The United States and the Philippines have agreed to continue their defense cooperation, including a series of joint patrols in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) this year.
US Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson offered this assurance after meeting with Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to discuss plans for defense cooperation.
“Certainly, this coming year, we expect both of our militaries to continue to cooperate and to exercise and to do whatever it takes both bilaterally, multilaterally to ensure the safety of our peoples,” Carlson said in an interview with GMA.
The US ambassador did not elaborate on the specifics of future joint patrols.
This developed as the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) confirmed the reported harassment of Filipino fishermen from the China Coast Guard at Bajo de Masinloc in Zambales, which is the southeast entrance of the Scarborough Shoal.
PCG Commodore Jay Tarriela said they tracked the origin of the videos circulating online, which showed personnel from the China Coast Guard accosting Filipino fishermen after the latter were spotted collecting seashells in the area.
“The PCG have successfully identified the origin of the videos and have taken steps to gather sworn statements from the individuals involved,” said Tarriela.
“Mr. Jack Tabat from Zambales has admitted that the video came from their boat, FB Legendary Jo. According to his statement, on 12 January 2024, Filipino fishermen who were collecting sea shells near the South entrance of BDM experienced harassment from the China Coast Guard.”
“The fishermen were instructed to return the shells they had gathered to the sea and were subsequently driven away,” Tarriela added.
Based on Tabat’s testimony, five Chinese Coast Guard personnel on board a rubber boat approached them. Four of them disembarked the boat and went after the Filipino fishermen.
“He also documented one Chinese Coast Guard personnel grabbing the fishing boat and preventing it from departing unless the fishermen threw back their gathered seashells into the sea,” said Tarriela.
“Currently, the PCG is awaiting the arrival of the fishing vessel this evening, which was subjected to the China Coast Guard’s harassment. We intend to gather testimonies from the fishermen as well.”
AFP chief General Romeo Brawner Jr. earlier stated that the joint patrols were necessary to better enforce a rules-based international order.
Retired Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, a staunch advocate of asserting the Philippine sovereignty over the West Philippine Sea, backed the need for the Philippines to continue joint patrols with foreign powers in the area.
“We should have a series of joint patrols every year especially because we will be sending our service ship and drilling ship to Reed Bank, and when we send our service ship and drill ship there should be a joint patrol just in case the Chinese Coast Guard will try to shoo away our service ship and drill ship,” he said in a television interview.
The first Philippine-US joint patrol was conducted last November in the WPS and other areas of the South China Sea that are within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
China protested these patrols claiming that it interfered with existing negotiations with other countries regarding the South China Sea.
Carpio earlier said the Philippines should not be intimidated by China and must act now by securing Reed Bank.
“We should be sending our survey ship and drill ship already to Reed Bank, accompanied by our Navy. At the same time, we should be conducting joint maritime patrols with the US,” Carpio told CNN Philippines.
He said it was the same strategy that Malaysia and Indonesia did to get gas in their exclusive economic zone (EEZ) despite threats from China.
“We don’t need China to recognize our EEZ. As long as we get our natural resources in our EEZ, then we are winning,” Carpio said.
Also called Recto Bank, the Reed Bank reportedly holds the most oil and gas reserves in the West Philippine Sea. The 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration declared it as part of Manila’s 200-nautical mile EEZ, meaning the Philippines has the sole right to exploit resources in the area. But China has refused to recognize the arbitral ruling.
Carpio noted that while diplomatic protests preserve the country’s legal rights, these are not enough to ensure that the Philippines will have access to its natural resources, and the country needs to secure the area to establish its rights.
Developing the Recto Bank is also important for the Philippines as supply from the Malampaya gas field is expected to dry out in two to three years, Carpio added.
Carpio said the Reed Bank is two to three times larger than Malampaya, so it is a good source of gas for at least 60 years. To protect the Reed Bank, he said the Philippines should build a monitoring station on the Ayungin Shoal, which is the gateway to the area.
He also pointed out that if the country is unable to secure the Reed Bank, importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) will continue which will push power rates up by at least 50 percent and will also increase inflation.
Carpio said a service contract was already issued to Forum Energy, a British oil and gas company where businessman Manuel Pangilinan owns a controlling stake of 79.13 percent.
“There is already a concession that has been awarded over Reed Bank so it’s just a matter of implementing [it],” he said.
Ten days after the Philippines and China agreed to ease tensions in the region, at least 27 Chinese ships were monitored in the WPS, said retired US Air Force Col. Raymond Powell, a maritime security expert who monitors developments in the area.
The 27 Qiong Sansha Yu-class ships were spotted south of the Spratly Islands and east of Bajo de Masinloc (Panatag or Scarborough Shoal), he said.