Philippines Urges Patrols With US Amid Sea Dispute With China

China Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters Monday that China’s three test flights to Fiery Cross Reef – one of seven South China Sea features where China had carried out extensive land reclamation – were state aviation activities and had no restrictions under worldwide law.

The Paracels – made up of about 40 islets, outcrops and reefs – are claimed by China, Vietnam and Taiwan.

China has allowed the first group of tourists to visit its controversial man-made island in the disputed South China Sea.

The United States has urged claimants to the South China Sea to unite and put pressure on China by having a shared understanding of “militarization”, thus avoiding the growing tension in the region, according to the Department of Defense (DND).

Despite this, the two countries continued to call for restraint in the region and for the maintenance of the status quo. He said that details of the new defense agreement were still being worked out.

China claims nearly all the South China Sea, which is believed to have huge deposits of oil and gas, and has been building up facilities on islands it controls.

The Philippine Embassy said Gazmin and Del Rosario welcomed McCain’s comments against China’s recent test flights over Kagitingan (Fiery Cross) Reef and the “committee’s consistent efforts” to prod the USA government to continue with legitimate challenges to China’s illegal claims in the South China Sea.

Responding to this act, Vietnamese Foreign Minister Spokesperson Le Hai Binh said the act seriously violates Vietnam’s sovereignty over Truong Sa archipelago and runs counter to the common perception reached by the two countries’ high-ranking leaders, the agreement on basic principles guiding the settlement of Vietnam-China issues at sea, and the spirit of the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea. This would also improve the Philippines’s disaster response capabilities, he added. The United States is transferring a third high-endurance cutter and a research vessel to the Philippines this year. Japan is considering whether to provide the Philippines with training aircraft and other military equipment used by its Maritime Self-Defense Force.

Support work to establish a robust information security program, which will lead to achieving a General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA).

US Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Ash Carter welcomed the court’s decision as both Philippine and US military began discussions on a dozen possible locations in its former colony where American ships and planes will have access.