MANILA, Philippines - Singapore has called on China to clarify “with more precision” the extent of its claims in the West Philippine Sea and South China Sea, saying its “ambiguity” has only heightened concerns in the region.
“We have repeatedly said that we think it is in China’s own interests to clarify its claims in the SCS (South China Sea) with more precision as the current ambiguity as to their extent has caused serious concerns in the international maritime community,” the Singapore Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“The recent incidents have heightened these concerns and raise serious questions in relation to the interpretation of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” the Foreign Ministry said, referring to recent reports of intrusions by Chinese vessels and aircraft into Philippine and Vietnamese territorial waters.
Singapore said it had to seek clarification from China due to what it considered an unusual number of inquiries about the visit to the island state of the Haixun-31, China’s biggest maritime surveillance vessel.
“It is obvious that what ought to have been a routine visit has occasioned a high level of attention because of recent incidents between China and Vietnam and China and the Philippines in the South China Sea,” the Foreign Ministry, through a spokesman, said.
“This is precisely why this port call in Singapore by the Haixun 31 has provoked such interest. After all scores of vessels from many countries, including naval vessels, call at Singapore every day without arousing the slightest excitement,” it said.
In a statement issued on Monday, the Foreign Ministry said Singapore takes no side on the issue “but as a major trading nation, Singapore has a critical interest in anything affecting freedom of navigation in all international sea lanes, including those in the SCS.”
“It is our hope that parties to the disputes in the SCS will act with restraint to create conditions conducive to the peaceful settlement of these disputes and the continuation of peace, stability and growth,” it said.
Singapore also called on China and Southeast Asian countries with territorial claims in the region to finalize guidelines for the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the SCS or DOC.
“ASEAN has recently made some new proposals to China to resolve this impasse and we hope that they will be received in the spirit of goodwill and cooperation in which they were offered so that the DOC can be implemented without any further delay. Then perhaps a routine port call will not arouse so much excitement,” the statement said.
In the DOC, claimant countries are asked “to exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability including, among others, refraining from action of inhabiting on the presently uninhabited islands, reefs, shoals, cays, and other features and to handle their differences in a constructive manner.”
Welcome development
Singapore’s asking China to clarify its territorial claims was a welcome development, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
The DFA said Singaporean Ambassador A. Selverajah personally conveyed his government’s position to Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario last Friday during the latter’s meeting with ASEAN ambassadors.
“As we have said all along, the issues pertaining to the West Philippine Sea and the Spratly Islands affect not just the claimant-countries but the entire region itself and beyond, and thus call for a multi-stakeholder approach,” said DFA spokesman Eduardo Malaya.
“We urge concerned parties to work with us in resolving this long-standing yet escalating issue through sustained consultations, adherence to international law and diplomacy,” he added.
An ASEAN diplomat, who declined to be named, told The STAR that it has always been Singapore’s position that China clearly lay down its claims in the region.
“Singapore always articulated this even when speaking about the matter. Singapore has always encouraged China to be more precise in the claims in the South China Sea,” the diplomat said in an interview.
“The statement was a reiteration of Singapore’s policy position and reaffirming earlier statement during a suitable occasion to reiterate its position,” the diplomat said.
The Philippines brought last week to the UN its territorial dispute with China. Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Laos and Singapore had stressed the primacy of UNCLOS in resolving the dispute. China, for its part, said the issue should be tackled bilaterally.
Int’l law to prevail
President Aquino expects China to adhere to international laws and other countries to insist on freedom of navigation.
“When we say adhere to international law, we expect China to adhere to that and with America backing us up and other ASEAN claimants, we expect that the UN, America and the other interested parties who have to traverse this body of water will insist on freedom of navigation and the adherence to UNCLOS,” Aquino said.
He noted that China has made specific claims over Recto Bank and other areas that are indisputably part of the Philippines.
“On our part, just to move forward, we may not have agreed on the disputed areas like the whole of Spratlys but the Reed Bank was never a part of the conflict. We have presence there since the 1970s while their (China’s) nine-dash (line) theory came in late 2000 already,” Aquino said.
“We believe our basis for claim is well founded especially under this treaty ratified by so many countries including China,” the President said.
US Sen. John McCain earlier called on his government to expand its military and political support for Southeast Asian nations allegedly being bullied by China in the increasingly volatile West Philippine Sea.
McCain, a senior member of the Republican Party, said the US should help ASEAN members develop and deploy an early warning system and coastal vessels in contested waters.
Aquino said the Philippines could very well assert its rights under the 1982 UNCLOS, which defined the country’s exclusive economic zone or 200 nautical miles from its continental shelf.
“And I don’t think I would be doing my duty to the people and the state if we agree to let them claim what they want because they are bigger than us, I think that principle is wrong,” he said.
Modernize military
Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri said a modernized military would help the country better defend its territorial waters.
“We have long been fighting for the need to modernize the military. As a matter of fact, I supported the P5-billion annual allocation for the AFP modernization,” Zubiri said.
“Our resources are not being properly secured because our military lacks the capability. Our coastguard has no capacity, and the Navy has no ships. We don’t have enough patrol crafts and even the helicopters are not enough,” he said. He said he himself wouldn’t dare take a military aircraft and risk his life.
“Let’s give them proper helicopter, medevac and rescue support. We should not demoralize them. We can tap sources to fund AFP modernization,” Zubiri added.
Sen. Manuel Villar, meanwhile, chided the Aquino administration for its weak foreign policy.
“When confronted by another country, we easily panic and make excuses,” an abs-cbnnews report said quoting Villar.
Sen. Francis Escudero, for his part, joined Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile in calling for the convening of the National Security Council (NSC) to address the Spratlys issue.
“The members (of NSC) need to discuss the matter so that they can deal with the issue, if there is a need for the government to flex some muscles or if there will be major, or even, minor actions that need to be addressed,” Escudero said.
He reiterated his advice to officials that they let the DFA speak for the country regarding the West Philippine Sea issue.
“They are not experts in the interpretation of international laws, or how to go about the diplomatic circles or how their statements are making impact on the international front,” Escudero said.
Repairs begin
Meanwhile, the military’s Palawan-based Western Command has started transporting construction materials to Pag-Asa Island in the Kalayaan Island Group or Spratlys to repair the Rancudo Airfield.
Wescom commander Lt. Gen. Juancho Sabban said the Kalayaan Port would also undergo rehabilitation.
“We are hauling off the materials. The equipment (construction) of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) is already there,” Sabban said. The BRP Benguet on Sunday unloaded some of the construction materials. The supply ship also delivered fresh provisions for the Pag-Asa’s garrison and civilian residents.
Sabban stressed the repair of Rancudo airfield and the Kalayaan island port was not a violation of agreement among claimant countries.
“It will not violate the declaration of the code of conduct in the South China Sea. Since 1975, the airstrip is already in existence (Pag-Asa). We are not building new structures. We are just maintaining old ones as they need repairs,” Sabban said.
Sabban said the airstrip, parts of which have been damaged by erosion, can accommodate C-130 cargo plane but only during fair weather.
“As per orders of the commander-in-chief, we are now prioritizing the airstrip and port rehabilitation projects,” Sabban said.
By Pia Lee-Brago, The Philippine Star
With Aurea Calica, Christina Mendez, and Jaime Laude
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