CAMP AQUINO, Tarlac City - The chief of the Armed Forces' Northern
Luzon Command on Tuesday accused China of "not telling the truth" when
it claimed it had withdrawn its vessels from disputed Scarborough
(Panatag) Shoal.
A statement from the Chinese Embassy on Monday said the Yuzheng 310,
China's most advanced fishery patrol vessel - which is armed and has a
helipad - and the surveillance ship CMS 84 had left Scarborough, where
the Philippines and China have been engaged in a standoff that has
entered its second week.
The standoff was triggered by attempts of the Philippine Navy
flagship BRP Gregorio del Pilar to take into custody eight Chinese
fishing vessels loaded with contraband marine products.
Citing field reports, Alcantara said that as of 8 p.m. Monday, the
Yuzheng 310 had been spotted about eight nautical miles southeast of the
shoal.
"We're not doubting their claims; we're telling them they are not telling the truth," Alcantara said.
Reports from Nolcom said another Chinese surveillance ship, CMS 71,
has been spotted 12 nautical miles southeast of the location of the BRP
Pampanga, the Coast Guard vessel in the area.
"At the moment, there is a BFAR (Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic
Resources) ship that went there, anchored inside the shoal," Alcantara
told reporters here.
Aside from the Yuzheng 310 and the CMS 71, two more Chinese "small boats" were spotted inside the shoal as of Monday night.
Three more Chinese fishing vessels have been spotted outside the shoal.
Authorities were unsure of the location of two other Chinese surveillance ships, the CMS 84 and CMS 75.
"Most likely they're there, out of sight at some point in time. One
thing is certain they are there now and looks like they are bent to stay
in the area," Alcantara said.
Alcantara described the situation in the area as "stable," adding
that at the moment, Chinese fishermen were no longer harvesting
endangered marine life such as giant clams and baby sharks.
"We won’t allow the Chinese to conquer our territory," Alcantara vowed.
Although the government has stressed that it will exhaust all
diplomatic channels to resolve the standoff, Alcantara said the military
is ready to perform its mandate.
"I can assure you that your armed forces are prepared and the
Philippine government is prepared. I think we can handle it on our own,"
Alcantara said.
"We are following a national strategy on this matter. The military is
just a small part but I can assure you that the armed forces are doing
its share to be part of the nationalist strategy. We are ready," he
added.
The military has readied contingency measures, including the possible redeployment of the BRP Gregorio del Pilar.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| April 24, 2012 | Article Link
No comments:
Post a Comment