The presence of the China Coast Guard persists despite the effort of the Philippine Coast Guard to block them and assist the four main vessels of the second civilian resupply mission of the Atin Ito Coalition to the Bajo de Masinloc or Panatag Shoal in the West Philippine Sea on May 15, 2024. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/File

US reaffirms support for PH in West Philippine Sea, condemns China’s actions

ABS-CBN News

<div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:950px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1718691810238171860461148320240516-atin-ito-wps-MT-46.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="The presence of the China Coast Guard persists despite the effort of the Philippine Coast Guard to block them and assist the four main vessels of the second civilian resupply mission of the Atin Ito Coalition to the Bajo de Masinloc or Panatag Shoal in the West Philippine Sea on May 15, 2024. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/File"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left"><span id="isPasted" style="color:rgb(51, 51, 51);letter-spacing:normal;orphans:2;text-align:left;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;widows:2;word-spacing:0px;-webkit-text-stroke-width:0px;white-space:pre-wrap;background-color:rgb(255, 255, 255);text-decoration-thickness:initial;text-decoration-style:initial;text-decoration-color:initial;display:inline !important;float:none">The presence of the China Coast Guard persists despite the effort of the Philippine Coast Guard to block them and assist the four main vessels of the second civilian resupply mission of the Atin Ito Coalition to the Bajo de Masinloc or Panatag Shoal in the West Philippine Sea on May 15, 2024. <em>Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/File</em></span><em> </em></span></span></span>MANILA — The US Department of State said Tuesday that the United States stands with the Philippines and condemned Chinese actions against a resupply mission for the BRP Sierra Madre, which is grounded on Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal.</div><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal;min-height:15px"><br/></div><p style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal">The US issued the statement amid high tension over an incident in the West Philippine Sea, where Beijing claims a Philippine vessel collided with a Chinese one.</p><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal;min-height:15px"><br/></div><p style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal">The Armed Forces of the Philippines has refused to give details about the incident but called China’s narrative deceptive and misleading.</p><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><br/></div><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><span style="caret-color:rgb(0, 0, 0);color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">&quot;The main issue remains to be the illegal presence and actions of Chinese vessels within the Philippines’ EEZ, which infringes on our sovereignty and sovereign rights. The continued aggressive actions of the CCG are escalating tensions in the region,” the AFP said on Monday.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><br/></div><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/6/17/us-japan-condemn-china-s-repeated-dangerous-aggressive-actions-vs-ph-2352">READ: US, Japan condemn China’s ‘repeated dangerous, aggressive actions’ vs PH</a></div><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><br/></div><p style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal">“[People’s Republic of China] vessels’ dangerous and deliberate use of water cannons, ramming, blocking maneuvers, and towing damaged Philippine vessels, endangered the lives of Philippine service members, is reckless, and threatens regional peace and stability,” the US State Department said.</p><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal;min-height:15px"><br/></div><p style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal">“Beijing’s actions reflect consistent disregard for the safety of Filipinos and for international law in the South China Sea,” it also said, noting a string of incidents involving dangerous maritime maneuvers and the use of water cannons against Philippine resupply missions.</p><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><br/></div><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/5/28/consistency-a-challenge-for-west-philippine-sea-policy-geopolitical-analyst-1235">RELATED: Consistency a challenge for West Philippine Sea policy — geopolitical analys</a></div><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal;min-height:15px"><br/></div><p style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal">The US stressed that the 2016 arbitral ruling, which China has rejected as invalid, is binding under international law.</p><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal;min-height:15px"> </div><p style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal">“The United States reaffirms that Article IV of the 1951 United States-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty extends to armed attacks on Philippine armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft — including those of its Coast Guard — anywhere in the South China Sea,” it also said.</p><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><br/></div><p style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal">The Marcos administration has welcomed broader engagement with the US and with other partner nations, as well as the European Union, in the simmering dispute with China, which claims a large part of the West Philippine Sea.</p><div style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal"><br/></div><p style="margin-bottom:0px;line-height:normal">Activist groups, including Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, though, warn that US presence in the West Philippine Sea — and in the Philippines, in general — puts the country at risk of being caught in the middle of the rivalry between the US and China.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kKYgG-sGYwE?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><br/></div>

<p>The US issued the statement amid high tension over an incident in the West Philippine Sea, where Beijing claims a Philippine vessel collided with a Chinese one.</p>

The US issued the statement amid high tension over an incident in the West Philippine Sea, where Beijing claims a Philippine vessel collided with a Chinese one.

US reaffirms support for PH in West Philippine Sea, condemns China’s actions | ABS-CBN

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US reaffirms support for PH in West Philippine Sea, condemns China’s actions

US reaffirms support for PH in West Philippine Sea, condemns China’s actions

ABS-CBN News

Published Jun 18, 2024 02:24 PM PHT

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Ayungin Shoal

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