MANILA – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. assured that the Philippines will not yield any part of its territory to other nations amid the ongoing tensions over the West Philippines Sea.
Speaking before the Filipino community at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Berlin, Germany on Tuesday night (Wednesday in the Philippines), the Chief Executive stated that his administration would continue to assert the country’s sovereign rights in contested waters.
President Marcos added that Germany has been a strong supporter of the Philippines when it comes to keep the waters in the South China Sea open, secure and peaceful.
“We both adhere to the rules-based order and seek the cooperation of all nations to abide by the principles of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea o tinatawag na UNCLOS,” Marcos said.
“Dahil nagkaka problema po tayo sa ibang bansa na sinasabi, ‘yung teritoryo ay kanila pala. Ngunit asahan ninyo ay hindi po tayo papayag dahil maliwanag na maliwanag naman, na ito ay bahagi ng Pilipinas,” he added.
On early Tuesday, President Marcos has questioned China’s 10-dash line as a premise in its assertion of ownership of the South China Sea as it was not recognized by any country.
“’We have not rejected any proposals that China has made for us but the premise is something that we question,” Marcos said during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
“We have the economic zone that China has already intruded upon and until that premise, that China has made in terms of all these discussions with the Philippines, it is very difficult to see a way forward,” he added.
Philippines and China have been on dispute over the resource-rich waters, with China claiming the entire South China Sea, including waters and features of the West Philippine Sea, which covers the Philippines’ EEZ.
In 2016, the Philippines was awarded the arbitral ruling that denied the nine-dash line, the basis of China’s historical claims over the islands and waters in the entire South China Sea, including EEZs of neighboring Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
China, however, rejected the ruling and maintained an aggressive stance in the region, even firing water cannons at Philippine vessels taking humanitarian supplies to a military outpost at the Ayungin Shoal./PN
