China urges European Union: Stop 'provoking trouble' in South China Sea
Members of the Philippine Coast Guard stand alert as a China Coast Guard vessel blocks their way to a resupply mission at Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal) in the West Philippine Sea on March 5, 2024. REUTERS/Adrian Portugal/File Photo
The Chinese Embassy in the Philippines urged the European Union to stop "provoking trouble" in the South China Sea on Thursday, and advised Manila not to "fantasise" about relying on outside forces to resolve disputes in the waterway.
An embassy spokesperson made the comments after EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas visited the Philippine capital and voiced concern over China's activities in the busy waterway, where its claims overlap those of some Southeast Asian nations.
"We urge the EU to genuinely respect China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea and to stop provoking trouble," the spokesperson said in a statement on the embassy website, noting the bloc has no right to interfere.
The spokesperson also said Manila should return to dialogue and consultation to manage differences with China instead of "fantasising about relying on external forces" to resolve the South China Sea dispute.
The Philippine Embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
GMA News Online has reached out to the Philippines' Department of Foreign Affairs and the European Union in Philippines for comment, but they have yet to respond as of posting time.
The EU and the Philippines have expressed concerns about China's "illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive measures" against Philippine vessels and aircraft conducting lawful maritime operations in the South China Sea, according to a joint statement after Kallas met with Philippine foreign minister earlier this week.
China claims sovereignty over nearly all the South China Sea, including parts of the exclusive economic zones of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam. — Reuters/ with GMA News Online/ VDV, GMA Integrated News
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
_2025_06_07_00_30_49.jpg&w=3840&q=100)
GMA Network
44 minutes ago
- GMA Network
PH, China exchange radio challenges near Panata Island
The Philippines and China exchanged radio challenges on Friday near Panata Island in the West Philippine Sea. According to a ''24 Oras'' report by Chino Gaston on Friday, BRP Andres Bonifacio detected a Jiangkai class frigate (bow number 525) and two militia vessels before 8 a.m. while on a maritime patrol. The Philippine Navy vessel issued a radio challenge, which was not immediately answered by the Chinese side. They were within 4.6 nautical miles of the Chinese ship. 'We conducted the standard radio challenge within the territorial waters of Panata Island. They counter-challenged, and we counter-challenged that Panata Island and KIG (Kalayaan Island Group) are part of the Philippines. Once we issued our radio challenge, they immediately changed their course, going to Subi Reef,' said BRP Andres Bonifacio commanding officer Lieutenant Commander Christian Malabanan. Malabanan added it was critical to follow the rules of engagement in line with government policies to prevent violent confrontations. 'One action of the tactical units, which is kami po, is we'll escalate or de-escalate a certain situation. So, kung ano po yung binigay sa amin ng ROE (rules of engagement), stick po kami doon, and if ano yung general [instruction] ng government natin, yung po yung sinusunod namin. Although yung pressure na dyan, sir… We are trained to have a decision na mag-conduct ng in-line to avoid any action na magiging detrimental naman po sa government namin,' he said. (One action of the tactical units, which is us, is we'll escalate or de-escalate a certain situation. So, whatever the ROE gives us, we will stick with it, and whatever the general [instruction] of the government is, that is what we follow. Although, the pressure is there… We are trained to have a decision to avoid any action that will be detrimental to the government.) Tensions continue as Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea, including parts that fall within Manila's exclusive economic zone. In 2016, an international arbitration tribunal in the Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines over China's claims, but Beijing has not recognized the decision. —Jiselle Anne Casucian/VBL, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
12 hours ago
- GMA Network
Comelec: Preparations ongoing for BARMM polls
Commission on Elections chairman George Garcia said Friday that preparations proceed as planned for the first ever parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). Garcia told GMA News Online that it is not for the poll body to decide whether or not the BARMM polls would push through on October 13, 2025. 'Kami po sa Comelec ay walang hinto ang paghahanda sa BARMM parliamentary elections. Tuloy na tuloy po ito kung kami ang tatanungin. Wala po sa amin ang desisyon tungkol sa pagpapaliban nito,' Garcia said. (We at the Comelec do not stop preparing for the BARMM parliamentary elections. This will continue, if we are asked. The decision whether to postpone it or not is not ours to make.) Based on Comelec Resolution No. 11149, the election period for the BARMM polls will begin on August 14 and last until October 28. A gun ban will also be implemented throughout this period. The campaign period, meanwhile, will be from August 28 to October 11. Campaigning will be prohibited in the region starting election eve or on October 12, until election day on October 13. There will also be a liquor ban enforced in these two days. Once the election period is over, candidates will be given until November 12 to file their Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE). In February, Garcia announced that President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. signed into law the measure postponing the BARMM parliamentary elections from May to October this year. It was first postponed from May 2022 to May 2025 under Republic Act 11593. Marcos has certified as urgent the bill postponing the BARMM elections, according to Malacañang. —AOL, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
13 hours ago
- GMA Network
Japan diet OKs defense pact with PH —envoy
Japan's Diet on Friday ratified a key defense pact allowing the deployment of Japanese forces for joint drills with Filipino troops in the Philippines, Manila's top envoy to Tokyo said. "We welcome today's approval of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) between the Philippines and Japan by the House of Councillors, which completes the approval process in the Japanese Diet," Philippine Ambassador Mylene Garcia-Albano said in a statement sent to GMA News Online. The RAA, which similarly allows Filipino soldiers to enter Japan for joint combat drills, was approved by the Philippine Senate on December 2024 Garcia-Albano said the RAA is "a testament to the trust and enduring friendship between the Philippines and Japan." "It will enhance our ability to work closely together in promoting a rules-based order governed by international law," she said. Japan and the Philippines are establishing closer security ties in reaction to China's aggressive territorial assertions. China and Japan are also locked in a long-running territorial dispute over the Senkaku islands, which the Chinese call Diaoyu, in the East Sea. A vital trading and shipping lane, the South China Sea, dotted with rocks, shoals, and reefs where rich oil and mineral deposits were found, are claimed in part or in whole by the Philippines, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan. Manila largely won a landmark case against China's massive claim in the South China Sea before an arbitration tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, but Beijing does not recognize the ruling. Similar to Manila's Visiting Forces Agreement with its treaty ally, the United States, the RAA defense pact with the Philippines is the first to be signed by Japan in Asia. Japan signed similar agreements with Australia and the United Kingdom. "We thank the Government and people of Japan for their steadfast support and continued collaboration," Garcia-Albano said. "We look forward to the full implementation of this agreement and to building an even more resilient and forward-looking partnership in the years ahead." —AOL, GMA Integrated News
