China wanted the Philippines to recognize Beijing’s control of Ayungin Shoal or Second Thomas in the West Philippine Sea, one of many proposals and counter-proposals that have led to a stalemate in the vital waterway, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday.
In a statement, the department said the proposal raised by Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong in March 2023 “would be deemed a recognition of China’s control” over Ayungin Shoal as its territory.
“As Ayungin Shoal is a part of the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, the proposal of China could not be considered by the Philippines without violating the Philippine constitution or international law,” it said.
The DFA added that only a few of China’s proposals on the South ChinaSea were “somewhat workable,” while many were contrary to the interestof the Philippines.
The department issued the statement in reaction to a published article indicating that the Philippines ignored China’s proposals on the sea row.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Navy disclosed on Tuesday a historicalaccount of heightened tensions in the West Philippine Sea during theearly 1990s, asserting that past confrontations with China surpassed recent incidents in terms of their level of intensity.
Emphasizing the “illegality and unprofessionalism of Chinese actions” within Philippine waters, Navy spokesperson on WPS issues Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad called “for the cessation of such maritime behavior to prevent further incidents inside the country’s exclusive economic zone.”
Trinidad revealed in an impromptu interview that the country faced a near-naval engagement with China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) during that period, which eclipsed the recent rotational and resupply mission in Ayungin shoal.
Sometime between 1993-1994, Trinidad recalled there was a “gray ongray” situation at sea, referring to the color of warships, when China first occupied Mischief Reef that blocked Philippine vessels from navigating the disputed waters. “That was intense,” he said.
Trinidad described the recent water cannon attack from the China Coast Guard as “normal,” but what set it apart from the previous incidents was the shattering of the glass that injured four Philippine Navy personnel—including Vice Admiral Alberto Carlos—aboard the Unaizah Mae 4 civilian supply vessel.
The DFA stressed that “in no way did the Philippine Government ignore China’s proposals. Upon receipt.. (we) had immediately undertaken serious study and consideration of all of them.”
“Instead of considering the Philippine counter-proposals, however, theChinese side presented its own counter-proposals, which again did notreflect our interests, especially on issues such as the South ChinaSea,” it said.
The department also said the issues were further discussed during the8th Bilateral Consultation Meeting on the South China Sea at Shanghai in January.
The DFA also revealed that it received a number of concept papers from China on various maritime-related proposals last year.
“While a few proposals were deemed somewhat workable, many of the remaining Chinese proposals were determined, after careful study,scrutiny and deliberation within the Philippine Government, to be contrary to our national interests,” the DFA said.
The DFA emphasized that any agreement with a foreign government should be in accordance with the mutual interest.
Besides, the DFA said agreements also should not undermine the Philippine constitution or diminish the rights of the country under international law, specifically the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 Arbitral Award.
Under the 1982 UNCLOS, the Philippines is entitled to an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of 200 nautical miles.
In 2016, the United Nations-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that China had no legal basis to claim historic rights to resources within the sea areas falling within its “nine-dash line.”