China’s military on Sunday said it carried out routine patrols in the South China Sea and warned the Philippines against what it called “provocative actions.”
The two countries have been locked in a long-running maritime standoff in the strategic waterway, marked by frequent clashes between coast guard ships and large-scale naval drills.
A spokesperson for China’s Southern Theater Command said Manila must “immediately stop provocations and escalating tensions” in the South China Sea. The spokesperson also accused the Philippines of relying on “external forces” to back its moves, calling those efforts “futile.”
“Any attempt to stir up trouble or disrupt the situation will not succeed,” the spokesperson said.
The Philippine Maritime Council and Armed Forces did not immediately respond to requests for comment outside office hours. The Philippine embassy in Beijing also did not reply.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said Japan, the Philippines, and the United States conducted joint naval exercises from Thursday to Saturday inside the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone. The drills aimed to boost regional cooperation and support a “free and open Indo-Pacific.”
The U.S. said it will continue working with allies to uphold freedom of navigation, aviation, and other legal uses of the seas and international airspace, while respecting maritime rights under international law.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday reaffirmed Washington’s support for Manila, rejecting what he called China’s “destabilising plans” in the disputed waters.
Japan’s foreign ministry did not respond to calls on Sunday, and a defence ministry official said no one was available over the weekend to comment.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, despite overlapping claims by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
