for these influencers, Malaya said the mere existence of Filipinos talking against their own country’s interests has earned the ire of security officials.

“We’re not alarmed. This is expected of China. Disinformation and information operations are in the playbook of China, and so we are countering the narratives by information operations such as this, such as me explaining to our countrymen why they shouldn’t believe China’s narrative,” Teodoro told government-run PTV-4.

The NSC said these influencers have been posting videos allegedly supplied by the Chinese on Sunday’s collision between Chinese and Filipino boats despite footage provided by the embedded press.

In August, some Filipinos were also monitored to have been defending China following the water cannon incident in Ayungin Shoal.

Teodoro scored Chinese information operators for reducing the Philippines’ pushbacks against China’s encroachment of Philippine waters as a matter of serving as puppets or dogs of the US.

“This is an insult to Filipinos, and it assumes that we have no ability to think for ourselves and stand up for our rights, and I think this is really looking down on us, and that really disgusts me,” he said.

“So I am calling on our countrymen to stand up against China’s insults,” he added.

Last month, the US State Department published a report detailing how China is spending billions of dollars globally to spread disinformation and threatening to cause a “sharp contraction” in freedom of speech worldwide.

The report, released by the US State Department’s Global Engagement Center, said Beijing spends billions of dollars annually on “foreign information manipulation” through propaganda, disinformation and censorship while promoting positive news about China and its ruling Communist Party.

The report also accused China of exploiting the social media site WeChat to disseminate disinformation targeting “Chinese-language speakers residing in democracies” and Chinese technology giant ByteDance, TikTok’s owner, seeking to “block potential critics of Beijing from using its platforms.”

While the government has yet to deal with Filipino influencers echoing pro-Beijing sentiments, Malaya warned the public against these content creators.

He added that the government has been monitoring these influencers. – Neil Jayson Servallos