During the last decade Philippine-China relations had improved under President Rodrigo Duterte of Philippines who had cosied up to Beijing in search of trade and investment.
HOWEVER, new security issues in the SCS seas convinced the Philippines government to delay quitting a key United States (US) military pact earlier this year.
(Pic) A satellite photo allegedly shows a Chinese submarine (see inset,) entering an underground base on Hainan Island on the South China Sea.
The Philippines accused China’s coast guard Friday of illegally seizing fishing equipment near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, sparking a fresh spat with Beijing.
Scarborough Shoal, one of several reefs controlled by China, is one of the region’s richest fishing grounds and a flash point between the two countries.
The Philippine foreign ministry said it has lodged a diplomatic protest over the “illegal confiscation” by the Chinese coast guard in May of floating devices, known as payao, that are used to catch fish.
It also “resolutely objected” to China issuing radio challenges to Philippine aircraft conducting maritime patrols in areas of the sea claimed by Manila.
ILLEGAL PROVOCATIVE ACTIVITIES (Spat between China and Philippines)
China’s foreign ministry defended the coast guard, saying they had carried out law enforcement activities and “their actions are understandable”.
It also accused Philippine military aircraft of invading Chinese airspace in another disputed section of the sea and urged Manila to “immediately stop illegal provocative activities”.
NOTES:
- Scarborough Shoal is 240 kilometres (150 miles) west of the Philippines’ main island of Luzon.
- China seized it in 2012 after a tense standoff with then Philippine president Benigno Aquino, who sent a warship to the area.
Aquino later backed down. - Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea despite competing partial claims from Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.
- It has ignored a 2016 international tribunal ruling that declared its assertion as without basis.
GENERAL MAP OF SCS REGION (several sovereign countries are there in SCS)
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Yes Nepal is being tempted by China. Nepal Has been promised lots of investments. 5G telecom system trials are also in progress in Nepal.
It amounts to bribing, but the dangerous part is the intent. It is another way of Colonialism. All these things are not going to come for free. Even all those grand investments in Pakistan are going to come at a great cost and the nation is forever going to remain in debt rather than being indebted. I wonder what will happen when the truth will dawn on them.
Might is right and might will always remain right. For the weak, the life is very hard. It’s like an episode of Tom and Jerry cartoon series everyday, but sadly it is not for fun. It is for the very survival. Philippines couldn’t have existed on the map of the earth as an independent country had it not allowed, America to use its land for setting up military bases and use their daughters for fun, which when done willingly is perfectly ok, but if taken as comfort women is a serious issue of violations of human rights. And what are the rights for the weak? To get bullied by one or be f@#$ed by the other? Rodrigo Duterte tried to be different and he thought he could do that, but with the increasing might of China, he has to rethink his strategies. Parallels can be drawn everywhere. Imagine how difficult it must be for K.P. Sharma Oli to be the P.M. of Nepal?